We were thrilled to welcome back alumnus and Honorary Fellow Vladimir Kara-Murza and his wife Evgenia to Trinity Hall yesterday (12 February) to celebrate his Honorary Fellowship and spend time with members of the Trinity Hall community.
In 2023, Vladimir was unable to accept his Honorary Fellowship from Trinity Hall in person because he was illegally detained in Russia. In a poignant letter to the Master during his time imprisoned, Vladimir wrote: “I look forward to staying in touch and to one day meeting you and joining fellow Trinity Hall members and alumni at our magnificent College, a place like no other.” We are immensely pleased that this day arrived for the Trinity Hall community to welcome Vladimir, who was released from prison in August 2024 as part of the largest East-West prisoner exchange since the Cold War.
Yesterday afternoon, Trinity Hall held a small ceremony to award Vladimir his Honorary Fellowship in person, followed by tea and cake with other members of the Fellowship. “It is so wonderful to be back in my alma mater”, said Vladimir, “and a great honour to be elected as an Honorary Fellow.”
Following the ceremony, Pulitzer Prize winner Vladimir engaged in lively conversations with Trinity Hall members during a drinks reception before joining more than 100 students, staff, Fellows, alumni and friends in the Lecture Theatre and online for a special ‘in conversation’ event with the Master, Mary Hockaday.
Vladimir discussed his time as a History student at Trinity Hall and as an opposition politician and dissident in Russia, how his ability to take the long view helped sustain him during his illegal detention in Siberia, and his hopes for the future now he has been released. Insightful questions from the audience continued the conversation throughout the Q&A that followed.
Historian and Trinity Hall Fellow Professor Clare Jackson, who taught Vladimir during his time as a student and attended the event, said:
“Listening to Vladimir describe his time in Siberian solitary confinement was very moving; equally powerful, however, is his unshakeable optimism with regard to Russia’s eventual future as a free and democratic state. Vladimir remains a historian to the core and yesterday was a memorably special opportunity for the Trinity Hall community to recognise and celebrate the inspirational work of both Vladimir and Evgenia.”
Speaking about the day, the Master said:
“It was wonderful to welcome Vladimir and Evgenia to College. Much to everyone’s relief, the day came sooner than expected when we could celebrate his Honorary Fellowship in person. It was particularly moving to hear how his memories of Trinity Hall as a history student helped sustain him in prison and it could not have been more timely to discuss the war in Ukraine and his hopes for Russia’s future.”
After the event, Vladimir and Evgenia enjoyed dinner at College.
Lead image left to right: Revd Dr Stephen Plant, Professor Clare Jackson, Evgenia Kara-Murza, Vladimir Kara-Murza, Professor Peter Clarke, Mary Hockaday
Vladimir Kara-Murza is a Russian politician, author, historian, and former political prisoner. A close colleague of the killed opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, he has served as deputy leader of the People’s Freedom Party and was a candidate for the Russian Parliament. Leading diplomatic efforts on behalf of the opposition, Kara-Murza played a key role in the adoption of Magnitsky sanctions against top Russian officials by the United States, United Kingdom, European Union, Canada, and Australia. For this work he was twice poisoned and left in a coma; a joint media investigation by Bellingcat, The Insider, and Der Spiegel has identified FSB officers behind the attacks. In April 2022 Kara-Murza was arrested in Moscow for publicly denouncing the invasion of Ukraine and the war crimes committed by Russian forces. Following a closed-door trial at the Moscow City Court, he was sentenced to 25 years for “high treason” and kept in solitary confinement at a maximum-security prison in Siberia. He was released in August 2024 as part of the largest East-West prisoner exchange since the Cold War negotiated by the U.S. and German governments. Kara-Murza is a contributing writer at the Washington Post, winning the 2024 Pulitzer Prize for his columns written from prison, and has previously worked for Echo of Moscow, BBC, RTVi, Kommersant, World Affairs, and other media organisations. He has directed three documentary films and is the author or contributor to several books on Russian history and politics. Kara-Murza currently serves as vice-president at the Free Russia Foundation, as senior advisor at Human Rights First, and as senior fellow at the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights. He was the founding chairman of the Boris Nemtsov Foundation for Freedom and has led successful international efforts to commemorate Nemtsov, including with street designations in Washington D.C. and London. Kara-Murza is a recipient of several awards, including the Council of Europe’s Václav Havel Human Rights Prize, and is an Honorary Fellow at Trinity Hall, Cambridge. He holds an M.A. (Cantab.) in History from Cambridge. He is married, with three children.