Timeline: Russian Culture, Part III

Czarina Elizabeth allies Russia with France; cult of French Enlightenment (Francois Voltaire, Denis Diderot) rises, French language spreads among aristocracy

Peter III emancipated nobles from state service, allowing development of leisured, cultured class; Winter Palace, triumph of lavish rococo style, begun in St. Petersburg

D. Levitsky, court painter to Catherine II, excels in realistic portraits of important Russians in pseudo-classical surroundings; secular work replaces icon painting as leading style

The Adolescent, play by Denis Fonvizin, is performed. Russia's first drama of social satire, early masterpiece of secular literature, questions Russian Enlightenment

Charles Louis Diderot, French ballet master, father of classical Russian ballet, establishes St. Petersburg company

Napoleon invades Russia; French Enlightenment loses favor, German culture, philosophy (Fredrich Schelling, Georg Hegel) becomes more popular

Pan-Asianist Raphael Zotov writes The Last Descendant of Genghis Khan, seeks to create proto-Asian society by reconnecting with Russia's Mongol roots

Aleksandr Pushkin, father of modern Russian literature, seeks inspiration from Russian history, builds national identity, creates modern Russian language, writes poems, short stories, plays—Eugene Onegin, 1823-1831; The Bronze Horseman, 1833; Boris Godunov, 1831

Bolshoi Theater opens, Moscow

Two philosophical movements: Westernizers believe European modernism is answer to Russia's problems; Slavophiles seek salvation in Russia's Slavic heritage

Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka, father of modern Russian music, composes opera, A Life for the Czar, followed by Russlan and Ludmilla, 1842



Nikolai Gogol, Russia's greatest humorist, father of Russian realism, writes The Inspector-General, probably greatest play written in Russian; short story The Overcoat; novel Dead Souls, 1842.

Mikhail Lermontov, greatest poet after Pushkin, writes heroic poem, The Song of the Merchant Kalashnikov; novel A Hero of Our Time, 1840, classic of Russian realism

French choreographer Maurius Petipa arrives in St. Petersburg, enhances training, stages acclaimed productions of Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, Raymonda; Russian ballet becomes world class

Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, opens

Ivan Goncharov, writes novel Oblomov, satiric masterpiece featuring stock characters: indolent, lovable Slav, industrious, unpopular German

Novelist, dramatist, short story writer, Ivan Turgenev, publishes Fathers and Sons, brilliant philosophical novel, presents Nihlist philosophy, seeks to reverse old order through social equality

N.G. Chernyshevsky, writes novel What is to Be Done? calls for 'new men and women' to change Russia through deprivation, suffering, influenced Bolsheviks

Feodor Dostoyevsky, Russia's most illustrious Slavophile, romantic realist, novels Crime and Punishment; 1866; Brothers Karamazov, 1880, one of greatest novels ever written

Composer Modest Moussorgsky, pioneer of Russian national style, finishes Boris Godunov, devastatingly powerful opera



Count Leo Tolstoy, one of world's greatest novelists, writes War and Peace, 1869, epic on Napoleon's invasion. 7 years later he will complete Anna Karenina, a tragic, psychological novel



Peter Tchaikovsky, one of most popular composers in history, composes symphony, Romeo and Juliet; ballets, Swan Lake, 1877; The Nutcracker, 1892; melodious, emotional, melancholy music, uses European techniques, in contrast to Russia's nationalist composers

Ilya Repin, most influential Russian realist painter, paints Volga Boatmen, hailed as "art of the people"

Composer Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov completes opera, The Golden Cockrel, 1909, refines Russian romanticism

Constantin Stanislavsky and Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko establish Moscow Art Theatre; revolutionize theatrical training by creating method acting

Dramatist Anton Chekhov writes masterpiece Uncle Vanya; The Three Sisters, 1901; The Cherry Orchard, 1904; focus on character's internal drama major innovation

Mir Iskusstva (World of Art Group) formed, similar to Art Nouveau /ce6/ent/A0804891.html

Mir Iskusstva (World of Art Group) formed, similar to Art Nouveau

Sergei Diaghilev founds Ballets Russes, revolutionizes ballet, sets standard for 20th century

Igor Stravinsky rockets to international fame, composes ballet Firebird at Ballet Russes; ballet Rites of Spring, 1913, features irregular, primitive rhythms, dissonance; audience riots, later accepted as landmark work

Vladimir Lenin founds newspaper Pravda (Truth) while in exile

Casimir Malevich promotes suprematism, art movement featuring geometric shapes painted on canvas; influences modern art, architecture, industrial design



Vladimir Tatlin founds constructivism, art movement featuring abstract elements

Sergei Prokofiev's Classical Symphony mixes modern, traditional elements



Bolshevik Revolution