10. Servius Tullius became king thanks to Tanakvil, the wife of Tarquinius the Ancient After becoming king, Andronicus supposedly married Anna, the former wife of the young king Alexios Comnenus.

Wives and mistresses of Stalin. Stalin's own children and adopted son

Not much is known about Stalin's first wife, Ekaterina. And quite a bit the spouses had a chance to live together. Some historians and psychologists believe that Stalin did not like his eldest son Yakov, convinced that it was his birth that undermined the health and strength of poor Kato, untimely bringing her to the grave.

Stalin's first wife - Ekaterina Svanidze

The second time the harsh underground Koba decided to tie the knot after the revolution. His wife was Nadezhda Alliluyeva, the daughter of his old friends, to whom Stalin wrote as cheerful letters as possible even from Turukhansk exile.

For Olga Evgenievna.

I am very, very grateful to you, dear Olga Evgenievna, for your kind and pure feelings for me. I will never forget your caring attitude towards me! I am waiting for the moment when I will be released from exile and, having arrived in St. Petersburg, I will personally thank you, as well as Sergey, for everything. After all, I only have two years left.

I've received the parcel. Thanks to. I ask only one thing - do not spend more on me: you yourself need the money. I will be pleased if you send from time to time open letters with views of nature and so on. In this accursed region, nature is scarce to the point of ugliness - in the summer the river, in the winter the snow, that's all that nature gives here - and I foolishly yearned for the views of nature, even on paper.

My regards guys and girls. I wish them all the best.

I live like before. I feel good. He is quite healthy - he must be used to the local nature. And our nature is harsh: three weeks ago, the frost reached 45 degrees.

Until the next letter.

S. Rybas, talking about the defense of Tsaritsyn and Stalin's ruthlessness at that time, notes: “His loneliness was brightened up by his seventeen-year-old wife Nadezhda, he got married to her in a civil marriage in March, just on the eve of the Council of People's Commissars moving to Moscow. (They will register the marriage only after a year.)

Hope had a strong character, Stalin was not as easy with her as it might seem at first glance. She and her husband were connected not only by childhood and girlish impressions of a romantic hero who often appeared in her parents’ apartment, but also by an almost mystical connection: he saved her life when, as a small child, she fell off the embankment in Baku and almost drowned: Koba threw himself into the sea and pulled him out. Her saved life was partly his now.

In Tsaritsyn, Nadezhda worked in Stalin's secretariat and saw to the smallest detail his daily cruel work. In relation to the case, their views completely coincided.

Finally, the civil war ended and it became possible to equip not a camping, but an ordinary life. There is a lot of evidence that Stalin really liked the role of the head of the family. Nadezhda gave birth to her husband two children - son Vasily in 1921 and daughter Svetlana five years later.

“In the Kremlin, at the Trinity Gate, in house 2 on Kommunisticheskaya Street, the Stalin family occupied a small apartment, where all the rooms were walk-throughs,” Rybas reconstructs the life of the leader. - It is curious that in the hallway there was a tub of pickles, the owner loved them. Vasily and Artem (Stalin's adopted son, Artem Fedorovich Sergeev.) lived in the same room, the eldest son Yakov lived in the dining room. Stalin did not have his own workplace there. The furniture here was simple, the food too.”

Stalin with Nadezhda Alliluyeva

Stalin with his daughter Svetlana

Simple food was served according to an established ritual, which the whole family willingly obeyed: “Dinner was unchanged. At first, the cook Annushka Albukhina solemnly placed a tureen in the center of the table, in which, day after day, there were the same grubs - cabbage soup with cabbage and boiled meat. And for the first - cabbage soup, and for the second - boiled meat. For dessert - sweet, juicy fruits. Iosif Vissarionovich and Nadezhda Sergeevna drank Caucasian wine at dinner: Stalin respected this drink. But the real holiday for the children were those rare cases when the grandmother, Stalin's mother, sent jam from sunny Georgia from walnuts. The owner of the house came home, put the parcel on the dining table, took out liter jars of delicacy: “Here, our grandmother sent this.” And he smiled into his mustache.

Nadezhda Sergeevna worked in the editorial office of the Revolution and Culture magazine attached to the Pravda newspaper, and in 1929 she began studying at the textile faculty.

The nephew of Stalin's wife, V.F. Alliluyev, claimed that his aunt had a complex character - she was quick-tempered, jealous of her husband and demanded constant attention from him, which Stalin, busy with party and state affairs, of course, could not give her. In addition, she suffered from frequent migraines, the reason for which many relatives and friends called the wrong structure of the bones of the skull. “Apparently, a difficult childhood was not in vain, Nadezhda developed a serious illness - ossification of the cranial sutures. The disease began to progress, accompanied by depression and headache attacks. All this had a noticeable effect on her mental state. She even went to Germany for a consultation with leading German neurologists… Nadezhda threatened to commit suicide more than once.” Although migraines and depression can be the result of both increased susceptibility and nervous overstrain ...

And with all this, the nephew of the leader's wife testifies that in the relationship between Stalin and his wife there was both sincerity and warmth. “... Once, after a party at the Industrial Academy, where Nadezhda studied, she came home completely ill from the fact that she drank some wine, she became ill. Stalin put her to bed, began to console her, and Nadezhda said: “But you still love me a little.” This phrase of hers, apparently, is the key to understanding the relationship between these two close people. Our family knew that Nadezhda and Stalin loved each other.”

Indeed, the correspondence between them reveals a warm relationship. These are the letters they exchanged in the autumn of 1930, when Stalin was vacationing in the south.

Got a letter. Books too. English self-instruction manual of Moscow (according to the Rosenthal method) I did not find here. Look well and come. I have already started my dental treatment. They removed the unusable tooth, grind the side teeth, and, in general, the work is in full swing. The doctor is thinking of finishing all my dental work by the end of September. I haven't gone anywhere and don't plan to go anywhere. I feel better. I'm definitely getting better. I send you lemons. You will need them. How are things with Vaska, Satanka?

Kisses hard, a lot, a lot. Your Joseph.

Hello Joseph!

Received a letter. Thank you for the lemons, of course, come in handy. We live well, but quite already in winter - tonight it was minus 7 Celsius. In the morning all the roofs were completely white with frost. It is very good that you bask in the sun and treat your teeth. In general, Moscow is all noisy, knocking, torn, etc., but all the same, everything is gradually getting better. The mood of the public (in trams and other public places) is tolerable - buzzing, but not evil. All of us in Moscow were amused by the arrival of the Zeppelin (the Rigid Airship Graf Zeppelin flew to Moscow on September 10, 1930): the spectacle was indeed worthy of attention. All Moscow stared at this wonderful car. Regarding the poet Demyan, everyone whined that he donated little, we deducted one-day earnings. I saw the new opera "Almas", where Maksakova absolutely exclusively danced the Lezginka (Armenian), I have not seen a dance so artistically performed for a long time. I think you will like the dance very much, and the opera too. Yes, nevertheless, no matter how I searched for your copy of the textbook, I did not find it, I am sending another copy. Don't worry, I couldn't find it anywhere. In Zubalovo, the steam heating is already working, and in general everything is in order, obviously, they will finish soon. On the day the Zeppelin arrived, Vasya rode a bicycle from the Kremlin to the airfield across the city. He coped well, but, of course, he was tired. You are very smart not to travel around, it is risky in every way.

Kiss you. Nadia.

Hello Joseph!

How is your health? Comrades who arrived (Ukhanov and someone else) say that you look very bad and feel yourself. I know that you are getting better (this is from letters). On this occasion, the Molotovs attacked me with reproaches, how could I leave you alone and the like, in fact, completely fair things. I explained my departure by occupations, but in essence, this, of course, is not so. This summer, I did not feel that you would be pleased with the extension of my departure, but vice versa. Last summer it was very felt, but this is not. Of course, there was no point in remaining in such a mood, since this already changes the whole meaning and benefit of my stay. And I think that I did not deserve reproaches, but in their understanding, of course, yes. The other day I was at the Molotovs, at his suggestion, to get information. This is very good. Because otherwise I only know what is in print. In general, there is little pleasant. As for your arrival, Abel says t. t., I didn’t see him, that you will return at the end of October; are you going to sit there for that long? Answer, if you are not very dissatisfied with my letter, but by the way, as you wish.

