Aline Arnot

 The city was established by the Tsar Peter the Great in 1703 on the site of a Swedish fortress. It was named after the saintly apostle Saint Peter. In Russia, Saint Petersburg is both culturally and historically linked to the founding of the Russian Empire and Russia's entry into the world of modern times as a European great power. It was the capital city for the Tsardom of Russia as well as the later Russian Empire, from 1713 until 1918 (being replaced by Moscow for a brief period of time between 1728 and 1730). After the October Revolution in 1917, the Bolsheviks moved their government to Moscow. As Russia's cultural center, Saint Petersburg received over 15 million visitors in the year 2018. It is considered to be an important scientific, economic, and tourism centre of Russia as well as Europe. In recent times, the city has been referred to as "the Northern Capital of Russia" and hosts notable federal government bodies like the Constitutional Court of Russia and the Heraldic Council of the President of the Russian Federation. It also serves as a home for the National Library of Russia and it is a proposed location for the Supreme Court of Russia, and also the home to the headquarters of the Russian Navy, and the Western Military District of the Russian Armed Forces. The Historic Centre of Saint Petersburg and Related Groups of Monuments constitute a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Saint Petersburg is home of the Hermitage that is one of the largest art museums in the globe and also the Lakhta Center (the tallest building in Europe) and the Hermitage. It was also one of the cities to host to the 2018 FIFA World Cup.