Monuments and memory: Immortalizing count M. N. Muraviev in Vilna, 1898

Nationalities Papers

Volumn 27, Issue 4, 1999, Pages 551-564

  Weeks, Theodore R ^a  

^a NONE

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EID: 0039763786     PISSN: 00905992     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/009059999108821     Document Type: Article

References (65)

1. See the interesting discussion of Renan's statement in "Memory and Forgetting," in Benedict Anderson, Imagined Communities, 2nd edn (London: Verso, 1991), pp. 199-200.
2. This clear dichotomy is considerably muddied by the fact that Soviet historiography, as we might expect, chose to glorify the 1863 Uprising as a noble struggle against Tsarist repression. For the best example of this line, see A. F. Smirnov, Vosstanie 1863 goda v Litve i Belorussii (Moscow: Izdatel'stvo AN SSSR, 1963). The best overall account available is the magisterial Piotr Kieniewicz, Powstanie styczniowe, 2nd edn (Warsaw: PWN, 1983). For a Lithuanian view, see Leonas M. Bičkauskas, 1863 metu̧ Lietuvoje (Vilnius: Valstybinė politinės ir mokslinės literaturos leidykla, 1958) and Vida Girininkienė, 1863-1864 metai Lietuvoje. Straipsnai ir dokumentai (Vilnius: Šviesa, 1991). In English, see Robert F. Leslie, Reform and Insurrection in Russian Poland 1856-1865 (London: Athlone Press, 1963).
3. This clear dichotomy is considerably muddied by the fact that Soviet historiography, as we might expect, chose to glorify the 1863 Uprising as a noble struggle against Tsarist repression. For the best example of this line, see A. F. Smirnov, Vosstanie 1863 goda v Litve i Belorussii (Moscow: Izdatel'stvo AN SSSR, 1963). The best overall account available is the magisterial Piotr Kieniewicz, Powstanie styczniowe, 2nd edn (Warsaw: PWN, 1983). For a Lithuanian view, see Leonas M. Bičkauskas, 1863 metu̧ Lietuvoje (Vilnius: Valstybinė politinės ir mokslinės literaturos leidykla, 1958) and Vida Girininkienė, 1863-1864 metai Lietuvoje. Straipsnai ir dokumentai (Vilnius: Šviesa, 1991). In English, see Robert F. Leslie, Reform and Insurrection in Russian Poland 1856-1865 (London: Athlone Press, 1963).
4. This clear dichotomy is considerably muddied by the fact that Soviet historiography, as we might expect, chose to glorify the 1863 Uprising as a noble struggle against Tsarist repression. For the best example of this line, see A. F. Smirnov, Vosstanie 1863 goda v Litve i Belorussii (Moscow: Izdatel'stvo AN SSSR, 1963). The best overall account available is the magisterial Piotr Kieniewicz, Powstanie styczniowe, 2nd edn (Warsaw: PWN, 1983). For a Lithuanian view, see Leonas M. Bičkauskas, 1863 metu̧ Lietuvoje (Vilnius: Valstybinė politinės ir mokslinės literaturos leidykla, 1958) and Vida Girininkienė, 1863-1864 metai Lietuvoje. Straipsnai ir dokumentai (Vilnius: Šviesa, 1991). In English, see Robert F. Leslie, Reform and Insurrection in Russian Poland 1856-1865 (London: Athlone Press, 1963).
5. This clear dichotomy is considerably muddied by the fact that Soviet historiography, as we might expect, chose to glorify the 1863 Uprising as a noble struggle against Tsarist repression. For the best example of this line, see A. F. Smirnov, Vosstanie 1863 goda v Litve i Belorussii (Moscow: Izdatel'stvo AN SSSR, 1963). The best overall account available is the magisterial Piotr Kieniewicz, Powstanie styczniowe, 2nd edn (Warsaw: PWN, 1983). For a Lithuanian view, see Leonas M. Bičkauskas, 1863 metu̧ Lietuvoje (Vilnius: Valstybinė politinės ir mokslinės literaturos leidykla, 1958) and Vida Girininkienė, 1863-1864 metai Lietuvoje. Straipsnai ir dokumentai (Vilnius: Šviesa, 1991). In English, see Robert F. Leslie, Reform and Insurrection in Russian Poland 1856-1865 (London: Athlone Press, 1963).
