PHOTO: the former Italian Corridor or Sofa Room of Nicholas II in the Livadia Palace

On 23rd June 2026, the former Italian Corridor of Emperor Nicholas II in the Livadia Palace, welcomed visitors to visitors for the first time in 15 years. The opening of this interior is part of the museum’s plans to expand and develop the former rooms of the Imperial Family in their Crimean residence.

Also known as the ‘Sofa Room’, this unique space was designed by the famous architect Nikolai Petrovich Krasnov (1864-1939). The Italian Corridor was part of the ceremonial rooms of the palace, connecting the Vestibuke with Nicholas II’s Billiard Room. The Tsar sometimes used this interior as a smoking room, although he preferred to smoke in the open air.

PHOTO: the former Italian Corridor or Sofa Room of Nicholas II in the Livadia Palace

During the Yalta Conference (4–11 February 1945), the Italian Corridor was used as the dining room of US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945).

The door connecting the Italian Corridor with the Billiard Room is delicately disguised in chestnut wood panels that line the room from ceiling to floor. Visitors to the palace in the early 20th century, often referred to it as the “Chamber of Secrets”

PHOTO: former Billiard Room of Nicholas II in the Livadia Palace

© Paul Gilbert. 25 June 2026

PHOTO: aerial view of the Livadia Palace and Park, Crimea

The Director of the Livadia Palace Museum Larysa Kovalchuk recently announced plans for a large-scale restoration of the Livadia Palace and Park.

“Today we have three main tasks: the renovation of the park, restoration of the palace and the redevelopment of existing exhibition space”, said the museum’s director.

“Each direction is a separate epic with its own challenges and discoveries. The renovation of the 37 hectare [91 acres] Livadia Park is a project which will involve at least five years of work. The situation with landslides is very difficult, and will require some serious engineering investments,” she added.

“In addition, more than 60 small architectural forms – gazebos, fountains, retaining walls – need to be restored. Sadly, some fountains are completely lost, but there are historic photos in our archives that will allow us to recreate them.”

Re-exposition will prove to be is the most challenging project. In 2025, an all-Russian competition for a new concept was announced. Fourteen firms from all over the country presented their projects, divided into two lots: the re-exposition of the existing historic interiors and the creation of a new museum site like New Chersonesos – situated near Sevastopol.

PHOTO: Director of the Livadia Palace Museum Larysa Kovalchuk,
standing in the Italian Courtyard of the Livadia Palace

“We are still more in favour of the museum remaining a memorial museum. After considering all the proposals, a competent panel of experts with the participation of the Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation and representatives of leading Russian museums came to a consensus: the Livadia Palace should remain a historic memorial museum,” Kovalchuk firmly declares.

Here are some statistics: the number of visitors’ to Livadia Palace increased from 260,000 in 2023 to 385,000 in 2025, with 49% who are interested in the Yalta Conference, and 51% are interested in the Romanovs in Livadia.

“These statistics are very interesting,” said the director – “they clearly indicated that both the Yalta Conference (February 1945) and the Romanovs in Crimea are what interest visitors to the Livadia Palace the most. Therefore, we will not change that, but let’s delve further into both,” she added.

The plan for the restoration of the interiors has been worked out in detail. The museum wants to recreate the original interiors of the palace so that future generations can see how the last Russian Tsar and his family lived, during their stays in Crimea from 1911 to 1914.

Recall that Nicholas II and his family visited Livadia in the autumn of 1911 and 1913 and in the spring of 1912 and 1914, where they took up residence for several months at a time.

PHOTO: Emperor Nichiolas II’s Study at Livadia Palace. as it looks today

The story of the return of furniture and other items to Livadia is interesting, one which reads like a detective novel.

After the 1917 Revolution, the Imperial residences were all nationalized, the furniture in the Livadia Palace was considered “of no use”, it was then “written off” and sold through commission stores. Livadia Palace officials believe that even today, some residents of Yalta may have pieces of furniture from the palace in their homes.

It is interesting to note, that the Maly [Small] Palace at Livadia survived until the Great Patriotic War (1941-45), it was looted and destroyed by the Nazis, following their retreat from Crimea.

The museum issued an appeal through the media offering to buyback items which belonged to Nicholas II and members of his family from the Livadia Palace. The call did not go unanswered . . .

A pair of vases were recently returnd to Livadia Palace. They had been in the possession of a Yalta family, who from generation to generation, the vases were passed down. As it turned out, the vases came from from Empress Alexandra’s Boudoir at Livadia. The museum staff began to look for confirmation of this and discovered a photo of the boudoir, where the vases are in their places. After 95 years, they have now been returned to their historic place.

