On this day, February 8, a duel took place with a tragic consequence for the great Russian poet Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin. Pushkin's duel with Dantes - a duel on pistols between the chamber junker Pushkin and Lieutenant Baron Georg De-Gekkeren (Dantes) on January 27 (February 8), 1837 on the outskirts of St. mortally wounded. The poet died two days later. The duel was provoked by anonymous letters hinting at a love affair between Pushkin's wife Natalya and Dantes.

According to Pushkinists, the clash with Dantes was at least the twenty-first challenge to a duel in the poet's biography. He was the initiator of fifteen duels, of which four took place, the rest did not take place due to the reconciliation of the parties, mainly through the efforts of Pushkin's friends; in six cases the challenge to a duel came not from Pushkin, but from his opponents.

Background - Dantes and Natalia Pushkina

The French cavalry guard, the adopted son of the Dutch envoy to St. Petersburg, Baron Louis Gekkern, met his peer Natalya Nikolaevna Pushkina, the poet's wife, in 1835 at the Anichkov Palace.

In the eyes of secular society, Dantes-Heeckeren, a handsome blond, appeared as a brilliant young officer in love with the beautiful wife of a jealous husband (Pushkin did not like court life and did not evoke warm feelings among influential secular people).

There were rumors in secular society about the reciprocity of Pushkina's feelings and that Dantes had already achieved victory; for the development of the conflict, the rumor that arose played no less, if not more, role than the real state of affairs.

Anonymous letters and the first conflict (November 1836)

On November 4 (16), 1836, the city post delivered to Pushkin and several of his friends an anonymous libel in French, in which Pushkin was awarded a “cuckold diploma”; the "diploma" contained an indirect hint of attention to N. N. Pushkina from not only Dantes, but also the tsar himself. In 1927, Pushkinists (B.V. Kazansky and P.E. Reinbot) suggested that the libel indicates an imaginary connection between Natalia Nikolaevna and the emperor, since Pushkin was named deputy to Naryshkin, the husband of Alexander I's mistress; this point of view was supported by the author of the most authoritative study of the duel at that time, P. E. Shchegolev. However, N. A. Raevsky believed that “it [the assumption] cannot be considered proven.” Pushkin himself considered the letter to come from Heckeren the father. The suspicion of some contemporaries, in particular Pushkin's second K.K. Danzas, fell on Prince I.S. Gagarin, later a Jesuit.

Having come to the conclusion about the authorship of Gekkern, Pushkin immediately sent Dantes a challenge to a duel. A week after the call, Georges Dantes proposed to Ekaterina Goncharova, the sister of Natalia Nikolaevna and, accordingly, Pushkin's sister-in-law. Be that as it may, as soon as Dantes became Catherine's fiancé, Pushkin was forced to withdraw his challenge (the audience given to Pushkin by Nicholas I and the mediation of V. A. Zhukovsky also played a role). Nevertheless, Pushkin refused to have any kind of relationship with Dantes and Heckeren, which, as can be seen from Danzas' memoirs, offended them both and led to a further aggravation of relations.

The second challenge to a duel.

January 10, 1837 Ekaterina Goncharova became the wife of Dantes. She bore him four children and died after childbirth in 1843, in her seventh year of marriage.

However, the conflict between Pushkin and the Gekkerns was not exhausted, and soon after the marriage of Dantes to Catherine, rumors and jokes (“barracks puns”) began to spread in the light of Pushkin and his family. On January 26 (February 7), 1837, Pushkin sent a letter to Gekkern the father (basically composed during the first conflict in November), where, extremely sharply characterizing both his father and his adopted son, he refused them from the house. Pushkin knew that the letter was clearly offensive and would lead to a new duel.

On the same day, Louis Heeckeren, through the secretary of the French embassy Viscount d'Archiac, announced to Pushkin in a letter that Dantes was making a challenge to him on his behalf; Pushkin, without discussion, accepted the very harsh conditions of the duel, drawn up in writing by Viscount d'Archiac.

Duel.

On January 27 (February 8), a duel took place near St. Petersburg in a copse near the Komendantskaya dacha, in which Pushkin was mortally wounded in the stomach. With a return shot, Pushkin easily wounded Dantes in the right hand. The conditions of the duel, at the insistence of Pushkin, were deadly and left no chance for both opponents to survive: the barrier separated the enemies by barely ten steps, it was allowed to shoot from any distance on the way to the barrier. Pushkin's second was his lyceum comrade Lieutenant Colonel K. K. Danzas, Dantes' second was Viscount d'Archiac, an employee of the French embassy.