6. This clear dichotomy is considerably muddied by the fact that Soviet historiography, as we might expect, chose to glorify the 1863 Uprising as a noble struggle against Tsarist repression. For the best example of this line, see A. F. Smirnov, Vosstanie 1863 goda v Litve i Belorussii (Moscow: Izdatel'stvo AN SSSR, 1963). The best overall account available is the magisterial Piotr Kieniewicz, Powstanie styczniowe, 2nd edn (Warsaw: PWN, 1983). For a Lithuanian view, see Leonas M. Bičkauskas, 1863 metu̧ Lietuvoje (Vilnius: Valstybinė politinės ir mokslinės literaturos leidykla, 1958) and Vida Girininkienė, 1863-1864 metai Lietuvoje. Straipsnai ir dokumentai (Vilnius: Šviesa, 1991). In English, see Robert F. Leslie, Reform and Insurrection in Russian Poland 1856-1865 (London: Athlone Press, 1963).
7. The Northwest provinces were (using the Russian forms) Vitebsk, Minsk, Mogilev, Vil'na, Kovno (Kaunas), and Grodno. This region roughly corresponds to today's Belarus and Lithuania (excluding the westernmost area along the Baltic). The seat of the governor general was in Vilna; his headquarters was the present-day presidential palace in Vilnius.
8. It must always be remembered that the Russian government - and Russian nationalists -consistently refused to admit the existence of a Belarusian (or, for that matter, Ukrainian) nation. For Russian nationalists, Belarusians were (are?) Russians.
9. For an overall account of the Northwest provinces from an ethnic point of view, see Theodore Weeks, Nation and State in Late Imperial Russia: Nationalism and Russification on the Western Frontier, 1863-1917 (DeKalb, Northern Illinois University Press, 1996), especially Chapter 4 ("West of Russia: Land, Nations, Economy) and Chapter 5 ("East Meets West: Russification and Coexistence").
10. On the Muraviev family, see Muravievy: rodoslovnaia: 1488-1893 (Revel': Tip. "Revel'skikh izvestii", 1893). A description of our hero's life and works is found on p. 14.
11. Strangely, there exists no full biography of Muraviev. For his life up to 1832 in very great detail, see D. A. Kropotov, Zhizn' grafa M. N. Muravieva, v sviazi s sobytiiami ego vremeni i do naznacheniia ego gubernatorom v Grodne (St Petersburg: Tip. V. Bezobrazova, 1874). For a rather more concise biographical account, see Petr Dolgorukov, Mikhail Nikolaevich Muraviev (London: Imprimerie du Prince Pierre Dolgoroukow, 1864). Here (p. 16) we find the famous anecdote about Muraviev, reminded of his relative Sergei Muraviev-Apostol, hanged in 1826 for his role in the Decembrist revolt, exclaiming, "I am not of the Muravievs who get hanged but of those who do the hanging." For a short, hagiographic biography occasioned by the construction of the monument itself, see A. O. Turtsevich, "Graf Mikhail Nikolaevich Muraviev," Vilenskii kalendar': 1899 (Vil'na: Tip. Vil. S.-Dukhov. Bratstva, 1898), pp. 205-254.
12. Strangely, there exists no full biography of Muraviev. For his life up to 1832 in very great detail, see D. A. Kropotov, Zhizn' grafa M. N. Muravieva, v sviazi s sobytiiami ego vremeni i do naznacheniia ego gubernatorom v Grodne (St Petersburg: Tip. V. Bezobrazova, 1874). For a rather more concise biographical account, see Petr Dolgorukov, Mikhail Nikolaevich Muraviev (London: Imprimerie du Prince Pierre Dolgoroukow, 1864). Here (p. 16) we find the famous anecdote about Muraviev, reminded of his relative Sergei Muraviev-Apostol, hanged in 1826 for his role in the Decembrist revolt, exclaiming, "I am not of the Muravievs who get hanged but of those who do the hanging." For a short, hagiographic biography occasioned by the construction of the monument itself, see A. O. Turtsevich, "Graf Mikhail Nikolaevich Muraviev," Vilenskii kalendar': 1899 (Vil'na: Tip. Vil. S.-Dukhov. Bratstva, 1898), pp. 205-254.