Another exhibit a kitchen cabinet from the Small Dining Room marked “Grand Palace, Livadia”, has also been returned, discovered in a local warehouse.

The Livadia Palace is currently preparing an exhibit for the 130th anniversary of the Holy Coronation of Emperor Nicholas II, the 170th anniversary of the Coronation of Emperor Alexander II and the 115th anniversary of the completion of the construction of the palace.

FURTHER READING

Nicholas II’s study in Livadia Palace to be recreated + PHOTOS

Livadia Palace marks 100th anniversary as a museum + PHOTOS

Act of historical justice: restored bust of Nicholas II returned to Livadia + PHOTOS

FDR wanted to buy Livadia Palace in final days of WWII + PHOTOS

© Paul Gilbert. 14 April 2026

PHOTO: the Emperor’s Study in Livadia Palace, as it looks today

According to Natella Sheremeteva, one of the founders of the Foundation for the Preservation of Historical Cultural Heritage, the Study of Emperor Nicholas II in the Livadia Palace, Crimea will be recreated in 2025.

“The Foundation’s projects will provide close cooperation with Crimean museums. The expositions of the Crimean palace-museums should be improved and replenished with antiques from private collections. Assistance in this will be provided by the Foundation . . . One of the immediate priorities is to assist the Livadia Palace in recreating the Study of Emperor Nicholas II”, she said during a cultural event held in Yalta over the weekend.

Sheremeteva, who is also curator of the Antique Art Gallery, added: “We have been operating for more than 20 years. We are quite well known and respected in St. Petersburg. This year, a decision was made to relocate to Yalta, our services are needed here more.”

“In 2025 we will begin to recreate the historic interior of the Study of Emperor Nicholas II in the Livadia Palace,” said Sheremeteva.

In turn, Alexander Balinchenko, Director of the Alupka Palace and Park Museum, who was present at the event, thanked the Foundation for the Preservation of Historical Cultural Heritage, for its philanthropic activities and wished fruitful cooperation: “This is a very important event for all of us!”

It is not clear if the furniture will be recreated for the Emperor’s Study, as was done with the New Study and Working Study of Nicholas II in the Alexander Palace at Tsarskoye Selo. It is important to note that the desk which is currently on display in this interior is not the original, it is merely a replacement. The cost to recreate furniture for this interior would be costly, and only possible with the financial assistance of a large Russian corporation of wealthy oligarch.

PHOTO: the Emperor’s Study in Livadia Palace, as it looks today

In 1913, the unique carpet – seen on above photo – was gifted by Ahmad Shah Qajar Shah of Persia to the family of Emperor Nicholas II on the occasion of the celebration of the 300th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty. After the Revolution, the carpet among other items came into the possession of *Baron Eduard von Falz-Fein.

After the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, von Falz-Fein dedicated a significant part of his life to the return of historical and cultural monuments to Russia, including the priceless carpet, which he gifted to Livadia Palace, where it remains on display to this day. It is one of the few original items from the Study of Emperor Nicholas II to have survived to the present day.

*Baron Eduard Oleg Alexandrowitsch von Falz-Fein (14 September 1912 – 17 November 2018) was born in Imperial Russia, and fled with his parent to Germany in 1918. He lived for most of his life in Liechtenstein, where he became a successful athlete, businessman and philanthropist. It is interesting to note that Falz-Fein funded much of the research on the identification of the Romanov family remains. He died in Vaduz on 17 November 2018, at the age of 106!

History of the Studay of Emperor Nicholas II in Livadia Palace

One of the most beautiful interiors of the Livadia Palace was the Emperor’s Study, which was located on the second floor. In 1911, Nicholas II wrote in his diary: “I am delighted with my upper study.”

Despite his abscence from the northern capital, the Emperor faithfully carried out his duties during his stays in Crimea. Couriers arrived by train from St. Petersburg, with “piles of papers and documents”, which were delivered to the imperial residence at Livadia. Nicholas II diligently read the documents, often writing notes and signed them in his Study daily. He regularly met with officials (ambassadors, political and state figures), whom Nicholas II received, always in uniform.

PHOTOS: the Study of Emperor Nicholas II in Livadia Palace as it looked in 1912-1914

The furniture and the wall panels with shelves in the Emperor’s Study were made by the craftsmen of the F.F. Tarasov Furniture Factory in St. Petersburg and the K.V. Zibrecht Factory in Moscow.

