Heroes of the Russian land... Gerasim Matveevich Kurin. Leader of the peasant partisan detachment Gerasim Kurin: biography, achievements and interesting facts Who is Gerasim Kurin

Towards the 200th anniversary of the Patriotic War of 1812

Pavlovo Sad local historians Alexander Markin and Viktor Sitnov published a collection of local history materials entitled “Vohna in 1812”. With the consent of V.F. Sitnov, we offer site visitors a selection of his author’s materials from the new book (in the online version).

Fiction and truth about Gerasim Kurin

Local history analysis of the stories by S. Golubov “Gerasim Kurin” (1942) and B. Chubar “Gerasim Matveevich Kurin” (1987)

Sitnov Viktor Feofilaktovich

Sometimes it happens that the creators of artistic and journalistic works, especially when fulfilling urgent social orders, do not have enough time to collect and analyze specific historical facts on the chosen topic. In such cases, writers make up for and compensate for the lack of documentary “texture” with an old, proven technique - artistic fiction.

And, we must agree, talented authors often produce works that are quite successful and bright from an artistic point of view. But this is for uninitiated readers. Historians and, in particular, local historians cannot be satisfied with fiction, distortion and falsification of real facts and events. It is important for them to restore historical truth (and justice), for which it is necessary to accurately “reconstruct” specific events and real facts in a specific historical space.

In this regard, when reflected in Soviet fiction, the heroes of the people's Vokhon militia were clearly unlucky in the Patriotic War of 1812, i.e. to our famous fellow countrymen Gerasim Kurin, Yegor Stulov, Ivan Chushkin, who showed valor and patriotism in defending their native land from the Napoleonic army.

We are talking about a description of local events (September - October 1812) in the stories of S.N. Golubov “Gerasim Kurin” (M. Detgiz, 1942) and B. Chubara “Gerasim Matveevich Kurin” (Ser. ZhZL, M., “Young Guard”, 1987).

We see that in both cases the works were created for the next “round dates” of the Patriotic War of 1812: the 130th anniversary and the 175th anniversary. There is no doubt that the publication of 1942 had a specific goal: the rise and activation of the national patriotic self-awareness of the Soviet people, the mobilization of all forces to save the homeland from the fascist invasion. The mobilizing and inspiring example of the heroic past was supposed to play a role in organizing the people's guerrilla war against the occupiers.

Without detracting from the artistic merits of these works, today we, as local historians, cannot agree with the incompetence and obvious ignorance of the authors in local historical, geographical, biographical and other documentary material. It seems that the writer S.N. Golubov (1894–1962) had at his disposal only the most general historical information about the local events of 1812 and, perhaps, did not even visit the scene, not to mention archival research.

Boris Chubar (a journalist from the Taimyr Autonomous Okrug) already had at his disposal a story by Golubov, a historical essay about Pavlovsky Posad by local historian S.N. Grabilin, published in the collection “Cities of the Moscow Region” (Moscow Worker Publishing House, 1980), brief references in popular science publications. It is possible that he bothered to visit the local history museum, but a whole “kaleidoscope” of historical, geographical, biographical errors and absurdities, carefully compensated for by artistic fiction, clearly indicate a lack of work with archival materials and critical analysis of previous fiction on the chosen topic. To the mistakes of S. Golubov, 45 years later, B. Chubar inadvertently added his own...

Restoring the truth (in our case, historical truth), we will try to separate documentary and fictional facts in the stories mentioned above, and work on the obvious numerous errors. This is necessary and has practical meaning also because these stories of an artistic and journalistic nature are often recommended as sources of local history material for our schoolchildren. (See Local History Curriculum for Grades 1-9, published by the local education department in 1996.) In addition, fictitious and distorted facts, taken at face value by our journalists and local historians, have been published and quoted in the press more than once, misleading inexperienced readers.

The first and fundamental mistake made by both authors is already in the very name of the area about which they undertook to write. Golubov, for example, managed to call our ancient Vokhonsky volost Vokhtinskaya, or even just Vokhta. Chubar already has Vokhnenskaya or Vokhnya parish. What is this dismissive “-nya”? Strange associations... At the same time, trying to quote 17th century scribal books from T. Troitsky’s brochure, he still stubbornly forwards the original name of the volost to Vokhnenskaya. Now he would try to adjust, for example, the names of Russian capitals to his taste...

Of the huge number of names of local villages in the Vokhtinskaya volost, Golubov for some reason uses only three. This is Pavlovo, Melenki and some unknown to us Novy Dvor. Why did the writer not like our Big Yard? Unknown. The resourceful author calls all other local settlements other villages and settlements. The French route was also simplified to the limit: Bogorodsk – Novy Dvor – Melenki – Pavlovo. And what? For “middle-aged and older” children it will do! Who will recheck the hundred-year history in 1942?..

The village of Pavlovo Golubov is surrounded on three sides by an impenetrable pine forest, leaving the peasants an outskirts to watch the fire of Moscow. How does he know that from time immemorial the large village was almost closely surrounded by small settlements and villages, which have now turned into township streets. And the Vokhonka River was the natural border of the village on the northern side. And the Moscow fire could only be observed at night from a high bell tower. And where could this Pavlovian “outskirts” be?..

By the way, S. Golubov habitually placed a shopping area near the church fence, not realizing that it was on another hill - across the river. One way or another, both authors gather a “village gathering” in the market square. At the same time, Chubar even today names the nearby villages Subbotino, Gribovo, Bolshie Dvory and even Nosyryovo as the closest villages to Pavlov, apparently having no idea about the half-dozen truly neighboring villages. The author's orientation on the terrain is very poor. For example, from Stepurin to neighboring Subbotino (less than a mile - V.S.) “at night I got rid of a lathered horse.” Such a message can only cause an ironic smile among local residents...

One can also react to the original author’s interpretation of the historical name of the village: “...the center of the Vokhny volost is either Vokhnya or Pavlovo. In essence, they are the same thing. Vokhnya was called the Dmitrovsky churchyard, which grew up here back in the days when Ivan the Terrible transferred the lands of the volost to the Trinity-Sergius Lavra... Between Vokhnya and Pavlov... there was no clear boundary, no hostility..." With his invention " Vokhnya”, Taimyr journalist B. Chubar, according to copyright, is free, of course, to manipulate as he pleases. We will only note that the first churchyard arose on our land under Dmitry Donskoy, and under John IV, the Vokhonsky volost came into the possession of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery, and not the Lavra. He received this title only in 1744.

Due to historical ignorance, the writer S. Golubov “gives” the Pavlovsk peasants into serfdom to a certain mythical and, apparently, therefore nameless gentleman, whose typical (fat-swollen) appearance, as well as his house, estate and garden with regular alleys, are described in some detail. Also shown are episodes of the master's flight from the French and his return six months later, when in a fit of anger he intends to flog all his peasants who, “see, they raised an army... trampled the winter crops...”. Frankly speaking, an interesting subjective projection of a writer of historical novels...

The author, with his rather textbook artistic fiction, simply does not realize that peasants could be not only serfs, but also state, state-owned - “economic”. This was the population of Pavlov and most of the surrounding villages. Free people had something to protect. Mentioning the national hero of the Patriotic War of 1812, Gerasim Kurin, as a serf in various publications is a common, typical mistake.

With the master in conflict with the peasants, escaping from the French to the Volga, the narrative is, of course, more colorful and familiar, but in our case this is a distortion of historical truth, leveling and the possible loss of original, characteristic (and sometimes key) signs and features of specific events.

The author's passion for artistic fiction at the expense of historical truth leads to a distortion of the picture of the real life of the same Pavlovsk peasants and, in particular, Kurin, who was never poor. But Golubov, following the textbook pattern, writes out: “The Chickens had the most unenviable hut - made of thin wood, with a roof like that (thatched without external wooden fortifications), without a ridge; it was heated in black, illuminated by a torch in an old tin light; the walls are bare, the floors are low, the windows are tiny, with dull greenish glass...".

The writer clearly drew everything he wanted. But in this wretched kennel of a slave, the real merchant Gerasim Kurin would never have lived, and in fact did not live. At the end of his life, Kurin had the best two-story house on Torgovaya Square (see photo).

Type of hut of a Vokhon peasant, drawn by the author's fiction of the writer S.N. Golubov, and the real house of Gerasim Matveevich Kurin (Vokhonsky head in 1820-1826) - by the beginning of the twentieth century, resold by his heirs and rebuilt by the new owners; was located on Torgovaya Square (now Revolution Square - on the site of the current five-story building No. 6 with the Yubileiny store - see modern photo). A snapshot from the beginning of the 20th century.

But writer S.N. Golubov knew none of this. He, funny as it may seem, did not even know the middle name of his main character. But Boris Chubar already knew and even emphasized this in the title of his story: “Gerasim Matveevich Kurin.” But this did not save him from a mass of mistakes and absurdities, as we will see later.

To show Kurin as a worthy successor to the patriotic traditions of his ancestors, the writer Golubov came up with corresponding biographies for him and his father “Pakhom Akimych”. Write like that! It turned out that the former grenadier Corporal Pakhom Kurin became famous in Suvorov’s campaigns, personally knew the Generalissimo and even kissed him. In addition, he walked in the same line with Kutuzov to take Ishmael! Pakhom tells Gerasim about this: “... And Kutuzov, Mikhail Larivonych? You should have seen how in seven hundred and ninety he led Ishmael to take us... Then his eye was knocked out, he fell dead, and he brought us to the fortress!” Moreover, Pakhom turned out to be exactly the heroic corporal who at that time “dragged His Serene Highness Prince Kutuzov, wounded, out of the fire.” However, Pakhom himself lost his legs... Therefore, just like that, he easily sends his son for advice and help to Kutuzov. And this vividly written (but not real) meeting takes place! Kutuzov inspires and blesses the partisan chieftain of the peasant squad and lends him twenty soldiers' muskets.

The second meeting of the distinguished Gerasim Kurin with Kutuzov is no less vividly and colorfully shown, when the field marshal personally hangs the St. George Cross on his chest! Alas, this meeting did not take place in reality. Kutuzov and Kurin never saw each other. But for the writer Golubov, ideological and artistic design (or fiction) is more important than historical truth. Moreover, if there are no archival documents at hand, and there are no judges either. There is only a social order and a brief (apparently extremely meager) historical background. And there is also the talent of a fiction writer...

Apparently, succumbing to the charm of this talent, the writer Boris Chubar, performing similar work 45 years later, accepted some of Golubov’s versions that he liked. Chubar especially liked the version about the heroic ancestor Kurin. Only the invented name Pakhom was replaced by the real one - Matvey. He, too, during the assault on Izmail, walked “in a column commanded by Kutuzov, ... but already on the wall itself, Matvey’s legs were mutilated by grapeshot.” In both stories, Kurin's father is shown as a semi-immobilized invalid who does not lose his fighting spirit.

