Alexander Ivanovich Herzen - Russian revolutionary, writer, philosopher.
The illegitimate son of a wealthy Russian landowner I. Yakovlev and a young German bourgeois woman Louise Haag from Stuttgart. Received the fictitious surname Herzen - son of the heart (from German Herz).
He was brought up in Yakovlev's house, received a good education, became acquainted with the works of French educators, and read the forbidden poems of Pushkin and Ryleev. Herzen was deeply influenced by his friendship with his talented peer, the future poet N.P. Ogarev, which lasted throughout their lives. According to his memoirs, the news of the Decembrist uprising made a strong impression on the boys (Herzen was 13, Ogarev was 12 years old). Under his impression, their first, still vague dreams of revolutionary activity arise; During a walk on the Sparrow Hills, the boys vowed to fight for freedom.
In 1829, Herzen entered the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics of Moscow University, where he soon formed a group of progressively thinking students. His attempts to present his own vision of the social order date back to this time. Already in his first articles, Herzen showed himself not only as a philosopher, but also as a brilliant writer.
Already in 1829-1830, Herzen wrote a philosophical article about Wallenstein by F. Schiller. During this youthful period of Herzen’s life, his ideal was Karl Moor, the hero of F. Schiller’s tragedy “The Robbers” (1782).
In 1833, Herzen graduated from the university with a silver medal. In 1834, he was arrested for allegedly singing songs discrediting the royal family in the company of friends. In 1835, he was sent first to Perm, then to Vyatka, where he was assigned to serve in the governor’s office. For organizing an exhibition of local works and the explanations given to the heir (the future Alexander II) during its inspection, Herzen, at the request of Zhukovsky, was transferred to serve as an adviser to the board in Vladimir, where he got married, having secretly taken his bride from Moscow, and where he spent the happiest and bright days of your life.
In 1840, Herzen was allowed to return to Moscow. Turning to literary prose, Herzen wrote the novel “Who is to Blame?” (1847), the stories “Doctor Krupov” (1847) and “The Thieving Magpie” (1848), in which he considered his main goal to expose Russian slavery.
In 1847, Herzen and his family left Russia, going to Europe. Observing the life of Western countries, he interspersed personal impressions with historical and philosophical research (Letters from France and Italy, 1847–1852; From the Other Shore, 1847–1850, etc.)
In 1850–1852, a series of Herzen’s personal dramas took place: the death of his mother and youngest son in a shipwreck, the death of his wife from childbirth. In 1852, Herzen settled in London.
By this time he was perceived as the first figure of the Russian emigration. Together with Ogarev, he began to publish revolutionary publications - the almanac "Polar Star" (1855-1868) and the newspaper "Bell" (1857-1867), the influence of which on the revolutionary movement in Russia was enormous. But his main creation of the emigrant years is “The Past and Thoughts.”
“The Past and Thoughts” by genre is a synthesis of memoirs, journalism, literary portraits, autobiographical novel, historical chronicle, and short stories. The author himself called this book a confession, “about which stopped thoughts from thoughts were collected here and there.” The first five parts describe Herzen's life from childhood until the events of 1850–1852, when the author suffered difficult mental trials associated with the collapse of his family. The sixth part, as a continuation of the first five, is devoted to life in England. The seventh and eighth parts, even more free in chronology and theme, reflect the life and thoughts of the author in the 1860s.
All other works and articles by Herzen, such as “The Old World and Russia”, “Le peuple Russe et le socialisme”, “Ends and Beginnings”, etc. represent a simple development of ideas and sentiments that were fully defined in the period 1847-1852 years in the works mentioned above.
In 1865, Herzen left England and went on a long trip to Europe. At this time he distanced himself from the revolutionaries, especially from the Russian radicals. Arguing with Bakunin, who called for the destruction of the state, Herzen wrote: “People cannot be liberated in external life more than they are liberated internally.” These words are perceived as Herzen’s spiritual testament.
Like most Russian Westernized radicals, Herzen went through a period of deep fascination with Hegelianism in his spiritual development. Hegel's influence can be clearly seen in the series of articles “Amateurism in Science” (1842–1843). Their pathos lies in the approval and interpretation of Hegelian dialectics as an instrument of knowledge and revolutionary transformation of the world (“algebra of revolution”). Herzen severely condemned abstract idealism in philosophy and science for its isolation from real life, for “apriorism” and “spiritism.”
