Leo Tolstoy

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Lore & Background

Leo Tolstoy was born in 1828 at the family estate Yasnaya Polyana near Tula. He served as a cavalry officer during the Napoleonic Wars? No—his father, Count Nikolai Ilyich Tolstoy (1794–1837), was active during the Napoleonic Wars as a cavalry officer, serving in the battles of Lützen, Bautzen, Dresden and Leipzig before retiring as a Lieutenant colonel. Leo himself started his career in the military and was first drawn to writing books when he served in Chechenya. His first story, Detstvo ('Childhood'), was something quite unlike anything written before him. He later developed a non-traditional Christian philosophy described in The Kingdom of God is Within You, which inspired Rainer Maria Rilke and Mohandas Gandhi. Of Lev's thirteen children, most spent their life either promoting his teachings or denouncing them. His youngest daughter and secretary, Alexandra Lvovna (1884–1979), shared her father's doctrine of nonviolence but felt it was her duty to take part in World War I.

Reader's Guide

Leo Tolstoy's most famous works are the novels War and Peace and Anna Karenina, both created at his family estate Yasnaya Polyana near Tula. These are widely acclaimed as among the best novels ever written. His first story, Detstvo ('Childhood'), was something quite unlike anything written before him. Later he developed a non-traditional Christian philosophy, described in his work The Kingdom of God is Within You, which inspired Rainer Maria Rilke and Mohandas Gandhi, then a young lawyer, whose influence extended to Martin Luther King Jr. and James Bevel. His cousin Fyodor Ivanovich Tolstoy (1782–1846), a notorious drunkard, gastronome, and duellist who killed 11 people in duels, was fictionalized by Leo as Dolokhov in War and Peace. Leo called him an 'extraordinary, criminal, and attractive man.'

Did You Know?

• The name Tolstoy is derived from the Russian adjective tolstyj, meaning 'thick, stout, fat'.
• Leo Tolstoy's cousin Fyodor Ivanovich Tolstoy killed 11 people in duels and was fictionalized as Dolokhov in War and Peace.
• Leo Tolstoy's father, Count Nikolai Ilyich Tolstoy, served as a cavalry officer in the Napoleonic Wars at Lützen, Bautzen, Dresden and Leipzig.
• Leo Tolstoy's youngest daughter Alexandra Lvovna (1884–1979) shared his doctrine of nonviolence but felt it was her duty to take part in World War I.
• The Tolstoy family claimed descent from a Lithuanian nobleman named Indris, but no documents from the 14th–16th centuries mention him.

Origins and the 'Fat' Ancestor

The Tolstoy name is derived from the Russian adjective tolstyj (толстый lit. 'thick, stout, fat'). The family descends from Andrey Kharitonovich Tolstoy ('the Fat'), who moved from Chernigov to Moscow and served under Vasily II of Moscow in the 15th century. The Tolstoys claimed ancestry to a fictitious Lithuanian nobleman named Indris, who supposedly arrived from the Holy Roman Empire to Chernigov in 1353 with his two sons Litvinos and Zimonten and a druzhina of 3000 men. Indris supposedly converted to Eastern Orthodoxy as Leonty and his sons as Konstantin and Feodor. No mention of Indris was ever found in 14-16th century documents, and the Chernigov Chronicles used as a reference were lost. The first documented members of the Tolstoy family lived in the 17th century. Pyotr Tolstoy, founder of the titled branch, was granted the title of count by Peter the Great. The untitled branch descends from Ivan Andreevich Tolstoy. Their common ancestor was Andrey Vasilievich Tolstoy, who married Stepanida Andreevna Miloslavskaya, a cousin of the tsarina, allowing the family to enter the Moscow court.

Three Generations Against Napoleon

Three members of the Tolstoy family were active during the Napoleonic Wars. Count Pyotr Aleksandrovich Tolstoy (1761–1844) served under Suvorov in wars against Poland and the Ottoman Empire, was made a general-adjutant in 1797, went as ambassador to Paris in 1807 and tried to persuade Alexander I to prepare for war against France without much success. He served as governor of St Petersburg and Kronstadt from 1828 until his death. Alexander Ivanovich Tolstoy (1770–1857), from a collateral branch, inherited the comital title and estates of his childless uncle. He distinguished himself at the Battle of Czarnowo (23–24 December 1806), where his 2nd Division held out for fifteen hours against Napoleon's whole army. He was rewarded for courage at Pultusk and Eylau, wounded gravely at Guttstadt, commanded key positions at Borodino until shell-shocked, and was wounded again at Bautzen (1813). His crowning achievement was the victory at Kulm (August 30, 1813), which cost him amputation of the left arm. Count Nikolai Ilyich Tolstoy (1794–1837), father to Leo Tolstoy, served as a cavalry officer in the battles of Lützen, Bautzen, Dresden and Leipzig before retiring as a Lieutenant colonel.

Artists, Adventurers, and the Social Stage

Count Feodor Petrovich Tolstoy (1783–1873), sympathetically mentioned by Pushkin in Eugene Onegin, was one of the most fashionable Russian drawers and painters of the 1820s. He prepared fine illustrations for Bogdanovich's Dushenka, but his genuine vocation was wax modeling and the design of medals. As he gradually went blind he gave up drawing and started writing ballets and librettos for operas. He was appointed Vice-President of the Academy of Arts in 1828. Count Fyodor Ivanovich Tolstoy (1782–1846) was a notorious drunkard, gastronome, and duellist who killed 11 people in duels. In 1803 he participated in the first Russian circumnavigation of the Earth, got tattooed at the Marquesas, debauched all the crew, and was marooned by captain Krusenstern on the Aleutian Islands near Kamchatka. He returned to St Petersburg nicknamed 'Amerikanets' ('the American'). He fought bravely in the Patriotic War of 1812 but scandalized his family by marrying a Gypsy singer in 1821. Alexander Griboyedov satirized him in Woe from Wit, and his cousin Leo Tolstoy fictionalized him as Dolokhov in War and Peace.

A Literary Dynasty and Lasting Legacy

Many Tolstoys devoted their spare time to literary pursuits. Count Alexei Konstantinovich (1817–75) was a courtier and one of the most popular Russian poets of his time, writing ballads, a historical novel, licentious verse, and satires under the penname Kozma Prutkov. His lasting contribution was a trilogy of historical dramas modeled after Pushkin's Boris Godunov. Count Lev Nikolaevich (1828–1910), known abroad as Leo Tolstoy, is acclaimed as one of the greatest novelists of all time. After starting his career in the military, he was first drawn to writing when he served in Chechenya, and his first story Detstvo ('Childhood') was unlike anything written before him. At his family estate Yasnaya Polyana near Tula he created War and Peace and Anna Karenina. Later he developed a non-traditional Christian philosophy described in The Kingdom of God is Within You, which inspired Rainer Maria Rilke and Mohandas Gandhi. Of his thirteen children, most spent their life either promoting or denouncing his teachings. His granddaughter Tatyana Tolstaya (born 1951) is one of the foremost Russian short story writers. Count Nikolai Tolstoy-Miloslavsky (born 1935) is a British historian and monarchist, nominal head of the House of Tolstoy today.