Photos from open sources of
World famous novel about the extraordinary adventures of Robinson Crusoe has long been ranked among the classics. As it has long been known that in The basis of the plot of his book, Daniel Defoe laid the real story, what happened to Alexander Selkirk, a Scottish sailor. But not everyone knows what happened a century and a half ago in Russia a very similar story, only our “Robinson” was not on tropical island, and on the shore of the harsh Sea of Okhotsk.
The turbulent youth of “Russian Robinson”
In 1882, Russian Antiquity magazine published a note Siberian researcher and businessman Alexander Sibiryakova, in which told about the “Russian Robinson”. This man’s name Sergey Petrovich Lisitsyn. Hereditary nobleman, Lisitsyn graduated from the prestigious physics and mathematics faculty St. Petersburg Imperial University and received a diploma Candidate of Mathematical Sciences.
A photo from open sources
Sergey’s father was an officer in the Russian army and died in a battle under Silistria. The boy was raised by an aunt; his childhood passed in Kursk province, in the estate of Sosnovka. Having a brilliant education, however, the young nobleman did not wish to engage scientific and teaching activities and became the cornet of the Life Guard Hussar regiment.
However, Lisitsyn did not long enjoy the vibrant life of the capital guardsman. The duel between him and the regimental adjutant put an end to her, which, fortunately, ended without casualties. Now instead of lush the hussar’s mentor Lisitsyn was expecting a dull bureaucratic frock coat. Become another Akaki Akakievich for a retired cornet was unbearable. Therefore, he enthusiastically accepts the invitation his relative, who was then serving in Alaska, to arrive to the edge of the New World. Lisitsyn was 24 years old when, full of hope and daring plans, he stepped onto the deck of a transport ship Russian Navy. It was 1847 …
How the troublemaker hussar becomes “Robinson”
The officer cabin took a retired cornet quite friendly. However, he here managed to show his cocky temper. Once, under the sake of Lisofyn, he told a bunch of insolence to the ship commander, for which he was sent under arrest. Sitting in my own locked cabin he began to incite to the revolt of the guard sailors. Ship captain ordered the instigator to be twisted and blindfolded to land him on deserted beach.
A photo from open sources
Freed from the bonds, the unfortunate rebel tore the blindfold and saw on the horizon a departing ship. However, by order noble captain Lisitsyna left, in addition to suitcases with clothes, sheepskin coat, three pairs of boots, two pistols, a dagger, a saber, stock tea and sugar, a folding knife, a pocket gold watch, a couple of jars with vodka, a pound of crackers, as well as writing materials, stock writing papers, notebooks, tea and shaving equipment, stock matches, paints, pencils, drawing paper, credit cards for 2800 rubles and even two hundred Havana cigars.
This considerable baggage was accompanied by a good gun and 26 charges to him, as well as a note from the commander of the ship. He wrote that according to The Maritime Charter deserves the dear Sergei Petrovich’s deed of death. However, the captain gives him life, as he spares youth and Lisitsyn’s remarkable talents, and moreover, his undoubted heart kindness. Next, the captain expressed the desire that difficulties a solitary life corrected the unhappy character of a young man. IN at the end he attributed: if ever fate brings us together again, why I really wish, I hope that we will not meet as enemies …
Is it easy to be a robinson?
The nobleman Lisitsyn didn’t have to do anything with his hands: for this, there were serfs in the estate, and a batman in a regiment. The young man knew that the ship was in the Sea of Okhotsk, and hoped that landed him on a piece of land belonging to the ridge Kuril or Aleutian islands. Alas, Lisitsyn soon became convinced that the situation he was in is nowhere worse: in front of him the waves of the Sea of Okhotsk were rising, and the eternal the dense taiga in which there were poisonous snakes, bears, lynxes, wolves …
A photo from open sources
A week passed – and the “Russian Robinson” already had its own home with stove and furniture. Lisitsyn himself made a bow, arrow and sling, deciding save gun cartridges. By the way, the latter were very useful him, when in winter a pack of hungry wolves broke into the house: eight the hermit killed the predators point-blank from the gun. Before that, he lucky enough to shoot a bear and provide yourself with a reserve Bears and a warm fur coat. In the summer Lisitsyn fished in the taiga picked mushrooms and dried them for the future.
This story could not do without Friday. In April Sergey Petrovich walked along the seashore, appreciating the effects of recent storms, as suddenly he saw a man lying face down unconscious. Later it turned out that the man’s name was Vasily and he and his son sailed to transport to Russian America. When the ship leaked, everyone escaped with him, and Vasily and his son were forgotten.
A photo from open sources
The ship was found nearby. In addition to the sixteen-year-old youth, on it there were eight Kholmogory cows and a bull, sixteen oxen, twenty six sheep, cats and two shepherd dogs, as well as food supplies, rye and barley seeds, weapons, two telescopes and a telescope, samovar, garden and building tools.
The Russian version of Robinson Crusoe is much more humane
Seven months of forced loneliness completely weathered former master gentleman arrogance. With his assistants, he updated over the summer, a house and a bath, learned to make sour cream, butter, cottage cheese and cheese, plowed a field on which he then harvested rye and barley. Labor Lisitsyna commune organized abundant fishing of river and sea fish, collected and processed mushrooms, berries, forest herbs …
The Chinese periodically tried to attack the commune smugglers, but the settlers used a ship a gun taken from a ship. Somehow the Russian military approached the coast ships sent to protect our borders from uninvited Chinese guests. It was they who helped their compatriots recapture another attack of the Chinese.
Ten years have passed. In 1857, the writer and scholar Alexander Sibiryakov met with Sergei Petrovich Lisitsyn, hospitable the owner of the Amur gold and copper mines. Gold deposits and he found copper ore at the time of his loneliness. By the way, the government appointed Lisitsyn to manage these lands.
A photo from open sources
At the “Russian Robinson” faithful Vasily was inseparably Friday, but his son became a student at Moscow University. IN St. Petersburg University studied at the expense of Lisitsyn and two sons of the very captain of the ship that once landed troublemaker cornet on a deserted beach. Yes, yes, having become rich, Sergei Petrovich found the old man and did not fail to express his thanks. The dead captain Lisitsyn spent last way, after which he took full care of his children. how you see, the Russian robinsonade turned out to be no less interesting than the story told by Defoe, and much more humane. Not this way whether? ..
Mushrooms Life China Bears Russia Fish
