Sergey Yakovlevich Elpatyevsky (russian: Серге́й Я́ковлевич Елпа́тьевский), November 3, 1854 – January 9, 1933, was a Russian Empire and Soviet writer and doctor.

Early life

Elpatyevsky was born in the village of Novoselki-Kudrino,

Vladimir Governorate {{Commons cat, Governorates of the Russian Empire Subdivisions of the Russian Empire Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It ...

, into the family of a village priest. He studied at a religious school and, after graduating in 1868, at a seminary. In 1872 he entered the Law Faculty of

Moscow State University M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU; russian: Московский государственный университет имени М. В. Ломоносова) is a public research university in Moscow, Russia and the most prestigious ...

, later transferring to the Medical Faculty.

Career

In the 1870s Elpatyevsky participated in the

narodnik The Narodniks (russian: народники, ) were a politically conscious movement of the Russian intelligentsia in the 1860s and 1870s, some of whom became involved in revolutionary agitation against tsarism. Their ideology, known as Narodism, ...

movement. In 1875, he assisted in the organization of settlements under the

populists Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term developed ...

. He also provided his Moscow apartment for populist meetings. In 1876/77 he helped to organize a student club along with S.V. Martynov and V.S. Lebedev. The club served to coordinate student activities and organize assistance for political exiles in Siberia. In 1877 Elpatyevsky was investigated on charges of having links with revolutionary groups, but released for lack of evidence. In 1878 he finished his studies at the University, and began working as a doctor in Skopinsky County, Ryazan province. He also continued his revolutionary activities. In 1880 he was arrested on charges of promoting

The People's Will Narodnaya Volya ( rus, Наро́дная во́ля, p=nɐˈrodnəjə ˈvolʲə, t=People's Will) was a late 19th-century revolutionary political organization in the Russian Empire which conducted assassinations of government officials in an at ...

, and deported to Ufa province under police supervision.

Exile

In 1884 Elpatyevsky was arrested for distributing illegal literature, and sentenced to exile in Eastern Siberia. He arrived in

Krasnoyarsk Krasnoyarsk ( ; rus, Красноя́рск, a=Ru-Красноярск2.ogg, p=krəsnɐˈjarsk) (in semantic translation - Red Ravine City) is the largest city and administrative center of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. It is situated along the Yeni ...

on October 24, 1884, where he met with the writer

Vladimir Korolenko Vladimir Galaktionovich Korolenko (russian: Влади́мир Галактио́нович Короле́нко, ua, Володи́мир Галактіо́нович Короле́нко; 27 July 1853 – 25 December 1921) was a Ukrainian-born ...

. Elpatyevsky settled in the village of Verhnepashennom, in the

Yeniseysky District Yeniseysky District (russian: Енисе́йский райо́н) is an administrativeLaw #10-4765 and municipalLaw #13-3140 district (raion), one of the forty-three in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. It is located in the west of the krai and borders w ...

of Yenisei province. His wife Lyudmila and their two children went with him voluntarily. His wife and children settled in the city of

Yeniseysk Yeniseysk ( rus, Енисейск, p=jɪnʲɪˈsʲejsk) is a town in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, located on the Yenisei River. Population: 20,000 (1970). History Yeniseysk was founded in 1619 as a stockaded town—the first town on the Yenisei ...

. In 1885 Elpatyevsky was allowed to resettle in Yeniseysk with his family. He repeatedly appealed to the governor of the Yenisei province to allow him to practice medicine, but was refused. He then began to practice medicine free of charge. Later he was granted the right to move freely throughout the countryside to fight the epidemics of

diphtheria Diphtheria is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Corynebacterium diphtheriae''. Most infections are asymptomatic or have a mild clinical course, but in some outbreaks more than 10% of those diagnosed with the disease may die. Signs and s ...

and

scarlet fever Scarlet fever, also known as Scarlatina, is an infectious disease caused by ''Streptococcus pyogenes'' a Group A streptococcus (GAS). The infection is a type of Group A streptococcal infection (Group A strep). It most commonly affects childr ...

Angara The Angara ( Buryat and mn, Ангар, ''Angar'', "Cleft"; russian: Ангара́, ''Angará'') is a major river in Siberia, which traces a course through Russia's Irkutsk Oblast and Krasnoyarsk Krai. It drains out of Lake Baikal and is ...

and measles in

Turukhansk Turukhansk (russian: Туруха́нск) is a rural locality (a '' selo'') and the administrative center of Turukhansky District of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, located north of Krasnoyarsk, at the confluence of the Yenisey and Nizhnyaya Tu ...

