In Russia itself, the creation of a free press was impossible. Therefore, Herzen, who left his fatherland at the very beginning of 1847, decided to start, in his words, “foreign Russian literature.” In February 1853, Herzen published an appeal “To the Brothers in Rus',” in which he announced the creation of “free Russian book printing in London. The printing house was created on June 22, 1853. A few days later the first edition appeared - the brochure “St. George's Day!

Yuriev day! Russian nobility." On July 20, a second brochure was published - “The Poles Forgive Us” - on the issue of Polish independence, followed by a third - “Baptized Property”. The situation of the Free Russian Printing House was very difficult at that time. The outbreak of the Crimean War almost completely severed the weak ties between Herzen's printing house and Russia. “In 1854 - early 1855, Herzen published only his old and new works - “Interrupted Stories”, “Prison and Exile”, “Letters from France and Italy”, “From the Other Shore”, speeches at “gatherings” organized by revolutionary emigration ", Polaris". On July 25, 1855, on the anniversary of the execution of the Decembrists, its first issue was published. The cover of the almanac depicted the profiles of five executed Decembrists: Pestel, Ryleev, Bestuzhev-Ryumin, Muravyov-Apostol and Kakhovsky, and the epigraph to it was the words from Pushkin’s “Bacchic Song”: “Long live reason.” Russian periodical published without censorship, exclusively devoted to the issue of Russian liberation and the spread of a free way of thinking in Russia. The first book of the magazine, in addition to articles, notes and large excerpts from “The Past and Thoughts” of Herzen himself, contained Engelson’s article “What is a state?”, Belinsky’s correspondence with Gogol regarding “Selected passages from correspondence with friends” (including the famous Salzbrunn Belinsky’s letter), letters from Hugo, Proudhon, Michelet, Mazzini, who greeted the “Polar Star”.

The second issue was more diverse in content than the first: in addition to works by Herzen, it included prohibited poems by Pushkin, Ryleev and other poets sent to London, articles by N.I. Sazonov and N.P. Ogarev, two letters from Russia.

There are too few manuscripts from Russia, which is why the collection “Voices from Russia”. The first of them was published in July 1856. At the beginning of April 1856, Herzen’s old friend and like-minded person, Nikolai Platonovich Ogarev, “Bells”, came to London, which appeared on July 1, 1857. “Bell” was a small magazine of eight pages with subtitle: “Additional sheets to the “Polar Star”. The motto was chosen initial words"Songs of the Bell" by Schiller: " Vivos voco" - " Calling the Living Poems by Ogarev, Nekrasov, M. Mikhailov and others were occasionally published in Kolokol. In the 1860s, revolutionary proclamations were published and reprinted in the magazine more than once. The revolutionary organization of Moscow students (P.G. Zaichnevsky’s circle) created a printing house for lithographing “The Bell” and individual works of Herzen; in Voronezh, seminarians copied “The Bell” by hand. Since February 15, 1858, it has been published twice a month, and not once, as before. Its circulation was increased to 2500–3000. Especially great value Herzen and Ogarev attached importance to the publication of materials about the life and activities of the Decembrists. The program of “Polar Star” and “Bell” was based on the theory of “Russian socialism”. The main feature The direction of the Bell and the entire free press was the struggle for the liberation of peasants from serfdom. The magazine systematically exposed the “horrors of the landowners’ power. Along with the liberation of the peasants, Kolokol and the free press defended the comprehensive democratization of the state system in Russia and fought against autocracy. From October 1859 to 1862, Herzen and Ogarev published, as a supplement to the Bell, a special leaflet “On Trial!”, dedicated to exposing the crimes and outrages that were happening in Russia (thirteen issues were published). One of Herzen’s most obvious deviations from democracy to liberalism was the article “Very dangerous!!!” (“Very dangerous!!!”), published in No. 44 of Kolokol on June 1, 1859. In it, he sharply attacked the leaders of Sovremennik and Whistle for their ridicule of liberal accusatory literature and negative attitude towards “ unnecessary people" Chernyshevsky's trip to London was not useless and fruitless. In No. 49 of Kolokol, an explanation appeared in which Herzen recognized his attacks against the leaders of Sovremennik as erroneous. The disagreements between the leaders of Kolokol and the heterogeneous democracy were deeply revealed in the “Letter from the Province” (“Kolokol”, No. 64), signed “ Russian man”, and in the preface to it by Herzen. The author of the “Letter” is still unknown, but undoubtedly he shared the views of Chernyshevsky and Dobrolyubov. It was also decided to publish a new addition to the “Bell” for readers and correspondents from the people. Under the name “General Assembly” it began to be published on July 15, 1862. In the autumn of 1863, the period of decline of the “Bell” and the Free Printing House began. The flow of correspondence and the number of readers decrease sharply.

