The name of the writer, educator, Count Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy is known to every Russian person. During his lifetime, 78 were published works of art, another 96 are preserved in the archives. And in the first half of the 20th century it turned out full meeting works, numbering 90 volumes and including, in addition to novels, novellas, short stories, essays, etc., numerous letters and diary entries of this great man, distinguished by his enormous talent and extraordinary personal qualities. In this article we will recall the most interesting facts from the life of Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoy.
Selling a house in Yasnaya Polyana
In his youth the count had a reputation a gambling person and liked, unfortunately, not very successfully, to play cards. It so happened that part of the house in Yasnaya Polyana, where the writer spent his childhood, was given away for debts. Subsequently, Tolstoy planted trees in the empty space. Ilya Lvovich, his son, recalled how he once asked his father to show him the room in the house where he was born. And Lev Nikolaevich pointed to the top of one of the larches, adding: “There.” And he described the leather sofa on which this happened in the novel “War and Peace.” These are interesting facts from the life of Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy related to the family estate.
As for the house itself, its two two-story wings have been preserved and have grown over time. After marriage and the birth of children, the Tolstoy family grew larger, and at the same time new premises were added.
Thirteen children were born into the Tolstoy family, five of whom died in infancy. The Count never spared time for them, and before the crisis of the 80s he loved to play pranks. For example, if jelly was served during lunch, my father noticed that it was good for them to glue the boxes together. The children immediately brought table paper to the dining room, and the creative process began.
Another example. Someone in the family became sad or even cried. The count, who noticed this, immediately organized the “Numidian Cavalry”. He jumped up from his seat, raised his hand and rushed around the table, and the children rushed after him.
Tolstoy Lev Nikolaevich has always been distinguished by his love of literature. He regularly held evening readings in his house. Somehow I picked up a Jules Verne book without pictures. Then he began to illustrate it himself. And although he was not a very good artist, the family was delighted with what they saw.
The children also remembered the humorous poems of Tolstoy Lev Nikolaevich. He read them in the wrong German for the same purpose: home. By the way, few people know that the writer’s creative heritage includes several poetic works. For example, “Fool”, “Volga the Hero”. They were mainly written for children and were included in the well-known “ABC”.
Thoughts of suicide
The works of Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy became for the writer a way to study human characters in their development. Psychologism in the image often required great emotional effort from the author. So, while working on Anna Karenina, trouble almost happened to the writer. He was in such a difficult situation state of mind, that he was afraid to repeat the fate of his hero Levin and commit suicide. Later, in “Confession,” Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy noted that the thought of this was so persistent that he even took a lace out of the room where he was changing clothes alone and gave up hunting with a gun.
Disappointment in the Church
Nikolaevich’s story has been well studied and contains many stories about how he was excommunicated from the church. Meanwhile, the writer always considered himself a believer, and from 1977, for several years, he strictly observed all fasts and visited every church service. However, after visiting Optina Pustyn in 1981, everything changed. Lev Nikolaevich went there with his lackey and school teacher. They walked, as expected, with a knapsack and bast shoes. When we finally found ourselves in the monastery, we discovered terrible dirt and strict discipline.
The arriving pilgrims were accommodated on a general basis, which outraged the footman, who always treated the owner as a gentleman. He turned to one of the monks and said that the old man was Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy. The writer’s work was well known, and he was immediately transferred to best number hotels. After returning from Optina Hermitage, the count expressed his dissatisfaction with such veneration, and from then on he changed his attitude towards church conventions and its employees. It all ended with him taking a cutlet for lunch during one of the posts.
By the way, in recent years During his life, the writer became a vegetarian, completely giving up meat. But at the same time, I ate scrambled eggs in different forms every day.
