When was opened Tsarskoye Selo. Foundation of the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum

29.07.2020

Pushkin had three real friends at the Lyceum: I. V. Malinovsky (1796–1873),
I. I. Pushchin (1798–1858) and Baron A. A. Delvig (1798–1831).
In each of these dissimilar young men, the poet found some addition to his multifaceted personality. Pushkin, dying, said: “Why are there no Pushchin and Malinovsky near me. It would be easier for me to die."

Ivan Malinovsky was the eldest son of the first director of the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum, Vasily Fedorovich Malinovsky (1765-1814). He received his initial education at the St. Petersburg Provincial Gymnasium.
In 1811 he entered the Lyceum. Malinovsky was a lively and cheerful young man. Hot-tempered, cocky, he was very hot. The comrades gave him the nickname "Cossack". He tried to tame his ardor, which often carried him away to mistakes, which he confessed with repentance. Pushkin loved Malinovsky very much.

In the poem "Feasting Students", written in 1814, the poet refers to Malinovsky, "his soulmate", in his words one can hear the joy of communicating with the merry fellow and naughty Ivan Malinovsky:

And you are a rake of rake,
Born on a prank
Remote grip, thug
Friendly friend...

On February 9, 1812, the family of Ivan Malinovsky suffered a heavy grief. Sofya Andreevna's mother died. The first heavy blow was followed by a second two years later: on March 23, 1814, his father, director of the Lyceum V.F., suddenly died. Malinovsky. At the same time, it was also the grief of the Lyceum, which was brought into strict order thanks to the work of the deceased director.
This death was also a grief for the first-year students, who, having been accepted into his family after vacations from the Lyceum were forbidden, lost in him not only the director of the Lyceum, but also their father, who accepted them among his children.

Behind the coffin with the eldest son of the deceased, lyceum student Ivan Malinovsky, was Pushkin, for whom Malinovsky was now closer than all other friends and friends.
From the family memoirs of the daughter of Ivan Vasilyevich Malinovsky, Sofya Ivanovna Shtakenshneider, it is known that "already at the cemetery (five pupils of the Lyceum were present at the burial. - Ed.), When the coffin was lowered into the grave for eternal rest, Pushkin was the first to approach his friend Ivan Malinovsky to console him in his grief, and here, in front of the still unfilled grave of his father, they swore, as it were, eternal friendship.
In the draft version of the poem "October 19, 1825," Pushkin recalls a friend from the Lyceum and regrets that Malinovsky did not come to Mikhailovskoye to visit the disgraced poet together with Pushchin.

Well, I didn’t meet you right there with him,
You, our Cossack, both ardent and gentle,
Why are you my canopy tombstone
Didn't light up with your presence?
We would remember how Bacchus was brought
We are the silent victim for the first time
How we fell in love with all three for the first time,
Confidants, fellow leprosy...

Having received a certificate of graduation from the Lyceum, Ivan Malinovsky entered the Finnish Life Guards Regiment. In the campaigns of the guards corps, Ivan Malinovsky met with the future Decembrist A.E. Rosen.

The events of 1825 indirectly affected Malinovsky, although he did not take any part in the conspiracy. When misfortune befell the family of the Decembrist Andrei Evgenievich Rosen, who was sentenced to ten years in hard labor in Chita, Malinovsky was in St. Petersburg. He bothered and consoled his sister Anna Vasilievna, who had recently married Baron Rosen and had a small child. During this period, Malinovsky rushed around St. Petersburg, trying to help those in trouble. Everything that was in his power, he did.
On March 26, 1825, Ivan Malinovsky retired with the rank of colonel.

In 1834, Ivan Malinovsky married the sister of his lyceum friend I.I. Pushchin, Maria Ivanovna (1795 - 1844). In this marriage, two daughters were born.

Pushkin's death shocked Malinovsky. This can be seen from the correspondence between Pushchin and Malinovsky. Neither time nor distance erased youthful friendship from Malinovsky's memory.
After the death of his wife in 1845, Ivan Malinovsky married the niece of V.D. Volkhovsky
(captain of the Guards General Staff, major general, lyceum student of the first graduation) Ekaterina Fedoseevna Zinkevich. This marriage produced two daughters and a son.

In 1844 I.V. Malinovsky wrote a pamphlet "On the Life of Major General Volkhovsky", which was printed in Kharkov.

