Descriptive Summary
Administrative Information
Biography / Administrative History
Scope and Content of Collection
Arrangement
Indexing Terms
Related Material
Descriptive Summary
Title: Cherkasskii Family Papers
Dates: 1798-1974
Collection number: 75105
Creator:
Cherkasskii family
Collection Size:
3 manuscript boxes, 1 oversize box
(2.2 linear feet)
Repository:
Hoover Institution Archives
Stanford, California 94305-6010
Abstract: Cherkasskii family archives includes diaries, correspondence, writings, genealogy, books, clippings, printed matter, and photographs,
relating to social conditions in Russia before the Russian Revolution, the Russian imperial army, the Russian Revolution and
Civil War, Russian émigré affairs, and the Russian Orthodox Church abroad.
Physical location: Hoover Institution Archives
Languages:
Languages represented in the collection:
English
Russian
French
Administrative Information
Access
The collection is open for research
The Hoover Institution Archives only allows access to
copiesof audiovisual items. To listen to sound recordings or to view videos or films during your visit, please contact the Archives
at least two working days before your arrival. We will then advise you of the accessibility of the material you wish to see
or hear. Please note that not all audiovisual material is immediately accessible.
Publication Rights
For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Archives
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Cherkasskii Family Papers, [Box no.], Hoover Institution Archives
Acquisition Information
Materials were acquired by the Hoover Institution Archives in 1975
Accruals
Materials may have been added to the collection since this finding aid was prepared. To determine if this has occurred, find
the collection in Stanford University's online catalog Socrates at
http://library.stanford.edu/webcat . Materials have been added to the collection if the number of boxes listed in Socrates is larger than the number of boxes
listed in this finding aid.
Biography / Administrative History
The Cherkasskii family was prominent in the Russian government and the army from about 1500 until the very end of the seventeenth
century. They were also the single richest boyar clan in Russia. From the end of the sixteenth century to Peter's time, they
were the most important group of aristocrats of foreign origin at the court of the Russian tsars.
The Cherkasskis were clearly proud of their origins, evident from the section on the Circassian princes that appeared in the
"Sovereign's genealogy", the quasi-official genealogy of the Russian aristocracy.
The papers cover the life of three generations of the Cherkasskii family: Prince Mikhail Alekseevich, born 1867, a civilian
of high rank, who entered the guards officers lists. He joined the Kirasirs military Regiment and was in charge of a medical
hospital, field hospitals, emergency, and first aid of the Kirasirs Regiment. Mikhail Alekseevich married Vera Pavlovna Likhacheva
in 1892. They both died in 1953 in Brussels.
Their two sons Prince Aleksei Mikhailovich (1898-1920) and Prince Igor Mikhailoich (1895-1975) fought against the Bolsheviks
during the Russian Civil War. The younger Prince Aleksei Mikhailovich, died in February 1920 fighting the Bolsheviks, and
Prince Igor Mikhailovich, member of the corps of Pages, Lieutenant-Colonel lived long life and died in Brussels in 1975. He
was married to Zoia Sergeevna Rodzianko (1901-1949) in 1921. Their daughter Princess Irina Igorevna has no heirs.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Cherkasskii family archives include diaries, correspondence, writings, genealogical materials, books, clippings, printed
matter, and photographs, relating to social conditions in Russia before the Russian Revolution, the Russian imperial army,
the Russian Revolution and Civil War, Russian émigré affairs, and the Russian Orthodox Church abroad.
The Cherkasskiis were clearly proud of their origin, evident from the section of the collection that appears in the genealogical
charts. The collection also includes an official genealogy of the Russian aristocracy with the place of the Cherkaskii family
prominent.
The Cherkasskii family papers consist of material related to the life and work of this prominent Russian family, both in Russia
and abroad, from 1798 to 1974. The collection includes a wealth of biographical material found in the series related to the
last three generations of the family. Of special interest is material from the period of the Russian Civil War, which includes
a descriptive essay on Prince Aleksei Mikhailovich written by his brother. The biographical file further includes documentary
material related to the Cherkasskii family life abroad and their exile to Belgium. Also interesting are materials related
to family political activities, and participation in the life of the Russian Orthodox Church abroad.
Arrangement
The collection is organized into 4 series: Cherkasskii family archives, Photographs, Subject file, and Printed matter
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in Stanford University's online catalog.
Subjects
Russia. ArmiiaߞOfficers
Russia—Emigration and immigration
Russia—Court and courtiers
Soviet union-History-revolution, 1917-1921
Russkara pravoslavmaia tsrkov'
World War, 1914-1918
Diaries
Photographs
Related Material
Russian Subject collection, Hoover Institution Archives