Creation of a free Russian press abroad. Publishing activity of A.I.
Initially, the idea of creating the first Russian free press abroad belongs to A.I. Herzen.
Herzen took an active part in the revolutionary struggle at this turning point in Russian history. However, the inability to conduct an open struggle against tsarism forced Herzen to leave his homeland in 1847.
He comes up with the idea of creating an uncensored Russian printing house abroad. Having moved to London in 1852, he is trying to establish a Russian printing house there, which turned out to be extremely difficult. However, the Polish émigré revolutionaries provided him with serious assistance. And on June 22, 1853, the machines of the London printing house were launched.
The first publication of the free Russian printing house was the leaflet "Brothers in Rus'", where the writer addresses the Russian society and explains the reasons for the creation of the printing house. He appeals to Russian writers with an appeal to send him materials to London for their publication.
The first proclamation, which was printed by Hertsin, appears in June 1853 - “St. George's day! Yuriev day! Russian nobility. It is an ardent call for the fight against serfdom.
At first, it was very difficult for Hertsin to establish a permanent and strong connection with his homeland. However, thanks to the growth of public excitement in the 50s, a reliable contact was still established between the printing house in London and Russia.
In 1855, the writer begins to print the almanac "Polar Star". The cover clearly showed the profiles of Lestel, Ryleev, Bestuzhev-Ryumin, Muravyov-Apostol, Kakhovsky - five executed Decembrists.
The program of this almanac was addressed to the fight against serfdom, for a free press, against the excessive rights of the landlords. All possible materials were published in the Polar Star. It was in it that many forbidden works by Lermontov, Pushkin, Ryleev and others, Belinsky's letter to Gogol, Decembrist poetry and memoirs were first published. Many historical documents were published in it, which it was not possible to publish in Russia.
Great interest in the almanac was also attracted by the works written by Herzen himself, for example: "The Past and Dumas". "Polar Star" had an incredible success at home.
From July 1856, the Revolutionary began to publish the collection "Voices from Russia" as an appendix to the "Polar Star".
The secret correspondents of the Polar Star were Decembrists in exile, bibliographers, writers, members of the liberation movement of the 1950s and 1960s.
In April 1856, Herzen's old friend N.P. arrived in London. Ogarev, who later became his closest assistant. On the initiative of Ogarev, in July 1857, Herzen began to publish a new periodical - the newspaper "Kolokol".
The Bell, like the Polar Star, fought for the abolition of serfdom, the abolition of corporal punishment, and the abolition of censorship.
From October 1859 to 1862, an appendix was issued to the "Bell" in the form of a leaflet "On trial!", In which the crimes and outrages that were happening in Russia were exposed. Since 1862, a new application appeared - "General Veche", which was intended for distribution among the people.
Publications of the Free Russian Printing House penetrated into Russia by any possible means: with the help of English sailors, trading companies of warships. Many significant public figures took part in their distribution. Herzen's publications fell into the hands of the reader in the form of children's books and catalogs, in boxes with a double bottom, inside bindings and newspapers, and even busts of Nicholas I, made of plaster.
Gradually, the "Bell" became more and more revolutionary-minded.
By the mid-1960s, the connection with the motherland began to weaken. This is due to the rapprochement of Herzen and Ogarev with the revolutionary democrats, which led to discord between the leaders of the London Printing House and the Russian liberals.
In an attempt to revive the publishing house, Herzen moved the Free Printing House to Geneva, but this did not help. In 1867 Herzen stopped publishing The Bell.
Radishchev's revolutionary book "Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow" was first printed in this printing house. The Free Printing House published various revolutionary proclamations and appeals addressed to various sections of Russian society. In 1866, Herzen handed over the reins of the Free Russian Printing House to L. Chernetsky. However, after Herzen's death and Ogarev's departure to London, Chernetsky's printing house began to decline and was sold by him in 1872.
Issued a decree on free printing houses”, which allowed private individuals to engage in publishing activities.
According to the decree, private printing houses could be opened not only in the two capitals - St. Petersburg and Moscow, but also in all cities of the Russian Empire. By law, the printing house was equated with factories, which allowed private individuals to start book printing. The main provision of the decree was the permission for everyone to start printing houses of their own free will.
It was allowed "in these printing houses to print books in Russian and foreign languages, not excluding Oriental ones ...". At the same time, the role of the police was strengthened by law: the Office of the Deanery now controlled the content of printed matter, banned it if it found violations (“so that nothing in them is contrary to the laws of God and civil, or to the obvious temptations of those inclined to be published”), confiscated what was released without its permission printed products.
Within a few years in St. Petersburg there were about 20private printing houses; The largest among them was the printing house of I. TO. Shnora, which released over 230publications in Russian. The owners of private printing houses most often became professional book publishers, booksellers, writers (K. V. Miller, I. P. and M. P. Glazunov, P. I. Bogdanovich, I. A. Krylov, I. G. Rachmaninov, A. N. Radishchev and others). The most famous publishing activityN. I. Novikova, who ran several printing houses in Moscow: Universitetskaya, which he rented; own free printing house; a printing house organized by the Printing Company; a free printing house owned by Lopukhin; printing house of the secret Masonic lodge.
The main products of private printing houses were fairy tales, adventure novels, dream books, home economics books, fortune-telling books, and educational literature. Circulations ranged from 100 to 20thousand copies. The equipment was purchased abroad, the fonts were partly cast in St. Petersburg.
Permission to open free printing houses served as a favorable impetus for the development of education in Russia, however, the state still retained a rather cumbersome and decentralized structure of the censorship apparatus.
Decree 1783 city functioned for thirteen years, in September 1796 Catherine II , faced with the active development of book publishing in the state, the rapid growth in the number of “free printing houses” and “the resulting abuses”, signed the “Decree on restricting the freedom of printing and importing foreign books, on the establishment of censors for this end ... and on the abolition of private printing houses ".
Lit.: Bloom A. B. Publishing activities of the Russian province of the end XVIII - early XIX V. (Main thematic areas and censorship and legal status) // Book. Research and materials. M., 1966. Sat. 12. S. 136-159; Samarin A. Yu. Under what supervision and censorship does the printing of books take place: typography and censorship in Russia during the Enlightenment // New Literary Review. 2008. No. 4. S. 356-375.
Introduction
1.1 Biography of A.I. Herzen
Conclusion
Introduction
Free Russian printing house - a printing house founded by A.I. Herzen in 1853 in London to print works banned in Russia, predominantly of a democratic, revolutionary direction.
The first thoughts about creating an uncensored printing house outside the borders of Russia appeared with Herzen as early as 1849. Soon after the emigration, the family's capital was arrested. When, thanks to the support of James Rothschild, financial affairs stabilized, and, with the move to London, and household ones, Herzen began preparations for the opening of a publishing house. informed "all freedom-loving Russians" about the forthcoming opening of a Russian printing house on May 1. In the first years of his life abroad, Herzen wrote about Russia for Europe - he published the pamphlets "Russia", "The Russian People and Socialism", a large book in French "On the Development of Revolutionary Ideas in Russia". Now "hunting to talk with strangers passes." Herzen turns to the Russian reader. "I am the first to take off the chains of a foreign language and again take up my native speech."
In Russia in the early 1850s, the number of different censorships approached twenty. Herzen promises the authors a free platform.
We consider the relevance of our topic to be the analysis of a historical example of how uncensored printing can influence the topic of the day on the example of the work of Herzen's Free Russian Printing House.