The wounded Pushkin was taken from the place of the duel on a cab driver's sleigh; and at the Commandant's dacha he was transplanted into a carriage sent by the elder Gekkeren.

In 1887, a memorial obelisk to Pushkin was erected at the site of the duel - in the square at the intersection of Kolomyazhsky Prospekt and the railway line of the Sestroretsky direction (Chernaya Rechka area).

Fatal wound of Pushkin.

Pushkin was brought home from the place of the duel, to the embankment of the Moika River, house 12. The wound turned out to be fatal: the poet lived for two days. Despite the efforts of doctors under the guidance of N. F. Arendt, he died on January 29 (February 11), 1837 at 14:45. At the time of his death, the clock was stopped, which, being a relic of the era, is still kept, becoming one of the significant exhibits of the museum subsequently organized in this house.

Criminal investigation and “punishment”…

The duel was reported to the military authorities. On January 29, 1837, the commander of the Separate Guards Corps (the Corps included Her Majesty's Cavalier Guard Regiment, which included Lieutenant De Heckeren, from Wikipedia) Adjutant General Karl Bistrom, having learned about the duel, “very humblely reported this to the EMPEROR; HIS MAJESTY, on the 29th of the HIGHEST, deigned to order: “to judge by a military court both Gekkeren and Pushkin, as well as all those involved in this matter, with the fact that if there are foreign persons between them, then without interrogating them and not including them in the maxim of the Court, to submit a special note about them, indicating only the measure of their implication.

The military court of first instance (regimental) sentenced, on a preliminary basis, Gekkeren and Danzas to death - according to the laws of the times of Peter I; according to the meaning of the 139th military article (1715), a reference to which is present in the materials of the criminal case, the person who died in a duel was also subject to the death penalty: “All challenges, fights and fights through this are most severely prohibited<…>Whoever commits against this, of course, both the summoner and whoever comes out, has to be executed, namely, hanged, although one of them will be wounded or killed, or even though both are not wounded, they will move away from him. And if it happens that both or one of them will remain in such a duel, then hang them by their feet even after death.

The verdict was reported up to the authorities; as a result, the determination of the General-Auditoriat A.I. Noinsky on March 17, 1837, suggested: Gekkeren "depriving him of the ranks and the Russian noble dignity acquired by him, write to the rank and file, with the appointment of a service for the appointment of the Inspectorate Department", in relation to Pushkin's second lieutenant colonel Danazs, it was proposed, taking into account his military merits and other mitigating the guilt of the circumstance, limit himself to arrest for another 2 months (he was already under arrest), after which “to return to the service as before”; “The criminal act of the Kamerunker Pushkin himself<…>on the occasion of his death to be forgotten. On March 18 of the same year, Noinsky’s report was inscribed with the Highest Confirmation: “To be so, but ordinary Heckeren, if not a Russian subject, should be sent abroad with a gendarme, having taken away officer patents.”

The Dutch Minister Heckeren was recalled from St. Petersburg. Dantes lived to a ripe old age, was a member of the French Senate.

Event in art

Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov, who did not personally know Pushkin, but was close to his friends (the Karamzin family and N. F. Arendt), wrote the poem "The Death of a Poet": "The Poet died, a slave of honor, fell, slandered by rumors".

At the end of the 20th century, a book was published: "History of a disease", it was re-released as a collection under the title “Addition to the portraits: A mournful leaf, or the history of A. S. Pushkin's illness. Dr. A.P. Chekhov»

The writing

In July 1824, the emperor ordered Pushkin to leave Odessa and go to a new place of exile - to the parental estate of Mikhailovsky, Pskov province. The "northern exile" has begun. A two-year stay in Mikhailovsky was a difficult test for the poet: loneliness, material difficulties, lack of spiritual communication - all this could turn life into a continuous moral mockery. But Pushkin did not submit to circumstances, he spiritually overcome their minds - with creativity. Activity is transferred deep into the soul. In Mikhailovsky Pushkin read and wrote a lot, he lived in an atmosphere of constant creative tension.

At the moment of rest, Pushkin walks with great satisfaction to the neighboring Trigorskoye estate, where his friends lived - the large and friendly Osipov family. The arrival of Alexander Sergeevich is always an expected happy event! Immediately the house came to life: young voices sounded, cheerful music, girlish singing. Pushkin wrote poetry notes in the albums of the Wulf sisters, read his works, and joked a lot. He felt good with these people who sincerely loved and were captured by him.