However, the truth is that neither the fictitious Suvorov grenadier Pakhom Akimych, nor the real Matvey Alekseevich Kurin (1757-1829) stormed Izmail and were not familiar with Kutuzov. Our archival research shows that there was not a single Pakhom in the Kurin family tree. And the peasant Matvey Alekseevich Kurin at the indicated time lived peacefully with his family in Pavlov and carefully attended the Church of the Resurrection, as indicated by the annual confessional statements of this temple. At the same time, we note that Gerasim’s father lived 16 years longer than his “death”, arranged for him according to the plot plan on a March Sunday in 1813 by the writer Golubov.

Believing in the fabrications of his eminent predecessor, B. Chubar fell for the bait not only with the heroic ancestor of Gerasim Kurin, but also with his only ten-year-old son Panka, who acts very actively in both stories. In fact, Gerasim’s two sons were at that time: Terenty – 13, and Anton – 8 years old.

Egor Semyonovich Stulov, portrait
works by Ivan Terebenev, 1813

And G. Kurin’s wife’s name was not Fetinya, as Golubov came up with, but Anna Savelyevna (Savina). And she was not from the “nearest village of Gribovo,” as B. Chubar wanted, but a native resident of the village of Pavlova, a representative of one of the branches of the famous and ancient Shirokov family. The new author, apparently competing with his predecessor in artistic fiction, decided to take it out on Kurin’s wife, “arranging” for her a difficult birth (“the young woman barely survived”) and subsequently made her infertile. Quite cruel fantasies...

We must pay tribute to the literary courage (or adventurism) of S. Golubov, who took on the story without even knowing the names of its main characters. For example, G. Kurin’s closest associate, elder Yegor Semyonovich Stulov (1777–1823), appears in the story as “Uncle Demyan” and is referred to as Kurin’s brother-in-law.

In one episode, Stulov (at the writer’s behest) inadvertently recalls his wedding: “Yes, he’s already more than twenty years old.” According to Golubov, it turns out that he got married when he was thirteen... If he had known about this “blunder”, the author himself would have laughed. Perhaps suspecting that Kurin must have (besides Stulov) another combat assistant, the writer introduces him in the story as a certain brave “little man from the settlements” with the fighting name Stratilat Mikitych Bizyukin. He proves himself to be a brave warrior, in the main battle he commands a thousand foot soldiers and dies. By the way, in the same battle, by the will and imagination of the author, “another dozen and a half Vokhta warriors paid with their faithful blood” for the victory.

In the real battle on October 1, 1812, not a single Vokhon resident was killed, and the commander of a thousand-strong detachment of foot warriors, Sotsky Ivan Yakovlevich Chushkin (1765–1832), remained unharmed. That was the name of Gerasim Kurin’s comrade in arms.

But since Golubov’s art “demanded sacrifices,” the author also wounded the ataman of the Vokhon warriors: “His left arm was nailed with lead above the elbow.” Although in N. Kuzmin’s illustration in the same book, for some reason Gerasim Kurin’s right hand is bandaged (see picture). It's obviously a contagious thing - a lie...

In almost every combat episode, Golubov kills several local peasants. And at B. Chubar in the battle of October 1, “on our side, 12 people were killed, 20 wounded.” Our authors’ “bloodthirstiness” would clearly have diminished if, to their surprise, they had learned that the phenomenon of military operations by the Vokhon partisans was that during the entire time not a single combatant was lost. This is a considerable merit of both the leader of the militia, Gerasim Kurin, and the correct tactical actions of his assistants E.S. Stulova and I.Ya. Chushkina. For this, all three were awarded the St. George Cross and the medal "For Love of the Fatherland." This happened in the Moscow provincial government in May 1813. The awards were presented to the heroes by the Commander-in-Chief of the capital, Count V. Rostopchin, and not by the then deceased M.I. Kutuzov (as some writers think).

Regarding the existing doubts regarding the St. George Crosses of the 5th degree awarded to the Vokhonsky heroes (with four degrees of this award actually existing at that time), we offer a commentary from our famous local historian, specialist on the topic of the Patriotic War of 1812 - Alexander Markin, received at the request of the author of this publications:

“As for the crosses, it is described in detail in: Bartoshevich V.V. "From the history of rewarding peasant partisans in 1812" (“Historical Notes”, vol. 103, M., 1981).

The society was class-based, i.e., the peasant could not receive the reward due to the warrior. Moreover, it was not a system of state awards, as in the USSR or now in the Russian Federation, but of orders.

This is why, by the way, the unauthorized imposition of the colors of the Victoria Cross on oneself, for example, in the countries of the Commonwealth (Great Britain, Canada, Australia, etc.) is impossible due to cultural tradition, but in our country the colors of the Military Order of St. Vmch. and Victorious George to the last extreme.

In short, in 1813 they found a way out - the peasants were given crosses, officially called the Insignia of the Military Order. In fact, these were crosses of the Order for lower ranks (at that time only the officer's cross had degrees), specially made and unnumbered. Military crosses - officers' and soldiers' - have been numbered since 1809, and the chapter kept lists of names. Calling this award the Cross of St. George is historically incorrect; this name was established later by a new edition of the Charter of the Order. But these crosses were precisely re-coined from the crosses of dead or deceased cavaliers handed over to the chapter. It is precisely because they were given in a special order that the incorrect name “St. George Crosses of the fifth degree,” found in the literature, was attached to them.

The Emperor had a precedent, by the way, since at least one civilian received the Insignia of the Military Order even before the War of 1812 - the Pomor tradesman Matvey Andreevich Gerasimov, who with his comrades recaptured his ship from an enemy English crew led by an officer who had captured it in 1810.” .

It would be possible to continue listing and correcting numerous errors and various kinds of absurdities in the stories of S. Golubov and B. Chubar. This requires time and desire. But even on the basis of our analysis, we can make an unambiguous conclusion that these works on a historical topic cannot be recommended to schoolchildren and anyone interested in the biography of their small homeland as a source of local history knowledge. Press publications that quote or refer to these works cannot be completely trusted.

The most reliable source of historical information on the topic of the Patriotic War of 1812 in our region for schoolchildren and local historians today can be books by local author A.S. Markin: “Vohna. 1812”, published for the 150th anniversary of Pavlovsky Posad in 1994, “Towards the upcoming restoration of the chapel in Pavlovsky Posad in memory of the War of 1812” (1996) and “Essays on the history of Vokhna” (2008).

Well, the archives are always open for independent serious historical research and research. There would be a desire...

Where is Gerasim Kurin buried?

I would like to advise those who are embarking on the path of local history to be more careful in using past Soviet publications on political and historical topics today, since our long-suffering history was constantly corrected and altered in the press, to please each successive regime, ruler, leader, and general secretary. This has always been the case, so you should trust only publications (figures and facts) confirmed by documentary (archival) primary sources. And even in these cases, it is necessary to remember, take into account and admit that many of the old evidence and documents can be (and in fact are) subjective “self-reflections” of the era.

I would like to note that researching and “voicing” local history is always a noble endeavor, but not always rewarding. There are too many different visible and invisible obstacles, bumps, holes, traps, deceptions and many years of subjective slander and “bells and whistles”. Frankly, we ourselves have stepped on this “rake” more than once and ended up in these original Vokhon “sites”. So, in this particular case, for the umpteenth time we will talk about the most typical mistakes on the topic of the folk heroes of the Vokhon militia of 1812.

FIRST. But important and key. Statement of the Soviet Encyclopedic Dictionary that Kurin Gerasim Matveevich (1777-1850) - serf peasant - WRONG by definition! The compilers and numerous re-editors of this article (not only in SES) “combed” Kurin under the general typical serf “comb,” apparently having no idea about the atypical circumstances of the specific historical space of our Bogorodsky district. Indeed, most of the district's volosts were located on landowners' lands, where, naturally, serfs (until 1861) lived in "owner's" villages. How do the overloaded compilers of dictionaries and reference books know that our Vokhonskaya volost (from among the sovereign's estates) back in 1571 by Ivan the Terrible was transferred into the possession of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery. And in 1764, after the secularization (confiscation) of church and monastery lands by Catherine II, the Vokhonsky volost came under the jurisdiction of the College of Economy, and the peasants living in it became state-owned and were called state-owned or economic.

Not far from Pavlov - already beyond Klyazma in the Bunkovskaya volost or in Novinskaya (Zagarskaya), or in Tereninskaya, not to mention the Guslitsky volosts, there were quite a number of landowner villages with serfs. Even the founders of the most famous dynasty of industrialists in Russia, the Morozovs, who came from the Zuevskaya volost of the Bogorodsky district, had to be bought out of the fortress from the landowner G.V. in 1821. Ryumina.

But in the “economic” village of Pavlovo, which is part of the Vokhonsky volost, and in more than two dozen nearby villages, there has never been a landowner or gentleman, which, apparently, not only the compilers of various reference books, but also some popular writers did not know. I couldn’t read paragraphs from S.N.’s book without smiling. Golubov "Gerasim Kurin" (1942) about the abject poverty in the hut of the serf Kurin (who was in fact a wealthy merchant, and also about how the master wanted to flog him for the fact that "an army, you see, they brought in... They trampled winter." How can you not smile!

And here’s another, but from B. Chubar’s story “Gerasim Matveevich Kurin” (1987): “They said that the gentleman from Melenki (now Karpovskaya Street - B.C.) there is a real musket, the fire is so loud that it crackles in your ears. So master."

As a journalist and local historian, I confirm that, indeed, “my ears have been ringing” for so many years!.. And then they published it again in the local newspaper... Let us finally remember, gentlemen-comrades, and explain to others that neither Gerasim Kurin nor his assistants and associates were never serfs!

SECOND. The statement that “Kurin became the head of the volost, replacing the one liberated by the world old age E.S. Stulov" is in fact just the author’s assumption of local historian A.S. Markin, prudently qualified by the word “obviously”, since the exact age of Yegor Semenovich was not known. Having studied the question, I can justify the caution of A.S. Markin’s assumption and cannot justify the newspaper statement about Stulov's old age. The years of his life (1777-1823) indicate that the former volost mayor was the same age as Kurin, and he was then 43 years old. Not so old. The point here, on the one hand, is the sharply increased authority of Kurin , and, on the other hand, in Stulov’s affiliation with the hereditary “recorded schismatics”, i.e. Old Believers, who were disliked by both secular and ecclesiastical authorities. Kurin served as volost mayor from 1820 to 1826.

THIRD. The monetary reward of five thousand rubles was not timed to coincide with the issuance of St. George's crosses and medals in May 1813, but came from Alexander I after the presentation of Kurin, Stulov and Chushkin to him in August 1816. And, in addition, which is quite important:

FOURTH. Not all three received five thousand (a huge amount!), but only the leader of the partisan squad, Gerasim Kurin, which is documented. The rest are sometimes “awarded”, perhaps only in some local newspapers and reprints...

FIFTH. The statement that our heroes also received titles in addition to all awards Honorary citizens, is perhaps the most common (after serfs) misconception! One of the good-natured amateurs, apparently in a patriotic frenzy, inflated this historical “canard” and launched it into print. And so she has been floating around in newspapers for decades and quacks from time to time. Today I flew into another one and grunted again. It's time to skewer this duck. I'll explain why. The fact is that honorary citizenship According to the law, the peasant class was not assigned at all. But the most important thing is that it was established in Russia only in 1832, when Stulov and Chushkin were no longer alive. However, this citizenship did not “shine” for them. And the rather vain (even more so in his old age) Kurin in official papers was content with the signature: “everyman of Pavlovsky Posad and Cavalier Gerasim Matveev Kurin.” I believe that we have finally plucked the said “duck”...

