The 2017 summer trip covered several regions of Russia. When planning walks around cities and car trips around regions, I chose those places that, firstly, fit into our road map, and, secondly, were part of my “interests”. If we talk about the entire trip, priority was given to visiting Russian estates. We examined four estates, the clear favorite for me personally was the estate of the Nekrasov family in the village of Karabikha.
A short historical preface. Until the beginning of the 18th century, the village of Bogorodskoye was located in the vicinity of the modern village of Karabikhi. In 1711, the princely family of Golitsyn became the owner of the village of Bogorodskoye and adjacent lands. In the 40s of the 18th century, by order of the Golitsyns, an unknown architect built an estate on Karabitovaya Mountain, the estate itself received the name Karabikha, and soon the village acquired the same name. At the beginning of the 19th century, the Golitsyn family reconstructed the estate, and the estate ensemble acquired a more formal appearance. The estate complex has been preserved almost in this form to this day.
N.A. Nekrasov bought the estate in 1861 for a summer vacation. All the household chores of managing the estate fall on the shoulders of the poet’s brother, Fyodor. Karabikha becomes a permanent place of residence for Fyodor Nekrasov’s family, and the poet comes only in the summer to rest.
The Karabikha Museum-Reserve is located 15 km from Yaroslavl. We are early birds, so we were already there at half past eight in the morning. Museum exhibitions open at 10.00, the park area from May to October is open from 7.00 am. Therefore, first we went to explore the estate territory. I invite you to get your bearings and take a walk along the park alleys.
We entered the estate from the Upper Park (entrance to the territory is paid - 50 rubles per adult). We move towards the main manor house - on the right is the People's Building, on the left is the Upper Park.
After walking a few meters along the path, we find ourselves on the “main square of the estate.” In front of us is a floral parterre, in the background there is a glacier, the Eastern wing, where N. Nekrasov lived during his summer visits, and the Great Manor House.
Opposite the Big House is the Upper Park, which is a type of regular park. The perspective of the central alley leading from the porch of the Big House continues with the central alley of the park and ends with the greenhouse building. In earlier times, the greenhouse building ended with a belvedere with a spire, similar to the belvedere of the Big House. Now the greenhouse has been preserved in ruins.
One of the facades of the Green House faces the park. This wooden house was built in the 1870s to house the youngest of the Nekrasov brothers, Konstantin.
The upper park is small in area, square in shape, with an eight-rayed park alley emanating from a single center. In the shade of trees (and several 200-year-old linden trees have been preserved) it is pleasant to sit on a secluded bench.
The Upper Park is adjacent to an orchard and a wine warehouse. The warehouse building was built at the beginning of the 20th century in the “red brick” style characteristic of that time. In the future, it is planned to reconstruct the object and adapt it to a museum visitor center.
On the slope behind the Big Manor House there is the Lower Landscape Park. The park's attractions include bridges, a cascade of ponds and winding paths that entangle the park area like a spider's web. The pattern of the park's web is intricate, and in some places the paths seem to disappear and are barely legible among the tall grass. Throughout the entire walk through the Lower Park, I had the feeling that I was walking through the forest. Park alleys and paths are only slightly decorated, and then not everywhere, but only on the descents and ascents.
And the Lower Park begins with the Bolshaya Polyana in front of the manor house.
The alternation of open and closed space is the main features of the Lower Park. You can feel unity with nature, enjoy the singing of birds, just sit in silence and admire the surrounding nature on the benches scattered throughout the park area.
And our path lies to the Upper Pond.
On the territory of the Lower Park there are two ponds of artificial origin - Upper and Lower, connected by the Gremikha stream. There is an island in the middle of the Upper Pond. The banks were lined with trees, and over time, growing, the trees shaded the water surface, and the crowns created a natural roof. The result was a picturesque gazebo in the middle of the water, which provided additional opportunities for relaxation.
