The foundation of Odessa
On the 2nd of September (August, 22 according to the old calendar) 1794, an event took place in Hadjibei settlement far from being a town. Later on this event entered historical chronicles in a large print. The main administrator of the populated area Hose (Joseph Michailovich) Deribas in the presence of the friends – his closest assistant, a military engineer general Francois (Franz Pavlovich) Devolan, the Head of the Russian troops, being stationed in the region and general Grigory Semenovich Volkonsky, took part in the ceremony of laying the foundation stone of the first house in future Odessa. The house was situated in the Risheljevskaya Street, between Deribasovskaya 2nd Lanjeronovskaya streets.
It was nobody else but G. S. Volkonsky, the father of the famous Decembrist, who had received a building permission, so called “open paper” three days before the official date of the town foundation on the 19th of August 1794. The participants of the ceremony lifted luxurious tall glasses filled with good old wine for the prosperity of the future town and port, and then traditionally broke the goblets and a patterned glass [ray with a bottle. 200 years passed and in the process of excavations the scientists of local lore found the archeological rests of the festal procedure: the fragmented goblets, the tray, even a cork and a coin with the empress monogram, as usual laid under the corner of a new house. Now all these finds constitute a separate exposition in the Museum of local lore, reconstructing this old but memorable event.
Here it should be mentioned, that archeological investigations, which in different years look place on the territory of modern Odessa, revealed the signs of several predecessors of the town. So, within the limits of the Primorsky Boulevard opposite to «Londonskaya» hotel near the Vorontsovsky palace, as well as in the Teatralnaya alley by the Town Theater, there were found the traces of an ancient Greek settlement, presumably mentioned by [he ancient authors of Harbor Istrian. According to the version of a famous Odessa historian, professor A.O. Dobrolyubovsky, it was one of the biggest ancient centers in the northern Black Sea side.
The ancient anchors and typical ceramics with glass, point at another predecessor of Odessa – the anchorage of trade and military ships of medieval Italian Republics (Genoa, Venice, Ankon and others). Its name Ginestra appears in the navigation supplies: sailing directions and port documents from the border of XIII-XIV centuries. By the way, the name Ginestra was given to a popular Odessa sports club “Dynamo-Ginestra”, to a choir and an art cafe. Among numerous archeological finds there are quite a lot of those, connected with the nearest predecessor of Odessa, Turkish fortress Hadjbei: ornamented ceramics, coins, branded tobacco-pipes, the fragments of military equipment, ammunition and others.
The Governors of the Town
One should make a reservation, that here the word governor is used not only for officials, but also for the mayors, elected in the municipality. Hose Deribas, undoubtedly one of the most remarkable figures in the history of the town was a many-sided but contradicted person. His father was a Spaniard (in Spanish his name sounds De Rivas), his mother being an irishwoman (according to one of the versions, a Frenchwoman). At the age of 20 young officer Deribas left the Naples army and joined the Russian fleet by the assistance of Count Orlov, the famous favorite of Catherine H . Deribas dreamt of heroic deeds and fame in the spirit of medieval knighthood. And Russia gave him such an opportunity. Deribas fought on land and sea for the country. He was in infantry and cavalry, in rowing flotilla, on a gunboat and so on. His detachments assaulted several Turkish strongholds, including Izmail. Great Byron glorified this heroic deed at Izmail in «Don-Juan», it was also Deribas, who captured Hadjbei. He became its first chief governor and started the building in springing up South Palmyra.
The most incredible rumors and scandals were going round about Deribas. Many powerful people intrigued against him. They said, for example, that Deribas was an immediate and the main participant of the kidnapping of adventuress “Princess Tarakanova”, who called herself a daughter of the empress. Ekaterina Petrovna and who pretended to the Russian throne. He was accused of being an adventurer, of corruption and embezzlement of the town property, of pandering and cheating, of people manipulations and bigamy. But all these charges are destroyed by a serious and not preconceived analysis of the facts and evidences. It goes without saying that Deribas was. by no means, a standard of virtue. He was rather a reckless person, a dashing fellow and a “soldier of luck”. Indeed, Detibas could excellently play cards, he couldn’t always rationally spend money, including town property, he really had an illegitimate son and two legal daughters: Ekaterina and Sophia, both the godchildren of the empress. But our hero was neither bigamist nor card sharper or embezzler of town property.