Ivan Malinovsky was elected leader of the county nobility for many years.
He died on February 10, 1873 from pneumonia.
He was buried in the cemetery in Kamenka not far from V.D. Volkhovsky.

Sources:

Ariadna Vladimirovna Tyrkova-Williams "The Life of Pushkin".
Internet sites
Valeria Bobyleva, Marat Gainullin "Soulmate"
http://www.moles.ee/99/Mar/15/6-1.html

A lma mater for boys from well-born families. The first lyceum in Russia prepared for "important parts of the state service." It was opened by imperial decree, equated to the university. A special spirit hovered in the building of the palace wing of the Catherine Palace - the “lyceum republic”. Let's recall the history and traditions of the noble higher school together with Natalia Letnikova.

Carl Schultz. View of the Lyceum and the Court Church from Sadovaya Street. Lithography. 1850s

Alexander Pushkin. Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum. Drawing in a draft of the VII chapter of "Eugene Onegin". 1831

"For the common good"- the motto united mentors and pets. They taught, "not obscuring the mind of children with lengthy explanations, but stimulating their own action." Minds were in full swing - both in the classroom and in the "cells". The prohibition of corporal punishment is a special clause of the statute. Favorably distinguished the status educational institution from private pensions and military schools.

What comprehended. According to the program of Mikhail Speransky himself - a reformer and lawmaker. Russian and foreign literature, historical and mathematical sciences, moral disciplines, fine arts and gymnastics were studied. The six-year program prepared humanitarians for further service - whether military or civilian.

Unit - "for happiness". For excellent success, the mark was "1", and on the rise to the four - for the success of "mediocre". But the “expression of the absence of any knowledge” threatened with zero. For each subject, the lyceum student received three marks, the first two changed, but the first remained unchanged during the entire training: for abilities or for talent.

№ 14 . Rooms, or cells, as Alexander Pushkin called the bedrooms for students. Simple furnishings: a chest of drawers, a desk, an iron bed, a mirror and a washstand. The students lived in these narrow rooms all year long. Holidays fell for a month. No. 14 - Pushkin's "cell". "No. 14" - this is how the poet signed letters to fellow lyceum students even after graduation.

All-Russian Museum of A.S. Pushkin, Memorial Lyceum Museum

Literary games. Poems and prose, politics and criticism. Exercises in literature of young lyceum students, despite the dissatisfaction of teachers, became periodicals. "For pleasure and benefit", "Inexperienced pen", "Young swimmers" and, finally, "Lyceum sage". A magazine that the lyceum students have been publishing for three whole years. Progenitor of school wall newspapers.

Exam - like the first poetic success. Transfer tests at the lyceum were public. When Pushkin held the exam, the first poet of the 18th century, Gavriil Derzhavin, was among the guests. The ode "Memories in Tsarskoe Selo" sounded "with unusual animation." Derzhavin was moved and wanted to hug the ardent lyceum student. Under the printed text of "Memoirs" Pushkin put his full signature for the first time.

Poets in a poetic environment. Not only classrooms, but also shady alleys of luxurious parks. In the lyceum, all and sundry wrote poetry, suffering from metromania. Delvig, Kuchelbecker, Pushchin, Illichevsky, Korsakov and, of course, Pushkin were not too lazy. “Suddenly I will speak on rhymes ...” - the young poet wrote more than 120 poems in the Lyceum.

Leprosy and fun. From the moment of the grand opening, the spirit of the lyceum took over - the dinner party ended with a game of snowballs. Steal an apple from the imperial garden or escape to Petersburg. What are the Lyceum years without innocent pranks and nicknames: Frenchman - Pushkin, Frant - Gorchakov, Jeannot - Pushchin, Kukhlya - Kyuchelbeker, Tosya - Delvig. What kind of friendship without quarrels and duels - on pistols loaded with cranberries.

Irina Vitman. Pushkin-lyceum student in Tsarskoye Selo. 1954

"Cast iron". So the lyceum students of the first, Pushkin's graduation began to call themselves. After graduating from the alma mater, director Egor Engelgardt gave the pupils cast-iron rings as a farewell gift - a symbol of friendship as strong as metal. Rings were made in the form of entwined hands from fragments of a broken bell of a lyceum church. According to tradition, after graduation, the bell, which collected for classes during the entire training, was broken.