Water into the Upper Pond comes from numerous springs; excess water flows over the stones in a small waterfall to the bottom of the ravine, and runs in a small stream into the Lower Pond. We found the upper pond by the sound of water. The waterfall is small, but in the forest morning silence, when there are no visitors yet, the sound of the supplying water can be clearly heard.
Time flies by in the park, the clock hands are approaching 10 o'clock, the manor house is waiting for us. We return to the front yard of the estate.
Before we go to inspect the museum exhibition, let's go to the bust of N.A. Nekrasov. A bronze bust of the poet by Leningrad sculptor L.Yu. Eidlin appeared in 1960 on the eve of the 140th anniversary of the birth of N.A. Nekrasov. In 2011, the monument was updated and installed on the site near the Eastern wing, in which Nekrasov lived during his stay in Karabikha.
At the museum's ticket office you can choose to visit several exhibitions; you can view them on your own; you can pay for excursion services (all details are on the museum's website www.karabiha-museum.ru). We stopped to explore the Big House with the rise to the Belvedere and the East Wing.
The large manor house (museum staff call it the Big House for short) was built at the turn of the 18th-19th centuries. In the first quarter of the 19th century, the architectural ensemble of the Big House and two wings connected by galleries to the main house was finally formed. The large house is two-story, with 4-column porticoes on the southern and northern facades, with an observation tower-belvedere on the roof. In the second half of the 19th century, the connecting galleries between the house and the outbuildings were dismantled. This is how the manor house appears in our time.
On the ground floor of the Big House, visitors are greeted by the owner of the estate, N.A. Nekrasov.
And we go up to the second floor, go to visit the family of Fyodor Alekseevich Nekrasov.
The office of F.A. Nekrasov, the poet’s brother. At first, Fyodor Alekseevich was the estate manager. In 1867, the poet rewrote the deed of sale to his brother, and Fyodor Alekseevich became the owner of all of Karabikha and the surrounding wastelands.
Noteworthy is the wastepaper basket, on each side of which the initials “N.N.” are carved. The basket belonged to N.A. Nekrasov and was brought by Fyodor Alekseevich from St. Petersburg after the death of the poet.
This room has access to a balcony.
From the balcony there is a beautiful view of the formal floral parterre in front of the Big House. According to the caretakers of the museum, the stalls have been restored to the same form as they were during the Nekrasovs’ time.
We pass through the office of Natalya Pavlovna Nekrasova, the second wife of Fyodor Alekseevich.
A ladies' desk (late 19th century) always stood in this room and belonged to N.P. Nekrasova.
Bedroom of N.P. Nekrasova.
Nekrasov bought Karabikha from the Golitsyn princes with part of the furnishings; the Nekrasov family always carefully preserved these things. The living room of the manor house corresponded to its purpose at all times of the existence of the estate; some of the things in the interior of the living room (portraits and a piano) were preserved from the time of the previous owners.
From the living room there is access to a balcony from which there is a beautiful view of the Lower Park and Bolshaya Polyana.
After inspecting the living quarters of the Big House, we go up to the attic, Belvedere awaits us ahead.
It's worth stopping in the attic and looking from the inside at the mounting system for the second floor ceiling system.
In hot weather, it is impossible to stay in the attic for a long time - the attic space warms up thoroughly. We overcome the last small flight of stairs.
In front of us is the Belvedere site.
It is small and round in shape. The entire estate is at your fingertips, and you can also see the surrounding area. The Lower Park, the main ground and the Eastern wing from the height of the observation deck.
After examining the estate grounds from above, we leave the Big House and go to the Eastern Wing. The poet stayed here during his visits to Karabikha. Now the outbuilding houses the exhibition “Personal Rooms of N.A. Nekrasov.”
We go up the main staircase. It appeared as a result of the adaptation of the Eastern wing for the poet to live in it. Its design has been preserved since the end of the 19th century.
The first room in Nekrasov’s personal chambers is the dining room. This location is due to the proximity to the stairs, along which ready-made dishes were ascended from the kitchen on the ground floor.
