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Memories of the Civil War

The collections of the Museum-Reserve of M.A.Sholokhov are entered with the memories of Yakov Nazarovich Lagutin, a veteran of the First World War and the Civil War. He was a personage in the novel “And Quiet Flows the Don” by M.A.Sholokhov bearing his real surname.

The notebooks containing the manuscript memories on more than 50 pages were handed down to the Museum by L.I.Vereshkova, the widow of K.I.Priyma, a Sholokhov scholar.

The memories are mainly focused on the talks of the Revolution Committee delegation headed by F.G.Podtyolkov with the Don Government and chieftain A.M.Kaledin in 1918. This event is depicted in detail in the novel “And Quiet Flows the Don”. Y.N.Lagutin was awarded four Crosses of St.George, two medals “For Courage”, in 1920 – the Order of Red Banner.

In 1976, M.A.Sholokhov presented to Y.N.Lagutin the third volume of the novel “And Quiet Flows the Don” with an autograph: “To Y.Lagutin. To one of the heroes of the Civil War.”

When studying the novel “And Quiet Flows the Don” a number of literary scholars highlight the theme of the prototypes of the novel personages, and the memories of Y.N.Lagutin, one of the persons, who really existed, are referred to by Sholokhov scholars K.I.Priyma and G.S.Yermolayev in their works.

Lyudmila Razogreyeva