Cyril Toumanoff
Encyclopedia
Cyril Leo Heraclius, Prince Toumanoff (13 October 1913 – 4 February 1997) was an United States
-based historian and genealogist
who mostly specialized in the history and genealogies of medieval Georgia
, Armenia
, the Byzantine Empire
, and Iran
. His works have significantly influenced the Western
scholarship of the medieval Caucasus
.
into a family of the military officer of the Russian army. His father came of the princely family of Tumanishvili from Georgia, whose ancestors had emigrated from their original homeland in Cilician Armenia in the 15th century. This family is on the list of the Georgian princes that was attached to the Treaty of Georgievsk
concluded between the Georgian king Erekle II
and the Russian empress Catherine II in 1783. On December 6, 1850, the Tumanishvili were officially enrolled on the Russian Empire
's list of Georgian princely families as knyaz
Tumanov. Toumanoff's mother, Elizabeth Zhdanova, was a descendant of a number of Russian noble families, with genealogical ties with the Western European nobility.
in St. Petersburg in 1917. His father joined the White Russian forces
during the Russian Civil War
, while his mother was put to death by the Bolsheviks. Cyril Toumanoff was initially sheltered by his maternal grandparents in Astrakhan
. In 1928, Toumanoff's father was able to escape to the United States
, bringing his son with him. Cyril Toumanoff attended the Lennox School
which he graduated from in 1931 and went to Harvard. His educators John Coddington and Robert P. Blake
helped him secure funding for travel to Brussels
to study Armenology
under Nicholas Adontz
and then to Berlin
, where he studied Georgian
under Michael Tsereteli
. During these years, Toumanoff converted to Roman Catholicism. A breach with his Orthodox Christian father ensued and was only terminated when the two reconciled at the latter's deathbed in 1943.
Toumanoff earned a doctorate
from the Georgetown University
in 1943 and soon accepted a position there which he held until his retirement as a professor emeritus of history in 1970. Thereafter he moved to Rome
. A recognized authority on nobiliary and dynastic questions, Prince Toumanoff was also a Professed Knight of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, High Historical Consultant, Grand Magistry, and the Grand Prior of Bohemia
.
Cyril Toumanoff died in 1997 in Rome at the age of 83. He is buried at the chapel of the Knights of Malta at Campo Verano, Rome.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
-based historian and genealogist
Genealogy
Genealogy is the study of families and the tracing of their lineages and history. Genealogists use oral traditions, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kinship and pedigrees of its members...
who mostly specialized in the history and genealogies of medieval Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
, Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
, the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
, and Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
. His works have significantly influenced the Western
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
scholarship of the medieval Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
.
Family
Cyril Toumanoff was born in Saint PetersburgSaint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
into a family of the military officer of the Russian army. His father came of the princely family of Tumanishvili from Georgia, whose ancestors had emigrated from their original homeland in Cilician Armenia in the 15th century. This family is on the list of the Georgian princes that was attached to the Treaty of Georgievsk
Treaty of Georgievsk
The Treaty of Georgievsk was a bilateral treaty concluded between the Russian Empire and the east Georgian kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti on July 24, 1783. The treaty established Georgia as a protectorate of Russia, which guaranteed Georgia's territorial integrity and the continuation of its reigning...
concluded between the Georgian king Erekle II
Erekle II
Erekle II was a Georgian monarch of the Bagrationi Dynasty, reigning as the king of Kakheti from 1744 to 1762, and of Kartli and Kakheti from 1762 until 1798. In the contemporary Persian sources he is referred to as Erekli Khan, while Russians knew him as Irakli...
and the Russian empress Catherine II in 1783. On December 6, 1850, the Tumanishvili were officially enrolled on the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
's list of Georgian princely families as knyaz
Knyaz
Kniaz, knyaz or knez is a Slavic title found in most Slavic languages, denoting a royal nobility rank. It is usually translated into English as either Prince or less commonly as Duke....
Tumanov. Toumanoff's mother, Elizabeth Zhdanova, was a descendant of a number of Russian noble families, with genealogical ties with the Western European nobility.
Career
Toumanoff's parents fled the October RevolutionOctober Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
in St. Petersburg in 1917. His father joined the White Russian forces
White movement
The White movement and its military arm the White Army - known as the White Guard or the Whites - was a loose confederation of Anti-Communist forces.The movement comprised one of the politico-military Russian forces who fought...
during the Russian Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
, while his mother was put to death by the Bolsheviks. Cyril Toumanoff was initially sheltered by his maternal grandparents in Astrakhan
Astrakhan
Astrakhan is a major city in southern European Russia and the administrative center of Astrakhan Oblast. The city lies on the left bank of the Volga River, close to where it discharges into the Caspian Sea at an altitude of below the sea level. Population:...
. In 1928, Toumanoff's father was able to escape to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, bringing his son with him. Cyril Toumanoff attended the Lennox School
Lenox School for Boys
Lenox School for Boys was a New England preparatory school for students in grades 9-12 in Lenox, Massachusetts, USA established by the Protestant Episcopal Church of New England. It existed from 1926 under Rev. G. Gardner Monks, the school's first Headmaster until 1946. Then his successor, The Rev....
which he graduated from in 1931 and went to Harvard. His educators John Coddington and Robert P. Blake
Robert Pierpont Blake
Robert Pierpont Blake was an American Byzantinist and scholar of the Armenian and Georgian cultures.Robert P. Blake was born in San Francisco on November 1, 1886. As a John Harvard Traveling Fellow, he chiefly studied and worked, between 1911 and 1918, in Russia where he mastered Russian and began...
helped him secure funding for travel to Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
to study Armenology
Armenian studies
Armenian studies, or Armenology is a field of humanities covering Armenian history, language, religion and culture.- Early scholars :*Lord Byron *Ghevond Alishan *Mikayel Chamchian...
under Nicholas Adontz
Nicholas Adontz
Nicholas Adontz was a prominent Armenian historian, specialist of Byzantine and Armenian studies, and philologist. Adontz was the author of the Armenia in the Period of Justinian, a highly influential work and landmark study on the social and political structures of early Medieval Armenia.-Early...
and then to Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, where he studied Georgian
Georgian language
Georgian is the native language of the Georgians and the official language of Georgia, a country in the Caucasus.Georgian is the primary language of about 4 million people in Georgia itself, and of another 500,000 abroad...
under Michael Tsereteli
Mikheil Tsereteli
Prince Mikheil G. Tsereteli was a Georgian historian, philologist, sociologist and public benefactor, Dr.Sci., Professor....
. During these years, Toumanoff converted to Roman Catholicism. A breach with his Orthodox Christian father ensued and was only terminated when the two reconciled at the latter's deathbed in 1943.
Toumanoff earned a doctorate
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
from the Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
in 1943 and soon accepted a position there which he held until his retirement as a professor emeritus of history in 1970. Thereafter he moved to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. A recognized authority on nobiliary and dynastic questions, Prince Toumanoff was also a Professed Knight of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, High Historical Consultant, Grand Magistry, and the Grand Prior of Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
.
Cyril Toumanoff died in 1997 in Rome at the age of 83. He is buried at the chapel of the Knights of Malta at Campo Verano, Rome.