March 14, 2022 marks the 90th birthday of Naina Josefovna Yeltsin, wife of former First Lady of Russia and first President Boris Nikolaevich Yeltsin.
The two have been together since college, and from Yeltsin's entry into politics to his death, Naina has been with him.
Why do people think that Naina Josephuna and Yuri Gagarin had a romance? Why did she change her name? How did she help her husband? What mark has she left on the history of Russia?
▲ Naina Josephovna Yeltsinne
and Gagarin's "Gossip"
Boris Yeltsin and his future wife, Naina, attended the Ural Kirov Institute of Technology, where he studied water supply and water technology (water purification). After graduating from university, she became a designer for a wastewater treatment plant and a foreman for drainage system.
At the time, her name was Anastasia Girinna, who had not yet become First Lady. Friends and family affectionately call her Naya.
After the young girl got used to the name, she went to the registrar and changed her name to Naina.
Boris Yeltsin and Naina Yeltsin, 1954.
This incident later became a reason for conspiracy theorists to suspect that Yeltsina had some bad behavior in her youth, but it is not clear what kind of bad behavior it was.
There are many short streams about whether Naina did anything bad when she was young, so she decided to change her name to cover up the long stream.
Another rumor that has plagued Naina Josephona for years is about her relationship with Yuri Gagarin. They may indeed have met.
Yuri Gagarin (the first human to go into space)
In 1955, Gagarin studied in Orenburg, which happened to be the place where Anastasia Girina's career began.
Nikolai Zenkovich, the former head of the Information Center of the CPSU Central Committee, wrote a book about the relatives of the supreme leader of the Soviet Union, saying that Naina and Gagarin had gone to the open-air dance hall together and knew Gagarin's parents well.
When Yuri Gagarin returned to Earth on that historic flight, she appeared on television when Naina's neighbor, Kravdia Shersteneva, told her, "This is who you should marry!" Instead of sitting here with the construction workers..."
But Naina Yeltsinna not only completely denied the relationship, but even denied knowing Gagarin.
She said it was gossip spread by Shersteva.
Yeltsina also explained this to Gagarin's daughter herself, who replied that no one in the family believed it.
In 1992, Yeltsina visited the United States.
Three weddings of the Yeltsins
"Naya is friendly and warm-hearted, loves to be clean, always dressed neatly, and her hair is neatly combed.
Hearing the engaging lessons, she could sit in class for an entire hour.
She loves to dance, and when she goes to the ball, no one can dispel her desire to dance.
She never loses her temper and can calm all the conflicts between girls. Her classmates loved her, but she was always loyal to the 'collective farm'. It's easy to be friends with her," says Yeltsina's female friend from college.
A roommate in Yeltsin's dorm room said: Boris Nikolaevich Yeltsin fell in love with a modest, enthusiastic, gentle female college student, and in his opinion, these qualities greatly balanced his irrepressible character.
Boris and Naina have different interests, but they are very compatible and the marriage is strong. The affection for each other gradually deepened.
In his book Confessions on a Specified Subject (Исповедь на заданную тему), their Platonic relationship lasted for a long time, even though he knew in his heart that he had fallen deeply in love and could not extricate himself.
In their second year, they showed each other their hearts in the lounge in front of the auditorium of the Ural Institute of Technology, leaving their first kisses next to one of the pillars.
Yeltsin preferred the name Anastasia, and after learning of his beloved girl's decision to change her name, he for a long time refused to call her by her new name, calling her only "girl."
"We remembered the wedding for the rest of our lives, wrote an ode to the children, we received a funny homemade newspaper, some delightful posters, and other interesting surprises. Played for one night. But that's not the end of it.
Since there was not enough space in the farmer's house for everyone, my relatives asked for another wedding. We had another wedding for our relatives.
After arriving in Orenburg, Naya Orenburg's relatives also asked for another wedding. Three consecutive weddings were held. Her family is very authentic and a peasant family that follows ancient traditions. —Yeltsin once recalled.
Naina Josephona was a strong-willed and capable woman who was good at getting along with Yeltsin, who had a very difficult personality. And have been loyal to him all his life.
Always send Yeltsin to work, tie him, and put another 10 rubles in his chest pocket.
For breakfast, Naina often cooks porridge for Boris – oatmeal, rice or yellow rice – and will definitely make tea.
After Yeltsin fell ill, Naina would accompany him on trips and take care of him all the time.
"My husband's position does not give me any rights"
At the beginning of the coup d'état (August 19, 1991), Naina was with Yeltsin while they were in Arkhangelsk, helping her husband and calling people who supported her.
In 1994, Yeltsin and his wife, who were also Italian prime ministers, Silvio Berlusconi, met.