In August 1852, Herzen arrived in London, where he intended to live for a short time. The purpose of his trip was not initially the creation of a free Russian press, but over time, Herzen began to develop new creative ideas, after which he came to the conclusion that since the paths to his homeland were cut off, London was the most favorable place for the practical implementation of his plans .

And, indeed, England in the 50s was a very convenient place for this endeavor, because, unlike France, there were no police restrictions, there was freedom of meetings, and political emigrants could get asylum.

And so, in February 1853, Herzen published an appeal to the “Brothers in Rus'”, in which he announced the creation of “free printing in London” and addressed readers with the request: “Send what you want - everything written in the spirit of freedom will be published , from scientific and factual articles...to novels, stories and poems...If you don’t have anything ready, your own, send the forbidden poems circulating around by Pushkin, Ryleev, Lermontov, Polezhaev, Pecherin, etc....The door is open to you. Do you want to use it or not? “This will remain on your conscience... To be your organ, your free, uncensored speech is my whole goal.” Herzen A.I. Essays. T. 7.- M.: State Publishing House fiction, 1958, pp. 186-188.

Herzen substantiated the historical necessity and timeliness of this undertaking in what he wrote at the same time. open letter to the editorial office of the newspaper "Polish Democrat". He argued that the Russian political movement had so far developed “among the aristocratic minority”, without the participation of the people, “outside national consciousness" The possibility of unity with the people was found in socialism, which he, being a utopian, saw in communal land ownership, in the liberation of peasants with land. But at that moment, Herzen wrote, the tsar, through censorship persecution, “deprived us of our language.” Hence the inevitability of the creation of a free press.

The free printing house was created on June 22, 1853. A few days later the first edition appeared - the brochure “St. George’s Day! Yuriev day! To the Russian nobility", in which Herzen calls Russian nobility begin the liberation of peasants from serfdom. He tries to influence the minds and feelings of the nobles, predicting an inevitable catastrophe, Pugachevism, if they do not find the strength to destroy serfdom by influencing the tsar. But if the nobles are not able to change the situation in the country, then Herzen reserves the right to call on the people to liberate themselves.

In August 1853, Herzen published his brochure “Baptized Property,” directed against serfdom. With sharp strokes, Herzen draws the orders and morals of Russian feudal society, the arbitrariness of tsarism and landowners. In the brochure, an important role is played by the populist idealization of the rural community as the embodiment of “underdeveloped communism,” but these illusions are the essence of Herzen’s democratic views, his faith in the great future of the Russian people.

He writes: “The Russian people endured everything, but held on to the community. The community will save the Russian people; by destroying it, you hand him over, tied hand and foot, to the landowner and the police...

The Russian people did not gain anything... they retained only their inconspicuous, modest community, i.e. common ownership of land, equality of all members of the community without exception, fraternal division of fields according to the number of workers and own secular management of their affairs. That’s all Candrillona’s (i.e. Cinderella’s) last dowry - why take away the last.” Herzen A.I. Essays. T. 9.- M.: State Publishing House of Fiction, 1958, pp. 15-40.