Physical labor
In the early 80s - this is reported in the biography of Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy - the writer finally came to the conviction that an idle life and luxury do not make a person beautiful. For a long time he was tormented by the question of what to do: sell off all his property and leave his beloved wife and children, unaccustomed to hard work, without funds? Or transfer the entire fortune to Sofya Andreevna? Later, Tolstoy would divide everything between family members. During this difficult time for him - the family had already moved to Moscow - Lev Nikolaevich loved to go to the Sparrow Hills, where he helped the men cut wood. Then he learned the craft of shoemaking and even designed his own boots and summer shoes from canvas and leather, which he wore all summer. And every year he helped peasant families in which there was no one to plow, sow and harvest grain. Not everyone approved of Lev Nikolaevich’s life. Tolstoy was not understood even in his own family. But he remained adamant. And one summer all of Yasnaya Polyana broke up into artels and went out to mow. Among those working was even Sofya Andreevna, raking the grass.
Help for the hungry
Noting interesting facts from the life of Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoy, we can also recall the events of 1898. In Mtsensk and Chernen districts in once again famine broke out. The writer, dressed in an old retinue and props, with a knapsack on his shoulders, together with his son, who volunteered to help him, personally toured all the villages and found out where the situation was truly miserable. Within a week, they compiled lists and created approximately twelve canteens in each district, where they fed, first of all, children, the elderly and the sick. Food was brought from Yasnaya Polyana and two hot meals were prepared a day. Tolstoy's initiative caused negativity from the authorities, who established constant control over him, and local landowners. The latter considered that such actions of the count could lead to the fact that they themselves would soon have to plow the fields and milk the cows.
One day a police officer entered one of the dining rooms and started a conversation with the count. He complained that although he approved of the writer’s action, he was a forced person, and therefore did not know what to do - they were talking about permission for such activities from the governor. The writer’s answer turned out to be simple: “Do not serve where you are forced to act against your conscience.” And this was the whole life of Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy.
Serious illness
In 1901, the writer fell ill with a severe fever and, on the advice of doctors, went to Crimea. There, instead of being cured, he also contracted inflammation and there was practically no hope that he would survive. Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy, whose work contains many works describing death, prepared mentally for it. He was not at all afraid of losing his life. The writer even said goodbye to his loved ones. And although he could only speak in a half-whisper, he gave each of his children valuable advice for the future, as it turned out, nine years before his death. This was very helpful, since nine years later, none of the family members - and almost all of them gathered at the Astapovo station - were not allowed to see the patient.
Writer's funeral
Back in the 90s, Lev Nikolaevich spoke in his diary about how he would like to see his funeral. Ten years later, in “Memoirs,” he tells the story of the famous “green stick,” buried in a ravine next to the oak trees. And already in 1908 he dictated a wish to the stenographer: to bury him in a wooden coffin in the place where they looked for the source in childhood eternal goodness brothers.
Tolstoy Lev Nikolaevich, according to his will, was buried in the Yasnaya Polyana park. The funeral was attended by several thousand people, among whom were not only friends, admirers of creativity, writers, but also local peasants, whom he treated with care and understanding all his life.
History of the will
Interesting facts from the life of Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoy also concern his expression of will regarding his creative heritage. The writer drew up six wills: in 1895 (diary entries), 1904 (letter to Chertkov), 1908 (dictated to Gusev), twice in 1909 and in 1010. According to one of them, all his records and works came into general use. According to others, the right to them was transferred to Chertkov. Ultimately, Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy bequeathed his work and all his notes to his daughter Alexandra, who became her father’s assistant at the age of sixteen.
Number 28
According to his relatives, the writer always had an ironic attitude towards prejudice. But he considered the number twenty-eight special for himself and loved it. Was it just a coincidence or fate? Unknown, but many major events The life and first works of Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy are connected precisely with it. Here is their list:
- August 28, 1828 is the date of birth of the writer himself.
- On May 28, 1856, censorship gave permission to publish the first book of stories, “Childhood and Adolescence.”
- On June 28, the first child, Sergei, was born.
- On February 28, the wedding of Ilya’s son took place.
- On October 28, the writer left Yasnaya Polyana forever.
Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy was born in 1828, on September 9. The writer's family belonged to the noble class. After his mother died, Lev and his sisters and brothers were raised by their father's cousin. Their father died 7 years later. For this reason, the children were given to their aunt to raise. But soon the aunt died, and the children went to Kazan, to their second aunt. Tolstoy's childhood was difficult, but, however, in his works he romanticized this period of his life.