The largest and brightest room in the enfilade of living quarters is the living room. It served as a place for literary creativity, as it was removed from the noisy courtyard of the estate. The furnishings of the living room have been partially preserved; in their places there is a fireplace and a mirror on it, a fireplace chair, a bust of Walter Scott on a stand, a pair of dressing tables, and an ottoman sofa. The decor of the living room reflected the taste and habits of Nikolai Alekseevich, combining elements of the front and private types of premises.
From the living room you can access the balcony. In front of us is the manor courtyard and the Big House with Belvedere. It can be assumed that Nikolai Alekseevich, during his summer vacation, had the same “views” as the ones before us now.
The office continues the suite of living spaces. It and the bedroom next to it were inaccessible to outsiders. Here the poet was engaged in editorial work and business correspondence.
The bedroom completes the series of living quarters. This room was private. Few people had access here, so descriptions of the bedroom in the memories of relatives are minimal. The furnishings of the bedroom have not been preserved.
Our journey through the Nekrasov estate is over; we spent two and a half hours here. We were pressed for time, there was still a long road ahead. The estate charmed me, I didn’t want to leave. You should come here for the whole day, quietly walk through the parks, explore the rest of the estate’s buildings, and look at other museum exhibitions. There is a buffet in the Big House where you can also have a snack.
Welcome to visit the Nekrasov family. Guests are welcome here, I had a very emotional conversation with the museum caretakers - they talk about the poet and his brother’s family with great love and enthusiasm.
Literary and Memorial Museum-Reserve of Nekrasov N.A. “Karabikha” is located 15 km from Yaroslavl near the village of Krasnye Tkachi.
Until the beginning of the 18th century. next to the estate was the village of Bogorodskoye. At the beginning of the 18th century. The family of princes Golitsyn began to own the village and the lands adjacent to it. In the 1740s. By order of Prince Golitsyn Nikolai Sergeevich, the construction of an estate located on Karabitova Gora began. This estate became the largest in the Yaroslavl province. The name of the architect has not survived to this day. The estate got its name from the name of the mountain - Karabikha. Subsequently, the village in which the estate is located began to be called this.
In Karabikha, like in no other estate of the 18th century. in the Yaroslavl region, its original appearance has been preserved. The estate belongs to the palace type, typical of the era of classicism. The estate complex includes: 2 parks (regular and landscape), a residential building, a system of ponds and outbuildings.
The basis of the ensemble is the main house with two wings. Previously, the house and outbuildings were two-story covered galleries, which united all the buildings into a single whole. The main house is a two-story stone building with pediments on columns, verandas and a gazebo. Behind the house there is a descent to Kotorosl.
The interior of the building has retained decorative elements of the late 18th - early 19th centuries. In the wings, fragments of baroque architraves and semi-circular completion of windows, characteristic of an earlier architectural period, have been preserved.
The horse yard on the estate dates back to the beginning of the 19th century. and initially had a symmetrical composition, which consisted of three parts: the main building and two carriage houses. At the beginning of the 20th century. Instead of the northern carriage house, a two-story residential house was built.
The parks included in the estate are conventionally called Upper and Lower. The upper one is located next to the main house, it is of the French type - well-groomed, neat, with trimmed bushes and trees, each object has its own place. The lower park is behind the house. This is a typical English park - natural, at first it seems neglected, but, nevertheless, each planting here is in a place specially allocated for it. In the large clearing of this particular park, Nekrasov held his readings. At the edge of the Lower Park is the Gremikha water cascade, which is created by a stream flowing through the Lower and Upper ponds and forming waterfalls and small ponds.
At the beginning of the 19th century. M.N. Golitsyn began the reconstruction of the estate; as a result, the estate complex took the form in which it has reached our time. In 1827, after the death of M.N. Golitsyn, the estate remained ownerless and began to fall into disrepair. In 1861, Nikolai Alekseevich Nekrasov purchased the estate from Golitsyn’s descendants for a summer holiday. He settled here with his brother, Fedor, who took upon himself all the household chores.
