Matvei Gedenshtrom | |
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| Born | 1780 (1780) |
| Died | 1845 (aged 65) |
| Occupation | Explorer |
Mathias orMatthias Hedenström (Swedish; 1780 – 2 October [O.S. 20 September] 1845), also known by hisRussian nameMatvei Matveyevich Gedenshtrom (Матвей Матвеевич Геденштром), was a Russian explorer of NorthernSiberia, writer, and public servant.
Gedenshtrom was born inRiga, then part of theRussian Empire to Mathias Hedenström (1733–1799), a Swedish political refugee fromDalarna.[2] Matvei Gedenshtrom himself was still a Swedish citizen in 1798.[3]
Gedenshtrom attended theUniversity of Tartu. He did not finish his studies and left his alma mater in favor of work atTallinn customs.[citation needed] Until 1806, he worked in Riga as a translator forCount Friedrich von Buxhoeveden, theGovernor-General of the Baltic provinces. In 1808, while working as secretary to a customs inspector, he was arrested in connection with a bribery affair, tried, and then banished to Siberia.[3]
Later that year, Gedenshtrom arrived inIrkutsk and received his first duty assignment by Minister of CommerceNikolay Rumyantsev, namely, the exploration of the coastline of the Arctic Ocean. Lacking necessary scientific background, Matvei Gedenshtrom had to study a lot in order to be able to reckon alatitude andlongitude of a given location and use scientific equipment in general. Gedenshtrom led thecartographic expedition to explore theNew Siberian Islands (together withYakov Sannikov and landsurveyors Pyotr Pshenitsyn and Ivan Kozhevin). The theory about the existence ofSannikov Land somewhere northwest of theKotelny Island originated during this very expedition. Gedenshtrom established the presence of theSiberian polynya – patches of open water in sea ice at the edge of thedrifting ice and continentalfast ice. In 1809, Gedenshtrom visited the eastern shores of an island, discovered by merchants Semyon and Lev Syrovatsky three years earlier, and named itNew Siberia (this name would be officially endorsed in 1810). Gedenshtrom charted the coastline between the mouths of the riversYana andKolyma. He also made many trips acrossYakutia and areas east of theLake Baikal.
In 1813, Matvei Gedenshtrom was employed by the secretariat of Irkutsk governor. Later on, he was appointed head of district police (исправник) inVerkhne-Udinsk, which did not distract him from scientific research and compiling his mineralogical and botanic collection. Matvei Gedenshtrom was a smart, talented, educated, and kind man, who often helped localpeasants with advice and money. However, he was also known to have been an immoral person and a squanderer. He was one of the closest associates ofNikolai Treskin (then-governor of Irkutsk) and made a sizeable fortune on bread purchases assigned to him by the governor's office. In 1819,Mikhail Speransky (governor general of Siberia) paid a visit to Irkutsk as part of his Siberian tour and exposed many instances ofofficial misconduct by local authorities. On 20 February 1820, Matvei Gedenshtrom was removed from his post for his autocratic style of management, embezzlement, extortion, and fraud. Speransky's report on his findings was examined by a special committee, established on 28 July 1821. The committee divided all of the offenders into ten categories. Gedenshtrom found himself in the third category, which meant he could never again be admitted to hold any public posts and had to be banished to an inner guberniya (European Russia). However, it was soon decided not to send him away from Siberia and settle him inTobolsk. Willing to take advantage of Matvei Gedenshtrom's skills and experience, the administration of Western Siberia managed to obtain permission for him to join the public service. In 1827, Gedenshtrom was allowed to return to European Russia and then employed by the Medical Service Corps (Медицинский департамент) as a section chief. In the 1830s, Matvei Gedenshtrom was appointed a postmaster inTomsk. Upon his retirement, he moved to a village of Kaidukovaya near Tomsk and spent the rest of his days drinking.
Matvei Gedenshtrom died inextreme poverty on 20 September 1845, at the age of 65. He was interred in Tomsk three days later.
Matvei Gedenshtrom published his scientific findings in several separate works and articles:
"Геденштрём, Матвей Матвеевич" .Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary (in Russian). 1906.| International | |
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| People | |
