Kachanivka Palace

Kachanivka was built in the 1770s and rebuilt in the nineteenth century by the Tarnowski family into an estate that worked as a cultural salon: Shevchenko, Repin, Gogol, Glinka and Vrubel all stayed and worked here, and Glinka composed part of Ruslan and Lyudmila on the estate. The house is a long neoclassical block with a portico, set in a landscape park of some five hundred hectares with lakes, an amphitheatre and an avenue of oaks.

Background

The estate lies beside the Smosh River, close to Petrushivka village in Pryluky Raion of Chernihiv Oblast. It was one of the country estates built by Pyotr Rumyantsev; the residence went up in the 1770s to Neoclassical designs by Karl Blank, while the orangery, the church, the water tower, an aviary and other outbuildings were added in the 19th century. After Nikolay Rumyantsev's death it passed to the Tarnovsky family, and Vasyl Tarnovsky gathered a collection of weapons once owned by Ukraine's hetmans. The house, its English park and outbuildings are exceptionally well preserved, and the estate has been a national cultural preserve since 1982.

Source: Wikipedia, "Kachanivka"

What you'll find

• The palace - a long neoclassical house with restored reception rooms.
• The park - five hundred hectares of landscape with lakes and avenues.
• The amphitheatre - a turf-cut open-air theatre in the grounds.
• The guest list - the writers, painters and composers who worked here.

When to go

April to October is the comfortable season, and the park is at its best in late spring and autumn. The museum closes on Mondays. Winter access is limited to the grounds.

Practical notes

Only part of the house is restored and furnished. The park is very large and much of it is unmanaged woodland. There is little accommodation nearby.

Nearby

Trostianets dendropark is nearby, and Baturyn is northeast.

Key facts