Count Dmitry Andreyevich Tolstoy (russian: Дми́трий Андре́евич Толсто́й; ,

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

– ,

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

) was a Russian

statesman A statesman or stateswoman typically is a politician who has had a long and respected political career at the national or international level. Statesman or Statesmen may also refer to: Newspapers United States * ''The Statesman'' (Oregon), a n ...

, a member of the

State Council of Imperial Russia The State Council ( rus, Госуда́рственный сове́т, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj sɐˈvʲet) was the supreme state advisory body to the Tsar in Imperial Russia. From 1906, it was the upper house of the parliament under the ...

(1866). He belonged to the

comital Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

branch of the

Tolstoy family The House of Tolstoy, or Tolstoi (russian: Толстой), is a family of Russian gentry that acceded to the high aristocracy of the Russian Empire. The name Tolstoy (Russian "Толстой") is itself derived from the Russian adjective "тол� ...

. Tolstoy graduated from the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum in 1843. He held a managing position at the Ministry of the Navy beginning in 1853. Tolstoy was an Ober-Procurator of the

Holy Synod In several of the autocephalous Eastern Orthodox churches and Eastern Catholic Churches, the patriarch or head bishop is elected by a group of bishops called the Holy Synod. For instance, the Holy Synod is a ruling body of the Georgian Orthodox C ...

in 1865–1880, simultaneously holding a post of the Minister of National Enlightenment in 1866–1880. In 1871, Tolstoy was in charge of the college reform, which would result in the prevalence of the classical education (included

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and

Greek language Greek ( el, label=Modern Greek, Ελληνικά, Elliniká, ; grc, Ἑλληνική, Hellēnikḗ) is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece, Cyprus, southern Italy (Calabria and Salento), southern Al ...

s and ancient literature, among other things). In 1872, as Education minister, Tolstoy agreed to the opening by V. I. Guerrier of his Higher Women's Courses in Moscow, thus establishing higher education for women in Russia. In 1882–1889, Tolstoy was the interior minister and Chief of

Gendarmerie Wrong info! --> A gendarmerie () is a military force with law enforcement duties among the civilian population. The term ''gendarme'' () is derived from the medieval French expression ', which translates to " men-at-arms" (literally, ...

. He is considered one of the pillars of the political

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in the 1880s and supporter of the strong authority. Tolstoy's activities were aimed at backing the

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy (class), aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below Royal family, royalty. Nobility has often been an Estates of the realm, estate of the realm with many e ...

, regulating

peasant A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasants ...

ry's '' modus vivendi'', and spreading his administration's influence over local authorities. On Tolstoy's initiative, they issued the so-called ''"Temporary regulations"'' in 1882, which limited the

freedom of press Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic media, especially published materials, should be considered a right to be exerci ...

to an even greater extent. Tolstoy, together with A. Pazukhin, outlined and prepared the so-called "counterreforms", which would become very unpopular in Russia. As one of the great counter reformers of the post Crimean period Tolstoy used his position as minister of education to promote study at university and secondary levels that would bolster Russia as a nation with honest people in power looking to maintain Orthodoxy and Autocracy: something in danger during Tolstoy's rule as the post Crimean period of reform amounted also to increasing rebellion and student dissent. Tolstoy did his best to educate a Russia, and moreover a Russian elite that would maintain Orthodoxy and Autocracy while being in mountable competition with the West. His focus was on consolidating his power over education while suppressing revolutionary attitudes by just censorship, etc. Tolstoy was elected president of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences in 1882. He wrote a number of books on Russian history.

External links

Dmitry Tolstoy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tolstoy, Dmitry 1823 births 1889 deaths Politicians from Moscow People from Moskovsky Uyezd Dmitriy Counts of the Russian Empire Interior ministers of Russia Education ministers Members of the State Council (Russian Empire) Politicians of the Russian Empire Most Holy Synod Demidov Prize laureates Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum alumni Honorary members of the Saint Petersburg Academy of Sciences