The predecessors of Young Pioneer Palaces were established during the 1920s and 1930s in Moscow and later in Leningrad, Sverdlovsk, Tbilisi, Kyiv, Irkutsk and other cities and towns of the Soviet Union.The early ones were organized at re-equipped palaces and personal residences of aristocrats of the Russian Empire, and were nationalized shortly after Soviet power was established in 1922.Educational work at the Palaces was designed to cultivate children's interests in labour, knowledge, development of creative abilities, professional orientation, and amateur talent activities.One of the main stated principles of educational work in hobby groups was: "Having been taught, now teach your comrade".[4] After the breakup of the Soviet Union, most of the Young Pioneer Palaces were transformed simply into centers for children and youth as part of the decommunization, others were closed, while in the Russian Federation some became strip clubs or casinos.