After the Decembrist Revolt in 1825 fifteen out of 124 Decembrists were convicted of «state-crimes» by the Supreme Criminal Court, and sentenced to «exile-to-settlement.» [23] These men were sent directly to isolated locales in Siberia.

Wives of many Decembrists followed their husbands into exile. The expression Decembrist wife is a Russian symbol of the devotion of a wife to her husband.

Winter 2018 I moved to Finland to be close to my love. The story of decembrist wives became part of my own story…