Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
This year marks the 165th anniversary of the birth of Franz Yulyevich Levinson-Lessing (1861–1939), a distinguished Russian geologist, petrographer, and educator, and Academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences. His name is inextricably linked with the history of the St. Petersburg Polytechnic Institute, where he served for nearly three decades, rising from professor to rector during pivotal years for the country and the university.
Formative years
Franz Yulievich was born on February 25 (March 9), 1861, in the Dorpat district, the son of a doctor of medicine. The family soon moved to St. Petersburg, where in 1879 the young man graduated from the Third Gymnasium with a silver medal, demonstrating a brilliant aptitude for mathematics and ancient languages.
That same year, he enrolled in the mathematics department of the Physics and Mathematics Faculty of St. Petersburg University. However, his passion for geology and mineralogy, fostered by his interactions with the future academician Vladimir Vernadsky at a scientific and literary society, changed his path. Levinson-Lessing transferred to the natural sciences department. After graduating in 1883, he remained in the department of mineralogy and geology to prepare for a professorship. In 1888, he defended his dissertation, "The Olonetsk Diabase Formation," and received a master's degree. In 1898, he completed his doctoral dissertation, "Research in Theoretical Petrography in Connection with the Study of Igneous Rocks of the Central Caucasus." That same year, he began working as a full professor at Yuryev University, where he served as acting dean of the Physics and Mathematics Faculty from 1893 to 1899.
Work at the Polytechnic Institute
On May 17, 1902, the scientist was appointed full professor in the Department of Geology at the newly emerging St. Petersburg Polytechnic Institute.
From the very first days, Franz Yulievich was actively involved in the life of the university. He joined the professors' council, and in the 1904/1905 academic year, he served as its chairman. The scholar made significant contributions to the development of the institute's research and publishing. In 1904, Levinson-Lessing became the first editor of the "Izvestia of the Polytechnical Institute," and later the editor of the proceedings of the technical departments.
In 1906, Franz Levinson-Lessing was elected dean of the metallurgical department for four years. Colleagues, including Academician Mikhail Pavlov, noted his exceptional correctness, calm, and ability to bring order to academic affairs.
In 1914, the scientist was confirmed in the title of Honored Professor of the Polytechnic Institute and elected as a Corresponding Member of the Academy of Sciences.
The revolutionary events and the Civil War proved a severe test for the institute. Despite devastation, famine, and political instability, Levinson-Lessing continued to fulfill his administrative and teaching duties. In 1919, he was elected rector three times. Twice, he resigned, protesting the aggressive actions of the Poor Committee and the commandant, who interfered with the institute's management and disrupted the educational process.
Despite the difficult situation, two new faculties—Physics and Mechanics and Chemistry—were opened in August 1919. Franz Levinson-Lessing served as Acting Dean of the Chemistry Faculty from 1919 to 1920, and as Vice Dean of the Physics and Mechanics Faculty from 1921 to 1922.
In the fall of 1919, after returning from a business trip, the professor was arrested. Only a collective effort by leading scientists, including Mikhail Chatelain, Ivan Meshchersky, and Vladimir Skobeltsyn, secured his release.
In the summer of 1930, Academician Franz Levinson-Lessing's 28-year service at the Polytechnic Institute ended.
Franz Yulievich saw the Polytechnic Institute as a model of advanced education, calling it nothing less than a "technical university." He championed the fusion of fundamental scientific research with engineering practice, devoting articles to this topic, "A Unified Higher School" and "Further Development of the Polytechnic Institute."
Science and research
Franz Yulievich Levinson-Lessing's scientific legacy is vast and multifaceted. He founded Russia's first school of petrographers, and his textbook "Petrography" became a classic and was reprinted several times. His fieldwork covered the entire territory of Russia.
In 1914, the scientist was elected a Corresponding Member of the Academy of Sciences, and in 1925, a full member of the USSR Academy of Sciences. From then on, he focused on his work at academic institutions. Levinson-Lessing directed the Geological Museum and the Soil Institute and headed the Department of Stone Building Materials at the Commission for the Study of Natural Productive Forces of Russia. He founded and headed the Petrographic Institute of the USSR Academy of Sciences, established branches of the Academy in the Transcaucasus, and a volcanological station in Kamchatka. In 1920–1921, amid the terrible famine in Petrograd, Levinson-Lessing was among 140 leading scientists who offered their authority to the government to organize food purchases abroad to save the city's residents.
His laboratory at the Polytechnic Institute was always a place for searching for practical solutions: from studying pressure in tunnels to using rocks in stone casting and construction. Franz Levinson-Lessing was the author of over 200 scientific papers on various topics. His contemporaries called him an encyclopedic scientist, noting his clarity of mind, incredible work ethic, and dedication to his work even under the most difficult conditions.
Franz Yulievich Levinson-Lessing died in October 1939 and was buried at the Literatorskie Mostki of the Volkovskoye Cemetery.
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source. It represents an accurate account of the source's assertions and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.