The furniture was made from ash wood with baitsovka in a dark greenish-brown tone. They were complemented with green Moroccan leather chairs and armchairs, embossed with the image of the iris flower in the Art Nouveau style.

The furniture was composed in such a way that the natural light, which flooded the spacious interior, gave the impression that the Emperor’s Study was divided into two parts – a working part, a business one, facing the windows of the bay window, and a corner part, in which Nicholas would relax while smoking a cigarette in front of a massive fireplace made of gray-green diorite.

While the original wall panels and fireplace have survived, none of the furniture – including the Emperor’s desk – has not survived to the present day. On 30th April, 1918, German troops entered Livadia and immediately began to plunder the palace. Any remaining items of furniture and decoration were transferred to other museums. Livadia Palace then became a sanitorium. In 1993 the Livadia Palace received the status of a museum.

© Paul Gilbert. 29 December 2024

Emperor Nicholas II was all very fond of his residence in Livadia, a magnificent white limestone palace perched on a ledge overlooking the Black Sea on the southern coast of Crimea.

The old Large wooden palace[1] was demolished to make way for the new Imperial Residence. Construction on the new palace began on 21st January 1910, and after only 17 months, was inaugurated on 11th September 1911. The Tsar spent about 4 million gold rubles – from his own funds – to finance it’s construction. The palace had 116 rooms, with interiors furnished in different styles, and surrounded by beautifully landscaped gardens.

The Imperial Family stayed in the new Livadia Palace in the autumn of 1911 and 1913 and in the spring of 1912 and 1914, their visits lasting months at a time.

But, is it true that Nicholas II wanted to move the capital of the Russian Empire to Yalta?

PHOTO: Northern facade of the Livadia Palace
Watercolour by Nikolay Petrovich Krasnov (1864-1939)

A diplomat, a Russian general, Alexander Mossolov[2], wrote in his diary, noting a conversation he had had with the Emperor, who told him about his idea of ​​transferring the capital from rainy St. Petersburg to sunny Crimea.

According to Mossolov, while returning from Uchan-Su[3] along a path high above the highway with a beautiful view of Yalta, the Emperor noted that he was tied to the southern coast of Crimea and did not want to leave. And when Mossolov inquired whether the Emperor would have liked to transfer the capital to Yalta, Nicholas II replied: “This idea has flashed through my mind more than once.”

True, after a few minutes the Emperor admitted that it was impossible to do this.

“And if it were the capital, I probably would have stopped loving this place.” Some dreams, the diplomat quoted the emperor.

***

Any one who has ever visited Livadia, and stood at the windows on the balconies admiring the magnificent views of both the mountains behind and the Black Sea in front, can appreciate why this place was so loved by the Imperial Family.

Following the Tsar’s abdication in February 1917, the Imperial Family were held under house arrest in the Alexander Palace at Tsarskoye Selo, until the end of July. It was the decision of the Head of the new Provisional Goverment Alexander Kerensky who decided to send the Imperial Family into exile. Nicholas hoped that they would be allowed to settle in Livadia, where they would be far removed from the capital, however, Kerensky had other plans – he sent them to Tobolsk in Siberia.

Sadly, the Imperial Family’s “peace” would have been short lived. During the First World War, Crimea was occupied by German forces. On 30th April 1918, German troops entered Livadia, and immediately began to plunder the palace, many of its artefacts lost forever. The Imperial Family would have been forced to flee or be captured by the enemy.

NOTES:

[1] The Large or Grand Imperial Palace was constructed between 1862-66 by the famous Russian architect Ippolit Antonovich Monighetti (1819-1878) for Emperor Alexaander II, his wife Empress Maria Alexandrovna and their children. Emperor Nicholas II and his family resided in the nearby Small or Maly Palace (where Nicholas’s father Emperor Alexander III died on 2nd November (O.S. 20th October) 1894). from 1894 until 1911. The

[2] Lieutenant-General Alexander Alexandrovich Mossolov (1854-1939) served as Head of the Office of the Ministry of the Imperial Court. He was one of the few people of who remained faithful to Nicholas II. Mossolov is the author of ‘At the Court of the Last Tsar.’ The English language edition was published in 1935, the content of which is somewhat different from the Russian version.

[3] Uchan-Su is the highest (98 metres /322 ft) waterfall in Crimea, situated 7 km from Yalta, on the southern slopes of the Crimean Mountains.

© Paul Gilbert. 3 August 2024