The purpose of our work is to consider the main stages of the work of the Free Russian Printing House and its contribution to the development of both Russian journalism and the development of the liberation movement in Russia.
To address the stated goal, the following tasks were set:
1. To analyze the ideological views of the founder of the printing house - A.I. Herzen;
2. Consider the possibilities of developing a printing house in the conditions of emigration at the first stage;
3. To show the relevance and relevance of the printing house for Russian readers in the context of the rise of the liberation movement in Russia during the era of the abolition of serfdom.
The possibilities of writing the work are based on the fundamental edition of Herzen's works in 30 volumes. At one time, the memoirs of Herzen's relatives and friends were published. The theme of the liberation movement in Russia was in demand in Russian literature, especially in the Soviet era. Our time is marked by the appearance of more complete articles of an encyclopedic nature, which reveal additional pages of the history of Herzen's Free Printing House, give an interconnection between the development of Herzen's ideological views and the direction of the printing house's publications.
1. A.I. Herzen - the creator of the Free Russian Printing House: ideological views
1.1 Biography of A.I. Herzen
Herzen was born on March 25 (April 6), 1812 in Moscow, in the family of a wealthy landowner Ivan Alekseevich Yakovlev (1767-1846); mother - 16-year-old German Henriette-Wilhelmina-Louise Haag, daughter of a petty official, clerk in the state chamber in Stuttgart. The marriage of the parents was not formalized, and Herzen bore the surname invented by his father: Herzen - "son of the heart" (from German Herz).
In his youth, Herzen received the usual noble upbringing at home, based on reading works of foreign literature, mainly of the late 18th century. French novels, comedies by Beaumarchais, Kotzebue, works by Goethe, Schiller from an early age set the boy in an enthusiastic, sentimental-romantic tone. There were no systematic classes, but the tutors - the French and Germans - gave the boy a solid knowledge of foreign languages. Thanks to his acquaintance with Schiller, Herzen was imbued with freedom-loving aspirations, the development of which was greatly facilitated by Bouchot, a participant in the French Revolution, who left France and a teacher of Russian literature, I.E. Duma" Ryleeva and others.
Already in childhood, Herzen met and became friends with Ogaryov. According to his memoirs, the news of the Decembrist uprising made a strong impression on the boys (Herzen was 13, Ogaryov was 12 years old). Under his impression, they have the first, still vague dreams of revolutionary activity; while walking on Sparrow Hills, the boys vowed to fight for freedom.
Already in 1829-1830, Herzen wrote a philosophical article on Wallenstein by F. Schiller. During this youthful period of Herzen's life, his ideal was Karl Moor, the hero of F. Schiller's tragedy The Robbers (1782).
In this mood, Herzen entered the Physics and Mathematics Department of Moscow University, and here this mood intensified even more. At the university, Herzen took part in the so-called "Malov story", but got off relatively lightly - by imprisonment, along with many comrades, in a punishment cell. The youth was set, however, rather violently; she welcomed the July Revolution and other popular movements (the appearance of cholera in Moscow contributed greatly to the revival and excitement of students, in the fight against which all university youth took an active and selfless part). By this time, Herzen met with Vadim Passek, which later turned into friendship, the establishment of friendly relations with Ketcher, etc. A bunch of young friends were engaged in reading, being carried away mainly by social issues, studying Russian history, assimilating the ideas of Saint-Simon and other socialists.
In 1834, all members of Herzen's circle and he himself were arrested. Herzen was exiled to Perm, and from there to Vyatka, where he was appointed to serve in the office of the governor. For the organization of the exhibition of local works and the explanations given during its inspection to the heir (the future Alexander II), Herzen, at the request of Zhukovsky, was transferred to serve as an adviser to the board in Vladimir, where he married, secretly taking his bride from Moscow, and where he spent the happiest and bright days of your life.
In 1840 Herzen was allowed to return to Moscow. Here he had to face the famous circle of Hegelians Stankevich and Belinsky, who defended the thesis of the complete rationality of all reality. The fascination with Hegelianism reached its last limits, the understanding of Hegel's philosophy was one-sided. Herzen also set to work on Hegel, but from a thorough study of him he brought out results completely opposite to those made by the supporters of the idea of reasonable reality. Meanwhile, in Russian society, along with the ideas of German philosophy, the socialist ideas of Proudhon, Cabet, Fourier, and Louis Blanc were widely spread; they had an influence on the grouping of literary circles of that time. Most of Stankevich's friends approached Herzen and Ogarev, forming the Westerners' camp; others joined the camp of the Slavophiles, with Khomyakov and Kireevsky at the head (1844). Despite mutual bitterness and disputes, both sides had much in common in their views, and above all, according to Herzen himself, the common thing was "a feeling of boundless love for the Russian people, for the Russian mindset, embracing the whole existence." In 1842, Herzen, after serving a year in Novgorod, where he did not come of his own free will, receives a resignation, moves to live in Moscow, and then, shortly after the death of his father, leaves forever abroad (1847).
Herzen arrived in Europe more radically republican than socialist, although his publication in Otechestvennye Zapiski of a series of articles entitled Letters from Avenue Marigny (subsequently published as a book entitled Letters from France and Italy) shocked his friends. - Western liberals - with their anti-bourgeois pathos.
The February Revolution of 1848 in France seemed to Herzen the realization of all his hopes. The subsequent June uprising of the workers, its bloody suppression and the ensuing reaction shocked Herzen, who resolutely turned to socialism.
He became close to Proudhon and other prominent figures of the revolution and European radicalism; together with Proudhon, he published the newspaper "Voice of the People", which he financed.
In 1849, after the defeat of the radical opposition by President Louis Napoleon, Herzen was forced to leave France and moved to Switzerland, where he naturalized; from Switzerland, he moved to Nice, which then belonged to the Kingdom of Sardinia. During this period, Herzen rotates among the circles of radical European emigration, who gathered in Switzerland after the defeat of the revolution in Europe, and in particular met Garibaldi. Fame brought him an essay book "From the Other Shore", in which he made a calculation with his past liberal convictions. Under the influence of the collapse of the old ideals and the reaction that came across Europe, Herzen formed a specific system of views about the doom, "dying" of old Europe and about the prospects for Russia and the Slavic world, which are called upon to realize the socialist ideal. After the death of his wife, he leaves for London, where he lives for about 10 years, having founded the Free Russian Printing House for printing prohibited publications, and since 1857 he has published the weekly newspaper Kolokol.
The peak of Kolokol's influence falls on the years preceding the emancipation of the peasants; then the newspaper was regularly read in the Winter Palace. After the peasant reform, her influence begins to decline; support for the Polish uprising of 1863 dramatically undermined circulation. At that time, for the liberal public, Herzen was already too revolutionary, for the radical - too moderate. On March 15, 1865, under the insistent demand of the Russian government to the government of Her Majesty England, the editors of the Bell, headed by Herzen, leave England forever and move to Switzerland, whose citizen Herzen by that time is. In April of the same 1865, the Free Russian Printing House was also transferred there. Soon, people from Herzen's entourage also began to move to Switzerland, for example, in 1865 Nikolai Ogaryov moved there.
On January 9, 1870, Alexander Ivanovich Herzen died of pneumonia in Paris, where he had arrived shortly before on his family business.
