Russian architect P.S. Boitzov built many French-style medieval castle in the 19th century–but Muromtzevo Mansion is by far the most spectacular of them.
The legend of this odd castle begins in the 19th century, when a Russian nobleman traveling through France made aquaintance with a French lord. The two began to squabble over the superiority of each country, and after tiring of the lord extolling the ornate architecture of France, the Russian declared that he could erect a castle of equal magnificence in his own country. The Frenchman scoffed, and replied if he could build a castle as grandiose as the ones in France, he would come to Russia himself to see it.