The whole life of Deribas is full of mysteries. Even the certain date of his birth remains unknown (1749? 1751?), his death (in 1800) being covered with legends about poisoning plot. In any case, it was under his command, when the Turkish fortress Hadjbei was defeated in September 1789. And it was he, the empress minion, who five years later, in spite of his numerous “foes and competitors” intrigues, insisted at the setting up of a seaport at the place, where we see it today. The port was actively developing and temples (St. Helen’s, Alexander Nevsky’s. St. Trinily’s and Nikolai Mirlikiysky’s) where founded due to Deribas. as well as the new houses, trade buildings, the Market and the town council. Finally. Odessa had received its name, so to say, from the hands of Deribas.
Indeed, why do we call our town Odessa? The topic, discussed during several decades, is by the way, not so mysterious, After the Turkish troops and administration leaving the Northern Black Sea side, many antiquity lovers from all European countries rushed there, anxious to contemplate the magnificent ruins of the famous ancient towns. At that time there began the so-called “restoration of antiquity”, a peculiar Renaissance. The towns received their ancient names (Fcodosia. Eupatoria). while the new names imitated those of ancient Greek: Nikopol. Tiraspol, Ovidiopol and others. The name Odessa, in its turn recalled the old name of an ancient town Odess, which was situated not far from the modern Odessa, at the Tiligulsky estuary, Famous ancient authors had mentioned this town: Plinios the Elder, Flavius Arian, Claudius Ptolemy. The works of competent memoir authors testify, that the name ODESSA was proposed to the empress’s consideration and suited 10 her taste. There is no official edict preserved. Probably there was not any, Deribas had sooner received a correspondent direction in oral form, when he stayed in St. Petersburg on the border of 1794-1795, There is a suggestion that in that very time he reported about the ancient Greek vessels and rests of houses, found by builders. In other words, Odessa became the direct heir of the ancient Black Sea side towns.
Fulfilling the duties of the «Chief Governor», formally Deribas was not a governor, for the one simple reason: the borough in Odessa was introduced after his death. Duke, beloved by every inhabitant of Odessa, became the first administrator of this territorial unit. His memorial serves an adornment of the Primorsky Boulevard, Duke’s full name with titles is Duke Armand-Emmanuel-du-Plessi de Richelieu, The legends run, that Richelieu of Odessa was the grandnephew of the famous cardinal, to some extend compromised by Dumas the Father in his novel «Three musketeers». But in reality this chronological distance is a little bit longer. Cardinal Richelieu had really handed down his dukedom to his grandnephew Armand, but not to our Duke. It happened in 1642, while the first Odessa governor was born in 1766. The mentioned Armand was Duke’s great grandfather.
So, why is the personality of the legendary Duke so fascinating? The answer had already sounded in pre revolutionary Russia: «Humanity and high culture level, rarely met among the highest administrative posts of the empire, constituted the essence of Richelieu as an administrator and a man». That explains everything, Richelieu opened Odessa to Europe and to the world. Under his direct guidance there was formed the developed infrastructure of the seaport (including hank – credit and insurance systems). By the end of 1800 it was the biggest point of transit trade between the East and the West. It was Duke, who adjusted grain export, which turned the young town into the world leader in this branch. He invited the agrarian colonists and artisans from Germany, Switzerland, France and other countries and helped them to settle, Odessa became a European city, tax free, with the free port system, prepared also by Duke. Richelieu had spent all his savings on the building of the biggest educational institution in the South – the second (after Tsarskoselsky) Lyceum in the country, which afterwards was named after his patron. It was also Duke, who presented the first Town Theater to Odessa. There performed the best opera troupes of the empire. They say. that immediately after his arrival in Odessa, having no idea of the morals and manners in this region, Richelieu gathered the representatives of local elite by him. Being a punctual man he put. as usual, a silver chronometer on his right hand. In the course of a discussion the candle, which stood on the table, burnt out, and when the room was lit again, the mentioned watch disappeared. Taken aback governor said: “Gentlemen! Somebody seems to have made a mistake or it was an awkward joke. I will put out the candle one more time and when it is lit, I hope, I will find the watch on its place”. The experiment was not quite a success. The watch didn’t materialize, but it wasn’t possible to light the candle again. Because… somebody had dragged away the silver candlestick in the darkness!