1.2 Literary and journalistic activity and philosophical views of Herzen
Herzen's literary activity began in the 1830s. From 1842 to 1847, he published articles in Otechestvennye Zapiski and Sovremennik: Amateurism in Science, Romantic Amateurs, The Workshop of Scientists, Buddhism in Science, and Letters on the Study of Nature. Here Herzen rebelled against learned pedants and formalists, against their scholastic science, alienated from life. In the article "On the Study of Nature" we find a philosophical analysis of various methods of knowledge.
At the same time, Herzen wrote: "On One Drama", "On Different Occasions", "New Variations on Old Themes", "A Few Remarks on the Historical Development of Honor", "From Dr. Krupov's Notes", "Who is to Blame?", "Forty -vorovka", "Moscow and Petersburg", "Novgorod and Vladimir", "Edrovo Station", "Interrupted Conversations". Of all these works, the following stand out: the story "The Thieving Magpie", which depicts the terrible situation of the "serf intelligentsia", and the novel "Who is to blame?", Dedicated to the issue of freedom of feeling, family relations, the position of a woman in marriage. The main idea of the novel is that people who base their well-being solely on the basis of family happiness and feelings, alien to the interests of public and universal, cannot ensure lasting happiness for themselves, and it will always depend on chance in their life.
Of the works written by Herzen abroad, of particular importance are the letters from Avenue Marigny (the first published in Sovremennik, all fourteen under the general title Letters from France and Italy, 1855), representing a remarkable characterization and analysis of events and moods. that worried Europe in 1847-1852. Here we meet a completely negative attitude towards the Western European bourgeoisie, its morality and social principles, and the author's ardent faith in the future significance of the fourth estate.
A particularly strong impression both in Russia and in Europe was made by Herzen's essay: "From the Other Bank" (in German, 1850; in Russian, London, 1855; in French, Geneva, 1870), in which Herzen expresses his complete disappointment with the West and Western civilization - the result of that mental revolution that ended and determined the mental development of Herzen in 1848-1851.
It should also be noted the letter to Michelet: "The Russian people and socialism" - a passionate and ardent defense of the Russian people against those attacks and prejudices that Michelet expressed in one of his articles.
Herzen's "Past and Thoughts" is a series of memoirs, partly of an autobiographical nature, but also giving a whole series of highly artistic paintings, dazzlingly brilliant characteristics, and Herzen's observations from what he experienced and saw in Russia and abroad.
All other writings and articles by Herzen, such as, for example, "The Old World and Russia", "Ends and Beginnings", and others, represent a simple development of ideas and moods that were completely determined in the period 1847-1852 in the writings indicated above.
There are rather erroneous views about the nature of Herzen's social activity and about his worldview, mainly due to the role that Herzen played in the ranks of the emigration. By nature, Herzen was not suitable for the role of an agitator and propagandist or revolutionary. First of all, he was a widely and versatilely educated person, with an inquisitive mind, seeking the truth. The attraction to freedom of thought, "free-thinking", in the best sense of the word, was especially strongly developed in Herzen. He did not understand fanatical intolerance and exclusiveness, and he himself never belonged to any one, either open or secret party. The one-sidedness of the "people of action" repelled him from many revolutionary and radical figures in Europe.
His penetrating mind quickly comprehended the imperfections and shortcomings of those forms of Western life to which Herzen was initially attracted from his distant Russian reality of the 1840s. Herzen gave up his fascination with the West when in his eyes it turned out to be below the ideal he had previously drawn up.
As a consistent Hegelian, Herzen believed that the development of mankind proceeds in stages, and each stage is embodied in a certain people. Such a people, according to Hegel, were the Prussians. Herzen, who laughed at the fact that the Hegelian god lives in Berlin, in essence transferred this god to Moscow, sharing with the Slavophils the belief in the coming change of the German period by the Slavic one. At the same time, as a follower of Saint-Simon and Fourier, he combined this faith in the Slavic phase of progress with the doctrine of the forthcoming replacement of the rule of the bourgeoisie by the triumph of the working class, which should come thanks to the Russian community.
Together with the Slavophiles, Herzen despaired of Western culture. Faith in the community and the Russian people saved Herzen from a hopeless view of the fate of mankind. However, Herzen did not deny the possibility that Russia, too, would pass through the stage of bourgeois development. Defending the Russian future, Herzen argued that in Russian life there is a lot of ugliness, but on the other hand there is no vulgarity that has become rigid in its forms. The Russian tribe is a fresh, virginal tribe that has "aspirations for the future century," an immeasurable and inexhaustible supply of vitality and energy; "a thinking person in Russia is the most independent and most open-minded person in the world." Herzen was convinced that the Slavic world was striving for unity, and since "centralization is contrary to the Slavic spirit," the Slavs would unite on the principles of federations.
Being free to all religions, Herzen recognized, however, many advantages and advantages of Orthodoxy in comparison with Catholicism and Protestantism. And on other issues, Herzen expressed opinions that often contradicted Western views. So, he was rather indifferent to different forms of government.
The influence of Herzen in his time was enormous. The significance of Herzen's activity in the peasant question has been fully clarified and established. Disastrous for Herzen's popularity was his passion for the Polish uprising. Herzen, not without hesitation, took the side of the Poles, treating their delegates somewhat suspiciously for quite some time; finally he yielded, only thanks to persistent pressure from Bakunin. As a result, Kolokol lost its subscribers (instead of 3,000, no more than 500 remained).
Herzen A. And lived a short life, only 58 years from 1812 to 1870, but received fame and recognition as a writer, philosopher and revolutionary. One of the most striking phenomena of the publishing business of the 19th century was the uncensored editions of A.I. Herzen and N.P. Ogarev, which they prepared in London.
2. Free Russian printing house: creation and first goals
2.1 Opening of the first free printing house
Herzen arrived in England in 1852, where he was going to spend some time, and initially the main activity was not the opening of a printing house. But over time, Herzen realized that the best way to influence the minds of his contemporaries was the quality and uncensored printing of magazines. And it was England that was the best place for the implementation of undertakings.
Indeed, in contrast to the police restrictions that existed in France, England remained free from such pressure. It was in England at that time that rallies were allowed and many emigrants found shelter in this country. And already in 1853 Herzen announced the beginning of free printing in London and the creation of a free printing house.
Free Russian printing house was founded by A.I. Herzen with the assistance of Polish emigrants. In the early years, the publications of the Free Russian Printing House were illegally delivered to Russia by Poles-immigrants and a few Russian employees of the printing house. Since 1856, together with Herzen, N.P. became the head of the printing house. Ogaryov. They managed to establish two-way communication with their Russian readers and correspondents. Materials from Russia arrived in London in different ways.
Editions of the Free Russian Printing House, especially in 1858-63, played a big role in the development of Russian social thought and the Russian liberation movement.
In April 1865, the printing house was transferred to Geneva and soon transferred by Herzen to the ownership of the Pole émigré L. Chernetsky, Herzen and Ogaryov's closest assistant in the printing house.
In connection with the decline of the revolutionary movement in Russia after 1863 and the intensified political terror there, due to Herzen's disagreements with the "young emigration", the publishing activity of the printing house was reduced, and in 1872 it was discontinued.
Undertaking publishing activities in London, Herzen, first of all, makes sure that publications have an appropriate literary base. Back in February 1853, he published an appeal to the "Brothers in Rus'", in which he announced the foundation of "free Russian book printing" and turned to future readers with a request for materials. Moreover, he puts the content of the materials at the forefront. He writes: "Send whatever you want - everything written in the spirit of freedom will be printed, from scientific articles and factual articles on statistics and history to novels, short stories, poems ... If you do not have anything ready, your own, send forbidden poems by Pushkin, Ryleev, Lermontov, Polezhaev, Pecherin and others going from hand to hand.