These ideas were further developed in Herzen’s main philosophical work, “Letters on the Study of Nature” (1845–1846). Continuing his criticism of philosophical idealism, Herzen defined nature as “the genealogy of thinking,” and saw only an illusion in the idea of pure being. For a materialistically minded thinker, nature is an ever-living, “fermenting substance”, primary in relation to the dialectics of knowledge. In the Letters, Herzen, quite in the spirit of Hegelianism, substantiated consistent historiocentrism: “neither humanity nor nature can be understood without historical existence,” and in understanding the meaning of history he adhered to the principles of historical determinism. However, in the thoughts of the late Herzen, the old progressivism gives way to much more pessimistic and critical assessments.
On January 21, 1870, Alexander Ivanovich Herzen died. He was buried in the Père Lachaise cemetery. His ashes were later transported to Nice and buried next to his wife's grave.
Bibliography
1846 - Who is to blame?
1846 - Passing by
1847 - Doctor Krupov
1848 - Thieving Magpie
1851 - Damaged
1864 - Tragedy over a glass of grog
1868 - Past and thoughts
1869 - For the sake of boredom
Film adaptations
1920 - Thieving Magpie
1958 - Thieving Magpie
Interesting Facts
Elizaveta Herzen, the 17-year-old daughter of A.I. Herzen and N.A. Tuchkova-Ogareva, committed suicide because of unrequited love for a 44-year-old Frenchman in Florence in December 1875. The suicide had a resonance; Dostoevsky wrote about it in his essay “Two Suicides.”
Herzen A.I. - biography Herzen A.I. - biography
Herzen Alexander Ivanovich (pseudonym Iskander) (1812 - 1870)
Herzen A.I.
Biography
Russian politician, writer, philosopher, publicist. Born on April 6 (old style - March 25) 1812 in Moscow. Illegitimate son of a noble Russian master I.A. Yakovlev and the German woman Louise Haag, whom Yakovlev, returning after many years of traveling around Europe, took with him to Moscow. Yakovlev gave the child the surname Herzen (from the German word “Herz” - heart). The boy's first years were sad and lonely. He learned German from his mother, and French from conversations with his father and tutors. Yakovlev had a rich library, consisting almost exclusively of works by French writers of the 18th century, and the boy rummaged through it quite freely. The events of December 14, 1825 determined the direction of Herzen’s aspirations and sympathies. In 1833 Herzen graduated from the university with a candidate's degree and a silver medal. While still at the university, he became acquainted with the teachings of the Saint-Simonists. A year after completing the course, Herzen and his friend Ogarev were arrested. The reason for the arrest was the very fact of the existence of “non-employees” in Moscow, young people who were always talking about something, worried and fuming, and the reason was a student party at which a song containing “impudent censure” was sung, and a bust of Emperor Nicholas was smashed Pavlovich. The inquiry found that Sokolovsky composed the song, Ogarev knew Sokolovsky, Herzen was friends with Ogarev, and although neither Herzen nor Ogarev were even at the party, nevertheless, on the basis of “indirect evidence” regarding their “way of thinking,” they were involved in the case of “a failed conspiracy of young people devoted to the teachings of Saint-Simonism, which failed due to arrest.” Herzen spent nine months in prison, after which, in his words, “they read to us, like a bad joke, a sentence of death, and then they announced that, driven by the inadmissible kindness so characteristic of him, the emperor ordered only a corrective measure to be applied to us, in the form of a link." The conditions of Russian life pressed Herzen terribly; Meanwhile, Ogarev was already abroad and from there he wrote to his friend: “Herzen! But you can’t live at home. I’m convinced that it’s impossible. A person who is alien to his family is obliged to break with his family.” In 1847 he finally arrived in Paris, then in Geneva, and lived in Italy. After the appearance of “Letters from France and Italy,” Herzen’s famous work “From the Other Shore” (originally also in German: “Von andern Ufer”) also appeared in print. Having buried his wife in Nice, Herzen moved to London, where he installed the first press of the free Russian press, on which the magazines “Polar Star” and “Bell” were printed, the first issue of which was published on July 1, 1857. “Bell” continued to be published until 1867. The last period of his life Herzen was for him a time of isolation from Russia and loneliness. The “fathers” recoiled from him for his “radicalism,” and the “children” for his “moderation.” He died on January 21 (old style - 9) 1870 in Paris. Herzen was buried first in the Pere Lachaise cemetery, and then his ashes were transported to Nice, where he rests to this day. Above the grave stands a beautiful monument depicting Herzen standing at full height, with his face turned towards Russia, a monument by Zabello.
