Editing Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (section)

==Personal life==
{{multiple image
| total_width       = 500
| image1            = Tchaikovsky with wife Antonina Miliukova.jpg
| alt1              = A middle aged man with dark hair and a beard, wearing a dark suit and holding a book, sits next to a young woman in a black dress wearing her hair up on her head|Tchaikovsky and Antonina on their honeymoon in 1877
| image2            = Kotek iosif.jpg
| footer            = (Left to right) Tchaikovsky and Antonina on their honeymoon in 1877; [[Iosif Kotek]] (left) and Tchaikovsky (right) in 1877
}}

Discussion of Tchaikovsky's personal life, especially his [[sexuality]], has perhaps been among the most extensive of any composer in the 19th century and certainly of any Russian composer of his time.<ref>Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', xvi.</ref> It has also at times caused considerable confusion, from Soviet efforts to expunge all references to homosexuality and portray him as a heterosexual, to efforts at analysis by Western biographers.<ref>Maes, 133–134; Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', xvii.</ref>

Biographers have generally agreed that Tchaikovsky was homosexual.<ref>Poznansky, ''Quest'', 32 et passim.</ref> He sought the company of other men in his circle for extended periods, "associating openly and establishing professional connections with them."<ref name="wiley25147">Wiley, ''New Grove'' (2001), 25:147.</ref> His first love was reportedly Sergey Kireyev, a younger fellow student at the Imperial School of Jurisprudence. According to [[Modest Tchaikovsky]], this was Pyotr Ilyich's "strongest, longest and purest love". Tchaikovsky's dedication of his Sixth symphony to his nephew [[Vladimir Davydov|Vladimir "Bob" Davydov]] (21 at the time) and his feelings expressed about Davydov in letters to others,<ref name="Keeling2003"/> has been cited as evidence for romantic love between the two.<ref name="Leonowitz2016"/><ref name="Peraino2005"/><ref name="Keeling2003"/> The degree to which the composer might have felt comfortable with his sexual desires has, however, remained open to debate. It is still unknown whether Tchaikovsky, according to musicologist and biographer [[David Brown (musicologist)|David Brown]], "felt tainted within himself, defiled by something from which he finally realized he could never escape"<ref>Brown, ''The Early Years'', 50.</ref> or whether, according to [[Alexander Poznansky]], he experienced "no unbearable guilt" over his sexual desires<ref name="wiley25147" /> and "eventually came to see his sexual peculiarities as an insurmountable and even natural part of his personality&nbsp;... without experiencing any serious psychological damage".<ref>Poznansky, as quoted in Holden, 394.</ref>

Relevant portions of his brother Modest's autobiography, where he tells of the composer's same-sex attraction, have been published, as have letters previously suppressed by Soviet censors in which Tchaikovsky openly writes of it.<ref>Poznansky, ''Eyes'', 8, 24, 77, 82, 103–105, 165–168. Also see P. I. Chaikovskii. ''Al'manakh, vypusk 1'', (Moscow, 1995).</ref> Such censorship has persisted in the Russian government, resulting in many officials, including the former culture minister [[Vladimir Medinsky]], denying his homosexuality outright.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/sep/18/tchaikovsky-not-gay-russian-minister|title=Tchaikovsky was not gay, says Russian culture minister|last=Walker|first=Shaun|date=18 September 2013|work=The Guardian|access-date=21 April 2018}}</ref> Passages in Tchaikovsky's letters which reveal his homosexual desires have been censored in Russia. In one such passage he said of a homosexual acquaintance: "Petashenka used to drop by with the criminal intention of observing the Cadet Corps, which is right opposite our windows, but I've been trying to discourage these compromising visits—and with some success." In another one, he wrote: "After our walk, I offered him some money, which was refused. He does it for the love of art and adores men with beards."<ref name="Alberge2018Guardian"/>

Tchaikovsky lived as a bachelor for most of his life. In 1868, he met Belgian soprano [[Désirée Artôt]] with whom he considered marriage,<ref>Brown, ''The Early Years'', 156–157; Warrack, ''Tchaikovsky'', 53.</ref> but, owing to various circumstances, the relationship ended.<ref>Brown, ''The Early Years'', 156–158; Poznansky, ''Eyes'', 88.</ref> Tchaikovsky later claimed she was the only woman he ever loved.<ref>{{cite web|title=Artôt, Désirée (1835–1907) |url=http://www.schubertiademusic.com/index.php?catalog=catalog-4 |publisher=Schubertiade music |access-date=21 February 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090624013042/http://www.schubertiademusic.com/index.php?catalog=catalog-4 |archive-date=24 June 2009 }}</ref> In 1877, at the age of 37, he wed a former student, [[Antonina Miliukova]].<ref name="marriage">Brown, ''The Crisis Years'', 137–147; Polayansky, ''Quest'', 207–208, 219–220; Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', 147–150.</ref> The marriage was a disaster. Mismatched psychologically and sexually,<ref name="wedding2">Brown, ''The Crisis Years'', 146–148; Poznansky, ''Quest'', 234; Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', 152.</ref> the couple lived together for only two and a half months before Tchaikovsky left, overwrought emotionally and suffering from acute [[writer's block]].<ref name="wedding3">Brown, ''The Crisis Years'', 157; Poznansky, ''Quest'', 234; Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', 155.</ref> Tchaikovsky's family remained supportive of him during this crisis and throughout his life.<ref name="wiley25147"/> Tchaikovsky's marital debacle may have forced him to face the full truth about his sexuality; he never blamed Antonina for the failure of their marriage.<ref>Warrack, ''Tchaikovsky'', 120.</ref>

Tchaikovsky was also aided by [[Nadezhda von Meck]], the widow of a railway magnate, who had begun contact with him not long before the marriage. As well as an important friend and emotional support,<ref name="meck2">Holden, 159, 231–232.</ref> she became his patroness for the next 13 years, which allowed him to focus exclusively on composition.<ref name="meck1">Brown, ''Man and Music'', 171–172.</ref> Although Tchaikovsky called her his "best friend", they agreed never to meet under any circumstances.