The oath remained true. Lyceum friends at the farewell ball decided to meet every year on the day of the founding of the lyceum. In 1825, Pushkin wrote a poetic message from his exile in Mikhailovsky. “My friends, our union is wonderful!”, mentally being with those who feasted on the banks of the Neva that day, remembering those who were far away or passed away. The last oath was fulfilled by the chancellor of the Russian Empire Alexander Gorchakov, who outlived his comrades. “And the last lyceum student will celebrate on October 19”…

Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum, the highest privileged closed educational institution in pre-revolutionary Russia for children of the nobility; intended to train mainly senior government officials. Founded in 1810 in Tsarskoye Selo (now Pushkin, Leningrad Region); opened on October 19, 1811. It was under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Public Education, since 1882 - the military department. The lyceum admitted children 10-12 years old, the number of pupils ranged from 30 (in 1811-17) to 100 (since 1832).

In the course of 6 years of study (two 3-year courses, from 1836 - 4 classes to 1 ½ years) the following sciences were studied at the Lyceum: moral (God's law, ethics, logic, jurisprudence, political economy); verbal (Russian, Latin, French, German literature and languages, rhetoric); historical (Russian and general history, physical geography); physical and mathematical (mathematics, the beginnings of physics and cosmography, mathematical geography, statistics); fine arts and gymnastic exercises (handwriting, drawing, dancing, fencing, horseback riding, swimming). The curriculum of the lyceum has been repeatedly changed, but it retained the humanitarian and legal basis. Graduates received the rights of those who graduated from the university and civil ranks of the 14th - 9th grades. For those who wish to enter military service additional military training was carried out, and they were granted the rights of graduates of the Corps of Pages ...

In the first years of its existence (1811-1817), the Lyceum created an atmosphere of enthusiasm for new Russian literature, represented by the names of N. M. Karamzin, V. A. Zhukovsky, K. N. Batyushkov, and French literature of the Enlightenment (Voltaire). This enthusiasm contributed to the unification of a number of young people into a creative literary and poetic circle, which determined the spirit of the educational institution (A. S. Pushkin, A. A. Delvig, V. K. Kyuchelbeker, V. D. Volkhovsky, A. D. Illichevsky, K K. Danzas, M. L. Yakovlev and many others). The circle published handwritten magazines "Lyceum sage", "Bulletin", "For pleasure and benefit", etc., creative literary competitions were held between its members, poems of lyceum students Pushkin, Delvig, Kuchelbeker, etc. from 1814 they began to print well-known magazines ("Bulletin Europe", "Russian Museum", "Son of the Fatherland"). The poetic creativity of the lyceum students and their interest in literature were encouraged by N. F. Koshansky, a professor of Russian and Latin literature, a friend of Zhukovsky, and his successor from 1814, A. I. Galich.

... After 1825, the restrictive regime for pupils, control over the selection of teachers and the direction of lectures was strengthened in the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum. At the end of 1843, the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum was reorganized into the Alexandrovsky Lyceum, and in January 1844 it was transferred to St. Petersburg. The new lyceum was transferred to the jurisdiction of the 4th department of His Imperial Majesty's Own Chancellery, from the end of the 19th century. - Departments of institutions of the Empress Maria. Closed after the October Revolution of 1917

For 33 years of existence of the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum, 286 people graduated from it, including 234 in the civilian part, 50 in the military, 2 in the navy. ... Many of them joined the ranks of the bureaucracy of the Russian Empire (A. M. Gorchakov, A. K. Gire, N. K. Gire, A. V. Golovnin, D. N. Zamyatnin, N. P. Nikolai, N. A. Korsakov, M. A. Korf, S. G. Lomonosov, F. Kh. Steven, D. A. Tolstoy, etc.) ... K. S. Veselovsky, Ya. K. Grot, N. Ya. Danilevsky preferred scientific activity and others. The graduates of 1817, A. S. Pushkin and A. A. Delvig, and the Decembrists V. K. Kuchelbeker and I. I. Pushchin, brought historical glory to the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum. ... ME Saltykov-Shchedrin studied there for 5 years.

Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 1975

Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum. Modern photo

On August 12, 1810, Emperor Alexander I signed a decree establishing a lyceum in Tsarskoye Selo for "the education of youth destined for important parts of the state service."

