Ukraine (Oukraine / Malorossiya)

Research Status: Moderate Last Updated: 2026-02-10 Diary Coverage: Family references throughout diary

Overview

Ukraine, then part of the Russian Empire and often referred to as "Malorossiya" (Little Russia), was Marie Bashkirtseff's birthplace and the location of the family's ancestral estates. Marie was born on November 24, 1858, at Gavrontsi near Poltava in the Poltava Governorate. Though she left Ukraine as a child and spent most of her life in Western Europe, her Ukrainian-Russian origins profoundly shaped her identity, family dynamics, and social position.

Historical Context (1870s-1880s)

Ukraine in the Russian Empire

In Marie's era, Ukraine was divided:

• Left-Bank Ukraine (including Poltava): Directly governed as Russian provinces since the 18th century
• Right-Bank Ukraine: Also under Russian control since the partitions of Poland
• Galicia: Under Austro-Hungarian rule (not directly relevant to the Bashkirtseffs)
• The Bashkirtseff estates were in the Poltava region of Left-Bank Ukraine

Social Structure

The Ukrainian provinces in Marie's time:

• Nobility: Russian-speaking gentry (like the Bashkirtseffs) owning large estates
• Peasantry: Ukrainian-speaking rural population, many former serfs (emancipated 1861)
• Urban centers: Kharkov, Kiev, Poltava as regional capitals
• Language: The elite spoke Russian and French; Ukrainian was spoken by the rural population

The Bashkirtseff Connection

• Family estates: The Bashkirtseffs had properties near Poltava
• Father's role: Konstantin Bashkirtseff served as marshal of nobility in Poltava
• Family separation: Marie's mother left Ukraine (and her husband) to travel Europe
• Estate income: The family's wealth derived from their Ukrainian landholdings

Significance for Marie

• Origins: Her birthplace and the source of her family's wealth and status
• Identity: She identified as Russian, though her roots were Ukrainian
• Family drama: The separation from her father, who remained in Ukraine, was a central family tension
• Social standing: The provincial gentry status of the Bashkirtseffs (respectable but not top-tier) shaped their position in European society
• Distance: Ukraine was geographically and culturally distant from the Paris and Nice world Marie inhabited

Related Entries

• #Poltava - The regional capital near the family estates
• #Nice - Where the family settled after leaving Ukraine
• #Paris - Marie's adopted home