Good luck. Kiss. Nadia.

Received a package from you. I am sending you peaches from our tree. I am healthy and feel the best. It is possible that Ukhanov saw me on the very day when Shapiro sharpened eight (8!) of my teeth at once, and my mood was then, perhaps, unimportant. But this episode has nothing to do with my health, which I consider to have recovered radically. Only people who do not know the business can reproach you for taking care of me. In this case, the Molotovs turned out to be such people. Tell the Molotovs for me that they made a mistake about you and committed injustice. As for your assumption about the undesirability of your stay in Sochi, then your reproaches are just as unfair as the reproaches of the Molotovs about you are unfair. Yes, Tatka. I will arrive, of course, not at the end of October, but much earlier, in mid-October, as I told you in Sochi. In the form of conspiracy, I started a rumor through Poskrebyshev that I could only come at the end of October. Abel, apparently, fell victim to such a rumor. I don't want you to call about it. Tatka, Molotov and, it seems, Sergo know about the date of my arrival. Well, all the best.

Kisses hard and a lot. Your Joseph.

P.S. How are the guys?

Hello Joseph!

Once again I start with the same - I received a letter. I'm glad you're doing well in the southern sun. It’s not bad in Moscow now either, the weather has improved, but there is a certain autumn in the forest. The day goes by quickly. As long as everyone is healthy. Well done for eight teeth. I compete with my throat, Professor Sverzhevsky performed an operation on me, cut out 4 pieces of meat, I had to lie down for four days, and now I can say that I have come out of a complete repair. I feel good, I even got better while lying with my throat. The peaches were amazing. Is it from that tree? They are remarkably beautiful. Now, with all your reluctance, you will soon have to return to Moscow, we are waiting for you, but we are not in a hurry, have a better rest.

Hello. Kiss you. Nadia.

P.S. Yes, Kaganovich was very pleased with the apartment and took it. In general, I was touched by your attention. Just returned from the conference of drummers, where Kaganovich spoke. Very good, as well as Yaroslavsky. After there was "Carmen" - under the direction of Golovanov, wonderful. ON THE.

…Something from you no news lately. I asked Dvinsky about the mail, he said that he had not been there for a long time. Probably, the trip to the quail carried away or just too lazy to write. And in Moscow there is already a snow blizzard. Now it's spinning all over. In general, the weather is very strange, cold. Poor Muscovites will feel cold, because until 15.X. Moskvotop gave the order not to drown. Patients are invisible. We are engaged in a coat, because otherwise you have to tremble all the time. In general, things are going well for me. I feel very good too. In a word, now I have already passed the fatigue from my "round the world" trip, and in general, the affairs that caused all this fuss also gave a sharp improvement. I heard about you from an interesting young woman that you look great, she saw you at Kalinin's at dinner, which was wonderfully cheerful and disturbed everyone, embarrassed by your person. I am very happy. Well, don't be angry for the stupid letter, but I don't know if you should write in Sochi about boring things, which, unfortunately, are enough in Moscow life. Get well soon. Good luck. Kiss. Nadia.

P.S. Zubalovo is absolutely ready, it turned out very, very well.

Got your letter. You've been praising me lately. What does it mean? Good or bad? I have no news, unfortunately. I live well, I expect the best. We've got bad weather here, damn it. I'll have to flee to Moscow. You're hinting at some of my trips. I inform you that I have not gone anywhere (absolutely anywhere!) and I am not going to go.

Kisses a lot, hard, a lot. Your Joseph.

Quite a few such letters have been preserved, sometimes with touching postscripts from children to “daddy”. Stalin's adopted son, Artem Sergeev, recalled that Iosif Vissarionovich did not cause any fear in the children and was very calm about the inevitable pranks. Once Artyom managed to pour tobacco into a tureen. When Stalin tried the resulting muck, he began to find out who had done it. And he said to Artyom: “Have you tried it yourself? Try. If you like it, go to Karolina Georgievna, so that she always adds tobacco to cabbage soup. And if you don't like it, don't do it again!"

And Zubalovo, about which Nadezhda writes, is the favorite country house of the leader. “In 1919, Stalin occupied an empty red-brick house with Gothic turrets, surrounded by a two-meter brick fence,” Rybas writes. - The dacha was two-story, Stalin's office and bedroom were on the second floor. On the first floor there were two more bedrooms, a dining room and a large veranda. About thirty meters from the house there was an office building, where the kitchen, garage, security room were located. From there, a covered gallery led to the main building.

Numerous relatives lived in Stalin's house - the elder Alliluyevs, their children and other relatives with their children and household members. Party comrades came to visit. Svetlana later said that this family home circle allowed her father to have a constant source of "incorruptible impartial information." But above all, he rested in this circle with his soul and simply enjoyed life.

I. Stalin, Svetlana and L. Beria in country house leader

“Our estate was transformed endlessly,” Svetlana recalled. - Father immediately cleared the forest around the house, cut down half of it - clearings formed; became lighter, warmer and drier. The forest was cleared, followed, raked a dry leaf in the spring. In front of the house was a wonderful, transparent, all white young birch grove, where we children always picked mushrooms. An apiary was set up nearby, and next to it, two clearings were sown every summer with buckwheat for honey. The areas left around the pine forest - slender, dry - were also carefully cleaned; strawberries and blueberries grew there, and the air was somehow especially fresh and fragrant. It was only later, when I became an adult, that I understood this peculiar interest of my father in nature, a practical interest, fundamentally deeply peasant. He could not simply contemplate nature, he had to manage in it, to forever transform something. Large areas were planted with fruit trees, strawberries, raspberries, and currants were planted in abundance. At a distance from the house, they fenced off a small clearing with bushes with nets and bred pheasants, guinea fowls, turkeys there; ducks swam in a small pool. All this did not arise immediately, but gradually blossomed and grew, and we, the children, grew up, in essence, in the conditions of a small landowner's estate, with its village life - mowing hay, picking mushrooms and berries, with fresh annual "our" honey, " their" pickles and marinades, "their" bird.

True, all this household was more occupied by the father than by the mother. Mom only made sure that huge lilac bushes bloomed near the house in spring, and planted a whole avenue of jasmine near the balcony. And I had my own little garden, where my nanny taught me to dig in the ground, plant seeds of nasturtiums and marigolds.

But back in 1928, the first thunderstorm broke out over Stalin's cozy family world. The eldest son Yakov, raised by the sister of the deceased mother, was at that time a student at the Institute of Transport Engineers. And suddenly he passionately fell in love, decided to marry a girl named Zoya Gunina. Not only Stalin was against it, but all the relatives: first you need to finish your studies. “... The father of this marriage did not approve, but Yakov acted in his own way, which caused a quarrel between them,” Svetlana recalled.

Jacob tried to shoot himself...

An angry Stalin wrote to Nadezhda: “Tell Yasha from me that he acted like a hooligan and blackmailer, with whom I have and cannot have anything in common. Let him live where he wants and with whom he wants.

On November 7, 1932, Nadezhda Sergeevna appeared in public for the last time. N. Khrushchev, her classmate, recalled this: “Nadya Alliluyeva was next to me, we talked. It was cold. Stalin at the Mausoleum, as always, in an overcoat. The hooks of the overcoat were unbuttoned, the floors swung open. A strong wind blew. Nadezhda Sergeevna glanced at her and said: “Here’s mine, he didn’t take a scarf, he’ll catch a cold, and we’ll get sick again.” It turned out very homely and did not fit in with the idea of ​​​​Stalin, the leader, who had already grown into our consciousness ... "

On the night of November 9, Nadezhda Alliluyeva shot herself. Khrushchev would later say: “She died under mysterious circumstances. But no matter how she died, some actions of Stalin were the cause of her death ... There was even a rumor that Stalin shot Nadya ... "

Moreover, in the era of the exposure of the cult, there were even witnesses of the last minutes of Nadezhda's life, to whom she allegedly managed to tell who pulled the trigger, and conjured to keep it a secret ...