SIXTH. The assumption that Gerasim Kurin is buried in the Old Believer cemetery near the former village of Prokunino is erroneous. This is a long-forgotten version of local history enthusiast (now deceased) Anfisa Ivanovna Bender (ur. Shchennikova).

I explain the situation with this version. Anfisa Ivanovna, as a hereditary Old Believer and had a cousin Alexandra Ivanovna, who a hundred years ago married the clerk of the Morozov factory, Old Believer Ivan Fedorovich Kurin (grandson of the “adopted son” Gerasim Kurin), apparently very much wanted Gerasim Matveevich himself to turn out to be an Old Believer (formally a relative !). And if so, then he should be buried in the nearest Old Believer cemetery near Prokunin. Fortunately, no one knew the exact location of his burial. There was also a version that the grave of the national hero was near the walls of the Resurrection Cathedral. (Once again it was “voiced” in the form of an unsubstantiated statement in the newspaper “PPI” No. 39 for 2002).

A.I. Bender, with her characteristic activity, found among her friends and relatives in Prokunin (now, by misunderstanding, Gagarin Street) witnesses who seemed to “remember” about the old white stone tombstone with the name Kurin, which once stood in their cemetery. Under the dictation of the respected Anfisa Ivanovna, this inscription, erased on stone and in the memory of old-timers, was collectively “restored.” Then, about ten years ago, reading these testimonies, we almost believed in A.I.’s version. Bender and I, sinfully, almost published this “discovery.”

In defense of the pro-Kuninites, I can give the following justification: they could actually see a half-erased inscription reminiscent of Kurin’s surname. After all, many local indigenous people from the ancient Kurdin family were once buried here. By erasing just one letter in this masculine surname, we get the word: “Kurin.” In addition, local resident and local historian S.G. Soldatenkov (1945-2000), after conducting a survey of old people and recalling his father’s stories, concluded that once upon a time a namesake of Gerasim Matveevich, nicknamed “Kurekha,” lived in the village. He could also have been buried in a local cemetery, although this is not a fact, but only an assumption.

And the facts are as follows - G.M. Kurin was not an Old Believer (see explanation 1) *, he lived in the center of the settlement on Torgovaya Square, and there was no need to bury him in the remote Prokuninsky or other Old Believer cemetery. And most importantly: the inscription on the disappeared Prokunin tombstone, “restored” from memory, stating that “under this stone is buried the body of a servant of God, Hereditary Honorary Citizen, etc.” (testimony preserved) generally removes this issue and version from consideration for the reason stated above: see paragraph Five.

In our opinion, there cannot be Kurin’s grave near the walls of the Resurrection Cathedral (in the churchyard, which was once called Dmitrovsky), since here, according to tradition, only the ministers of this temple and members of their families, and even especially revered ktitors (philanthropists) found eternal rest. like the famous Pavlovsk merchant of the 1st guild D.I. Shirokov, one of the founders of the posad. And towards the end of his life, Kurin, due to his difficult character (and some actions that were not consistent with the legal norms of that time), fell out of favor with local authorities and the police. What kind of honor is there...** (see explanation 2 below).

And why did he need a church hill, if only a hundred or two fathoms from his house, on the right bank of the Vokhonsky bank, there was the original ancient Pavlovsk cemetery, where many generations of his ancestors rested in peace. Here he buried his father Matvey Alekseevich (1757– c. 1829), his mother Matryona Nikiforovna, his young sons Terenty and Anton, brother Nikifor... Where, if not here, is his rightful place, consecrated by the centuries-old memory of his ancestors? And then there was no other Pavlovsk cemetery, which opened only in 1860, i.e. 10 years after Kurin's death.

So where is Gerasim Kurin buried? The answer to this question suggests itself. However, the author would be reproached for interestedly putting forward his own (next) version, built only on logical conclusions in the absence of evidentiary documents. And I do not hide my interest in resolving this important issue related to the biography of the famous national hero of 1812. But, according to my own methodology, people (and myself) need a documentary primary source confirming the version. There is one. It was found as a result of research in the Central Historical Archive of Moscow (CIAM). This is an entry in the “Metrical Book of the Resurrection Pavlovsky Posad Church” for 1850. I consider it necessary (simply obliged) to provide this entry in full. Here she is:

"Parish register for 1850 Part three. Death count for June: No. 58; in the column “month and day” – 10/13 (dates of death and burial - V.S.); “Title, first name, patronymic and last name of the deceased” – Pavlovsky Posad tradesman Gerasim Matveev Kurin; "year of the deceased" - 80 (characteristic inaccuracy from the words of relatives - B.C.); "what did he die from" - from old age; "who confessed and communed" - Priest Anthony Lebedantsev; "who performed the burial and where are they buried" - Priest Anthony Lebedantsev with deacon Ivan Smirnov, sexton Yakov Kedrov and sexton Ivan Dmitrovsky - in the parish cemetery(emphasis added - V.S.); signature: Parish Priest Anthony Lebedantsev"(CIAM, F.2127, op.1, d. 145, l. 105 vol. – 106).

The parish cemetery was the ancient, original Pavlovsk cemetery, which we talked about above. It was located on the opposite right (low) bank of the Vokhna from the church - slightly downstream (opposite the current central district hospital). Indisputable proof of the location of this cemetery is not only the testimony of local old-timers, but also the newspaper article "Lava", published by the "Bogorodskaya Rech" in 1912 with an appeal to the good memory "to the forefathers who once worked and created the settlement" (see "Bell Tower" "No. 11 for 2002). And, finally, the site of this cemetery is precisely indicated by the plan of Pavlovsky Posad, compiled and replicated in 1914 by the remarkable teacher and local historian Dmitry Vasilyevich Rozanov.

Thus, in our opinion, there is good reason to consider an important issue that has worried our local historians for decades to be resolved. In this regard, I think sacred duty of descendants- with a special stone, sculpture or stele to perpetuate in the designated place the memory of not only Gerasim Kurin and his comrades, but also those dozens of generations of our ancestors who, with good deeds, initially raised, created and increased the strength and glory of the beautiful Vokhon Land, the 665th anniversary of which was in 2004 year (first mentioned in writing in 1339). This is our duty to God and people.

Explanations and additions to the publication

1*. On the question of Gerasim Kurin’s attitude to the old faith.

Unlike his military comrade-in-arms and predecessor in the post of volost mayor (“noted schismatic” E.S. Stulov), as well as then his daughters-in-law and, especially, grandchildren (who served with the Bogorodsk Old Believers factory owners Morozov), Gerasim Kurin was not officially listed as an Old Believer , although he seemed to sympathize with the followers of the Old Orthodox faith. Perhaps this explains the fact that when he was the head of the Vokhonsky volost, he at least three times (together with I.Ya. Chushkin and the future initiator of the founding of the settlement D.I. Shirokov) signed multiple petitions from the parishioners of the Resurrection Church to the Synod and to the Most High Name (1824-1827) about transferring the parish to “uniform faith” in order to perform services according to the old rite (while remaining under the “patronage” of the official Church).

Let us present fragments of this case (CIAM, f. 203, op. 209, d. 487), preserving the spelling of the original:

“The Most Holy Governing Synod to the member of the Most Reverend Philaret, Archbishop of Moscow and Kolomna, the Holy Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, the Holy Archimandrite and various orders to the Cavalier - from the Bogorodsk district of the economic Vokhona volost of peasants and Old Believers who are in the parish of the Church of the Resurrection of Christ, in the village of Pavlov, Vokhna also, Most humble request.

In the Church of the Resurrection of Christ shown, we have a heartfelt desire to listen to the Divine Service, so that it would be sent according to Old Printed Books on the same basis as it is sent in the Moscow Edinoverie Vvedensky Church organized by the Highest Permission.

We humbly ask you to bless the real priests in this parish Church of the Resurrection to correct the service and all Christian needs according to old printed books... (August, 1824)

From the next most humble petition of the Vokhonites to Filaret:

“Our ancestors, and according to them, we have been in the Old Believers for a long time; we and our families have long been accustomed to asking for the Doxology of God for the fulfillment of Christian needs from old printed books. Therefore, it is desirable for us that the priests of that village in the three-margin Church of the Resurrection correct for us the Divine services and requirements according to old printed books and similar rituals, since the parish priests and church ministers do not correct the services and requirements according to old printed books... according to our fulfillment desired, they declare that if Your Eminence has your Eminence’s permission, they cannot contradict us and they agree to correct divine services from old printed books for us.” (April, 1825)

On August 4, 1825, a similar petition was sent to Tsar Alexander Pavlovich. The Synod refuses the petitioners, considering “the conversion of the pan-Orthodox Church to Edinoverie is derogatory for the Orthodox Church.”

It is possible that it is precisely for such initiative and “unreliability” that is objectionable to the authorities (as well as for abuse of official position, manifested in the uncontrolled waste of government money), the holder of the Insignia of the Military Order of St. George the Victorious Gerasim Matveevich Kurin soon lost the prestigious position of Vokhonsky head (currently the head of the settlement).

It makes sense to add here a comment by local historian S.S. Mikhailov to the material on this topic published in the journal “Church Historical Bulletin” (No. 9, 2002):

“The Vokhna volost of the Bogorodsky district of the Moscow province, which directly bordered the famous Old Believer Guslitsy, was also largely inhabited by adherents of the old faith. There were many so-called “cunning schismatics” here, i.e. Old Believers who did not outwardly advertise their religion, being listed as Orthodox in official documents. These were the peasants who unsuccessfully tried through their attorneys to eight times submit a petition to establish a church of the same faith. It is clear that in confessional statements and other church documents they were listed as Orthodox. The local parish clergy could not have been unaware of the “secret schism” in their parish, but in such cases they did not fight it at all, since the spiritual authorities were confident that the schism in this parish was weak, and receiving regular reprimands for inactivity in the fight against it was not had to. One clear confirmation of this can be the fact that all the Old Believers peasants who signed the petitions are accurately listed as having attended confession and communion. Not a single one was due to negligence, etc. Usually, priests in “Old Believer” parishes had a significant source of income in the form of bribes from Old Believers for including them in the register as having attended the sacraments, thereby covering them from all sorts of proceedings and admonitions from other spiritual authorities.

The position of the parish clergy in the case of non-permission to establish a Edinoverie church in Pavlov is clear. They did not know how to serve in the old way and did not want to, so the first option of converting their church into a co-religion church did not suit any of them. And the second option (construction of a Edinoverie temple) would have led to the fact that the former “cunning schismatics” would have been legalized through the same faith, and an important source of income would have been lost. We would also have to answer why the actual “schismatics” are listed as Orthodox in parish registers and records. The appearance of a Edinoverie church in an area where a significant part of the population is Old Believers would lead to the fact that many actual Orthodox Christians would soon become parishioners of the new Edinoverie church. In such places, the influence of Old Belief on the spiritual life of the Orthodox population was very strong. Therefore, it was beneficial to declare all the petitioners Orthodox, as they were listed in the metrics and confessional statements, and to nullify the threat of unity of faith in one’s parish. The Old Believers continued to have a strong position in Pavlovsky Posad, as the former village of Pavlovo soon became known, and its environs. Nowadays, in the Pavlovo-Posad district of the Moscow region, many Old Believers of the Belokrinitsky consent also live; three temple..."