Lev Nikolaevich received his basic education at home. Soon he entered the Imperial Kazan University at the Faculty of Philology. But he was not successful in his studies.
While Tolstoy was serving in the army, he would have had quite a lot of free time. Even then he began to write an autobiographical story “Childhood”. This story contains good memories from the publicist's childhood.
Lev Nikolaevich also took part in the Crimean War, and during this period he created a number of works: “Adolescence”, “Sevastopol Stories” and so on.
"Anna Karenina" is Tolstoy's most famous creation.
Leo Tolstoy fell asleep in eternal sleep in 1910, November 20th. He was interred in Yasnaya Polyana, in the place where he grew up.
Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy - famous writer, who created, in addition to recognized serious books, works useful for children. These were, first of all, “ABC” and “Book for Reading”.
He was born in 1828 in the Tula province on the Yasnaya Polyana estate, where his house-museum is still located. Leva became the fourth child in this noble family. His mother (nee a princess) soon died, and seven years later his father too. These terrible events led to the fact that the children had to move to their aunt in Kazan. Lev Nikolaevich will later collect memories of these and other years in the story “Childhood,” which will be the first to be published in the Sovremennik magazine.
At first, Lev studied at home with German and French teachers; he was also interested in music. He grew up and entered the Imperial University. Tolstoy's older brother convinced him to serve in the army. Leo even took part in real battles. They are described by him in “ Sevastopol stories”, in the stories “Adolescence” and “Youth”.
Tired of wars, he declared himself an anarchist and went to Paris, where he lost all his money. Having come to his senses, Lev Nikolaevich returned to Russia and married Sophia Burns. Since then, he began to live on his native estate and engage in literary creativity.
His first major work was the novel War and Peace. The writer took about ten years to compose it. The novel was well received by both readers and critics. Next, Tolstoy created the novel Anna Karenina, which received even greater public success.
Tolstoy wanted to understand life. Desperate to find an answer in creativity, he went to church, but was disappointed there too. Then he renounced the church and began to think about his philosophical theory- “non-resistance to evil.” He wanted to give all his property to the poor... Even the secret police began to follow him!
Having gone on a pilgrimage, Tolstoy fell ill and died in 1910.
Biography of Leo Tolstoy
IN different sources, the date of birth of Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoy, is indicated in different ways. The most common versions are August 28, 1829 and September 9, 1828. Born the fourth child in a noble family, Russia, Tula province, Yasnaya Polyana. There were only 5 children in the Tolstoy family.
His family tree starts with the Ruriks, his mother belonged to the Volkonsky family, and his father was a count. At the age of 9, Lev and his father went to Moscow for the first time. Young writer I was so impressed that this trip gave rise to such works as “Childhood”, “Adolescence”, “Youth”.
In 1830, Lev's mother died. After the death of their mother, their uncle, their father’s cousin, took over the upbringing of the children, after whose death the aunt became their guardian. When the guardian aunt died, a second aunt from Kazan began to take care of the children. In 1873 my father died.
Tolstoy received his first education at home, with teachers. In Kazan, the writer lived for about 6 years, spent 2 years preparing to enter the Imperial Kazan University and was enrolled in the Faculty of Oriental Languages. In 1844 he became a university student.
Studying languages was not interesting for Leo Tolstoy, after which he tried to connect his destiny with jurisprudence, but even here his studies did not work out, so in 1847 he dropped out of school and received documents from educational institution. After unsuccessful attempts study, decided to develop farming. In this regard, he returned to his parents' home in Yasnaya Polyana.
IN agriculture I didn’t find myself, but I didn’t behave badly personal diary. Having finished working in farming, I went to Moscow to focus on creativity, but all my plans have not yet come true.
Very young, he managed to visit the war, together with his brother Nikolai. The course of military events had an impact on his work, this is noticeable in some works, for example, in the stories “Cossacks”, Hadji - Murat”, in the stories “Demoted”, Woodcutting”, “Raid”.
Since 1855, Lev Nikolaevich became a more skilled writer. At that time, the law of serfs was relevant, which Leo Tolstoy wrote about in his stories: “Polikushka”, “Morning of the Landowner” and others.