Pushkin's work in the last years of his life was marked by a powerful maturity of talent and extraordinary diversity: artistic and historical prose - "The Queen of Spades", "Egyptian Nights", "Dubrovsky", "The Captain's Daughter", "The Story of Peter"; dramatic works: "Mermaid", "Scenes from Rishar times"; the poem "The Bronze Horseman"; fairy tales, poetry. Nevertheless, the last years of Pushkin's life, the years of hard work and lofty plans, are marked by the hostility of the upper world, literary loneliness, and material difficulties. At the end of 1833, Pushkin was granted the court rank of chamber junker, which, as usual, was given to very young people. Pushkin was well aware of the humiliating meaning of this imperial gesture: the emperor wanted the poet's wife to be able to appear on the balls in his palace.

Pushkin was angered by such royal “mercy”: “I can be subjected, even a slave, but I won’t be a serf and a jester even with the king of heaven!” Pushkin's family grew. In 1835 he already had three children. And in May 1836, his last child was born - daughter Natalia. Expenses were increasing, money was not enough. Pushkin started the brothers on loan, and this completely confused his material affairs. One more thing was added to all the troubles: the young Frenchman Georges Dantes began to frankly court Natalia Nikolaevna. Men of dubious origin, the clever adventurer was warmly welcomed by the Petersburg nobles, and his impudent behavior towards Natalia Nikolaevna received the tacit support of the higher world: it was a great opportunity to belittle Pushkin, to punish his proud independence. Dirty gossip spread around the name of the great poet and his wife.

The last straw that overflowed the cup of humiliation was the anonymous letter received by Pushkin, in which Pushkin's wife was vilely accused of treason. Alexander Sergeevich had to defend his honor and the honor of Natalia Nikolaevna.
January 27, 1837. The short day was coming to an end when Pushkin and his second, a high school friend, went to the Black River, where the duel was scheduled.
Pushkin and Dantes stood on a narrow path twenty paces apart. The seconds gave a sign, and they began to converge. Dantes fired first. Pushkin fell...

He lived for two more days. Doctors did not give any hope for recovery: the wound was fatal. Turning over the last pages of the poet's life, I would like to turn again to Y. Lotman's book "Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin".

Excerpt from the book (Lotman Yu.M.). “Pushkin knew that he was not a chamber junker and not the ugly husband of a famous beauty, that he was the first Poet of Russia, and his name belongs to history. The wound - and then the death - of Pushkin caused excitement in St. Petersburg, which the capital had not yet known. One of his contemporaries recalled that "the wall in Pushkin's apartment was broken down for visitors." At the coffin of Pushkin beat an unheard of number of people. Even friends who knew Pushkin well from childhood suddenly felt that Pushkin, transformed by death, turned into a bronze monument to the glory of RUSSIA in an instant...

On February 8 (January 27, according to the old style), 1837, the duel of the great Russian poet and writer Alexander Pushkin with the French citizen Georges Dantes took place in the suburbs of St. Petersburg - on the Black River. On February 10 (January 29, old style), the poet died from a wound received in a duel.

The reason for the duel was an anonymous libel, insulting the honor of Pushkin's wife Natalya (née Goncharova) and himself.

On November 16 (November 4, according to the old style), 1836, Pushkin received three copies of an anonymous message, which entered him into the "Order of Cuckolds" and hinted at the persistent courtship of his wife by the cavalry guard lieutenant Baron Georges Dantes, a foreigner accepted into the Russian service and adopted by the Dutch envoy Baron Gekkern.

Pushkin challenged Dantes to a duel, he initially accepted the challenge, but through Baron Gekkern he asked for a delay of 15 days. During this time, Pushkin learned that Dantes had proposed to his sister-in-law, Ekaterina Goncharova, and withdrew his challenge. The wedding took place on January 22 (January 10, old style), 1837.

Pushkin very sharply expressed his contempt for Dantes, who continued to meet with his wife Natalya and show signs of attention to her, and Gekkern, who intensely intrigued against him - gossip did not stop. Finally out of patience, Pushkin sent Gekkern an extremely insulting letter, to which he answered with a challenge on behalf of Dantes.

On February 8 (January 27, old style) at five in the evening, a duel took place on the outskirts of St. Petersburg on the Black River. The seconds were the secretary of the French embassy, ​​Viscount Laurent d "Arshiak, from the side of Dantes, and Pushkin's lyceum comrade, Lieutenant Colonel Konstantin Danzas.

At the insistence of the poet, they were deadly and did not give any of the opponents a chance to survive: the barrier separated the enemies by ten steps, it was allowed to shoot from any distance on the way to the barrier.

Dantes fired first and mortally wounded Pushkin in the right side of the abdomen. The poet fell, but then rose on his arm, called Dantes to the barrier.