2**. On the question of the conflict nature of Gerasim Kurin.

From the archives of the Pavlovsky Posad Police Bailiff, April. 1850 (CIAM, f. 480, op. 1, d. 59)

Analysis by the Town Hall of Pavlovsky Posad of the case of non-payment of G.M. Kurin's monetary debt to the tradesman Filipchenkov (1849). The decision of the Town Hall provided for the confiscation of property from the debtor in an amount corresponding to the debt in order to sell it at auction. Upon the seizure of this property, the obstinate G. Kurin (who was trying to illegally shift the debt to his janitor) wrote a complaint to “Mr. Moscow Civil Governor”, ​​which stated:

“... Maksimov... forcibly took his cow from the yard and took the wall clock, broke the crucian carp on which he, Kurin, and his family were processing silk, and at the same time pushed him in the chest and sent him out of the house, moreover, wound on crucian rams and spools of silk turned out to be torn, made silk up to 10 pounds, and also money 125 rubles. silver it didn’t turn out at all; he, Kurin, suspected the attesting townsfolk Stepan Filipchenkov, Alexander Nyrnov and Nikita Shilkin of stealing everything, and then Maksimov pushed his daughter-in-law Pelageya Kuzmina, who had a child in her arms, so hard in the chest that she screamed guard, and the attesting witnesses beat his other one, Kurin , daughter-in-law of Pelageya Tikhonov, who has blue spots from that. Kurin considers the action of Ratman Maksimov and the witnesses against him to be legal and offensive, and asked to be sent to investigate the circumstances of the official.”

“In explanation of this complaint, the acting bailiff, Ratman Maksimov, explained that, by decision of the Town Hall, it was awarded to recover 20 rubles from Kurin in satisfaction (of the claim) of the tradesman Filipchenkov. 85 kopecks silver and for stamp paper in that case 3 rubles. 60 kopecks silver Due to Kurin’s failure to pay money, the Bailiff described the estate for this amount, namely: a cow, a watch, a samovar and “crucian carp”; for the sale of it, the Town Hall, having appointed an auction, ordered, in the absence of the Bailiff, to deliver it to the auction; ...however, Kurin did not agree to give up the money or the estate and was rude to the Bailiff, and he invited witnesses, with whom the described estate was taken. Pelageya Tikhonova did not allow the cow to be taken out, but everything went off without any rudeness, and Kurin accuses them completely falsely. The same was confirmed by witnesses.

They reeled silk for the merchant Davyd Ivanovich Shirokov. Shirokov sent his worker, a peasant from the village. Ignatieva Andrey Stepanov and village. Stepurina Petra Fadeeva. Kurin told them that the silk was intact. They confirmed this under oath. And Kurin allegedly did not give Shirokov 10 pounds of silk (worth 30 rubles in silver) in order to use it.

Kurin's janitor Efrem Vasiliev does not owe him anything, because... paid in 1849, and in this year Vasiliev did not know whether he would live in his house, therefore, this is not security for the claim...

“The Town Hall, considering the circumstances of the case, concluded: ... it is obvious that Kurin’s statement was completely false, and how he was previously in various cases on trial nine times, and in 1833, by decision of the 2nd Moscow Criminal Chamber, he was kept in prison for ten days (for excessively collecting money from peasants when he was the head of the volost), then he, Kurin, should, by virtue of the 2017 article of the Code, be kept in prison for a year, but taking into account the fact that he is 74 years old and the insignia of the military order of St. Great Martyr George and during a general search of his behavior was approved, on the basis of the same 2017 Art. be imprisoned for 4 months and ask Ratman Maksimov for forgiveness...

Kurin’s daughter-in-law - to Pelageya Tikhonov (who, during the investigation, said that the beatings inflicted on her were not examined by anyone, because it was as if she did not want to show her body to anyone, and therefore her testimony about the beatings cannot be trusted) and Pelageya Kuzmin for lack of evidence of her report on based on Art. 2008 Code to maintain under arrest for seven days...

And the merchant Davyd Shirokov was granted the right to pay the tradesman Kurin the undelivered 10 pounds of silk, worth 30 rubles. silver, if he wishes, can be sought separately from this matter.

On February 24, Kurin expressed dissatisfaction with the decision of the Town Hall and undertook to submit a response within the prescribed period. (The deadline for submitting a review has expired.)

They ordered that the decision of the Town Hall over the tradesman Kurin and his daughters-in-law be carried out in strict execution to be attributed to the Bailiff of Posad, which is why you are instructed so that after sending Kurin to where you should report the subsequent Town Hall.

Signed: April 11, 1850 Burgomaster Mukhin, Ratman

Shchepetilnikov, secretary Polonsky».

Here's the note:

“To the petty bourgeois Pelageya Tikhonova and Pelageya Kuzmina (mother and wife of Ivan Antonovich Kurin - V.S.) the decision was announced with a subscription, which was presented to the Town Hall on April 12 for No. 316 with a notification that they were taken under arrest on the same date. And the tradesman Gerasim Kurin is in Moscow.

(The fact that Kurina’s bourgeois women were kept under police custody was reported to the Town Hall on April 19, No. 346).

Signed: Ratman Bylinkin, secretary Polonsky.

Due to the fact that on April 14 Kurin manages to submit a review to the Moscow Criminal Chamber, the Town Hall recommends to the Bailiff on April 21 (No. 389): “If you have not sent Kurin to the Bogorodsk prison for detention in accordance with the decision of the Town Hall, then stop.”

Signed: Ratman Shchepetilnikov, Secretary Polonsky».

(Forty days later Gerasim Kurin died “of old age” - V.S.)

(CIAM, f. 480, op.1, d.59, l.1-5)

A few words about the heirs of Gerasim Kurin
(facts and versions)

Identification of blood (genetic) ties and heirs is important not only in historical and local history terms, but also in social, applied, humanitarian, ethical and simply human terms. The feeling of being the blood heir of an outstanding personality or family imposes a special internal responsibility on a person, giving additional significance to his existence - as a continuer of traditions that are important and fateful for society and the family.

Despite the fact that we have studied the family tree of the Pavlovsk surname Kurins quite well, there are still some “blank spots” in the biography of Gerasim Matveyevich Kurin, which cause discrepancies and confusion in local history publications.

We are talking, first of all, about Kurin’s main heir, Ivan Antonovich, who appears in documents from different times in different capacities and degrees of his relationship to Gerasim Matveevich. Several years ago, while looking at the peasant files in the Vokhonsky volost of the Bogorodsky district (the archive of the provincial Treasury Chamber) at CIAM, I came across a document authorizing the peasant Gerasim Kurin to adopt the child of his deceased cousin. I regret that I did not copy this document, which dates back to the early 1830s. (However, this local history oversight can be corrected over time if desired).

Then the charitable fact of adoption did not surprise me (Gerasim’s own sons Terenty and Aton died before 1823 at the ages of 21 and 18). Knowing the pedigree of the Kurins, I was surprised by something else: on the male line, Gerasim’s two uncles (Ilya and Vasily) did not have sons with the name Anton, except perhaps through their aunts, but this has not yet been proven). It was also surprising that (in violation of the rules) neither the full name, nor age, nor class affiliation, nor place of residence, nor the cause of death of the “deceased” parent of Ivan “son of Antonov” were specifically indicated. Strange document. But it’s good that later the date of birth of the “adopted son” was found (January 23, 1827), which confirms the impossibility of his birth from the children of Gerasim and therefore clearly excludes the “status” of the legitimate grandson of Kurin.

However, in most publications (including those available on the Bogorodsk local history website, see:) Ivan Antonovich is presented as the grandson of Gerasim Kurin. It was his own grandson - without any reservations or explanations - for the simple and seemingly “obvious” reason that this “fact” was documented and officially recorded in the surviving spiritual will, drawn up and certified in G.M.’s own hand. Kurin. Here is a fragment of this document (CIAM, f.72, op.2, d.31, spelling preserved):

« Spiritual testament

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit

I, the undersigned, Moscow Gubernia, Bogorodsky Uyezd, Pavlovsk Posad, Tradesman Gerasim Matveev Kurin, am of firm mind and perfect memory, feeling at my advanced years the hour of death, and therefore wishing to establish my acquired estate during my lifetime as the undisputed... eternal and hereditary possession of my grandson Ivan Antonov Chicken... and the second half of the house and the outbuilding... be given into the possession of my wife Anna Savelyeva and none of my relatives and heirs should interfere with it under any circumstances, for each of them received a due reward from me, only with this so that he, my grandson Ivan Antonov Kurin, will live with me until my death and give me Kurin and my wife Anna Savelyeva food and drink, and how he should honor and obey in everything and not do any oppression to us, and especially he should his own mother Pelageya Tikhonov to honor and obey in everything, and if she sees displeasure from him, then he must build her a special hut in the same yard in the backyard of Sixty Rubles Silver and after her death give her water and food, and after death, as should be the Christian duty, bury her . After the death of me, Kurin and my wife, he, my grandson Ivan Antonov Kurin, will own all the registered house and estate (...) Only he must give Ivan Antonov to my second Grandson Ivan Terentyev with his mother Anna Ivanova and my grandson Elena Terentyeva from the future 1849 Genvar from the first day for ten years every year twice from the income of my house Thirty rubles in Silver (...) July 10, 1848... the Tradesman Testator Gerasim Matveev Kurin had a hand in this Spiritual Testament of Pavlovsk Posad.”

However, in addition to this document, there is sufficient other evidence of the “life” of the Kurin family. This revision tales peasants of the village of Vokhny and confession sheets Church of the Resurrection, in the parish of which (the priest “Archpriest Dimitry Ioannov” had Kurins as clerics). Let's take a look at two of these pieces of evidence:

1. Entry in the confessional sheet for 1831: “No. 8. Gerasim Matveev (Kurin) 55 years old, his wife Anna Savelyeva 54 years old, his daughter-in-law, widow Anna Ivanova 30 years old, her children: Joseph 11, John 4 – Terentyevs; widow Pelageya Tikhonov 25 years old, her son Ioann Antonov 4 years old" (CIAM, f. 203, op. 747, d. 1176)

2. Revision tale of April 26, 1834(8th revision, where in the lists of peasants (male) of the village of Vokhny their age is indicated for clarity and comparison, also according to the previous 7th revision ( 1816), and then, respectively, 8 ( 1834):

« No. 71. Gerasim Matveev(Kurin) 38/56 years old, his wife Anna 55, sons Terenty 17 / died in 1820, Anton 11 / died in 1822.» Below is a note in a different hand and handwriting:“Anton’s son Ivan is 6 years old, assigned by order to Okr. Council of August 11 for No. 4906 from the family of cousins.” But in the same revision tale, Ivan and his mother are listed as a separate incomplete family with an initially absent father: “ No. 160: Ivan Antonov – 6 years old, his mother Pelageya Tikhonova 30 years old». And a later note in pencil: « Listed at number 71». (CIAM, f. 51, op. 8, d. 936).