The poems of Pushkin and Ryleev then went from hand to hand in a handwritten version, as well as free-spirited works written with his own hand and scientific articles that were not published in Russia due to too free interpretations of certain issues.
Thus, designating the circle of names of writers whose works the publisher would like to place in his publications, Herzen thereby emphasizes the high requirements for the quality of writings.
The publisher sees the purpose of creating a free printing house in "... to be your body, your free, uncensored speech ...".
The repertoire of the Free Russian Printing House is rich. She played a big role in the publication of works of art banned in Russia. Here, for the first time, Pushkin's poems "The Village", "Message to Siberia", "To Chaadaev", his ode "Liberty", propaganda songs by Ryleev and Bestuzhev, Lermontov's poem "On the Death of a Poet" were printed for the first time. Ryleev's Thoughts, the collections Russian Secret Literature of the 19th Century, Free Russian Songs, Radishchev's book Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow, works by Ogarev, Herzen ("Interrupted Stories", "Prison and Exile", " Letters from France and Italy", "From the Other Shore", "Past and Thoughts").
The printing house printed many books and historical materials. Among them are "Historical collections" in two books (1859, 1861), six collections on schismatics and the Old Believers, compiled by V. Kelsiev, "Notes of Catherine II", "Notes of Prince E. Dashkova", "Notes of I.V. Lopukhin" , "On the damage to morals in Russia" by Prince M.M. Shcherbatov. Materials about the life and work of the Decembrists were widely published. Three editions of "Notes of the Decembrists" were published, a book on December 214, 1825, and Emperor Nicholas I.
In addition, they published leaflets, proclamations, appeals (for example, appeals of the populist organization "Land and Freedom" "What do the people need?" "What should the army do?", "Freedom"), brochures for the people. They were written in a language understandable to the people and touched upon specific public, social and political issues.
The materials collected for publication - their content and genres - determined the structure of the release of the uncensored press. The main place among them was occupied by periodicals - the almanac "Polar Star", the magazine "Bell", collections "Voices from Russia".
2.2 The first stage of the printing house. "Polar Star"
The idea of a Free Printing House was first conceived by Herzen in Paris in 1849, and the Free Press was launched in the summer of 1853 in London. The name itself - Free Russian Printing House - already spoke of the existence of Russian printing houses, not free and not free.
In the late 40s - early 50s of the XIX century, the number of various kinds of censorship in Russia approached twenty. At that time, they talked about closing universities, and the Minister of Public Education, Uvarov, advised Professor Kalachov, a lawyer: "Read your lectures without any speculation, take acts in one hand, Karamzin's history in the other, and, relying on these manuals, carry out mainly that idea that autocracy has been the basis of Russian history since ancient times."
There were no special organizational difficulties: Herzen, having sufficient funds, managed, with the help of Polish emigrants, in a few months to find everything necessary for a printing house: a press, a room, a Russian type. On the sale and distribution of finished products, he agreed with the reputable London bookselling firm of N. Trubner and with some other European firms (A. Frank - in Paris, F. Schneider - in Berlin, Wagner and Brockhaus - in Leipzig, Hoffmann and Kamp - in Hamburg ).
Abroad, Herzen met and became close friends with many remarkable figures of European democracy - Kossuth, Mazzini, Garibaldi, Victor Hugo, Proudhon, Michelet and others - and could count on their assistance and assistance.
From the very beginning, the whole meaning of the Free Printing House was in the formula "Russia - London - Russia", which Herzen understood something like this:
from Russia, everyone who wants to, but cannot speak freely, will write and send correspondence;
in London handwritten will be printed; the printed correspondence, together with the new writings of Herzen himself, will illegally return to Russia, where they will be read, written again to London - and the cycle will resume!
The cycle, however, did not begin. Russia did not respond.
Half of all surviving letters of Herzen for 1853-1856. (184 out of 368) is addressed in Paris to Maria Kasparovna Reichel, a close friend of Herzen, his family and friends who remained in Russia. Here is an excerpt from one letter: “Do our friends really have nothing to say, do they really not even want to read something? How did they get books before? In another place, it seems not difficult to take a pack from the person recommended by me and deliver it to Moscow. But if this is difficult, let someone allow it to be delivered to him; is it really not possible to find such a brave person in 50,000,000 people ... "( letter dated March 3, 1853).
Some of Herzen's Moscow friends, intimidated by the Nicholas Terror, considered the Free Press not only senseless, but also dangerous. M.S. Shchepkin, who came to London in the autumn of 1853, tried in vain to persuade Herzen to leave for America, not to write anything, to let himself be forgotten, "and then in two or three years we will start working so that you will be allowed to enter Russia." At the same time, Shchepkin frightened Herzen with the dangers that the Free Printing House threatens his old friends: “With one or two sheets that slip through, you will do nothing, and the III department will read and mark everything. You will ruin the abyss of the people, ruin your friends ... ".
Herzen stubbornly, one might say stubbornly, continues to write and print.
Having begun work in May 1853, the printing house at the end of June began its activities on the release of a brochure entitled "St. George's Day! St. George's Day! To the Russian Nobility." As you know, this is the day on which a peasant could redeem himself from serfdom and start an independent life, though not everyone succeeded, and even after the redemption he remained penniless. This pamphlet urged the nobility of Russia to release their serfs into freedom. And if the nobles do not listen to this voice, then an uprising will soon arise that will sweep away everything in its path.
Further, the printing house issued a brochure entitled "Poles forgive us", dedicated to the independence of Poland. It spoke about the need to create a union of Russian democracy and the Polish democratic movement.
Herzen did not stop at one pamphlet dedicated to the abolition of serfdom, the next, entitled "Baptized Property", was published a month later at the end of August 1853. In it, he denounces the way that prevails in Russia, the humiliation and injustice that the peasants endure. Herzen supports these arguments with the possibility of developing a community in Russia, a form of communism, which assumes universal equality and a fair distribution of responsibilities among members of the community: “The Russian people endured everything, but kept the community. The community will save the Russian people; hands and feet, the landowner and the police ... The Russian people did not gain anything ... they retained only their inconspicuous, modest community, that is, joint ownership of the land, the equality of all members of the community without exception, the fraternal division of fields according to the number of workers and their own secular management of their affairs. and all the last dowry of Sandrillon (that is, Cinderella) - why take away the last.
Initially, a free printing house, created in the early summer of 1853 in England by Herzen and Ogarev, developed only by the efforts of the founders themselves, this continued throughout the first summer and generally 2 years until June 1855. The printing house brings only losses to Herzen and the publisher Trubner, but in two years fifteen leaflets and brochures were printed.
In 1854 - early 1855, Herzen published only his old and new works - Interrupted Stories, Prison and Exile, Letters from France and Italy, From the Other Shore, speeches at "gatherings" organized by revolutionary emigration, proclamations of the Russian emigrant V.A. Engelson.
Only one thing was sent from Moscow - a seditious poem by P.A. Vyazemsky "Russian God", which Herzen published. Ogarev's poem "Humor" came, but Herzen did not dare to publish it, fearing to harm his friend. Nothing else came from Russia.
A vicious circle has turned out: without correspondence from Russia there is no Free Press, and without the Free Press there will be no correspondence.
There comes a moment when Herzen's patience was rewarded.
