Nikolai Vasilyevich Chaikovsky (January 7, 1851 [December 26, 1850], April 30, 1926) was a Russian revolutionary born in Vyatka. He spent the first part of his life at his mother's estate, studied at a folk school in Vyatka, and then in St. Petersburg.

In 1868, he entered St. Petersburg University and graduated in 1872 with a degree in chemistry. During his studies, he joined a radical student group that later became known as the 'Chaikovsky Circle' in honor of its most famous member. The group supported revolutionary socialist ideas that became the foundation of the Narodnik movement.

Chaikovsky was arrested twice. Soon, the new party lost its enlightening character and became revolutionary-terrorist. Chaikovsky did not support this direction and joined the socio-religious group 'Godmen,' which sought to find a reflection of God within themselves while remaining adherents of Russian Orthodoxy.

In 1874, Chaikovsky left Russia and a year later went to the USA with a small group of like-minded individuals. They founded a communist settlement in Cedar Vale, near Wichita, Kansas, and attempted to develop a new religious and social doctrine. The experiment failed. After two years, they acknowledged that humanity was not yet ready for the communist life they deemed inevitable. They returned to a world of antagonism, as they could not achieve a lasting sense of God's presence in the community.

For Chaikovsky, this was particularly difficult, as he had to reassess his views and care for his family without means of livelihood. For some time, he worked at a shipyard and a sugar factory near Philadelphia. His health deteriorated, and he joined a Shaker community with his family for a year.

In 1879, he returned to Europe and settled in England in 1880, resuming his involvement in Russian revolutionary organizations abroad. In London in 1881, he met Peter Kropotkin and together they tried to organize English workers.

Chaikovsky was a member of the 'Red Cross of the People's Will,' organizing the supply of revolutionary literature to Russia. In 1905, during the first Russian revolution, he traveled across America, giving lectures and raising funds to fight the imperial regime. In 1907, he returned to Russia, where he was arrested for conspiracy against the government and spent 11 months in the Peter and Paul Fortress. Released on bail, he faced trial in 1910 and was acquitted. Remaining in Russia, he became involved in cooperative organizations.

During World War I, Chaikovsky actively worked in the Russian Red Cross, supplying food to the population in the combat zone. After the February Revolution of 1917, he became a member of the Petrograd Soviet, opposing Bolshevik propaganda. After the October Revolution of 1917, he entered the Constituent Assembly and participated in organizing the fight against the Bolsheviks in the Civil War.

In 1918, Chaikovsky became one of the founders of the 'Union for the Revival of Russia,' an anti-Bolshevik organization in Moscow, and was elected to the Ufa administration. In Vyatka, he led a rebellion against the Bolsheviks and entered into negotiations with Allied forces in Arkhangelsk. He participated in the coup d'état on August 2 in Arkhangelsk and became the chairman of the Main Administration of the Northern Region. After the conspiracy of monarchist officers was uncovered, he organized the Provisional Government of the Northern Region.

Chaikovsky was sent to Paris, where he represented the interests of the Northern region at the Versailles Conference. He was a member of the 'Russian Political Delegation' in Paris until its dissolution in February 1921.

Chaikovsky was an active member of the irregular Masonic lodge 'Great East of the Peoples of Russia.' He is buried in Harrow Cemetery, plot 79, alongside his wife and daughter, who was a British doctor.