Taking aim, he fired and, seeing that his enemy had fallen, he shouted: "Bravo!" Dantes' wound was not dangerous; a bullet aimed at the chest hit the flesh of the hand with which Dantes covered his chest.

The wounded Pushkin was taken to his apartment. The poet made every effort not to disturb his wife, concealed his suffering. Later, the invited doctors determined the inevitability of a tragic denouement - this was not hidden from Pushkin.

A priest was invited to the poet, who confessed him and gave him communion.

Alexander Pushkin, stoically enduring torment for two days, died on February 10 (January 29, according to the old style), surrounded by friends in his apartment in St. Petersburg on the embankment of the Moika River.

For two days the coffin with the body of the poet was in the apartment, which at that time was visited by crowds of people of various classes. On the night of February 11-12 (January 30-31, old style), the coffin was transferred to the Church of the Court and Stable Department. On the morning of February 13 (February 1, according to the old style), the funeral of the poet took place, in the evening his ashes were taken to the Svyatogorsky Monastery in the Pskov province, where the family cemetery of the Hannibals-Pushkins was located.

On February 18 (February 6, according to the old style), 1837, after a funeral service in the southern aisle of the Assumption Cathedral of the Svyatogorsk Monastery, near the altar wall of the cathedral, the body of Alexander Pushkin was interred. Later, a marble monument was erected on the grave, commissioned by the poet's widow.

Pushkin's death was perceived by many as a national tragedy; this found expression in the poetic responses of Mikhail Lermontov, Fyodor Tyutchev, Alexei Koltsov.

In 1937, at the site of Pushkin's duel with Dantes on the Black River, an obelisk was erected by sculptor Matvey Manizer.

For participating in a duel with Alexander Pushkin, which had a fatal outcome, Dantes-Gekkern was formally sentenced to death, replaced by expulsion from Russia. Having settled in France, Georges Charles Dantes-Gekkern (1812-1895) made a prominent career - he was one of the major figures in the coup on December 2, 1851, an intermediary in the secret negotiations between Napoleon III and Nicholas I. Subsequently, he became a senator, mayor of Sulz, a commercial figure, He was awarded the degree of Commander of the Order of the Legion of Honor.

Dantes' wife Ekaterina, nee Goncharova, died in 1843 in France from puerperal fever.

For participating in a duel, the poet Konstantin Danzas (1800-1870) was put on trial and sentenced to two months in a guardhouse. Pushkin, dying, worried about him and handed over a turquoise ring as a keepsake. Later, Danzas served in the Caucasus in the Tekinsky infantry regiment, participated in expeditions against the highlanders. In 1856 he retired with the rank of major general. According to Danzas, Alexander Ammosov compiled a brochure "The Last Days of the Life and Death of A.S. Pushkin", published in 1863.

Pushkin's wife Natalya, nee Goncharova (1812-1863), did not know about the duel, which became fatal for her first husband. After the poet's death, seven years later, in 1846, she remarried General Pyotr Lansky. Alexander Pushkin's poems "On the Hills of Georgia", "The Purest Charm of the Purest Sample", "Madonna" (1830) were dedicated to her; "Beauty" (1831); "Excerpt", "No, I do not value" (1832); "It's time my friend, it's time..." (1836).

The material was prepared on the basis of information from RIA Novosti and open sources

There are still legends about the conflict between the great Russian poet Alexander Sergeevich and the cavalry guard officer Georges Dantes. There were many reasons for the enmity between them. And the duel of Pushkin and Dantes, a summary of which can be found by reading the article, is still shrouded in mystery.

In, there are many theories for exactly what reasons there was a conflict between Pushkin and Dantes,. But the most famous theory is the jealousy of Alexander Sergeevich. Being a hot and unrestrained man, he himself provoked the duel.

Dantes was in love with a beauty. And he publicly allowed himself to court her, showing various signs of attention. Coming home after various balls and social events, Natalya herself told her husband about the charms of the charming Frenchman. This only fueled her jealousy.

The public, on the contrary, found Georges' love very touching and romantic, in the spirit of romance novels. But very soon the ladies got bored with this and rumors began to spread in St. Petersburg about a romance between Dantes. But Pushkin, like a loving husband, sincerely believed in the innocence of his wife.

There is another version of the origin of the duel between Pushkin and Dantes. The summary tells about the origin of the conflict between the poet and the cavalry guard. After they met, they become good friends. Soon, rumors began to spread around St. Petersburg that Baron Louis Gekkern wanted to adopt Dantes. And the reason for this decision was not at all good motives. Dantes was supposed to find out information from the nobility of the northern capital and convey it to Gekkern.