Naina has avoided public appearances and interviews, but five years ago, she told reporters that she regretted the collapse of the Soviet Union: "I am worried that the country has entered this state." I would like to say that Boris Nikolaevich has nothing to do with the Council for the Disintegration of the USSR and the State Emergency, since he no longer works in the state apparatus of the USSR".
Presidential Security Director Alexander Korzakov said that after those dramatic events, Naina Josephovna was often angry at what Reisa, the wife of mikhail Gorbachev, the wife of the first and last president of the Soviet Union, had done.
The Yeltsins received Elizabeth II and Prince Philip at the Kremlin.
Yeltsina suspected that Raisa had taken all the good furniture from President Barviha's villa and replaced it with tattered furniture, and demanded that the "stolen" furniture be returned.
It took a great deal of effort for Korzakov to convince the new president's wife that Gorbacheva had not appropriated anything for herself.
Realizing Naina's influence over her husband, Yeltsin's people began to develop good relationships with her.
So then-Foreign Minister Andrei Kozilev said at the banquet that Naina Josephovna was "the president's secret weapon."
In 1992, the Yeltsins and Bushes were in the White House.
Korzakov said: "She has won the love of the wives of the presidents of other countries with her charm. Naina is very good at making her behavior perfect. I was amazed at her ability to find a common language with people I didn't know.
The wives of the upper classes are usually very simple and lovely women. If they see others treating themselves kindly and without any arrogance, they immediately stop being bound by etiquette."
In 1992, The Yeltsins and Mr. and Mrs. Bush were at the presidential residence at Camp David.
In 1992, during Yeltsin's visit to the official residence of U.S. President David Camp, Naina Josephovna became friends with First Lady Barbara Bush.
Since then, the two ladies have corresponded with each other, exchanged gifts, and the friendship between the two ladies has not been interrupted since Bill Clinton was elected president.
In 1997, Hillary Clinton and Naina Yeltsinna in Yekaterinburg.
In contrast, Yeltsina's relationship with Hillary Clinton is decent.
Yeltsina once said, "I am only the partner of Boris Nikolaevich, and no matter what position he holds, whether it is the leader of the state or the leader of the construction company, it does not matter to me."
I understand that the position of husband does not give me any rights. All that is given to me is responsibility. He is even more so in the presidency."
▲1993 "April 25 Referendum"
Holy 90s
On April and 25, 1993, Russia held a referendum on whether to trust President Boris Yeltsin, whether to endorse the socio-economic policies pursued by the President, whether it was necessary for Russia to hold presidential elections in advance, and whether it was necessary to hold the election of the people's representatives of the Russian Federation in advance, the famous "yes-no-no" referendum.
Four days before the referendum, a show about Naina Josephovna was broadcast on television.
Shot by the famous director Elidhar Ryazanov, Yeltsina made a very good impression on the great director, and in Ryazanov's view, Naina was sincere, kind, loving and not arrogant at all.
I believe that the audience will also like The image of Naina in the movie, and she has won a lot of tickets for her husband.
Adler of Sochi
As president, Naina Josephovna doesn't have much time to spend with her husband, but during rare breaks, they like to travel to Adler in Sochi, where they can breathe the sea air on the pier.
In moments like these, they may be treated as ordinary elderly couples.
On December 31, 1999, Yeltsin delivered a New Year's message, handing over power to Putin.
On January 1, 2000, the first day of the Millennium, Yeltsin retired.
Naina said that night, her husband and all her relatives were happy. The long-term tension is gone, and I can finally relax myself.
What makes Naina particularly happy is that if something suddenly happens, the new leader of the country will make a decision.
In Boris Yeltsin's later years, As a wife, Naina tried to inspire him with drama.
As a result, they often went to the "Modern Man" theater and became friends with the theater's director, Galina Wolcek.
▲ Moscow "Modern Man" Theater
Naina Josephina often meets with the actors, and she is shocked by the living conditions of the departing stars of the 1990s.
Still, she doesn't see her husband's time in power as a bad time in Russian history.
She believes that it has become fashionable to tell the tragic story of this time, and not everyone can distinguish between truth and deliberate lies.
In 2012, Naina Yeltsina and Galina Volczek.
In 2017, Naina said that the 90s should not be called difficult, but sacred 90s.
A lot of people don't like what she says. Opponents of the reforms of the time often criticized her for this, but Naina still stood by her point of view.
She acknowledged that life in the '90s was tough, but "they're still trying to create a new nation that strengthens democracy and freedom of speech." and laid the foundation for this".
Compilation: Sonia
Thank you for our reunion in history, for meeting in words. Give it a thumbs up and go again