The author of the project for the creation of the Lyceum was M.M. Speransky, known for his reformist ideas. In the new educational institution he was creating, he dreamed of educating people who would be able to put into practice all the plans he had outlined for the transformation of Russia. Speransky himself was a well-educated person, so he wanted people who could think, who had broad knowledge and who wanted to use it for the good of the Fatherland, to be in state power.

The adjunct professor of moral and political sciences Alexander Petrovich Kunitsyn spoke about the same in his keynote speech at the opening of the Lyceum: "Love for glory and the Fatherland should be your leaders."

In the autumn of 1811, the first set of lyceum students took place. Children 10-12 years old were accepted, the number of pupils was to be 30 people.

The highest diploma of Alexander I, granted to the Lyceum

On October 19, 1811, the opening of the Lyceum, a new educational institution for boys from privileged families, took place in Tsarskoe Selo. This educational institution got its name from the name of the outskirts of ancient Greek Athens (Lyceum), where Aristotle studied with students in the garden next to the temple of Apollo.

The Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum was a completely new type of educational institution for Russia, Alexander I himself kept its organization under close scrutiny.

Initially, the Lyceum was located in the 4-storey wing of the Catherine Palace, rebuilt for this purpose by the architect V. Stasov.

The lyceum was planned as a closed educational institution, where students were supposed not only to study, but also to live. In terms of the level of education received, the Lyceum was equated to the university.

The training program was designed for 6 years: 2 courses of 3 years each. Pupils were supposed to receive a general education with a predominance of the humanities. In the first year, the curriculum included mathematics, grammar, history, "fine writing" - literature, fine arts and gymnastic exercises (handwriting, drawing, dancing, fencing, horseback riding, swimming). In the senior year, special attention was paid to the "moral sciences" (Law of God, ethics, logic, jurisprudence, political economy), history, mathematics, and foreign languages.

At the same time, special attention was paid to teaching literature: each student must learn to write an essay on a given topic, expressing his thoughts correctly and gracefully.

Much attention has been paid to the study Russian history which included knowledge of the native country, its past, present and future.

Immediately after the emperor signed the Decree on the Lyceum in August 1810, a set of lyceum students was announced, 38 families filed a petition to receive their children, so an entrance exam and a medical examination were arranged. In addition, applicants for training required recommendations from influential people (for example, Pushkin was accepted on the recommendation of the famous writer A. Turgenev and his uncle V.L. Pushkin).

In October, future lyceum students began to gather in Tsarskoe Selo, where they were met by the director of the Lyceum and teachers.

V.F. Malinovsky - the first director of the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum

The first director of the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum was Vasily Fedorovich Malinovsky, one of the most educated people of his time. He believed in the special purpose of the new educational institution, and, having received the right to personally select teachers, he invited the most advanced and talented people. He created the very “lyceum spirit” known from many memoirs of lyceum students, which his pupils carried through their whole lives. What was this spirit? This is a special atmosphere in which one could freely exchange views, where the most pressing topics of society were discussed. Teachers and educators treated lyceum students as adults, addressed them as “you”, and some pupils addressed each other as “you”.

The solemn opening of the Lyceum on October 19, 1811 was attended by Alexander I, his family, the most distinguished and influential people of Russia. In the center of the hall stood a table covered with red cloth and on it lay a letter about the establishment of the Lyceum. Lyceum students stood on one side of the table together with director V.F. Malinovsky, and on the other - professors. Guests of honor headed by Emperor Alexander I sat at the table.

Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum. Big hall

Director of the Lyceum V. F. Malinovsky delivered a solemn speech, and then Professor Kunitsyn addressed the pupils. Lyceum students remembered his performance with gratitude all their lives. After the solemn ceremony, a dinner was arranged for the boys, and for the guests - an inspection of the premises of the Lyceum. In the evening, everyone enjoyed the magnificent fireworks.

30 boys started a new life. Each was given a small room with the most necessary furniture: an iron bed, a chest of drawers, a desk, a mirror, a chair, and a washing table. On the desk is an inkwell and a candlestick with tongs.

