We met the great grandson of Petr Stolypin, Arkadiy D. Stolypin, during the Stolypin Memory Days in Kiev. It turned out this was the first visit of 49-year-old Arkadiy to Ukraine.
– Kiev is the city where your great grandfather was assassinated. Do you have a sense of loss when staying here?
– You bet! These were very strong emotions! It is one thing is to listen to stories about my great grandfather from the earliest years, including some family traditions, and quite another thing – to be at the site where he perished and was buried.
– Now the name of Stolypin is very popular in both Russia and Ukraine. Why do you think his cause started 100 years ago is still so relevant for us today?
– It’s difficult to express in words. One thing is certain: it’s not accidental or without reason that 100 years after his death tremendous interest in his heritage has suddenly kindled. Stolypin was a great reformer.
– Your great grandfather did everything he could to make Russia a great power. There is a classical quote: “You need great upheavals and we need great Russia.” What is your perception of the once powerful empire which has fallen to pieces, each of them now struggling for survival rather than grandeur? Don’t you feel the efforts of your ancestor were futile?
– No, they were not – if not for his activities, the situation in these countries could be much worse than now. He laid a rather solid foundation enabling their existence, notwithstanding the hardest shocks in their history.
– Does your family feel any offence towards the tsarist family?
– Although my great grandfather was an ultimate monarchist, we are well aware and remember that his relations with the tsarist family were marred by a tension between Stolypin and the Empress. But serving Russia and Fatherland is more important than any personal relations.
– Tell us your story.
– I live with my family in western Paris in France. My wife Cecilia has Brazilian roots. I have four children. My son is interested in politics. My elder daughter Mary is a student and future historian. Younger daughters, Elizabeth and Constance go to school. I work for the well-known French carmaker Renault. We have quite a few relatives in France, rather many in Italy and there are some in Germany and USA. We celebrate all major holidays in our family: New Year, Easter, Christmas and others. Women play a very important role in our family, and though none of them has ever had Russian roots, they have always encouraged us, men, to study the Russian culture as they knew we are heirs of the famous Russian family. For example, my mother always cooks Russian dishes on holidays. All men in our clan are Orthodox believers while women are Catholics.
– What is the perception of Russia in France? Do they know whose descendant you are?
– Russia is perceived in a friendly manner. Russians are thought to be a very educated and civilized nation. Stolypin, his fate and name are not widely known beyond the Russian community. This figure is thought to be great for Russia. My colleagues know about my descent, but generally speaking the story of my ancestor is not a well-known fact in France. Only lovers of history know something about it.
– You are a relative of Pushkin, Gogol, Lermontov, which is the evidence of talent at the genetic level. Have you ever tried to write?
– All generations in our family have been brought up on the Russian classics. I’ve read it all but in French translations. Two cultures intermingle in our family: Russian and Western; and there is no sense of any pressure put by one culture on another. Russian culture is in my genes. I am proud of my relation to great Russian classics. I also like Alexei Tolstoy and I love reading Fyodor Dostoyevsky for psychological twists and turns in his works. But I do not write myself.
– Have you ever wished to learn Russian?
– I tried to learn Russian. My grandpa, the son of Petr Stolypin, tried to speak Russian with his grandchildren. But he was not a demanding or fastidious educator; this is why I never mastered Russian, though I understand some words and phrases and tell you in Russian: «Я очень люблю Россию и Украину!» [I love Russia and Ukraine!]
Oksana Shkoda
