Onissim Borisovich Goldovsky (January 6, 1865 – September 7, 1922) was a Russian attorney, political philosopher and activist, author, and champion of Jewish causes.
A so-called "Westerner" influenced by ideas of the French enlightenment, he was one of the founders of the Kadet party and advocated for a constitutional democracy for Russia.
Married to the author Rashel Khin, he fathered three children with the violinist Lea Luboshutz, among them the opera impresario Boris Goldovsky.
A brief affair with Rozanov's wife, Polina Suslova, ended in Goldovsky being denounced for his political activities and serving brief jail time.
[4] Upon completing his studies he interned with two of the most important liberal jurists of the time -- Rudolf Rudolfovich Mintslov and Alexander Ivanovich Urusov (about whom he wrote a biography[5]).
His book, Against the Death Penalty, consisting of over 50 essays on the subject and his own world literature review, was published in 1906 to influence the actions of the first Duma, with a second edition the following year.
In 1900, he recruited writers, including Émile Zola [10] (whose work his wife had translated into Russian) and Maxim Gorky as well as artists like Leonard Pasternak to contribute to a publication to benefit indigent Jews (which was published in 1901).
[12] Later, he would overcome his anger and spend a pleasant evening with Tolstoy playing Beethoven piano sonatas for him (Goldovsky was an excellent pianist).
A Grand Orient de France Lodge opened in St. Petersburg in 1906, followed by one in Moscow founded by Prince Sergei Dmitrievich Urusov (a distant cousin of Onissim's mentor) around November 1906 (the actual date is in dispute).
But the strain of conditions, including repeated questioning by the authorities and threat of imprisonment, led to a cerebral hemorrhage followed by Goldovsky's immediate death at the age of 56.