Monument to Skobelev in Moscow: the author of the project, the date of construction and the reasons for the demolition. General Skobelev

It is unlikely that there will be a person who is unfamiliar with the exploits of General Mikhail Skobelev. He took part in hostilities in Turkmenistan and the Transcaspian region, for which he was awarded the Order of St. George IV degree. Under his leadership were taken Lovcha, Plevna, Sheinov, opened the road to Istanbul, freed from the Turkish yoke Bulgaria. A talented warlord did not lose a single battle, Skobelev deservedly considered equal in military skill and strategy to Suvorov.

His contribution to the formation of the Russian Empire is difficult to overestimate. He was truly a people's hero and favorite, an excellent commander and strategist with a subtle military approach and respect for his soldiers. The fact that after the tragic death of the general the peasants carried his coffin for twenty versts on the arms to the family estate of the Skobelevs. During his short life, General Skobelev won many battles for the good of the Fatherland, for which he was immortalized in a memorial monument on Tverskaya Street, which, unfortunately, was not destined to stand for long.

Fundraising for the monument

For the first time the installation of a memorial monument to General Skobelev was started in 1907. At the same time, the city did not have the necessary funds to build it. As a result, it was decided to erect a monument to Skobelev in Moscow for folk remedies - voluntary donations of residents. With the permission of the Emperor, the Skobelev Committee began organizing the collection of funds for construction in 1908. General Skobelev, or "White General" - that's how his hero was called among the people for a special faith in his white uniform - was an example of courage and patriotism. Despite the fact that first the donations went at an insignificant rate, two years later, more than 60 thousand rubles were already in the foundation for erecting the monument.

Competition for the best project

Until May 25, 1910, a large-scale competition was held to select the best project. Twenty-seven sculptors took part in it. The jury consisted of six architects and nine military officers, who monitored the accurate display of the commander and the chronology of events. The Commission decided to erect a memorial monument to the project of Peter Alexandrovich Samonov. The winner was a lieutenant colonel in reserve and a self-taught sculptor. Despite this, it was his work "For Tsar and Homeland" that won the first place in the contest, according to the jury. When all the projects were put on public display, the choice of the authorities was met with ambiguity by the residents of the city.

Thus, representatives of the upper class, artists and art workers claimed that the monument is an absolutely tasteless amateur performance, and evil tongues even blamed Samonov for plagiarism, arguing that the idea was based on Vasily Vereshchagin's famous painting "Skobelev under Shipka." But the simple people remember the monument. Only on August 10, 1910, out of 27 proposed variants, the Samonov project was selected and finally approved for construction by the decree of Emperor Nicholas II.

Manufacturing

The casting of the monument, as well as all the bronze, granite and foundation works were entrusted to the St. Petersburg bronze casting plant of A. Moran, in particular to E. P. Gaker. PA Samonov worked without days off, every day, handing out, as far as manufacturing, individual parts to the foundry. Works on the production of the Skobelev monument in Moscow by the author of the project were completed on March 21, 1912. During this time, the sculptor managed to create a horse with its rider, 14 soldiers, 11 bas-reliefs depicting feats of the commander, and 4 lanterns. Just as quickly worked and the plant. In historical chronicles the monument is described in 7 arshins in height and weighing 450 poods.

June 5, 1911 laid the foundation for the future of the monument, the place for which was determined by the Emperor Nicholas II himself, as it also became the subject of controversy. The foundation was laid on Tverskaya Square, although there were offered options for accommodation at Teatralnaya, Lubyanskaya Square and Lubyanka Square. Metropolitan Volodymyr led the procession organized on this occasion, and gave the beginning to laying the foundations, having personally installed the first stone in the foundation.

The opening of the monument to Skobelev in Moscow, 1912

June 24, 1912 was the main celebration. It was held on the occasion of the opening of the monument to General Skobelev. He was located opposite the house of the Governor-General on Tverskaya Square. It was in this connection renamed Skobelevskaya Square.

In Moscow, then, in the morning, the first persons of the city and the country, outstanding cultural figures and all the companions of the hero-general gathered. Sister Skobelev and his nephews also came to the opening. The celebration took place after a procession and a prayer service.

The monument quickly became a favorite place for city residents and visitors. It was near him that all rallies and meetings were organized, and after the outbreak of World War I, patriotic speeches were proclaimed as orators.

Description

The bronze composition of the Skobelev monument in Moscow was a four-meter statue of a rider on horseback, which has two pillars on a pedestal of light gray granite on the hind legs of a horse.

On the sides of General Skobelev were two groups of loyal soldiers. On the left side of the rider were displayed soldiers defending the banner in the Central Asian battle. On the right side, soldiers who fought with the commander for the liberation of the Slavs during the Russo-Turkish War were immortalized. 11 bas-reliefs along the perimeter displayed feats of the commander in the battles of the Green Mountains, Plevna, near Khiva, the assault of Geok-Tepe and other heroic battles. On the other side of the monument there was Skobelev's farewell message given to his soldiers during the Battle of Plevna.

Causes of demolition

The October armed uprising of 1917 fundamentally changed the course of history, priorities and became the answer to the question of why the monument to Skobelev in Moscow was demolished. The monarchist system was replaced with a communist one, which inevitably led to the reformist movements in all sectors throughout Russia.

March 12, 1918, the capital was officially transferred from Petrograd to Moscow. In the already overpopulated and in need of improving housing conditions, the capital planned to relocate about 100,000 employees of the state apparatus along with families. There was also a question about the placement of working classrooms. During the fall events, the Kremlin was significantly destroyed and at that time was under repair. Therefore, it was decided to place the Moscow City Council in the house of the former governor-general, in front of which the monument to the "White General" was erected.

On the basis of the formation of a new reforming government on April 12, 1918, the directive "On the Removal of Monuments erected in Honor of Kings and Their Servants" was adopted. Naturally, the monument to the hero in a white uniform, which was directly in front of the nose of the highest ranks, was included in the list of planned works for dismantling the monuments of the tsarist regime, and Skobelevskaya Square in Moscow was immediately renamed into the Soviet one.

Dismantling of the monument

May 1, 1918, all parts, including bas-reliefs and lanterns, were barbaric sawn, moved to the courtyard of the Moscow City Council, and then sent for remelting. The work was carried out on Lenin's personal instructions from the Guzhon plant, now the Sickle and the Hammer. The pedestal of the Finnish granite did not yield to any influences. At first it was used as an oratorical tribune. Then, on the night of September 11, an unsuccessful attempt was made to blow up the pedestal, which affected the facades of the Mossovet building and the Dresden hotel. For a month the pedestal was exploded in parts, and with the fifth explosion it was completely destroyed. Soon a new trihedral stela with the first Constitution of the USSR was erected at the same place. And in 1954 he was replaced by a monument to Yuri Dolgoruky, similar in construction to the Skobelev monument.

Memory of the hero

Merit of the Russian military historical society in 2014, the monument to Mikhail Skobelev re-located in Moscow. This time before the Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces. An ingenious commander sits on a horse, as in former times, only now on top of an eight-meter granite pedestal. As before, the erection of the monument would have been impossible without voluntary donations. The project was designed and manufactured by sculptor Alexander Rukavishnikov.