13. Strangely, there exists no full biography of Muraviev. For his life up to 1832 in very great detail, see D. A. Kropotov, Zhizn' grafa M. N. Muravieva, v sviazi s sobytiiami ego vremeni i do naznacheniia ego gubernatorom v Grodne (St Petersburg: Tip. V. Bezobrazova, 1874). For a rather more concise biographical account, see Petr Dolgorukov, Mikhail Nikolaevich Muraviev (London: Imprimerie du Prince Pierre Dolgoroukow, 1864). Here (p. 16) we find the famous anecdote about Muraviev, reminded of his relative Sergei Muraviev-Apostol, hanged in 1826 for his role in the Decembrist revolt, exclaiming, "I am not of the Muravievs who get hanged but of those who do the hanging." For a short, hagiographic biography occasioned by the construction of the monument itself, see A. O. Turtsevich, "Graf Mikhail Nikolaevich Muraviev," Vilenskii kalendar': 1899 (Vil'na: Tip. Vil. S.-Dukhov. Bratstva, 1898), pp. 205-254.
14. "Vsepoddanneishaia zapiska Mogilevskogo grazhdanskogo gubernatora Murav'eva o nravstvennom polozhenii Mogilevskoi gubernii i o sposobakh sblizhenii onoi s Rossiiskoiu Imperieiu," in "Chetyre politicheskie zapiski grafa Mikhaila Nikoleavicha Murav'eva Vilenskogo," Russkii arkhiv, April 1885, pp. 161-175.
15. Ibid., pp. 162-163.
16. Ibid., p. 169.
17. Ibid., pp. 172-173.
18. "Zapiska 1831 goda ob uchrezhdenii prilichnogo grazhdanskogo upravleniia v guberniiakh ot Pol'shi vozvrashchennykh i unichtozhenii nachal, naibolee sluzhivshikh k otchuzhdeniiu onykh ot Rossii," in ibid., pp. 175-186.
19. Ibid., pp. 183-184.
20. Ibid., p. 180.
21. Ar. Turtsevich, Kratkii ocherk zhizni i deiatel'nosti Grafa M. N. Murav'eva (Vil'na: A. G. Syrkin, 1898), pp. 18-19.
22. Graf M. N. Muraviev, "Zapiski ego o miatezhe v Severozapadnoi Rossii v 1863-1865 gg.," Russkaia starina, Vol. 30, No. 11, 1882, pp. 394, 402. Muraviev's memoirs, published in Russkaia starina in installments from November 1882 to May 1883, provide a fascinating (if one-sided) account of these years in the Northwest provinces.
23. Several local governors mentioned in their 1863 reports (otchety) that the arrival of Muraviev in Vilna - and even the news of his appointment as governor general - made a very strong impression on the "mutineers" and that his stern measures soon ended their "illegal activity" and restored order to the land. See, for example: Russian State Historical Archive, St Petersburg (RGIA), f. 1267, op. 1, 1864, d. 7 (Minsk province, 1863), ll. 34-43; ibid., d. 4 (Vil'na province, 1863), ll. 53-71; ibid., f. 1281, op. 6, 1864, d. 44 (Kovno, 1863), ll. 82-87; and ibid., d. 41 (Vitebsk, 1863), ll. 48-54.
24. Several local governors mentioned in their 1863 reports (otchety) that the arrival of Muraviev in Vilna - and even the news of his appointment as governor general - made a very strong impression on the "mutineers" and that his stern measures soon ended their "illegal activity" and restored order to the land. See, for example: Russian State Historical Archive, St Petersburg (RGIA), f. 1267, op. 1, 1864, d. 7 (Minsk province, 1863), ll. 34-43; ibid., d. 4 (Vil'na province, 1863), ll. 53-71; ibid., f. 1281, op. 6, 1864, d. 44 (Kovno, 1863), ll. 82-87; and ibid., d. 41 (Vitebsk, 1863), ll. 48-54.