Please note: in 1831 (in confessional statements, household members were often written from the words of parishioners) Ivan Antonovich and his mother are shown not as Gerasim’s own grandson and second daughter-in-law, but rather as hangers-on (or servants). Later (see 1834 onwards), despite the “inconsistency in time,” they increasingly appear as a grandson and daughter-in-law, and in documents of recent years - only as a grandson and daughter-in-law without any reservations. It seems that Kurin’s authority and connections allowed him to consciously and without much hindrance “manipulate” audit and other documents until they finally acquired the desired form. It turned out that the late Anton Gerasimovich, with the necessary patronymic, “legalized” Ivan in the Kurin family as a legitimate grandson (although we have not established the fact of Anton’s possible marriage, and even if there was one, the son could not have been born five years after his father’s death).

Gerasim Matveevich’s desire to have a legal heir to his considerable property is quite understandable and natural. But the question may arise: why didn’t the children of his late son Terenty suit him in this capacity? Perhaps there was some unknown reason for their “unreliability” (by the way, according to documents from the second half of the 1840s, Gerasima’s daughter-in-law Anna Ivanovna with her sons Osip, Ivan and daughter Elena lived in Moscow “at the patchport” and was engaged in trade).

Of course, the vain Gerasim Kurin, as a businesslike, wise, prudent and powerful man, could not take into the house and raise as the main heir a random child (even from a hypothetical and, in documentary terms, very vague “ families of cousins", leaving the boy an unclear role). Then, as a version, a non-zero probability arises that Ivan could well have been the illegitimate son of Gerasim himself and, perhaps, that is why (a characteristic detail!) He was “accepted” into Kurin’s house together with his mother, which, we note, was so carefully mentioned by Kurin in his spiritual testament. This version could explain many of the initial and subsequent inconsistencies in the documents associated with this story.

(By the way, we can already correct one of the baseless assumptions that “ Gerasim Kurin's widowed daughter-in-law, Pelageya, had (possibly from her second husband) a son, Fyodor"(see Bogorodsky local history website:), since Fyodor Ivanovich Kurin (born 1853) among the other five children born to Ivan Antonovich and his wife Pelageya Kuzminichna).

I wonder if Ivan himself knew about the “secret” of his origin, introducing himself in documents as Gerasim’s own grandson when receiving an inheritance after Kurin’s death? Maybe he knew, but he took this secret with him to the grave at the age of 29. By the way, here is another pattern: all of Kurin’s children did not live to see 30. Whether it was a disease, heredity or an accident also remains a mystery. (Once I had to hear from one of the local historians even such an unexpected private opinion that the early death of Gerasim’s children could have been, as it were, indirectGod's punishment for the peasant chieftain for his cruelty is notthe extent of the angry men who, after the end of the battleof the actions of the surrendered and disarmed French soldiers“They burned them and buried them alive in the ground.” Who knows...)

Thus, the question of the origin of Ivan Antonovich and the degree of his relationship with G.M. Kurin (nephew or son) remains open until the clarification and clarification of Ivan’s family affiliation, the correspondence of the date and place of his birth, the date and place of baptism (with the corresponding indication of parents and adoptive parents), as well as a detailed study of documents about the reasons and circumstances of his adoption and initial “status” of Pelageya Tikhonovna in Gerasim’s house.

But in any case, he is the one Ivan Antonovich Kurin, is the founder of the numerous Bogorodsk (Noginsk) branch of the Kurin family, which is described in a note published on August 11, 1962 in the newspaper “Banner of Communism” (Noginsk) under the heading “To the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Borodino.” Here is this note.

Grandchildren of heroes

A century and a half has passed since the time when the route to the east was closed to Napoleon’s foragers in Bogorodsky district. In our region, Marshal Ney's cuirassiers came across a well-organized partisan army of peasants and got stuck here. But the partisans were led not by famous generals, but by simple peasants - Gerasim Kurin, Yegor Stulov, and centurion Ivan Chushkin.

The partisan war of 1812 has long died down, the graves of the heroes have been lost, but the memory of their glorious deeds has not faded.

In search of materials from the history of the people's struggle against Napoleon's troops, we visited Pavlovsky Posad. Here we talked a lot with people, heard a lot of tales about those ancient times. Old-timers proudly recall the events of 1812. They especially like to remember how the residents of the old village of Vokhny unanimously stood up to defend the Fatherland. They heard these stories from their relatives.

And from these stories emerged an idea of ​​ancient times, of the village of Vokhne, adjacent villages, roads, forests, rivers. We learned that the house of centurion Ivan Chushkin stood in a gypsy settlement and was sold by his great-grandson about 60 years ago. We found a place on Karpovskaya Street where Kurin’s house is believed to have stood.

We were interested in whether there are any living descendants of the glorious heroes? The search began. There were no chickens in Pavlovsky Posad. They have long since dispersed to different cities. One of the great-grandsons worked as a bank manager in Siberia and, shortly before his death at the age of eighty, came to Pavlovsky Posad.

We found the Kurin family in Noginsk. She lives on Panfilovka. Here are the children of the great-grandson-hero Konstantin, Pavel, Dmitry and Zoya. Konstantin Ivanovich is a doctor, works in Pavlovsky Posad, Zoya Ivanovna is a midwife at the Glukhovsky maternity hospital.

Valentin and Alexandra live in Moscow, and Evgenia lives in Elektrostal. The great-great-grandson of the hero Vasily Kurin died in the Great Patriotic War.

From the story of Konstantin Ivanovich it turned out that the medals awarded to the hero Gerasim Kurin were transferred to the monastery. Together with Konstantin Ivanovich, we tried to find the grave of a distant ancestor at the Prokuninsky Old Believer cemetery (Gerasim Kurin was an Old Believer). But this attempt ended unsuccessfully, since the gravestones were taken away from the cemetery.

We also found the descendants of Chushkin and Stulov. In Mira Lane, in houses No. 19, 33, 35 in Pavlovsky Posad, we found the Chushkin family - the hero’s relatives. An 85-year-old old woman, Lukerya Grigorievna Chushkina, remembered that her brother-in-law

Ivan Petrovich told his sons that he

grandfather fought with the French, and Maria Alekseevna Chushkina added that Ivan Petrovich said that his grandfather’s caftan was kept in the Kremlin.

According to family legends, all these families are descendants of the hero Ivan Chushkin. Houses Nos. 19, 33, 35 were built by the hero’s great-grandsons Andrey, Nikanor, Grigory with money raised from the sale of his great-grandfather’s house.

Nikolai, the youngest great-grandson, died in the civil war and was buried in Donetsk soil. He, along with the volunteers of the Pavlovo-Posad factory, took part in the battle with Wrangel. Andrei's sons died in the Great Patriotic War.

Yegor Stulov came from peasants in the village of Stremyannikovo.

There are grandchildren of heroes in our region. They work for the glory of the Fatherland. Many of them repeated the feat of their grandfathers, defending their native land from foreign invaders.

F. Sidorov

Our comment

Of course, it is worth thanking the author of the note (F. Sidorov) for searching and preserving for us valuable information about the descendants of the Vokhon heroes of 1812. However, we cannot help but note the inaccuracies in the material. The named Pavlovo Posad descendants of Ivan Yakovlevich Chushkin (Andrey, Nikanor, Grigory) are not great-grandchildren, but great-great-grandchildren of the hero. The family of the hereditary Old Believer Yegor Semenovich Stulov does not come from the village of Stremyannikovo, but is a native Vokhonian - we traced its roots back to the 1650s. And, unlike him, Gerasim Matveevich Kurin was not an Old Believer (*see above).

Recently, based on the archival pedigree, another direct blood descendant of the national hero of 1812, Ivan Yakovlevich Chushkin, was established.

This is the currently living director of the Pavlovo-Pokrovsky cultural center, deputy of the council of deputies of the urban settlement of Pavlovsky Posad - Vyacheslav Viktorovich Chushkin (born 1949) - Honored Worker of Culture of the Moscow Region.

Pavlovsky Posad 100 years ago (1912 – 2012)
About our great-grandmothers' excursions
(On the routes of pre-revolutionary campaigns of Pavlovsk schoolchildren)

2012 is the anniversary year for the Patriotic War of 1812. 200 years have passed since those significant events for the history of Russia. Someone, being or considering himself a citizen of a great country (not a state), remembers this, but someone (bogged down in the everyday bustle of our sick time) lives exclusively with the worries and problems of their family or close circle. Maybe someone is trying their best to survive...

However, in the historical memory of the Russian people, the year 1812 is forever inscribed and absorbed as a significant and glorious moment of unity of the nation in the fight against a foreign enemy invasion, which crashed against the power and stronghold of civil patriotic unity. The same historical phenomenon repeated itself 130 years later. “Get up, huge country!” And the country (despite its not always perfect state structure) stands up and, defending the sacred right to life and sovereignty, defeats any enemy. That is what Rus'-Russia stood and stands on.

It is difficult to dismiss the idea that today the patriotic sentiments of our people, tired (by the cataclysms of state reorganization) have lost their former intensity and “degree”. There is no doubt that society is sick. And, perhaps, for gradual recovery, especially spiritual and moral healing, right now we lack revival, “refreshing” of our dormant or clouded national (genetic) historical memory. Where are we from? What happened to us a hundred or more years ago? What did our ancestors live, what did they breathe, what did they believe in, what did they strive for, what did they bequeath?

Undoubtedly, issues related to the thousand-year-old spiritual foundation of the Russian nation - Orthodoxy - are key. But nearby, for example, there are also issues of patriotic education of the younger generation of citizens who are taking up the baton of creating life in their native land. It is precisely in this connection that, in my opinion, it is worthwhile, among other things, to more carefully study or remember, in particular, the best traditions of our old pre-revolutionary school. It was the time of our grandfathers, and for some, our great-great-great-great-grandfathers... And sometimes it seems that in spiritual terms that time was “more natural” and more harmonious than ours. At least, the current disrespect for elders and elders has never existed in Rus'.

But the topic of our publication today is quite modest and specific. These are school excursions in pre-revolutionary Pavlovsky Posad and, in particular, in the Women's Gymnasium (now school No. 2). The excursion routes of the high school students extended to the Vokhon region, to Moscow and the province, and even to... Crimea.

Today, in connection with the above-mentioned topic of 1812, we will talk about just one excursion made by schoolgirls in the spring of 1912 to the Borodino field on the eve of the 100th anniversary of the Patriotic War. Readers are invited to the preserved report on the excursion, presented on May 29 to the gymnasium pedagogical council by history teacher Alexander Alekseevich Zarudin, who was the main organizer of the trip to Borodino. In our opinion, this interesting report has both educational and educational value.

