Product Code Database
The Counts Bobrinsky or Bobrinskoy ( Бобринские) are a Russian nobility family descending from Count Aleksey Grigorievich Bobrinsky (1762–1813), who was Catherine the Great's natural son by Count Grigory Orlov.
Bobrinsky Palace, the Bobrinsky family seat in Bogoroditsk, was designed by Ivan Starov and constructed in the 1770s and 1780s, starting in 1773. The nearby ,Kazanskaya church was completed by 1778. The park was laid out by the palace's administrator, Andrey Bolotov (1738–1833), who is better known as one of the first Russian economists. It was Bolotov who established the Children's Theatre in Bogoroditsk. The palace and estate were renovated in the 1870s. In the 20th century, the premises suffered enormous damage from the Bolsheviks, who demolished the wings of the palace in 1929, and from the Wehrmacht, who blew up the chateau in December 1941. The palace was restored in the 1960s and now functions as a museum.
Unlike many other Russian nobles, the Bobrinskys continued as prosperous businessmen after the 1861 emancipation of serfs, starting coal mining in their estates near Tula and helping to build railways all over Russia. Aleksey Alekseyevich's second son Count Vladimir Alekseyevich Bobrinsky (1824–1898) served as Minister of Transportation in 1868–1871, succeeded in this post by his cousin, Count Aleksey Pavlovich Bobrinsky (1826–1894).
Count Vladimir Alekseyevich Bobrinsky (1868–1927) was the third son of Count Aleksey Pavlovich. He was educated at Monkton Combe School, near Bath, Somerset, together with three of his younger brothers. He represented Russian nationalists in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th State Dumas, advocating speedy Russification of border regions and supporting Pyotr Stolypin's reforms. Like most of the Bobrinskys, he emigrated to France following the revolutionary nationalization of their family enterprises. He is buried in the cemetery at Montmartre.
Vladimir's nephew, Count Nikolay Alekseyevich Bobrinsky (1890–1964) specialized in biology. Unlike his relatives, he chose to remain in Moscow after the revolution and came to be recognized as one of the most prominent Soviet . Bobrinski's serotine, a species of bat, is named after him, as is Bobrinski's jerboa, a species of jerboa. His son Nikolay Nikolayevich, a geographer, who wrote a novel on the life of the first Bobrinsky, lived in Moscow until his death in 2000.
Count (1861–1938) was the last owner of the Bobriki estate. A scholarly ethnographer, he organized three expeditions to the tribes and villagers in the Pamir Mountains, accompanied by a photographer and a linguist. His observations were published and are now available in an archive in the State Historical Museum. Another part of his collections of utensils and folk art, including the Bobrinski bucket, is at the Hermitage Museum. After the revolutions of 1917, he settled at his villa in Seis am Schlern. The Ismailism peoples among whom he travelled respect his work and reputation. The 150th anniversary of his birth was celebrated in 2011.
|
|
