Lev Tolstoy(1828-1910)
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Count Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy was born on September 9, 1828, in his
ancestral estate Yasnaya Polyana, South of Moscow, Russia. He was the
fourth of five children in a wealthy family of Russian landed Gentry.
His parents died when he was a child, and he was brought up by his
elder brothers and relatives.
Leo Tolstoy studied languages and law at Kazan University for three
years. He was dissatisfied with the school and left Kazan without a
degree, returned to his estate and educated himself independently. In
1848 he moved to the capital, St. Petersburg, and there passed two
tests for a law degree. He was abruptly called to return to his estate
near Moscow, where he inherited 4000 acres of land and 350 serfs. There
Tolstoy built a school for his serfs, and acted as a teacher. He
briefly went to a Medical School in Moscow, but lost a fortune in
gambling, and was pulled out by his brother. He took military training,
became an Army officer, and moved to the Caucasus, where he lived a
simple life for three years with Cossacs. There he wrote his first
novel - "Childhood" (1852), it became a success. With writing "Boyhood"
(1854) and "Youth" (1857) he concluded the autobiographical trilogy. In
the Crimean War (1854-55) Tolstoy served as artillery commander in the
Battle of Sevastopol, and was decorated for his courage. Between the
battles he wrote three stories titled "Sevastopol Sketches", that won
him wide attention, and a complement from the Czar Aleksandr II.
After the war, Tolstoy returned to St. Petersburg, where he enjoyed the
friendship of Ivan Turgenev, Nikolai A. Nekrasov, Ivan Goncharov, and other writers. On his
trips to Europe, he had discussions with Gertsen in London, and
attended Darwin's lectures. In Brussels he had meetings with
philosophers Prudhon and Lelewel. Tolstoy undertook a research of
schools in Europe, and later he built and organized over 20 schools for
poor people in Russia. At that time the secret police began
surveillance, and searched his home. In 1862 he married Sofia Andreevna
Bers, and fathered 13 children with his wife. Four of their babies
died, and the couple raised the remaining nine children. His wife was
also his literary secretary, and also contributed to his best works,
"War and Peace" (1863-69) and "Anna Karenina" (1873-77). In his
"Confession" (1879) Tolstoy revealed his own version of Christianity,
blended with socialism, that won him many followers. Tolstoyan
communities sprang up in America and Europe, and he assisted the
Russian non-Orthodox Christians (Dukhobors) in migrating to USA and
Canada. He split from aristocratic class and developed an ascetic
lifestyle, becoming a vegetarian, and a farmer. He sponsored and
organized free meals for the poor. He transfered his copyright on all
of his writings after 1880 to public domain. In his later age Tolstoy
was pursuing the path of a wandering ascetic. He corresponded with
Mohandas K. Gandhi, who was directly influenced by Tolstoy's "The Kingdom of God
is Within You" (1894), which was praised by many nonviolent movements.
In 1900 Tolstoy criticized the Tsar's government in a series of
publications, calling for separation of Chuch and State. Tsar Nicholas II
retaliated through the Church, by expulsion of Tolstoy from Orthodox
Cristianity as a "heretic". He fell ill, and suffered from a severe
depression; he was suicidal and even had to eliminate all hunting guns
from his home, because of his suicidal mode. He was treated by the
famous doctor Dahl, and was visited by composer Sergei Rachmaninoff and basso
Feodor Chaliapin Sr., who performed for Tolstoy on many occasions. Later he went to
convalesce in Yalta, in Crimea, where he spent time with Anton Chekhov and
Maxim Gorky. Tolstoy was an obvious candidate for the Nobel Prize in
Literature, but was initially omitted by the Nobel Committee for his
views. The omission caused a strong response from a group of Swedish
writers and artists. They sent an address to Tolstoy, but the writer
answered by declining any future prize nomination.
In 1902 Tolstoy wrote a letter to the Tsar, calling for social justice,
to prevent a civil war, and in 1904, during the Russo-Japanese War,
Tolstoy wrote a condemnation of war. The Tsar replied by increasing
police surveillance on Tolstoy. In November of 1910 he left his estate,
probably taking the path of a wandering ascetic, which he had been
pursuing for decades. He left home without explanations and took a
train, in which he caught pneumonia, and died at a remote station of
Astapovo. He was laid to rest in his estate of Yasnaya Polyana, which
was made a Tolstoy National Museum.
His youngest daughter, named Alexandra Tolstoy, was the director of the Tolstoy
Museum, and was arrested by the Communists five times. She emigrated
from Russia to the United States, where she founded the Tolstoy
Foundation. She helped many prominent Russian intellectuals, such as
Vladimir Nabokov and Sergei Rachmaninoff among many others.
ancestral estate Yasnaya Polyana, South of Moscow, Russia. He was the
fourth of five children in a wealthy family of Russian landed Gentry.
