Background
FIGNER, Vera was born on July 7, 1852 in village Khristoforovka Kazan’ Province. Daughter of a nobleman.
FIGNER, Vera was born on July 7, 1852 in village Khristoforovka Kazan’ Province. Daughter of a nobleman.
1869 graduate Kazan’ Institute for Daughters of the Nobility. 1872-1875 studied at Med Faculty, Zurich and Bern University.
Together with Russian students B. Kaminskaya, S. Bardicha and the Lyubalovich sisters, etc, studied political economics, history of socialistic teaching and revol movements in Europe preparing herself for revol propaganda work in Russia. 1876 joined "Separatist” circle, attached to ’’Northern Revolutionary-Populist Group” (from 1878 Zemlya i volya (Land and Liberty)), whose basic aim was to conduct revol propaganda in rural areas. 1877-1879 assistant physician in Samara and Saratov Province.
Together with her sister Ycvgcniya conducted educational work among peasants. 1879 attended Voronezh congress of Zemlya i volya -, 1879, al ter the schism in Zemlya i volya organisation together with S. Pcrovskaya, A. Zhelyabov, M. Frolenko, etc, joined Executive Committee, Narodnaya volya (People’s Will) organisation, which aimed at assassinating Tsar. 18&0 helped prepare the attempt on the life of Alexander II near Odessa.
Conducted revol propaganda in Southern Russia and in St. Petersburg among officers who had joined the military organisation of Narodnaya volya-, January 1881, together with G. P. Isayev, arranged St. Petersburg premises to plan the assassination of Alexander 11. After the assassination (1 March 1881) helped plan the assassination of military prosecutor Stcl’nikov in Odessa. Early 1882 moved to Khar’kov, continued revol work there.
Tried to restore Narodnaya volya, which had disintegrated after a series of failures. February 1883 arrested. September 1884 sentenced to death by St. Petersburg Military district Court.
Sentence commuted to penal servitude for life. Lor 20 years imprisoned in Shlisscl’burg Fortress. From 1904 in exile in Arkhangelsk and Kazan’ Provinces and in Nizhniy Novgorod.
1906-1915 abroad; collected funds to help prisoners and convicts. Attended Socialist-Rcvol trial of the agent-provocateur Azef. 1915 returned to Russia.
After 1917 October Revol lit work.