Eleven years long (1803-1814) Richelieu occupied a ramshackle one storied building, furnished with trestle beds and stools. His working day lasting 17 hours, he managed alone almost the whole record keeping, and that in four European languages. His money supported a little office. He was fragile fed. Every day Duke rode around the town, talking to everybody, who could give him necessary information, ranks and grades making no difference to him. During the epidemic time 1812, Richelieu personally visited the plague stricken houses, cheering up people. Everybody knew about his passion for laying out parks and gardens in Odessa and its suburbs. The memoirs of old residents contain information about Duke watering with his own hands the young trees in the streets. This episode is connected with another funny story. As it is known. Richelieu possessed a little farm (khutor) on the Water Gorge, later on named Dukovsky garden. Here he planted various seedlings, delivered from abroad. He awoke early in the morning and used to walk around his little gardens and lawns on his way to the town. One day, at dawn, he met a beautiful peasant woman, who had already cropped a decent armful of clover. Moved by such application, Richelieu presented her a silver rouble. After his retelling the story to his steward, the latter became indignant: “During all the summer we are trying to catch this thief, who steals every night something from the field or garden! And you have paid her!”
“The Gardener of Odessa» became afterwards the prime minister of France. After leaving this post he had an intension to go back to the hospitable Black Sea coast. But his death (in 1822) ruined the plan. The Russian emperor declared to the French ambassador: «I am bemoaning Duke Richelieu – the only friend, who told me the truth. He was a specimen of honor and truthfulness». The French Academy commented this sorrowful event in the following way: «He wasn’t impetuous on his way to the good, he could prepare it and wait for it». This expression corresponds exactly to the formula of Duke’s «governing» in Odessa: «Let us avoid too much regulations – the life itself will prompt»
One more person, now wrongly forgotten, occupies an important place among the administrators of Odessa. The Koblevskaya street is the only reminder of “Odessa Scotsman” Thomas Coble. A man of incredible courage, as well as of unparalleled kindness, a member of Russian-Turkish companies. General Coble was one of the first town dwellers. At the beginning of the century before last, he was a military commandant of the town. After Richelieu’s departure Coble became the successor of the latter, during one year fulfilling the duties of Odessa governor up to the Lanjeron’s arrival. Count Lois-Alexander-Andro-de Lanjeron (1763-1831) governed in Odessa from 1815. Like Coble, he followed the beginnings of his friend and predecessor. Richelieu. He realized the idea of a sea port, that is of a free trade . but not tax free, as some dilettantes suppose; the tax was just much lower than in the seaports with the traditional custom regime. By Lanjeron’s assistance, the Noble Educational Institute was elevated into the Richelieu Lyceum. Among the achievements of Lanjeron, as a governor, there are: a spacious Botanic garden, the first regular newspaper, published in French, as well as prosperous Italian Opera, Beginning from Richelieu, the governor of Odessa fulfilled the duties of Hersones military governor. That means, that in fact he governed the whole South, including the Crimea, So, the town had got the status of residence of the “prosecutor” of a vast province and, as a consequence, additional gloss, Lanjieron initiated the division of the mentioned governor’s functions that gave birth to a certain administrative confusion and later on brought to the rivalry of two official systems of different submission. Among his merits one should mention his numerous feats of arms. The Russian Government had attached Lanjeron almost to every European army. He fought even for the USA independence in his youth.
Naivety and childlike absentmindedness of Lanjieron served as a plot to numerous anecdotes. They say, for example, that once, going to his work, he occasionally locked up the emperor Alexander I, who was on a visit in Odessa, and the latter had to stay all day long in the house. But all these curious amusing incidents hadn’t prevented the sympathetic citizens from calling one of the central streets (Lanjeronovskaya) after the governor’s name.
