Tauride Palace was built for Prince Grigory Potemkin, Catherine the Great's favourite and one of the most powerful figures of imperial Russia. Its severe classical lines are a contrast to the more ornate palaces many visitors associate with St Petersburg.
The palace has had a long political afterlife, including use by the early 20th-century State Duma. Access to the interior can be limited, so treat it mainly as an architectural and historical stop around the Tauride Garden area.