25. Several local governors mentioned in their 1863 reports (otchety) that the arrival of Muraviev in Vilna - and even the news of his appointment as governor general - made a very strong impression on the "mutineers" and that his stern measures soon ended their "illegal activity" and restored order to the land. See, for example: Russian State Historical Archive, St Petersburg (RGIA), f. 1267, op. 1, 1864, d. 7 (Minsk province, 1863), ll. 34-43; ibid., d. 4 (Vil'na province, 1863), ll. 53-71; ibid., f. 1281, op. 6, 1864, d. 44 (Kovno, 1863), ll. 82-87; and ibid., d. 41 (Vitebsk, 1863), ll. 48-54.
26. Several local governors mentioned in their 1863 reports (otchety) that the arrival of Muraviev in Vilna - and even the news of his appointment as governor general - made a very strong impression on the "mutineers" and that his stern measures soon ended their "illegal activity" and restored order to the land. See, for example: Russian State Historical Archive, St Petersburg (RGIA), f. 1267, op. 1, 1864, d. 7 (Minsk province, 1863), ll. 34-43; ibid., d. 4 (Vil'na province, 1863), ll. 53-71; ibid., f. 1281, op. 6, 1864, d. 44 (Kovno, 1863), ll. 82-87; and ibid., d. 41 (Vitebsk, 1863), ll. 48-54.
27. On this episode, see Kornei Chukovsky, The Poet and the Hangman (Nekrasov and Muraviev) (Ann Arbor: Ardis, 1977). For the text of Nekrasov's poem, see Podvig Murav'eva - nastol'naia kniga praviteliam i pravitel'stvam (St Petersburg: A. Porokhovshchikov, 1898), p. 51.
28. On this episode, see Kornei Chukovsky, The Poet and the Hangman (Nekrasov and Muraviev) (Ann Arbor: Ardis, 1977). For the text of Nekrasov's poem, see Podvig Murav'eva - nastol'naia kniga praviteliam i pravitel'stvam (St Petersburg: A. Porokhovshchikov, 1898), p. 51.
29. I. V. Nikotin, Iz zapisok Ivana Akimovicha Nikotina (St Petersburg: "Obshchestvennaia pol'za", 1905), p. 8. The original of Nikotin's memoir may be found at the Lithuanian State Historical Archive, Vilnius (LVIA), f. 439, ap. 1, b. 136.
30. Ibid., p. 41.
31. Ibid., pp. 72-73. Nazimov claims that Bishop Krasiński of Vilna encouraged these expressions of Polish patriotism within Catholic churches. For more on Krasiński's role in these events, see LVIA, f. 378, PS 1863, b. 293.
32. Nikotin, p. 137.
33. Ibid., p. 145.
34. Muraviev quoted in Ia. N. Butkovich, "Iz moikh vospominanii," Istoricheskii vestnik, 14 October 1883, p. 103.
35. Ibid., pp. 98-99.
36. Ibid., p. 105.
37. On the role of the Catholic clergy in the insurrection, and the measures and punishments meted out by the authorities afterwards, see LVIA, f. 378, PS 1863, bb. 1785, 1801. From the Polish and Catholic point of view, see Aleksander Ważyński, Litwa pod wzglȩdem prześladowania w niej rzymsko-katolickiego kościola. Szczególniej w dyecezyi wileńskiej od roku 1863 do 1872 (Poznań: Naklładem ksiȩgarni Jana K. Żupańskiego, 1872).
38. A. N. Mosolov, Vilenskie ocherki 1863-1865 gg. (Murav'evskoe vremia) (St Petersburg: Tip. A. S. Suvorina, 1898), pp. 136-137.
39. Potapov is generally portrayed by Muraviev's supporters as more interested in wooing Polish opinion than in honestly furthering the Russian cause. See, for example, I. Kornilov, Russkoe delo v Severo-zapadnom krae. Materialy dlia istorii Vilenskogo uchebnogo okruga preimushchestvenno v Murav'evskuiu epokhu, 2nd edn (St Petersburg: A. S. Suvorin, 1908), especially pp. xi, 381-462.
