Kyiv Institute of Noble Maidens — a women’s educational institution founded in the 19th century, which provided general education as well as aesthetic and ethical upbringing / wikipedia.org
In early December 2013, revolutionaries entered the building to warm up and ended up staying, organizing a headquarters. Back in 1919, the building was occupied by the 1st Communist Guard Regiment, which was soon forcibly removed from the illegally seized premises…
This passage is about the October Palace in Kyiv, now known as the International Center of Culture and Arts (ICCA), which was previously the Institute of Noble Maidens. It stands proudly on a hill above Khreshchatyk. In the early 19th century, the estate belonged to General Dmitry Begichev, a well-known figure in Kyiv. In fact, the street now known as Instytutska was then called Begichevska. The public was wary of Dmitry Begichev, as people would come to his house almost every evening under the light of street lamps and engage in mysterious activities. Dark things were rumored to happen there, but in reality, everything was as clear as day: a Masonic lodge held its meetings in Begichev’s home.
The estate on the hill, covering over 3.5 hectares, was purchased by the general in October 1811 from the heirs of retired Colonel Dmitry Shirai. Begichev acquired a two-story building, a one-story residential house, stables, several other structures, and a fruit garden. Witnesses of that time noted that the main building’s interior layout resembled more of a theater.
However, after becoming the owner, Begichev did nothing to improve the property. On the adjacent plot he received from the city in 1819, he also failed to initiate construction, as required by city regulations. General Governor Count Levashov pointed this out in a directive dated October 14, 1833: «… if the house continues to remain in its current state of disrepair, the government will have to act according to the Decree of September 17, 1831, regarding the rules for allocating land in the city of Kyiv for construction». Twenty-two years had passed since Begichev acquired the estate, and the main building remained unfinished.
The situation needed urgent resolution, so in October 1834, the general donated the estate to the newly established St. Vladimir University. Initially, the building was used as a storage facility, where part of the university’s scientific collection and library were kept. Later, it was decided to demolish the building.
At that time, Count Levashov petitioned Tsar Nicholas I to use the estate for the construction of an educational institution for girls in Kyiv.
EDUCATIONAL INITIATIVES
«The idea of establishing a center of enlightenment for Russian maidens dates back to a distant past and first emerged in Kyiv. Eight hundred years ago, the eldest daughter of the Grand Prince of Kyiv, Vsevolod Yaroslavich, Anna, under the state patronage of her father, was the first in Rus’ to open a girls’ school, founding it at the Kyiv St. Andrew’s Women’s Monastery… In 1086, according to the Chronicle, the pious princess ‘gathered several young maidens and taught them writing, as well as crafts, singing, sewing, and other useful skills, so that from youth, they might learn to understand the Law of God and industriousness…’» — This is how Mykhailo Zakharchenko begins his work «The History of the Kyiv Institute of Noble Maidens: 1838–1888» (Kyiv, 1899), who was the inspector of the institute’s classes and a historian.
Emperor Nicholas I heard Governor-General Levashov’s request and ordered that 250,000 rubles be released from the treasury. On November 5, 1834, Nicholas I approved the institution’s charter. The primary mission of the Institute of Noble Maidens was to «provide free education for the children of impoverished nobles from the Kyiv, Volyn, and Podillia governorates and to offer the same education for a modest fee to the daughters of wealthy parents from those same regions». The students were under the direct patronage of the Empress herself.
Begichev’s estate was demolished. Despite royal patronage, the institute only opened in the summer of 1838, during the governorship of Dmitry Bibikov. Initially, the educational institution was housed in a temporary building at the corner of what are now Lypa and Instytutska streets. The institute’s building was ceremonially laid in July 1839. Construction lasted until 1843, based on the design by architect Vicentii Beretti, the author of the Red Building of Kyiv University. He began constructing a four-story building in the classical style, with a rotunda portal and an arcade.
INSTITUTE LIFE
The first two floors of the main building housed the reception area, the principal’s apartment, a hospital, several staff apartments, a Roman Catholic church, a ceremonial hall, an Orthodox church, a library, classrooms, and a dining room. On the third floor were the dormitories for the students and rooms for the class ladies. In the basement were the kitchen, baths, storerooms, and rooms for the servants.
The institute was a closed institution. For decades, everything that happened within its walls remained a mystery to many Kyiv residents, who knew no more than they did about the Masonic lodge once housed in Begichev’s home.
