Kuteinsky monastery in Orsha. Monastery above the Dnieper - Epiphany Kuteinsky Monastery

27.11.2023 -

I continue the story about the autumn trip. Today is one of the places in Orsha where I had an unplanned overnight stay.

HOLY EPHOPYNATION KUTEINSKY MONASTERY

Founded in 1623 as an Orthodox monastery. The blessing for the construction of the Holy Trinity Epiphany Monastery was received in 1620 from Patriarch Theophan III of Jerusalem. In 1630, a printing house was founded at the monastery, the largest at that time in White Rus'. In 1631, the printer Spiridon Sobol published the first “Primer” in the Belarusian language here; among other books are “Lexicon” by Pamva Berynda, “Spiritual Goodness”, “New Testament”, “Psalter of the Blessed Prophet and King David”, “New Testament, the Psalter is also in it”, numerous notes. The Kuteinsky printing house had strong ties with the local school of engraving, in the formation of which Spiridon Sobol was also involved: all the books published in the printing house were beautifully decorated and adorned with headpieces. and had a beautifully decorated leaf. At the end of his life, Spiridon was tonsured in the monastery under the name Sylvester. In 1635, the wooden Epiphany Cathedral with a lower stone church in the name of the righteous was consecrated in the monastery by the Kyiv Metropolitan Peter Mogila. Lazarus.In 1956, the monastery was visited by Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. According to his order, the famous woodcarvers Arseny and Gerasim and the engraver Paisy went to Moscow, where they worked in the Kremlin Armory and decorated the Kolomna Royal Palace and churches in Izmailovo. The Kuteinsky monastery was also visited by St. Athanasius of Brest, St. George (Konissky), Tsar Nicholas II, St. Seraphim Zhirovitsky. In 1917, the monastery was closed and destroyed, churches, bell towers and monastery walls were destroyed, garages were built on the site of the monastery cemetery, the former cells were adapted for housing. In 1990, a community was registered at the former Kutein monastery, and in 1992 the monastery was reopened. In 1995, the Holy Trinity Church was restored.

Kuteinskaya printing house

In 1630, a printing house was founded at the monastery, the largest at that time in White Rus'. In 1631, the printer Spiridon Sobol published the first “Primer” in the Belarusian language here; among other books are Pamva Berynda’s “Lexicon” (1653), “Spiritual Goodness”, “New Testament”, “The Psalter of the Blessed Prophet and King David”, “The New Testament, and the Psalter in It”, a monument of translated Belarusian literature “The History of Barlaam and Josapha" (1637), "Didascalia" by Sylvester Kosov (1637), numerous notes. In 1632, the printing house was headed by Abbot Joel (Trutsevich). The Kuteinsky printing house had strong ties with the local school of engraving, in the formation of which Spiridon Sobol was also involved: all the books published in the printing house were beautifully decorated and decorated with headpieces, and had beautifully decorated pages. At the end of his life, Spiridon took monastic vows in the monastery under the name Sylvester.
The printing house operated until 1654, then its equipment was transported to the Valdai Iversky Monastery near Novgorod, from there in 1665 to the Resurrection Monastery near Moscow, and in 1676 to the Moscow Printing Yard.

In Orsha, it would be unfair not to say a word about the Orsha Kuteinsky Epiphany Monastery.

The Orsha residents received a charter from the Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophanes to found an Orthodox monastery in 1620. Most of the money was collected by ordinary residents of Orsha and Mogilev - members of Orthodox brotherhoods. State documents for construction were issued in Warsaw in the name of a major Belarusian Orthodox magnate Bogdan Statkevich-Zaverski and his wife Elena Solomeretskaya. In this regard, M. Batyushkov reported: “The Old Russian Orthodox surname Stetkevich in the 16th-17th centuries. owned extensive estates in the Orsha povet, is known for her representatives in various official positions, mainly in Belarus, for her family ties with the princely families of Drutsky-Gorsky, Oginsky and Solomeretsky, especially for her devotion to Orthodoxy and charity for the benefit of the Orthodox Church.”

Construction of the monastery began in 1623 near Orsha in a picturesque corner of a centuries-old forest near the mouth of the Kuteinka River. Based on the name of the river, the monastery began to be called Kuteinsky. The construction was headed by the writer, printer, religious leader, patriot of the Belarusian land, Hieromonk Joel Trutsevich, who later became the abbot of the monastery.

One of the first to appear was the Epiphany Cathedral. The four-frame cross-domed church rose almost 40 meters high. Three of the log houses were pentagonal in shape, the fourth was square. A large dome completed the structure, and smaller domes ended each individual log house. The architects designed the entrance to the temple in the form of a beautiful open gallery. Believers were amazed by the majestic six-tiered carved gilded iconostasis of the main altar. Artists painted the hewn walls inside the temple with 38 multi-figure compositions on biblical and evangelical themes. In 1635, the cathedral was consecrated by the Kyiv Metropolitan Peter Mogila. Later he would write in a letter to Sakovich: “Look also at White Rus', there, near Orsha, in the Kuteinsky monastery you will find at least 200 brothers imitating the life of the angels.”
In 1885, the cathedral burned down from a lightning strike and was never restored.

Documentary sources confirm that simultaneously with the main shrine of the monastery, numerous residential and utility buildings were built. Under the Epiphany Cathedral there was the Church of the Resurrection of Righteous Lazarus - an underground cave temple with an area of about 11 square meters. It had a cruciform shape with a low stone vault. In the altar part, in place of the throne, there was a low wooden cross, lined with stone.

The Holy Trinity Church of the Kuteinsky Epiphany Monastery was built in the 17th century. in the Belarusian Baroque style.
To this day, the temple has gone through several reconstructions and has been in operation since 1993.

From the end of the 16th century. large and influential male Orthodox monasteries received the status of a lavra. Contemporaries also called the Kuteinsky Epiphany Monastery the Belarusian Lavra.

In the book “The Mental Paradise” (1656), on behalf of Patriarch Nikon, the Kuteinsky monastery says this: “Having heard from many, it is known that piety shines there too. Beside the Great Lavra, the Holy Epiphany of the Lord God and our Savior Jesus, the head of Kuteino, near the glorious city of Orsha, which was the head and beginning of common life in all of White Rus'.”

The Kuteinsky complex expanded significantly in 1631, when the mother of Bogdan Statkevich-Zaversky, Princess Anna Oginskaya, founded the Assumption Convent on the Kuteinka River, not far from the monastery. It consisted of several wooden churches and the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which burned down in 1635 and was rebuilt in stone in the Baroque style 20 years later. A water mill and a bridge were also built.

The most significant events in the history of the Kutein Lavra occurred in the middle of the 17th century. The monastery had not yet been completely built, but it was already known far beyond the borders of the Orsha region. Here, on the initiative of Joel Trutsevich, an icon-painting workshop was created, and a workshop for copying and binding books operated. Talented craftsmen worked in them: artists, woodcarvers, chasers, engravers.
(Kuteinsky craft workshops still exist. Again, as before, icons are painted there, iconostases, royal doors, and church furniture are designed and manufactured there)

The abbot was engaged not only in religious but also in educational activities. With his active participation, a fraternal school was opened in the monastery. The lack of books has been one of the main problems in teaching and preserving the Belarusian language and culture. There was a need for our own printing house, and there were good conditions for opening it in Kuteino. In 1630, I. Trutsevich invited the printer Spiridon Sobol, who continued the work of F. Skorina, to the monastery.

S. Sobol studied at the Kyiv Academy, knew languages, and in 1628 he published three books in the printing house of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra. Arriving in Orsha, he quickly set things up and already in 1630 he published “Spiritual Blessings” and “Prayers”. The monks helped him with pleasure: carvers cut out texts from wood, embossers decorated book bindings, engravers created book engravings. People came to the monastery from afar to learn this skill.

The most famous Orsha book from ancient times was published in 1631 and was called: “A primer, that is, the beginning of teaching children who are beginning to read out of the box. Illustrate myself in Kutain. In the printing house of Spiridon Sobol." The title of the book was framed along the edges of the page by an ornament.

The educational part of the “Primer” began with the Old Church Slavonic alphabet, 44 letters of which, large and small, were printed first in normal order and then in reverse order. The textbook contains information about stress, punctuation marks, the declension of nouns and adjectives, and the art of versification.

Spiridon Sobol understood the importance of the principle of unity of teaching and upbringing and devoted a separate section of the book to Christian commandments, which he supplemented with one more: to remain faithful to Orthodoxy. The Primer began and ended with prayer.

Kutein's "Primer" was small in size and consisted of only 80 pages. Their numbering was missing, it was replaced by custodes in the lower right corner of the page (this is the first word or syllable with which the next page began). The ABC book was inexpensive and beautiful. The printer used simple but expressive means: a typesetting ornament on the title page, an engraving of Jesus Christ with seraphim at the beginning of the book, beautiful headpieces before the beginning of sections, initials with floral designs.

The publication of the Primer was an event in the art of printing. This book made a significant contribution to the spread of education in Belarus, Lithuania, Ukraine and abroad. It has notes in English and German. If Sobol had limited himself to publishing only this one book, then his name would still be inscribed in golden letters in the history of Belarusian national culture.

Time was merciless to the Orsha primer: only one such book survived. It is kept in the National Museum of Ukraine (Lviv). And its skillful copy, made by the artist Pyotr Drachev, can be seen in the Orsha Museum of History and Culture.

Having taught the Orsha monks how to print, Spiridon Sobol left Orsha two years later. His work continued under the leadership of I. Trutsevich, who wrote prefaces to each new book. The printing house printed not only church, but also scientific and educational literature. Over the 25 years of existence of this cultural center, about 20 different books have been published there.

N The beginning of the Kuteinsky monastery was laid on May 19, 1620, when the Mogilev Brotherhood of the Holy Epiphany received a blessing from the Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophan to build a monastery near the city of Orsha. Due to the uprising of the inhabitants of Mogilev against the Greek Catholic clergy in December 1618, the construction of a monastery in the city became impossible. Then members of the Orthodox brotherhoods of the cities of Orsha and Mogilev bought from Kasper Shveikovsky the estate of Kuteino and the village of Poddubtsy, located outside the city limits, near the Dnieper. The fund for the monastery was given on September 19, 1623 by Pan Bogdan Stetkevich, an active member of the brotherhood and a strict champion of the Orthodox faith, and his wife, Princess Elena Solomoretskaya. This date is considered the founding day of the monastery. From the small river Kuteinka flowing nearby, the monastery was named Kuteinsky, and after the main temple - Epiphany. The construction was headed by Hieromonk Joel (Trutsevich), who later became the abbot of the monastery.

And the history of the monastery knew periods of prosperity and decline. Its best times were in the first half of the 17th century. One of the first monastic churches to appear was the Epiphany Cathedral. The Cathedral Church of the Holy Epiphany was located in the center of the monastery architectural complex and was a magnificent creation of wooden Belarusian architecture. The cross-domed church, strict in shape, had an elegant covered gallery, a carved six-tiered gilded iconostasis and two chapels - in honor of the Archangel Michael of God and the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The walls of the temple were painted with images on biblical themes, as well as themes from the lives of saints. In June 1635, Kiev Metropolitan Peter Mogila consecrated the main altar in honor of the Epiphany of the Lord, and the side chapels in the name of the Archangel Michael and the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos, laying the relics of the saints Great Martyr and Healer Panteleimon and Great Martyr Artemy and Venerable Martyr Anastasius the Persian. Later he would write in a letter to Sakovich: “Look also at White Rus', there, near Orsha, in the Kuteinsky monastery you will find at least 200 brethren imitating the life of the angels.”

Under the foundations of the Epiphany Cathedral, at a considerable depth, there was also a cave underground church in honor of the Resurrection of the Holy Righteous Lazarus. This church had a cruciform shape and low stone vaults. Its area was about 11 square meters. m. In the central altar part, with an area of 2.5 sq. m. m., in place of the throne there was a low wooden cross, lined with stones. Nearby there were two rooms for storing the monastery treasury and precious utensils. During a severe thunderstorm on June 24, 1891 at five o'clock in the evening, the Epiphany Cathedral was burned by a lightning strike and was never restored; only the monastery sacristy was saved.

Far from the cathedral, a wooden church was built in honor of the descent of the Holy Spirit. Over time, the wooden church was dismantled, and on its foundation a stone two-story church was built with a lower altar in honor of the Nativity of Christ and an upper altar in honor of the Apostle Andrew the First-Called. After reconstruction in 1868, the temple became one-story, with a throne in the name of the Life-Giving Trinity. In 1885, the church was decorated with a pre-altar ceiling depicting the Mother of God sitting on a throne with the Eternal Child in her arms and surrounded by Angels. During its heyday, the monastery had the high status of a monastery. Sketches of the monastery charter have been preserved. The spiritual guidance of the monastery was the teachings of St. Cassian the Roman. On the initiative of Joel (Trutsevich), an icon-painting workshop was created, a workshop for copying and binding books operated, where talented artists, woodcarvers, embossers, and engravers worked.

With the active participation of Father Joel, a fraternal school and its own printing house were opened in the monastery. In 1630, he invited the printer Spiridon Sobol to the monastery. Arriving in Orsha, Spiridon quickly set things up and already in 1630 he published “Brashno spiritual” and “Prayer book”. In 1631, a book was published that for a long time became the main guide for beginners to learn to read - “The Primer”. Its full name is “A Primer, that is, the beginning of teaching for children who are beginning to read adventurously. In Kuteyn, depicted in the printing house of Spiridon Sable rock 1631.” Having taught the Orsha monks how to print, Spiridon Sobol left Orsha. His work was continued by Father Joel, who himself wrote prefaces to each book. The printing house printed not only church books, but also scientific and educational books. Over the 25 years of existence of this cultural center, about twenty different books were published there, with significant circulations for that time - 200-350 copies.

The Uteinsky monastery was visited by the Venerable Martyr Athanasius of Brest, Saint George of Konis of Mogilev and All Belarus, Tsar-Passion-Bearer Nicholas II, Hieromartyr Seraphim of Zhirovitsky, and Saint Valentina of Minsk. Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, visiting Kuteino in 1656, highly appreciated the talent of the local craftsmen. On his orders, the famous woodcarvers Arseny and Gerasim and the engraver Paisy were taken to Moscow, where, together with other craftsmen, they worked in the Kremlin Armory, decorated the Kolomna Royal Palace and churches in Izmailovo. The Kuteinsky printers also continued their work in Moscow. Among them, the famous master of making matrices for casting the Callistrat font is mentioned.

In 1655, as a result of the Russian-Polish War, most of the brethren left with the blessing of Patriarch Nikon for the Iversky Valdai Monastery. Abbot Joel himself, before reaching his new place of residence, died in the city of Boldino near Smolensk. His body was interred in Valdai, where it rests to this day. During the War of 1812, the destruction inflicted on the monastery by the French was enormous. Therefore, the Kuteinsky monastery, as poor and not having enough means for subsistence, was transferred to a number of third-class ones. In 1842, she became a part-time member of the once Greek Catholic Orsha Pokrovsky Monastery.

The once famous Belarusian Lavra was not spared by the revolutionary events of 1917. After the October Revolution, a partnership for joint cultivation of the land was created on the basis of the monastery. The new owners' forestry and field farming, monastery gardens, orchards and apiaries very quickly fell into disrepair. Monastery buildings crumbled from old age or were dismantled into bricks. The Holy Trinity Church was adapted for storage space. Then the Soviet cavalry was stationed on the territory. There is reason to believe that in 1939, prisoners of war of the Polish army were temporarily held here. In 1941-1943. According to eyewitnesses, a small camp of Soviet prisoners of war was located on the territory of the monastery. In 1943, the bell tower was destroyed by Soviet air strikes. After the Great Patriotic War, the living quarters of the monastery were used by the Orsha Flax Mill as apartments for workers.

The new history of the monastery began in 1990, when the parish community was registered. Since 1992, the monastery has become active. It received state registration on April 7, 1993. With the assistance of the state, the Holy Trinity Church was restored in 1995. At the beginning of 2010, a baptismal chapel was built in the eastern part of the monastery building. On October 10, 2014, the locally revered Orsha Icon of the Mother of God (memory day September 5/18 and July 20/August 2), which was temporarily located in the Holy Dormition Convent of the city of Orsha, was transferred to the monastery. The monastery operates a Sunday school for adults and children, and a library with a reading room.

The starting point in the study, comprehension and practical application of the spiritual heritage of the Kuteinsky monastery was the 1st, 2nd, 3rd Kuteinsky readings and the International scientific and practical conference “Kuteinsky readings-2014”, which attracted public attention to the role and significance of the Kuteinsky monastery monastery in the education and preservation of the spiritual and cultural traditions of our people. In 2006 and 2014 In Orsha, the republican Orthodox festival “Orthodox Belarus” took place, which contributed to the revival and strengthening of the Holy Epiphany Kuteinsky Monastery. An event of international significance was the opening of a memorial sign in honor of the “Primer” by Spiridon Sobol on October 10, 2014, which was installed on the territory of the monastery, as well as the transfer of a facsimile edition of the “Primer”, recreated by specialists from the publishing house of the Belarusian Exarchate.

The monastery is home to 5 monks (2017) The viceroy is Abbot Sergius (Konstantinov).

CONTACTS:

Belarus, Orsha, st. F. Skorina, 79

Orsha is located in the Vitebsk region, 220 kilometers from Minsk. You can get there by car in 2 hours 30 minutes. There are regular buses. See tickets online, cost about 13 rubles.

Convenient way is train. Orsha is a large railway junction. You can find train tickets here.

Don't forget about rideshares through the service.

College of the Jesuits in Orsha

One of the main attractions of the city of Orsha can be safely called a building dating back to the 17th century - College of the Jesuits. The building has been reconstructed in accordance with its original appearance.

It was here, in the collegium building, that Napoleon Bonaparte settled down during the War of 1812. It was here that famous people of that time received their education.

The Jesuit College was built at the beginning of the 17th century in the Baroque style. Initially, the building was used for holding sejms. However, a few years later, King Sigismund III transferred the building to the Jesuits, where the first educational institution was organized. A century later the building was rebuilt in stone. The walls housed a music school, a pharmacy and even a city theater. The building was gradually completed, and a decorative clock tower appeared on the second floor.

In 1820, the college was closed due to the ban on the activities of the Jesuits. For many years the building housed the city prison. And after the premises fell into disrepair and were stolen.

At the end of the 20th century, the entire complex was completely restored. Archaeologists have found the remains of the foundations of a college and a monastery. Today the building houses an art gallery and exhibition hall and a children's library.

Water Mill

In the historical center there is a water mill built in 1902. Back in the 18th century, the wooden mill in Orsha was indeed very profitable among the entire province. Unfortunately, the building, which attracts tourists from all over Belarus, is not original.

Built at the beginning of the 20th century, the red brick mill absorbed the architectural features of that time, preserving only the original location. The facade of the building is decorated with a round window, along the perimeter of which the date of construction is laid out.

In the early 90s of the last century, thanks to the Revival program, the mill was reconstructed. Now inside this red building there is an ethnographic museum.

The architectural composition of the mill also includes an arched bridge from the early 20th century.

Parts of the buildings of the Basilian monastery

The Basilian monastery itself has not survived to this day. On the banks of the river, in the center of Orsha, only ruins of the monastery residential complex .

Built in the mid-18th century, it is now in extremely poor condition.

Historians claim that the temple was founded by the Basilians in the second half of the 18th century.

There was also a temple at the monastery, which was called the Church of the Guardianship of Our Lady. In 1842, it was reconsecrated and the Orthodox Holy Intercession Monastery was located within the walls of the temple.

However, in 1967 this already Orthodox church was blown up. Today, only the walls of the residential complex at the monastery have been partially preserved.

Abandoned building of the Franciscan monastery

On Dominicanskaya Street there is an abandoned building that used to be a residential building of a monastery. Now the abandoned Franciscan monastery is not used and is gradually being destroyed. There is a small workshop near the main entrance.

A small sign “Kashtounast” reminds us that this building is an architectural monument.

Former monastery

Where the Trinity Church (Church of the Holy Spirit) is located today, the Kuteinsky Monastery was previously located. It was founded in Orsha in 1623. The name of the monastery was not accidental. The building of the monastery was founded at the confluence of the two rivers Dnieper and Kuteinka.

A few years later, during the founding of the monastery, an icon was miraculously revealed, which today is considered the patroness of all Orsha - the icon of the Mother of God. There are many legends surrounding its miraculous properties. They say that she brought healing and comfort to every sufferer. Today this icon is in the St. Elias Church of the Holy Dormition Convent in Orsha.

Around the same time, a wooden Epiphany Church was built on the territory of the monastery. Another church was also erected in honor of the birth of Christ. In the second half of the 19th century, it was re-lit in honor of the Holy Trinity.

The Kuteinsky monastery became famous thanks to its cultural and educational activities. Within the walls of the monastery there was a school, a library, and a workshop of icon painters. The Kuteinsky monastery was famous for its masters and they were invited to other cities and regions. Even the Moscow state summoned carpenters, masons, engravers and other craftsmen. The monastery housed the most important printing house at that time, which published books in the Belarusian Cyrillic alphabet.

In the first half of the 17th century, the monastery sheltered more than 200 monks. Thanks to their activities, many other Orthodox monasteries were opened. However, in 1655, the monks were forced to move to the Iversky Monastery due to the resulting oppression of the Orthodox by the Uniates.

The Epiphany Cathedral, which was located on the territory of the monastery, completely burned down in 1885. Another interesting fact is that at the beginning of the 20th century, monks found an ancient cave monastery in honor of the Resurrection of the Righteous Lazarus. Caves, niches and corridors were found.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the restoration of the Monastery began. In 1995, after restoration was completed, the Holy Trinity Church was illuminated within the walls of the former monastery. Within the walls of the temple there are workshops for wood carving and icon painting; iconostases are created and much more.

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Coordinates: 54°29′31″ n. w. 30°24′48″ E. d. / 54.49194° N. w. 30.41333° E. d. / 54.49194; 30.41333(G) (I)

Epiphany Kuteinsky Monastery- an Orthodox monastery in the city of Orsha, belongs to the Vitebsk diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church.

History of the monastery

The blessing for the construction of the Holy Trinity Epiphany Monastery was received in 1620 from Patriarch Theophan III of Jerusalem. The monastery is located on the outskirts of Orsha near the confluence of the Kuteinka River with the Dnieper.

The monastery complex consisted of the wooden Epiphany Cathedral (), the Holy Spiritual (with Trinity) church and bell tower, outbuildings, and was surrounded on three sides by a stone wall, the remains of which have been preserved.

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Notes

Literature

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Alexander Yarashevich. Encyclopedic history of Belarus / Editorial: G. P. Pashkov (ed.) i insh.; Mast. E. E. Zhakevich. - Mn. : BelEn, 1997. - T. 4: Cadets-Lyashchenya. - P. 321. - 432 p. - 10,000 copies. - ISBN 985-11-0041-2.
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An excerpt characterizing the Epiphany Kuteinsky Monastery

It was not for nothing that Berg showed everyone his right hand, wounded in the Battle of Austerlitz, and held a completely unnecessary sword in his left. He told everyone this event so persistently and with such significance that everyone believed in the expediency and dignity of this act, and Berg received two awards for Austerlitz.
He also managed to distinguish himself in the Finnish War. He picked up a fragment of a grenade that killed the adjutant next to the commander-in-chief and presented this fragment to the commander. Just like after Austerlitz, he told everyone so long and persistently about this event that everyone also believed that it had to be done, and Berg received two awards for the Finnish War. In 1919 he was a captain of the guard with orders and occupied some special advantageous places in St. Petersburg.
Although some freethinkers smiled when they were told about Berg’s merits, one could not help but agree that Berg was a serviceable, brave officer, in excellent standing with his superiors, and a moral young man with a brilliant career ahead and even a strong position in society.
Four years ago, having met a German comrade in the stalls of a Moscow theater, Berg pointed him to Vera Rostova and said in German: “Das soll mein Weib werden,” [She should be my wife], and from that moment he decided to marry her. Now, in St. Petersburg, having realized the position of the Rostovs and his own, he decided that the time had come and made an offer.
Berg's proposal was accepted at first with unflattering bewilderment. At first it seemed strange that the son of a dark Livonian nobleman was proposing to Countess Rostova; but the main quality of Berg’s character was such naive and good-natured egoism that the Rostovs involuntarily thought that this would be good, if he himself was so firmly convinced that it was good and even very good. Moreover, the Rostovs’ affairs were very upset, which the groom could not help but know, and most importantly, Vera was 24 years old, she traveled everywhere, and, despite the fact that she was undoubtedly good and reasonable, no one had ever proposed to her . Consent was given.
“You see,” Berg said to his comrade, whom he called friend only because he knew that all people have friends. “You see, I figured it all out, and I wouldn’t have gotten married if I hadn’t thought it all through, and for some reason it would have been inconvenient.” But now, on the contrary, my father and mother are now provided for, I arranged this rent for them in the Baltic region, and I can live in St. Petersburg with my salary, with her condition and with my neatness. You can live well. I’m not marrying for money, I think it’s ignoble, but it’s necessary for the wife to bring hers, and the husband to bring his. I have a service - it has connections and small funds. This means something nowadays, doesn’t it? And most importantly, she is a wonderful, respectable girl and loves me...
Berg blushed and smiled.
“And I love her because she has a reasonable character - very good.” Here’s her other sister - the same last name, but a completely different one, and an unpleasant character, and no intelligence, and such, you know?... Unpleasant... And my fiancee... You’ll come to us... - Berg continued, he wanted to say dinner, but changed his mind and said: “Drink tea,” and, quickly piercing it with his tongue, released a round, small ring of tobacco smoke, which completely personified his dreams of happiness.
Following the first feeling of bewilderment aroused in the parents by Berg’s proposal, the usual festivity and joy settled in the family, but the joy was not sincere, but external. Confusion and bashfulness were noticeable in the relatives' feelings regarding this wedding. It was as if they were now ashamed of the fact that they loved Vera little and were now so willing to sell her off. The old count was most embarrassed. He probably would not have been able to name what was the reason for his embarrassment, and this reason was his financial affairs. He absolutely did not know what he had, how much debt he had and what he would be able to give as a dowry to Vera. When the daughters were born, each was assigned 300 souls as a dowry; but one of these villages had already been sold, the other was mortgaged and was so overdue that it had to be sold, so it was impossible to give up the estate. There was no money either.
Berg had already been a groom for more than a month and only a week remained before the wedding, and the count had not yet resolved the issue of the dowry with himself and had not spoken about it with his wife. The count either wanted to separate Vera’s Ryazan estate, or wanted to sell the forest, or to borrow money against a bill of exchange. A few days before the wedding, Berg entered the count's office early in the morning and, with a pleasant smile, respectfully asked his future father-in-law to tell him what would be given to Countess Vera. The Count was so embarrassed by this long-anticipated question that he thoughtlessly said the first thing that came to his mind.
- I love that you took care, I love you, you will be satisfied...
And he, patting Berg on the shoulder, stood up, wanting to end the conversation. But Berg, smiling pleasantly, explained that if he did not know correctly what would be given for Vera, and did not receive in advance at least part of what was assigned to her, then he would be forced to refuse.
- Because think about it, Count, if I now allowed myself to get married without having certain means to support my wife, I would act basely...
The conversation ended with the count, wanting to be generous and not be subjected to new requests, saying that he was issuing a bill of 80 thousand. Berg smiled meekly, kissed the count on the shoulder and said that he was very grateful, but now he could not get settled in his new life without receiving 30 thousand in clear money. “At least 20 thousand, Count,” he added; - and the bill then was only 60 thousand.
“Yes, yes, okay,” the count began quickly, “just excuse me, my friend, I’ll give you 20 thousand, and in addition a bill for 80 thousand.” So, kiss me.

Natasha was 16 years old, and the year was 1809, the same year that four years ago she had counted on her fingers with Boris after she kissed him. Since then she has never seen Boris. In front of Sonya and with her mother, when the conversation turned to Boris, she spoke completely freely, as if it was a settled matter, that everything that happened before was childish, which was not worth talking about, and which had long been forgotten. But in the deepest depths of her soul, the question of whether the commitment to Boris was a joke or an important, binding promise tormented her.