Among the works are articles, stories, novels: “Notes of a Young Man” (autobiographical story), “Moscow and St. Petersburg” (1842; the pamphlet was widely circulated; published in 1857), “Amateurism in Science” (1843), “Letters about studying nature” (1845 - 1846), “Who is to blame?” (1841 - 1846, novel), "Doctor Krupov" (1847, story), "The Thieving Magpie" (1848, story), "Duty First" (1851, story), "Damaged" (1851, story), " William Penn" (drama), "Past and Thoughts" (1852 - 1868, autobiographical novel), "For the Sake of Boredom" (1868 - 1869, essay), "Doctor, Dying and the Dead" (1869, story), "To an Old Comrade "(1869, letters - last work).
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Information sources:
"Russian Biographical Dictionary"
Encyclopedic resource www.rubricon.com
Project "Russia Congratulates!" - www.prazdniki.ru
(Source: “Aphorisms from around the world. Encyclopedia of wisdom.” www.foxdesign.ru)
Consolidated encyclopedia of aphorisms.
Academician
2011. See what “Herzen A.I. - biography” is in other dictionaries:
Alexander Ivanovich (pseud. Iskander) (25.3(0.4). 1812, Moscow, 9(21).1.1870, Paris), Russian. writer and publicist, materialist philosopher, revolutionary. From the nobles: illegitimate son of a wealthy landowner I. A. Yakovlev. Graduated from Physics and Mathematics... ... Philosophical Encyclopedia
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Literary encyclopedia The surname of an outstanding Russian writer and political figure. The marriage of his father, a large gentleman, I.A. Yakovlev with a German girl was not ecclesiastical, so the father could not pass on his surname to his son and gave him the surname Herzen from the German Herz heart.... ... Russian surnames
Herzen- Herzen, A.I. (1812 1870) famous Russian writer and revolutionary. He began his revolutionary activities under the influence of the great utopian socialists. In 1834, together with Ogarev and others, he was exiled to Perm, and then to Vyatka. Upon returning to Moscow... ... 1000 biographies HERZEN
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Alexander Ivanovich (Iskander) (1812 1870) Russian philosopher, writer, public figure. In 1829-1833 he studied at the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics of Moscow University. Even before entering the university, I met N.P. Ogarev, together with... ... The latest philosophical dictionary
I Herzen Alexander Ivanovich (pseudonym Iskander), Russian revolutionary, writer, philosopher and publicist. Born into the family of a wealthy landowner I. A. Yakovlev; mother is German Louise Haag. Parents' marriage... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia
Alexander Ivanovich (pseud. Iskander) (25.III (6.IV).1812 9 (21).I.1870) Russian revolutionary figure, philosopher, writer and publicist. Genus. in Moscow in the family of a wealthy landowner. The formation of G.’s worldview was influenced by the freedom-loving... ...
Soviet historical encyclopedia- (1812 1870) famous Russian writer and revolutionary. He began his revolutionary activities under the influence of the great utopian socialists. In 1834, together with Ogarev and others, he was exiled to Perm, and then to Vyatka. Upon returning to Moscow, Herzen becomes... ... Historical reference book of Russian Marxist
Herzen Al-dr. Iv- HERTZEN Al dr Iv. (pseud. Iskander) (1812 70) rev. publicist, writer, philosopher. Illegitimate son of a wealthy landowner I. A. Yakovlev and Louise Haag, a native of Stuttgart. Got a house. education. From an early age he was influenced by freedom-loving ideas. In 1828... ... Russian humanitarian encyclopedic dictionary
Books
- Alexander Herzen. Selected works in 5 volumes (set), Alexander Herzen. Alexander Ivanovich Herzen is a Russian writer, publicist, theorist and literary historian, philosopher, founder of the Russian uncensored press, founder of Russian political...
Illegitimate son of a wealthy landowner Ivan Alekseevich Yakovlev and a German woman, Louise Ivanovna Haag. At birth, the father gave the child the surname Herzen (from the German word herz - heart).
