Alexander Griboyedov, Pavel Yakovlev, Ivan Dolgorukov, and urban fires

Pavel Yakovlev, an official and writer who came to the town of Kai, Vyatka Province, in 1825, noted that after the great fire this town did not look better, although it was believed that towns and cities usually improve after fires. In his essay "Trip to Vyatka" Yakovlev described Kai using a phrase similar to that of the Colonel Skalozub talking about the Fire of Moscow in 1812 in the comedy Woe from Wit by Alexander Griboyedov. The action in Woe from Wit takes place ten years after the War of 1812 and the Great Moscow Fire. The remark of Griboyedov's character became a well-known aphorism. This article is based on the interpretation of journalistic, fiction and epistolary texts of the writers Alexander Griboyedov, Pavel Yakovlev, and Ivan Dolgorukov, as well as legislative documents, cartographic sources and local history literature. The aim of this article is to determine what caused these famous words of Griboyedov's character, whether there are statements similar to them in Russian literature and journalism of that time. Fires in Russian cities, towns and villages were frequent disasters in the 18th and 19th centuries. These catastrophic events had a huge impact on the development of settlements and territories of the Russian Empire. Indeed, Moscow after the fire in 1812 began to be rapidly built up with magnificent stone and brick buildings. The development of Kai, Vyatka Province, was driven by the routes from the European part of Russia to the Urals and further to Siberia. The 17th century can be considered as the age of Kai's prosperity. The town fell into disrepair in the 18th century due to change in routes. In such a situation the major fire at the end of the 18th century only aggravated the situation in this town. The author of this article considers possible links between the literary works and fates of Griboyedov and Yakovlev. Although Yakovlev's essay was written and published before Griboyedov's comedy was printed, Yakovlev could probably be acquainted with its manuscript. In this regard, the article examines the history of the creation and publication of Griboyedov's comedy and Yakovlev's essay, which was printed in Alexander Izmailov's almanac Calendar of the Muses for 1826. It is even more likely that Griboyedov's character, the unintelligent Colonel Skalozub, made a judgment often heard at that time. For example, similar judgments are found in the memoirs by Ivan Dolgorukov. In 1801-1812 he served as a governor in Vladimir Province. During his rule, two cities in this province, Sudogda and Murom, burned down. In connection with these events, Dolgorukov discussed in detail that the fires sped up the implementation of the long-overdue building affairs in cities, towns and villages. The publicist and scholar Alexander Tarachkov called this judgment a proverb. This article demonstrates that the use of the historical, literary and other diverse data allows us to clarify the origin of the aphorism from Griboyedov's comedy. Obviously, Griboyedov aphoristically expressed an idea that was often heard when people were discussing great fires. The author declares no conflicts of interests.

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