Dr. Vera Gedroits, a princess by birth, defied societal norms and expectations throughout her life, carving a path as Russia's only female surgeon and its first female professor of surgery. Her life, detailed in a biography by Miranda Seymour, was marked by extraordinary medical achievements, a confrontation with the mystic Grigori Rasputin, and a commitment to saving lives.
Gedroits' early life was shaped by a difficult family background and personal tragedy. Her father was a Lithuanian noble, and her mother struggled with alcoholism. After losing a cousin and her younger brother to typhus, Gedroits vowed to become a doctor and dedicate her career to the poor. She pursued her medical education in St. Petersburg, becoming involved in revolutionary student politics and later seeking advanced surgical training in Lausanne, Switzerland. There, she impressed Professor Cesar Roux, who made her his assistant, promoting her over male colleagues despite initial jealousy and an incident where male students spilled acid on her.
Returning to Russia, Gedroits worked at the Maltsov cement plant, where she gained extensive experience in treating industrial accidents. She was an early advocate for sterile operating environments, achieving a remarkable record of 200 consecutive successful operations by 1902.
In 1909, Gedroits received a surprising summons from Tsarina Alexandra to become the attending physician to her four daughters, the Grand Duchesses. Alexandra, inspired by Florence Nightingale, tasked Gedroits with training the royal family in nursing skills as Russia approached the brink of World War I. Though Gedroits was a radical and anti-monarchist, she adhered to court etiquette, which dictated she correct her royal pupils only in private and avoid appearing to outrank them in public photographs.
During World War I, Gedroits applied her expertise to treating wounded soldiers, pioneering reconstructive facial surgery for those with severe injuries to the jaw and face. The biography notes that men who arrived with shattered jaws could leave with a chance of regaining speech. Her work forged deeper bonds with the royal family, even as she adopted a more masculine presentation, dressing in men's suits and using male pronouns.
A pivotal moment occurred in 1915 when Grigori Rasputin entered the St. Petersburg hospital where Gedroits was working and attempted to pray over a critically ill patient. Gedroits, a woman of action and skill, calmly intervened, escorting Rasputin out of the ward.
Following the March 1917 revolution and the subsequent house arrest and murder of the royal family, Gedroits, despite her personal grief, navigated the new political landscape. Aware of the risks associated with any perceived association with the former regime, she avoided contact and was appointed to a role in reforming Russian healthcare in August 1917.
With the rise of Stalin, Gedroits and her life partner, Countess Maria Nirod, moved to Ukraine. In 1929, they were arrested and imprisoned, though a high-ranking official whose life Gedroits had saved intervened for their release. Undeterred, Gedroits continued her surgical work as a professor at several Kyiv hospitals. She died of cancer in 1932, but her legacy was honored in 2023 when the city of Kyiv named a street in her honor, recognizing her humanitarian contributions. The biography positions Gedroits as a heroine for contemporary times, embodying resilience, non-conformity, and a dedication to her principles and skills despite the turbulent geopolitical events of her era.