Nicholas II had the larger earlier palace demolished and replaced, and the architect Nikolay Krasnov prepared the plans around 1909. The earlier palace was built by Ippolito Monighetti in the 1860s. After 17 months of construction, the new palace was inaugurated on September 11, 1911. It has 116 rooms and is built of white Crimean limestone.
The style is Neo-Renaissance, and the article mentions an Arabic patio, an Italian patio, a Florentine tower and Bramantesque windows. The estate was granted to Lambros Katsonis and later belonged to the Potocki family. Alexander II frequented the residence, and Alexander III lived and died in the smaller palace.
The Yalta Conference was held here in February 1945, and Franklin D. Roosevelt and the American delegation stayed in the palace. The palace is now a museum, where recovered historical furnishings can be seen for a small fee.
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