Count, later on Prince Michael Semenovich Vorontsov (1782- 1856) also was not the Head of the town, though he had done much more than some other administrators. Vorontsov was the first, who officially received the post of the governor-general of the Novorosiysky district and that of a plenipotentiary deputy of the Bessarabia region. General Ivan Nikitych Inzov, who in fact governed the district in 1822-1823, had not the post by that time. Vorontsov’s reputation, as a benefactor of Odessa region, was thoroughly compromised in the social consciousness by his role in the liquidation of exile Pushkin out from the town, the whole story of their relationship being viewed as a conflict, in which Vorontsov is described as a bad character. The conflict was explained exclusively by the private antipathy, on the basis of jealousy. In fact, the whole matter was much more complicated. For a long time Vorontsov was in disgrace, as he was considered to be liberal: he was too good to low officials, patronized military officers. It came to absurd. Commanding an expeditionary corps in France, he paid all the officers debts! It was incredible. So, he returns to «serve», occupies a noticeable post, and at that very moment various «free thinker», who were under secret multistaged observation, begin to compromise him. In the papers of the special services Odessa is called a «conspirators nest». That explains the desire to get rid of the “dangerous neighbor”. That’s all.
Meanwhile, the investigators, carried away by the extravagant plot, have somehow overlooked the inexhaustible list of Vorontsov’s “Odessa affairs”. He had set up the first scientific societies, public libraries, museums, adjusted newspapers and calendars editions, book-publishing in whole (including books in Ukrainian!). He opened a number of educational institutions. One of the most significant memorials to Vorontsov is the Town Public library, the first in the province and the second after St. Petersburg in Russia. It was opened in spring, 1830 (the decision was confirmed in 1829), By 1917 its funds constituted 187 thousand units. Nowadays it is one of the leading enlightener-scientific establishment in Ukraine.
Vorontsov’s period is marked by the mass charity and philanthropy movement. There was formed the first philanthropic union – the Women Charity society. By the way, Countess Elisaveta Ksaverjevna Vorontsova, nee Branitskaya (1792-1880) was one of its managers. Memoirs prove that Vorontsov supported any intelligible beginning, He, personally, was searching for initiative, competent executors, defending and supporting them, if they had problems. Besides, Vorontsov was a humanist, constantly pleading for heretics – Tatars, Jews, Karaits. It is enough to mention the first in Russia Jewish fiscal college, which functioned in Odessa with great success.
The memorial to M.S. Vorontsov, placed on the Sobornaya Square, symbolizes his heroic deeds too: in the first turn his victory over Napoleon in the bloody battle by Krayon (1814). One should remember, that «courageous Vorontsov» (a quotation of V.A. Zukovsky) was wounded at Borodino and took part in a number of military companies. He was awarded to all the highest orders and two golden swards with diamonds -«For courage» and «For seizure of Varna». So, though the monuments to Vorontsov and Pushkin are placed at some distance from each other, many citizens of Odessa believe them to be reconciled by the history, which rewarded each of them according to his deserts.
A laconic, but extraordinary important explanation, concerning evolution of Odessa in the first century of its existence should be made here. By the middle of the period between 1810 and 1820 the town became the biggest grain exporter in Europe. That is proved by the fact, that Odessa invested many cities in South Italy and France in the years, when these regions were destroyed by endless Napoleon wars. Uncommonly successful grain trade was developing up to the unfortunate Crimean war, when the port, blockaded from the seaside, stopped the grain export. As a result, the European demand on grain was not satisfied. So, Europe started feverish searches for new suppliers. Before the war end, such trade relations were already established: Canada, America and even colonial India began to provide Europe with grain. Besides these «novices» began to export flour, instead of grain. The former could be more compact placed in the holds, and that was more profitable. To cut it short, Odessa had lost much and was compelled to «change its orientation» following industrialization. The influence of the town self-government in these conditions was constantly growing.
