«ГИМНАЗИСТКИ ВЛЮБЛЯЛИСЬ В НЕГО ПО УШИ»: ВИЛЕНСКАЯ ГИМНАЗИЯ В ЖИЗНИ «ЖЕЛЕЗНОГО ФЕЛИКСА». 1887-1896 ГГ.
Vilna Gymnasium in the life of “Iron Felix” Dzerzhinsky

Summary/Abstract: The present article gives a full consideration of the gymnasium period of Felix Dzerzhinskiy’s life. On the basis of many memoirs, letters, diaries and other historical sources the whole period of Dzerezhinskiy’s study in the First Vilna Gymnasium is investigated. It was during this period (1887-1897) that the future’s head of Cheka’s character, world view, and first circle of contacts were formed. His friends were: brothers M. I. Goldman (party pseudonym - Liber, 1880-1937) and B. I. Goldman (party pseudonym - Godnev 1874-1937), A. A. Soltz (1872-1945), A. G. Palchik (1876-1957) and other future famous figures of the revolution movement. In the Goldman family Dzerginskiy also met his first love - Julia Goldberg. At Dzerzhinsky’s gymnasium there were also famous figures of culture and science. The article analyzes the characteristics of education at the Vilna gymnasium and their influence on Dzerginskiy. The article examines the slow transformation of Dzerginskiy’s views form a radical Polish gymnasium schoolboy during the first years of study to the Russian revolutionary with fully-formed international, social, and democratic views during the last years of study. In the article it is shown why Dzerginskiy took such a different path to another famous graduate of the First Vilna Gymnasium, Jusef Pilsudskiy. The article also gives a general insight into Russian gymnasiums and school-boy life at the end of the 19th century. Dzerginskiy is presented not only as future revolutionary figure but as a real schoolboy with all his antics, mischief, gymnasium nonconformity and everyday school life.

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