Petrovskaya Embankment - the very first street in St. Petersburg. In 1703, a small wooden palace was built here for Peter I – the first residential building in the city. In the mid-18th century, the embankment was called Embankment Line. On May 9, 1903, it was named Emperor Peter the Great Embankment in honor of Peter I. During the Great Patriotic War, granite blocks were removed from Petrovskaya Embankment approximately every 20 meters. In their place, firing points were created to repel the attacks of Nazi troops