As it was already said; there were three parallel governing structures, functioning in the town, which subordinated to the governor-general, to the Head of the town, and to the town council. The latter, up to 1863, functioned according to the common Russian standard – an old «Letters patent- (something like a town statute), 1785. It was the first document, recognizing the citizens as juridical persona. In the period between 1840-1850 St. Petersburg and Moscow received their exclusive statutes. Then, it was the turn of Odessa, «the third capital of the empire» to pro vide itself with the “Town Statute”, by the assistance of governor-general Count Alexander Grigorievich Stroganov (1795-1891). Beginning from the middle of 1860-1870, the town self government, that is the town council, consisting of two parts (Gorodskaya Duma and Gorodskaya Uprava) begins real changes, in spite of their dependence on the Head of the town. The rank of a Duma’s member and especially of the Head of the town becomes more and more prestigious, effective and influential. Though only more or less propertied citizens had suffrage, those were the very people, who formed the town budget, paying the corresponding taxes. Consequently, these people were in the main turn interested in the prosperity of Southern Palmyra.
Relative democratization nominated at first M.S. Vorontsov’s son. Semen Michailavich, the Head of the town in 1863-1867 to a leader of the town council. The next candidates were N.A. Novoselsky (1867-1878) and G.G. Marazli (1878-1895). both striking representatives of a new generation of “politicians of regional meaning”.
During the years, the town council (Duma) was headed by Nikolai Aleksandrovich Novoselsky (later on a secret councilor, who had made a career also in Northern Palmyra), there began the new essential reforms in the municipal economy and mode of life in Odessa. He had basically transformed the patriarchal town. The typical seaside port with its low houses of (“oriental cut”, closed inner yards and galleries. Turkish coffee-houses, Greek eating houses, little Italian wine vaults; with its market squares, imitating the centers of ancient towns, was gradually growing to a “little Paris”. The former huge grain barns were transformed into profitable houses, hotels and entertainment establishments. Permanent dirty roadways were finally covered with «forged armor». A railway connected the «Odessa Island» with the continent (1865). The waterless town had got the Dniester water main (1873). Later, there appeared a horse-driven railway and a steam tram. Water supply and canalization system, as well as gas lighting were set up not only in the central part of the town, but in the suburbs, too. The number of charity establishments was growing from day to day. Odessa became a town with the best amenities not only in Russia, but also in the whole Europe.
The activity of Odessa town council in this sphere wasn’t less successful during the government of extraordinary popular Grigory Grigorievich Marasli (1831-1907), still remembered by the thankful citizens. This person was really noticeable. The father of the future governor, a wealthy merchant from the continental part of Greece, was one of those grain export pioneers, who had created young Odessa. He had left a large property to his son, Marazli the junior. Grigory Grigorievich graduated the already mentioned Richeljevsky Lyceum, lived long in Paris and was fond of Queen Eugenia, the wife of Napoleon III, of famous Sarah Bernard and other women of fashion. Being an old man, he managed to lead away the wife of the Chairman of Odessa commercial court, Pavel Kych. The row of extravagant freaks hadn’t prevented him from becoming the worthiest mayor. There was not any other such a generous governor in the history of Odessa!
The enumeration of the presents, made by Grigory Grigorivich to the town, could occupy several pages! It is enough to mention, that he had presented to Odessa one of the few palace constructions – a real architectural monument, the former Naryshkin’s house, with spacious services, an underground grotto, supplied with a fountain and so on. There was situated the museum of Fine Arts Society there. Marazli constantly apportioned sizable sums for different projects: for the building of the Town library, folk reading – hall and other folk organizations: for temples, hospitals, orphanages, colleges and others. To say nothing of the private donations, grants, nominal presents, running to hundreds. For instance, the governor could award a bonus at his own expense to a conductor of a horse tramway for polite treatment of passengers, to an advanced pupil or to an industrious gardener.
Marazli even more generously financed “the historical motherland”, Greece, So. he covered the expenses, connected with a school building in his father’s native town Mpopolc; a pedagogical institute, commercial academy and an aquarium in Athens an orphanage on the Corfu Island. The whole Russian classical literature was translated into Greek and edited also at his own expenses, For all that he was a real epicurean, being often accused of a surface embellishment of Odessa, of showing off. Even 1,5 million roubles, spent by the town for the famous Town Theater, which is now one the main sightseeing, not only in Southern Palmyra, but in Ukraine at all, were mentioned there.
By some coincidence, Odessa had luck with the governors. And this is one of the constituents of its cultural phenomenon, being many years long hotly discussed by simpletons and wise men.