According to Svetlana's memoirs, there was a quarrel between her parents at a festive banquet in honor of the 15th anniversary of October. Stalin threw Nadezhda: “Hey, you! Drink!” And she exclaimed: “I don’t hey!” and ran out from the table. She was not seen again.

The body of Nadezhda Sergeevna was discovered in the morning by the housekeeper Karolina Vasilievna Til - Stalin's wife was covered in blood on the floor near the bed, and a small “Walter”, once presented to her by her brother, was clutched in her hand. The frightened housekeeper called the nanny, together they called the head of security, followed by Molotov and his wife, Voroshilov, Yenukidze ... Stalin came out to the noise and heard: “Joseph, Nadia is no longer with us ...”

The head of security, General N. S. Vlasik, recalled: “Stalin's wife, Nadezhda Sergeevna Alliluyeva, a modest woman, rarely made any requests, dressed modestly, unlike the wives of many responsible workers. She studied at the Industrial Academy and paid much attention to children ... In 1932, she died tragically. Joseph Vissarionovich deeply experienced the loss of his wife and friend. The children were still small, Comrade Stalin could not pay much attention to them due to his employment. I had to transfer the upbringing and care of the children to Karolina Vasilievna. She was a cultured woman, sincerely attached to children.”

Trotsky explained the death of Nadezhda as follows: “On November 9, 1932, Alliluyeva died suddenly. She was only 30 years old. As for the reasons for her unexpected death, the Soviet newspapers were silent. In Moscow, they whispered that she shot herself, and talked about the reason. At the evening at Voroshilov's, in the presence of all the nobles, she allowed herself a critical remark about the peasant policy that led to famine in the countryside. Stalin loudly responded to her with the most rude abuse that exists in the Russian language. The Kremlin servants drew attention to the excited state of Alliluyeva when she returned to her apartment. After a while, a shot rang out from her room. Stalin received many expressions of sympathy and moved on to the agenda.

Khrushchev in his memoirs calls jealousy the main reason: “We buried Alliluyeva. Stalin looked sad as he stood at her grave. I do not know what was in his soul, but outwardly he mourned. After Stalin's death, I learned the story of Alliluyeva's death. Of course, this story is not documented in any way. Vlasik, Stalin's head of security, said that after the parade everyone went to dine with the military commissar Kliment Voroshilov in his large apartment. After parades and other similar events, everyone usually went to Voroshilov for dinner.

The parade commander and some members of the Politburo went there directly from Red Square. Everyone drank, as usual on such occasions. Finally, everyone dispersed. Stalin also left. But he didn't go home. It was too late. Who knows what time it was. Nadezhda Sergeevna began to worry. She began looking for him, calling one of the dachas. And she asked the duty officer if Stalin was there. “Yes,” he replied. “Comrade Stalin is here.” - "Who is with him?" - He replied that a woman was with him, called her name. It was the wife of a military man, Gusev, who was also at that dinner. When Stalin left, he took her with him. I was told that she is very beautiful. And Stalin slept with her at this dacha, and Alliluyeva learned about it from the officer on duty.

In the morning - when, I don’t know for sure - Stalin arrived home, but Nadezhda Sergeevna was no longer alive. She didn't leave any note, and if there was a note, we were never told about it."

“Stalin's wife shot herself,” testified Artem Sergeev. I was 11 years old when she passed away. She had wild headaches. On November 7, she brought Vasily and me to the parade. Twenty minutes later she left - she could not stand it. She appears to have had a malalignment of the cranial bones, and suicide is not uncommon in such cases. The tragedy occurred the next day, November 8th. After the parade, Vasya and I wanted to go out of town. Stalin and his wife were visiting Voroshilov. She left the guests early and headed home. She was accompanied by Molotov's wife. They made two circles around the Kremlin, and Nadezhda Sergeevna went to her room.

She had a tiny bedroom. She came and went to bed. Stalin came later. Lie down on the sofa. In the morning Nadezhda Sergeevna did not get up for a long time. Went to wake her up and saw her dead.”

On November 11, 1932, the funeral of Nadezhda Alliluyeva took place in Moscow. Farewell took place in one of the halls of GUM. According to the memoirs of the adopted son of the leader Artem Sergeyev, Stalin then, without hiding, sobbed. Subsequently, he said: “She crippled me for life ...” Stalin's wife was buried at the Novodevichy cemetery.

On November 18, 1932, a letter from Stalin was published in the Pravda newspaper: “I offer my heartfelt thanks to organizations, institutions, comrades and individuals who expressed their condolences on the death of my close friend and comrade Nadezhda Sergeevna Alliluyeva-Stalina.” Condolences to the Soviet leader were expressed by the wives of other leaders of the country - E. Voroshilova, P. Zhemchuzhina, Z. Ordzhonikidze, D. Khazan, M. Kaganovich, T. Postysheva, A. Mikoyan, as well as the leaders themselves - B. Molotov, S. Ordzhonikidze, V. Kuibyshev, M. Kalinin, L. Kaganovich, P. Postyshev, A. Andreev, S. Kirov, A. Mikoyan and A. Yenukidze. A special obituary was sent by students of the Industrial Academy, where Nadezhda studied, N. Khrushchev was among the signatories.

On March 24, 1933, Stalin wrote a letter to his mother: “Hello, my mother! I received your letter. I also received jam, churchkheli, figs. The children were very happy and send you thanks and greetings. It's nice that you feel good, cheerful. I'm healthy, don't worry about me. I'll take my share. I don't know if you need money or not. Just in case, I am sending you five hundred rubles. I also send photographs of myself and my children. Be healthy, my mother. Don't lose your spirits. Kiss. Your son Soso. Children bow to you. After the death of Nadia, of course, my personal life is harder, but nothing, a courageous person must always remain courageous.

Muscovites considered the sculpture on the roof of house No. 17 on Tverskaya Street to be the image of the ballerina Lepeshinskaya, installed by order of Beria

Regarding the personal life of Stalin after the death of Alliluyeva, there are different opinions. Bodyguard A. Rybin stated: “In moral terms, the leader was pure like no other. After the death of his wife, he lived as a monk. Similarly spoke about the life of Stalin and Molotov.

Although, according to L. Gendlin's sensational book "Confessions of Stalin's mistress", the iron Koba by no means denied himself carnal pleasures. The text of "Confession..." is presented as a fictionalized memoir of the opera singer V. Davydova (The actress's relatives characterize the book as a fake.), soloist of the Bolshoi Theater. According to these peculiar memoirs, she became the mistress of the leader immediately after the death of Nadezhda Sergeevna and this relationship continued until Stalin's death. At the same time, other women constantly appeared at the leader, either famous actresses, or even simple waitresses. Relations between the rivals were openly hostile, but they were ready to unite for the sake of hatred for the one that the leader favored the most:

“After the performance “Quiet Don”, I went to the buffet to drink a glass of tea. Stalin's retired mistresses had dinner there: Barsova, Shpiller, Zlatogorova, Lepeshinskaya. Passing by my table, Bronislava Zlatogorova deliberately touched the tablecloth, the dishes with hot food collapsed on the floor. I didn't get burned by accident. The women laughed.

“We, Verochka, will still get you out of the Bolshoi Theater,” Barsova, short-legged fat woman, said bitterly.

- Leave me alone!

Women were united by hatred.

- You can complain to the mustachioed dad! Lelechka Lepeshinskaya shouted hysterically.

- Mare, how much does I.V. pay you for each visit? Shpiller screeched.

The life of the Soviet elite appears in "Confession ..." as a continuous series of orgies. Stalin's mistress all the time has to escape from the harassment of other people's commissars, or even give in to them so that they are not slandered, arrested ... And she is also regularly taken to attend the cruel interrogations of "enemies of the people", including those who have recently achieved, successfully or not, the favors of a beautiful opera prima.

