I.H. Kolodeev’s library, the original collection of artifacts of the war of 1812
Ivan Hrisanfovich Kolodeev (1859–1914) is a historian, researcher of local lore, collector, landowner of the Borisov Uyezd of the Minsk Province, State Counsellor and chamberlain, one of founders of the Imperial Russian Military and Historical Community, member of the Special Committee for Foundation of the Museum of 1812 in Moscow and the Circle of the Adherents of the Memory of the Patriotic War of 1812 at the Moscow Division of the Imperial Russian Military and Historical Community. In 1901 he built at his own expense two equal monuments based on the drawing of cornet N.V. Zaretsky. They were placed on both banks of river Berezina where the spot of the Great Army’s passage had been discovered. In 1903 he contributed to the foundation of a museum on the railroad station Borodino.
In the beginning of the 20th century I.H. Kolodeev’s collection – books, manuscripts, maps, graphic materials on the history of the Patriotic War of 1812 – had a particular place among private historical collections. It had been collected during 25 years with a great love and profound knowledge of this theme, and finally it became a treasury of materials on the history of the Napoleonic wars. Specialists of the epoch noted that Kolodeev’s collection of artifacts of the war of 1812 noticeably exceeded the eminent collection of Prince Roland Bonaparte in Brussels and was the biggest in Europe.
In 1913 Kolodeev’s library included 7 919 titles and more than 11 000 volumes. It consisted of three main sections: Russian, French and German. The library also contained editions in Polish, English, Italian, Dutch and other languages.
The biggest was the Russian section of the Library. Most valuable were life-time editions of participants of the war of 1812 – D.V. Davydov, N.М. Karamzin, V.А. Zhukovsky, F.N. Glinka, P.А. Chuykevich, М.N. Zagoskin, А.S. Norov, А.P. Yermolov, А.А. Pisarev. Contemporaries noted the richest collection of Russian newspapers and journals such as Novojy Vremja, Vestnik Evropy, Syn Otechestva, Russkij Vestnik, Voennyj Jurnal, Otechestvennyje Zapiski, Sankt-Peterburgskije Vedomosti. The bibliography included 362 names of editions: the works of D.А. Rovinsky, I.П. Liprandi, V.I. Mezhov, V.Y. Adarjukov, I.М. Adarjukov, I.М. Ostroglazov, P.I. Bartenev, V.А. Vereshchagin, S.А. Vengerov. The Russian section of the library included also the archive of Prince М.S. Vorontsov (40 volumes) and editions on 1812 of P.I. Shchukin (30 volumes).
The French section of Kolodeev’s book collection included memoirs of contemporaries, figures and participants of the Great Army: memoirs of sergeant А. Bourgogne, baron J. Crossard, baron P. Bertezen, classical works of F.-P. de Segur and letters of Napoleon.
The German section of the library included editions dedicated to the history of regiments of Prussia, Austria, Germany and other states participating in the campaign of 1812. This section was completed with albums of lithographs based on drawings of German artists participants of the Russian campaign in 1812 C.W. Faber du Faur (1780–1857) and Albrecht Adam (1786–1862). Most part of the collection were battle-paintings, scenes of life in the field and pictures of uniform, 783 engraved portraits of Russian commanders and officers, writers, artists, public figures of the epoch including engravings of I.S. Klauber, I.P. Pozhalostin, J. Doe, Т. Wright, D. Godby, etchings of V.А. Bobrov, xylographs of L.А. Serjakov etc.
Among the most rare engravings there are five portraits drawn and engraved by English artist D. Dayton with watercolor coloring. Most interesting are nine portraits of commanders of 1812 engraved by F. Vendramini on the basis of drawings of L. de Saint Aubin, and also 22 portraits of participants and contemporaries of the events of engraved by S. Cardelli. Besides, the collection included 171 portraits of participants of the Great Army campaign. The map collection included tens of maps of the end of the 18th – beginning of the 19th centuries. In 1938 the most part of books from I.H. Kolodeev’s collection was handed to the State Public Historical Library in Moscow.
Part of I.H. Kolodeev’s collection is kept in the stocks of the National Library of Belarus. More than Выявлено свыше 3,5 thousand books, periodicals, press-cuttings are revealed, more than 300 editions are attributed and kept in the Bibliology division. The work on revelation of Kolodeev’s editions in the library collection is carried on. This project presents 13 digitized editions from the stocks of the National Library of Belarus and 2 digital copies of original editions in French language presented by the National Library of France. – Faber du Faur, G. de. Campagne de Russie 1812 : d’apres le journal illustre d’un temoin oculaire. Paris, Flammarion, 1895; Bourgogne, Adrien-Jean-Baptiste-François. Mémoires sur la campagne de Russie en 1812, par M. Bourgogne,... ex-grenadier vélite de la garde impériale. 1856.
