Betsky House is located on the Palace Embankment - interesting monument of Russian architecture of the 18th century. It stands in the area between the Palace Embankment and the Field of Mars, Summer Garden and Suvorov Square.

In the early 18th century on the site housed the regimental barracks. In 1725, according to the atlas Meyer in 1725 there was a swimming pool, and in 1731 - guardroom. And in 1750 the architect FB Rastrelli were built opera house (a two-storey wooden building), which stood until 1773 here in 1755 gave the first Russian opera "Cephalus and Procris" AP Sumarokov. At the end of the 18th century. (1784-1787 gg.) At this place on the orders of Catherine II was erected to house Ivan Betsky.

Name II Betsky known for his role in laying the fundamentals of education in Russia. He - the author of the reform of school education, was the director Gentry Infantry Corps, as well as president of the Academy of Arts. Betskoi AA He brought the Grand Duke Constantine and Alexander Pavlovich.

Ivan moved into a house on Palace Embankment in 1789. Most house Betsky also called the palace, as if his rather modest interiors outside, he looked much richer than most of the houses, and the building was part of a hanging garden. The building consisted of: from the Tsaritsyn meadow - of the two-storey building, from the Neva - from the three-story. Cases were connected to each other from the Summer Garden cloister, as well as single-storey outbuilding.

The author of the architectural design of the building is still unknown. There is a theory that the building was designed by Vallin de la Mothe. The basis of this hypothesis is that the facades are made in the early classical style. According to another version the author of the project is an old IE, which is in 1784. was invited to the post of chief architect led Betsky Offices building houses.

The owner of the palace balls and masquerades are not satisfied, he had a significant collection of works of art. In this house there were such famous people like Denis Diderot, the King of Poland, Stanislaw August. There were conducted in the evening for students of educational institutions subordinate Betsky.

Many of the rooms were rented mansion. The house Betsky in the 1791-96 biennium. Ivan A. Krylov lived. Here he opened a printing house, where he published magazines "St. Petersburg Mercury" and "spectator".

When II Betsky died in 1795, the house became the master of his daughter Elena, and in 1822, the house became the property of her daughters. In 1830 the house Betsky repurchased treasury and handed the Prince PG Oldenburg. Then the building was rebuilt by architect VP Stasov At the site of the Hanging Gardens was built on floors of a dance hall. In addition, there has been arranged a Protestant chapel. In 1850 it held a regular reconstruction of the mansion, bringing its height was the same from all sides.

Peter G. Oldenburg has been known in the educational field. They were founded Law School, women's gymnasium, several public schools. Prince as a lawyer involved in the judicial and peasant reforms of the 1860s. The house Oldenburg regularly held musical evenings, and then held in the Campus Martius parades are going to co-workers and other officers of the prince.

In 1917, the son of Peter G. sold the house to the Provisional Government, who passed it to the Ministry of Education. The works of art were transferred to the Hermitage. After the revolution, there were communal apartments.

Currently, the house belongs to Betsky university culture. The building is connected to the home Saltykov, which also belongs to the university.