“In Moscow, at the Leningradsky railway station, I was met by the gloomy Poskrebyshev, gray with anger ... Savoring every word, he joyfully said:

- By the verdict of the Military Collegium, the traitor Tukhachevsky was shot.

I staggered. Strangers, Poskrebyshev with the guards, put me on a bench. Nobody wanted to spare Stalin's mistress. They all needed me only for the bed ...

“In the morning you should be at I.V.’s dacha.”

There is also an opinion that the leader's bed was warmed by the housekeeper Valentina, who worked at the dacha in Kuntsevo.

HOPE ALLILUEVA

CORRESPONDENCE WITH WIFE

1930 Comrade Stalin is awarded the second Order of the Red Banner for his great services on the front of socialist construction. And, indeed, his merits are truly enormous. The course towards collectivization is being successfully carried out Agriculture and industrialization: from April to June, the Mariupol Metallurgical Plant was launched, traffic was opened along the Turkestan-Siberian Railway (Turksib), the construction of the giant Rostselmash plant was completed, and the largest Stalingrad Tractor Plant named after F.E. Dzerzhinsky.

After holding the XVI Congress of the CPSU (b), I.V. Stalin, as usual, went south to Sochi, where he rested and received treatment. From here, the leader regularly wrote to Moscow, his wife Nadezhda Sergeevna Alliluyeva. Letters are the most reliable human document. What did the leader and his wife write to each other about? Let's take a look at some of the letters.

I.V. Stalin N.S. Alliluyeva

"Tatka!

Got a letter. Books too. English self-instruction manual of Moscow (according to the Rosenthal method) I did not find here. Look well and come.

I have already started my dental treatment. They removed an unusable tooth, grind the side teeth, and, in general, the work is in full swing. The doctor is thinking of finishing all my dental work by the end of September.

I haven't gone anywhere and don't plan to go anywhere. I feel better. I'm definitely getting better.

I send you lemons. You will need them.

How are things with Vaska, Satanka?

Kisses hard, a lot, a lot.

Your Joseph".

N.S. Alliluyeva I.V. Stalin

“Hello, Joseph!

Received a letter. Thank you for the lemons, of course, come in handy. We live well, but quite already in winter - tonight it was minus 7 Celsius. In the morning all the roofs were completely white with frost. It is very good that you bask in the sun and treat your teeth. In general, Moscow is all noisy, knocking, torn up, etc., but all the same, everything is gradually getting better. The mood of the public (in trams and other public places) is tolerable - buzzing, but not evil. All of us in Moscow were entertained by the arrival of the Zeppelin: the spectacle was really worthy of attention. All Moscow stared at this wonderful car.

Regarding the poet Demyan, everyone whined that he donated little, we deducted one-day earnings.

I saw the new opera "Almas", where Maksakova absolutely exclusively danced the Lezginka (Armenian), I have not seen a dance so artistically performed for a long time.

I think you will like the dance very much, and the opera too.

Yes, nevertheless, no matter how I searched for your copy of the textbook, I did not find it, I am sending another copy. Don't worry, I couldn't find it anywhere. In Zubalovo, the steam heating is already working, and in general everything is in order, obviously, they will finish it soon. On the day the Zeppelin arrived, Vasya rode a bicycle from the Kremlin to the airfield across the city. He coped well, but, of course, he was tired.

You are very smart not to travel around, it is risky in every way.

Kiss you.

Nadia".

N.S. Alliluyeva I.V. Stalin

“Hello, Joseph!

How is your health? Arriving t.t. (Ukhanov and someone else) say that you look and feel very bad. I know that you are getting better (this is from letters). On this occasion, the Molotovs attacked me with reproaches, how could I leave you alone and similar, in fact, completely fair things. I explained my departure by occupations, but in essence this, of course, is not so. This summer, I did not feel that you would be pleased with the extension of my departure, but vice versa. Last summer it was very felt, but this is not. Of course, there was no point in remaining in such a mood, because it already changes the whole meaning and benefit of my stay. And I think that I did not deserve reproaches, but in their understanding, of course, yes.

The other day I was at the Molotovs, at his suggestion, to get information. This is very good. Because otherwise I only know what is in print. In general, there is little pleasant. As for your arrival, Abel says comrade, I did not see him, that you will return at the end of October; are you going to sit there for that long?

Answer if you are not very dissatisfied with my letter, but, by the way, as you wish.

Good luck. Kiss.

Nadia".

I.V. Stalin N.S. Alliluyeva

“Tatka!

Received a package from you. I am sending you peaches from our tree.

I am healthy and feel the best. It is possible that Ukhanov saw me on the very day when Shapiro sharpened eight (8!) of my teeth at once, and my mood was then, perhaps, unimportant. But this episode has nothing to do with my health, which I consider to have recovered radically.

Only people who do not know the business can reproach you for taking care of me. In this case, the Molotovs turned out to be such people. Tell the Molotovs for me that they made a mistake about you and committed injustice. As for your assumption about the undesirability of your stay in Sochi, then your reproaches are as unfair as the reproaches of the Molotovs about you are unfair. Yes, Tatka.

I will arrive, of course, not at the end of October, but much earlier, in mid-October, as I told you in Sochi. In the form of conspiracy, I started a rumor through Poskrebyshev that I could only come at the end of October. Abel, apparently, fell victim to such a rumor. I don't want you to call about it. Tatka, Molotov and, it seems, Sergo know about the date of my arrival.

Well, all the best.

Kisses hard and a lot.

P.S. How are the guys? Your Joseph.

N.S. Alliluyeva I.V. Stalin

« Hello Joseph!

Once again I start with the same - I received a letter. I'm glad you're doing well in the southern sun. It’s not bad in Moscow now either, the weather has improved, but there is a certain autumn in the forest. The day goes by quickly. As long as everyone is healthy. Well done for eight teeth. I compete with my throat, Professor Sverzhevsky performed an operation on me, cut out 4 pieces of meat, I had to lie down for four days, and now I can say that I have come out of a complete repair. I feel good, I even got better while lying with my throat.

The peaches were amazing. Is it from that tree? They are remarkably beautiful. Now, with all your reluctance, you will soon have to return to Moscow, we are waiting for you, but we are not in a hurry, have a better rest.

Hello. Kiss you.

Nadia.

P.S. Yes, Kaganovich was very pleased with the apartment and took it. In general, I was touched by your attention. Just returned from the conference of drummers, where Kaganovich spoke. Very good, as well as Yaroslavsky. After there was "Carmen" - under the direction of Golovanov, wonderful.

ON THE.".

N.S. Alliluyeva I.V. Stalin

“Something from you no news lately. I asked Dvinsky about the mail, he said that he had not been there for a long time. Probably, the trip to the quail carried away, or just too lazy to write.

And in Moscow there is already a snow blizzard. Now it's spinning all over. In general, the weather is very strange, cold. Poor Muscovites will feel cold, because until 15.X. Moskvotop gave the order not to drown. Patients are visible - invisible. We are engaged in a coat, because otherwise you have to tremble all the time. In general, things are going well for me. I feel very good too. In a word, now I have already passed the fatigue from my "round the world" trip, and in general, the affairs that caused all this fuss also gave a sharp improvement.

I heard about you from an interesting young woman that you look great, she saw you at Kalinin's at dinner, which was wonderfully cheerful and disturbed everyone who was embarrassed by your person. I am very happy.

Well, don't be angry for the stupid letter, but I don't know if you should write in Sochi about boring things, which, unfortunately, are enough in Moscow life. Get well soon. Good luck.

Kiss.

Nadia.

P.S. . Zubalovo is absolutely ready, it turned out very, very well ».

I.V. Stalin N.S. Alliluyeva

“Tatka!

I received your letter.

You've been praising me lately.

What does it mean? Good or bad?

I have no news, unfortunately. I live well, I expect the best. We've got bad weather here, damn it. I'll have to flee to Moscow.

You're hinting at some of my trips. I inform you that I have not gone anywhere (absolutely anywhere!) and I am not going to go.

I kiss you a lot, a lot.

Your Joseph.

I.V. Stalin N.S. Alliluyeva

"Hello, Tatka!

