Johann Gottfried Schädel (, ) was a German

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

architect who worked in Russia and Ukraine. Schädel was born in 1680 in Wandesbek,

Duchy of Holstein The Duchy of Holstein (; ) was the northernmost state of the Holy Roman Empire, located in the present German state of Schleswig-Holstein. It originated when King Christian I of Denmark had his County of Holstein-Rendsburg elevated to a duchy ...

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

(now part of

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

). In 1713, Prince

Alexander Menshikov Alexander Menshikov may refer to: * Alexander Danilovich Menshikov (1673–1729), Russian statesman * Alexander Sergeyevich Menshikov (1787–1869), Finnish-Russian nobleman * Alexander Alexandrovich Menshikov Prince Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Mens ...

paid him 400

Reichsthaler The ''Reichsthaler'' (; modern spelling Reichstaler), or more specifically the ''Reichsthaler specie'', was a standard thaler silver coin introduced by the Holy Roman Empire in 1566 for use in all German states, minted in various versions for the ...

(384 rubles) to move to

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

with his family. After Menshikov's fall from grace, Schädel settled in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

where he worked in tandem with the Italian artist

Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli (; 1700 – 29 April 1771) was an Italian architect who worked mainly in Russia. He developed an easily recognizable style of Late Baroque, both sumptuous and majestic. His major works, including the Winter Palac ...

. In 1731, Schädel accepted an invitation from the Archbishop of Kyiv and moved to

Kyiv Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

, where he designed the great belltowers of

Kyiv Pechersk Lavra The Kyiv Pechersk Lavra or Kyievo-Pecherska Lavra (), also known as the Kyiv Monastery of the Caves, is a historic lavra or large monastery of Eastern Christianity that gave its name to the Pecherskyi District where it is located in Kyiv. Sin ...

and

Sophia Cathedral The Ascension Cathedral in the town of Sophia (now a part of Pushkin) in the vicinity of Saint Petersburg, was one of the first purely Palladian churches to be built in Russia. Rather paradoxically, it may also be defined as "the first example ...

, the

Klov Palace The Klov Palace () is the seat of the Supreme Court of Ukraine in Kyiv. The building takes its name from Klov, a neighbourhood of Pechersk, Kyiv, Pechersk District. The Baroque residence was constructed between 1752 and 1756 with funds provided ...

and other notable buildings which altered the city's skyline. Schädel received no new commissions after 1744 and died in Kyiv in poverty in 1752. In 1995, the Ukrainian film director Valentyn Sokolovsky created a documentary about Schädel for the

National Television Company of Ukraine National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ...

Notable buildings

Menshikov Palace The Menshikov Palace () is a Petrine Baroque edifice in Saint Petersburg, situated on Universitetskaya Embankment of the Bolshaya Neva on Vasilyevsky Island.It is not to be confused with the Menshikov Palace in Oranienbaum, Russia, built by th ...

Great Lavra Bell Tower The Great Lavra Bell Tower or the Great Belfry (, ) is the main bell tower of the ancient cave monastery of Kyiv Pechersk Lavra in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. It is one of the most notable buildings of the Kyiv skyline. The bell tower was the ...

External links

Johann Gottfried Schädel
at Ukraine, the History of Great Nation. {{DEFAULTSORT:Schädel, Johann Gottfried 1680 births 1752 deaths People from Wandsbek German Baroque architects Russian Baroque architects Architects from the Russian Empire Ukrainian Baroque architects Architects from Hamburg