Received a good home education. From his youth he was distinguished by his erudition, freedom and open-mindedness. The December events of 1825 had a great influence on Herzen's worldview. Soon he met his distant paternal relative Nikolai Platonovich Ogarev and became his close friend. In 1828, they, being like-minded people and close friends, swore an oath of eternal friendship on Sparrow Hills in Moscow and showed their determination to devote their whole lives to the struggle for freedom and justice.
Herzen was educated at Moscow University, where he became friends with a number of progressive-minded students who formed a circle in which a wide range of issues relating to science, literature, philosophy and politics were discussed. After graduating from the university in 1833 with a candidate of science degree and a silver medal, he became interested in the teachings of the Saint-Simonists and began to study the works of socialist writers of the West.
A year later A.I. Herzen, N.P. Ogarev and their other comrades were arrested for freethinking. After spending several months in prison, Herzen was exiled to Perm, and then to Vyatka to the office of the local governor, where he became an employee of the Gubernskie Vedomosti newspaper. There he became close to the exiled architect A.I. Vitberg. Then Herzen was transferred to Vladimir. For some time he was allowed to live in St. Petersburg, but soon he was exiled again, this time to Novgorod.
Since 1838 he has been married to his distant relative Natalya Aleksandrovna Zakharyina. The parents did not want to give Natalya to the disgraced Herzen, so he kidnapped his bride, married her in Vladimir, where he was in exile at that time, and confronted his parents with a fait accompli. All contemporaries noted the extraordinary affection and love of the Herzen spouses. Alexander Ivanovich more than once turned to the image of Natalya Alexandrovna in his works. In marriage he had three children: a son, Alexander, a professor of physiology; daughters Olga and Natalya. The last years of the couple's life together were overshadowed by Natalya Alexandrovna's sad infatuation with the German Georg Herwegh. This ugly story, which made all its participants suffer, ended with the death of Natalya Alexandrovna from childbirth. The illegitimate child died along with his mother.
In 1842, Herzen received permission to move to Moscow, where he lived until 1847, pursuing literary activities. In Moscow, Herzen wrote the novel “Who is to Blame?” and a number of stories and articles dealing with social and philosophical issues.
In 1847, Alexander Ivanovich left for Europe, living alternately in France, Italy, and Switzerland and working in various newspapers. Disillusioned with the revolutionary movement of Europe, he sought a different path for the development of Russia from the Western one.
After the death of his wife in Nice, A.I. Herzen moved to London, where he organized the publication of the free Russian press: Polar Star and Kolokol. Speaking with a freedom-loving and anti-serfdom program for Russia, Herzen’s “Bell” attracted the attention and sympathy of the progressive part of Russian society. It was published until 1867 and was very popular among the Russian intelligentsia.
Herzen died in Paris and was buried in the Père Lachaise cemetery, then his ashes were transported to Nice.
Herzen Alexander Ivanovich - Russian prose writer, publicist.
Born on March 25 (April 6), 1812 in Moscow in the family of a noble Moscow gentleman I.A. Yakovlev and a German woman, Louise Haag. The parents' marriage was not officially registered, so the illegitimate child was considered his father's pupil. This explains the invented surname - from the German word Herz (heart). The future writer spent his childhood in his uncle’s house on Tverskoy Boulevard (now building 25, which houses the A.M. Gorky Literary Institute). Although Herzen was not deprived of attention from childhood, his position as an illegitimate child gave him a feeling of orphanhood. In his memoirs, the writer called his home a “strange abbey”, and considered the only pleasures of childhood to be playing with the yard boys, playing in the hall and playing with the girls. Childhood impressions of the life of serfs, according to Herzen, aroused in him “an irresistible hatred of all slavery and all arbitrariness.”
Oral memories of living witnesses of the war with Napoleon, the freedom-loving poems of Pushkin and Ryleev, the works of Voltaire and Schiller - these are the main milestones in the development of the soul of young Herzen. The uprising of December 14, 1825 turned out to be the most significant event in this series. After the execution of the Decembrists, Herzen, together with his friend N. Ogarev, vowed to “take revenge on those executed.”