How did you get there without incident? How are the kids, Satanka?

Zina arrived (without Kirov's wife). She stopped in Zenzinovka - she believes that it is better there than in Puzanovka. Well, it's very nice.

Here everything goes on in the old way: the game of gorodki, the game of skittles, the game of gorodki again, etc. Molotov has already managed to visit us twice, and his wife, it seems, has gone away somewhere.

While everything. Kiss.

Joseph".

N.S. Alliluyeva I..V. Stalin

“Hello, Joseph!

Arrived well. It is very cold in Moscow, perhaps it seemed so to me after the south, but it is cool thoroughly.

Moscow looks better, but in places it looks like a woman powdering her flaws, especially during the rain, when after the rain the paint flows down in stripes. In general, in order to give Moscow the present desired look, of course, not only these measures and not these opportunities are required, but for the time being this is progress.

The streets of Moscow are already in better condition, sometimes even very well. Very beautiful view from Tverskaya to Red Square…

I send you the requested electrical engineering. I ordered additional editions, but they didn’t manage to send it by today, you will receive it with the next mail, the same with the German book for reading - I send what we have at home, and I will send the adult textbook with the next mail.

Be sure to rest well, and it would be better not to do anything.

Sergo called me, complained about your abusive letter, or telegram, but, apparently, he was very tired. I said hello from you.

The children are healthy, already in Moscow.

I wish you all, all the best.

Kiss.

Nadia".

Normal human letters are a reflection of normal human relationships. Nothing foreshadowed the inexorably approaching tragedy. However…

Nadezhda I, like a birch, is not cut down by a poacher. I, like a river in the cold, Unloved. Warm men's hands I'm not warm. I am a Russian song, Yes, only unfinished! I will look into your eyes In the light of the moon, And in them love for me, Like stars, Quietly glows. And I'm cold

Myth number 5. Frequently meeting with Stalin, AL. Beria got into his confidence and sought appointment to the post of People's Commissar of Internal Affairs, although Stalin's wife, Nadezhda Alliluyeva, was the first to see through Beria and could not stand him, but Iosif Vissarionovich did not believe her. And this is also complete

Hope ... Not only Joseph thought more and more about Nadia Alliluyeva from that August morning in 1917, but Nadezhda did not forget how the door opened and she seemed to see Joseph for the first time, such an old friend of their family that she seemed to have known him all her life. Maybe a new suit

Nadezhda In 1996, the city department of social protection gave me the first ticket in my life to a rest home. Behind Novokuznetsk there is a wonderful recreation area "Targay". They decided to open a medical and recreation complex (LOC) for the disabled, and the first vacationers were a group

Svetlana Alliluyeva 20 letters to a friend In memory of my mother These letters were written in the summer of 1963 in the village of Zhukovka, not far from Moscow, within thirty-five days. The free form of letters allowed me to be absolutely sincere, and I consider what is written to be a confession. Then I don't

THE KREMLIN BANQUET Stalin and Alliluyeva In the house of Nadezhda Alliluyeva and Joseph Stalin, a woman from the Baltic Germans, Karolina Vasilievna Til, served as a housekeeper. She was the first to see Nadezhda Sergeevna on the floor in a pool of blood, when it was still unclear whether it was murder or

Nadezhda Alliluyeva. I love you, Joseph Stalin Nadezhda put her glass on the table without taking a sip of wine. - Hey, you! Drink! - Shouted Stalin. - I'm not hey! she answered, raising her voice a little, and at that very moment orange peels.Slow, very slow

Stalin and Alliluyeva Iosif Dzhugashvili was born in 1879 in the Georgian city of Gori, Tiflis province and came from the lower class. From his youth he was a professional revolutionary. His pseudonym is Stalin. He became the Soviet state, political and military

N. S. Alliluyeva - I.V. Stalin (September 12, 1930) Hello, Joseph! I received the letter. Thank you for the lemons, of course, come in handy. We live well, but quite already in winter - tonight it was minus 7 Celsius. In the morning all the roofs were completely white with frost. It is very good that you

N. S. Alliluyeva to I. V. Stalin (September 19, 1930) Hello, Joseph! How are you? Arriving t.t. (Ukhanov and someone else) say that you look and feel very bad. I know that you are getting better (this is from letters). On this occasion, the Molotovs attacked me with

N.S. Alliluyeva - to I. V. Stalin (September 30, 1930) Hello, Joseph! Once again I start with the same thing - I received a letter. I'm glad you're doing well in the southern sun. It’s not bad in Moscow now either, the weather has improved, but there is a certain autumn in the forest. The day goes by quickly. As long as everyone is healthy.

N. S. Alliluyeva to I. V. Stalin (October 6, 1930) There has been no news from you lately. I asked Dvinsky about the mail, he said that he had not been there for a long time. Probably, the trip to the quail carried away, or just too lazy to write. And in Moscow there is already a snow blizzard. Now it's spinning all over.

Joseph Stalin and Nadezhda Alliluyeva Historians still cannot come to an unambiguous conclusion: did Nadezhda Alliluyeva, the wife of the tyrant and "leader of all peoples" Joseph Stalin, end her life by suicide, or did her husband himself give the order to eliminate her? One who does not flinch

Svetlana Alliluyeva May 8, 1961 Dear darling Vladimir Alekseevich! Excuse such a free address to you, but, really, after reading your wonderful lyrical stories, I want to call you as affectionately as possible, as far as possible in the official letter of the reader to

NADIA ALLILUEVA The devotion of a dog and the devotion of a wife So strangely, so tragically similar. For a husband's sin - guilty without guilt. Unhappy husband - wife unhappy too. Dictator, and fanatic, and executioner! That's how he is at work. At the parade. But next to him I hear the quiet cry of his wife,

Hope Hope is the name of a woman. Good, bright name. Her name is Hope. I was told about her at the firing positions. Everyone, fighters and commanders, told her affectionately: “Our Hope.” “She is here, nearby, you can talk to her,” the fighters said.

The name of Nadezhda Sergeevna Alliluyeva became known to the Soviet people only after her death. In those cold November days of 1932, people who knew this young woman intimately said goodbye to her. They did not want to make a circus out of the funeral, but Stalin ordered otherwise. The funeral procession, which passed through the central streets of Moscow, gathered a crowd of many thousands. Everyone wanted to see the wife of the “father of peoples” on her last journey. These funerals could only be compared with the mourning ceremonies that were held earlier on the occasion of the death of the Russian empresses.

The unexpected death of a thirty-year-old woman, and the first lady of the state, could not but cause a lot of questions. Since the foreign journalists who were in Moscow at that time failed to obtain the information of interest from the official authorities, the foreign press was full of reports about the most diverse reasons for the untimely death of Stalin's wife.

Citizens of the USSR, who also wanted to know what caused this sudden death have been ignorant for a long time. Various rumors spread around Moscow, according to which Nadezhda Alliluyeva died in a car accident, died of an acute attack of appendicitis. A number of other suggestions have also been made.

The version of Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin turned out to be completely different. He officially stated that his wife, who had been ill for several weeks, got out of bed too early, this caused serious complications, resulting in death.

Stalin could not say that Nadezhda Sergeyevna was seriously ill, because a few hours before her death she was seen alive and well at a concert in the Kremlin dedicated to the fifteenth anniversary of the Great October Revolution. Alliluyeva cheerfully communicated with high-ranking state and party officials and their wives.

What was the true cause of such an early death of this young woman?

There are three versions: according to the first of them, Nadezhda Alliluyeva committed suicide; supporters of the second version (they were mostly OGPU employees) claimed that Stalin himself killed the first lady of the state; according to the third version, Nadezhda Sergeevna was shot dead on the orders of her husband. To understand this confusing matter, it is necessary to recall the entire history of the relationship between the Secretary General and his wife.

They got married in 1919, Stalin was then 40 years old, and his young wife was only 17 with a little. An experienced man who knows the taste family life(Alliluyeva was his second wife), and a young girl, almost a child ... Could their marriage be happy?

