Nadezhda Sigida

Nadezhda Konstantinovna Sigida , née Malaxiano (1862–1889), was a Russian revolutionary, heroine of the Kara katorga tragedy of 1889.

Background Nadezhda Malaxiano was born into a Greek family in the city of Taganrog in 1862. She graduated from the Taganrog Mariinskaya Girls Gymnasium, and gave lessons in a church school. The family lived in a house on Gogolevski Street 8, next to Anton Chekhov's family house. Nadezhda Malaxiano became involved with a Narodnaya Volya group, being one of its activists in Taganrog's underground printshop in 1885–1886 on Glushko Street 60. She made a sham marriage with Akim Sigida (1868-1888) for conspiracy work at the printshop. Birthhouse of Nadezhda Sigida (Malaxiano) in Taganrog. © TaganrogCity.Com

The Don Process On 23 January 1886 following the disclosure of Narodnaya Volya's printers in Taganrog, she was arrested along with other organization members.

Aftermath This event stirred public response. Reports on the events of 1889 were published in major Russian and European newspapers, including two articles in the British newspaper The Times. As a consequence, Kara katorga was closed, and the corporal punishment for imprisoned women and dvorianins (nobility) was abolished by the law of March 28, 1893.

Personal life In 1888, in the Moscow transit prison, 25-year-old Nadezhda met the young Ukrainian poet, Pavlo Hrabovsky, who was also convicted of revolutionary activity. They became friends and fell in love. However, they were soon destined to part for life after they were sent to different prisons. Many of Hrabovsky's lyrical poems are imbued with love for Nadezhda Sigida; the poet dedicated his first poetry collection, Snowdrop, to her.