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Moscow University founded
On January 12 (23), 1755 the Empress Elisabeth signed a decree on the Moscow University establishment. Since the decree was issued on the Saint Tatiana Day (now it is celebrated on January 25), this saint became the patroness of the University and later of all its students.
The grand opening ceremony of the University took place on the anniversary day of Elisabeth’s coronation, the 26th of April (May 7), 1755. The count I.I. Shuvalov became the first curator of the University and A.M. Argamakov its first director.
Originally the University consisted of three departments: Philosophy Department, Department of Law and Department of Medicine, all of them including ten sub-departments chaired by one professor. Theological Department was not included in the University’s project. It stated that “the care for theology is fairly left to the Holy Synod”. Lectures at the time were delivered not only in Latin generally used in the Universities, but also in Russian.
According to the project developed by an eminent scientist M.I. Lomonosov in partnership with Shuvalov and approved at the same time as the decree on the University establishment, there were organized two gymnasiums under the Universities – for nobles and commons (for the exception of serfs).
The University was attributed by a range of privileges. It was under the Empress’ patronage and the direct authority of Senate. All “the University ranks” were outside the jurisdiction of any court without curators’ and direction’s knowledge except for the University trial. Their houses were exempted from “billets and other policy burdens”.
The state allocations met the needs of the University only in part. Its financing was also made up of the tuition fees, commercial activity results, sponsors’ and graduates’ assistance who made the contribution to the educational institution development not only by means of money. Many of them granted scientific devices, collections, books, established grants for the students.
In 1756 under the University on Mohovaya street were opened a typography and a book shop. The University began to publish the first non-governmental newspaper in the country – “Moscow bulletin”; from 1760 – the first literary journal “The useful entertainment”. In 1779-1789 the University typography was headed by a University gymnasium graduate, a Russian enlightener, writer, journalist and publisher N.I. Novikov.
In 1804 the regulations were adopted (before that the University’s activity was regulated by “the royally approved project on the Moscow University establishment”). According to it the University was given a significant autonomy. The institution directed the primary and secondary schools in the central Russian provinces. Chancellor and deans were elected among the professors: the first elected chancellor was the history and philology professor H.A. Chebotarev. The professor’s Council solved all the issues of the University life. The students studied during three years at one of the four departments: Department of moral and political science, Physics and Mathematics Department, Department of Medicine and Philology Department. In the 19th century under the University were organized the first scientific societies: the Society of Nature Explorers, of the Russian History and Antiquity, of the Russian literature lovers.
The fire of the 1812 war caused a great damage to the Moscow University: the buildings burnt down, the library, the archive, the museum and the equipment were destroyed. Nevertheless it was soon restored and by 1820s numbered already 500 students and by the middle of the century there were 1.5 thousand of them.
In the second half of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century on the University initiative and with its assistance were created the greatest Moscow museums: Polytechnic museum, History museum, Zoology museum, Anthropology museum and the Museum of Fine Arts (now the Museum of Visual Arts of A.S. Pushkin); were opened the Botanical gardens and Zoology garden (Moscow zoo).
In 1884 the control over the University was increased and the new Regulations were adopted provoking the students’ disorders. The struggle for the academic freedoms made the University the main center of the social ideas. In 1905 with an active assistance of its professors and graduates was formed the Russian academic union. In 1911 over 130 professors left the University making a protest against the illegal dismissal of some professors and the University autonomy break.
Due to the revolution events of 1917 the structure of the Moscow University changed. In 1918 was abolished the Department of Law, in 1919 was created the Social Science Department including three faculties (of politics and law, of economy and of history). Beginning the same year the University was completely financed by the state. At the same time the Workers’ faculty was opened (it existed until 1936) that prepared the workers and peasants for entering the higher education institution. In 1934 the first during the Soviet rule Candidate’s dissertations were defended in the State University of Moscow.
During the Great Patriotic war the University was evacuated to Ashkhabad, then to Sverdlovsk (now Yekaterinburg) and in 1943 it returned to Moscow.
In 1953 was constructed a complex of new University buildings at Lenin (Sparrow) Hills where the major part of the University departments, institutes and centers were installed. In 1959 it housed one of the first Centers of international education in Russia which prepared the foreign experts. In the second half of the 20th century the University had been actively developing, special labs and centers were created, the first Department of Soil Science in Russia was opened.
In 1992 the Moscow University obtained the status of the Russian autonomous institution for higher education and in 1998 the new regulations were adopted.
In 2009 the President of the Russian Federation D.A. Medvedev signed a federal law “On the Moscow State University n. a. M.V. Lomonosov and the St.-Petersburg State University”. Under the law these institutions are attributed a special status of the “unique scientific and educational complexes, the most ancient higher education institutions in the country having a major value for the development of the Russian society”.
Lit.: Белявский М. Т. М. В. Ломоносов и основание Московского университета. М., 1955; Документы и материалы по истории Московского университета второй половины XVIII в.: в 3 т. М., 1960-1962; История Московского университета [Электронный ресурс] // Московский государственный университет имени М. В. Ломоносова. 1997-2019. URL: http://www.msu.ru/info/history.html; Пенчко Н. А. Основание Московского университета. М., 1952; Московский государственный университет имени М. В. Ломоносова: сайт. 1997–2019. URL: http://www.msu.ru/.
Based on the Presidential Library’s materials:
Геннади Г. Г. Библиотека Императорского Московского университета. М., 1858;