The years 1857-1860 were full of travel. Under their impression, I prepared school textbooks and began to pay attention to the publication of a pedagogical magazine. In 1862, Leo Tolstoy married young Sophia Bers, the daughter of a doctor. Family life, at first, did him good, then the most famous works were written, War and Peace, Anna Karenina.
The mid-80s were fruitful, dramas, comedies, and novels were written. The writer was concerned about the theme of the bourgeoisie, he was on the side common people To express his thoughts on this matter, Leo Tolstoy created many works: “After the Ball,” “For What,” “The Power of Darkness,” “Sunday,” etc.
Roman, Sunday”, deserves special attention. To write it, Lev Nikolaevich had to work hard for 10 years. As a result, the work was criticized. Local authorities, they were so afraid of his pen that they put him under surveillance and were able to remove him from the church, but despite this, ordinary people supported Leo as best they could.
In the early 90s, Leo began to get sick. In the fall of 1910, at the age of 82, the writer’s heart stopped. It happened on the road: Leo Tolstoy was traveling on a train, he became ill and had to stop at the Astapovo railway station. The station chief gave shelter to the patient at home. After 7 days of visiting, the writer died.
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Tolstoy Lev Nikolaevich (28.08. (09.09.) 1828 - 07 (20).11.1910)
Russian writer, philosopher. Born in Yasnaya Polyana, Tula province, into a wealthy aristocratic family. He entered Kazan University, but then left it. At the age of 23 he went to war with Chechnya and Dagestan. Here he began to write the trilogy “Childhood”, “Adolescence”, “Youth”.
In the Caucasus he took part in hostilities as an artillery officer. During Crimean War went to Sevastopol, where he continued to fight. After the end of the war, he went to St. Petersburg and published “Sevastopol Stories” in the Sovremennik magazine, which clearly reflected his outstanding writing talent. In 1857, Tolstoy went on a trip to Europe, which disappointed him.
From 1853 to 1863 wrote the story “Cossacks”, after which he decided to interrupt his literary activity and become a landowner, engaged in educational work in the village. For this purpose, he went to Yasnaya Polyana, where he opened a school for peasant children and created own system pedagogy.
In 1863-1869. wrote his fundamental work “War and Peace”. In 1873-1877 created the novel Anna Karenina. During these same years, the writer’s worldview, known as Tolstoyism, was fully formed, the essence of which is visible in the works: “Confession”, “What is my faith?”, “The Kreutzer Sonata”.
The teaching is set forth in the philosophical and religious works “Study of Dogmatic Theology”, “Connection and Translation of the Four Gospels”, where the main emphasis is on the moral improvement of man, the denunciation of evil, and non-resistance to evil through violence.
Later, a duology was published: the drama “The Power of Darkness” and the comedy “The Fruits of Enlightenment,” then a series of stories and parables about the laws of existence.
Admirers of the writer’s work came to Yasnaya Polyana from all over Russia and the world, whom they treated as a spiritual mentor. In 1899, the novel “Resurrection” was published.
The writer’s latest works are the stories “Father Sergius”, “After the Ball”, “ Posthumous notes Elder Fyodor Kuzmich" and the drama "The Living Corpse".
Tolstoy's confessional journalism gives a detailed idea of his spiritual drama: painting pictures social inequality and the idleness of the educated strata, Tolstoy harshly posed questions of the meaning of life and faith to society, criticized all state institutions, going so far as to deny science, art, court, marriage, and the achievements of civilization. Tolstoy's social declaration is based on the idea of Christianity as a moral teaching, and he interpreted the ethical ideas of Christianity in a humanistic manner, as the basis of the universal brotherhood of man. In 1901, the reaction of the Synod followed: the world famous writer was officially excommunicated from the church, which caused a huge public outcry.
On October 28, 1910, Tolstoy secretly left Yasnaya Polyana from his family, fell ill on the way and was forced to get off the train in a small railway station Astapovo Ryazan-Uralsk railway. Here, in the station master's house, he spent the last seven days of his life.
