Peter Chaadaev Biography

Chaadaev’s biography is not if you specify in the form of 1 Cor. On the maternal line, the grandson of the academician, historian M. Shcherbatov, the author of the 7-volume edition of "History of Russian from ancient times." He remained an orphan early - his father died the next year after his birth, and his mother - in the city of his older brother Mikhail, very small, was taken to her aunt - Princess Anna Mikhailovna Shcherbatova.

The guardian of the Chaadaevs was their uncle - Prince D. Shcherbatov, in the Movskoye house of which Chaadaev received his education. In gg. Griboedov, future Decembrists N. Turgenev, I. In May in G. in the city of Pyotr Yakovlevich, he moved from the Semenovsky regiment, where his brother and friends remained, to the Akhtyr Hussar Regiment. During the Patriotic War of the city of Anna and the Prussian Kulm Cross.

His biographer M. Zhikharev wrote: “A brave fired officer, tested in three gigantic campaigns, impeccably noble, honest and my dear in private relations, he had no reason not to use the deep, unconditional respect and affection of comrades and authorities.” There, in the house of N. Karamzin, Chaadaev met A. Pushkin, on whom he had a huge influence.

Several poems by Pushkin are devoted to Chaadaev. In October, in connection with these events, the sovereign who was in Troppau was sent to Chaadaev, whom Vasilchikov, commander of the Guards Corps, chose the tsar for a detailed report. A month and a half after this trip, at the end of December, Chaadaev resigned and by order of February 21, as they indicate, Chaadaev resigned, not considering it morally possible to continue the service after the punishment of close friends from the rebellious regiment.

This resignation of the young man, who was seen the most successful career, was unexpected. She shocked the society and caused many versions and legends: as if he was compromised to former fellow soldiers by delivering “denunciation” to them, or that he was late with his package because he was engaged in his wardrobe, or that the emperor expressed him something accepted with rejection.

At the same time, there is a different point of view based on the letter of Chaadaev to his aunt, which is published in the book of M. Gershenzon "P. In particular, it says: “I considered it more funny to neglect this mercy than to achieve it. I was pleased to show neglect of people who neglect everyone ... It’s even more pleasant for me to see the evil of an arrogant fool in this case.

” In addition, Gershenzon writes that after Chaadaev’s resignation, all his friends-officers did not turn away from him for a minute that would undoubtedly take place at least to some extent, if he really betrayed the interests of the guard and regiment. It is also known that this letter was intercepted, and in this case, the unusually long conversation of Alexander and Chaadaev lasted a little more than an hour receives an explanation.

Chaadaev was a very famous person in society and before the publication of “philosophical letters”. So the daughter of N. Raevsky Sr. Catherine wrote near G. his friendship searched and proud of her. Pushkin compares Eugene Onegin with him, wanting to characterize his hero as a real dandy: "The second Chadaev, my Eugene ...". His contemporary wrote about him: “The rest of the people was distinguished by extraordinary moral and spiritual excitement ...

His conversation and even his presence, acted on others, as the spur acted on a noble horse. With him, it was somehow impossible, it was embarrassing to surrender to daily vulgarity. At his appearance, everyone somehow involuntarily morally and mentally looked around, cleaned up and hunted. ” Still in the service, in the city, he did not accept participation in the affairs of both societies and treated them with restraint-sophomeptic.

Before leaving, in May, he returned to his homeland in July G. The arrest is explained by the fact that Chaadaev in letters to loved ones said that he was leaving forever, and his close friend Decembrist Yakushkin was so convinced that during the interrogation of the rebellious, he calmly called Pyotr Yakovlevich among the persons recruited to the illegal organization.

From Chaadaev, at the command of Nicholas I, a detailed interrogation was removed and a subscription was taken about his incompatration in any secret societies. After 40 days, he was released. Subsequently, he negatively spoke about the uprising of the Decembrists, claiming that, in his opinion, their impulse pushed the nation half a century ago. He lived in Moscow and in the village estate near the aunt Shcherbatova in the Dmitrievsky district, then in the Levashevs house on the new Basmannaya, creating in the GG.

Since the spring of G. in May or June, Chaadaev again began to appear in society. The publication in the city of Teleskop, where the letter was printed, was closed, the editor was exiled, the censor was dismissed from the service. Chaadaev was called to the Moscow police chief and announced that by order of the government he was considered crazy. Every day a doctor was a doctor for an examination; He was considered under house arrest, had the right only once a day to go for a walk.

The supervision of a police doctor for the "sick" was removed only in the cityThere is a legend that the doctor called to observe him, at the first acquaintance, told him: “If it weren’t for my family, wife and six children, I would show them who is actually crazy.” The next work of Chaadaev was the “Apology of the Madman” was not published during his lifetime; He brought Chernyshevsky to Chernyshevsky until the end of his life remained in Moscow, took an active part in all ideological meetings in Moscow, which gathered famous people of that time by Khomyakov, Kireevsky, Herzen, K.

Aksakov, Samarin, Granovsky, etc. Herzen wrote about him during this period: “The sad and distinctive figure of Chaadaev is sharply separated by some sad reproach against a linisial and heavy background of the Moscow nobility. I loved to look at him in the midst of this target nobility, windy senators, gray -haired nasal and honorary insignificance. No matter how Gusta the crowd, his eyes found him immediately.

The summer did not distort the harmonious camp of him, he dressed very carefully, his pale, tender face was completely motionless when he was silent, as if from wax or marble, “brow, like a skull naked”, gray-blue eyes were sad and still had something good, thin lips, on the contrary, smiled ironically. For ten years he stood idle somewhere near the column, at the tree on the boulevard, in the halls and theaters, in the club and - embodied by Veto, looked at the whirlwind of people who were rotten around him, made up, made it strange, alienated from society, could not leave him ...

He was again capricious, annoyed, again gravitated over Moscow society and again over Moscow and again Again he did not leave him. The old people and young were embarrassed with him, uneasy, they know why, they were ashamed of his motionless face, his directly looking gaze, his sad mockery, his ulcerative condescension ... acquaintance with him could only compromise a person in the eyes of the government police.

" After the Crimean war, not seeing improvement in the situation of Russia, I thought about suicide. He died on April 14, was buried in the Donskoy cemetery in Moscow.