Vasilii Davydov

Born 1792; died Oct. 24 (Nov. 5), 1855, in Krasnoiarsk. Dvorianin[noble], revolutionary Decembrist.

From 1812 to 1814, Davydov served in the army, and as an adjutant of General P. I. Bagration he took part in the battle of Borodino. He distinguished himself in the battle of Kulm. In early 1820 he joined the Union of the Public Good. In this period he was close to A. S. Pushkin, who wrote about his visit to Kamenka, the home of the Davydovs, in his epistle “To V. L. Davydov.” In January 1822 he joined the Southern Society and together with S. G. Volkonskii headed the Kamenka section of the society. An advocate of republican government and regicide, Davydov resolutely supported P. I. Pestel’. During the uprising of the Chernigov Regiment of late December 1825 and early January 1826, Davydov hesitated and failed to give his full support to the uprising. He displayed courage at the investigation and trial. He was condemned to hard labor in the Nerchinsk mines and in Pe-trovskii Zavod. From 1839 until his death he lived in Krasnoiarsk.