In 1829, Herzen entered the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics of Moscow University, where he soon formed a group of progressively thinking students. Members of this group Ogarev, N.H. Ketcher and others discussed the burning problems of our time: the French Revolution of 1830, the Polish uprising of 1830–1831, and other events of modern history. This time included a fascination with the ideas of Saint-Simonism and attempts to present his own vision of the social order. Already in his first articles (On the place of man in nature, 1832, etc.) Herzen showed himself not only as a philosopher, but also as a brilliant writer. The essay by Hoffmann (1833–1834, published 1836) showed a typical style of writing: introducing vivid figurative language into journalistic discussions, confirming the author’s thoughts with a plot narrative.
In 1833 Herzen graduated from the university with a silver medal. Work in the Moscow expedition of the Kremlin building. The service left the young man enough free time to engage in creativity. Herzen planned to publish a magazine, but in July 1834 he was arrested for allegedly singing songs discrediting the royal family in the company of friends. During interrogations, the Investigative Commission, without proving Herzen’s direct guilt, nevertheless considered that his beliefs posed a danger to the state.
In April 1835, with the obligation to remain in public service under the supervision of local authorities, Herzen was exiled first to Perm, then to Vyatka. He was friends with the architect A.L. Vitberg and other exiles, corresponded with his cousin N.A. Zakharyina, who later became his wife. In 1837, the heir to the throne visited Vyatka, who was accompanied by V.A. Zhukovsky. At the poet's request, at the end of 1837 Herzen was transferred to Vladimir, where he served in the governor's office. From Vladimir, Herzen secretly traveled to Moscow to visit his bride, and in May they got married. From 1839 to 1850, four children were born into the Herzen family. In July 1839, police surveillance was removed from Herzen, he was given the opportunity to visit Moscow and St. Petersburg, where he was accepted into the circle of V.G. Belinsky, T.N. Granovsky, I.I. Panaev and others. In 1840, Herzen’s letter was illustrated, in in which he wrote about the “murder” of a St. Petersburg security guard. The enraged Nicholas I ordered Herzen to be expelled “for spreading unfounded rumors” to Novgorod without the right to enter the capital. Only in July 1842, having retired with the rank of court councilor, after the petition of friends, Herzen returned to Moscow. I began hard work on a series of articles on the connection of science and philosophy with real life under the general title Amateurism in Science.
After several unsuccessful attempts to turn to fiction. In 1847, Herzen and his family left Russia and began their many-year journey through Europe. Observing the life of Western countries, he interspersed personal impressions with historical and philosophical research (Letters from France and Italy, 1847–1852; From the Other Shore, 1847–1850, etc.). In 1850–1852, a series of Herzen’s personal dramas took place: his wife’s betrayal, the death of his mother and youngest son in a shipwreck, his wife’s death from childbirth. In 1852 Herzen settled in London. By this time he was perceived as the first figure of the Russian emigration. Together with Ogarev, he began to publish revolutionary publications - the almanac “Polar Star” (1855–1868) and the newspaper “Bell” (1857–1867), the influence of which on the revolutionary movement in Russia was enormous. Despite the many articles published by the writer in Polar Star and Kolokol and published in separate editions, his main creation of the emigrant years is The Past and Thoughts (published 1855–1919).
The past and thoughts by genre - a synthesis of memoirs, journalism, literary portraits, autobiographical novels, historical chronicles, short stories. The author himself called this book a confession, “about which stopped thoughts from thoughts were collected here and there.” The first five parts describe Herzen's life from childhood until the events of 1850–1852, when the author suffered difficult mental trials associated with the collapse of his family. The sixth part, as a continuation of the first five, is devoted to life in England. The seventh and eighth parts, even more free in chronology and theme, reflect the life and thoughts of the author in the 1860s.
At first, Herzen intended to write about the tragic events of his personal life. But “everything old, half-forgotten, was resurrected,” and the architecture of the plan gradually expanded. In general, work on the book lasted about fifteen years, and the chronology of the narrative did not always coincide with the chronology of writing. In 1865, Herzen left England and went on a long trip to Europe, trying to unwind after another family drama (three-year-old twins died of diphtheria, the new wife did not find understanding among the older children). At this time, Herzen distanced himself from the revolutionaries, especially from the Russian radicals. Arguing with Bakunin, who called for the destruction of the state, he wrote: “People cannot be liberated in external life more than they are liberated internally.” These words are perceived as Herzen’s spiritual testament.