The turning point in the position of the Free Russian Printing House came after the death of Nicholas I and the end of the Crimean War. Due to the new rise social movement In Russia, Herzen decided to publish the almanac “Polar Star”. On July 25, 1855, on the anniversary of the execution of the Decembrists, its first issue was published with profiles of the five executed Decembrists on the cover.

“Polar Star” was preceded by a program. The main thing in the program was “Spreading a free way of thinking in Russia.” This program should unite all advanced society in the country around Herzen.

It turned out to be impossible to publish The Polar Star strictly periodically: the second book was published at the end of May 1856. In the article “Forward! Forward!” placed there, Herzen wrote: “In the first case, our entire program boils down to the need for openness, and all the banners are lost in one thing - the banner of the liberation of the peasants with the land. Down with wild censorship and wild landlordism! Down with corvée and rent! The courtyards are free! And we’ll deal with police officers and police officers later.” Herzen A.I. Essays. T. 8.- M.: State Publishing House of Fiction, 1958, P.226.

By the middle of 1856, it was discovered that so many manuscripts were coming from Russia, and in their nature they sometimes differed so significantly from the direction of the Polar Star, that it was necessary from time to time to publish special collections compiled from these manuscripts.

At the beginning of April 1856, Herzen's old friend and like-minded person, Nikolai Platonovich Ogarev, came to London and immediately began to participate in the publications of the Free Printing House.

The second book contained his article “Russian Questions” signed “R.C.” (“Russian man”). From this time on, Ogarev became Herzen's closest assistant and ally. Ogarev, who had just arrived from Russia and keenly felt the needs of the Russian public life, and the idea was to publish a new periodical organ in London. This publication was supposed to be published more often than Polar Star, respond to all current events and issues of Russian life, and be convenient for distribution.

A year later, in April 1857, Herzen notified readers with a special leaflet about the publication of “The Bell”: “Events in Russia are moving quickly, they must be caught on the fly and discussed immediately.

For this purpose we are undertaking a new time-based publication. Without determining the release date, we will try to publish one sheet monthly, sometimes two, under the title “Bell”... There is nothing to say about the direction; it is the same one that passes invariably throughout our entire life...

In relation to Russia, we passionately want, with all the strength of our last belief, so that the unnecessary old swags that hinder its mighty development will finally fall away from it.

For this, we now, as in 1855, consider the first necessary, inevitable, urgent step: the liberation of speech from censorship, the liberation of the peasants from the landowners, the liberation of the tax-paying class from beatings.

We appeal to all compatriots who share our love for Russia, and ask them not only to listen to our “Bell”, but also to ring it themselves.” Herzen A.I. Essays. T. 8.- M.: State Publishing House of Fiction, 1958, P.525. How was the Bell delivered to Russia?

One of the first transshipment points was organized in Koenigsberg. Subsequently, Kolokol’s channels of penetration into Russia multiplied. Small in size and thin, the “Bell” easily fit into suitcases with a secret compartment.

Sometimes it was given the appearance of bales of wrapping paper, and then the Bell entered Russia in whole bales. It got to the point that in port cities abroad they used military ships arriving there: they stuffed the barrels of military guns with “Bell.”

Thus, the activities and main directions of Kolokol’s ideological statements corresponded to the practice and goal expressed by Herzen: to be “your free, uncensored speech.”

Herzen arrived in England in 1852, here he intended to spend a little time, and initially the main activity was not the opening of a printing house. But over time, Herzen realized that the best way High-quality and uncensored printing of magazines has an impact on the minds of contemporaries. And it was England that was the most best place to implement initiatives.

Indeed, in contrast to the police restrictions that existed in France, England remained free from such pressure. It was in England that rallies were allowed at that time and many emigrants found refuge in this country. And already in 1853, Herzen announced the beginning of free printing in London and the creation of a free printing house.

The Free Russian Printing House was founded by A.I. Herzen with the assistance of Polish emigrants. In the early years, publications of the Free Russian Printing House were illegally delivered to Russia by Polish emigrants and a few Russian employees of the printing house. From 1856, N.P. became the head of the printing house together with Herzen. Ogarev. They managed to establish two-way communication with their Russian readers and correspondents. Materials from Russia arrived in London in different ways.

