Mikhail Vasilievich Lomonosov is one of those historical figures whose contribution to Russian science can hardly be overestimated. The famous scientist never sought to make his family life public, so very little evidence has remained of his attitude to his wife. Even less information can be found about the youngest of the scientist’s daughters, although by the will of fate, Elena Mikhailovna Lomonosova became the only continuer of her kind.
Parents Marriage
If, in 1711, the Pomeranian fisherman Vasily Dorofeevich Lomonosov was told that his newborn son Mikhailo would someday marry the daughter of a Marburg brewer and part-time city warden Heinrich Zilch, he would probably not believe it. However, the fateful meeting of young people nevertheless took place when three students from Russia arrived in Germany to study.
The widow of Tsilkh, Katarina Elizabeth, was constrained by the means and, in order to feed her son and daughter, decided to rent part of the house. She sheltered M.V. Lomonosov, D.I. Vinogradova and G.U. Riser, and young people soon became close to her children. Over time, the woman noticed that the Russian student Mikhail and her daughter Elizabeth were in love with each other, and demanded either to end the relationship or to marry. At the same time, Lomonosov was in a rather difficult situation, since he did not have the means to support his family. In addition, the obstacle was the affiliation of lovers to different faiths. However, there was nowhere to retreat, since in November 1739 the couple had a daughter, Catherine Elizabeth, who was recorded in the documents as illegitimate. Be that as it may, in the summer of 1740, Mikhail Lomonosov married E.K. Tsilkh in the church of the Marburg reform community, and a year later he left for Russia, leaving his wife, pregnant with her second child, to look after her sick mother.
Brothers and sisters
In addition to Catherine Elizabeth, a son Ivan (Yogan) was born to Germany in 1741 in Germany. Elena Mikhailovna never saw her brother and sister, since both of them died before her birth. Ivan Lomonosov lived only a few months and was buried in Marburg, and Catherine Elizabeth died of illness in 1743 immediately after arriving with her mother and uncle Johann Tsilkh in St. Petersburg.
Childhood
Elena Lomonosova, whose parents at that time were already able to officially formalize their relationship in Russia, was born on February 21, 1749 in St. Petersburg, in the Bonovy house on Vasilyevsky Island, in an apartment provided to her father by the Academy of Sciences. When the girl was 8 years old, her family finally acquired her own housing on the Moika. In this house, built on a standard design specifically for Lomonosov, she spent most of her short life.
Apparently, the forever busy father did not devote enough time to the formation of his only daughter. When Elena Mikhailovna Lomonosova grew up a little, then for a long time her teacher was her mother, who learned her German. At the same time, the girl grew up surrounded by her father’s students, who often visited their house, and communication with the most educated people of that time could not but have a beneficial effect on her.
Father's death
Mikhail Vasilievich Lomonosov died in 1765 from pneumonia. His wife, Elizabeth Andreevna, outlived her husband for only a year or so. After the death of her husband, the woman was extremely concerned about the fate of her only daughter. After all, Elena Mikhailovna Lomonosova did not receive a rich inheritance from her father, and she did not have influential relatives. Elizaveta Andreevna herself was often ill and understood that her days were numbered. All her thoughts were about finding a worthy spouse for her daughter, but there were no people who wanted to tie the knot with a dowager.
Wedding
Unexpectedly for all, in the summer of 1766, Elena Mikhailovna Lomonosova (1749) found out from her mother that Aleksey Alekseevich Konstantinov had embraced her. The man was 20 years older than the girl, but Elizaveta Andreevna considered him a good party, since at that time he held the position of personal librarian of Catherine the Second and enjoyed a special arrangement of the empress.
Moreover, the state of health of E. A. Lomonosova worsened every day, therefore already on September 15, 1766 the couple got married. Thus, a month after a modest wedding, Elizaveta Andreevna calmly retreated to another world, being sure that she had arranged the fate of her daughter in the best way.
Marriage
It is unlikely that seventeen-year-old Elena Mikhailovna Lomonosova-Konstantinova had a passionate passion for her husband. However, her short marriage was not unhappy, especially since in the family with her parents she was not accustomed to luxury and rarely visited the palace. For the same reason, Elena Mikhailovna Lomonosova was not bothered by her constant stay at home due to successive pregnancies and worries about children.
Children
For 6 years of marriage, Elena Mikhailovna Lomonosova, whose biography is as short as her life, gave birth to 4 children. Her only son Alex was born a year after the wedding and died at the age of 7 years. In addition, Elena became the mother of three daughters. Of these, the most interesting fate went to Sophia. As for the other two, nothing is known about Catherine (1771-1846) and Anna (1772-1864) Konstantinov. The only thing that can be said about them with certainty is that women did not have offspring.
Children Sofya Alekseevna
All the grandchildren of Elena Mikhailovna were the children of the famous hero of World War II, General Raevsky, whom S.A. Konstantinov married in 1794. In total, she gave birth to two sons and 5 daughters:
- Alexander (1795-1868), who rose to the rank of colonel.
- Catherine (1797-1885, wife of the Decembrist M.F. Orlov, maid of honor).
- Nicholas (1801-1843, the founder of Novorossiysk and a number of fortresses in the North Caucasus).
- Sophia (c. 1802), who died several months old.
- Helen (1803-1852, maid of honor at the court of Nicholas II).
- Mary (1805-1863, wife of S. G. Volkonsky).
- Sophia (1806-1883, maid of honor).
Both grandchildren of Elena Lomonosova became military and distinguished themselves during the years of World War II. No less interesting fate awaited the great-granddaughter of the great scientist - Mary. She not only became one of the museums of Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin, but also showed the world a model of unlimited marital fidelity and devotion, following her husband Sergey Volkonsky to hard labor. By the way, her sister Ekaterina Nikolaevna was also married to one of the participants in the Decembrist Uprising and spent the best years of her life in exile.
Now you know what life Elena Mikhailovna Lomonosova lived. The family of the great scientist led a modest life, so little is known about her. However, it cannot be denied that it was the reliable rear provided by Ekaterina Andreevna and Elena Mikhailovna that enabled MV Lomonosov to become the greatest luminary of Russian science.