Sergey Ivanovich Muravyov-Apostol (Russian:Серге́й Ива́нович Муравьёв-Апо́стол) (9 October [O.S. 28 September] 1796 – 25 July [O.S. 13 July] 1826) was aRussian ImperialLieutenant Colonel and one of the organizers of theDecembrist revolt.[1]
He was one of five Decembrists executed for their roles in attempting to reform the Russian autocracy towards a constitutional form of government.[1]
Sergei was born inSaint Petersburg, the fourth son of Russian diplomatIvan Muravyov-Apostol. His mother, Anna, was the daughter of a Serbian general, Simon Crnojević. Four of his relatives also became Decembrists: his brothersIppolit Muravyov-Apostol andMatvey Muravyov-Apostol and his cousinsNikita Muravyov andArtamon Muravyov.[1]
Sergei spent his childhood inHamburg andParis, then graduated from the Saint Petersburg Institute of Road Engineers before joining in the Russian Army.
He was a veteran of thePatriotic War of 1812. He took part in theBattle of Vitebsk, theBattle of Borodino, theBattle of Tarutino, theBattle of Maloyaroslavets, theBattle of Berezina (for which he was awarded the Golden Sword for Bravery), theBattle of Leipzig (1813), and theBattle for Paris (1814), for which he was awarded theOrder of St. Anna, second degree.[1]
After theNapoleonic wars he served as aporuchik, and later as acaptain of theRussian Guards,Semyonovsky Regiment. After the uprising of the Semyonovsky regiment in 1820 he transferred as aLieutenant Colonel to thePoltava regiment, and in 1822 to theChernigov regiment.
In 1817 and 1818, he was aFreemason, a member and a ritual-keeper of the "Three Virtues" Lodge. He was one of the founders of pre-Decembrist secret societiesUnion of Salvation andUnion of Welfare, and a director of the Decembrist Southern Society. He was the coordinator of correspondence between the Southern Society and the pro-PolishSociety of United Slavs. Muravyov-Apostol was the author of the DecembristsСatechesis and a very articulate supporter of establishing arepublic and abolishingserfdom in Russia.[1]
In 1825, he led theuprising of the Chernigov regiment. He was arrested on 10 January 1826 [O.S. 29 December 1825] then freed by his fellow officers. He led an insurgency against government forces on 20 January [O.S. 3 January] 1826, when he was critically wounded by acanister shot. According to the legend, his wounds prevented him from staying in the saddle. So he ordered to be fastened to his horse by ropes so as to lead the desperate cavalry attack on the government artillery battery. The attack was unsuccessful and he was captured.
He was delivered to Saint Petersburg and was one of the five Decembrists sentenced toquartering, but later this sentence was replaced withhanging. He was executed along with the other 4 inPeter and Paul Fortress on 25 July [O.S. 13 July] 1826.
He was interred with the other four in a secret grave onGoloday Island, though some conspiracy theorists believed that the men were not hanged but put on the island to starve. In the Soviet era, the island was renamed "Decembrists' Island" in memory of the executed men.