Having learned this, Alexander Sergeevich passed this information on to Emperor Nicholas I. When they met, they talked about something for a very long time. Nicholas I asked Alexander Sergeevich not to take any decisive action under any circumstances. But being a temperamental and quick-tempered man, he immediately challenged Dantes to a duel. In addition, one cannot deny the existence and personal motives for being challenged to a duel.

The secret of Russian history is the duel between Pushkin and Dantes. A summary of the most popular versions of its origin will be given below.

What was the name of Dantes who killed Pushkin 5 letters

Georges Charles Dantes - this is exactly what the full name of the enemy sounds like, who, in a duel, killed the brilliant Russian poet.

Pushkin's second in a duel with Dantes 6 letters

Pushkin's second in the duel was his longtime lyceum friend, an officer of the Russian Imperial Guard, Konstantin Karlovich Danzas.

The place of the duel of Pushkin and Dantes: where was it, when did it take place, the date where Dantes got to Pushkin

The duel of two opponents took place on January 27, 1837, after four in the afternoon. The place where it was decided to hold the duel was a copse near the Commandant's dacha, which was located close to Black River.

According to the condition, it was possible to shoot at a distance of 20 steps, the barrier was 10 steps. Each of the opponents had to approach the intended barrier and make only one shot. The pistols that were fired had 12-millimeter bullets. Despite such a small projectile, it could inflict a fatal wound.

The poet wanted to be the first to shoot at the enemy, but Georges was ahead of him. The bullet wound the right side of the abdomen. Ignoring the severe injury, Alexander Sergeevich ordered the fight to continue.

Georges was wounded as a result of the second shot. The bullet hit him in the forearm. But the wound was not dangerous. And at the same time, Pushkin began to bleed heavily. The doctor was not around. There was nothing to plug the wound to stop the bleeding. Bleeding Alexander Sergeevich was brought to the Commandant's dacha. Afterwards, he was taken to home on the Moyka. Doctors tried to save the life of the poet, but 2 days later, on January 29, 1837, he died. Retaining consciousness until the end of his life, he met death in agony.

Dantes after the duel with Pushkin, fate after the duel

After the duel, the Frenchman was expected to be dismissed from the guard and demoted to the rank and file. And then he was exiled outside the Russian Empire. Georges was very lucky, because according to the law he should have been sentenced to death. Her husband was followed by his faithful wife Ekaterina, sister of Natalia Goncharova.

Georges returned to his native village called Alsace in France, where he led a reclusive life for several years. Some time later, in the 40s, he suddenly makes a successful career as a politician, becoming a deputy of the Constituent Assembly of the party of Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte. On becoming Emperor Napoleon III, he appointed his devoted subject as a senator.

Having lived to the age of 83, Georges Charles Dantes died surrounded by children and grandchildren. After moving to France, he lived a long, comfortable life.

He is so pleaded not guilty in the death of Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin. According to him, thanks to the duel, he made a successful career that brought him the position of senator. But still, fate did not bypass him. One of the daughters became interested in the work of the genius of Russian poetry. And having learned that her own father is the murderer of her beloved poet, she hated him until the end of her life.

Have you read the article duel between Pushkin and Dantes summary? What conclusions can be drawn? Leave your opinion or feedback for everyone on the forum.

How often in the days of Tsarist Russia, feuds among people of the noble class were resolved by a duel! And that's all - despite the decree of Peter I of January 14, 1702 on the ban on such fights for the sake of honor and dignity (as if there were no other options to talk like a man). However, such a burden fell on the hot-blooded young people of the "golden age".

What kind of “victim” do we remember first of all? Naturally, Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin. And, of course, almost all those familiar with his fate had the question: “Was it possible to save him?”. What would a modern doctor say about Pushkin's case, how would he describe the condition and what treatment would he prescribe? Let's deal with this - using the wonderful work of Mikhail Davidov "Duel and death of A.S. Pushkin through the eyes of a modern surgeon.

Many inquisitive minds over the centuries have studied the numerous documents left after the duel, related both to the notes of eyewitnesses and to the notes of the healers of the great poet, among whom were the best doctors of St. Petersburg.

Here is what they write about Alexander Sergeevich’s health and his lifestyle: “Alexander Sergeevich, at the time of his injury in a duel, was 37 years old, had an average height (about 167 cm), a regular physique without signs of fullness. As a child, he suffered from colds and had mild soft tissue bruises. In 1818, for 6 weeks, Alexander Pushkin suffered from a serious infectious disease with a prolonged fever, which was called "rotten fever" by the attending physicians. Over the next two years, recurrences of fever appeared, which completely stopped after treatment with cinchona, which suggests that Pushkin had been ill with malaria ....

