Code of honor of a Russian officer in the tsarist army. Code of Honor of a Russian Officer of the Tsarist Army Code of Honor of an Officer of the Russian Empire

Anyone who travels a lot in English-speaking countries knows well how jealously they guard their language.

It seems unthinkable that in English-speaking countries, in everyday colloquial speech, and even more so in the media and speeches of officials, familiar words denoting specific and long-known concepts would be replaced by Russian words.

For example, so that the Speaker of the House of Commons (Speaker of the House of Commons) of Great Britain begins to be called the chairman. That is, a word derived from the Old Russian verb pr'sadati - “to take first place, sit in front.” And this chairman would not give a speech, but a welcoming speech.

Or an ordinary ombudsman will be called a defender, a commissioner, or even a human rights commissioner, and the ear-caressing words trend and meinstream will be replaced by the barbaric trend. You can imagine the horror of a typical Briton when his long-awaited weekend turns into a weekend.

However, in our country, the Russian language is being methodically and systematically supplanted, replacing it with gibberish from English words, to which Russian suffixes and endings are often added: “while friends use proofs so as not to screw up, they are hated.”

Okay, if it was just a fashion for another jargon, or, as they say now, slang, among young people. For the incomprehensible in foreign words and expressions that can have a broad interpretation of meaning in the Russian language, it is very convenient to hide one’s own illiteracy and incompetence.

From television screens, on radio stations and Internet channels, the speech of announcers is completely replete with borrowed English words.

Examples of replacing Russian words with English ones in the media

The hosts of the country's main TV channels seem to be vying with each other to see who can replace Russian expressions with foreign ones the most. At the same time, the texts of official online news publications are replete with grammatical errors and typos.

But, of course, the first officials of the state set the tone for all this. But it all starts small. For example, when it is broadcast throughout the country, addressing subordinate officials, their leader suggests “working in non stop mode.”

I wonder if the British Prime Minister, in similar communications with colleagues, which are covered on television, uses Russian words when pronouncing “work without interruption”?

After the collapse of the USSR, in domestic educational institutions The Russian language, unlike English, has not been held in high esteem for a long time. Hence the widespread tongue-tiedness among the younger generation. They not only cannot write colorful, interesting and competent Russian, but they cannot even speak it. Vocabulary is minimal. They communicate in abrupt phrases consisting of several dozen constantly used words.

I will quote the statements of the great Russian teacher Konstantin Dmitrievich Ushinsky, author of the wonderful textbook “Native Word”:

The language of a people is the best, never fading and ever-blooming flower of its entire spiritual life, which begins far beyond the boundaries of history.

Through his native language, a person feels a special connection with his homeland, forms his own worldview, studies the characteristics and historical experience of his people.

So, why is the Russian language being destroyed today?

Today, when the current Constitution of the Russian Federation prohibits state ideology, the Russian language is the only thing that connects those who live in Russia. This may be the national idea.

Therefore, an analogy with formally former British colonies suggests itself, where English language declared state and deeply embedded in society. And what they are doing with the Russian language is the deliberate elimination of our self-identification, that unique and invisible thing that still remains in common in each of us, unites us and does not allow us to turn into a slave of the West.

I would like to end the article with the words of K.D. Ushinsky:

Language is the most living, most abundant and lasting connection, connecting the outdated, living and future generations of a people into one great, historical living whole. It not only expresses the vitality of the people, but is precisely this life itself.

As long as the people's language lives in the mouths of the people, so long does the people live. When a people's language disappears, there are no more people!

In pre-revolutionary Russia, there was an informal set of rules for officer conduct. By adhering to it, the officer became a real defender of the Fatherland, behind which stands inner moral dignity, valor, nobility of soul and a clear conscience. After all, the high rank of a Russian Officer is not given only by shoulder straps.

In 1904, all these rules from a kind of code of honor were collected together in the brochure “Advice to a Young Officer” by Captain Valentin Mikhailovich Kulchitsky. Not all tips will be given below, but only some of them. These extracts are universal and suitable for any man at all times.

Kulchitsky’s work went through six reprints. The seventh was interrupted October Revolution. The purpose of the publication was to prevent inexperienced military youth from making false and destructive steps.

