Amusement Palace

The Amusement Palace, located near the Kremlin Wall, between the Komendantskaya and Troitskaya Towers, is the only surviving example of the boyar’s dwelling in the Kremlin. It was built in 1652 for the nobleman N.D. Miloslavsky, the father-in-law of the Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. The Amusement Palace complex includes the three-story brick mansion with outbuildings, deep cellars, pretty church and potted garden. The boyar Miloslavsky spent 16 years there. After his death the house was given to the Treasury but from 1679 it was converted into a theater. Various kinds of an amusements and entertainment for the royal family were arranged there. Hence the name – the Amusement Palace. In the 19th century some new structures were added: the balcony from the part of the Kremlin wall and the magnificent carved white stone portal with a half-columns from the street. They changed the look of the Amusement Palace in great extent. However, the main part of the palace has been preserved to this day. The upper tier of the Amusement Palace forms the terem (tower) with Byzantine arches. Much earlier there stood a house church. Above the refectory you will find a small tower on four pillars. It was used as a bell tower and a lookout place.