The rule was that the facades of the houses were built fronting the streets and canals, so the city's buildings were very orderly. Many new architectural structures were erected at that time: St. Nicholas Naval Cathedral, Smolny Convent, the Winter Palace (it was built at the behest of Tsarina Elizabeth, the younger daughter of Peter I, modeled on the French Versailles. Empress Catherine II, known as Catherine the Great, was the first to reside there), which is the main building of the Hermitage Museum, the Marble Palace, the Tauride Palace and others.