Don't make promises unless you're sure you'll keep your promise.
Conduct yourself simply, with dignity, without foppishness.
It is necessary to remember the line where dignified politeness ends and servility begins.
Be less frank - you will regret it. Remember: my tongue is my enemy!
Don’t play around - you can’t prove your valor, but you will compromise yourself.
Don’t rush to get on friendly terms with a person you haven’t gotten to know well enough.
Avoid money accounts with your friends. Money always spoils relationships.
Do not take personally offensive remarks, witticisms, or ridicule said after you, which often happens on the streets and in public places. Be above it. Leave - you won't lose, but you'll get rid of the scandal.
If you can’t say anything good about someone, then refrain from saying anything bad, even if you know.
Don't ignore anyone's advice - listen. The right to follow it or not will remain yours. Know how to take good advice from another - this is no less an art than giving good advice to yourself.
There are situations in life when you need to silence your heart and live with your mind.
A secret that you tell to at least one person ceases to be a secret.
Always be alert and don't let yourself go.
Try to keep your words soft and your arguments firm in a dispute. Try not to annoy your opponent, but to convince him.
When speaking, avoid gesturing and raising your voice.
Nothing teaches you more than realizing your mistake. This is one of the main means of self-education. Only those who do nothing make no mistakes.
When two people quarrel, both are always to blame.
Authority is acquired by knowledge of business and service.
It is important that your subordinates respect you, not fear you.
Where there is fear, there is no love, but there is hidden ill will or hatred.
There is nothing worse than indecision.
A worse decision is better than hesitation or inaction.
You can't get back a lost moment.
The best part of courage is caution.
The strongest delusions are those that have no doubt.
Humble is not the one who is indifferent to praise, but the one who is attentive to blame.
Thinking correctly is more valuable than knowing a lot.
Never express opinions about women. Remember: women have always been the cause of discord and the greatest misfortunes not only of individuals, but also of entire empires.
Take care of the reputation of the woman who has trusted you, no matter who she is. A decent person in general, especially an officer, never talks about such things even in the intimate circle of his trusted and trusted friends - a woman is always most afraid of publicity.
If you have entered a society in whose midst there is a person with whom you are in a quarrel, then when greeting everyone, it is customary to shake hands with him, of course, if this cannot be avoided without drawing the attention of those present or the hosts. Giving a hand does not give rise to unnecessary conversations, and does not oblige you to anything.
Be guided in life by instinct, a sense of justice and a duty of decency.
Know how to not only think and reason, but also be silent in time and hear everything.

A little about the author.

Valentin Mikhailovich was born in 1881 in Odessa into a noble family. Participated in the Russian-Japanese, First World War and Civil War. For all this time he was awarded four St. George Crosses. In 1933, he fell into the Soviet millstone of repression and was exiled to the construction of the White Sea-Baltic Canal, then to Karelia. He was released in 1936 and returned to Kharkov in 1937 and worked as a timekeeper at a factory. There, in 1942, during the German occupation, he was arrested by the Gestapo and in December, during interrogation, he was beaten to death by a Ukrainian policeman.

His son Mikhail Valentinovich Kulchitsky was famous poet. He died on January 19, 1943 in battle at the hands of the Nazi invaders near the village of Trembachevo, Lugansk region, during the advance of the Red Army from Stalingrad to the Kharkov region. Buried in a mass grave. The poet's name is embossed in gold on the 10th banner in the Pantheon of Glory of Volgograd.

In the Russian Imperial Army there was an informal set of rules for officer conduct. Following a unique code of honor made the officer a true gentleman. In 1904, these rules were brought together in the brochure “Advice to a Young Officer” by captain Valentin Mikhailovich Kulchitsky. Many tips are universal; they will be useful to any man today.

Father and son Kulchitsky, Marina Tsvetaeva and the "Officer's Code of Honor"

In the Russian Imperial Army there was an informal set of rules for officer conduct. Following a unique code of honor made the officer a true gentleman.

In 1904, these rules were brought together in the brochure “Advice to a Young Officer” by captain Valentin Mikhailovich Kulchitsky. Many tips are universal; they are useful to any man today.

These are simple, but so wise rules.

1. Don't make promises unless you're sure you'll keep your promise.

2. Conduct yourself simply, with dignity, without foppishness.

3. It is necessary to remember the line where dignified politeness ends and servility begins.

4. Do not write rash letters and reports in the heat of the moment.

5. Be less frank - you will regret it. Remember: my tongue is my enemy.

6. Don’t play around - you can’t prove your valor, but you will compromise yourself.

7. Don’t rush to get on friendly terms with a person you haven’t gotten to know well enough.

8. Avoid money accounts with your friends. Money always spoils relationships.

9. Don’t take offensive remarks, witticisms, or ridicule said after you personally. What often happens on the streets and in public places.

