The Decembrists (Tolstoy)
Short summary
Moscow, 1856. After thirty years of Siberian exile following the Decembrist revolt, a family returned to Moscow during Alexander II's reforms. Two carriages and a sleigh arrived at Moscow's finest hotel, where an elderly man sat discussing the city's changes since the French occupation.
Peter arrived with his wife Natalya, who had followed him to Siberia, their cheerful eighteen-year-old daughter Sonya, and their energetic twenty-five-year-old son Sergey. News of the famous Prince Labazov's return spread quickly through Moscow society. At the English club, people recalled Peter's noble past - his role in the Masonic lodge, his wealth, and how he had sacrificed his inheritance to protect his brother.
The family attended mass at the Cathedral of the Assumption, where Peter became emotional remembering his last visit thirty-five years earlier. They visited Peter's sister Marya Ivanovna, an influential Moscow spinster who warned him against getting involved with modern liberals. She expressed sadness about the suffering that awaited the young generation. Peter reflected on his family's future, sensing this was their last time together as a unit. In his philosophical mood, he contemplated their years in exile:
The old nest is a sad nest; the old man did not know how to make it—he was caught in a cage, and in the cage he reared his young ones, and was let out only when his wings no longer would hold him up.
Alternative fragments explored a land dispute between Crown peasants and landowners, revealing the social tensions of the era.
Detailed summary by fragments
Descriptive titles for fragments and chapters are editorial.
First Fragment. The return to Moscow
Chapter 1. Arrival at the hotel and first evening
In 1856, during the reign of Alexander II, as Russia celebrated its return from the Crimean War and the nation experienced a period of regeneration and reform, a family of Decembrist exiles returned to Moscow after thirty years in Siberia. The story opened with the arrival of two vehicles and a sleigh at Moscow's finest hotel, where an elderly man sat with two ladies discussing the condition of Blacksmith Bridge during the French occupation.
Peter Ivanovich continued his conversation in the carriage as though he intended to stay there overnight, while his wife and daughter waited impatiently for their son to arrange accommodations. When the young man emerged from the hotel, he spoke in French to avoid being mistaken for a servant, announcing that rooms were available. The old man seemed to forget where they were until his daughter reminded him to step out.
The porter immediately recognized Natalya Nikolaevna as an important personage from her sable cloak and dignified manner. Their daughter carried bundles like the servants and was recognized only by her laughter and her calling the old man father. On the staircase, her distinctive laughter rang out - the kind that made anyone who heard it think they envied her joy.
Their son had attended to all practical matters during the journey with the energy characteristic of his twenty-five years. He ran up and down the stairs multiple times, arranging for servants and belongings, while his mother asked him not to catch cold. Peter Ivanovich walked through the rooms with agitated steps, eager to organize everything and begin their new life in Moscow.
The family discussed their plans for the following day, including visiting Peter's sister and attending mass at the Cathedral of the Assumption. Peter Ivanovich became emotional thinking about his last visit to the cathedral thirty-five years earlier. As they settled in for tea, he reflected on this being their last evening as a close family unit, believing his children would soon make their own way in the world. The evening concluded with Peter Ivanovich in an ecstatic mood, though his family showed some concern about his drinking.
Chapter 2. Meeting Moscow society and visiting family
Meanwhile, downstairs in the hotel's exclusive room, the French landlord told his wife and regular guests about the Siberian family's arrival. The conversation turned to gossip about the daughter's beauty and speculation about the family's identity. When someone brought the passport, they discovered it belonged to the famous Prince Peter Labazov, a name everyone recognized with respect.
The guests shared stories about returning Decembrists, including a humorous tale about three exiles meeting a man who claimed to have been exiled "for the 18th" - not December 18th, but September 18th, for allegedly stealing a gold watch. News of the Labazovs' arrival quickly spread through Moscow's social circles, reaching the English club where it was received with great interest.
Ivan Pavlovich Pakhtin eagerly spread the news throughout the club, gauging reactions from different social groups. In the intellectual room, he learned details about Peter Labazov's remarkable past - his role in the Masonic lodge, his wealth, his marriage, and his noble sacrifice of family property to protect his brother. The intellectuals revealed how Peter had declined his inheritance with the dignified words:
Neither I nor my heirs have any right, nor can have any right, to the property legally appropriated by you. That was all.
At an evening salon, Pakhtin shared the news with ladies who remembered Natasha Krinski's romantic marriage to Peter Labazov. Countess Fuks recalled the dramatic courtship, including the planned elopement and the father's eventual consent. The ladies marveled at how this beautiful, wealthy woman had followed her husband to Siberia without hesitation, and they began planning to monopolize the returning family's social attention.
Chapter 3. Morning mass and reunion with Márya Ivánovna
The next morning, Peter Ivanovich awoke to the sound of Moscow bells, feeling childish joy at being Russian and in Moscow again. Despite his efforts to appear dignified, he took great care with his appearance, though he was dissatisfied with his Siberian-made clothes. The family attended mass at the Cathedral of the Assumption, where their distinguished bearing attracted attention from other worshippers who wondered about their identity.
While his family attended church, Sergey went shopping and unfortunately spent 250 rubles on poorly chosen ready-made clothes that made him look unfashionable. Upon their return, the family found visiting cards from distinguished Muscovites who now considered it their duty to show attention to the famous exile. Peter Ivanovich felt gratified by this respect, experiencing what he described as a "name-day sensation."
