Madame Turchin

Who was Madame Turchin?

Nadine Lvova Turchin was the wife of Union Brig. Gen. John Basil Turchin. During the American Civil War, she traveled with her husband on his military campaigns and at times acted as his surrogate in command of his troops. She kept a detailed diary that remains a leading eyewitness account of her husband's colorful career. She became widely known in the army as "Madame Turchin."

She was born as Nadezhda Antonina L'vova in Russia, the daughter of an officer in the Russian Army. On May 10, 1856, in Krakow, Poland, she married Ivan Vasilovitch Turchaninov, with whom she immigrated to the United States. Upon their arrival in the U.S. and their eventual settlement on a farm in New York, they anglicized their names. They later moved to Philadelphia and then to Chicago, where he worked as a topographical engineer for the Illinois Central Railroad.

With the outbreak of the Civil War in early 1861, John Turchin was chosen to be Colonel of the 19th Illinois Infantry and later would be the only Russian-born general to serve in the Union Army. Nadine traveled with her husband throughout the war. Starting in 1863, she kept a regular diary that included her opinions on her husband’s fellow officers, as well as commentary on battles that she participated in, including Chickamauga. During the battle, she stayed with the brigade and division wagons which were parked just on the western edge of the battlefield, and she climbed up onto the eastern hills of Missionary Ridge to observe events during the Battle of Missionary Ridge. She left detailed accounts of both battles, in effect being the only Union female diarist of those battles.