40. Mickiewicz was, of course, a native of the Lithuanian region (Litwa) and had studied in Wilno (Vil'na). The centenary of his birth would fall in 1898. For this occasion, sumptuous statues to honor the poet were erected in Warsaw and Cracow. On the unveiling of the Warsaw Mickiewicz monument, see Kraj, No. 51, 19/31 December 1898, especially pp. 9-19. The entire preceding issue of Kraj, No. 50, 12/24 December 1898, is dedicated to the Mickiewicz centenary.
41. A. A. Vinogradov, Kak sozdalsia v g. Vil'ne Pamiatnik Grafu M. N. Murav'evu (Vilna: Tip. A. G. Syrkina, 1898), pp. 5-9.
42. LVIA, f. 378, BS 1891, b. 595, ll. 4-5.
43. Ibid., pp. 1. 19. Unfortunately this document is not dated, but from its position in the file would appear to be from 1893 or 1894.
44. Ibid., ll. 93, 152.
45. Ibid., ll. 96-98 (clerics), 111-116 (teachers from the Vil'na educational district), 179-180 (direktor of Staropol'skaia gimnaziia in the Caucasus), 198 (direktor of the 2nd Men's gimnaziia, Tiflis).
46. A. T., "Zakladka pamiatnika v Vil'ne grafu Mikhailu Nikolaevichu Muravievu," Vilenskii Kalendar' - 1898 (Vilna: Tip. Vilenskogo Pravoslavnogo Sv.-Dukhov. Bratstva, 1897), pp. 229-230.
47. Kak sozdalsia ..., pp. 29-49.
48. "Zakladka pamiatnika ...", pp. 230-234.
49. Ibid., pp. 235-241.
50. Russian State Historical Archive, St Petersburg (RGIA), f. 1282, op. 3, 1899, d. 250, 1. 34. By contrast, in the 1897 Vilna governor's report, the foundation-laying ceremony is not mentioned at all (ibid., f. 1284, op. 223, 1898, d. 4, lit.BII).
51. Russian State Historical Archive, St Petersburg (RGIA), f. 1282, op. 3, 1899, d. 250, 1. 34. By contrast, in the 1897 Vilna governor's report, the foundation-laying ceremony is not mentioned at all (ibid., f. 1284, op. 223, 1898, d. 4, lit.BII).
52. LVIA, f. 380, ap. 55, 1898, b. 692, 1. 4. On the Muraviev museum, its aims and contents, see: V. G. Nikol'skii, comp., Illustrirovanyi katalog Muzeia grafa M. N. Murav'eva v g. Vil'ne (St Petersburg: Tov. R. Golike i A. Vil'borg, 1904); A. Beletskii, comp., Sbornik dokumentov muzeia grafa M. N. Murav'eva (Vil'na: "Russkii pochin", 1906); and A. I. Milovidov, Arkhivnye materialy Murav'evskogo muzeia (Vil'na: Gubernskaia tipografiia, 1913). At the present time, the archival contents of the former Muraviev museum may be found in LVIA, f. 439.
53. LVIA, f. 380, ap. 55, 1898, b. 692, 1. 4. On the Muraviev museum, its aims and contents, see: V. G. Nikol'skii, comp., Illustrirovanyi katalog Muzeia grafa M. N. Murav'eva v g. Vil'ne (St Petersburg: Tov. R. Golike i A. Vil'borg, 1904); A. Beletskii, comp., Sbornik dokumentov muzeia grafa M. N. Murav'eva (Vil'na: "Russkii pochin", 1906); and A. I. Milovidov, Arkhivnye materialy Murav'evskogo muzeia (Vil'na: Gubernskaia tipografiia, 1913). At the present time, the archival contents of the former Muraviev museum may be found in LVIA, f. 439.