One visitor managed to see them before they left for family visits - Ivan Pakhtin, who claimed friendship with Peter's sister. Pakhtin listened with exaggerated attention to Peter's views on Russia's progress and the improvement of the masses. Peter Ivanovich spoke passionately about his beliefs:
Great, unforgettable time of the regeneration of the Russian people! Like the Frenchman who said that he has not lived who has not lived through the great French Revolution
After Pakhtin's visit, the family went to see Peter's godmother and sister, Marya Ivanovna. She was an old maid who had lived in Moscow for forty years and commanded universal respect through sheer force of personality. She treated all of Moscow as her family and had two great passions: devotion to Peter Ivanovich and hatred for his brother Prince Ivan.
When Peter Ivanovich arrived unexpectedly, Marya Ivanovna initially maintained composure but then broke down emotionally, embracing her brother and repeatedly calling him stupid for not preparing her for his arrival. After the initial reunion, she examined the family and invited them to dinner, where they would meet a young Sevastopol veteran and writer.
During their private conversation, Marya Ivanovna warned Peter against getting involved with modern liberals, fearing he would get mixed up in political troubles again. She expressed her views about the government and her concerns for his children's future. When Peter spoke proudly of his son's intelligence and interest in natural sciences, Marya Ivanovna felt sad, reflecting on the suffering that lay ahead for the young people:
A whole life before them. Oh, how much they will suffer yet! God grant it, God grant it! It is hard to live, Pierre!
The chapter concluded with Marya Ivanovna's practical concerns about feeding her dinner guests and her final advice to her brother:
It is hard to live, Pierre! Take this one advice from me, my dear: don't philosophize! What a stupid you are, Pierre, oh, what a stupid!
Second Fragment. Variant of the first chapter: the land dispute
This alternative opening focused on a legal dispute over land between Crown peasants and a landowner. The case involved Ivan Apykhtin, who had allegedly seized four thousand desyatins of land from the peasants of Izlegoshcha village. Initially won by the peasants in the County Court, the case was later overturned in the Government Court in favor of the proprietor through the efforts of a shrewd manumitted serf acting as Apykhtin's attorney.
On Maundy Thursday, while the peasants went out to plough the disputed land, Ivan Petrovich Apykhtin attended communion at the village church. During the service, he reflected on his religious doubts and the strange nature of aging - how others saw him as firm and knowing, while he felt as frivolous as he had twenty years before. His thoughts wandered during prayer:
If they only knew what foolish things are running through my head! But that is a sin, a sin; I must pray... trying to catch the meaning of the responses, he began to pray.
After the service, Apykhtin approached the church elder Ivan Fedotov, one of the peasants involved in the land dispute, and humbly asked his forgiveness for Christ's sake. The peasant, initially disconcerted, accepted graciously. Apykhtin also asked forgiveness from other parishioners, including the deacon's widow, who praised him as an angel. However, the priest's obsequious behavior during communion irritated Apykhtin, reminding him of a German tutor's irreverent observations about Russian religious services.
After communion, Apykhtin spoke with Ivan Fedotov about the spring ploughing, learning that "the boys have gone out" to work the disputed fields. He then visited his parents' monument and returned home, feeling satisfied with having completed his religious duties and looking forward to taking snuff, which he had abstained from during the service. The fragment ended with his journey home through the muddy spring roads, reflecting on his family and the pleasant anticipation of reunion.
Third Fragment. Variant of the first chapter: alternative opening
This fragment presented another version focusing on Prince Grigori Ivanovich Chernyshev, who faced financial ruin due to a legal case. The Senate had decided against him in a land dispute with the peasants of Izlegoshcha village, ordering him not only to surrender five thousand desyatins of land but also to pay 107,000 rubles in damages. With all his estates mortgaged and large debts, this decree meant complete ruin for him and his large family.
In autumn 1817, Prince Chernyshev moved his entire family to Moscow, where the emperor was expected to arrive to lay the cornerstone of the Church of the Saviour. Despite his financial troubles, the prince became distracted by Moscow social life, his son's arrival, and his daughters' debuts, particularly the success of his eldest daughter Aleksandra. He spent freely and avoided dealing with his legal problems, much to his lawyer's frustration.
Meanwhile, the peasant families of the six men imprisoned in connection with the case struggled without their heads of household. One woman, Tikhonovna, could not accept that her husband Mikhail Gerasimovich was in prison. She decided to go on a pilgrimage, fulfilling a vow she had made the previous year, and to petition the Tsar for her husband's release.
Tikhonovna's journey took her first to see her husband in prison, then through various holy sites where religious figures encouraged her to petition the Tsar directly. She eventually reached Moscow and stayed at the Chernyshev house, where all pilgrims were welcomed. The fragment concluded with detailed descriptions of her interactions with the household servants, showing the social dynamics between the noble family's retainers and visiting peasants. Her story represented the human cost of the legal and social systems that the nobility navigated with relative ease, while common people suffered the consequences of decisions made far above their station.
All her nature was an expression of that thought; all her life was this one unconscious weaving of invisible roses in the lives of those with whom she came in contact.