An unusual exhibition, titled "Pushkin Descendants for the Protection of Their Motherland", will open in the Nizhny Novgorod Region ahead of the 65th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War. It is dedicated to the children, grandsons and great-grandsons of the Great Russian poet Alexander Pushkin who defended Russia against enemies at different times.
The exposition will be staged in Boldino, which is the family estate of Alexander Pushkin. The poet's ancestors received the Boldino Estate at the beginning of the 17th century, for "meritorious service during the defence of Moscow from the aggressors - from the Poles and the Lithuanians. And this is how the history of the famous family began, the Director of the Boldino Museum Yuri Zhulin says:
"From this the contribution of the Pushkin family to the defence of its Motherland started. Later all members of the Pushkin family, to this or that extent, took part in all event concerning the defence of their Motherland. Including the Patriotic War of 1812 and the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78, where Pushkin's older son, Lieutenant-General Alexander Alexandrovich, the bearer of numerous military orders, displayed his particular merit".
The portrait of Lieutenant-General Pushkin, his letters and military awards will occupy an honourable place at the exposition. The son of the famous poet had 17 orders and decorations- for the Balkan and the Russo-Turkish wars.
The family icon of the Pushkin family - the icon of Alexander Nevsky, the legendary Russian military commander, who was proclaimed a saint, will also be put on display at the exhibition. The coat of arms of the Pushkin family represents a purple cushion with golden tassels, picturing a velvet princely cap - in commemoration of the fore-father of the Pushkin family, Radsha, who fought under the banner of Prince Alexander Nevsky against the unfaithful.
The members of the Pushkin family took part in the defence of their Motherland in the 20th century too. And as regards the Second World War, 12 Pushkin descendants took part in the hostilities, Yuri Zhulin says:
"Two of them fought against Hitler's troops. One of them, who fought on the side of the British army, Captain of a Cavalry Regiment, George Michael Werner, died in 1942 at the age of 24. The great-great-grandson of Alexander Pushkin, Georgi Vorontsov, fought on the side of the French Resistance and was wounded. Which means that the members of the Pushkin family really got involved in the Second World War".
During the Great Patriotic War 10 Pushkin descendants, who lived in the former USSR, including the direct descendant on the male line, Grigory Pushkin, also defended their Motherland. In 1941 Grigory Pushkin voluntarily joined a partisan detachment, fought all the war and was awarded the Patriotic War order, 2nd class, the Order of the Red Star, and medals.
The book, "The Echo of the War", provides a detailed information about all Pushkin ancestors who fought on the various fronts of the 1941-45 war. It was issued by the personnel of the Boldino Museum and will also be presented at the exhibition.
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