10. If you can’t say anything good about someone, then refrain from saying anything bad...

11. Don't ignore anyone's advice - listen. The right, whether to follow it or not, remains with you.

12. The strength of an officer does not lie in impulses, but in unshakable calm.

13. Take care of the reputation of the woman who trusted you, no matter who she is.

14. There are situations in life when you need to silence your heart and live with your mind.

15. A secret that you tell to at least one person ceases to be a secret.

16. Always be alert and don't let yourself go.

17. It is not customary for officers to dance at public masquerades.

18. Try to keep your words soft and your arguments firm in a dispute.

19. When speaking, avoid gesticulation and do not raise your voice.

20. If you enter a society in whose midst there is a person with whom you are in a quarrel, then when greeting everyone, it is customary to shake hands with him, of course, if this cannot be avoided. Without paying attention to those present or the hosts. Giving a hand does not give rise to unnecessary conversations, and does not oblige you to anything.

21. Nothing teaches you more than realizing your mistake. This is one of the main means of self-education.

22. When two people quarrel, both are always to blame.

24. There is nothing worse than indecision. A worse decision is better than hesitation or inaction.

25. The one who fears nothing is more powerful than the one whom everyone fears.

26. Soul - to God, heart - to a woman, duty - to the Fatherland, honor - to no one!

And how is one of the most enthusiastic and romantic works of young M.I. intertwined with these rules? Tsvetaeva "To the Generals of the Twelfth Year"!

Almost all of it consists of a chain of details that elevate the addressee of the message and is intended to perpetuate in the memory of generations and poeticize the high image of Russian officers.

Marina Ivanovna dedicated it to the heroes of the War of 1812, who stood up to defend the Motherland and laid down their lives on the altar of victory. The poetess wrote the work in 1913, almost a century after the victory over Napoleon.

In it, she addresses specifically the young heroes of the War of 1812, not all of them were generals by rank, but they all became real generals of feat for the Motherland. They, yesterday's youths, until recently were kings at the ball, where their spurs rang dashingly, but today they stood up to defend the Fatherland, and defend it with no less zeal.

The lines are dedicated to those who were honest and sincere in everything, to those who had no equal in their desire to live, who were kings both at the ball and on the battlefield!

You, whose wide greatcoats
Reminds me of sails
Whose spurs rang merrily
And voices.

And whose eyes are like diamonds
They carved a mark on my heart, -
Charming dandies
Years gone by!

With one fierce will
You took the heart and the rock, -
Kings on every battlefield
And at the ball.

The hand of the Lord protected you
And the heart of a mother - yesterday
Little boys, today -
Officer.

All heights were too small for you
And the staleest bread is soft,
Oh young generals
Your destinies!

Ah, half erased in the engraving,
In one magnificent moment,
I met Tuchkov the fourth,
Your gentle face

And your fragile figure,
And golden orders...
And I, having kissed the engraving,
I didn't know sleep.

Oh, how - it seems to me - you could
With a hand full of rings,
And caress the curls of the maidens - and the manes
Your horses.

In one incredible leap
You have lived your short life...
And your curls, your sideburns
It was snowing.

Three hundred won - three!
Only the dead did not rise from the ground.
You were children and heroes,
You could do everything.

Which is just as touchingly youthful,
How are your mad army? ..
You, golden-haired Fortune
She led like a mother.

You have won and loved
Love and sabers' edge -
And they crossed merrily
Into oblivion.

In the photo, father and son Kulchitsky

How to live and serve

Kultsitsky’s book turned out to be in demand among the military and went through six reprints until 1917. And after that she went on typewritten lists.

During war, the education of an officer becomes a strategic task. In October 1943, a book by a Russian nobleman and tsarist officer Valentin Kulchitsky’s “Advice to a Young Officer” was quoted by the main newspaper of the Red Army “Red Star” in a series of articles “Traditions of Russian Officers.”

Kulchitsky’s book was also used in the development of the Code of the Soviet Guard. After the Great Patriotic War the text of Kulchitsky's book was printed using 7-8 carbon copies and passed on in great confidence among romantically inclined military school cadets.