In 1828, on August 26, in the Yasnaya Polyana estate, the future great Russian writer Leo Tolstoy was born. The family was well-born - his ancestor was a noble nobleman who received the title of count for his services to Tsar Peter. Mother was from ancient times noble family Volkonskikh. Belonging to a privileged layer of society influenced the behavior and thoughts of the writer throughout his life. Brief biography Tolstoy Lev Nikolaevich does not fully reveal the entire history of the ancient family.
Serene life in Yasnaya Polyana
The writer's childhood was quite prosperous, despite the fact that he lost his mother early. Thanks to family stories, he preserved her bright image in his memory. A short biography of Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy indicates that his father was the embodiment of beauty and strength for the writer. He instilled in the boy a love of hound hunting, which was later described in detail in the novel War and Peace.
He also had a close relationship with his older brother Nikolenka - he taught little Levushka different games and told him interesting stories. Tolstoy's first story, “Childhood,” contains many autobiographical memories of the writer’s childhood years.
Youth
A serene, joyful stay in Yasnaya Polyana was interrupted due to the death of his father. In 1837, the family was taken under the care of an aunt. In this city, according to a short biography of Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy, the writer spent his youth. Here he entered the university in 1844 - first at the Faculty of Philosophy and then at the Faculty of Law. True, studies attracted him little; the student preferred various amusements and revelries.
In this biography of Tolstoy, Lev Nikolaevich characterizes him as a person who disdainfully treated people of the lower, non-aristocratic class. He denied history as a science - in his eyes it had no practical use. The writer retained the sharpness of his judgments throughout his life.
As a landowner
In 1847, without graduating from university, Tolstoy decides to return to Yasnaya Polyana and try to improve the life of his serfs. Reality sharply diverged from the writer’s ideas. The peasants did not understand the master’s intentions, and a short biography of Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy describes his management experience as unsuccessful (the writer shared it in his story “The Morning of the Landowner”), as a result of which he leaves his estate.
The path to becoming a writer
The next few years spent in St. Petersburg and Moscow were not in vain for the future great prose writer. From 1847 to 1852, diaries were kept in which Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy carefully verified all his thoughts and reflections. A short biography tells that while serving in the Caucasus, work was being carried out simultaneously on the story “Childhood”, which a little later would be published in the magazine “Sovremennik”. This marked the beginning of further creative path great Russian writer.
Ahead of the writer lies the creation of his great works "War and Peace" and "Anna Karenina", but for now he is honing his style, publishing in Sovremennik and basking in favorable reviews from critics.
Later years of creativity
In 1855, Tolstoy came to St. Petersburg for a short time, but literally a couple of months later he left it and settled in Yasnaya Polyana, opening a school there for peasant children. In 1862 he married Sophia Bers and was very happy in the first years.
In 1863-1869, the novel “War and Peace” was written and revised, which bore little resemblance classic version. It lacks traditional key elements of the time. Or rather, they are present, but are not key.
1877 - Tolstoy completed the novel Anna Karenina, in which the technique of internal monologue is repeatedly used.
Since the second half of the 60s, Tolstoy has been going through an experience that was only overcome at the turn of the 1870s and 80s by completely rethinking his previous life. Then Tolstoy appears - his wife categorically did not accept his new views. The ideas of the late Tolstoy are similar to socialist teachings, the only difference being that he was an opponent of the revolution.
In 1896-1904, Tolstoy completed the story, which was published after his death, which occurred in November 1910 at the Astapovo station on the Ryazan-Ural road.
