A Request for Relocation. A Letter by Pëtr Vasil’evich to the Empress Aleksandra Fëdorovna Romanova

Abstract

From the beginning of the movement and until resettlement in America, Doukhobors suffered a lot for their beliefs in the teaching of Jesus Christ and for not resisting evil with evil. Many died in separation from their families and many lost their material wealth. I can say that the total loss was about ten million rubles. Particularly affected by such sufferings were the so-called Kholodensk group, who lived in Tiflis guberniia, Akhalkalak district. Earlier, they had all been quite well off, but when the Tiflis governor Shevartidze dispersed them with their wives and children among the indigenous population in the mountains, where the climate was very hot, they carried the cross of their sufferings. Many of them died there, and many did not have enough to eat on a daily basis, whereas shortly before, they had their own properties, houses and everything else to support their lives. All this made them leave their Motherland Russia and move to the distant country of Canada. They did not know what was awaiting them there, perhaps even a worse destiny, and they only wished to liberate themselves from the slavery and oppression of the Russian government.