Nadezhda Sergeevna was, so to speak, a hereditary revolutionary. Her father, Sergei Yakovlevich, was one of the first among Russian workers to join the Russian Social Democratic Party, he took an active part in three Russian revolutions and in the Civil War. Nadezhda's mother also participated in the revolutionary uprisings of Russian workers.

The girl was born in 1901 in Baku, her childhood fell on the Caucasian period of the life of the Alliluyev family. Here, in 1903, Sergei Yakovlevich met Iosif Dzhugashvili.

According to family tradition, the future dictator saved two-year-old Nadya when she fell into the water while playing on the Baku embankment.

After 14 years, Joseph Stalin and Nadezhda Alliluyeva met again, this time in St. Petersburg. Nadia was studying at the gymnasium at that time, and thirty-eight-year-old Iosif Vissarionovich had recently returned from Siberia.

The sixteen-year-old girl was very far from politics. She was more interested in the pressing questions of food and shelter than in the global problems of the world revolution.

In her diary of those years, Nadezhda noted: “We are not going to leave St. Petersburg. Provision is good so far. Eggs, milk, bread, meat can be obtained, although expensive. In general, you can live, although our mood (and everyone in general) is terrible ... it’s boring, you won’t go anywhere.

Rumors about the performance of the Bolsheviks in the last days of October 1917, Nadezhda Sergeevna rejected as absolutely groundless. But the revolution has happened.

In January 1918, together with other schoolgirls, Nadia attended the All-Russian Congress of Soviets of Workers', Soldiers' and Peasants' Deputies several times. “Quite interesting,” she wrote in her diary of the impressions of those days. “Especially when Trotsky or Lenin speak, the rest speak very languidly and without content.”

Nevertheless, Nadezhda, who considered all other politicians uninteresting, agreed to marry Joseph Stalin. The newlyweds settled in Moscow, Alliluyeva went to work in Lenin's secretariat to Fotiyeva (a few months earlier she became a member of the RCP (b)).

In 1921, the first-born appeared in the family, who was named Vasily. Nadezhda Sergeevna, who gave all her strength to social work, could not pay due attention to the child. Iosif Vissarionovich was also very busy. Alliluyeva's parents took care of the upbringing of little Vasily, and the servants also provided all possible assistance.

In 1926 the second child was born. The girl was named Svetlana. This time, Nadezhda decided to raise the child on her own.

Together with a nanny who helped take care of her daughter, she lived for some time in a dacha near Moscow.

However, the cases required the presence of Alliluyeva in Moscow. Around the same time, she began to collaborate with the Revolution and Culture magazine, and often had to go on business trips.

Nadezhda Sergeevna tried not to forget about her beloved daughter: the girl had all the best - clothes, toys, food. Son Vasya also did not go unnoticed.

Nadezhda Alliluyeva was a good friend to her daughter. Even without being close to Svetlana, she gave her good advice.

Unfortunately, only one letter from Nadezhda Sergeevna to her daughter has been preserved with a request to be smart and reasonable: “Vasya wrote to me, a girl is playing pranks on something. Terribly boring to receive such letters about a girl.

I thought that I left her big and reasonable, but it turns out that she is very small and does not know how to live like an adult ... Be sure to tell me how you decided to live on, in a serious way or somehow ... "

In the memory of Svetlana, who lost her dearest person early, her mother remained "very beautiful, smooth, smelling of perfume."

Later, Stalin's daughter said that the first years of her life were the happiest.

This cannot be said about the marriage of Alliluyeva and Stalin. Relations between them became more and more cool every year.

Iosif Vissarionovich often went with an overnight stay to the dacha in Zubalovo. Sometimes alone, sometimes with friends, but most often accompanied by actresses, who were very fond of all high-ranking Kremlin figures.

Some contemporaries claimed that even during the life of Alliluyeva, Stalin began to meet with the sister of Lazar Kaganovich Rosa. The woman often visited the Kremlin's chambers of the leader, as well as at the Stalin's dacha.

Nadezhda Sergeevna knew perfectly well about her husband's love affairs and was very jealous of him. Apparently, she really loved this man, who could not find any other words for her, except for "fool" and other rudeness.

Stalin showed his discontent and contempt in the most offensive way, but Nadezhda endured all this. Repeatedly she made attempts to leave her husband with her children, but each time she was forced to return back.

According to some eyewitnesses, a few days before her death, Alliluyeva made an important decision - to finally move in with relatives and stop all relations with her husband.

It is worth noting that Joseph Vissarionovich was a despot not only in relation to the people of his country. Members of his family also experienced a lot of pressure, perhaps even more than everyone else.

Stalin liked his decisions not to be discussed and executed unquestioningly, but Nadezhda Sergeevna was an intelligent woman with a strong character, she knew how to defend her opinion. This is evidenced by the following fact.

In 1929, Alliluyeva expressed a desire to start her studies at the institute. Stalin opposed this for a long time, he rejected all arguments as insignificant. Abel Yenukidze and Sergo Ordzhonikidze came to the aid of the woman, together they managed to convince the leader of the need for Nadezhda to receive an education.

Soon she became a student of one of the Moscow universities. Only one director knew that Stalin's wife was studying at the institute.

With his consent, two secret agents of the OGPU were admitted to the faculty under the guise of students, whose duty it was to ensure the safety of Nadezhda Alliluyeva.

The Secretary General's wife came to the institute by car. The driver who took her to classes stopped a few blocks before the institute, Nadezhda covered the remaining distance on foot. Later, when she was given a new gas, she learned to drive a car on her own.

Stalin made a big mistake by allowing his wife to enter the world of ordinary citizens. Communication with fellow students opened Nadezhda's eyes to what is happening in the country. Previously, she knew about state policy only from newspapers and official speeches that reported that everything was fine in the Land of Soviets.

In reality, everything turned out to be completely different: the beautiful pictures of the life of the Soviet people were overshadowed by forced collectivization and unjust deportations of peasants, mass repressions and famine in Ukraine and the Volga region.

Naively believing that her husband did not know what was happening in the state, Alliluyeva told him and Yenukidze about the institute conversations. Stalin tried to get away from this topic, accusing his wife of collecting gossip spread by the Trotskyists everywhere. However, left alone, he cursed Nadezhda with the most bad words and threatened with a ban on attending classes at the institute.

Soon after that, ferocious purges began in all universities and technical schools. Employees of the OGPU and members of the Party Control Commission carefully checked the reliability of the students.

Stalin carried out his threat, and two months of student life fell out of the life of Nadezhda Alliluyeva. Thanks to the support of Yenukidze, who convinced the "father of peoples" that his decision was wrong, she was able to graduate from the institute.

Studying at the university contributed to the expansion of not only the range of interests, but also the circle of communication. Nadezhda made many friends and acquaintances. One of her closest comrades in those years was Nikolai Ivanovich Bukharin.

Under the influence of communication with this person and fellow students, Alliluyeva soon developed independent judgments, which she openly expressed to her power-hungry husband.

Stalin's dissatisfaction grew every day, he needed an obedient like-minded person, and Nadezhda Sergeevna began to allow herself critical remarks about party and state leaders who carried out the party's policy under the strict guidance of the Secretary General. The desire to learn as much as possible about the life of the native people at this stage of its history made Nadezhda Sergeevna pay special attention to such problems of national importance as the famine in the Volga region and Ukraine, the repressive policy of the authorities. The case of Ryutin, who dared to speak out against Stalin, did not hide from her either.

The policy pursued by her husband no longer seemed right to Alliluyeva. Differences between her and Stalin gradually intensified, in the end they grew into severe contradictions.

"Betrayal" - this is how Joseph Vissarionovich described the behavior of his wife.

It seemed to him that Nadezhda Sergeevna's communication with Bukharin was to blame, but he could not openly object to their relationship.

Only once, inaudibly approaching Nadia and Nikolai Ivanovich, who were walking along the paths of the park, Stalin dropped the terrible word “I will kill”. Bukharin took these words as a joke, but Nadezhda Sergeevna, who knew the character of her husband perfectly, was frightened. The tragedy occurred shortly after this incident.

