Irkutsk State University

1. Irkutsk State University was founded on the 27-th of October, 1918.It was the first higher educational establishment in Eastern Siberia and in the Far East.

2. First, there were only two faculties at the University. They were the faculty of history and philology and the law faculty. The faculty of physics and mathematics was set up in 1919.

5. In the twenties many prominent scientists came to Irkutsk to teach at theUniversity; Prof. Rubinstein, Prof. Svarchevsky, Prof. Frank-Kamenetsky and others.

6. A peculiar paper about the "White House" was found in the Irkutsk Regional Archives. It was an application of Sibiryakov, an Irkutsk merchant to the municipal Head. It dated back to 1800{eighteen hundred}. Sibiryakov wanted to build a three-storey house for his family. And he was allowed to build it.

Sibiryakov went to St. Peterburg to ask G. Guarenghi, a famous architect, to design his house. The architect agreed to do it. In 1804 the palace was built. It was 2-3-storey building with columns and balconies; it was decorated with sculptures. Inside the house there was a broad staircase and many rooms: reception room, a study, a dining-room, a room for children, a bedroom and others. Later a beautiful stone fence was put round the building. In fact, this palace was a brilliant example of Russian classicism. It was yellow. In 1850, however, the palace was rebuilt, and still later painted white. That's why we call it the "White House".

7. Scientific Research Institutes: the Institutes of Biology, the Institute of Applied Physics.

8. The first rector of Irkutsk State University was Prof. Rubinstein.