The poet led a healthy lifestyle. In addition to long walks, he rode a lot, successfully engaged in fencing, swam in the river and the sea, and used ice baths for hardening.
It can be concluded that by the time of the duel, Pushkin was physically strong and practically healthy.

The duel day is approaching...

Wednesday morning, January 27, 1837 (or February 8, New Style). “I got up cheerfully at 8 o'clock - after tea I wrote a lot - an hour before 11 o'clock. From 11 lunch. - He walked around the room unusually cheerfully, sang songs - then he saw Danzas through the window (note: second), met him joyfully at the door. - Enter the office, lock the door. - A few minutes later he sent for pistols. - On departure, Danzas began to dress; washed all, everything clean; ordered to give bekesh; went out onto the stairs, returned, ordered a large fur coat to be brought into the office and went on foot to the cabman. “It was exactly at 1 o’clock.” (from the notes of Pushkin's friend poet V.A. Zhukovsky about the last day of Alexander Sergeevich before the duel)

... The place of the duel. “Wrapped up in a bearskin coat, Alexander Sergeevich sat in the snow and looked at the preparations with detachment. What was in his soul, only God knows. At times, he showed impatience, turning to his second: “Is it all over at last?” His rival Lieutenant Dantes, a tall, athletic man, an excellent shooter, was outwardly calm. The psychological state of the opponents was different: Pushkin was nervous, in a hurry to end everything as soon as possible, Dantes was more collected, cooler.

... It was 5 o'clock in the evening.

“Seconds marked barriers with overcoats, loaded pistols and took the opponents to their original positions. There they were given weapons. The tension has reached a climax. The deadly meeting of two irreconcilable opponents has begun. At a signal from Danzas, who drew a semicircle in the air with his hat in his hand, the rivals began to approach. Pushkin quickly went to the barrier and, slightly turning his body, began to aim at the heart of Dantes. However, it is more difficult to hit a moving target, and, obviously, Pushkin was waiting for the opponent to finish approaching the barrier, so that he could immediately shoot. Cold-blooded Dantes suddenly fired on the move, not reaching 1 step to the barrier, that is, from a distance of 11 steps (about 7 meters). It was convenient for him to aim at Pushkin, who was standing still. In addition, Alexander Sergeevich had not yet completed the classic half-turn, adopted during duels in order to reduce the area of ​​sight for the enemy, his hand with a pistol was stretched forward, and therefore the right side and lower abdomen were completely unprotected. It was this position of Pushkin's body that caused a kind of wound channel.

Bright flash. Pushkin was blinded for a moment and at the same moment he felt a blow to his side and something with force shot into the small of the back. The poet's legs could not withstand such a sharp impact and the mass of his own body, he collapsed on his left side face into the snow, briefly losing consciousness. However, as soon as the seconds and Dantes himself rushed to look at the consequences of the shot, Pushkin woke up and sharply shouted that he still had enough strength to make his shot. With an effort, he got up and sat down, casually noticing with a blurred eye that his shirt and overcoat were soaked with something scarlet, and the snow under him was turning red. Aimed. Shot.

vest in which Pushkin shot

“A bullet flying from a seated Pushkin to a tall, standing right side forward, Dantes, along a trajectory from bottom to top, was supposed to hit the Frenchman in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe left lobe of the liver or heart, but pierced his right hand, with which he covered his chest, causing a through bullet wound to the middle third of the right forearm, changed direction and, causing only a concussion of the upper part of the anterior abdominal wall, went into the air. Dantes' wound, therefore, turned out to be not severe, without damage to the bones and large blood vessels, and subsequently quickly healed ... "What happened then?

Help the poet and transportation.

According to Danzas, at the place of the duel, blood flowed from Pushkin’s wound like a “river”, it soaked the clothes and stained the snow. He also noted the pallor of the face, hands, "expanded gaze" (dilated pupils). The wounded man regained consciousness himself. The grossest mistake of the poet's second was that he did not invite a doctor to a duel, did not take the means for bandaging and medicine, therefore, no one did first aid and at least a small dressing. Danzas justified this by the fact that "he was taken as a second a few hours before the duel, time was running out, and he did not have the opportunity to think about first aid for Pushkin."

Pushkin, being conscious, could not move independently due to shock and massive blood loss. There was no stretcher or shield. “The patient with a damaged pelvis was lifted from the ground and at first dragged to the sledge, then laid on an overcoat and carried. However, this proved to be ineffective. Together with the drivers, the seconds dismantled the fence of thin poles and drove the sled. All the way from the place of the duel to the sled there was a bloody trail in the snow. The wounded poet was put into a sleigh and taken along a shaky, bumpy road. What have they achieved in this way? That's right, exacerbating the shock.

