Strong-willed women of the Morozov dynasty: what are the three business women of tsarist Russia famous for

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

For some reason, the concept of "businesswoman" is associated with the modern era, while in tsarist Russia there were such smart and strong women. The dynasty of merchants Morozovs was especially famous for them, who, as if on purpose, chose “iron ladies” as their wives - future successful businesswomen and patrons of art, whose business and creative streak was envied by all of Moscow.

Maria Fedorovna

Maria Fedorovna, the wife of Timofey Morozov, the son of Savva Vasilyevich, was happily married and very rich. She regularly ran the affairs of the family, and then the business of her husband, who gradually retired from business, and had an iron character. Even a series of deaths did not break her: several of her children died in the first years of life, then the adult daughter Angelina committed suicide and the death of her husband completed the series of misfortunes.

Widowed, Maria Fedorovna became the main support of a large family and supported her adult children and grandchildren until the end of her life. And although loved ones considered her cold and soulless (for example, one of the sons complained that she was engaged in charity work, but did not love anyone), one cannot deny the entrepreneurial qualities and generosity of this woman.

At the beginning of the last century, her Nikolskaya manufactory was recognized as the most successful enterprise in the region. Morozova took care of hospitals, educational institutions, financially helped girls who chose creative professions.

On the day of the funeral of the millionaire, in accordance with her last will, money was handed out to the poor in Moscow in Moscow, 26 thousand workers in Moscow factories received a "bonus" in the amount of a day's wages and food rations, and in two Moscow canteens they fed a thousand poor people free meals.

Varvara Alekseevna

The daughter of a wealthy industrialist and benefactor Alexei Khludov, Varvara at the age of six was left without a mother, and at 16 her father had already married her. The spouse was a young merchant, co-owner of the Tver Manufactory Abram Abramovich Morozov, who, by the way, was her great-uncle.

Morozov, together with his brother, was actively involved in charity work: he opened a hospital, a maternity hospital, a school at the factory, in addition, he was a trustee of several orphanages. Varvara was a match for him: she enjoyed great prestige in the merchant environment, was well educated and well-versed in commercial affairs.

When Abram Morozov was paralyzed, his wife actively took over the management of the manufactory and managed the production very successfully. And after his death, the 34-year-old widow officially took over as acting manager until her sons came of age.

When her husband died, she was still a young attractive woman (huge brown eyes, thick lush hair, a good figure) and could successfully marry a second time. But this was prevented by a strange trick of her husband. Shortly before his death, Morozov wrote a will in the name of his wife and children, but with one note: remarriage deprives Varvara Alekseevna of the rights to all of her enormous fortune. Therefore, when the widow had a lover, a publicist and economist very respected in Moscow, Vasily Sobolevsky, she could not officially marry him. And although she subsequently gave birth to three children from him and even gave them the middle names "Vasilievichi" (with the surname "Morozovs"), the lovers still lived separately. It is interesting that in the very puritanical Moscow of the 19th century, society did not dare to condemn the widow for such a relationship - so great was her authority and universal respect for her and her chosen one.

Many of Morozova's entourage in this story was surprised by something else: when Varvara's own sister left her husband Alexander Mamontov and began to live in a civil marriage with the famous Moscow doctor Vladimir Snegirev, Morozova was so outraged that she stopped communicating with her and did not even come to her funeral.

Varvara Morozova generally had some idea of what was right and what was wrong. And sometimes the reason for her actions was difficult to understand. For example, like many in the Morozov family, she allocated huge sums for the construction of educational institutions and simply helped various “petitioners”. So, she often gave money to Lev Tolstoy for various needs. But when young Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko came to her with a similar request and began to tell her that they wanted to open an art theater, she coldly refused, considering such an investment unprofitable.

However, there were servants in the city, which helps Morozova only to famous people - they say, for her, this is a guarantee that the money will not be spent in vain.

Margarita Kirillovna

The daughter-in-law of Varvara Morozova, the wife of her son, Margarita, had no less strong character and authority.

She inherited her strong-willed character, apparently, from her mother. It is known that her parent, left a widow with two young daughters (her husband Kirill Mamontov lost and shot himself in Marseilles), did not despair. The woman went with the children to Paris, took sewing lessons and returned to Moscow as a dressmaker. The impoverished merchant's wife walked around all her acquaintances and asked to support her.

Sympathizing with the widow, many began to order dresses and underwear from her. Very soon her workshop became the most fashionable and fashionable atelier in Moscow. She even had a school for girls in tailoring and designing clothes.

Perhaps these are the mother's genes, but still, most of the Muscovites considered Margarita Morozova a copy of her mother-in-law. By the way, they even looked similar.

Life with her husband, Mikhail Abramovich, was not easy for Margarita: he was irritable, jealous and authoritarian and she did not feel like a mistress in the house. After his death, Margarita Kirillovna showed her attitude towards him as follows: when the will was announced, according to which her husband left all his property to her, she immediately drew up a document in which she refused the inheritance in favor of the children.

As the poet Andrei Bely wrote, who idolized Morozova and considered her an ideal, in marriage she was "a lady with a longing for life", and after that - "an active figure in the musical, philosophical and publishing activities of Moscow."

Margarita Kirillovna patronized many cultural figures. For example, for many years in a row she paid a "scholarship" to the composer Scriabin, helped the artist Serov with money during a serious illness, financed concerts of Russian music in Paris, and her house was the center of culture and social life in Moscow.

Having lost her homes, paintings, money after the revolution, she lived in poverty, but did not lose heart: she wrote her memoirs, attended the conservatory and helped her grandson.

No less interesting is the story of another strong woman, Farah Pahlavi, wife of the last Iranian shah.