In the Petrine era, what is Germany today was comprised of several dozens of principalities. Peter I visited these lands several times: in the period of the Grand Embassy (1697-1698), during the Great Northern War (1711-1713), and as part of his Second Voyage to Europe (1716-1717).
Peter I established a tradition of close Russian-German dynastic ties, which has continued for two centuries. During the Petrine era, the German language prevailed in Russia. Books, tools, military hardware, and pieces of art were bought for Russia in Germany. The Globe of Gottorf and the Amber Room were given to Peter as diplomatic gifts.
In Germany, Peter met with Gottfried Leibniz and invited many German scientists to Russia. German architects and engineers have greatly contributed to the construction of Saint Petersburg. Thousands of Germans, such as merchants, artisans, architects, builders, scientists and the military, came to live in Russia. German settlements existed in Moscow, Arkhangelsk and St. Petersburg.
Various cities in Germany have monuments and memorial plaques dedicated to Peter the Great and are preserving a lot of memorial sites visited by him.
Berlin is an important “Petrine” site. Some of the historic towns visited by Tsar Peter, such as Charlottenburg, Köpenick and Schönhausen, are now districts of Greater Berlin.
Other towns in Germany that remember Peter the Great include Bad Pyrmont, Lutherstadt Wittenberg, Dresden, Coppenbrügge, Leipzig, Torgau, Friedrichstadt, Havelberg, Schwerin, and Schleswig with its Gottorf Castle (Schloß Gottorf).