One of the most unusual monuments to the Emperor in Russia is the monument to Peter the Great in Tula. What is it famous for? The fact is that, according to the sculpture tradition in the Russian Empire, all representatives of the royal dynasty had to be portrayed as hero warriors, that is, in a solemn and proud manner. It was only in the City of Craftsmen that the Peter the Great was depicted as the Tsar Blacksmith.
Thanks to Peter I, many talented young men who knew blacksmithing were sent to Tula from all over Russia in 1711. By 1712, the economic part of the new arms plant had been assessed. Advanced equipment was then delivered in and a decree was issued to begin the production of 15,000 fusia guns a year.
The monument to Peter I was opened on February 14, 1912 in honor of the 200th anniversary of the Tula Arms Plant. Robert Bach was the project sculptor. The monument was built with money the plant workers donated. This was how the Tula craftsmen thanked their Emperor, who founded a plant in 1712 to forge the glory of Russian weapons for 200 years to come. Many today's workers and employees of the Tula Arms Plant can say that their grandfathers and great-grandfathers worked there too.
Initially, the Monument to Peter I was erected opposite the Kazan embankment with its back to the Kremlin. In the 1930s, it was moved to the checkpoints of the plant at Sovetskaya St., 1A. Now a 3-meter giant with a hammer in his hand looks at the Tula Museum of Weapons, the Rotunda and the Upa River that runs away from the city.
Everyone who walks along the Kazanskaya embankment or Metallistov Street should visit the Monument to Peter the Great and take some memorable photos. The over 100 years old monument to the Russian Emperor is not at all common!