January 1855, letter to W. Linton: "The time is already in the ninth month of pregnancy, and I am looking forward to events with great impatience." He's got some interesting material up to this point, but he's holding onto it like he's waiting for something.
The sudden death of Nicholas I (February 18, 1855) did not lead to an immediate rise in the social movement. Many contemporaries noted that the turning point was not 1855, but rather 1856. Herzen, in the preface "From the Publisher" to the second book of "Voices from Russia", noted the "sharp and remarkable" difference in tone of the articles written in 1856 compared to the articles of 1855.
There were hints of a revival of the social movement, and this was the impetus for the creation of the first almanac "Polar Star" in the Free Printing House. On the anniversary of the execution of the Decembrists on the Senate Square on July 25, 1855, the first issue was published, which included profiles of five state Decembrists that day.
Describing the goals of the publication in the first issue of the journal, the editor-publisher wrote: “Our plan is extremely simple. We would like to have in each part one article on the philosophy of revolution and socialism, one historical or statistical article about Russia or the Slavic world, an analysis of some or a wonderful essay and one original literary article, followed by a mixture, letters, chronicles, etc. ".
Let's think about the concept of his publication set out by Herzen. He sets the task of promoting the philosophy of revolution and socialism in the main, title articles of the sections, thereby setting the tone for the perception of the entire publication. It is clear that both the "analysis of a wonderful work" and the "literary article" are conceived as literary-critical materials that are designed to teach the reader to select and evaluate fiction from the standpoint of realism and folk. In fact, Herzen continued the work of Belinsky, who attached great importance to progressive, thoughtful literary criticism. The departments "mixture", "letters", "chronicle" gave the editor the opportunity to place the most diverse materials in terms of genre, which in essence corresponded to the general spirit and general direction of the publication. As you can see, the basis of the publication, according to the editor, should have been the most serious genres - scientific and statistical articles.
The first book of the magazine contains articles, notes, excerpts from Herzen's "Past and Thoughts", Belinsky's correspondence with Gogol about "Selected passages from correspondence with friends", letters from Hugo, Proudhon, Michelet, Mazzini, who welcomed the publication of "Polar Star".
The Polar Star was the first edition of Herzen to be distributed in Russia. It is known that already in 1855 its first issue penetrated not only European Russia, but also Siberia, to the exiled Decembrists, who greeted it with admiration.
The editor could not withstand the strict periodicity of the publication, since the materials were received irregularly and the very organization of its preparation and release was rather complicated.
The meaning and essence of the content of the "Polar Star" Herzen expounded even more sharply in the second book of the journal. In the article "Forward! Forward!" he wrote: “In the first case, our entire program is reduced to the need for glasnost, and all the banners are lost in one thing - in the banner of the liberation of the peasants with the land. Down with wild censorship and wild landowner right! Down with corvée and dues! we will become quarterly later." In the second book, the printing of "The Past and Thoughts" was continued, it included poems by Pushkin, Ryleev, articles by N.I. Sazonova, N.P. Ogarev, letters from Russia.
Already by 1856, the journal had a reliable, constantly replenished portfolio: the flow of manuscripts from Russia was quite voluminous. However, the selection of materials for the "Polyarnaya Zvezda" still corresponded to the original plan - high literary quality and connection of the content with the idea of emancipating the peasantry. From 1855 to 1862, seven books of the Polar Star were published, the last eighth was published in 1869. Poems banned in Russia, excerpts from the Past and Thoughts, theoretical articles on socialism, and materials on the Decembrists form the main content of the Polar Star.
It was not possible to achieve a strict periodicity of the almanac, but what was achieved turned out to be a real breakthrough in freedom of speech and views.
At the beginning of 1857, everything printed in the Free Printing House was sold out, material costs began to pay off, and the London publisher and bookseller N. Trubner undertook second editions at his own expense.
Moreover, by the middle of 1856, it was discovered that there were so many manuscripts coming from Russia, and sometimes they differed so significantly in character from the direction of the Polar Star, that it was necessary from time to time to publish special collections compiled from these manuscripts. This is how the collections "Voices from Russia" appeared. The first of these was published in July 1856. "We are not responsible for opinions that are not expressed by us," Herzen considered it necessary to warn in the preface.
These collections were published until 1860. They placed mainly notes on urgent issues sent from Russia. A total of 9 collections were released.
At the beginning of April 1856, Herzen's old friend and like-minded person, Nikolai Platonovich Ogarev, arrived in London, who immediately began to participate in the publications of the Free Printing House. In the second book of the "Polar Star" his article "Russian Questions" was placed under the signature "R.Ch." ("Russian man"). From that time on, Ogarev became Herzen's closest assistant and colleague. Ogarev, who had just arrived from Russia and vividly felt the needs of Russian social life, had the idea to publish a new periodical in London. This edition was supposed to come out more often than the "Polar Star", respond to all current events and issues of Russian life and be convenient for distribution. According to H.A. Tuchkova-Ogareva, "Herzen was delighted with this idea" and immediately suggested calling the new organ "The Bell".
So, the first stage of the activity of the Free Russian Printing House set the task of promoting the philosophy of revolution and socialism in the main, title articles of the sections, thereby setting the tone for the perception of the entire publication. The most significant publication of this period is the almanac "Polar Star". It was not possible to achieve a strict periodicity of the almanac, but what was achieved turned out to be a real breakthrough in freedom of speech and views.
3. "The Bell" - a publication on the topic of the day: a practical consequence and historical significance
Ogarev became the closest assistant and colleague of Herzen in London since 1856. Ogarev, who had just arrived from Russia and vividly felt the needs of Russian social life, had the idea to publish a new periodical in London. This edition was supposed to come out more often than the "Polar Star", respond to all current events and issues of Russian life and be convenient for distribution.
On July 1, 1857, the first issue of the Kolokol newspaper was published. The newspaper had the subtitle "Additional sheets to the "Polar Star". The motto of the publication was the opening words of Schiller's "Song of the Bell" - "The Call of the Living."
The direction of The Bell was determined by the editors-publishers in a specially issued leaflet - a notice in which Herzen wrote: “There is nothing to say about the direction, it is the same as in the Polar Star, the same that passes invariably through our whole life. Everywhere in everything, always be on the side of the will against violence, on the side of reason against prejudices, on the side of science against fanaticism, on the side of developing peoples against lagging governments. With regard to Russia, we want passionately, with all the ardor of love, with all the strength of the last belief, so that at last the unnecessary slings that hinder its mighty development should finally fall off it. To this end, we now, as in 1855, consider the first, necessary, inevitable, urgent step:
Freedom from censorship.
The liberation of the peasants from the landowners.
Liberation of the taxable class from beatings ... "
In the same message, Herzen explains the need for publication by the fact that "... events in Russia are rushing quickly, they must be caught on the fly, discussed immediately. To do this, we are undertaking a new time-based publication. Without determining the timing of the release, we will try to publish one sheet every month, sometimes two, under the heading "The Bell".
Thus, the editors wanted to increase the relevance of their activities, to ensure the topicality of publications. The newspaper, which was easier and simpler to form than the Polar Star magazine, which most often reflected the current events of Russian life, really was able to reflect many acute problems, respond more quickly to certain specific facts of reality.
Knowing from the experience of preparing the Polar Star how important the connection of the publication with the readership is, Herzen writes in the same notice: “We appeal to all compatriots who share our love for Russia, and ask them not only to listen to the Bell, but also to call themselves into him."
