Kharkiv and the Golitsyn Princes: What Do We Know About Them?
Perhaps nothing at all. And yet, our beloved city and one of the branches of this great family are bound by long-standing and strong ties. Few people know this, but the name of the Golitsyn princes is inscribed in golden letters in the annals of Kharkiv’s history, and their contribution is invaluable. For many years, they held leadership positions, owned lands and estates in the province, and actively developed industry.
The village of Dolzhik (in the Zolochiv District), after the marriage of Prince Fyodor Grigoryevich Golitsyn (the Kharkiv Provincial Leader of the Nobility) to Maria Mikhailovna Veselovskaya in 1847, became one of the most dazzling diamonds in the majestic crown of the Kharkiv Golitsyns. Many of them were born, lived, and were buried in Dolzhik.
However, the flames of the Civil War completely destroyed the once magnificent Dolzhik estate. What did it look like?
In 1917, G. Lukomsky’s book *Ancient Estates of the Kharkiv Governorate* was published. In 2007, the “Saga” publishing house reissued this book. Lukomsky’s book includes photographs of Dolzhik. However, before the book was published, Lukomsky’s material had already appeared in a magazine in 1916. Realizing that not everyone has the opportunity to see the 1917 or 2007 editions of “Historic Estates of the Kharkiv Governorate,” we are presenting material from the earlier 1916 edition…
DEBT.
The estate of Prince S. D. Golitsyn—in the Kharkiv Governorate and District.
By imperial decrees dated February 23, 1700, and April 13, 1701, the lands of the village of Dolzhik on the Udy River as a hereditary estate for Grigory Erofeevich Zakharzhevsky, nicknamed and officially recognized as “Donets,” for his exploits with the Don Cossacks and his campaigns against the Tatars on the Donets River during the reign of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich.The first building in the village of Dolzhik—a church—was dedicated to St. John the Baptist. The church was originally built in the village square and was moved in 1746 to the estate of Prince Krapotkin. In 1680, the lands of Dolzhik were granted to Grigory Erofeevich Donts; in 1700, they passed to his son, Fyodor Grigoryevich.
In 1724, his daughter Praskeva married Prince Yakov Krapotkin, and in 1746, his daughter, Princess Tatyana Yakovlevna Krapotkina, married Pyotr Andreevich Shcherbinin.
In 1776, their son Dmitry Petrovich Shcherbinin owned Dolzhik; in 1824, his daughter Sofia married Mikhail Stepanovich Veselovsky, and his daughter Maria married Prince Fyodor Grigoryevich Golitsyn; his son (born in 1852), Prince Dmitry Fedorovich, was married to Countess Maria Alexandrovna Sievers.
The large house, as seen from the entrance, has now been slightly altered by the remodeling of the entrance colonnade.
Of course, this detail—the vestibule “glued” to the facade—does not enhance it. The noble overall silhouette of the main facade is adorned with a coat of arms placed on the attic balustrade. Apart from the rustication (very fine, indicative of the early Classicist style) on the side sections of the facade and near the middle window, as well as the window casings, nothing else adorns the house. At the top of the terrace (above the colonnade) there is a charming (though later) Empire-style latticework.
Evidently, the colonnade—with its semicircle in the center—originally looked different. Of course, the spaces between the columns were not glazed (which made the colonnade look so heavy and gave it the appearance of a vestibule), nor was the colonnade “cluttered” with trellises: in their unadorned form, they had a more elegant appearance. But there was a time when it was considered cold and boring to limit oneself to columns as decoration. The once-proud era of love for classicism had passed, and every effort was made to embellish—to “decorate”—the cold, austere, seemingly stark lines of the columns…
The facade facing the park is also somewhat distorted, though to a lesser extent. Here, the foliage wraps so densely around the columns that the architectural composition of the facade is lost—a composition whose entire strength lay precisely in connecting the two strongly projecting sides of the facade with a colonnade. But why be surprised by people from the 1970s and 1980s, when even today—at a time when so much is written about the beauty of the Empire style—we encounter such a low estimation of their own beautiful heritage by the owner of an excellent classical house on the “Isady” estate in Kaluga Province (V. N. Kozhin): “The red house is both faceless and expressionless—just a long chest, and nothing more”…
The Shcherbinins were the builders of this house, which clearly bears the hallmarks of the style of the late and even the second half of the 18th century—that is, not yet Empire, but rather Louis. The current estate was built sometime between 1776 and 1824. It is unlikely that M. S. Veselovsky added much to it. Perhaps only a few outbuildings date from this period—particularly the greenhouses in the typical faux-Gothic style of the era of Nicholas I. The Mauresque-style gazebos can be attributed to the early period of the Golitsyns’ ownership of Dolzhik. The house itself and the original layout of the estate, including the garden and the wall with gates, certainly date no later than the early 19th century.
Meanwhile, this refers to a house with a most elegant portico of columns built of fieldstone, featuring a high pediment with a coat of arms in the center, and the walls of the house—though left in their brickwork—are exquisitely adorned with window frames made of rough-hewn stone in the style of the rusticated frames on the facade of the Konstantinovsky Artillery School. The result is something reminiscent of Dutch Empire style—that is, a rare example of such a distinctive treatment against the backdrop of Russian Classicism. Similarly, in Dolzhik, the colonnade of the garden facade is completely obscured by greenery; only the “slats” of the trellis are visible. At the same time, the owners take pride in another “colonnade” of silvery poplars by the pond, where the trunks of these stately giants form a sort of colonnade… The side facade of the house is lovely: a small colonnade in the style of a portico forms a balcony, and the entire facade is broken up by pilasters. In the tympanum of the pediment is a huge, boldly outlined semicircular window.
A fake spire sits on the roof of the house—it does not rest on a dome or a tent-like structure, but simply on a light wooden rotunda built into the roof. But this somewhat naive and entirely non-functional, artificial ornament leaves a charming impression. Among the estate’s other buildings—as we’ve mentioned—it’s worth noting the very lovely greenhouse and, along the path to the church, a row of barns, which also have a touch of faux Gothic style.
Inside, the house is undoubtedly more opulent. The living room, with windows opening onto the garden, is particularly beautiful. Here, there are loggias behind columns featuring a marvelous painted ceiling. The columns themselves are also ornate.
The somewhat stilted hall features typical Gothic furnishings (albeit from a later period) and family portraits in long, black Gothic frames. The study contains some interesting Ukrainian portraits and a portrait of Prince Krapotkin. In the living room hangs an excellent painting—could it be by Poussin? There are copies of portraits (common copies by Roslen—Paul I and Empress Maria Feodorovna), a portrait of Count Sievers, and others. The staircase is very distinctive, with marvelous balusters on the railing. On the walls of the stairwell are panels painted on gray paper mounted on canvas. The subjects depict horse races set against the backdrop of fantastical parks. The cozy rooms on the mezzanine floor contain many interesting pieces of furniture, porcelain, and other charming items from the past century.
G. Lukomsky.
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