Like most Russian Westernized radicals, Herzen went through a period of deep fascination with Hegelianism in his spiritual development. Hegel's influence can be clearly seen in the series of articles Amateurism in Science (1842–1843). Their pathos lies in the affirmation and interpretation of Hegelian dialectics as an instrument of knowledge and revolutionary transformation of the world (“algebra of revolution”). Herzen severely condemned abstract idealism in philosophy and science for its isolation from real life, for “apriorism” and “spiritism.” The future development of humanity, in his opinion, should lead to the “removal” of antagonistic contradictions in society, the formation of philosophical and scientific knowledge inextricably linked with reality. Moreover, the result of development will be the merging of spirit and matter. In the historical process of cognition of reality, a “universal mind, freed from personality,” will be formed.
These ideas were further developed in Herzen’s main philosophical work, Letters on the Study of Nature (1845–1846). Continuing his criticism of philosophical idealism, Herzen defined nature as “the genealogy of thinking,” and saw only an illusion in the idea of pure being. For a materialistically minded thinker, nature is an ever-living, “fermenting substance”, primary in relation to the dialectics of knowledge. In the Letters, Herzen, quite in the spirit of Hegelianism, substantiated consistent historiocentrism: “neither humanity nor nature can be understood without historical existence,” and in understanding the meaning of history he adhered to the principles of historical determinism. However, in the thoughts of the late Herzen, the old progressivism gives way to much more pessimistic and critical assessments.
First of all, this relates to his analysis of the process of formation in society of a new type of mass consciousness, exclusively consumer, based on completely materialistic individualism (egoism). Such a process, according to Herzen, leads to the total massification of social life and, accordingly, to its peculiar entropy (“the turn of all European life in favor of silence and crystallization”), to the loss of individual and personal originality. “Personalities were erased, generic typism smoothed out everything sharply individual and restless” (Ends and Beginnings, 1863). Disappointment in European progress, as Herzen admitted, led him “to the brink of moral death,” from which only “faith in Russia” saved him. Herzen hoped for the possibility of establishing socialist relations in Russia (although he had considerable doubts about the previous revolutionary paths, as he wrote about in the article To an Old Comrade, 1869). Herzen associated the prospects for the development of socialism primarily with the peasant community.
Years of life: from 04/06/1812 to 01/21/1870
The fate of this man, who stood at the origins of populism, was connected with the great dramatic moments of Russian and European history. He witnessed and took part in a number of significant events: the formation of Marxism, the French Revolution of 1848, the social upsurge in Russia in the 60s.
Alexander Ivanovich Herzen was born on March 25 (April 6), 1812. His father, Ivan Yakovlevich, was closely related to the envoy to the Westphalian court - A. A. Yakovlev. And the mother was a young German woman, Henrietta - Louise Haag, who was almost thirty years younger than her lover. The parents’ marriage was not formalized, the baby began to be officially called a “pupil” and bear the surname invented by his father: Herzen - “son of the heart,” from the German herz.
He spent his childhood, which was not cloudless, in his parents' house. It was difficult for him to get along with his father, whose character was not a gift. Alexander had an older brother, Yegor. But he grew up in complete obscurity in the village of Pokrovskoye, where his mother, a serf peasant, was exiled.
As a child, little Herzen loved to listen to stories about the times of the French Revolution of the late 18th century. And he never missed an opportunity to listen and learn something new. He received the usual noble upbringing at home, based on reading foreign literature of the late 18th century. The novels and comedies of Beaumarchais, Kotzebue, Goethe, and Schiller aroused awe and delight in him from an early age.
Thanks to his desire to learn new things and interest in Schiller’s work, Herzen was imbued with freedom-loving aspirations, the development of which was greatly facilitated by the teacher of Russian literature I. E. Protopopov. This was also facilitated by the influence of Tanya Kuchina, Herzen’s cousin (married Tatyana Passek), who supported the childish pride of the young dreamer, prophesying an extraordinary future for him.
At the age of 13, Herzen met the future poet and publicist Nikolai Ogarev, who was only 12 years old at the time of the meeting. After the news of the Decembrist uprising on December 14, 1825, Herzen, together with his friend Nikolai, began to dream of revolutionary activity for the first time, and during one of their walks they vowed to fight for freedom.
