It is situated on the top of a cliff looking out upon the Baltic Sea. This was Peter the Great’s summer residence and was badly destroyed during the World War II by the Nazis. After the destruction, the rise of the new Peterhof palace took place and the grandeur of the buildings and the grounds were restored, the water fountains became the essence of the place. Millions of tourists all over the world come to visit the magnificent site of the palaces and grounds of Peterhof, a World Heritage Site together with the entire St. Petersburg.

The reign of Peter the Great is the start of Peterhof's history. The Tsar regularly traveled from Saint Petersburg to Kronshtadt to oversee the construction works. In order he could rest during the long and tiresome trip, several wooden houses were built on the place where Peterhof would later appear.

The sea floor at the northern part of the Peterhof site and to the east toward St. Petersburg was too shallow for either commercial ships or warships. However, to the west of Peterhof, the sea floor dropped off to be deep enough for sea-going vessels and makes the islands south and west of the city a better place to catch a ship to Europe and other points west.

In 1705, the site was chosen to be where Peterhof would rise and in 1714 Peter the Great conceived the creation of a splendid official royal summer residence that would in its splendor overcome French Versal. The Emperor himself took part in the design and construction of the palace - numerous drafts, working drawings with the marks and notes of the tsar have preserved till nowadays witnessing that Peter the Great worked not only on the general layout of the ensemble but created smallest details of the architectural constructions and outdoor water fountains.

Improvements to the park continued throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. After Catherine the Great, left her own mark on the park, she moved the court to Pushkin, but Peterhof once again became the official Imperial Residence in the reign of Nicholas I, who ordered the building of the modest Cottage Palace in 1826.

St. Petersburg's suburban estates and Peterhof was ravaged by German troops during the World War II. After the reconstruction, everything was restored including the magnificent buildings and the grounds with water fountains. The Germanic name Peterhof was changed to Petrodvorets, to make it sound more Russian like.