Count, Russian writer, corresponding member (1873), honorary academician (1900) of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. Starting from autobiographical trilogy"Childhood" (1852), "Adolescence" (1852 54), "Youth" (1855 57), a study of "fluidity" inner world, the moral foundations of the individual have become main theme works of Tolstoy. The painful search for the meaning of life, moral ideal, hidden general laws of existence, spiritual and social criticism, revealing the “untruth” of class relations, run through all of his work. In the story "Cossacks" (1863), the hero, a young nobleman, seeks a way out by connecting with nature, with a natural and integral life. common man. The epic "War and Peace" (1863 69) recreates the life of various layers of Russian society in Patriotic War 1812, the patriotic impulse of the people, which united all classes and led to victory in the war with Napoleon. historical events and personal interests, ways of spiritual self-determination of a reflective personality and the elements of Russian folk life with its “swarm” consciousness are shown as equivalent components of natural-historical existence. In the novel “Anna Karenina” (1873 77) about the tragedy of a woman in the power of destructive “criminal” passion Tolstoy exposes the false foundations secular society, shows the collapse of the patriarchal structure, the destruction of family foundations. He contrasts the perception of the world by an individualistic and rationalistic consciousness with the intrinsic value of life as such in its infinity, uncontrollable variability and material concreteness (“the seer of the flesh” D. S. Merezhkovsky). Since the late 1870s it has been experiencing spiritual crisis, later captured by the idea of moral improvement and “simplification” (which gave rise to the “Tolstoyism” movement), Tolstoy came to an increasingly irreconcilable criticism of the social structure - modern bureaucratic institutions, the state, the church (in 1901 he was excommunicated from Orthodox Church), civilization and culture, the entire way of life of the “educated classes”: the novel “Resurrection” (1889 99), the story “The Kreutzer Sonata” (1887 89), the dramas “The Living Corpse” (1900, published in 1911) and “ The Power of Darkness" (1887). At the same time, attention to the themes of death, sin, repentance and moral rebirth is increasing (the stories “The Death of Ivan Ilyich”, 1884 86; “Father Sergius”, 1890 98, published in 1912; “Hadji Murat”, 1896 1904, published . in 1912). Journalistic works of a moralizing nature, including “Confession” (1879 82), “What is my faith?” (1884), where Christian teaching about love and forgiveness is transformed into a preaching of non-resistance to evil through violence. the desire to harmonize the way of thinking and life leads to Tolstoy leaving his home in Yasnaya Polyana; died at Astapovo station.
Biography
Born on August 28 (September 9 n.s.) in the Yasnaya Polyana estate, Tula province. By origin he belonged to the oldest aristocratic families in Russia. He received home education and upbringing.
After the death of his parents (his mother died in 1830, his father in 1837), the future writer with three brothers and a sister moved to Kazan, to live with his guardian P. Yushkova. As a sixteen-year-old boy, he entered Kazan University, first to the Faculty of Philosophy in the category of Arabic-Turkish Literature, then studied at the Faculty of Law (1844 47). In 1847, without completing the course, he left the university and settled in Yasnaya Polyana, which he received as property as his father's inheritance.
The future writer spent the next four years in search: he tried to reorganize the life of the peasants of Yasnaya Polyana (1847), lived social life in Moscow (1848), took exams for the degree of candidate of law at St. Petersburg University (spring 1849), decided to serve as a clerical employee in the Tula Noble Deputy Assembly (autumn 1849).
In 1851 he left Yasnaya Polyana for the Caucasus, the place of service of his older brother Nikolai, and volunteered to take part in military operations against the Chechens. Episodes Caucasian War described by him in the stories “Raid” (1853), “Cutting Wood” (1855), and in the story “Cossacks” (1852 63). Passed the cadet exam, preparing to become an officer. In 1854, being an artillery officer, he transferred to the Danube Army, which operated against the Turks.
In the Caucasus, Tolstoy began to seriously engage in literary creativity, writing the story "Childhood", which was approved by Nekrasov and published in the magazine "Sovremennik". Later the story “Adolescence” (1852 54) was published there.
Soon after the outbreak of the Crimean War, Tolstoy, at his personal request, was transferred to Sevastopol, where he participated in the defense of the besieged city, showing rare fearlessness. Awarded the Order of St. Anna with the inscription "For bravery" and medals "For the defense of Sevastopol". In "Sevastopol Stories" he created a mercilessly reliable picture of the war, which made a huge impression on Russian society. During these same years, he wrote the last part of the trilogy, “Youth” (1855 56), in which he declared himself not just a “poet of childhood,” but a researcher of human nature. This interest in man and the desire to understand the laws of mental and spiritual life will continue in his future work.
In 1855, having arrived in St. Petersburg, Tolstoy became close to the staff of the Sovremennik magazine and met Turgenev, Goncharov, Ostrovsky, and Chernyshevsky.
