This was the main political prison of Tsarist Russia which was built in 1872, and prior to this political prisoners (including the son of Peter the Great, Princess Tarakanova, and the Decembrists) were held in various locations on the island. To isolate the prisoners, architects designed a two-storey, pentagonal building with 72 individual cells placed in a circle. The cells were measured out by 10 steps diagonally, and 6 steps long. Wallpaper, iron bed, table, toilet, wash basin, kerosene lamp, pea soup–almost VIP conditions, so long as you ignore the constant dark, wet walls and dampness, and the terrible and harsh punishments for offenders. It some cases were recorded 8000 lashes, or 400 blows and weeks of solitary confinement and only water and bread of sustenance. After 1917, as you can imagine, the cells held different guests. Some famous inhabitants of this prison are Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Maxim Gorky, Leon Trotsky, and Lenin’s brother.
