This map of Saint Petersburg was published around 1718 by the German cartographer Johann Homann.
The title of the map, Topographical presentation of Russia's new capital and lakeside city of Saint Petersburg, denotes the map's intention, which is to publicise the new capital of the Russian Empire. Saint Petersburg was founded in 1703 and that same year became the capital of the Russian Empire until the fall of the tsars in 1918 and the subsequent transfer of the capital to Moscow during the Soviet Union.
The map clearly shows how important water was to the city from its origins, with Tsar Peter the Great wanting to bring Russia closer to the West through this window to the Baltic Sea. One of the first constructions was the citadel on Zayachy Island, shown in pink in the central part of the map, which sought to control the entrance to the Neva River, through whose mouth the city was built.
The tsars encouraged the creation of multiple canals, as can be seen in the southern part of the city, following the model of Amsterdam. The tsars also wanted the Neva River to serve as a main artery, similar to the Grand Canal in Venice, and therefore soon encouraged the creation of multiple bridges, although all of these were built after this map was published.
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