Sollogub, V.A.: The New Egypt

Title

Novyi Egipet, Sankt-Peterburg 1871

The New Egypt

Keywords

Summary

The book is divided into two tonally different sections: the first one, entitled The New Egypt, is an essay, based on a talk the author gave, devoted to the consequences of the opening of the Suez Canal on a historical, political, scientific and economic level. This innovation is regarded as extremely significant both for the development of the “new” Egypt and for the whole “Orient” and its trades. The second part is entitled A Trip to Suez, and it consists of the author’s travel notes on his 1869 trip to Egypt, starting from St. Petersburg, then on to Vienna, Trieste, Corfu, Alexandria, Port Said, Ismailia, Cairo. He wittily recounts his journey describing the fellow travellers, and recording his first impressions of Egypt, the preparations for the ceremony, and the actual ceremony. Considerations about the Canal and its role are also included.

Bio

Vladimir Sollogub was a Russian writer and civil servant of Polish origins. Born into a noble family very well placed in Saint Petersburg society, Sollogub was initially educated at home under the supervision of P. Pletnev. He later applied to the Faculty of Philosophy at Dorpat (Tartu) University, graduating in 1834. Disliking his initial post at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he pursued a career within the Ministry of Internal Affairs. He was frequently dispatched to various locations of the empire in order to collect data on life and society in the provinces. He was tasked with gathering information on Old Believers, and later sent to the Caucasus, on which he wrote ethnographic essays and poems. His service also brought him to Europe several times. In 1869 he was sent to Egypt to take part in the ceremony for the opening of the Suez Canal. Later in life he was appointed chair of the Commission for the reorganisation of prisons in Russia, an issue on which he published consistently. Due to health problems he spent his last years between Crimea and Europe, visiting mineral spas. He died in Hamburg. A prolific writer interested in different genres, he began his literary career in 1837 through a collaboration with the journal “Sovremennik”.

Sources

A. Nemzer, “Sollogub Vladimir Aleksandrovich”, in Russkie pisateli. 1800-1917: biograficheskii slovar’, t. 5, Moskva 2007, p. 722-729;

 A.F.