The “secrecy” was caused by the presence of party committees in those years, in which it would have been impossible to explain why a cadet of a Soviet military school needed a “Code of Honor for a Tsarist Officer.”

The Kama Sutra, which was circulated in reprints in exactly the same way with worn out drawings, is understandable. And the code of an officer, although Russian, but ideologically alien to the army, could be equated practically to reading the forbidden Solzhenitsyn, with the ensuing expulsion from a military university.

Father...

Valentin Mikhailovich Kulchitsky was born in 1881 in Odessa. The captain’s service record says: “From the nobles of the Kherson province. He was educated at the Irkutsk gymnasium and completed a course at the Tver Cavalry School in the 2nd category.” Participant in the Russian-Japanese, World War I and Civil Wars.

Awarded four St. George Crosses. In 1933, the Soviet authorities recalled his “wrong” origin and exiled him to the construction of the White Sea-Baltic Canal, and then to Karelia. Released in 1936. In 1942, during the German occupation of Kharkov, he was arrested by the Gestapo and in December, during interrogation, he was beaten to death by a policeman.

...and son

Mikhail Valentinovich Kulchitsky was born in Kharkov in 1919. The first poem was published in 1935.

Entered the Literary Institute in Moscow. In 1941, he volunteered for a fighter battalion. In mid-December 1942 he graduated from the machine gun and mortar school and received the rank of junior lieutenant.

On January 19, 1943, the commander of a mortar platoon, Mikhail Kulchitsky, died in a battle near the village of Trembachevo, Lugansk region. Buried in a mass grave. The name of the front-line poet is embossed in gold on the 10th banner in the Pantheon of Glory in Volgograd. The poems of Mikhail Kulchitsky are recognized as classics of military poetry.

***
Dreamer, visionary, lazy, envious!
What? Bullets in a helmet
safer than drops?
And the horsemen rush by with a whistle
sabers spinning with propellers.
I used to think: "Lieutenant"
sounds like this: “Pour it for us!”
And, knowing the topography,
he stomps on the gravel.
War is not fireworks at all,
but it’s just hard work,
when, black with sweat, up
infantry slides through the plowing.
March!
And clay in the slurping tramp
frozen feet to the bone
rolls up in boots
weight of bread per month's ration.
The fighters also have buttons
scales of heavy orders.
Not up to the order.
There would be a Motherland
with daily Borodino.

Mikhail Kulchitsky.
Khlebnikovo - Moscow, December 26, 1942.

.
In the Russian Imperial Army there was an informal set of rules for officer conduct. Although these rules were unwritten, every Russian officer knew about them and their observance was maintained in every regiment. For example, it was considered impermissible for an officer to have an actress or singer as a wife. The famous Cossack general and Donskoy Ataman, hero of the White movement P. N. Krasnov, while still in the rank of captain, married the daughter of the actual state councilor Lydia Fedorovna Grineisen, who at that time acted as a chamber singer. She sacrificed her career and her favorite hobby, because otherwise Podesaul Krasnov would have had to leave the Guards regiment according to an unspoken code of honor..
.
The honor of military service was so highly valued by the Sovereign Emperor that no compromising connection, no dubious publicity, nothing that could cast a shadow on an officer of His Imperial Majesty was allowed not only by the regulations, but also by the collective consciousness of the regimental officers.

By the beginning of the 20th century, when the Imperial Army finally ceased to be class-based and the law on general conscription, the consciousness of this high honor began to gradually be lost, the officer environment became more and more heterogeneous, the general culture of the Army fell, the unwritten rules were no longer held in high esteem, and their observance required more and more effort on the part of the “caste” part of the officers. Therefore, it is no coincidence that it was at this time - in 1904 - that the brochure “Advice to a Young Officer”, compiled by captain V. M. Kulchitsky, was published. The book turned out to be very popular and went through six reprints until 1917. Many of the rules of conduct listed in the Tips are universal and remain relevant to this day. Here are the rules:

