Peter the Great, an Inspired Tsar

9 March – 13 September 2013

Now a hero, and now a sage,
building ships or sailing the seas,
his mind encompassed all his age,
and he worked from his throne without cease.
Aleksandr Poesjkin

An Inspired Tsar

Early in 2013, a year of celebration in Dutch-Russian relations, the Hermitage Amsterdam will present a major exhibition devoted to Peter the Great (1672–1725), the modernizer of Russia. The exhibition will paint a picture of this unconventional, inspired and inquisitive Russian tsar, who by the time he took power at the age of 17 was determined to transform his country. His achievements include reforming the military and the church, expanding trade and industry, and improving education and public health. He turned Russia into a great European power with a brand-new capital city: St Petersburg, his “window on the West.” With historical artefacts, paintings, gold jewellery from the ancient world, weapons and unique documents, the exhibition will sketch the life of this peerless ruler. From his youth Peter collected art, including a Rembrandt, planting the seed for St Petersburg’s later Hermitage collection. An enthusiastic traveller, he went two visits to Western Europe, including the Dutch Republic. It was the city of Amsterdam, in particular, that inspired him to found his new capital.

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Pieter van der Werff (1665-1722), Peter I, 1697-1700, Oil on canvas, 56 х 49,5 © State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg

Photo Evert Elzinga

Netherlands-Russia year

The year 2013 will reflect the special relationship between Russia and the Netherlands and Amsterdam. Russia and the Netherlands have been important trading partners since the Golden Age. Connections between the two countries strengthened over subsequent centuries. When Napoleon fell from power in 1813 and the Netherlands ceased to be a vassal state of France, the forces which advanced to the gates of Amsterdam to liberate the city were Russian Cossacks. A number of members of the House of Orange also married members of the imperial Romanov family or their descendants. The bonds between the Netherlands and Russia were crowned in 2009 by the opening of the Hermitage Amsterdam, the new satellite of St Petersburg´s famous museum in western Europe.

Exhibition Programme
Hermitage Amsterdam 2013-2014

David’s Farewell to Jonathan, Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn, 1642. Oil on panel (cradles). 73 x 61.5 cm © State Hermitage Museum St Petersburg

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