In the fall of 1856 he retired (“Military career is not mine...” he writes in his diary) and in 1857 he went on a six-month trip abroad to France, Switzerland, Italy, and Germany.
In 1859 he opened a school for peasant children in Yasnaya Polyana, where he himself taught classes. Helped open more than 20 schools in surrounding villages. In order to study the organization of school affairs abroad, in 1860 1861 Tolstoy made a second trip to Europe, inspecting schools in France, Italy, Germany, and England. In London he met Herzen and attended a lecture by Dickens.
In May 1861 (the year of the abolition of serfdom) he returned to Yasnaya Polyana, took office as a peace mediator and actively defended the interests of the peasants, resolving their disputes with the landowners about land, for which the Tula nobility, dissatisfied with his actions, demanded his removal from office. In 1862, the Senate issued a decree dismissing Tolstoy. Secret surveillance of him began from Section III. In the summer, the gendarmes carried out a search in his absence, confident that they would find a secret printing house, which the writer allegedly acquired after meetings and long conversations with Herzen in London.
In 1862, Tolstoy’s life and his way of life were streamlined into for many years: he married the daughter of a Moscow doctor, Sofya Andreevna Bers, and began patriarchal life on his estate as the head of an ever-increasing family. The Tolstoys raised nine children.
The 1860s and 1870s were marked by the publication of two works by Tolstoy, which immortalized his name: War and Peace (186369), Anna Karenina (187377).
In the early 1880s, the Tolstoy family moved to Moscow to educate their growing children. From this time on, Tolstoy spent winters in Moscow. Here in 1882 he took part in the census of the Moscow population and became closely acquainted with the life of the inhabitants of the city slums, which he described in the treatise “So what should we do?” (1882 86), and concluded: “...You can’t live like that, you can’t live like that, you can’t!”
Tolstoy expressed his new worldview in his work “Confession” (1879㭎), where he spoke about a revolution in his views, the meaning of which he saw in a break with the ideology of the noble class and a transition to the side of the “simple working people.” This turning point led Tolstoy to the denial of the state, the state-owned church and property. The awareness of the meaninglessness of life in the face of inevitable death led him to faith in God. He bases his teaching on the moral commandments of the New Testament: the demand for love for people and the preaching of non-resistance to evil through violence constitute the meaning of the so-called “Tolstoyism,” which is becoming popular not only in Russia, but also abroad.
During this period he came to a complete denial of his previous literary activity, got busy physical labor, plowed, sewed boots, switched to vegetarian food. In 1891 he publicly renounced copyright ownership of all his works written after 1880.
Under the influence of friends and true admirers of his talent, as well as personal need for literary activity, Tolstoy changed his negative attitude towards art in the 1890s. During these years he created the drama "The Power of Darkness" (1886), the play "The Fruits of Enlightenment" (1886 90), and the novel "Resurrection" (1889 99).
In 1891, 1893, 1898 he participated in helping peasants in starving provinces and organized free canteens.
IN last decade I was engaged, as always, in intense creative work. The story "Hadji Murat" (1896 1904), the drama "The Living Corpse" (1900), and the story "After the Ball" (1903) were written.
At the beginning of 1900, he wrote a number of articles exposing the entire system of public administration. The government of Nicholas II issued a resolution according to which the Holy Synod (the highest church institution in Russia) excommunicated Tolstoy from the church, which caused a wave of indignation in society.
In 1901, Tolstoy lived in Crimea, was treated after a serious illness, and often met with Chekhov and M. Gorky.
In the last years of his life, when Tolstoy was drawing up his will, he found himself at the center of intrigue and contention between the “Tolstoyites,” on the one hand, and his wife, who defended the well-being of her family and children, on the other. Trying to bring his lifestyle into line with his beliefs and being burdened by the lordly way of life on the estate. Tolstoy secretly left Yasnaya Polyana on November 10, 1910. The health of the 82-year-old writer could not withstand the journey. He caught a cold and, falling ill, died on November 20 on the way at the Astapovo Ryazans station of the Ko-Ural railway.
He was buried in Yasnaya Polyana.