- If you are harsh and arrogant, everyone will hate you.
- Be polite and modest in your dealings with all people.
- Don't promise if you're not sure you'll keep your promise.
- Conduct yourself simply, with dignity, without foppishness.
— Be self-possessed, correct and tactful always, with everyone and everywhere.
- Be polite and helpful, but not intrusive and flattering. Know how to leave on time so as not to be superfluous.
— It is necessary to remember the boundary where dignified politeness ends and where sycophancy begins.
- Don’t be a fool - you won’t prove your daring, but you will compromise yourself.
“Don’t rush to get on friendly terms with a person you haven’t gotten to know well enough.”
- Avoid money accounts with friends. Money always spoils relationships.
- Don’t make debts: don’t dig holes for yourself. Live within your means.
- Do not take personally offensive remarks, witticisms, ridicule said after you, which often happens on the streets and in public places. Be above it. Leave - you won’t lose, but you’ll get rid of the scandal.
“If you can’t say anything good about someone, then refrain from saying anything bad, even if you know.”
“Don’t neglect anyone’s advice—listen.” The right to follow him or not will remain with you.
— To be able to take advantage of good advice from another is no less an art than to give good advice to yourself.
“A boss who does not spare the pride of his subordinates suppresses their noble desire to become famous and thereby weakens their moral strength.
- Take care of the reputation of the woman who trusted you, no matter who she is.
— There are situations in life when you need to silence your heart and live with your mind.
— Be guided in life by instinct, a sense of justice and a duty of decency.
- Always be alert and don’t let yourself go.
- Try to keep your words soft and your arguments firm in a dispute. Try not to annoy your opponent, but to convince him.
— When speaking, avoid gesticulation and do not raise your voice.
“There’s nothing worse than indecision.” A worse decision is better than hesitation or inaction. You can't get back a lost moment.
“The one who fears nothing is more powerful than the one whom everyone fears.”
— When two people quarrel, both are always to blame.
— The strongest delusions are those that have no doubt.
- It’s smart to remain silent, by the way.
“The humble one is not the one who is indifferent to praise, but the one who is attentive to blame.”

In 1915, Captain Valentin Mikhailovich Kulchinsky, who later went through the First World War, put together “Advice to a Young Officer,” which became the Code of Honor of the Russian Officer.

"Royal shoulder straps". Pavel Ryzhenko, 2007

Here are these simple and wise rules:

1. Don't make promises if you're not sure you'll keep your promise.

2. Conduct yourself simply, with dignity, without foppishness.

3. It is necessary to remember the boundary where dignified politeness ends and servility begins.

4. Do not write rash letters and reports in the heat of the moment.

5. Be less frank - you will regret it. Remember: my tongue is my enemy!

6. Don’t play around - you can’t prove your valor, but you will compromise yourself.

7. Don’t rush to get on friendly terms with a person you haven’t gotten to know well enough.

8. Avoid money accounts with friends. Money always spoils relationships.

9. Do not take personally offensive remarks, witticisms, or ridicule said after you, which often happens on the streets and in public places. Be above it. Leave - you won't lose, but you'll get rid of the scandal.

10. If you can’t say anything good about someone, then refrain from saying anything bad, even if you know.

11. Don’t neglect anyone’s advice - listen. The right, whether to follow it or not, will remain yours. Know how to take good advice from another - this is no less an art than giving good advice to yourself.

12. An officer’s strength does not lie in impulses, but in unshakable calm.

13. Take care of the reputation of the woman who has trusted you, no matter who she is.

14. There are situations in life when you need to silence your heart and live with your mind.

15. A secret that you tell to at least one person ceases to be a secret.

16. Always be alert and don’t let yourself go.

***

17. Try to keep your words soft and your arguments firm in a dispute. Try not to annoy your opponent, but to convince him.

18. It is not customary for officers to dance at public masquerades.

19. When speaking, avoid gesticulation and do not raise your voice.

20. If you enter a society in whose midst there is a person with whom you are in a quarrel, then, when greeting everyone, it is customary to shake hands with him, of course, if this cannot be avoided without drawing the attention of those present or the hosts. Giving a hand does not give rise to unnecessary conversations, and does not oblige you to anything.

21. Nothing teaches you more than realizing your mistake. This is one of the main means of self-education. Only those who do nothing make no mistakes.

22. When two people quarrel, both are always to blame.

24. There is nothing worse than indecision. A worse decision is better than hesitation or inaction. You can't get back a lost moment.

25. The one who fears nothing is more powerful than the one whom everyone fears.

26. Soul - to God, heart - to a woman, duty - to the Fatherland, honor - to no one.

Valentin Kulchinsky, captain