Ivan Perfilevich Elagin by Jean-Louis Voille

Ivan Perfilievich Yelagin (russian: Иван Перфильевич Елагин; 1725–94) was a

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

Imperial historian, an amateur poet and translator who acted as unofficial secretary to Catherine the Great in the early years of her reign. Yelagin studied in the cadet corps for nobles with Mikhail Kheraskov and

Alexander Sumarokov Alexander Petrovich Sumarokov (russian: Алекса́ндр Петро́вич Сумаро́ков; , Moscow – , Moscow) was a Russian poet and playwright who single-handedly created classical theatre in Russia, thus assisting Mikhail Lomonos ...

, a popular playwright whose works he alternately praised and derided. He became Catherine's ally when she was Grand Duchess at the court of Empress Elisabeth. In 1758, the Empress banished him from the court for his close ties to the disgraced chancellor Bestuzhev. After Catherine's coming to power in 1762, Yelagin replaced Sumarokov as director of the court theatres. His dominion over the Russian theatre was described as tyrannical: for instance, Yelagin demanded that comedies and other foreign plays were transposed to Russian settings. He also helped Catherine in re-editing her manuscripts: all her literary works survive only in Yelagin's handwritten copies.Lurana Donnels O'Malley. ''The dramatic works of Catherine the Great: theatre and politics in eighteenth-century Russia''. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2006. . Page 23. "There were few social activities in which he did not involve himself", as historians have noted. "With Dr Ely, a converted Jew and a mason, Yelagin studied

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

and Cabbala,

theosophy Theosophy is a religion established in the United States during the late 19th century. It was founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and draws its teachings predominantly from Blavatsky's writings. Categorized by scholars of religion ...

, physics and chemistry, Egyptian traditions". He entertained Count Cagliostro in his house and is mentioned in

Casanova Giacomo Girolamo Casanova (, ; 2 April 1725 – 4 June 1798) was an Italian adventurer and author from the Republic of Venice. His autobiography, (''Story of My Life''), is regarded as one of the most authentic sources of information about the c ...

's memoirs. Yelagin is probably best remembered as a founding father of the

Russian freemasonry Freemasonry in Russia started in the 18th century and has continued to the present day. Russian Freemasonry pursue humanistic and educational purposes, but more attention is given to ethical issues. It was a spiritual community of people united ...

.Raffaella Faggionato. ''A Rosicrucian utopia in eighteenth-century Russia''. . Page 16. This side of his activities eventually aroused Catherine's suspicions and contributed to his downfall in the early 1780s. Yelagin's sumptuous villa on the eponymous isle to the north of St. Petersburg was later rebuilt into an imperial residence (see

Yelagin Palace Yelagin Palace (Елагин дворец; also ''Yelaginsky'' or ''Yelaginoostrovsky Dvorets'') is a Palladian villa on Yelagin Island in Saint Petersburg, which served as a royal summer palace during the reign of Alexander I. The villa was desi ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yelagin Russian dramatists and playwrights Russian male dramatists and playwrights Poets from the Russian Empire Male writers from the Russian Empire Russian male poets Translators from the Russian Empire Senators of the Russian Empire Members of the Russian Academy Russian Freemasons 1725 births 1794 deaths 18th-century translators

See also

References