. He received the thanks of the Governor I. K. Pedashenko for helping to fight these epidemics. In April, 1886 a

Chelyabinsk Chelyabinsk ( rus, Челя́бинск, p=tɕɪˈlʲæbʲɪnsk, a=Ru-Chelyabinsk.ogg; ba, Силәбе, ''Siläbe'') is the administrative center and largest city of Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia. It is the seventh-largest city in Russia, with a ...

merchant named Balakshin asked Governor Pedashenko if Elpatyevsky could be allowed to accompany him to

Lake Shira Lake Shira is a meromictic lake (the water layers do not mix), located in the Republic of Khakassia, Russia. The lake covers an area of in a steppe landscape in the Minusinsk Hollow. Height above sea level , a relatively flat intermountain area 1 ...

. The governor allowed Elpatyevsky to visit the

Minusinsky District Minusinsky District (russian: Минуси́нский райо́н) is an administrativeLaw #10-4765 and municipalLaw #13-3022 district (raion), one of the forty-three in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. It is located in the southwest of the krai and b ...

for scientific purposes. Their scientific observations about the healing properties of the water of Lake Shira were outlined in Elpatyevsky's report at a meeting of the Yenisei Province Society of Physicians.

Later life

After his period of exile, Elpatyevsky lived in

Nizhny Novgorod Nizhny Novgorod ( ; rus, links=no, Нижний Новгород, a=Ru-Nizhny Novgorod.ogg, p=ˈnʲiʐnʲɪj ˈnovɡərət ), colloquially shortened to Nizhny, from the 13th to the 17th century Novgorod of the Lower Land, formerly known as Gork ...

, and published works in the magazines ''Russian Wealth'' and ''Russian Gazette''. In 1893 he took part in the national fight against hunger and cholera . In the late 1890s he settled in

Yalta Yalta (: Я́лта) is a resort city on the south coast of the Crimean Peninsula surrounded by the Black Sea. It serves as the administrative center of Yalta Municipality, one of the regions within Crimea. Yalta, along with the rest of Crimea ...

, where he often met with

Leo Tolstoy Count Lev Nikolayevich TolstoyTolstoy pronounced his first name as , which corresponds to the romanization ''Lyov''. () (; russian: link=no, Лев Николаевич Толстой,In Tolstoy's day, his name was written as in pre-refor ...

and

Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; 29 January 1860 Old Style date 17 January. – 15 July 1904 Old Style date 2 July.) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career ...

, whom he treated for tuberculosis. In the early 1900s he went abroad, and met with the founders of the

Socialist-Revolutionary Party The Socialist Revolutionary Party, or the Party of Socialist-Revolutionaries (the SRs, , or Esers, russian: эсеры, translit=esery, label=none; russian: Партия социалистов-революционеров, ), was a major politi ...

. During the

1905 Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution of 1905,. also known as the First Russian Revolution,. occurred on 22 January 1905, and was a wave of mass political and social unrest that spread through vast areas of the Russian Empire. The mass unrest was directed again ...

he held meetings of members of the party in his apartment. He didn't share some of their ideas and, for this reason, became one of the creators of the

Labour Popular Socialist Party The Popular Socialist Party () emerged in Russia in the early twentieth century. History The roots of the Popular Socialist Party (NSP) lay in the 'Legal Populist' movement of the 1890s, and its founders looked upon N.K. Mikhailovsky and Alexa ...

Vladimir Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 19 ...

criticized him for this. He was arrested for publishing the booklet ''Land and Freedom'' in 1910. In 1910/11 he was imprisoned in the

Peter and Paul Fortress The Peter and Paul Fortress is the original citadel of St. Petersburg, Russia, founded by Peter the Great in 1703 and built to Domenico Trezzini's designs from 1706 to 1740 as a star fortress. Between the first half of the 1700s and early 1920s i ...

. During World War 1 Elpatyevsky worked in hospitals in the All-Russian Land Union. In 1917 he left the Labour Popular Socialist Party. After the

Russian Revolution of 1917 The Russian Revolution was a period of political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and adopt a socialist form of government ...

he lived in Moscow. From 1922 to 1928 he worked as a doctor in the

Kremlin hospital The Central Clinical Hospital of the Administrative directorate of the President of the Russian Federation (russian: Центральная клиническая больница c поликлиникой Управления делами Пре ...

. He died in 1933 in Moscow.

Notes

English translations

*''Pity Me!'', from The Russian Review, Vol 2, The Russian Review Publishing Company, NY, 1916. *''The Homeless Ones'', from The Shield, Knopf, NY, 1917.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Elpatyevsky, Sergey 1854 births 1933 deaths People from Alexandrovsky District, Vladimir Oblast People from Vladimir Governorate Narodniks Socialist Revolutionary Party politicians Popular Socialists (Russia) Novelists from the Russian Empire Physicians from the Russian Empire Soviet physicians Short story writers from the Russian Empire Moscow State University alumni Prisoners of the Peter and Paul Fortress Writers from Nizhny Novgorod