Herzen dreamed of friendship, dreamed of fighting for freedom. In such a rather gloomy mood, in 1829 he entered Moscow University to study physics and mathematics. At the university, he takes part in the so-called “Malovsky story” - a protest of students against teachers. This protest ended with the imprisonment of the young rebel along with his comrades in a punishment cell. The youth were in a stormy mood: they welcomed the July Revolution and other popular movements. The group of young rebel friends grew, and from time to time they indulged in small revelries, of an innocent nature, of course.
But of course, all these protests and the struggle for freedom did not go unnoticed by the authorities. In 1834, members of Herzen's circle and he himself were arrested. The punishment was exile. Herzen was first exiled to Perm, and then to Vyatka, where he was assigned to serve in the governor’s office.
By organizing an exhibition of local works, Herzen got a chance to distinguish himself before the future Emperor Alexander II, and soon, at the request of Zhukovsky, he was transferred to serve as an adviser to the board in Vladimir. In 1838 he got married, secretly taking his bride, Natalya Aleksandrovna Zakharyina, from Moscow.
At the beginning of 1840, Herzen was allowed to return to Moscow. In May of this year, he moved to St. Petersburg, where, at the insistence of his father, he began to serve in the office of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. But in July 1841, for a harsh review in one letter about the activities of the police, Herzen was exiled to Novgorod. Already here he encountered the famous circle of Stankevich and Belinsky, who defended the thesis of the useful rationality of all activities. Most of Stankevich’s friends became close to Herzen and Ogarev, and a camp of Westerners was formed.
Herzen came to Europe with a radical republican character rather than a socialist one. The February Revolution of 1848 seemed to him the fulfillment of all his hopes and desires. The subsequent June workers' uprising and its suppression shocked Herzen, who decisively turned to socialism. He became close to Proudhon and other prominent figures of the revolution and European radicalism. In 1849, after the defeat of the radical opposition by President Louis Napoleon, Herzen was forced to leave France and moved to Switzerland, and from there to Nice, which then belonged to the Kingdom of Sardinia.
Under the influence of the collapse of old ideals and the reaction that occurred throughout Europe, Herzen formed a specific system of views about doom. By decree of Nicholas I, in July 1849, all the property of Herzen and his mother was seized. After the death of his wife in 1852, Herzen moved to London, where he founded the Free Russian Printing House to print prohibited publications. In 1857 he began publishing the weekly newspaper Kolokol.
The peak of Kolokol's influence occurred in the years preceding the liberation of the peasants, when the newspaper was regularly read in the Winter Palace. After the peasant reform, her popularity begins to decline. At that time, Herzen was already too revolutionary for the public. On March 15, 1865, under the insistent demand of the Russian government, the editorial board of Kolokol, headed by Herzen, left London forever and moved to Switzerland. In April of the same year, the “Free Russian Printing House” was also transferred there. Soon people from Herzen’s circle, such as Nikolai Ogarev, began to move to Switzerland.
On January 21 (according to the new calendar), Alexander Ivanovich Herzen died of pneumonia in Paris, where he had recently arrived on family business. He was buried in Nice, his ashes were transferred from the Père Lachaise cemetery in Paris.
Circumstances of personal life.
They were practically not mentioned in those days when Herzen’s personality was considered only from the point of view of social significance in the revolutionary reorganization of Russian and European society. While some facts of his personal and family life may be shocking...
Despite all the “storms” that happened in his life with his first wife, they were happy. And already in 1839 their son Alexander was born, and two years later - a daughter. In 1842, a son, Ivan, was born, who died 5 days after birth. In 1843, a son, Nikolai, was born, who was deaf and mute. Nicholas lived only 10 years and died along with Herzen’s mother during a sea voyage to Nice as a result of a ship collision. In 1844, daughter Natalya was born. In 1845, a daughter, Elizabeth, was born, who died 11 months after birth. In 1850, Herzen's wife gave birth to a daughter, Olga. The year 1852 brought Herzen a series of tragic losses: his wife gave birth to a son, Vladimir, and died two days later; his son also died soon after.
In 1857, Herzen began cohabiting with Nikolai Ogarev’s second wife, Natalya Alekseevna Ogareva-Tuchkova, who took care of Herzen’s children. They had a daughter, Elizabeth, who lived a short life. At the age of 17, she committed suicide due to unrequited love (in Florence in December 1875). In 1869, Tuchkova received the surname Herzen, which she bore until her return to Russia in 1876, even after Herzen’s death.