Here is what Lev Slavin writes about the beginning of the publication of the magazine:
"In the first issue there was an extensive review signed "R.Ch." - the pseudonym that Ogarev used for the first years. He also - a review of the Ministry of the Interior. Then - the sections "Mixture" and "Really?", where Herzen's caustic pen passed on various cases of ugly arbitrariness in Russia. In general, the first issues ... were compiled by the efforts of two people: Herzen and Ogarev. Subsequently, the editors significantly expanded the list of employees - and not only at the expense of correspondents from Russia ... Herzen always showed breadth in this respect. His personal more than cold relations with Sazonov and Engelson did not prevent him from attracting them to cooperation.The doors of his house were closed for them, but the gates to the Free Russian Printing House were wide open ... One of the first transshipment points was organized in Koenigsberg ... Russia multiplied.Small and thin "Bell" freely fit in suitcases with a secret compartment.Sometimes it was given the appearance of bales with packaging with paper, and then the "Bell" penetrated into Russia in whole piles ... It got to the point that military ships arriving there were used in port cities abroad: the barrels of military guns were stuffed with the "Bell". Of course, the "Bell" would not have survived if it had not tied itself to a single blood network with Russia. He fed her with his truth and anger, and she fed him with her troubles and sorrows. "The Bell" was not a publication of emigrants to console their narrow circle. Its strength lies in the fact that it has become a people's organ. ".
In the first five years of its existence, Kolokol was an unheard-of success in Russia and gained exceptional influence. This was natural in the conditions of the social upsurge that began after the Crimean War, the growth of the peasant movement, and the gradual growth of the revolutionary crisis. Kolokol responded to the awakening in broad sections of Russian society of the need for a free, uncensored organ of an anti-serfdom and democratic direction, openly resolving the sore questions of Russian life.
Herzen and Ogarev were the main authors of the paper. Herzen published journalistic articles in it (recall that Herzen was one of the most brilliant publicists of his time), Ogarev - articles on economic and legal issues in a form that is well understood by the general reader. Topical messages from Russia the editor had to literary process and supply notes, which revealed the meaning of publications. In addition, the publication included poems by Ogarev, Nekrasov, M. Mikhailov, and revolutionary proclamations.
Permanent mail went from Russia to the editorial office of Kolokol, which formed the basis of the publication.
The idea of liberation of the peasants from serfdom became the dominant line of the content of the publications.
The editors of Kolokol insistently demanded "not the redemption of the estate land, but the redemption of all the land that the landlord peasants have in use" ("Kolokol", fol. l.42 - 43), against the establishment of a transitional, "urgently obligated" period for the peasants ("Bell", l.51), against pieces of land in favor of the landowner ("Bell", l.62).
The newspaper talked about the "horrors of landlord power", sympathetically reported on peasant unrest, raised the question of democratizing the state system in Russia, replacing autocracy with another method of government with the participation of the Zemstvo State Duma, peasant self-government, and elective state institutions.
There were also critical letters towards Kolokol.
On page 64 of Kolokol (March 1, 1860) was printed a Letter from the Province, signed "Russian Man", which is a statement of the positions of Russian revolutionary democracy. Its author reproached Herzen for praising the royal family instead of denouncing untruth, and also said that the only means for fundamental changes in the life of a Russian person is an ax.
Herzen commented on this letter with a preface, which he placed in the same issue of the journal. “We disagree with you not in the idea, but in the means,” he wrote, “not in the beginnings, but in the mode of action. You represent one of the extreme expressions of our direction ... To the ax ... we will not call until at least one reasonable hope for a denouement without an axe.The deeper...we peer into the Western world...the more we grow disgusted with bloody upheavals...It is necessary to call for brooms, and not for an ax!.Revolts are born and grow, like all germs, in silence the secret of the mother's womb, they need a lot of strength and strength to come out into the world and loudly call out a cry ... Calling for an ax, you need to have an organization ... a plan, strength and readiness to lie with your bones, not only grabbing the handle, but grabbing the blade when the ax is too diverges? Do you have all this?".
The disagreements between Herzen and the revolutionary democrats, despite their depth and seriousness, were the disagreements of people, in Herzen's words, "of a friendly camp."
As early as February 1858, The Bell began to appear twice a month, and its circulation reached 2,500-3,000 copies. In 1862, 35 issues were issued. So at first "The Bell" came out monthly, then twice a month and, finally, almost weekly.
The government of Alexander II was afraid of Herzen's revelations, was frightened by his demands and was extremely afraid of the penetration of the free press into the people. Measures to combat London publications became the subject of constant concern of the tsarist government. Persons caught in the transfer of publications of the Free Printing House or in ties with Herzen and Ogarev were prosecuted. The Russian press was forbidden even to mention the name of Herzen. At the same time, the bribed press abroad spoke out against Herzen, pouring out slander and abuse on him. The government Russian newspaper Le nord, which was published in Brussels in French, did its best. Books directed against Herzen began to appear abroad: the book Iskander-Herzen and the pamphlet Shedo-Ferotti.
In the 1960s, the position of the journal and of Herzen himself on all fundamental questions assumed a revolutionary-democratic character. After the announcement of the laws on the "liberation" of the peasants, the waves of the people's sea rise high, reflecting the deep dissatisfaction of the peasantry with the manifesto of freedom. After Herzen's detailed acquaintance with the legislative acts of the tsarist government on the peasant question, "Kolokol" wrote about the "new serfdom", that the people would be deceived by the tsar ("Bell", fol. 101). Herzen is now stigmatizing "liberation." Kolokol puts forward the demand that all landowners' land be transferred to the peasants (l. 134).
After the executions of the peasants began, Herzen placed on sheet No. 105 dated August 15, 1861, the article "The fossil bishop, the antediluvian government and the deceived people", which is an appeal to the masses: "You hate the clerk, you are afraid of them - and you are absolutely right; but still the king and the bishop… Do not believe them!”. Herzen rejects liberal attempts to embellish reality: "Masks off! It is better to see animal teeth and wolf snouts than fake humanity and submissive liberalism." Herzen also points out in the article that Kolokol is on the side of the Russian peasant.
From the middle of 1861 editorials appeared in Kolokol, written in simple language, intended for the broad masses of soldiers and peasants. "The Bell" addresses the people and tells them: "The people need land and freedom" (l.102). "The Bell" addresses the soldiers and to the question: "What should the army do?" - replies: "Do not go against the people" (l. 111).
In 1859-1862, as an appendix to the "Bell", 13 separate leaflets were issued, called "Under Judgment!", which exposed specific cases of lawlessness in Russia. They provided information about the torture of peasants, the cruel treatment of soldiers by officers, and the abuses of officials.
From 1862 to 1864, an appendix to the "Bell" "The General Veche", designed for readers and correspondents from the people, began to appear. In the appendix, questions of freedom of religion were raised, and articles from Kolokol were reprinted in a popular presentation.
Since 1863, the period of decline of the "Bell" begins. This is primarily due to the fact that the flow of correspondence from Russia is sharply decreasing. The number of readers is also decreasing. By the end of the year, only about 500 readers remain, and later, more than 1000, their number is no longer understood. On May 15, 1864, The Bell began to appear once a month. On July 15, the release of the "General Vech" ceased. Three years after the release of No. 244-245 of July 1, 1867, the publication of The Bells was no longer resumed.
The practical meaning of "The Bells" reflect the memories and reviews of contemporaries. In general phrases, this meaning can be expressed as follows: "a sip of freedom", an incentive to action, a program of action, guidance for action. Each social class found its truth in the Bell.
