View source for Rudolf Samoylovich

{{Short description|Soviet polar explorer}}
[[File:Самойлович Рудольф Лазарович.jpg|thumb|260px|Rudolf Samoylovich]]
[[File:2000. Марка России 0556 hi.jpg|thumb|260px|Rudolf Samoylovich on a 2000 Russian stamp]]
'''Rudolf (Ruvim) Lazarevich Samoylovich''' ({{langx|ru|Рудольф Лазаревич Самойлович}}; 13 September ([[Old Style|O.S.]] 1 September), 1881 – 4 March 1939) was a [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] polar explorer, professor, and doctor of geographic sciences.

==Biography==
Samoylovich was born into the family of a Jewish merchant in [[Azov]]. After graduating from the [[Mariupol]] [[Gymnasium (school)|Gymnasium]] ([[:ru:Мариупольская Александровская мужская гимназия|ru]]), he studied [[physics]] and [[mathematics]] at [[Odesa University|Imperial Novorossiya University]] where he became involved in revolutionary activities and came under police surveillance. Under pressure from his concerned mother, he relocated to Germany and studied at the [[Freiberg University of Mining and Technology|Mining Academy in Freiberg]]. While in Germany he remained politically active, including by shipping to Azov copies of the underground newspaper ''[[Iskra]]''. After graduating in 1904, he returned to Azov and worked on the underground printing of revolutionary literature.

In 1906, he moved to [[Rostov-on-Don]]. Samoylovich participated in rallies and campaigns to organize railroad workers, [[Cossacks]], and soldiers. During this time he was once again under police surveillance and was arrested in July 1906. He lived in [[Saint Petersburg]] for two years as an accountant under the [[pseudonym]] Sorokin. During this time he was involved with the [[Russian Social Democratic Labour Party]]. He was arrested and exiled to [[Pinega]]. In 1910, he was allowed to relocate to the nearby city of [[Arkhangelsk]] where he became involved in Arctic studies and met [[Vladimir Rusanov]].

In 1912, he participated in Rusanov's [[Rusanov expedition|geological expedition]] to [[Spitsbergen]]. Samoylovich was one of the initiators and the first director of the [[Northern Research and Trade Expedition]]. In 1925, this research center was reorganized into the [[Institute of Northern Studies]], which was headed by Samoylovich until 1930. The institute was reorganized as the [[Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute|All-Union Arctic Institute]] in which Samoylovich served as deputy director from 1932 to 1938. Samoylovich founded the Department of Polar Countries at [[Saint Petersburg State University|Leningrad State University]] and served as its chairman from 1934 to 1937.

During this period, Samoylovich also took part in numerous Arctic expeditions. In 1928 he commanded the icebreaker ''[[Krassin (1916 icebreaker)|Krassin]]'' in a mission to rescue survivors of the airship [[Italia (airship)|''Italia'']] which had crashed during an expedition to the [[North Pole]]. He led the scientific team on the 1931 Arctic expedition of the airship [[LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin|''Graf Zeppelin'']], which studied [[magnetism]] and mapped [[Franz Josef Land]]. He then led Arctic expeditions on several icebreakers: ''[[Vladimir Rusanov (icebreaker)|Vladimir Rusanov]]'' in 1932, ''[[Georgiy Sedov (1908 icebreaker)|Georgiy Sedov]]'' in 1934, and ''[[Sadko (1913 icebreaker)|Sadko]]'' in 1936 and 1937–1938.

Samoylovich was arrested in May 1938 and was shot on March 4, 1939, in [[Saint Petersburg|Leningrad]]. He was posthumously [[Rehabilitation (Soviet)|rehabilitated]] in 1957.

==Legacy==
A strait and a glacier top on [[Franz Josef Land]], a bay on [[Novaya Zemlya]], an island in [[Severnaya Zemlya]], a peninsula and a [[Samoylovich Nunatak|nunatak]] in [[Antarctica]] bear Rudolf Samoylovich's name as does a [[LNG carrier|liquified natural gas carrier]] built in 2018. He was awarded the [[Order of Lenin]] and [[Order of the Red Banner of Labour]].

In ''[[The Red Tent (film)|The Red Tent]]'', a 1969 Soviet-Italian film about the ''Italia'' expedition, Samoylovich is played by Grigory Gai ([[:ru:Гай, Григорий Аронович|ru]]).

Since 1981, the house where Samoylovich lived in Azov has been operated as a museum.

==References==
{{Commons category|Rudolf Lasarewitsch Samoilowitsch}}
{{GSEncyclopedia}}
*{{GSEn|099213|Самойлович Рудольф Лазаревич}}
*[http://lists.memo.ru/d29/f198.htm#n9 Жертвы политического террора в СССР]. lists.memo.ru

==External links==
{{PM20|FID=pe/024925}}
{{Polar exploration|state=collapsed}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Samoylovich, Rudolf}}
[[Category:1881 births]]
[[Category:1939 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Azov]]
[[Category:Explorers of the Arctic]]
[[Category:Great Purge victims from Russia]]
[[Category:Jews executed by the Soviet Union]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Order of Lenin]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour]]
[[Category:Residents of the Benois House]]
[[Category:Russian geographers]]
[[Category:Russian Jews]]
[[Category:Russian polar explorers]]
[[Category:Soviet geographers]]
[[Category:Soviet Jews]]
[[Category:Soviet polar explorers]]
[[Category:Soviet rehabilitations]]