In Karabikha, Nikolai Nekrasov wrote his famous poems “Russian Women”, “Frost, Red Nose”. Here he worked on the poem “Who Lives Well in Rus'.” The last time the poet was at the estate was in 1875.
In 1918, the estate was nationalized. Despite the fact that the estate had the status of a historical monument, it housed the Burlaki state farm. In 1946, it was decided to reconstruct this monument and organize the Nekrasov Memorial Museum. At first, the museum was a branch of the local history museum, and since 1988, it was transformed into a literary and memorial museum-reserve with branches in Greshnevo and Abbakumtsevo. In 2002, the large manor house was opened after almost ten years of restoration.
The museum's holdings include more than 20 thousand items, including interior items and personal belongings of people. Those who lived in the estate, portraits, estate furnishings. The collection of amateur photographs from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries is of great interest. with portraits of the owners of the estate and its views. The museum's library collections number more than 15 thousand rare magazines and books from the 18th and early 20th centuries. Here you can see the first editions of N.A. Nekrasov, lifetime and posthumous editions of his works, 7 books from Nekrasov’s library, magazines that he published, issues of magazines with which he collaborated. At the end of the 20th century. The museum's exposition was replenished with a collection of crystal and glassware from the 19th century. and a letter from M.N. Golitsyn from A.I. Musina-Pushkin 1808
Guide:
Purchase of an estate
“We are in Nekrasov’s hunting lodge. I will tell you when the poet first came to Novgorod land.
In the 40s of the 19th century, the aspiring writer Nikolai Alekseevich Nekrasov met the same aspiring writer Panaev. Panaev had a small estate in Borovichi district, and he often began to invite Nekrasov to his place.
They made joint trips to the forest and were engaged in the revival of the Sovremennik magazine. It was then that Nekrasov had the idea of purchasing a house not far from St. Petersburg, where he could relax, work, and hunt. He traveled all around St. Petersburg, but could not find anything suitable.
In 1870, Nikolai Alekseevich learned that in the vicinity of Chudov. where he had visited several times, local landowners put the estate up for sale and asked to look at it. Nekrasov arrived with his future wife Fyokla Anisimovna Viktorova. He liked the estate and decided to buy it. It took 3.5 hours to get from St. Petersburg to Chudov via the Nikolaevskaya railway, which was convenient and fast at that time.
Before this, the writer had to leave for a long time in the Yaroslavl province, where he had the family estate of Karabikha. which he acquired in 1861.
The Chudov estate occupied a huge territory, approximately 177 hectares. In the center is a 2-story house, which has not been rebuilt and has remained in its original form to this day. There were many different buildings on the territory: a farm yard, a stable, a kennel, an apple orchard, oak and linden alleys.
Passion for hunting
From 1871 to 1876, Nekrasov came here when the hunting season opened. And this happened almost all year round. In the autumn-winter period there was always a bear hunt. For more than 40 years of his life, Nekrasov was fond of hunting. The father taught his son to the forest from childhood, and he knew a lot about the forest, stood well in the saddle, and shot accurately. Hunting was commonplace for him.
When contemporaries accused the poet, a man of faith, of cruelty towards animals, he explained his passion by saying that hunting saved him from the blues and depression. He was a closed person, constantly immersed in himself; hunting helped him live and create.
The poet's sister, Anna Butkevich, said that hunting for him was not fun, but an opportunity to get acquainted with the life of the Russian people. Peasants always accompanied him on the hunt. An entire village, up to 120 people, rose up.
From each trip to the forest, the writer brought rich material: different stories, anecdotes. He communicated with peasants, studied simple colloquial speech. He wrote down everything he saw and heard and then used it in his work.
