Nikolai Tchaikovsky facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Nikolai Tchaikovsky
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| Born | 7 January 1851 (NS)/ 26 December 1850 (OS) Vyatka, Russian Empire
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| Died | 30 April 1926 (aged 76) |
Nikolai Vasilyevich Tchaikovsky (born January 7, 1851 – died April 30, 1926) was a Russian revolutionary. This means he was a person who wanted big changes in how his country was governed. He believed in creating a fairer society for everyone.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Nikolai Tchaikovsky was born in a place called Vyatka in Russia. He spent his early years on his mother's family estate. He went to school in Vyatka and later studied in St. Petersburg.
In 1868, he started studying at the St. Petersburg University. He earned his degree in chemistry in 1872. While at university, he joined a group of students who wanted to change society. This group later became known as the Circle of Tchaikovsky.
The Circle of Tchaikovsky
The "Circle of Tchaikovsky" was a group of students who believed in revolutionary socialist ideas. These ideas were about making society more equal for everyone. They were part of a bigger movement called the Narodnik movement.
The Narodniks believed that educated people should go to the countryside. They wanted to help the peasants and share new ideas with them. However, the government at the time did not like these ideas.
Challenges and New Paths
The Russian government in the 1870s did not allow groups to act freely. It tried hard to stop the Narodnik movement. Nikolai Tchaikovsky was arrested two times because of his activities.
Because of these difficulties, the student group changed. It became more focused on extreme actions to bring about change. Nikolai Tchaikovsky did not agree with this new direction. He then joined a different group. This group was called "God-men" because its members tried to find a connection to God within themselves.
Life Abroad and New Ideas
In 1874, Tchaikovsky left Russia. A year later, he moved to the United States. He went with a small group of people who shared his ideas about politics and religion.
They started a community called "Cedar Vale" near Wichita, Kansas. Here, they tried to live out their new religious and social beliefs. They wanted to live a shared, communal life.
The American Experiment
However, their experiment in America did not work out. After two difficult years, Tchaikovsky and his friends realized that people were not ready for this kind of communal life. They believed that living together like this needed a strong feeling of God's presence in each person. This feeling was hard to achieve.
So, they decided to return to the "old world." This was a difficult time for Tchaikovsky. He had to rethink his ideas about the world. He also had a family to support but no way to earn money.
He worked for a while as a regular worker. He built ships and worked in a sugar factory near Philadelphia. His health suffered, so he and his family joined a religious community called the Shakers. They stayed there for one year.
Return to Europe and Revolutionary Work
In 1879, Nikolai Tchaikovsky returned to Europe. In 1880, he settled in England. He became active again in Russian revolutionary groups that were based outside Russia.
He met Peter Kropotkin in London in 1881. Kropotkin had also been part of the Tschaikovsky Circle. Together, they tried to help organize workers in England.
Tchaikovsky was also a member of a group called the "Red Cross of the Narodnaia Volia." This group helped to send revolutionary books and papers into Russia.
The 1905 Revolution
In 1905, during the first Russian revolution, Tchaikovsky traveled to America. He gave talks about the revolution and collected money. This money was used to help the fight against the Imperial government.
In 1907, he returned to Russia. He was arrested because he was accused of planning against the government. He spent 11 months in the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg. His friends, mainly from England and the United States, raised money to get him out on bail.
In 1910, he went to trial but was set free because there was not enough proof against him. He stayed in Russia and became very interested in cooperative organizations. These are groups where people work together for shared benefits.
World War I and the Revolutions
During World War I, Tchaikovsky was very active with the Russian Red Cross. He helped to provide food to people in areas where fighting was happening.
After the February Revolution of 1917, he was chosen to be a member of the Petrograd Soviet. Here, he used his influence to speak out against the Bolshevik group.
After the Bolshevik October revolution in 1917, he was elected to the Russian Constituent Assembly. This assembly was a short-lived group meant to create a new government.
Fighting the Bolsheviks
As a member of the "Committee for the Salvation of the Motherland and of the Revolution," he helped organize efforts against the Bolsheviks. This was during the Russian Civil War.
In 1918, Tchaikovsky helped start the "Union of the Reconstruction of Russia." This was an anti-Bolshevik group made of left-wing parties in Moscow. He was also chosen as a member of the Ufa directorate, another anti-Bolshevik government.
On his way to Siberia, he stopped in Vyatka. There, he led a revolt against the Bolsheviks. He also started talks with the Allied forces at Arkhangelsk.
He took part in a change of power in Arkhangelsk on August 2. He became the president of the Supreme Administrative Board of the North Region. After a plot by officers who supported the old monarchy failed, he created the Provisional Government of the Northern Region and led it.
Tchaikovsky was sent by his government to Paris. There, he represented the interests of the North Region at the Versailles Conference. He was part of the "Russian Political Delegation" in Paris until it ended in February 1921.
He was also an active member of a freemasonic lodge called the Grand Orient of Russia’s Peoples. Nikolai Tchaikovsky passed away in Harrow, England in 1926.
See also
In Spanish: Nikolái Chaikovski para niños