The volume of blood loss, according to the calculations of the doctor Sh.I. Uderman, amounted to about 2000 ml, or 40% of the total volume of blood circulating in the body. Now gradual blood loss of 40% of the volume is not considered fatal, but then ... All the means to restore lost blood masses have not yet been developed.
It is impossible to imagine the degree of anemia in Pushkin, who did not receive a milliliter of blood. Undoubtedly, blood loss sharply reduced the adaptive mechanisms of the poor organism and accelerated the lethal outcome from the septic complications of the gunshot wound that developed later.

Houses…

“Already in the dark, at 18 o’clock, the mortally wounded poet was brought home. It was another mistake of Danzas. The wounded had to be hospitalized. Perhaps, on the way, the poet really expressed a desire to be taken home. But he, periodically being in an unconscious state, in deep fainting, for some time with difficulty getting out of them, was not yet capable of a clear assessment of what was happening. The fact that Pushkin was hopeless and they did not operate on him cannot serve as an excuse for the second, because on the way Danzas could not yet know this. Observing heavy bleeding, frequent fainting and the serious condition of the wounded, Danzas did not even have to ask Pushkin where to take him, but to make the right decision himself and insist on it! - says Davydov.

Finding a surgeon in evening St. Petersburg is not an easy task. However, Fate intervened - Danzas met Professor Scholz on the street. Yes, he was not a surgeon, but an obstetrician, but it's still better than nothing. He agreed to examine Alexander Sergeevich and soon arrived with the surgeon K.K. Zadler, who by that time had already managed to help Dantes! (this is such a vicissitude: he was wounded lightly, but help "came" earlier).

“Professor of obstetrics Scholz, after examining the wound and bandaging, had a private conversation with the wounded man. Alexander Sergeevich asked: “Tell me frankly, how did you find the wound?” To which Scholz replied: “I can’t hide that your wound is dangerous.” To Pushkin's next question, whether the wound was fatal, Scholz answered bluntly: "I consider it your duty not to hide it, but we will hear the opinion of Arendt and Salomon, for whom we have been sent." Pushkin said: “I thank you that you told me the truth as an honest person ... Now I’ll take care of my business.”

Finally (not even a few hours had passed), the seriously wounded poet was deigned to visit the urgently invited life doctor N.F. Arendt and family doctor of the Pushkin family I.T. Spassky.
Then many doctors took part in the treatment of the wounded Pushkin (H.Kh. Salomon, I.V. Buyalsky, E.I. Andreevsky, V.I. Dal), but behind the scenes it was Arendt, as the most authoritative among them, who led the treatment. Everyone listened to his opinion.

Some researchers believe that the actions of Arendt and Scholz, who told Pushkin about the incurability of his illness, contradicted medical ethics, because they contradicted the principle worked out for centuries according to one of the rules of Hippocrates. It reads: “Surround the sick person with love and reasonable consolation; but most importantly, leave him in the dark about what lies ahead for him, and especially about what threatens him. It must be said that there are still quarrels between doctors in matters of deontology, but the patient still has the right to know about his diagnosis, no matter how disappointing it is.

“Arendt chose a conservative tactic for treating the wounded, which was approved by other famous surgeons, H.Kh. Salomon, I.V. Buyalsky and all, without exception, the doctors who took part in the treatment. No one offered to operate, no one tried to pick up a knife himself. For the level of development of medicine at that time, this was a completely natural decision. Unfortunately, in the 30s of the XIX century, the wounded in the stomach were not operated on. After all, science did not yet know asepsis and antiseptics, anesthesia, X-rays, antibiotics and much more. Even much later, in 1865, N.I. Pirogov in the “Principles of General Military Field Surgery” did not recommend opening the abdominal cavity to those wounded in the abdomen in order to avoid the development of inflammation of the peritoneum (peritonitis) and death.

Wilhelm Adolfovich Shaak in the article “The wound of A.S. Pushkin in modern surgical coverage” from the Herald of Surgery in 1937 accuses doctors of giving the patient an enema, a laxative, and prescribing oppositely acting drugs (calomel and opium). However, in Professor Helius' manual of surgery, published in 1839, such measures as poultices, castor oil, calomel, enema, were recommended for the treatment of wounded in the stomach, that is, in the 30s of the XIX century, these remedies were generally accepted for the treatment of such diseases.

