Academic University

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ACADEMIC UNIVERSITY, the first Russian university founded by Peter the Great in 1724 as a part of the Petersburg Academy of Sciences and now officially recognised as the predecessor of the St. Petersburg State University. It was situated in the same building as the Academic Gymnasium. It employed members of the academy to provide a three year education, it started in January 1726. The classes including mathematics, physics, and humanities. Lectures were given in Latin and German. Students were invited from Germany at first and enrolled from theological seminaries later on. There were 38 people studying in the university in 1726-33. Classes were held irregularly and suspended in 1732-38 and 1740. Following the regulations of the Academy of Sciences, the university received independence and a staff of professors in 1747 classes was held regularly from then on and students consisted of the best pupils of the Academic Gymnasium. M. V. Lomonosov was president of the university in 1758-65. He divided it into the departments of philosophy, law, and medicine but failed to achieve self-government for the university. The university and gymnasium were united into the Academy School in 1770s with the best pupils of the gymnasium promoted to students and given lectures by professors. Training of students at the school continued until 1805. The university numbered 8 students in 1726, 20 in 1752, 16 in 1758, 8 in 1776, and 8 in 1795. It had members of the Academy, professors, and adjunct professors among its graduates including G. F. Miller, V. E. Adodurov, G. W. Richmann, S. P. Krasheninnikov, the university president in 1750-55, A. A. Nartov, S. Y. Rumovsky, A. A. Barsov, I. I. Lepekhin, S. K. Kotelnikov, P. B. Inokhodtsev, and N. Y. Ozeretskovsky.

References: Толстой Д. А. Академический университет в XVIII столетии: По рукоп. док. Архива АН. СПб., 1885; Кулябко Е. С. М. В. Ломоносов и учебная деятельность Петербургской академии наук. М.; Л., 1962; Ее же. Замечательные питомцы Академического университета. Л., 1977; Марголис Ю. Д., Тишкин Г. А. Единым вдохновением: Очерки истории университетского образования в Петербурге в конце XVIII - первой половине XIX в. СПб., 2000; Материалы по истории Санкт-Петербургского университета XVIII в.: Обзор арх. док. СПб., 2001.

Е. М. Balashov. Adodurov Vasily Evdokimovich
Barsov Anton Alexeevich
Inokhodtsev Peter Borisovich
Kotelnikov Semen Kirillovich
Krasheninnikov Stepan Petrovich
Lepekhin Ivan Ivanovich
Lomonosov Mikhail Vasilievich
Margolis Yury Davidovich
Muller Gerard Friedrich
Nartov Andrey Andreevich
Ozeretskovsky Nikolay Yakovlevich
Peter I, Emperor
Richmann Georg Wilhelm
Rumovsky Stepan Yakovlevich
Tolstoy Dmitry Andreevich, Count
Толстой Д. А. Академический университет в XVIII столетии: По рукоп. док. Архива АН. СПб., 1885
Кулябко Е. С. М. В. Ломоносов и учебная деятельность Петербургской академии наук. М.; Л., 1962
Кулябко Е. С. Замечательные питомцы Академического университета. Л., 1977
Материалы по истории Санкт-Петербургского университета XVIII в.: Обзор арх. док. СПб., 2001
Марголис Ю. Д., Тишкин Г. А. Единым вдохновением: Очерки истории унив. образования в Петербурге в конце XVIII - первой половине XIX в. СПб., 2000 Russian Academy of Sciences
State University, St. Petersburg
Academic Gymnasium
1724