The daily routine of the lyceum students was harsh: getting up at 6 am, morning prayer, from 7 to 9 am - classes, at 9 am - tea, until 10 am - a walk, from 10 to 12 - classes, then a walk, lunch, calligraphy classes again and drawing, from 3 to 5 - again classes, a walk, repetition of lessons. Dinner at 9 pm, evening prayer and tea at 10 pm. None of the lyceum students had to leave the Lyceum for 6 years of study, and relatives were allowed to visit the boys only on holidays.

Physics office of the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum

The day of October 19 became sacred for lyceum students. They always aspired to get together on October 19, although each of them had his own life. Every year fewer and fewer lyceum students came to the meeting ...

Pushkin and all his friends considered only their first graduation to be truly lyceum. So it was: although the history of the Lyceum was long, but the curriculum in it changed, the teachers were different, and most importantly, there was no longer that unique lyceum spirit ...

Once upon a time, on the outskirts of Athens, near the temple of Apollo of Lyceum, there was a school founded by the great philosopher of the past, Aristotle. It was called Lyceum or Lyceum. On October 19, 1811, an educational institution under the same name was opened in Tsarskoe Selo, near St. Petersburg. And, probably, its creators hoped that the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum would somehow become the successor to the famous school of antiquity, which here, in Tsarskoye Selo, was reminiscent of the beautiful park architecture. However, she spoke not only about the world of eternal art. The parks kept the memory of the glorious pages of Russian history - the battles of Peter the Great, the victory of Russian weapons at Cahul, Chesma, Morea.

The history of the establishment of the lyceum

“The establishment of the lyceum aims to educate young people, especially those destined for important parts of the state service,” read the first paragraph of the lyceum charter. The author of the project to create a lyceum, M. M. Speransky, saw in the new educational institution not only a school for training educated officials. He wanted the lyceum to educate people capable of implementing the planned plans for the transformation of the Russian state. The broadest knowledge, the ability to think and the desire to work for the good of Russia - these are the qualities that the graduates of the new educational institution should have distinguished. It is no coincidence that in the new keynote speech addressed to the pupils on the day of the grand opening, Associate Professor of Moral and Political Sciences Alexander Petrovich Kunitsyn spoke about the duties of a citizen, about love for the Fatherland and duty to him. For the rest of their lives, the boys remembered the words: "Love for glory and the Fatherland should be your leaders."

According to the charter, children of nobles at the age of 10-12 were admitted to the lyceum. At the same time, no more than 50 people could be brought up in an educational institution. On the first, Pushkin's course, 30 students were accepted. The training lasted six years and was equated to university. The first three years - the so-called initial course - studied the subjects of the senior classes of the gymnasium. The next three years - the final course - contained the main subjects of the three faculties of the university: verbal, moral-political and physical-mathematical. An extensive program harmoniously combined the humanities and the exact sciences, gave encyclopedic knowledge. A large place was given to the “moral” sciences, under which, as the lyceum charter stated, “... all those knowledge that relate to the moral position of a person in society, and, consequently, the concepts of the structure of civil societies, and of rights and obligations, arising from here."

Traditions of education in lyceums

One of the main tasks of lyceum education is to develop mental abilities, to teach pupils to think independently. “The basic rule of a good method or method of teaching,” the lyceum charter emphasized, “is not to obscure the mind of children with lengthy explanations, but to excite its own action.” The most important place the curriculum devoted to a deep study of Russian history. The development of patriotic feelings was closely associated with the knowledge of the native country, its past, present, and future.

Much attention was paid to the study of the biographies of great people - it was believed that historical examples would help the self-education of the individual, teach great service to the Fatherland. When compiling the curriculum, the age characteristics of the pupils were taken into account. In the first year, when the boys were 10-12 years old, a lot of time was devoted to learning languages: Russian, French, Latin and German. There were days when students were required to speak to each other in a foreign language.

The lyceum was a closed educational institution. The order of life here was strictly regulated. Pupils got up at six o'clock in the morning. During the seventh hour it was necessary to get dressed, wash, pray and repeat the lessons. Classes began at seven o'clock and lasted two hours.

At ten o'clock the lyceum students had breakfast and took a short walk, after which they returned to the classroom, where they studied for another two hours. At twelve they went for a walk, after which they repeated the lessons. At the second hour they had lunch. After lunch - three hours of classes. In the sixth - a walk and gymnastic exercises.

