''The Czar's Madman'' () is a 1978 novel by

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

n writer

Jaan Kross Jaan Kross (19 February 1920 – 27 December 2007) was an Estonian writer. He won the 1995 International Nonino Prize in Italy. Early life Born in Tallinn, Estonia, son of a skilled metal worker, Jaan Kross studied at Jakob Westholm Gymnasi ...

Plot introduction

This historical novel is about a

Livonia Livonia, known in earlier records as Livland, is a historical region on the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea. It is named after the Livonians, who lived on the shores of present-day Latvia. By the end of the 13th century, the name was extende ...

n nobleman, , who has married a peasant girl named EevaThe couple had one son , who made a career in the

Imperial Russian Navy The Imperial Russian Navy () operated as the navy of the Russian Tsardom and later the Russian Empire from 1696 to 1917. Formally established in 1696, it lasted until being dissolved in the wake of the February Revolution and the declaration of ...

. to prove everyone that good men are equal before nature, God and ideals. Eeva's brother Jakob analyses von Bock's life throughout his journal and tries to figure out if the nobleman is truly mad as everyone seems to believe. ''The Czar's Madman'' is arguably one of the best-known Estonian novels in the world.

Title

The "Czar's Madman" is a reference to the main character who has been imprisoned for being so bold as to talk frankly to the Czar. This is enough to bring accusations of 'insanity'.

Plot summary

The story is written in diary form, describing the impact of revolutionary thinking on the part of a family member. Aristocrat Timotheus von Bock (the diarist's brother in law) writes a letter to the Czar criticising the way in which the Czar's family runs the country. He justifies this act by an oath made to the Czar to give an honest appraisal of the situation. Von Bock is imprisoned as a traitor (although the reason for his imprisonment is kept secret, as is the letter) for 9 years before being released into house arrest on the basis that he is 'mad'.

Characters

*Timotheus "Timo" von Bock – main character and colonel *Eeva von Bock – wife of Timo *Jakob Mättik – brother of Eeva (the narrator of the story)

Awards and nominations

Winner of the 1989 ''Le prix du Meilleur livre étranger''.

Release details

*1978, Estonia, Tallinn: Eesti Raamat (ISBN NA), Pub date ? ? 1978, (original Estonian) *1992, UK, The Harvill Press (), Pub date 2 November 1992, Hardback (Translated by George Kurman) *1993, UK, The Harvill Press (), Pub date 2 August 1993, Hardback (Translated by George Kurman) *1993, UK, Pantheon Books (), Pub date ? January 1993, Hardback (Translated by Anselm Hollo) *1993, PT, Lisboa: Dom Quixote (), Paperback (Translated by Maria Antónia de Vasconcelos) *1994, US, W W Norton (), Pub date ? ? 1994, paperback (Translated by Anselm Hollo) *2001, UK, The Harvill Press (), Pub date 27 July 2001, Paperback (Translated by Anselm Hollo)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Czar's Madman Estonian novels Historical novels 1978 novels