Publications of the Free Russian Printing House, especially 1858-63, played a big role in the development of Russian social thought and the Russian liberation movement.

In April 1865, the printing house was transferred to Geneva and soon transferred by Herzen into the ownership of the Pole-emigrant L. Chernetsky, Herzen and Ogarev’s closest assistant in the printing house.

Due to the decline of the revolutionary movement in Russia after 1863 and the intensification of political terror there, due to Herzen’s disagreements with the “young emigration”, the publishing activity of the printing house decreased, and in 1872 it was discontinued.

When undertaking publishing activities in London, Herzen first of all ensures that publications have an appropriate literary base. Back in February 1853, he published an appeal to the Brothers in Rus', in which he announced the founding of “free Russian book printing” and addressed future readers with a request for materials. Moreover, he puts the content of the materials at the forefront. He writes: “Send whatever you want - everything written in the spirit of freedom will be published, from scientific articles and factual articles on statistics and history to novels, stories, poems... If you don’t have anything ready, your own, send the forbidden poems of Pushkin, Ryleev, Lermontov, Polezhaev, Pecherin and others circulating from hand to hand." A. I. Herzen. Collected works in 30 volumes. T.7. - M.: Publishing House of the USSR Academy of Sciences, 1958, P.186.

Poems by Pushkin and Ryleev then circulated from hand to hand in handwritten versions, as did handwritten works in a free spirit and scientific articles that were not published in Russia due to too free interpretations of certain issues.

Thus, designating the circle of names of writers whose works the publisher would like to place in his publications, Herzen thereby emphasizes high demands to the quality of essays.

The publisher sees the goal of creating a free printing house as “... to be your organ, your free, uncensored speech...”. Right there.

The repertoire of the Free Russian Printing House is rich. She played a big role in the publication of books banned in Russia. works of art. Here, for the first time, Pushkin’s poems “Village”, “Message to Siberia”, “To Chaadaev”, his ode “Liberty”, propaganda songs of Ryleev and Bestuzhev, Lermontov’s poem “On the Death of the Poet” were published for the first time. Ryleev's "Dumas" and the collections "Russian Secret Literature" were published as separate publications. XIX century", "Free Russian Songs", Radishchev's book "Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow", works by Ogarev, Herzen ("Interrupted Stories", "Prison and Exile", "Letters from France and Italy", "From the Other Shore", "The Past and thoughts").

The printing house printed many books and materials of a historical nature. Among them" Historical collections"in two books (1859, 1861), six collections about schismatics and the Old Believers, compiled by V. Kelsiev, "Notes of Catherine II", "Notes of Prince E. Dashkova", "Notes of I.V. Lopukhin", "On the Damage to Morals in Russia" by Prince M.M. Shcherbatov. Materials about the life and activities of the Decembrists were widely published. Three editions of "Notes of the Decembrists", the book December 214, 1825 and Emperor Nicholas I were published.

In addition, they published leaflets, proclamations, appeals (for example, the appeals of the populist organization “Land and Freedom” “What do the people need?” “What should the army do?” “Freedom”), brochures for the people. They were written in a language understandable to the people and addressed specific public, social, and political issues. Prokofiev V. Herzen. ZhZL.- M., “Young Guard”, 1979, P.5.

The materials collected for publication - their content and genres - determined the structure of the release of the uncensored press. The main place among them was occupied by periodicals - the almanac "Polar Star", the magazine "Bell", and the collections "Voices from Russia".

Issued a decree “On free printing houses”, which allowed private individuals to engage in publishing activities.

According to the decree, private printing houses could open not only in two capitals - St. Petersburg and Moscow, but also in all cities Russian Empire. By law, printing houses were equated to factories, which allowed private individuals to open book printing houses. The main provision of the decree was permission for everyone to open a printing house of their own free will.