The historical significance of Kolokol lies in the fact that, having turned to the people with a revolutionary sermon, Kolokol played an essential role in the revolutionary education of the working masses and in the preparation of the Russian revolution.
Conclusion
Herzen A. And lived a short life, only 58 years from 1812 to 1870, but received fame and recognition as a writer, philosopher and revolutionary.
In historical science, he is considered the head of the left wing of the Westerners. He promoted the relationship of philosophy with all sciences, and not only the humanities, but the natural ones. And in his literary works, he repeatedly turned to the fact that the serf system is not the best option for a civilized country, and it is precisely such a future that Herzen assumes in his views for Russia.
Considering the failures of revolutions in Western countries, he became the founder of populism, which reflected Herzen's views on the nature of Russian socialism. Thus, Herzen is one of the greatest philosophers and revolutionaries, who until the last day sought to implement his plans and ideas.
In practice, Herzen's ideas were embodied in the creation by him, together with assistants, especially his childhood friend Ogarev, of the Free Russian Printing House.
In Russia in the middle of the nineteenth century, the creation of a printing house that would work without censorship was impossible, so London was chosen as the place for the first free printing house, where Herzen arrived when he was in exile in 1852. Thanks to this printing house, Russian literature became famous abroad.
One of the most striking phenomena of the publishing business of the 19th century was precisely the uncensored publications of A.I. Herzen and N.P. Ogarev - the anthology of the "Polar Star", the collections "Voices from Russia", the newspaper on the topic of the day "The Bell", supplements to them - which they prepared in London. The beginning and the heyday of the activity of the Free Russian Printing House falls on the 1850s, the completion of the 1860s.
At the first stage of the functioning of the printing house, we saw that without communication with its reader (Nikolaev Russia), the existence of the printing house was possible only thanks to the persistence of Herzen. The political culture of fear nurtured by Nikolaev Russia did not contribute to the support of the printing house either by Russian correspondents or by Herzen's friends living in Russia.
At the second stage of the work of the printing house - the era of the reign of Alexander II - in the conditions of general excitement of public thought in hopes of change, the printing house finally got its reader (and "The Bell" was read by everyone - opponents and defenders - and their correspondents.
The book publishing activity of Herzen and Ogarev, placed at the service of the Russian liberation movement, set an example of the preparation of mass political, scientific, scientific and artistic publications that had one clearly expressed political direction. This direction was determined by the editor-publisher on the basis of the developed philosophical, social, political views that he adhered to. Obviously, the content of the materials had a control value here. Based on the specifics of the content, the publisher has developed a certain system of publications of various types and types. Russian journalism only thanks to Herzen got the opportunity to develop and improve, he also opened the way for the opposition current of Russian journalism. The way Herzen stood up for the cause of freedom, justice and the fight against censorship can be an example to follow. After all, it is precisely the desire to lay down one's life for the good of one's people that is a distinctive feature of Herzen's life path.
Editions of Herzen and N.P. Ogaryov, who left the Free Russian Printing House in London, on the eve and during the years of the revolutionary situation of 1859-1861 in Russia, contributed to the revolutionary awakening of Russian society.
List of used literature
1. Gross D., Gross M., Lapshina G. Daring. - M.: "Youth Guard", 1989. - 314 p.
2. Herzen A. I.: Bio-bibliographic reference // Russian writers. Biobibliographic dictionary. T.1. / Under the editorship of P.A. Nikolaev. - M.: Enlightenment, 1990, S. 156-157.
3. Herzen A.I. Collected works in 30 vols. - M.: Publishing House of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, 1954-1965.
4. History of domestic journalism of the XVIII - XIX centuries. - M.: MGSU, "Soyuz", 2000. - 456 p.
5. Prokofiev V. Herzen. ZhZL. - M., "Young Guard", 1979. - 367 p.
6. Slavin L.I. Striking the bell. - M.: Publishing house of political literature, 1986. - 267 p.
7. Solovieva (V.D. Smirnova) E.A. Alexander Herzen. His life and literary activity. (1897). Biographical Library of Florenty Pavlenkov. - M., 2009. - 157 p.
8. Tunimanov V.A. A.I. Herzen // History of Russian Literature. In 4 vols. Volume 3. - L .: Nauka, 1980, S. 45-58.
9. Tuchkova-Ogareva N.A. Memories / Under the general. ed. S.N. Golubova and others - M .: State. publishing house Khudozh. lit., 1959 - 478 p.
10. Eidelman N.Ya. Secret correspondents of the Polar Star. - M.: Nauka, 1966. - 278 p.
11. Elsberg Ya.E. Herzen. - M.: State Publishing house of fiction, 1956. - 498 p.
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In August 1852, Herzen arrived in London, where he was going to live for a short time. He did not initially set the goal of his trip to create a free Russian press, but over time, Herzen began to develop new creative ideas, after which he came to the conclusion that since the paths to his homeland were cut off, then London is the most favorable place for the practical implementation of the plan. .
And, indeed, England in the 50s was a very convenient place for this undertaking, because, unlike France, there were no police restrictions, there was freedom of meetings, and political emigrants could get asylum.
And so, in February 1853, Herzen published an appeal to the “Brothers in Russia”, in which he announced the creation of “free printing in London” and turned to readers with a request: “Send whatever you want - everything written in the spirit of freedom will be printed , from scientific and factual articles ... to novels, stories and poems ... If you don’t have anything ready, your own, send the forbidden poems of Pushkin, Ryleev, Lermontov, Polezhaev, Pecherin and others going around ... The door is open to you. Do you want to use it or not? - it will remain on your conscience ... To be your body, your free, uncensored speech - that's my whole goal. Herzen A.I. Works. T. 7. - M .: State publishing house of fiction, 1958, S. 186-188.
Herzen substantiated the historical necessity and timeliness of this undertaking in an open letter written at the same time to the editors of the Polsky Democrat newspaper. He argued that the Russian political movement has so far developed in the "environment of an aristocratic minority", without the participation of the people, "outside the boundaries of the people's consciousness." The possibility of unity with the people was found in socialism, which he, being a utopian, saw in communal land ownership, in the liberation of the peasants from the land. But at that moment, Herzen wrote, the tsar "deprived us of our language" by censorship persecution. Hence, the inevitability of creating a free press.
The Free Printing House was established on June 22, 1853. A few days later, the first edition appeared - the brochure “St. George's Day! Yuriev day! Russian nobility", in which Herzen calls on the Russian nobility to start freeing the peasants from serfdom. He is trying to influence the mind and feelings of the nobles, predicting an inevitable catastrophe, Pugachevism, if they do not find the strength in themselves to destroy serfdom, influencing the king. But if the nobles are not able to change the situation in the country, then Herzen reserves the right to call on the people to liberation on their own.
In August 1853, Herzen published his pamphlet "Baptized Property", directed against serfdom. With sharp strokes Herzen draws the order and customs of the Russian feudal society, the arbitrariness of tsarism and landlords. An important role in the pamphlet is played by the populist idealization of the rural community as the embodiment of "undeveloped communism", but these illusions are the essence of Herzen's democratic views, his faith in the great future of the Russian people.
He writes: “The Russian people endured everything, but kept the community. The community will save the Russian people; destroying it, you hand him over, bound hand and foot, to the landowner and the police...
