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Saint Petersburg was founded by Czar Peter the Great on May 27, 1703. It is located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland. Peter, who wished to learn from western Europe, envisioned it as his "window on the west." In 1712 Peter moved the capital of Russia from Moscow to his new city. Peter the Great died in 1725 and three years later Peter II moved the capital back to Moscow for four years until Anna returned it to Saint Petersburg where it remained until the Revolution of 1917. The earliest buildings in the city were built in Baroque and Neoclassical architectural styles. In 1914 the name of the city was changed to Petrograd and, after 1917, to Leningrad. In 1918, the capital was again moved back to Moscow where it has remained ever since. During WWII Leningrad was besieged by the German Army for two and a half years. During the siege hundreds of thousands of the citizens of the city died of starvation. In 1991, following a city-wide referendum, the name of the city was changed back to Saint Petersburg. UNESCO lists Saint Petersburg as a World Heritage Site.
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