Alexander V. Mirgorodsky Eugène (Evgeny) de Villeneuve in Moscow: New Pages of Biography
Abstract
Based on archival primary sources from the Central State Archive of Moscow, the Russian State Archive of Literature and Art, and the Russian State Historical Archive, the article introduces new details about the life and work of Eugène (Evgeny) Frantsevich de Villeneuve (1803–1879?), a writer, historian, archaeologist, and director of the Feodosia Museum of Antiquities, the oldest museum in the Novorossiysk region. The publication sheds light on his first visit to Russia with his wife and their stay in Moscow in 1826–1827. The article identifies the writer’s Moscow addresses, describes his social circle, the literary salon of Princess Zinaida Volkonskaya, his meeting in the Kremlin with Emperor Nicholas I and his wife Alexandra Feodorovna, and the poetic dedications he wrote to Princess S.A. Urusova. Archival documents reveal that he attracted close attention from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Chief of Gendarmes. Particular attention is paid to the publication abroad of his first book (a diary describing his stay in Greece and the Ottoman Empire in 1825–1826) as well as the publication of excerpts from this work in Moskovsky Telegraf. The article examines the most likely reasons why the Foreign Censorship Committee banned the distribution of the book in Russia. As a supplement, the article presents (for the first time in academic circulation) the texts of several documents from 1827–1828, including correspondence from the head of the Third Department A.Kh. Benckendorff to the Moscow Military Governor-General D.V. Golitsyn, letters exchanged between Golitsyn and the Moscow Chief of Police D.I. Shulgin regarding de Villeneuve’s stay in the city, and a memorandum by Foreign Minister Count K.V. Nesselrode. The commentary on these documents and their translation from French were carried out by the author of the article.
Keywords:
Eugène de Villeneuve; Odessa; Moscow; French in the Crimea; France; Zinaida Volkonskaya; censorship
For citation:
Alexander V. Mirgorodsky. Yevgeny (Eugène) de Villeneuve in Moscow: unknown facts from his biography // The Historical Reporter. 2026. Vol. 57. P. 302–321. DOI:
Alexander V. Mirgorodsky
Senior specialist, International cooperation department, the Ministry for Economic Development of Rostov Oblast. Rostov-on-Don, Russian Federation.
e-mail: mirgorodski@mail.ru
SPIN code: 1683-8524
AuthorID: 854862
References
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