Nekrasov had a special passion for bears, which he preferred to hunt alone. And he managed to bring serious trophies from the forest. He reported this in letters to his family and friends. One day he wrote to his brother Fyodor that he had brought 3 bears from the forest with a total weight of more than 600 kg. He presented Doctor Botkin, who treated him, with a stuffed bear of enormous size. The letter described the parameters of this bear - more than 3 meters tall. This effigy was installed in the medical academy. Nekrasov was a decisive and courageous man. He was like that not only on the hunt, but also in life.
He had a huge collection of Italian, German, and French weapons, on which he spent a lot of money. Nearby in the exhibition we see a hunting bag - a game bag and special waterproof boots.
Home decoration
Arriving here, Nekrasov rested for a day or two from the city noise. The study has an original oak table and a lamp with a white lampshade. Some things in this house were preserved thanks to Nekrasov’s personal huntsman, Mironov.
I would like to draw your attention to the wallpaper. When the writer purchased this house, he invited craftsmen from St. Petersburg. They insulated the walls and covered them with paper wallpaper. Peasants from the Novgorod wilderness, entering the house, were amazed at its interior decoration. The geometric pattern of the wallpaper was completely restored by restorers. Instead of a closet under Nekrasov, there was a stove with Italian tiles.
This room has an original set of Karelian birch. There are 3 items in the house made by Chinese craftsmen. For example, this screen. Each section has a hand-embroidered story.
During the Great Patriotic War, much was destroyed. But in this house there was a German headquarters, nearby, in the school building, there were stables. The entire estate, all the plantings were swept away from the face of the earth, only these 2 buildings remained.
This is one of the most spacious rooms, which connects the bedroom, office and dining room. Next is the work room. This is the only room where the writer could retire, especially in recent years, when he was seriously ill.
Nekrasov wrote many poems in this house. The most famous is the poem “Elegy,” written in 1874. There are the following lines: “I dedicated the lyre to my people...”. Here he worked on part of the poem “Who Lives Well in Rus',” which is called “A Feast for the Whole World.”
Disease
Nekrasov had cancer, from which he later died. The disease made him suffer severely.
In June 1876, the Nekrasovs came here to Chudovskaya Luka. My health did not allow me to travel far from St. Petersburg. The writer felt unwell and turned to the doctor for help. The doctor advised me to go for treatment to Gatchina, and then to Crimea. There was still hope that the disease would subside, but it only got worse.
Nekrasov returned to St. Petersburg from Crimea in October 1876, an absolutely broken man. He never left St. Petersburg until his death on December 27, 1877.
Zinaida Nikolaevna Nekrasova
The room we are in now is the women's workroom. In the spring of 1870, the poet met Fekla Anisimovna Viktorova. Friends and family did not approve of his choice. She was too young, 25 years younger than Nekrasov. For a long time he did not take her anywhere, and later he gave her another name, a more euphonious one - Zinaida Nikolaevna.
Realizing that his days were numbered and there was a lot of unfinished work, Nikolai Alekseevich continued to write. He began to involve his wife in his work. At first she was a poorly educated woman. He hired teachers for her. She was taught history, literature, spelling, playing musical instruments, and foreign languages. And subsequently his wife became Nikolai Alekseevich’s assistant.
Six months before Nekrasov’s death, in April 1877, they got married. This is the only woman in the poet’s life who officially bore his last name.
Under this name - Zinaida Nikolaevna Nekrasova - she went down in history and lived for another 38 long years after the death of her husband. They always came here, to Chudovskaya Luka, together. They were together everywhere, there was no correspondence between them. In this room she embroidered, did needlework, and invited girls from the village here. Here stands a Chinese craftsman's table made of bamboo with ivory inlay.
Zinaida Nikolaevna was a hunter. Nekrasov also taught her to do his favorite thing. On the sofa you see a black velvet hat with ostrich feathers. This is part of her hunting costume.
In 1877, the year of the poet’s death, but still during his lifetime, a collection of poems, “Last Songs,” was published, which he dedicated to his wife in gratitude for the years she spent next to him.
