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Anniversary of Yevgeny Tarle, Russian Soviet historian
October 27 (8 November) 1874 in Kiev, in a merchant's family was born a leading specialist on the history of Russia, France and international relations of the end of 18th - beginning of 20th centuries, academician of the Academy of Science of the USSR, honorary member of many foreign historical societies Yevgeny Victorovich Tarle.
After graduation from high school in Kherson in 1892 Yevgeny Tarle entered the History and Philology Department of the Novorossiysk University in Odessa. A year later he transferred from it to the University of Kiev. On the recommendation of Professor I. V. Luchitsky whose workshops Tarle assisted, Yevgeny Victorovich was retained at the university to prepare for a professorship.
Ever since his student age, Tarle showed interest in the issues of social thought. Having become an undergraduate, he established contacts with the first organizations of Kiev Social Democrats. He worked extensively in journals of the revolutionary-democratic color, gave talks at the meetings of the progressive intellectuals of Kiev, participated in discussions, "campaigned among the masses” - workers of Kiev plants.
In May 1900 Yevgeny Tarle was arrested and spent in prison a month and a half, then was sent to the Kherson province and Warsaw being temporarily banned from teaching.
Having defended a master's thesis on analysis of ‘Utopia’ by Thomas Moore, in 1902 Tarle with the assistance of friends got the position of privat-docent at St. Petersburg University and soon became one of the most popular professors.
In 1903-1905 Tarle published articles in "Liberation", an illegal newspaper of the Russian liberals, issued in Germany. On the eve of and during the First Russian Revolution he gave lectures telling about the fall of absolutism in Western Europe and promoting the need for democratic reforms in Russia. According to his political views Tarle belonged to the Mensheviks, among his friends was G. V. Plekhanov, he was a consultant to the Social Democratic group in the 3rd State Duma.
In 1909-1911 was published a fundamental work by Tarle "The working class in France in the era of the revolution". Later he defended this topic at St. Petersburg University as a doctoral dissertation.
After the October Revolution, the scientist stayed in Petrograd: gave lectures, published a lot of his works and edited a historical journal "Annals", continued his research on the history of France and Russia, on the history of international relations. In 1921, Tarle was elected a corresponding member of the Academy of Sciences, and in 1927 – a full member of the Academy. In 1928 at the World Congress of Historians in Oslo Yevgeny Tarle was elected a member of the Historical Sciences International Committee.
In 1930, Tarle was arrested and for over a year and a half had been under investigation for "academic case". In 1931 he was expelled from the members of the Academy of Sciences and sent to exile in Alma-Ata, but in 1932 was pardoned and returned in Moscow.
In the years of 1933-1935 Tarle was reinstated in his professor position, and in 1938 - in the rank of academician, but the charges were not dropped. His monographs "Napoleon" (1936), "Napoleon's invasion to Russia” (1937), "Talleyrand" (1939) have been translated into many languages and made Tarle the most popular Soviet historian.
During the Great Patriotic War were issued two volumes of the fundamental work "The Crimean War" covering the events of 1853-1856 and the heroic defense of Sevastopol.
In the last period of his life the scientist paid much attention to the history of the Russian fleet, and published three monographs on the expeditions of Russian sailors: "The Battle of Chesmen and the first Russian expedition to the Archipelago. 1769-1774"; "Admiral Ushakov at the Mediterranean Sea (1798-1800)"; "The expedition of Admiral D. N. Senyavin to the Mediterranean Sea (1805-1807)”.
Yevgeny Victorovich Tarle died January 6, 1955 and was buried at Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow.
Lit.: Дунаевский В. А., Чапкевич Е. И. Евгений Викторович Тарле: человек в тисках беззакония // Трагические судьбы: репрессированные ученые Академии наук СССР. М., 1995. С. 108-127; Каганович Б. С. Евгений Викторович Тарле и петербургская школа историков. СПб., 1995; Тарле Евгений Викторович [Электронный ресурс] // Российская национальная библиотека. 1998-2016. URL: http://www.nlr.ru/nlr_history/persons/info.php?id=180; Тарле Е. В. Адмирал Ушаков на Средиземном море (1798—1800) // Сочинения. В 12 т. Т. 10. М., 1959. С. 95-227; То же [Электронный ресурс]. URL: http://militera.lib.ru/h/tarle6/index.html; Он же. Крымская война: в 2-х т. М.; Л., 1941-1944; То же [Электронный ресурс]. URL: http://militera.lib.ru/h/tarle3/index.html; Он же. Наполеон. М., 1941; То же [Электронный ресурс]. URL: http://militera.lib.ru/bio/tarle1/index.html; Он же. Нашествие Наполеона на Россию. М., 1941; То же [Электронный ресурс]. URL: http://militera.lib.ru/h/tarle1/index.html; Он же. Северная война и шведское нашествие на Россию // Сочинения. В 12 т. Т. 10. М., 1959. С. 363-841; То же [Электронный ресурс]. URL: http://militera.lib.ru/h/tarle2/index.html; Он же. Чесменский бой и первая русская экспедиция в Архипелаг // Сочинения. В 12 т. Т. 10. М., 1959. С. 11-91; То же [Электронный ресурс]. URL: http://militera.lib.ru/h/tarle4/index.html. Он же. Экспедиция адмирала Сенявина в Средиземное море (1805—1807) // Сочинения. В 12 т. Т. 10. М., 1959. С. 233-362; То же [Электронный ресурс]. URL: http://militera.lib.ru/h/tarle5/index.html.
Based on the Presidential Library’s materials: