Issue 1 (90)
| POLISH “EMPEROR” BELOPOLSKY: SVIR PEASANT SHIP PILOTS VERSUS MEDICINE DURING THE 1831 CHOLERA EPIDEMIC | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | 2026 | Number | 1 (90) |
| Pages | 143-150 | Type | scientific article |
| UDC | 94(470.22)“1831“ | BBK | 63.3(2Ðîñ.Êàð)52 |
| Authors | Egorov Alexander K. |
Topic | HISTORICAL EPISODES |
| Summary | The paper examines the incident with Doctor Belopolsky, who was detained by peasants in Olonets Governorate during the cholera outbreak in the summer of 1831. It first entered public knowledge through the memoir of a government official by the name of Sokolov, published back in the 19th century. The memoir states that the peasants mistook Belopolsky for the “Polish Emperor”, believing that he was plotting against them. They intended to put him to death, but the doctor was rescued by the local ispravnik. However, this incident can be reconstructed in more detail on the basis of the investigation case file, which has been preserved in the archives. According to the case file, Belopolsky was indeed detained by peasants on suspicion of malicious intent. However, in other respects, the investigators’ version diverges from Sokolov’s story. The peasants suspected that, en route to their community, Belopolsky had poisoned the water in the Svir River. The mob attempted to find poison among Belopolsky’s belongings. The main instigators were peasants in charge of piloting ships along the Svir. The authorities managed to calm the peasants, and the doctor avoided any serious consequences. The Belopolsky incident was part of the cholera panic that gripped the European part of Russia in the summer of 1831, when members of the public accused one another, particularly strangers passing through their communities, of spreading poison under the guise of cholera. The archive-based reconstruction of what happened to Belopolsky shows serious discrepancies with Sokolov’s version, which significantly exaggerated the danger posed to the doctor by the peasants. | ||
| Keywords | epidemic, cholera, medicine, rumour, poisoning, panic, violence, cholera riots | ||
| References |
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