(The text of the main report is given in full, but partially adapted to modern spelling and punctuation):

Excursion project to Borodino,
compiled by teacher Al. Al.Zarudin

(abbreviated)

An excursion to Borodino should pursue, first of all, historical goals: 1. To acquaint students on the spot with the location of our and enemy troops both on the significant day of August 26, and on the previous days of August 24 and 25. 1812;

2. To acquaint students with historical monuments remaining from 1812 or built after on the Borodino field and, therefore, help students more clearly imagine the events that took place in August 1812.

In addition to historical interest, a trip to the Borodino field can also satisfy an aesthetic sense and pursue an aesthetic goal - to give students the opportunity to enjoy the beauty of spring nature, spend several hours in the open air and breathe fresh air, not saturated with the fumes of factories. (Environmental issues were relevant even then! –V.S.)

To achieve the two intended goals, it is advisable to arrange an excursion no earlier than the end of April, when nature takes on the beauty of spring: the trees bloom their leaves, the fields are covered with green grass and a variety of flowers. In addition, the Borodino field is cut up by many streams and rivers, which by the end of April will become so shallow that it will be easy to cross through them. (The following is about the theoretical training of the students, familiarity with maps and materials from historical and fiction literature. It is noteworthy that among other historical materials, for some reason, there is not a single mention of local events in 1812 (?) - V.S.)

...It is more convenient to leave Moscow at night with a goods and passenger train arriving in Borodino at six in the morning, and return back with a train from Vyazma arriving in Moscow at 8 and a half in the evening.

Each excursionist must have: a light coat, a blanket, a pillow, galoshes, preferably an umbrella, put on well-worn shoes (high boots are recommended) and take with her a small supply of provisions; all provisions can be left in the carriage, which will be uncoupled in Borodino.

Excursion cost per person:

Ticket to Moscow and back – 48 kopecks.

From Moscow to Borodino and back – 88 kopecks.

Tea and snacks in the teahouse - 25 kopecks. Lunch at the monastery – 30 kopecks. Tram in Moscow - 16 kopecks.

Total: 2 rub. 07 kop.

Teacher Al. Zarudin.

Excursion to the Borodino field

(brief report)

April 24-25, 1912 Students of the 4th and 5th grades of the Pavlovo Posad girls' gymnasium (30 people) went on an excursion to Borodino to inspect the location of our and enemy troops on the significant days of August 24, 25 and 26. 1812, as well as to get acquainted with the historical monuments located on the Borodino field.

The excursion was accompanied by: Chairman. Educator Council M.D. Papayanov, and G.G. teachers: V.V. Belousova, M.G. Sorokina, class matron E.G. Kamenskaya and history teacher Al.Al. Zarudin, who took over the leadership of the excursion and prepared students for it.

We prepared for the excursion for quite a long time and carefully. For this purpose, 15 copies of publications of the excursion commission at the Moscow Educational District were issued under the title: “The excursionist’s companion, part 1.” Borodino" and a number of other books that depict the war of 1812 and, in particular, the Battle of Borodino. Along the way, the students found out what a regiment, division, corps, flush, redoubt, etc. are. Attention was drawn to a more detailed acquaintance of the students with the map of the Borodino field and the location of our and enemy troops on August 24 and 26, 1812. Only after such fundamental preparation was it decided to go on the evening of April 24.

We got to Borodino safely, but there we suffered a number of misfortunes that had a bad effect on the mood of the students and devalued the excursion. Firstly, on the night of the 25th snow fell and covered the ground with a fluffy white veil, giving the entire Borodino field a monotonous appearance. A strong gusty wind was blowing. A slight frost only froze the damp spring soil on top. At the first touch of our feet, the thin ice broke and we fell into the water, which is why some of the students got their feet wet at first. This circumstance prompted us to quickly get to the Monastery, where we hoped to find warm shelter and dry ourselves.

In view of this, we stopped at the first hill we came across, which was the remnant of our ancient fortification, and, having briefly examined the location of our troops, especially the left, so-called Bagration wing, we quickly moved towards the Monastery, which was about half a mile away. We arrived at the monastery at about 10 o'clock. There we were greeted very cordially, they gave us 2 rooms where we warmed up, dried ourselves and had a snack. Here we outlined a further inspection plan. First of all, it was decided to inspect the famous Shevardinsky redoubt - our forward post on August 24th, which later passed to Napoleon after a bloody battle.

From the monastery to the Shevardinsky redoubt it is a little more than a mile. The still not tired students happily left the monastery and quickly moved towards the redoubt, but before we had time to go halfway, it began to snow so heavily that, as they say, the light of God was not visible. It was impossible to move further, and we turned back to the monastery.

In order not to waste time, we decided to explore the monastery. For this purpose, by order of the abbess, we were given a nun guide who showed us all the sights of the monastery and gave appropriate explanations.

In the courtyard of the monastery, we examined the house in which the founder of the monastery, the wife of one of the generals killed in the Borodino battle, Tuchkov, lived. The house contains all the furnishings that were there during Tuchkova’s life; There are several portraits hanging on the wall: Tuchkova herself, Metropolitan Philaret with his handwritten inscription, etc.

After examining the house, we went to the ancient temple built by Tuchkova on the spot where her husband was killed. Then we toured the new luxurious temple, built in the shape of a cross. From here we went to the handicraft room, where we examined the nuns' work. This ended the inspection of the monastery buildings, but since there was still about an hour left before lunch, we decided to examine the remains of the fortifications located in the courtyard of the monastery and near it.

The monastery was built on the site of the famous Semyonov flushes, which changed hands several times on August 28th. Our generals were wounded and killed here: Tuchkov 1st, Bagration and others. The famous French general Davout was also wounded here.

Semyonov's flushes formed the left wing, and Napoleon's first onslaught was directed at them. The flashes are well preserved. One flash is located, as I said above, in the courtyard of the monastery, and the other to the west of it. We stopped at this last one longer. From here the Shevardinsky redoubt was clearly visible, from which Napoleon observed the progress of the battle on August 26th. Between the Semenovsky flushes and the Shevardinsky redoubt there is a small stream and a forest - this stream and wood separated our and enemy troops on August 26th. They say that the soldiers, both ours and the enemy, ran into the stream for water and often quarreled among themselves.

Standing on the Semenovskaya flush, we recalled all the details of Napoleon’s attack on our left wing, all those battles that Lermontov speaks so eloquently about. We were struck by the smallness of the space separating our fortifications from the enemy’s. It is no wonder that in the Battle of Borodino, horses and people mixed together.

We stood at the Semenovskaya flush for about 20 minutes. At 2 o'clock we were invited to the refectory for lunch. After lunch, thanking the abbess for her hospitable shelter, we said goodbye to the monastery and headed beyond the village of Semenovskaya to the place where the center of our troops and fortifications, the so-called Raevsky battery, was located on August 26, and where currently stands a monument to the soldiers who fell in the battle .

It’s a mile and a half from the monastery to the monument, and we had to walk along a muddy, muddy road; the clayey mass stuck to our galoshes and made it difficult for us to move, but we continued to walk further and further; the desire to see the monument, the center of our positions, to examine the nearby surroundings from the central hill gave us strength and doubled our energy.

But here we are near the monument, on a high hill. Having examined the monument from all sides and read all the inscriptions on it, we looked around the area surrounding the monument, and a magnificent picture opened before us.

Not far from the monument, down in the southwest there is a village with a majestic white church, which was shot through in several places by grenades during the Battle of Borodino; Not far from the church, closer to the monument, the royal palace can be seen through the wavy trees. To the southeast of the village there are several villages, and between them is the village. Gorki, from where Kutuzov watched the progress of the battle, and to the north-west of the village the monastery rises beautifully. A little west of the monastery, in the distance is the Shevardinsky redoubt. In my opinion, this is the most beautiful place on the Borodino field, and it was not for nothing that it was the center of our positions. Our inspection ended with the fortification of Raevsky, and we headed back through the village. Semenovskaya to the station, which was about 2 miles away.

We didn’t even have time to walk halfway when very heavy wet snow began to fall again, literally covering our eyes. But there was nothing to do, we had to move on, since there was no building on the way, and since there was no more than an hour left before the train departed. With great difficulty we reached the station.

Dirty and wet, we hastily took our warm carriage. All precautions were taken here to protect the students from getting sick. Uch. They asked to take off their wet shoes and dry them on the warm pipes of the carriage, and those who got their feet very wet were to rub them with vodka. At the same time, hot tea was prepared. We soon warmed up and felt cheerful; we only felt a little tired. At 5:30 a train arrived and our carriage was attached to it. We hit the road and at 11:30 a.m. arrived safely in Pavlovo.

Teacher Al. Zarudin

Viewer's view of the reconstruction
Vokhonsky battle of 1812 (2003)
And the battle broke out
or little Borodino in Pavlovsky Posad

(Material from the almanac “Vokhon Region” No. 1, 2005)

It seems that Pavlovsky Posad does not remember such a mass cultural event held “in nature”. Hundreds of cars and thousands of people filled on Sunday, September 21, the picturesque landscape in the area of ​​the Karpyatnik quarry (behind the pine forest), or rather behind it - on the elevated sloping bank of the bayou, a hundred meters from Klyazma. From this natural amphitheater, densely but comfortably occupied by spectators, one could observe an interesting, vibrant spectacle taking place on a green stage - a meadow no smaller than a football field.

This was a historical reconstruction (or rather, an attempt at historical reconstruction) of the Vokhon battle of 1812, proposed and carried out on the initiative and with the direct participation of the deputy of the Moscow Regional Duma, the head of the Bereg PA, Vladimir Viktorovich Kovshutin, who was supported by the regional government, the district administration and private sponsors . The city committee for culture and sports, the education department, the youth department, the city history and art museum, the Exhibition Hall, the Department of Internal Affairs and other organizations took an active part in the preparation and holding of the military-patriotic festival dedicated to the Battle of Vokhon in the Patriotic War of 1812.

Numerous representatives of the military-historical clubs of the capital deserve special gratitude as the main participants in the final extraordinary theatrical performance similar to the famous reconstruction of the Battle of Borodino, but on a smaller scale. Dressed in military uniforms of 1812 and accordingly armed, mounted and on foot, they gave the necessary historical flavor to the entire performance, creating a special feeling of documentary authenticity of what was happening. Young ladies walking among the audience in ancient dresses also corresponded to the recreation of the historical setting.

The effect of the presence of spectators at the scene of events was achieved completely when the battle of the Vokhon militia with the French guards unfolded, accompanied by cannon and rifle fire with whistling and explosions of cannonballs, blowing peasant houses into dust and splinters. Vokhon residents have not seen anything like this since 1812. (By the way, they did not see this in 1812 either, see previous articles). At times, fire and smoke half obscured the panorama of the battle, which, with the sound of an appropriately selected musical background, evoked a sense of the drama of what was happening, emotional tension and the necessary intrigue for those present.

