Alexandrowka

The Russian Colony Alexandrowka in northern Potsdam stands as one of the most singular settlement ensembles of early 19th-century Europe. King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia commissioned it in 1826 for the twelve surviving members of a Russian soldiers' choir — the original group of 62 had been reduced by the Napoleonic Wars and homesickness to a small remnant. Thirteen log-built houses decorated with intricate carved woodwork are arranged along a Russian village street plan, framed by orchards and a sight line rising to the Alexander Nevsky Memorial Church on the hill above. The colony has been part of Potsdam's UNESCO World Heritage ensemble since 1999. Several houses remain inhabited and in near-original condition; one serves as a museum documenting the lives of the choir community who spent their days in Prussian exile.