It was allowed “in these printing houses to print books in Russian and foreign languages, not excluding the eastern ones...” At the same time, the law strengthened the role of the police: the Deanery Board now controlled the content of printed materials, prohibited them if they found violations in them (“so that there was nothing in them contrary to the laws of God and civil or to the obvious temptations of those who are inclined to publish”), and confiscated those published without its permission printed products.

Within a few years in St. Petersburg there were about 20private printing houses; The largest among them was the printing house of I. TO. Shnora, which produced over 230publications in Russian. The owners of private printing houses most often became professional book publishers, booksellers, writers (K. V. Miller, I. P. and M. P. Glazunov, P. I. Bogdanovich, I. A. Krylov, I. G. Rachmaninov, A. N. Radishchev and others). The most famous publishing activityN. I. Novikova, who managed several printing houses in Moscow: Universitetskaya, which he rented; own free printing house; printing house organized by the Printing Company; a free printing house owned by Lopukhin; printing house of the secret Masonic lodge.

The main products of private printing houses were fairy tales, adventure novels, dream books, books on home economics, fortune telling books, educational literature. Circulations ranged from 100 to 20thousand copies. The equipment was purchased abroad, the fonts were partially cast in St. Petersburg.

The permission to open free printing houses served as a favorable impetus for the development of education in Russia, however, the state still maintained a rather cumbersome and non-centralized structure of the censorship apparatus.

Decree 1783 the city functioned for thirteen years, in September 1796 Catherine II , faced with the active development of book publishing in the state, the rapid growth in the number of “free printing houses” and “the resulting abuses”, signed a “Decree on limiting the freedom of printing and the import of foreign books, on the establishment of censorship for this end... and on the abolition of private printing houses "

Lit.: Blum A. IN. Publishing activities Russian province of the end XVIII - early XIX V. (Basic thematic areas and censorship-legal situation) // Book. Research and materials. M., 1966. Sat. 12. P. 136-159; Samarin A. Yu. Under what supervision and censorship does book printing take place: printing and censorship in Russia during the Enlightenment // New Literary Review. 2008. N 4. pp. 356-375.

Free printing houses

Since 1802, permission to open free printing houses for private individuals. Authors often self-published their books, and booksellers republished popular books.

Provincial printing houses

1807 decree on the creation of printing houses in the periphery.

Kazan – printing house of oriental languages;

N. Novgorod – printing house at the theater (posters);

Tver – Department of Communications - religious, memorial books, reference books;

Kiev-Pechersk Lavra – Bolkhovitinov – Church Slavonic books (Cyrillic), textbooks, periodicals, calendars (civil script).

Ukraine - Kharkov University - manuals, textbooks; Kyiv - the same; 3 printing houses in Odessa;

Lithuania – joined – Vilnius University, Estonia – publications in German, Estonian; accession Courland – the best printing house of high quality books, calendars, Bibles, secular books.

Decembrists, increased censorship

The massacre of the Decembrists led to increased censorship. In 1826, a “cast iron” censorship charter was issued. In 1828 it was slightly relaxed, but this also makes it difficult to publish books and periodicals. In connection with the revolutionary wave in Western Europe from 1848 to 1855 there was a special tightening of censorship - the “era of censorship terror.”

The magazines Sovremennik (Pushkin) and Otechestvennye zapiski (Kraevsky) are the “rulers of the thoughts” of young people who oppose censorship.

Activities of A.S. Pushkin

The 1930s taught us to appreciate books. Pushkin's activities influenced the development of literature and book publishing. Increase in circulation. Pushkin is the first Russian professional writer. Supported young poets.

Decoration – strict and simple. Title pages are in one or two fonts, the text is in moderate contrast.

“Onegin” (1837), “The History of the Pugachev Rebellion” (1834) - the first book with portrait engravings.

Russian book design

Noble and reserved - Russian classicism. The main method of illustration is in-depth engraving on metal. Copper engraving, pencil style, aquatint. The first place is not decoration and illustration, but a picture related to the content.

The gray cover is replaced with a colored one, the format of the book increases - it becomes larger, the font becomes more compact.

The leading principle is the content, while the appearance of the book fades into the background.