A very lively and impressive impression on the public was unexpectedly made by a real (real, unreconstructed) large wild mallard, startled by cannon fire and raised from a nearby swamp and flying unusually low over the battlefield. As experts (and the famous amateur hunter N.M. Krasnov) noted, it was a complete and natural (feather to feather) copy of a wild local duck from the times of 1812, and possibly its direct descendant. One way or another, more than a thousand cheerful and enthusiastically surprised spectators, distracted from the battle, greeted and escorted with applause an unplanned, but very expressive and convincing extra participant in the grandiose performance.

But, of course, the handsome French officer riding a thoroughbred black stallion “took” the most applause from the audience. When he, at the head of the squadron, galloped dashingly across the field and then pranced in front of the audience in the final parade of participants, “the women shouted “Hurray!” and they threw caps into the air.” As you guessed, it was the organizer of this grandiose event himself - Vladimir Kovshutin. The holiday was definitely a success for him, for which we congratulate him. Following the beautiful festive fireworks (with multi-colored parachutes), a bright performance by the Russian song ensemble “Krutoyar” from the Potapov Palace of Culture (director Evelina Shilkova) suitably concluded the event.

A conversation about plot, script, director, production, organizational and other shortcomings (the main one of which, in our opinion, is the discrepancy between the action and the real picture of events) is hardly appropriate today, since it concerns only the author of the project, who has the right to different options for creative implementation .

Let us only note that correct announcer commentary can provide half the success of any cultural event.

Competent specialists in the field of military history, local history and stage directors will draw the audience's attention to the most important, important, key moments of the ongoing action. Of course, the announcer's explanations must be specific, concise, and most importantly dynamic - taking into account and in accordance with what is happening in the “theater of action.”

I would very much like the new Festival born here to continue to live, gaining creative potential and scope year after year.

V. Sitnov

Russia was destined to experience many wars in its history. But in the people's memory there remained, first of all, a few - when it was the worst and most difficult, when the question was being decided: to be or not to be, or whether it would perish, buried by the disastrous flood of the enemy invasion. And in response to it, the whole Earth rose up, and battles took place in which no one thinks about himself, but only about the common victory.

This was also the case when, along with the regular army, dozens of partisan detachments, created from peaceful citizens - yesterday's peasants, artisans, merchants, nobles, often at first still poorly able to handle weapons, but who knew for sure that there was no one but them, came out to fight the invaders. . In all centuries there have been people who did what they considered their moral duty, while others called it a feat.

Coming out of obscurity for great deeds, they again modestly left, retreated into the twilight of the silent and inexorable stream of time, leaving the more outstanding, as they believed, or the more vain, as often happened in reality, to carve their names on the tablets of immortality. Gerasim Matveevich Kurin can rightfully be classified as one of these true heroes.

One of the many, many Russian peasants that Russia has always held together, he, like other partisan leaders of the Patriotic War of 1812, was highlighted only for a moment by the bloody-fiery glow of the invasion, but his detachment, the largest of all known, numbered up to 5000 foot and 500 horse , forever became part of history.

The son of a Suvorov soldier, Gerasim Kurin was born in the village of Pavlovo in 1777 (later it became known as Pavlovo-Posad) in the Vokhnensky volost of the Bogorodsky district, which is on the Vladimir road. The family lived like everyone else, in daily work and worries, firmly believing that the main person on earth is the farmer, for he feeds everyone, and therefore allows everyone to live. He was no different from the rest of his fellow villagers, except that in childhood he was the ringleader in children’s games, and as he grew up, he worked the same way he used to play - cheerfully, willingly, was somewhat literate, sober in his reasoning and sacredly true to his word.

Therefore, at the gathering that brought together residents of almost all the surrounding villages, where it was decided to show strangers how to quickly return home, he was unanimously named the head of the peasant detachment. Kurin’s detachment did not last long, just over a week, but all this time it fought daily battles with the French - with the units of Marshal Ney, the “Prince of Moscow”. This title will haunt Ney for the rest of his short life, causing ridicule from those around him.

The denouement had not yet arrived, but its approach was felt more and more clearly. In any case, the marshal was sent here by Napoleon to create one of the strongholds for defense against attacks by the Russian army and, mainly, to collect food and fodder, which were already fatally lacking. Ney had 14 thousand infantry and cavalry at his artillery batteries. Foraging detachments covered the entire district with a center in Borovsk, where Ney made his residence. One of the detachments on September 25 headed to the village of Bolshoy Dvor.

When the French, already anticipating a long rest and hot soup, approached the peasant huts, a crowd rushed towards them with shouts, armed with everything that could be found in a peasant yard. It was led by Kurin. His comrades, wanting to scare the enemy with noise and cheer themselves up, rushed loudly straight towards the foragers. Somehow, unexpectedly for themselves, and even more so for the commanders, they began to move back - back from the crowd rushing in with the unbearable brilliance of their scythes, and suddenly in an instant the road in front of the Kurites appeared clear - the French “drew” into the pine forest adjacent to the road.

In a hurry, they threw away the charges and guns. There were ten guns - the beginning of the detachment was made, the baptism of fire was completed. The next day, the foragers, who came to their senses, occupied the neighboring village of Gribovo. Having found neither inhabitants nor supplies in it, the French - as a preventative measure from looters - decided to burn it. But they did not have time to fulfill their intention - frequent fire from the trophies captured by Kurin the day before forced them to retreat. And on September 27, a real battle between the partisan detachment and the enemy took place.

Three squadrons of French cavalry occupied the village of Subbotino. The village - as the newcomers were immediately convinced of this - greeted them as unkindly as the others: empty, echoing courtyards, silence and alarming silence. An interpreter from former Russian tutors separated from the cavalrymen and, waving a white rag, hesitantly headed towards the forest.

The French suspected that the rebels were hiding here - in Yamsky Bor. The parliamentarian was now appealing to them, calling for submission and cooperation. The French did not know that while they were here trying to conduct fruitless negotiations, Egor Stulov, the volost head and Kurin’s right hand in the detachment, came to their rear, cutting them off from Bogorodsk, with a detachment of peasant cavalry. But Gerasim Matveevich himself remembered this every minute, chilling the most impatient ambushers.

Finally, once again looking at the sun caught on the top of a spreading pine tree, Kurin grunted contentedly and exhaled: “It’s time!” The detachment, rushing out of the forest, attacked the French cavalrymen. The regular cavalry, under this pressure, was about to retreat to the village, but from there Stulov’s cavalry was already flying towards it. The battle began.

A small group of French managed to break through to Bogorodsk - both the skills of equestrian combat and the chilling cries of the Kurites played a role here. The rest - a rare number of prisoners who were later sent to the head of the provincial militia - died on the spot.
The next day, the Kurites, with their very appearance, drove away a detachment of foragers from the village of Nazarovo. And the next morning, falling upon the marauders, already burdened with booty, near the village of Trubitsyno, they completely defeated them, taking away all the grain and other supplies they had collected with such difficulty.

On September 30, the French were defeated near the village of Nasyrevo, and then the enraged Ney sent regular troops against Vokhni. Expecting the eventual arrival of a large detachment of the enemy, Kurin developed a plan based on the fact that the battle would be accepted and accepted in the village of Pavlovo itself. Here he stationed the bulk of his forces, led by him personally, in the courtyards and in the surrounding area. Stulov’s horsemen were supposed to hide near the village of Melenki, which lies slightly to the side of the Pavlovo-Borovsk road. Kurin placed the reserve - an ambush under the command of Sotsky Ivan Pushkin - in the Yudinsky ravine - behind the river where Pavlovo lay.

The French columns emerged from behind the forest in the second hour of the day. The enemy secretly positioned his main forces near the village of Gribovo, closest to Pavlovo, and carefully moved the two advanced squadrons towards the village. One of them remained at the outskirts, and the second entered Pavlova. The village seemed to have died out from some terrible disease - complete desertion. The French, huddled in a tight square in the central square, felt this and instinctively squeezed their ranks tighter and tighter. And again the translator called out to the good villagers, imploring them not to be afraid of the valiant imperial army, but, on the contrary, to cooperate with it.

This time, it seemed, the Russians heeded the voice of reason: several sedate men appeared from behind the houses and slowly walked towards the cavalrymen. During the conversation, it became clear that the French did not wish the Pavlovsk residents and their neighbors harm, but only wanted to talk with local heads in order to establish a profitable purchase and sale of food and fodder for both parties. The peasants nodded gravely at the flowery foreign phrases, agreeing: yes, this is a good deed, trading is not fighting, we need to help. And they invited us to follow them to the public reserves of the village. The French agreed and followed the peasant deputation, headed by the dignified, representative Kurin.

In the very first alley, part of the squadron that followed the men was crushed in hand-to-hand combat and stabbed to pieces. Several aimed volleys were fired at those remaining in the square, and only then they attacked from all sides, completing the rout. At that moment Stulov was killed by a squadron located near the village. A small group of Frenchmen who had escaped from the village, uniting with the remnants that Stulov had not managed to crush, hastily fled to the village of Gribov. The Kurins, having forgotten about everything, hung behind them. So they burst into the village, suddenly finding themselves in the face of a silently standing chain of Ney’s infantry. And now the French were driving the peasants from Gribov to Pavlov.

Near the village, Kurin and Stulov managed to slightly delay the attackers, placing their riflemen around the outskirts and in the outer houses. This gave the others the opportunity to look around a little and meaningfully begin to retreat to the Yudinsky ravine. Having crossed the ravine, Kurin began to gain a foothold. The French, seeing this, hoped to have time to prevent this and therefore rushed forward, disrupting their ranks. Chushkin did not know about the French ambush in Gribov and thought that Gerasim Matveevich was carrying out some cunning plan of his, luring the enemy under his flank attack. Therefore, he waited until the enemy’s right side opened up to him better, and only then struck.

As soon as the enemy began to become confused, Kurin and Stulov went on the attack again. The French were driven eight miles until nightfall. The partisans captured 20 carts, 40 horses, 85 rifles, 120 pistols, 400 bags of ammunition. Ney's troops lost several hundred people killed - Kurin himself personally killed an officer and two soldiers in this battle. The peasants lost 12 killed and 20 wounded. The next day, Kurin moved to Bogorodsk, but did not find the French there anymore - Napoleon ordered his marshal to return to Moscow, which he did with excellent haste.

The enemy was repulsed, and the peasants returned to peaceful life. Soon, in an official report about “the brave and commendable actions of the villagers, who unanimously and courageously took up arms in entire villages against the parties sent from the enemy to rob and incite parties,” it was indicated that “the commanding people mentioned in it were ordered to be distinguished with the Cross of St. George.” Kurin and Stulov were also on this list. They were awarded the awards in May 1813 in Moscow.

And again the years moved on in their unhurried order, with one field season giving way to the next. And life goes on. In labors and worries, which give it significance and meaning. Gerasim Matveevich Kurin lived a long time and died a very old man in 1850, until the end of his days surrounded by the respectful attention of all distant and close acquaintances.

Gerasim Matveevich Kurin(1777 - June 2, 1850) - leader of a peasant partisan detachment that operated during the Patriotic War of 1812 in the Vokhonsky volost (area of ​​the present city of Pavlovsky Posad).

Biography

Born in 1777.