On November 7, 1932, extensive celebrations of the fifteenth anniversary of the Great October Revolution were planned. After the parade, which took place on Red Square, all high-ranking party and government officials with their wives went to a reception at the Bolshoi Theater.

However, one day was not enough to celebrate such a significant date. The next day, November 8, another reception was held in a huge banquet hall, attended by Stalin and Alliluyeva.

According to eyewitnesses, the general secretary sat opposite his wife and threw balls rolled from bread pulp at her. According to another version, he threw tangerine peels at Alliluyeva.

For Nadezhda Sergeevna, who experienced such humiliation in front of several hundred people, the holiday was hopelessly ruined. Leaving the banquet hall, she headed home. Polina Zhemchuzhina, Molotov's wife, also left with her.

Some argue that the wife of Ordzhonikidze Zinaida, with whom the first lady had friendly relations, acted as a comforter. However, Alliluyeva had practically no real friends, except for Alexandra Yulianovna Kanel, the head physician of the Kremlin hospital.

On the night of the same day, Nadezhda Sergeevna was gone. Karolina Vasilievna Til, who worked as a housekeeper in the house of the Secretary General, found her lifeless body on the floor in a pool of blood.

Svetlana Alliluyeva later recalled: “Shaking with fear, she ran to our nursery and called the nanny with her, she could not say anything. They went together. Mom lay covered in blood near her bed, in her hand was a small Walter pistol. Two years before the terrible tragedy, this lady's weapon was presented to Nadezhda by her brother Pavel, who worked in the 1930s in the Soviet trade mission in Germany.

There is no exact information about whether Stalin was at home on the night of November 8-9, 1932. According to one version, he went to the country, Alliluyeva called him there several times, but he left her calls unanswered.

According to supporters of the second version, Iosif Vissarionovich was at home, his bedroom was located opposite his wife's room, so he could not hear the shots.

Molotov claimed that on that terrible night, Stalin, who had fairly refreshed himself with alcohol at a banquet, was fast asleep in his bedroom. He was allegedly upset by the news of his wife's death, he even cried. In addition, Molotov added that Alliluyeva "was a bit of a psychopath at that time."

Fearing a leak of information, Stalin personally controlled all the reports that came to the press. It was important to demonstrate the non-involvement of the head of the Soviet state in what happened, hence the talk that he was in the country and did not see anything.

However, the opposite follows from the testimony of one of the guards. He was at work that night and dozed off when his sleep was interrupted by the sound of a door closing.

Opening his eyes, the man saw Stalin leaving his wife's room. Thus, the guard could hear both the sound of a slamming door and a pistol shot.

People involved in the study of data on the Alliluyeva case argue that Stalin did not necessarily shoot himself. He could provoke his wife, and she committed suicide in his presence.

It is known that Nadezhda Alliluyeva left a suicide letter, but Stalin destroyed it immediately after reading it. The Secretary General could not allow anyone else to know the content of this message.

The fact that Alliluyeva did not commit suicide, but was killed, is evidenced by other facts. So, on duty at the Kremlin hospital on the night of November 8-9, 1932, Dr. Kazakov, invited to witness the death of the first lady, refused to sign the suicide act drawn up earlier.

According to the doctor, the shot was fired from a distance of 3-4 m, and the deceased could not shoot herself in the left temple on her own, since she was not left-handed.

Alexandra Kanel, invited to the Kremlin apartment of Alliluyeva and Stalin on November 9, also refused to sign a medical report, according to which the Secretary General's wife died suddenly from an acute attack of appendicitis.

Other doctors of the Kremlin hospital, including Dr. Levin and Professor Pletnev, did not put their signatures under this document either. The latter were arrested during the purges of 1937 and shot.

Alexandra Kanel was removed from office a little earlier, in 1935. She soon died, allegedly from meningitis. So Stalin dealt with people who opposed his will.

At the time of perestroika, at a time when the disclosure of secrets Soviet era was put on stream, one of the most popular historical characters was Nadezhda Alliluyeva, spouse Joseph Stalin.

From article to article, from book to book, the same plot began to roam - the leader's wife, one of the first to realize the disastrous policy of her husband, throws harsh accusations in his face, after which she dies. The cause of death, depending on the author, varied - from suicide - to murder by Stalin's henchmen on his orders.

In fact, Nadezhda Alliluyeva remains a woman of mystery even today. Much is known about her, and almost nothing is known. Exactly the same can be said about her relationship with Joseph Stalin.

Nadezhda was born in September 1901 in Baku, in the family of a revolutionary worker. Sergei Alliluev. The girl grew up surrounded by revolutionaries, although at first she herself was not interested in politics.

The Alliluyev family legend says that at the age of two, Nadezhda, playing on the Baku embankment, fell into the sea. The brave 23-year-old young man Iosif Dzhugashvili saved the girl from death.

A few years later, the Alliluyevs moved to St. Petersburg. Nadezhda grew up as a temperamental and determined girl. She was 16 years old when Joseph Stalin, who returned from Siberian exile, appeared in their house. A young girl fell in love with a revolutionary who was 21 years older than her.

Conflict of two characters

Stalin had behind him not only the years of the revolutionary struggle, but also his first marriage to Ekaterina Svanidze, which turned out to be short - the wife died, leaving her husband a six-month-old son Jacob. Stalin's heir was brought up by relatives - the father himself, immersed in the revolution, did not have time for this.

The relationship between Nadezhda and Joseph worried Sergei Alliluyev. The girl's father was not at all worried about the age difference - the hot-tempered and stubborn character of his daughter, in his opinion, was not very suitable for the companion of a prominent figure in the Bolshevik Party.

The doubts of Sergei Alliluyev did not affect anything - together with Stalin, the girl went to the front. The marriage was officially registered in the spring of 1919.

The memoirs of contemporaries testify that in this marriage there really was love and strong feelings. And besides, there was a conflict of two characters. Nadezhda's father's fears were justified - Stalin, immersed in work, wanted to see a person next to him who would take care of the family hearth. Nadezhda strove for self-realization, and the role of a housewife did not suit her.

She worked in the People's Commissariat for Nationalities Affairs, in the secretariat Lenin, collaborated in the editorial office of the journal "Revolution and Culture" and in the newspaper "Pravda".

Nadezhda Alliluyeva. Source: Public Domain

Loving mother and caring wife

It can be said with certainty that the conflicts between Joseph and Nadezhda in the early 1920s had nothing to do with politics. Stalin behaved like an ordinary man who spent a lot of time at work - he came late, tired, twitchy, irritated over trifles. Young Nadezhda, on the other hand, sometimes lacked worldly experience to smooth the corners.

Witnesses describe the following incident: Stalin suddenly stopped talking to his wife. Nadezhda understood that her husband was very unhappy with something, but she could not figure out what the reason was. Finally, the situation cleared up - Joseph believed that spouses in marriage should call each other “you”, but Nadezhda, even after several requests, continued to address her husband as “you”.

In 1921, Nadezhda and Joseph had a son, who was named Vasily. Then they took a little one into the family to raise Artem Sergeev, the son of a deceased revolutionary. Then relatives brought Stalin's eldest son Yakov to his father in Moscow. So Nadezhda became the mother of a large family.

In fairness, it must be said that the hardships of family life helped Nadezhda to bear the servants. But the woman coped with the upbringing of children, having managed to establish relations with her stepson Jacob.

According to the stories of those who were close to the Stalin family at that time, Joseph liked to relax with his loved ones, distancing himself from problems. But at the same time, it was felt that he was unusual in this role. He did not know how to behave with children, sometimes he was rude to his wife in cases where there was no reason for this.

Joseph Stalin (first from left) with his wife Nadezhda Alliluyeva (first from right) and friends on vacation. Photo: RIA Novosti / Photo from the archive of Elena Kovalenko.

Passion and jealousy

If we talk about jealousy, then Nadezhda, who was in love with her husband, did not give Joseph a reason to suspect herself of something unseemly. But she herself was jealous of her husband quite strongly.

