In December 1825, a band of aristocratic officers gathered on Senate Square in St. Petersburg to oppose the new tsar, Nicholas I. Their revolt lasted barely a day, but it ignited a century of revolutionary dreams. This episode follows the Decembrists from the Napoleonic Wars and the secret societies that spawned them to the dramatic interregnum between Alexander I and Nicholas I. We meet Sergei Muravyov-Apostol, Pavel Pestel, and the poet Kondraty Ryleev; hear the story of the fabled 'Constitution' of Nikita Muravyov; and trace the revolt's aftermath, including the brutal suppression, the hanging of five leaders, and the exile of hundreds to Siberia. We also explore the Decembrist wives who followed their husbands east, becoming symbols of devotion and defiance. The episode unpacks how this 'revolt of the nobles' shaped Russian radicalism, inspiring Herzen, the populists, and ultimately the revolutions of 1917.
#Decembrists #SenateSquare #NicholasI #AlexanderI #PavelPestel #SergeiMuravyovApostol #KondratyRyleev #NikitaMuravyov #RussianHistory #DecembristRevolt #SiberianExile #DecembristWives #RussianRevolutionaryMovement #ImperialRussia #History #FexingoHistory #19thCenturyRussia #TsarNicholas
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