Alexander Ivanovich Herzen, a renowned Russian writer, publicist, philosopher, and revolutionary, is considered the founder of Russian political emigration. He was born on March 25, 1812, as the illegitimate son of a wealthy Moscow landowner, I. Yakovlev, who gave him the surname Herzen. Alexander was raised in his father's house, receiving an education typical of noble families of that time. Reading French Enlightenment thinkers and encyclopedists from the family library had a significant impact on his worldview. In his youth, he met Nikolai Ogarev, with whom he maintained a lifelong friendship. The Decembrist uprising of 1825 was an important event in Herzen's life, and he, along with Ogarev, vowed to dedicate himself to the struggle for freedom.

In 1829, Herzen enrolled in Moscow University in the physics and mathematics department. Together with Ogarev, he became an active participant in a youth circle opposed to the government. In 1834, Herzen was arrested and exiled to Perm, and then to Vyatka, where he worked in the governor's office. During a visit by the future Alexander II to the city, Herzen participated in an exhibition and, as a result, was transferred to Vladimir, where he served as an advisor and got married. He recalled these years as the happiest of his life.

Starting in 1836, Herzen began publishing under the pseudonym Iskander. In early 1840, he was allowed to return to Moscow, and in the spring, he moved to St. Petersburg. At his father's insistence, Herzen took a position in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, but after criticizing the police in a letter, he was exiled again to Novgorod in 1841.

In 1842, Herzen returned to the capital and actively engaged in the ideological dispute between Slavophiles and Westernizers, supporting the latter. Thanks to his talent and erudition, he became a key figure in public life. In 1842-1843, he published articles "Dilettantism in Science," and in 1844-1845, "Letters on the Study of Nature," calling for a reconciliation of philosophy and natural sciences. He also presented anti-serfdom works to the public, such as "Doctor Krupov" (1847) and "The Magpie Thief" (1848), as well as the novel "Who is to Blame?" (1841-1846).

In 1847, Herzen moved to France after his father's death, marking the beginning of a new stage in his life. He witnessed the failures of the revolutions of 1848-1849 and, disillusioned with the revolutionary potential of the West, developed the "theory of Russian socialism," laying the foundations for narodnichestvo. His ideas were reflected in the books "From the Other Shore" (1847-1850) and "On the Development of Revolutionary Ideas in Russia" (1850).

In 1850, Herzen settled in Nice with his family, interacting with European émigrés and Italian nationalists. In 1851, the Russian government declared him an eternal exile. After the death of his wife in 1852, Herzen moved to London and founded the "Free Russian Printing House." In 1855, he began publishing the almanac "Polar Star," and in 1857, after Ogarev's arrival, the newspaper "The Bell," which criticized the government and called for reforms. The newspaper played an important role in shaping public opinion and lasted for 10 years.

In 1868, Herzen completed his autobiographical novel "My Past and Thoughts," which he had started in 1852, becoming the pinnacle of his work and a model of Russian memoir literature. In his later years, he rejected violence as a method of struggle. He spent his last years in Geneva, Lausanne, Brussels, and Florence. Alexander Ivanovich Herzen passed away on January 9, 1870, in Paris from pneumonia and was buried at the Père Lachaise Cemetery, later reburied in Nice.