There is evidence of this in the surviving correspondence of a later time. Here, for example, is an excerpt from one of the letters that Nadezhda sent to her husband, who was vacationing in Sochi: “Something no news from you ... Probably, the trip to the quail carried away or just too lazy to write. ...I heard about you from an interesting young woman that you look great.” “I live well, I expect better,” Stalin answered, “You are hinting at some of my trips. I inform you that I have not gone anywhere and do not intend to go. I kiss a very, very capped leg. Your Joseph.

The correspondence between Nadezhda and Joseph suggests that, despite all the problems, feelings remained between them. “As soon as you find yourself 6-7 free days, roll straight to Sochi,” Stalin writes, “I kiss my Tatka. Your Joseph. During one of Stalin's vacations, Nadezhda found out that her husband was sick. Leaving the children in the care of servants, Alliluyeva went to her husband.

In 1926, a daughter was born in the family, who was named Svetlana. The girl became her father's favorite. And if Stalin tried to keep his sons in strictness, then literally everything was allowed to his daughter.

In 1929, conflicts in the family escalated again. Nadezhda, when her daughter was three years old, decided to resume an active social life and announced to her husband that she wanted to go to college. Stalin did not like this idea, but, in the end, he relented. Nadezhda Alliluyeva became a student of the Faculty of Textile Industry of the Industrial Academy.

“I read in the white press that this is the most interesting material about you.”

In the 1980s, such a version was popular - while studying at the Industrial Academy, Nadezhda learned a lot from classmates about the perniciousness of the Stalinist course, which led her to a fatal conflict with her husband.

In fact, there is no solid evidence for this version. No one has ever seen or read the accusatory letter that Nadezhda supposedly left her husband before her death. Replicas in quarrels like “You tortured me and tortured all the people!” they look like a political protest only with a very big stretch.

The already mentioned correspondence of 1929-1931 testifies that the relationship between Nadezhda and Joseph was not hostile. Here, for example, is a letter from Nadezhda, dated September 26, 1931: “In Moscow it rains endlessly. Damp and uncomfortable. The guys, of course, already had the flu, I obviously save myself by wrapping myself in everything warm. With the next mail ... I will send the book Dmitrievsky“About Stalin and Lenin” (of this defector) ... I read about her in the white press, where they write that it interesting material about you. Curious? That's why I asked to get it."

It is hard to imagine that a wife who is in political conflict with her husband would send him such literature. In Stalin's response letter there is not even a hint of irritation on this issue, he generally devotes it to the weather, and not to politics: “Hello, Tatka! There was an unprecedented storm here. For two days the storm blew with the fury of an angry beast. At our dacha, 18 large oak trees were uprooted. I kiss the cap, Joseph.

There is no real evidence of a major conflict between Stalin and Alliluyeva during 1932 either.

Joseph Stalin with his wife Nadezhda Alliluyeva and Kliment Voroshilov and his wife Ekaterina. Source: Public Domain

Last quarrel

November 7, 1932 at the apartment Voroshilov After the parade, a revolutionary holiday was celebrated. The scene that took place there was described by many, and, as a rule, from other people's words. Wife Nikolai Bukharin, referring to the words of her husband, in the book “Unforgettable”, she wrote as follows: “Half-drunk Stalin threw cigarette butts and orange peels in the face of Nadezhda Sergeevna. She, unable to bear such rudeness, got up and left before the end of the banquet.

Stalin's granddaughter Galina Dzhugashvili, referring to the words of relatives, left the following description: “Grandfather was talking to a lady who was sitting next to me. Nadezhda was sitting opposite and also talking animatedly, apparently paying no attention to them. Then suddenly, looking point-blank, loudly, at the whole table, she said some kind of causticity. Grandfather, without raising his eyes, answered just as loudly: “Fool!” She ran out of the room, went to an apartment in the Kremlin.”

Svetlana Alliluyeva, Stalin's daughter, claimed that her father returned home that day and spent the night in his office.

attending the banquet Vyacheslav Molotov said the following: "We had big company after November 7, 1932 at Voroshilov's apartment. Stalin rolled up a ball of bread and in front of everyone threw this ball at his wife Egorova. I saw it, but did not pay attention. It seems to play a role. Alliluyeva was, in my opinion, a little psychopath at that time. All this affected her in such a way that she could no longer control herself. From that evening she left with my wife, Polina Semyonovna. They walked around the Kremlin. It was late at night, and she complained to my wife that she didn’t like this, she didn’t like this. About this hairdresser ... Why did he flirt like that in the evening ... But it was just like that, he drank a little, it was a joke. Nothing special, but it worked for her. She was very jealous of him. Gypsy blood.

Jealousy, disease or politics?

Thus, it can be stated that there really was a quarrel between the spouses, but neither Stalin himself nor the others attached much importance to the incident.

But on the night of November 9, 1932, Nadezhda Alliluyeva committed suicide by shooting herself in the heart with a Walter pistol. This pistol was given to her by her brother, Pavel Alliluev, Soviet military leader, one of the founders of the Main Armored Directorate of the Red Army.

After the tragedy, Stalin, raising his pistol, said: “And a toy pistol, I shot it once a year.”

The main question is: why did Stalin's wife commit suicide?

Stalin's daughter Svetlana Alliluyeva wrote that this led to internal conflict on the basis of politics: “This restraint of oneself, this terrible internal self-discipline and tension, this discontent and irritation, driven inside, compressed inside more and more like a spring, should, in the end, inevitably end in an explosion; the spring had to straighten with terrible force ... ".

However, it must be remembered that Svetlana was 6 years old at the time of her mother's death, and this opinion, by her own admission, was gleaned from subsequent communication with relatives and friends.

Stalin's adopted son Artem Sergeev, in an interview with Rossiyskaya Gazeta, expressed a different version: “I was 11 years old when she died. She had wild headaches. On November 7, she brought Vasily and me to the parade. Twenty minutes later she left - she could not stand it. She seems to have had a malalignment of the cranial bones, and in such cases, suicide is not uncommon.

The nephew of Nadezhda agreed with the same version, Vladimir Alliluev: “My mother (Anna Sergeevna) got the impression that she was brought down by headaches. The point is this. When Alliluyeva was only 24 years old, she wrote in letters to my mother: “I have a hell of a headache, but I hope it will pass.” In fact, the pain didn't go away. What she just did not do, as soon as she was not treated. Stalin sent his wife for treatment to Germany to the best professors. Useless. I even have a memory from my childhood: if the door to Nadezhda Sergeevna's room is closed, it means that she has a headache and is resting. So we have one version: she could no longer cope with the wild, excruciating pain.

Monument at the grave of his wife Nadezhda Alliluyeva. Photo: RIA Novosti / Ramil Sitdikov

"She crippled me for life"

The fact that Nadezhda Alliluyeva in last years life was often sick, confirmed by medical data. And it was not only about headaches, but also diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. Could health problems be the real cause of suicide? The answer to this question remains open.

Supporters of various versions agree that the death of his wife was a shock for Stalin, and greatly influenced him in the future. Even here, however, there are serious discrepancies.

Here is what Svetlana Alliluyeva writes in the book “Twenty Letters to a Friend”: “When (Stalin) came to say goodbye to the civil memorial service, then, going up to the coffin for a minute, he suddenly pushed him away from himself with his hands and, turning, went away. And he didn't go to the funeral.

And here is the version of Artem Sergeev: “The coffin with the body was in one of the premises of GUM. Stalin sobbed. Vasily hung on his neck and repeated: "Daddy, don't cry." When the coffin was carried out, Stalin went for the hearse, which headed for the Novodevichy Convent. At the cemetery, we were ordered to pick up the earth and throw it on the coffin. We did just that."

Depending on their adherence to one or another political assessment of Stalin, some prefer to believe his own daughter, others prefer his adopted son.

Nadezhda Alliluyeva was buried at the Novodevichy cemetery. The widowed Stalin often came to the grave, sat on the bench and was silent.

Three years later, during one of the confidential conversations with relatives, Stalin burst out: “What children, they forgot her in a few days, and she crippled me for life.” After that, the leader said: "Let's drink to Nadia!"