54. LVIA, f. 380, ap. 55, 1898, b. 692, 1. 4. On the Muraviev museum, its aims and contents, see: V. G. Nikol'skii, comp., Illustrirovanyi katalog Muzeia grafa M. N. Murav'eva v g. Vil'ne (St Petersburg: Tov. R. Golike i A. Vil'borg, 1904); A. Beletskii, comp., Sbornik dokumentov muzeia grafa M. N. Murav'eva (Vil'na: "Russkii pochin", 1906); and A. I. Milovidov, Arkhivnye materialy Murav'evskogo muzeia (Vil'na: Gubernskaia tipografiia, 1913). At the present time, the archival contents of the former Muraviev museum may be found in LVIA, f. 439.
55. LVIA, f. 380, ap. 55, 1898, b. 692, 1. 7 (letter dated 10 August 1898).
56. Ibid., ll. 11-18, 40. The idea of Muraviev as a pro-peasant radical may seem astonishing, but belonged to the traditional Russian-nationalist view. See, for example: A. I. Milovidov, Ustroistvo obshchestvennogo byta krest'ian Severo-Zapadnogo kraia pri grafe M. N. Murav'eve (Vil'na: Tip. Vilen. Sv.-Dukh. Bratstva, 1903). For a Lithuanian view arguing that Murav'ev's policies helped Lithuanian peasants by repressing Polish cultural and economic hegemony, see Paulius Šležas, Muravjovo veikimas Lietuvoje 1863-1865 m. (Kaunas: n.p., 1933).
57. Ibid., ll. 11-18, 40. The idea of Muraviev as a pro-peasant radical may seem astonishing, but belonged to the traditional Russian-nationalist view. See, for example: A. I. Milovidov, Ustroistvo obshchestvennogo byta krest'ian Severo-Zapadnogo kraia pri grafe M. N. Murav'eve (Vil'na: Tip. Vilen. Sv.-Dukh. Bratstva, 1903). For a Lithuanian view arguing that Murav'ev's policies helped Lithuanian peasants by repressing Polish cultural and economic hegemony, see Paulius Šležas, Muravjovo veikimas Lietuvoje 1863-1865 m. (Kaunas: n.p., 1933).
58. Ibid., ll. 11-18, 40. The idea of Muraviev as a pro-peasant radical may seem astonishing, but belonged to the traditional Russian-nationalist view. See, for example: A. I. Milovidov, Ustroistvo obshchestvennogo byta krest'ian Severo-Zapadnogo kraia pri grafe M. N. Murav'eve (Vil'na: Tip. Vilen. Sv.-Dukh. Bratstva, 1903). For a Lithuanian view arguing that Murav'ev's policies helped Lithuanian peasants by repressing Polish cultural and economic hegemony, see Paulius Šležas, Muravjovo veikimas Lietuvoje 1863-1865 m. (Kaunas: n.p., 1933).
59. LVIA, f. 380, ap. 55, 1898, b. 692, ll. 41-42.
60. Official statistics some years later (but probably based on the 1897 census) claimed that 39.8% of Vilna's population was Jewish, 28.6% Polish, and 22.9% Russian (which would include, of course, Belarusians) (Goroda Rossii v 1910 g. (St Petersburg, 1914), pp. 90-93). Polish statiscians saw the matter somewhat differently. Dividing up the population by religions, one statistic claimed that of the 151,482 inhabitants of Wilno in 1898, only 24,835 (16.4%) were Orthodox while just over half of the population was Jewish (76,796) (cited in Kraj, No. 15, 9/21 April 1899, pp. 9-10).
61. LVIA, f. 378, PS 1898, b. 43, 1. 1. For the text of this pamphlet, signed by the Polish Socialist Party (PPS), see 1. 3. The fact that two of the arrested were Jews attests to the cosmopolitan nature of the PPS in Vilna at this time.
62. Ibid., ll. 8, 12.
63. State Archive of the Russian Federation (GARF), Moscow, f. 215, op. 1, 1898, d. 95, 1. 24. This caricature is printed just before page 81 in Vida Girininkienė, 1863-1864 metai Lietuvoje. Straipsnai ir dokumentai (Kaunas: Šviesa, 1991).
64. Quoted in "Torhestvo osviashcheniia i otkrytiia grafu M. N. Muravieva v Vil'ne," Vilenskii kalendar' - 1899, p. 332.
65. Ibid., p. 287.