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Lev VoitolovskyRussian doctor, journalist, publicist and literary critic.
Date of Birth: 01.03.1875
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Content:
- Early Life and Medical Education
- Military Service and Medical Practice
- Political and Literary Pursuits
- Family Life
- - Adda Lvovna Voytolovskaya (1902-1990): Historian
- Blindness and Death
Early Life and Medical Education
Lev Lvovich Voytolovskywas a Russian physician, journalist, publicist, and literary critic born in the late 19th century. He received his secondary education at the 1st Kiev Gymnasium and pursued medical degrees at the medical faculties of Kiev and Kharkiv universities.
Military Service and Medical Practice
After graduation, Voytolovsky worked as a supernumerary resident at the Kiev Clinic for Nervous and Mental Diseases. He also served as a ship's doctor in several maritime expeditions. During the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905), he served as a medical officer in the field hospital of the Nikolo-Ussuriysk Fortress. He participated in battles in Manchuria, sustaining wounds and a concussion. He was demobilized in 1906.
From 1907 to 1914, Voytolovsky combined his medical practice with literary activities, serving as the editor of the literary department of the newspaper Kievskaya Mysl. With the outbreak of World War I, he returned to military service, commanding a field hospital from 1914 to 1917. He ended the war with the rank of captain in the medical service.
Political and Literary Pursuits
Politically, Voytolovsky sympathized with left-wing parties but remained unaffiliated before the Russian Revolution. In 1917, he was elected as an officer representative to the 2nd All-Russian Congress of Soviets, where he identified as a social democrat.
He actively wrote and published throughout his life, including the novel Following the War: Expeditionary Notes, 1914-1917. He also authored articles and books promoting the dissemination of psychology and psychiatry in Russia, advocating for the development of military psychiatry.
Family Life
Voytolovsky's wife, Anna Ilyinichna Voytolovskaya (1879-1953), was related to prominent literary figures: critic S. A. Vengerov, translator Z. A. Vengerova, and pianist I. A. Vengerova. Their daughters pursued careers in academia and the arts:
- Adda Lvovna Voytolovskaya (1902-1990): Historian
- Lina Lvovna Voytolovskaya (1908-1984): Writer and screenwriter- Ella Lvovna Voytolovskaya (Dräiling, 1901-1982): Literary scholar
- Alexandra Lvovna Voytolovskaya (1912-1996): Doctor of Economics and educator
Blindness and Death
In the early 1930s, Voytolovsky began losing vision due to old war injuries. Despite multiple unsuccessful surgeries, he eventually became completely blind. He died in the winter of 1941 during the Siege of Leningrad. His remains were buried at the Literary Bridges of Volkovskoye Cemetery.