The Russian people did not acquire anything ... they retained only their inconspicuous, modest community, i.e. joint ownership of land, equality of all members of the community without exception, fraternal division of fields according to the number of workers and their own secular management of their affairs. That's all the last dowry of Sandrilona (i.e. Cinderella) - why take away the last. Herzen A.I. Works. T. 9.- M.: State publishing house of fiction, 1958, S.15-40.
The turning point in the position of the Free Russian Printing House came after the death of Nicholas I and the end of the Crimean War. In connection with the new upsurge of the social movement in Russia, Herzen decided to publish the almanac "Polar Star". On July 25, 1855, on the anniversary of the execution of the Decembrists, his first issue was published with profiles of five executed Decembrists on the cover.
The "Polar Star" was preceded by a program. The main thing in the program was "The spread of a free way of thinking in Russia." This program should unite around Herzen all the advanced society in the country.
It turned out to be impossible to release the Polar Star strictly periodically: the second book was published at the end of May 1856. In the article "Forward! Forward!”, placed there, Herzen wrote: “In the first case, our entire program is reduced to the need for publicity, and all the banners are lost in one thing - in the banner of the liberation of the peasants with the land. Down with savage censorship and savage landlord rights! Down with corvee and dues! Yards on the loose! And we will deal with the camp and quarter officers later. Herzen A.I. Works. T. 8.- M.: State publishing house of fiction, 1958, S.226.
By the middle of 1856, it turned out that there were so many manuscripts coming from Russia, and sometimes they differed so significantly in character from the direction of the Polar Star, that it was necessary from time to time to publish special collections compiled from these manuscripts.
At the beginning of April 1856, Herzen's old friend and like-minded person, Nikolai Platonovich Ogarev, arrived in London, who immediately began to participate in the publications of the Free Printing House.
The second book contained his article "Russian Questions" signed "R.Ch." ("Russian man"). From that time on, Ogarev became Herzen's closest assistant and colleague. Ogarev, who had just arrived from Russia and vividly felt the needs of Russian social life, had the idea to publish a new periodical in London. This edition was supposed to come out more often than the Polar Star, respond to all current events and issues of Russian life and be convenient for distribution.
A year later, in April 1857, Herzen informed readers about the release of The Bell with a special leaflet: “Events in Russia are rushing fast, they must be caught on the fly, discussed immediately.
To this end, we are undertaking a new time-based edition. Without setting a release date, we will try to publish one sheet, sometimes two, under the title "The Bell" every month ... There is nothing to say about the direction; it is the same that passes invariably through our whole life ...
In relation to Russia, we passionately want, with all the strength of the last belief, that the unnecessary old swaddling clothes, which hinder her mighty development, finally fall off her.
For this we now, as in 1855, consider the first necessary, inevitable, urgent step: the emancipation of the word from censorship, the emancipation of the peasants from the landowners, the emancipation of the taxable estate from beatings.
We appeal to all compatriots who share our love for Russia, and ask them not only to listen to our Bell, but also to ring it themselves.” Herzen A.I. Works. T. 8.- M.: State publishing house of fiction, 1958, S.525. How was the Bell delivered to Russia?
One of the first transshipment points was organized in Koenigsberg. In the future, the channels of penetration of the "Bell" into Russia multiplied. Small in size and thin, the "Bell" fit freely in suitcases with a secret compartment.
Sometimes it was given the appearance of bales of wrapping paper, and then the "Bell" entered Russia in whole piles. It got to the point that military ships arriving there were used in port cities abroad: the barrels of military guns were stuffed with the Bell.
Thus, the activities and main directions of the ideological statements of the Bell corresponded to the practice and goal expressed by Herzen: to be "your free, uncensored speech."
FREE RUSSIAN BOOK PRINTINGIN LONDON
Brothers in Rus'
Why are we silent?
Don't we have anything to say?
Or are we silent because we do not dare to speak?
At home there is no place for free Russian speech, it can be heard in India, if only its time has come.
I know how painful it is for you to be silent, what it takes for you to hide every feeling, every thought, every impulse.
Open, free speech is a great thing; without free speech, there is no free man. It is not for nothing that people give life for her, leave their fatherland, abandon their property. Only the weak, the fearful, the immature are hidden. "Silence is a sign of consent" - it clearly expresses renunciation, hopelessness, head bowing, conscious hopelessness.
An open word is a solemn recognition, a transition into action.
It seems to us that the time has come to print in Russian outside of Russia. Whether we are wrong or not, you will show it.
I am the first to take off the chains of a foreign language and again take up my native speech.
The desire to talk with strangers passes. We told them as best we could about Rus' and the Slavic world; what could be done is done.
But for whom is it to be printed in Russian abroad, how can prohibited books be distributed in Russia?
If we all sit with folded hands and be content with fruitless grumbling and noble indignation, if we prudently retreat from any danger and, having encountered an obstacle, stop without making the experience of either stepping over or going around, then bright days will not come for Russia for a long time.
Nothing is done by itself, without effort and will, without sacrifice and labor. The will of man, the will of one firm man, is terribly great.
Ask how our Polish brothers, who are more oppressed than you, are doing. For twenty years, have they not been sending all over Poland what they want, bypassing the chains of gendarmes and networks of informers?
And now, faithful to their great banner, on which it was written: “For our and your liberty,” they stretch out their hand to you; they make three-quarters of your work easier, you can do the rest yourself.
The Polish Democratic Association in London, as a sign of its fraternal union with the free Russian people, offers you its means for delivering books to Russia and manuscripts from you here.
Your job is to find and enter into intercourse.
Send whatever you like, everything written in the spirit of freedom will be published, from scientific and factual articles on statistics and history to novels, stories and poems.
We are even ready to print without money.
If you don’t have anything ready, your own, send the forbidden poems of Pushkin, Ryleev, Lermontov, Polezhaev, Pechorin and others going from hand to hand.
Our invitation applies as much to the Pan-Slavists as to all free-thinking Russians. We have even more right to expect from them, because they are exclusively concerned with Russia and the Slavic peoples.
The door is open for you. Whether you want to use it or not - it will remain on your conscience.
If we don't get anything from Russia, it won't be our fault. If peace is dearer to you than free speech, be silent.
But I do not believe this - until now no one has printed anything in Russian abroad, because there was no free printing house.
From the first of May 1853 the printing house will be open. While waiting, hoping to get something from you, I will print my manuscripts.
Back in 1849, I thought about starting the printing of Russian books in Paris; but, driven from country to country, pursued by a series of terrible calamities, I could not carry out my undertaking. Besides, I was fascinated; much time, heart, life and money I have sacrificed to the cause of the West. Now I feel superfluous in it.
To be your organ, your free, uncensored speech, is my whole purpose.
I want to tell you not so much what is new, what I want to tell you, but how to take advantage of my position in order to give publicity to your unspoken thoughts, your hidden aspirations, to pass them on to brothers and friends lost in the silent expanse of the Russian kingdom.
Together we will look for means and solutions so that the terrible events that are gathering in the West do not take us by surprise or sleeping.
You once loved my writings. What I will now say is not so young and not so warmed by that bright and joyful fire and that clear faith in the near future that broke through the censorship bars. A whole life is buried between then and now; but for the loss of much, the tempted thought has become more mature, few beliefs remain, but the remaining ones are strong.
Meet me, as friends of youth meet a warrior returning from service, aged, wounded, but who honestly kept his banner both in captivity and in a foreign land - and with the same boundless love gives you a hand in our old union in the name of Russian and Polish freedom .