Pupils were engaged in a total of seven hours a day. Hours of study alternated with rest and walks. Walks were made in any weather in the Tsarskoye Selo Garden. The rest of the pupils are classes in fine arts and gymnastic exercises. Among the physical exercises at that time, swimming, horseback riding, fencing, and skating in winter were especially popular. Subjects that promote aesthetic development - drawing, calligraphy, music, singing - are now in the secondary school curriculum.

In future statesmen, they tried to develop a sense of dignity and respect for the personality of another person. They were taught that "all pupils are equal ... and therefore no one can despise others or be proud of anything else"; that teachers and tutors should always tell the truth, "for lying to the boss means not respecting him." It was forbidden to shout at uncles or scold them. There were no corporal punishments and official drills in the lyceum. Each pupil had a separate room. In the first years of study, there were no grades in the lyceum. Instead, the professors regularly compiled characteristics in which they analyzed the student's natural inclinations, his behavior, diligence, and success. It was believed that a detailed description helped work with the student better than an unambiguous assessment.

Lyceum students have never been idle. Here everything was aimed at the development of intellectual interests, any desire for knowledge was encouraged. So, for example, Aleksey Illichevsky collected materials for the biographies of the great people of Russia, and Wilhelm Küchelbecker compiled a dictionary containing extracts from the works of writers-philosophers close to him in spirit.

The students read a lot. “We learned little in the classroom, but a lot in reading and in conversation with the incessant friction of the minds,” Modest Korf recalled. The replenishment of the library was a constant concern of the council of lyceum professors. In a letter to Pavel Fuss, answering the question whether new books reach the lyceum, Alexei Illichevsky reflects on the benefits of reading: “Do newly published books reach our solitude? you ask me. Can you doubt it?.. Never! Reading nourishes the soul, forms the mind, develops abilities ... "

Lyceum students knew their contemporaries - Russian writers and poets - not only by their writings. Interesting is the testimony of Illichevsky from a letter to the same Fuss: “... until I entered the Lyceum, I did not see a single writer, but at the Lyceum I saw Dmitriev, Derzhavin, Zhukovsky, Batyushkov, Vasily Pushkin and Khvostov; I also forgot: Neledinsky, Kutuzov, Dashkov. Professor of Russian and Latin literature, Nikolai Fedorovich Koshansky, considered the ability to write and compose to be the basis of literary education, and he approved of the poetic experiments of his pupils. Often in the lessons he offered to write poems on a given topic. “As I now see that after-dinner class of Koshansky,” Ivan Pushchin later recalled, “when, having finished the lecture a little earlier than the school hour, the professor said: “Now, gentlemen, we will try feathers: please describe to me a rose in verse.”

One of the favorite activities of lyceum students is meetings, at which everyone was obliged to tell something - invented or read. Gradually, the stock of poems, stories, epigrams increased, and they were written down. Handwritten journals were created, and lyceum poets grew up, competing with each other in a friendly manner. And since 1814, their poetic experiments began to appear on the pages of Russian magazines.

Famous students of the Lyceum

At that time, students of many educational institutions had their own mottos, but hardly any of them had a motto more humane and nobler than the one chosen by the lyceum students of the Pushkin course - "For the Common Benefit." To live "For the Common Benefit" was taught by the principals of the lyceum - Vasily Fedorovich Malinovsky and Yegor Antonovich Engelhardt, the best professors and teachers. During the 32 years of the existence of the Imperial Lyceum in Tsarskoye Selo (from 1811 to 1843), 286 people graduated from this privileged educational institution. The following students studied within its walls at different times: the outstanding satirist writer M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin, the poet L. A. Mei, the organizer of the society of utopian socialists M. V. Butashevich-Petrashevsky, the philosopher, historian N. Ya. Danilevsky, the compiler "Dictionary of the Russian language" Academician Ya. K. Grot. And yet, the lyceum owes its glory primarily to its first-born, the graduation, which went down in national history by the names of the poet A. S. Pushkin, poet, journalist A. A. Delvig, an active participant in the uprising on December 14, 1825 on Senate Square, one of the most courageous, persistent Decembrists I. I. Pushchin, poet, Decembrist V. K. Kuchelbeker, navigator Rear Admiral F. F. Matyushkin, participant in the Turkish and Persian campaigns, General V. D. Volkhovsky, prominent statesman, Minister of Foreign Affairs A. M. Gorchakova.