The biography of Istanboli

Istanboli - dynasty in Feodosia 0 after the accession of Crimea to Russia Catherine II part close to Khan Karaima, along with the Tatars, left the Crimea and emigrated to Turkey, where there was already a large community of Karaites for religion. Having lived for some time there, the issue of continuing the genus became acute. Since the Karaima religion prescribes to marry only with unanimitory, and the Crimean Karaites also paid great importance to ethnic origin and social status, the question arose of choosing spouses for the grown -up generation of Crimean Karaites in Turkey.

Then the position of the Crimean Karaites in the Russian Empire was already stabilized at that time, the Karaites were half a minute of significant advantages and prospects for the development of business, they began to return to the Crimea a little, mainly for the brides. So he returned to Feodosia at the beginning of the 19th century and married Theodosia Karaimka Joseph, who received his nickname, who became his surname-Istanboli, that is, in a kind of "came from Istanbul." Here he got a family, and one of his sons, Benjamin, was destined to make the name of Istanboli well -known far beyond the borders of his hometown.

Istanboli Joseph Veniaminovich and it all started with small bags with a mahorka: being still a boy, Benjamin sold it to the Theodosian port loaders. Tobacco replaced the Mahorka, and the noisy port replaced the center of Feodosia, Italian Street. Here Istanboli had a table at which he traded his fragrant goods. And here, in Italian, a tobacco factory of Veniamin Istanboli appeared in the year.

Having founded in Crimea the first and most powerful of such enterprises before the revolution on the peninsula worked 10 tobacco factories, there were 3 of them in Feodosia alone, Istanboli opened his representative offices in many European cities. After the death of Benjamin Osipovich in the year, the factory passed to his youngest son, Joseph. It was the heyday of the enterprise - the raw materials for the factory were brought by steamers from Japan, China, India, and tobacco and cigarettes Istanboli diverged almost around the world.

True, according to Soviet historians, the back of the medal was the brutal operation of factory workers: an hourly working day, a meager salary, terrible working conditions. But in contrast to these statements, evidence was preserved and a completely different kind: Istanboli donated a lot of money for charity, paid for the treatment of his workers, built for them at home, which exist in Feodosia to this day.

This dream, at least partly, managed to embody it to the youngest son. The legend says that the mansion designed by the famous St. Petersburg architect, Joseph Istanboli presented as a gift to his beauty to his wife Racheli Ilyinichna by a decade from the day of the wedding. It was a truly expensive gift - construction cost 1.9 million rubles in gold. The mansion was completed in the year.

And just two years later, anticipating the near changes, Istanboli sold the factory, left a magnificent palace and went to Turkey with his family.

According to some reports, from Turkey he moved to France, where he lived until his death. At the end of his life, the former tobacco magnate became the owner of a small grocery store, which the Karaite society helped him to open. Tobacco Istanboli after the revolution, the Dachu Istanboli was offered to destroy. With such an appeal was made by ... poet Maximilian Voloshin.

The singer of Kimmeri considered the mansion of Istanboli as well as the villas of other Theodosian rich people with a tasteless bourgeois palace “in the style of Turkish baths, brothels and lemonade kiosks” and demanded that he be taken off the face of the earth, so as not to corrupt the tastes of the people. During the occupation, the cottage Istanboli turned into a German hospital, and a military cemetery appeared under its walls, where the soldiers and officers of the Nazi army were buried.

After the war, the square was defeated at the site of the cemetery, probably part of the remains was dug up. In any case, among local residents there are legends that the boys, who were secretly made in the cellars of the cottage, found mountains of bones and skulls there. According to some reports, partial excavations for reburial were carried out here in the X years.

And some of the graves are still under the flower beds, trees and paths of the square. Under Soviet power, various sanatoriums were located on the territory of the cottage of Istanboli - the name of Lenin, Stalin. And in X in the mansion of tobacco magnate treated his patients from alcohol and the irony of fate! The Tobacco Factory Istanboli survived both the revolution and the war, but burned in March, while the townspeople celebrated International Women's Day.

The fire was so strong that only the facade remained from a large two -story building. Now he was already destroyed and dismantled to the ground. Advertising announcements of the late 19th century urged gentlemen smokers to try the wonderful southern tobacco Istanboli and make sure of its high dignity. And these were not empty words: factory products were twice awarded a gold medal at an international exhibition in Paris and years.

Joseph Istanboli was the only trustee of Theodosia City Women's Professional School.He did not skimp to sacrifice large amounts of money for the maintenance of the school, sent teachers to the capital's cities of Russia, school aids and periodicals were held at his expense, and excursions were organized. He also allocated money for the nutrition of students and additives to salary of teachers.

Istanboli made a lot of his employees to make up the acquisitions of families, built at home to workers, paid for treatment, training and many other expensive needs. By the way, in Feodosia to this day there are enough houses built at the expense of Istanboli for their employees, as a rule, according to the same project, in such a house in the old part of the city, his direct grandson with his family, which was surprisingly similar to his famous grandfather, still lives.