A sad story is connected with the name of Zinaida Nikolaevna. In May 1875, while hunting, she accidentally shot Nekrasov’s beloved dog, Kado. Nikolai Alekseevich loved him very much and called him a gift of fate. Translated from French, Cado means a gift. When the dog died, the poet brought a slab of red granite and buried him in front of the office windows. After this incident, Nekrasov never went hunting again. There were a lot of dogs. It was possible to find a replacement, but apparently his attitude towards the hunt itself had changed.
As for Zinaida Nikolaevna, her fate was tragic. After the death of her husband, according to the will, the estate was supposed to go to her, but Nekrasova’s sister presented the rights to the inheritance. In memory of her brother, she decided to make a school here.
Zinaida Nikolaevna settled in St. Petersburg. I wanted to go to a monastery. First she went to Kyiv, then to Odessa, to Saratov. I joined a Baptist sect. She sold all her property, gave money to the sect, and when she asked for it back, she was kicked out in disgrace. She was begging and starving. It became known again in 1914. She did not marry, did not give birth to children, and kept the memory of her great husband all her life. She died in January 1915, her grave is in Saratov at the Voskresensky cemetery.
Family evenings
Now we are in the living room, where the owner received guests. Saltykov-Shchedrin was once here, who acquired an estate in Syabrenitsy. They walked here, swam in Keresti. They gathered in this living room, played cards, drank tea, and listened to Zinaida Nikolaevna play the clavichord. Evenings were spent as a family; a literary salon was held here.
It is no secret that Nekrasov was fond of card games, and if here a company gathered at the card table and played gambling to pass the time, then in St. Petersburg the games lasted for several days, up to a week, and millions were already won and lost there.
But Nekrasov was not a gambling addict. He never lost his will or his mind. He knew how to stop in time, and in general he was a fairly prudent and pragmatic person. He calculated his every next step, was a successful player and won large sums. They were afraid to play with him.
There are different types of cards presented here. He played cards and won back what had been lost by his ancestors. Greshnevo, the Nekrasov family estate, was won back by Nikolai Alekseevich. Playing cards was also a source of income. At the request of the guests, Zinaida Nikolaevna played the clavichord. This is a rare instrument, it has bone keys and a beautiful sound.
Other exhibits of the house-museum
There's a stuffed bear here. She was killed during a winter hunt in 1895. Nobody expected her to appear. When she appeared, they tried to shoot her, but the gun misfired, and they put her down using improvised means - daggers, with the help of dogs. Such large specimens are still found today. In those days they paid 5 rubles for a bear skin, 3 rubles for a wolf. When Nekrasov hunted, he also paid his assistants: 35 kopecks for adults and 25 kopecks for children. He distributed the game that was brought from the forest to the peasants.
When Nekrasov once came to the Novgorod region in the 50s, he was surprised that this was a very remote place and people did not know what gunpowder was. Locals hunted small animals using the belly method. They saw prey, jumped on it from behind and crushed it. This is how they fed.
There were only guest rooms on the second floor. There were three of them, 2 of them were restored. This is a bedroom. Only relatives and close friends spent the night here. Those who came to hunt rented houses or stayed in guest houses.
Here are handmade rugs from Chudov craftsmen of the 2nd half of the 19th century. The house lacked the amenities we were used to. Toiletries were provided in every room. A bathhouse was built on the bank of Keresti, but it was used infrequently.
This is a women's chest of drawers with candlesticks. There was a stove in every room. Pay attention to chairs with wide backs, low legs and curved armrests. This is a lady's chair. A lady in a full skirt could rest the hem of her dress on this armrest.
Creative people came here. A library was set up for them, where they could work and sit with a book. Here is an original mirror, a candlestick in the shape of a bear, a volume of Nekrasov’s poems, lifetime edition, 1873. Bookcase with a complete collection of encyclopedic dictionaries.
Nekrasov traveled a lot. Here is a travel suitcase-coffer, a mini-wardrobe where you can fit a lot of things. It is very comfortable, but heavy. Without things it weighs 50 kg. Made of wood, covered in leather and upholstered in iron.