From chronicles:

“At 7 p.m. on January 27, the condition of the wounded man was grave. He was agitated, complained of thirst (a sign of continued bleeding) and asked for water, he was tormented by nausea. The pain in the wound was moderate. Objectively noted: the face is covered with cold sweat, the skin is pale, the pulse is frequent, weak filling, the extremities are cold. The newly applied bandage was quite intensively soaked with blood, it was changed several times.

On the first evening after the wound and on the night of January 28, all treatment consisted of cold drinking and application of lotions with ice to the stomach. With these simple remedies, doctors tried to reduce bleeding. The patient's condition remained grave. Consciousness was mostly clear, but there were short periods of "forgetfulness", unconsciousness. He drank cold water willingly. Complaints of thirst, nausea, gradually increasing pain in the abdomen. The skin remained pale, but the pulse became less frequent than in the first hours after the injury. Gradually, the bandage stopped getting wet with blood. At the beginning of the night it was confirmed that the bleeding had stopped. The tension of doctors and caregivers has somewhat eased.

“At 5 o’clock in the morning on January 28, the pain in my stomach intensified so much that it was unbearable to endure it. They sent for Arendt, who arrived very quickly and, when examining the patient, found clear signs of peritonitis. Arendt prescribed, as was customary at the time, a "flush" to "lighten and clear the bowels." But the doctors did not assume that the wounded man had gunshot fractures of the ilium and sacrum. Turning to the side to perform the enema caused, quite naturally, some displacement of bone fragments, and the liquid introduced through the tube filled and expanded the rectum, increasing pressure in the small pelvis and irritating damaged and inflamed tissues. After the enema, the condition worsened, the intensity of the pain increased "to the highest degree." The face changed, the gaze became “wild”, the eyes were ready to jump out of their sockets, the body was covered with cold sweat. Pushkin could hardly restrain himself from screaming, and only let out groans. He was so irritated that after the enema, he refused any treatment offered for the entire morning.”

“On the afternoon of January 28, the condition of the wounded remained grave. Abdominal pain and bloating persisted. After taking the extract of henbane and calomel (mercury laxative), there was no relief. Finally, at about 12 o'clock, according to Arendt's prescription, they gave drops with opium as an anesthetic, after which Alexander Sergeevich immediately felt better. The intensity of the pain decreased significantly - and this was the main thing in improving the condition of the hopeless patient. The wounded became more active, cheered up. Hands warmed up. The pulse remained frequent, weak filling. After a while, the gases went away and independent free urination was noted.

“By 6 p.m. on January 28, a new deterioration in the condition was noted. There was a fever. The pulse reached 120 beats per minute, was full and hard (tense). Pain in the abdomen became "more palpable". Belly swollen again. To combat the developed "inflammation" (peritonitis), Dahl and Spassky (with the consent and approval of Arendt) put 25 leeches on the stomach. Pushkin helped the doctors, he caught leeches with his hand and allowed himself. After applying the leeches, the fever decreased.

From the use of leeches, the patient lost, according to Uderman's calculations, about 0.5 more liters of blood and, thus, the total blood loss from the moment of injury reached 2.5 liters (50% of the total volume of blood circulating in the body). Undoubtedly, by the time the leeches were prescribed, severe anemia had already developed. The improvement turned out to be fleeting, soon Alexander Sergeevich became even worse.

From the description of the poet's friends, “the face has changed, its features have become sharper (“the face of Hippocrates”, typical for inflammation of the abdominal cavity). An agonizing grin of teeth appeared, lips twitched convulsively even during short-term oblivion. There were signs of respiratory and cardiovascular failure. Breathing became frequent, jerky, there was not enough air (shortness of breath). The pulse was barely noticeable."

Despite the severity of the condition, which was beyond doubt, the treatment tactics remained unchanged. The patient was still given cherry-laurel water, calomel and opium.

last hours

“On the morning of January 29, the condition became critical, pre-agonal. "General exhaustion has taken over." Spassky, who came to the apartment early in the morning, was amazed at the sharp deterioration in the patient's condition and noted that "Pushkin was fading." A council of doctors, consisting of Arendt, Spassky, Andreevsky and Dahl, unanimously agreed that the agony would soon begin. Arendt declared that Pushkin would live no more than two hours. ... The patient's pulse fell from hour to hour, became barely noticeable. The hands were very cold. Frequent, jerky breathing movements were interrupted by pauses (Cheyne-Stokes breathing).

At 2:45 p.m. on January 29, 1837 (February 10, according to the new style), Pushkin died with his last breath. Dr. Efim Ivanovich Andreevsky closed the eyes of the deceased.

So what kind of wound did Pushkin have? Read about the autopsy data and the anatomy of the wound channel in the article.

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