Commander of the Yamburg Dragoon Regiment Nikolay Alekseyevich Stolypin and liberation of Vitebsk on the October 26, 1812

Abstract

Background. One of the tasks facing researchers of the history of the Patriotic War of 1812 is to attract new methodological approaches in their scientific practice and expand the source base. In particular, the consideration of various problems in the context of the historical and anthropological approach and the history of everyday life opens up new horizons of research. The purpose of this work is to examine the fighting of the Yam-burg Dragoon Regiment during the liberation of Vitebsk in October 1812 and to determine the degree of participation in these events of its commander, Lieutenant Colonel N.A. Sto-lypin. Materials and methods. The research tasks were achieved through the dialectical method of historical processes studying, including the principles of historicism, objectivity and systematicity. It helped to characterize the variety of sources, compare and analyze them in complex. Results. The complex of archival documents and sources of personal origin allowed us to consider the fighting of the Russian army during the liberation of Vi-tebsk, to focus on the role of the Yamburg dragoons, to note the effectiveness of N.A. Sto-lypin’s leadership of the cavalry detachments attached to him. Conclusions. Turning to the history of the Yamburg Dragoon Regiment’s participation in the Patriotic War of 1812 allows us not only to dwell once again on the role that cavalry played in defeating the ene-my, but also to focus on the concrete historical material on the importance of studying the combat path of various military units. Such an approach, in our opinion, can move even more into the “human dimension” and lead to a shift in research priorities towards the study of the history of everyday life, microhistory and historical anthropology. In addition, N.A. Stolypin is the brother of M.Yu. Lermontov’s grandmother E.A. Arsenyeva. However, it should be noted that in Russian historical science and the works of Lermontologists, his military merits and the degree of influence on M.Yu. Lermontov are affected to a much lesser extent than the fate of the Guards artillery officers Dmitry and Afanasy Stolypin. At the same time, N.A. Stolypin’s military services rendered in 1812 put him on a par with the famous heroes of the Patriotic War. Suffice it to say that N.A. Stolypin is the only na-tive of the Penza province, awarded in 1812. Orders of St. George of the 3rd class.

Keywords

• patriotic war of 1812
• nikolai alekseevich stolypin
• liberation of vitebsk
• first separate infantry corps
• yamburg dragoon regiment