His parents died when he was a child, and he was brought up by his
elder brothers and relatives.
Leo Tolstoy studied languages and law at Kazan University for three
years. He was dissatisfied with the school and left Kazan without a
degree, returned to his estate and educated himself independently. In
1848 he moved to the capital, St. Petersburg, and there passed two
tests for a law degree. He was abruptly called to return to his estate
near Moscow, where he inherited 4000 acres of land and 350 serfs. There
Tolstoy built a school for his serfs, and acted as a teacher. He
briefly went to a Medical School in Moscow, but lost a fortune in
gambling, and was pulled out by his brother. He took military training,
became an Army officer, and moved to the Caucasus, where he lived a
simple life for three years with Cossacs. There he wrote his first
novel - "Childhood" (1852), it became a success. With writing "Boyhood"
(1854) and "Youth" (1857) he concluded the autobiographical trilogy. In
the Crimean War (1854-55) Tolstoy served as artillery commander in the
Battle of Sevastopol, and was decorated for his courage. Between the
battles he wrote three stories titled "Sevastopol Sketches", that won
him wide attention, and a complement from the Czar Aleksandr II.
After the war, Tolstoy returned to St. Petersburg, where he enjoyed the
friendship of Ivan Turgenev, Nikolai A. Nekrasov, Ivan Goncharov, and other writers. On his
trips to Europe, he had discussions with Gertsen in London, and
attended Darwin's lectures. In Brussels he had meetings with
philosophers Prudhon and Lelewel. Tolstoy undertook a research of
schools in Europe, and later he built and organized over 20 schools for
poor people in Russia. At that time the secret police began
surveillance, and searched his home. In 1862 he married Sofia Andreevna
Bers, and fathered 13 children with his wife. Four of their babies
died, and the couple raised the remaining nine children. His wife was
also his literary secretary, and also contributed to his best works,
"War and Peace" (1863-69) and "Anna Karenina" (1873-77). In his
"Confession" (1879) Tolstoy revealed his own version of Christianity,
blended with socialism, that won him many followers. Tolstoyan
communities sprang up in America and Europe, and he assisted the
Russian non-Orthodox Christians (Dukhobors) in migrating to USA and
Canada. He split from aristocratic class and developed an ascetic
lifestyle, becoming a vegetarian, and a farmer. He sponsored and
organized free meals for the poor. He transfered his copyright on all
of his writings after 1880 to public domain. In his later age Tolstoy
was pursuing the path of a wandering ascetic. He corresponded with
Mohandas K. Gandhi, who was directly influenced by Tolstoy's "The Kingdom of God
is Within You" (1894), which was praised by many nonviolent movements.
In 1900 Tolstoy criticized the Tsar's government in a series of
publications, calling for separation of Chuch and State. Tsar Nicholas II
retaliated through the Church, by expulsion of Tolstoy from Orthodox
Cristianity as a "heretic". He fell ill, and suffered from a severe
depression; he was suicidal and even had to eliminate all hunting guns
from his home, because of his suicidal mode. He was treated by the
famous doctor Dahl, and was visited by composer Sergei Rachmaninoff and basso
Feodor Chaliapin Sr., who performed for Tolstoy on many occasions. Later he went to
convalesce in Yalta, in Crimea, where he spent time with Anton Chekhov and
Maxim Gorky. Tolstoy was an obvious candidate for the Nobel Prize in
Literature, but was initially omitted by the Nobel Committee for his
views. The omission caused a strong response from a group of Swedish
writers and artists. They sent an address to Tolstoy, but the writer
answered by declining any future prize nomination.
In 1902 Tolstoy wrote a letter to the Tsar, calling for social justice,
to prevent a civil war, and in 1904, during the Russo-Japanese War,
Tolstoy wrote a condemnation of war. The Tsar replied by increasing
police surveillance on Tolstoy. In November of 1910 he left his estate,
probably taking the path of a wandering ascetic, which he had been
pursuing for decades. He left home without explanations and took a
train, in which he caught pneumonia, and died at a remote station of
Astapovo. He was laid to rest in his estate of Yasnaya Polyana, which
was made a Tolstoy National Museum.
His youngest daughter, named Alexandra Tolstoy, was the director of the Tolstoy
Museum, and was arrested by the Communists five times. She emigrated
from Russia to the United States, where she founded the Tolstoy
Foundation. She helped many prominent Russian intellectuals, such as
Vladimir Nabokov and Sergei Rachmaninoff among many others.