He was the leader of a peasant partisan detachment that operated during the Patriotic War of 1812 in the Vokhonsky volost (the area of ​​​​the present city of Pavlovsky Posad). Created a peasant detachment of 5,300 foot and 500 horse soldiers in the Bogorodsk region. As a result of seven clashes with Napoleonic troops, Kurin captured many French soldiers and 3 cannons. Thanks to the historian Alexander Mikhailovsky-Danilevsky, wide public attention was attracted to Kurin’s detachment. For his bravery he was awarded the St. George Cross, first class.

G. M. Kurin was among the officials and the most respected local residents who signed the Act on the opening of Pavlovsky Posad, formed from the village. Pavlova and four adjacent villages in 1844.

On June 12, 1850, the tradesman Gerasim Matveevich Kurin, at the age of 73, died of old age and was buried in the parish cemetery.

Memory of Kurin

• A street in Moscow and Pavlovsky Posad is named after Gerasim Kurin.
• A monument to Gerasim Kurin was erected in Pavlovsky Posad.
• A monument in memory of the battle with a stylized bas-relief portrait of G. Kurin was erected by the public of Elektrostal in a forest clearing between the cities of Noginsk, Pavlovsky Posad and Elektrostal. Monument coordinates: 55°5018 N. w. 38°3231 E. d.

The partisan movement of 1812 began near Smolensk with the detachment of F.F. Wintzingerode numbering 3,000 Cossacks.

The detachment operated extremely successfully on enemy communications, destroying supply convoys, slowing down the advance of troops, and sometimes carried out successful attacks on regular French units. This was only the first sign of a large-scale guerrilla war against the French army. Resistance grew as we moved deeper into Russian territories, reached its peak by the capture of Moscow and did not subside until Napoleon was expelled from the borders of the Russian Empire. The population armed entire villages and towns. They went into the forests, making daring attacks on convoys and reinforcements, and sometimes knocking out the French from captured towns and villages.

One of the most famous figures of the peasant movement is Gerasim Matveevich Kurin. Despite the fame of the name, the figure of Gerasim Matveyevich has become overgrown with numerous historical stories that are still being circulated. They began with a story by N.S. Golubov “Gerasim Kurin”, published in 1942. It contains many inaccuracies and historical errors, right down to the name of Gerasim Kurin's father, who is called Pakhom in the story. However, one should not judge the work of art strictly, especially since its goal was to excite the people’s spirit in the difficult year of 1942, and the author did not have time for detailed work with the archives. Modern local history research has restored historical authenticity.

Smirnov A. Portrait of Gerasim Kurin. 1813

Gerasim Kurin was born in 1777 in the village of Pavlovo, Vokhonsky volost, Moscow province. Contrary to a common misconception, he was not a serf. His village, under Ivan IV, became the property of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery, and then into the state property after the secularization of church lands carried out by Catherine II. Thus, Gerasim Matveevich, like his closest associates, was a state peasant or, as it was otherwise called, an economic peasant.

The life of state peasants and serfs was very different. Due to the lack of land - they were owned mainly by landowners - economic peasants were mostly engaged in crafts, trade and crafts. Artels of builders, potters, and salt makers were created.

There is almost no information about the life of Gerasim Kurin before 1812, but it can be reasonably assumed that he worked in a shop, helping his father. By the way, in 1844 Kurin owned a good-quality two-story house in the center of Pavlov Posad, which indicates the good financial situation of the peasant.
Gerasim Matveevich was married to Anna Savelyevna (Savina), a representative of a branch of the Shirokov family (merchants of the 1st guild). In their marriage, they had two sons: Terenty and Anton, who by 1812 were 13 and 8 years old, respectively.

In the fall of 1812, the Great Army entered Moscow. Napoleon expected that this would end the war, but he greatly miscalculated. For the Russian people it has just begun. In the face of constant attacks on communications in the Napoleonic army, food shortages gradually increased. Foraging detachments and security units were sent out in all directions from the Mother See. Michel Ney's troops were sent west of Moscow in the direction of the village of Pavlovo. This is where the personal nine-day war of Gerasim Matveevich Kurin took place.

With the advent of the French, Kurin gathered around himself a detachment of 200 brave men and began hostilities. Very quickly the number of partisans increased to 5,300 people and 500 horsemen. The reason for this was both the authority of Kurin and the cruel behavior of the French, embittered by the protracted campaign and constant malnutrition, and often engaged in robbery and looting.

From September 23 to October 2, Gerasim Matveevich’s detachment participated in clashes with the French seven times. In one of the battles, poorly armed peasants got a real treasure: almost two hundred rifles and pistols, and in addition 400 cartridge bags. Another striking episode was the seizure of a grain train.

Ney was enraged by the insolence of the partisans and sent two squadrons of dragoons to stop the outrages in his rear. Apparently, the marshal had no idea about the number of partisans, otherwise he would not have limited himself to a small detachment. It is unknown how reliable the information about the defeat of the expelled regular troops is. But, according to some reports, Kurin used the following trick. Leaving most of the detachment in ambush at a convenient position, he got involved in battle with the French and then retreated. Rejoicing at the easy victory over the peasant, the dragoons gave chase and unexpectedly found themselves surrounded. Both squadrons were defeated, and a significant part of the cavalrymen were captured.

After several successful raids, the detachment became so strong that it decided to attack the town of Bogorodsk occupied by the French, but by that time Marshal Ney had already received an order to retreat to Moscow. Kurin missed Napoleon's marshal by only a few hours.

It is noteworthy that the peasant, who had no idea about tactics and military affairs, acted so successfully (again, contrary to popular belief, Gerasim Matveevich’s father did not serve in the army). Kurin's detachment, having gone through 7 clashes with the French, did not lose a single person. Although in literary works, probably for the sake of realism, peasants died in every battle.

In 1813, Gerasim Matveevich Kurin was awarded the St. George Cross, 1st class. This award was specially established for lower ranks and non-military personnel; it was worn, like the Order of St. George, on a black and orange ribbon. It is often mentioned that Kurin also received the title of honorary citizen, but this is not true. Honorary citizenship was not awarded to representatives of the peasant class, and it was established only in 1832. Due to his class origin, Gerasim Matveevich could not bear this title, although he undoubtedly deserved it.

In 1844, Kurin participated in the opening of Pavlovsky Posad, which was formed by the merger of Pavlovsky and four surrounding villages. 6 years after this event, in 1850, Gerasim Kurin died. He was buried at the Pavlovsky cemetery.

The popular movement played a huge role in the Patriotic War of 1812. The constant actions of partisans from both regular troops and ordinary peasants constrained Napoleon's actions, constantly depleting the strength of his army. Not only material, but also spiritual. The active struggle of the Russian people against the French troops became one of the most important factors in victory in this war. Small partisan victories of such commanders as Gerasim Kurin, Vasilisa Kozhina, Ermolai Chetvertakov, Semyon Shubin and many others, whose names are still unknown, became bricks in the foundation on which the victorious strategy of the Russian army was built in the campaign of 1812.

Partizan Kurin Gerasim Matveevich

A resident of the village “Vokhna, Pavlovo also”, Bogorodsky district of the Moscow province (the area of ​​​​the current city of Pavlovsky Posad, Moscow region), Gerasim Kurin was the son of a retired soldier, a participant in the Suvorov assault on Izmail, who returned from the Turkish war as a “crippled warrior.” He went down in the history of the Patriotic War of 1812 as the organizer of a large partisan detachment of local peasants.

French troops from the corps of Marshal of the Empire Michel Ney occupied the town of Bogorodsk on September 23, immediately taking up robbery (requisitioning food) in the surrounding villages. The conquerors’ response to such actions was that the peasants of the Vokhnon volost took refuge in the forests. Having armed themselves, they chose as their leader a fellow countryman, Gerasim Kurin, who was authoritative for them. So he became the leader of a partisan detachment of local men. Everyone armed themselves with whatever they could: pikes and pitchforks, scythes and axes, clubs...

The first clashes of the Kura partisans took place with enemy foragers. On September 25 they were expelled from the village of Bolshoy Dvor, on the 26th - from the village of Gribovo, on the 27th - from the village of Subbotino. The events at Subbotino were more like a battle: the French lost 18 people killed, and three were captured by the partisans.

After these clashes, the first captured weapons appeared in Gerasim Kurin’s detachment - guns with cartridges, sabers. But there were few of him, as well as people familiar with military affairs. Then the partisan leader decided to turn for help to the head of the Vladimir militia, Prince B.A. Golitsyn.

This treatment was not accidental. According to the report of the district leader of the nobility, on August 16, 1812, 2,113 warriors were enrolled in the militia of the Bogorodsky district, 7.5 pounds of flour, 111 quarters of cereals, 1,460 pikes and 8 guns were collected from the population of 10,554 pounds. It can be argued that it was the warriors of the state militia that became the basis for the partisanship of the Vokhnon volost.

G.M. Kurin. Artist A. Smirnov

Prince Golitsyn responded to the request of the commander of the partisan “peasant” detachment. He allocated 20 mounted Cossacks to help him, who were well armed, knew military affairs perfectly, and knew how to carry out “sabotage” in enemy rear areas.

With the help of the Cossacks, the Vokhnov partisans expelled the French foragers from the village of Nazarovo on September 28. The next day they gave them battle in the village of Trubitsyno, killing 15 Napoleons in the battle. On September 30, the robbers, who lost three people, were driven out of the village of Nasyrevo. The marauders were “exterminated in the most merciless manner” by the peasants.

The French commandant of the city of Bogorodsk was alarmed by the development of such events. On October 1, two cavalry squadrons, tasked with foraging, approached the village of Vokhna. Partisan patrols reported in time the appearance of a large enemy.

Gerasim Kurin, together with the volost foreman Yegor Stulov, on alert, gathered large partisan forces - up to 5,300 foot and 500 horse men, of whom only a few had firearms. But they received “help” in the form of two dozen Cossacks and the “party of hussars,” commanded by Captain Bogdansky.

With such forces the enemy was driven out of the villages of Prokudino and Gribovo. At the same time, the foragers lost their entire considerable convoy with looted provisions and lost 30 people killed. The partisans tirelessly drove them towards Bogorodsk.

That same evening, October 1, French troops left Bogorodsk, which was immediately occupied by mounted Cossacks and hussars. The next day, partisans led by Gerasim Kurin entered the district center. Thus the war “with the French” ended victoriously for them.

Gerasim Kurin became widely known in Russia for his “partisanship.” For his undoubted military services during the “thunderstorm of the 12th year,” he was awarded the St. George Cross (Insignia of the Military Order), medals “In Memory of the Patriotic War” and “For Love of the Fatherland.”

He appeared in the military chronicle of 1812 largely due to his meeting in the summer of 1820 with the emperor’s aide-de-camp, historian A.I. Mikhailovsky-Danilevsky, to whom he told about his partisan actions in the Vokhnon volost.

A folk song was composed about the partisan leader Gerasim Kurin, which was popular at that time in the Vladimir and Moscow lands. It sang:

Just like in the spring

A Frenchman was walking towards my yard,

Bonaparte general

Bogorodsk conquered

Gerasim Kurin shouted to us:

“Beat your enemies, then we’ll smoke!”

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