Communication between the students and the outside world was restricted. They were taken for walks in the enclosed palace grounds of the Tsar’s Garden, and when walking through the city, they moved in formation, accompanied by teachers. For festive services at the cathedral or church, they traveled in palace carriages, with footmen on the back and accompanied by mounted guards. Only parents were allowed to take them home for the holidays. The institute’s girls, dressed in their distinctive blue uniforms, were nicknamed «synytsi» (little bluebirds) by the locals.
The institute received substantial financial support. Its furnishings were no less luxurious than those of the royal residence.
WHAT THEY TAUGHT
The entire course lasted six years, divided into three classes of two years each. The academic year began on August 1 and lasted 11 months. The girls studied the Law of God and dedicated much time to languages, which included French, German, Polish, and Russian. They also studied Russian and world history, geography, arithmetic, physics, natural sciences, drawing, music and singing, dancing, and needlework.
Girls aged 10 to 13 were admitted on government funding, but those paying for themselves could enter a year earlier. All admissions were reported to the Empress. Initially, only girls of noble descent were accepted, but from 1852, daughters of hereditary honorary citizens and first-guild merchants were also admitted.
The best teachers in Kyiv taught at the institute, including professors from St. Vladimir University, such as historians Mykola Kostomarov and Volodymyr Ikonnikov. Music instruction was provided by composer Mykola Lysenko, who selected students according to his taste, favoring Ukrainian girls. His students’ playing even captivated Anton Rubinstein.
THE FRUITS OF EDUCATION
The first graduation at the institute took place in 1844. A total of 33 girls completed the entire course, while the institute had 174 students overall. Graduates received diplomas and certificates as governesses. The best among them were awarded gold insignias, gold, and silver medals, and books with commendation letters. After the successful first graduation, there arose a need to open two lower classes. By the jubilee year of 1888, 250 girls were studying at the institute, with 35 of them in the graduating class.
Many actresses, pianists, and singers emerged from the Kyiv Institute. Among its alumnae was the Ukrainian émigré writer Natalena Koroleva (1888–1966), whose mother came from an ancient Spanish lineage. After graduating from the institute, she performed on European stages, and the Ukrainian diaspora widely read her prose. She depicted the institute in her novella Without Roots:
«Instead of the usual white walls, blinding in the sun, instead of the orange-baked roof tiles, she saw a large three-story building made of pale yellow, unpainted, even unplastered bricks, adorned with simple iron decorations and covered with iron sheets. In front of the house was a narrow walkway, also made of yellow bricks, lined with tall chestnut trees on the outer edge. Even now, these leafless chestnuts shade all the windows…»
NEW REALITIES
The Institute of Noble Maidens existed until 1918. That year, plans were made to open a Children’s Palace (essentially a shelter), but the 1st Communist Guard Regiment was the first to occupy the premises. There were many disputes, but after intervention from the Extraordinary Commission for the Quarters of the Military, the regiment was removed from the unlawfully seized building.
Over the years, the building saw many occupants: a Higher Military Pedagogical School, a year later — an Air Fleet Military School, then a city-wide student dormitory, and in 1934 — the Higher Agricultural School. Later, it housed the Soviet and Party Control Commission for the region. From June of that year, all the buildings were assigned to the State Political Directorate of the Ukrainian SSR, and an NKVD prison was established in the basement.
During World War II, the building, designed by Vicentii Beretti, burned down (from 1941, it housed the Gestapo). However, several Kyiv families who had lost their homes somehow managed to settle in some parts of the structure. Reconstruction of the building as a Palace of Culture began in 1952. At that time, the last eight residents were relocated, each receiving 2,000 rubles in compensation.
Back in 1946, there was a proposal to build a high-rise hotel on the site, but the project was not approved. Ultimately, the reconstruction project by a group of architects led by Oleksii Zavarov was chosen. The former Institute of Noble Maidens became the Palace of Culture for Trade Unions. It opened in 1958 under the name October Palace.
There were plans to build a bridge to the institute as far back as when it was still an educational facility so the girls could freely stroll through the large, green Lukashevych estate — located where the Hotel «Ukraine» now stands. However, the bridge only appeared in modern times, in early 2001, and was named the «Millennium Bridge».
The Palace (now ICCA) continues to remain one of Kyiv’s leading cultural centers to this day.
