STROLLING BY THE SEASIDE

There were two factors in the 19th century that made Baku one of the foremost cities not just in the Caucasus, but in the south of the Russian Empire in general: the beginning of the oil boom and its convenient situation for the development of maritime trade. It is not surprising that the construction of the city beyond the fortress wall began with the Embankment. Over time it became a kind of "facade" of the empire for foreign merchants sailing up to its borders.

Before the Embankment

According to the Report of the Main Directorate of the Governor of the Caucasus for 1872, the city was separated from the shore by a stone wall for a long period of time.  Protecting the city from shelling from the sea, it was quite a tall structure. The shore line itself was like a waste land, strewn with rubbish. Small wooden jetties, to which only rowing boats could moor, stretched towards the sea. Ships could not sail right up to the city because of the sandbanks, so goods and passengers had to be unloaded on to small boats before they could disembark.

There was only one stone jetty, and the water under it was only 10 feet (3 metres) deep. "Ships could not lie up by this jetty with the strong southerly winds." This was how the well-known meteorologist, Kozma Spasskiy-Avtonomov described this rather more poetically in 1851: "The waves of the bay first roar, then quietly splash beyond the fortress to the south. The narrow fringe of the shore, about five sazhens [just over 10 metres] in diameter, serves as a depot for the timber and coal brought by sea for the mail steamers and also as a wharf for the building of boats and medium-size seafaring vessels called Bakinki. Opposite the entrance to the Baku Quarantine and Customs Directorate stands the merchants' quay; this is where goods are loaded and unloaded, and in the southern corner of the outer wall there is another quay, the so-called Salyan quay, which is under the control of the Admiralty."

The first embankment

Construction of the first embankment began in 1865 under the instructions of Governor Mikhail Kolyubakin and it cost the lives of a number of people. The fortress wall, one-and-a-half times bigger and twice as thick as the one we see today, was completely demolished. The governor's instruction said: "Because of its ineffectiveness this wall is a hindrance to the free movement of air." The stones of the wall were sold for the grand total of 44,000 roubles (the monthly wage of 3,000 workers), and the proceeds used to build a new beautiful stone embankment and quay which ships could reach. "The homes built on the new coastline that was laid out on the 12-sazhens wide strip of land, along with the embankment, gave the city an attractive appearance from the sea," one official report of the time said. Construction of the embankment was completed two years later.

After it was constructed the embankment was divided between the right and left sides of the Maiden Tower. The side that ran in the direction of the Black City was called the Petrovskaya, and the opposite one - towards Bayil - was called the Aleksandrovskaya Embankment.  Here, as in other parts of the city, a vast amount of work was done by the celebrated architect, Qasim bay Hacibababayov, who was responsible for the engineering work and land planning and the construction of the quays (Stone and Customs and the Caucasus and Mercury [Steamship] Company). He was also the architect of many of the homes that run down to the boulevard. In some cases he selected the architects and personally made sure that they followed the general style.

Many splendid houses, belonging to the state and eminent businessmen, were built during this period. The oldest houses which, unfortunately, no longer stand were the Customs House (built in 1860) and the Governors House (1865-1867).

"Alexander II Embankment, built of stone like the Neva Embankment, with its parapet and broad pavement, is the place where most Bakuvians like to stroll," wrote the celebrated actor and dramatist Mikhail Vladykin in his book "Guide and Companion on a Journey to the Caucasus".

Rebuilding

The Petrovskaya and Aleksan-drovskaya Embankments were quite different in style. The former was broader and descended much closer to the water. At the end of the 19th century the Caspian began to recede, widening the coastal section in an irregular semi-circle, which also impacted on the whole arrangement. The boulevard became too "crooked" and ragged, which did not befit the image of a European city on the crossroads with Asia. It had a rather unfinished look about it.

It was only in 1897 that the city's administrative board carried out a study and concluded that "it would be very desirable both for free movement in general and with regard to the aesthetic beauty of the city" to make the standard width of the whole embankment 50 metres, and in the Petrovskaya Embankment area to separate the boulevard from the sandbanks with a stone barrier. Thus the boulevard became more even and "correct".

At the same time, the Petrovskaya Embankment began to develop away from the centre. The boulevard trebled in size in just three years - up to one-and-a-half kilometres. However, this part of the embankment was still not as well kept as the central (Aleksan-drovskaya). There were a lot of workers here, freight came in and there was a frequent odour of fish. No matter how much the authorities tried to improve this area, it remained pretty much an eyesore until the middle of the 1920s, when the Soviet authorities began moving the cargo ports to areas away from the centre.

In the 1890s the boulevard started to have electric lamps and magnificent fountains. In 1900 trees and shrubs were planted, and in 1909 it was widened and an extensive paved road was laid. Badminton courts - pastime for the aristocrats - also appeared. Many splendid photographs are still around, showing the boulevard, taken by the celebrated artist, director and businessman Aleksandr Mishon. The most important of his shops, where his camera club was situated on the upper floors, was situated here.

An important part in the development of the boulevard at the time was played by the head of the Baku municipal government, Mammad-Hasan Hacinski, later to become foreign minister of the ADR [Azerbaijan Democratic Republic]. It was under his leadership that the boulevard took its final shape, which remained unchanged even in Soviet times. Hacinski approached his work seriously - he announced a competition for the best project, which was not expensive, but effective. Originally, the plan was to build Greek-style bath houses on the boulevard - they would brighten up the coastline and bring in revenue. Finally, a cinema, which unfortunately, has not survived, together with several restaurants, were built as well. And all this cost the city just 18,000 roubles.

The boulevard later underwent serious changes. During Soviet times a parachute tower (which proved dangerous and a clock was later built on it) and a children's merry-go-round (later removed) were put up here. And it is only in recent times that the boulevard has been really transformed, enriched by new entertainments for all ages, beautiful flowers and fountains and new squares (New Boulevard).  But the basis of its appearance is still the immense work of Hacibababayov and Hacinski of over a century ago.