Views of Haji Zeynalabdin Tagiyev's tomb.   Haji Zeynalabdin Tagiyev was one of the most famous and respected oil magnates not only in Azerbaijan, but also in Russia and all Muslim world. First of all he was known as a Maecenas. Here is one significant fact: Muslim, Russian, Armenian and Jewish charity societies of Baku elected him the honorary chairman.Haji Zeynalabdin Tagiyev was born in 1821 in Baku. His father was a shoe-maker. Their family was not rich, so Zeynalabdin had to start working in the early childhood. He began as an apprentice of one mason in Baku and bricklayer at the age of six . By the age of 18 Zeynalabdin became a mason and then a construction contractor. Having earned some money Haji Zeynalabdin Tagiyev in 1873 together with two companions rented a land, which was expected to be rich in oil. They hired unskilled laborers, bought equipment and built the rig to drill a borehole.The days were passing and the expenses were extending together with them, but oil still had not come out. Finally companions lost all their hopes and decided to sell th eir shares. In spite of all failures Haji Zeynalabdin Tagiyev did not lose hope and bought their shares to continue. The fate endowed him for his patience and diligence and one day oil gushed forth from the borehole . In the twinkling of an eye the son of a poor shoe-maker mason Zeynalabdin became a millionaire Tagiyev. This was just a beginning.Haji Zeynalabdin Tagiyev was not only oil manufacturer, but also factory and mill owner, fish manufacturer merchant, owner of freighters and printing house. However having become rich Haji Zeynalabdin Tagiyev did not change as a man. He always was good-natured and kind with his workers. For example, the first thing he did after getting rich was construction of highway from the city to his oil fields. At the same time he never refused to help to poor and sick people, cripples, orphans and widows.It is going to take long time to enumerate all the good and noble things Haji Zeynalabdin Tagiyev did during his life. I would like to mention that he helped not only to his fellow-contrymen. He was supporting the intelligentsia in Iran and India, Egypt and Turkey. For example, his sponsorship of talented Armenian and Georgian students or financial support to the progressive Indian newspaper. Here are some of Tagiyev's charity donations: for establishment of the Muslim charity association in St. Petersburg, teaching and upbringing of Armenian orphans, Russian Female school of St. Nina, renovation of mosques in Daghestan and other parts of Caucasus and Russia, improvement and fencing of the Baku cemetery, financing of the secondary schools, publishing of the Holy Qur'an translated to Azeri, construction of the theatre and Baku water-pipe and so on.Haji Zeynalabdin Tagiyev was a progressive person even though he had no education himself. He always sponsored talented young people sending them to the foreign schools and universities as well as financing and creating secondary and high schools in Azerbaijan. Sometimes in his good deeds he ran across resistance of the local reactionaries and authorities. It took a lot of time and strength to found the Alexandrian Female School for Muslim girls in Baku. In addition to a large sum of money he spent, he had the enormous vigor and energy to overcome concealed reluctance of Tsar authorities on one hand and furious resistance of local Muslim clergy on the other. To surmount the first obstacle , he promised to name the school after Her Majesty Alexandra Fiodorovna, the wife of Nicholas the Second and snowed her under with precious presents. To solve the second problem he sent a trusted man to all the Muslim centers and got certified written confirmations from all the famous Muslim theologists and authorities saying that there is not a single word in the Holy Qurrquote an prohibiting women from getting an education. Finally in October of 1901 Alexandrian Female Russian-Muslim boarding school opened its doors for Azeri girls. It was the first secular female school of European type not only in Baku and Azerbaijan, but in the whole Muslim world. After establishment of the Soviet power in Azerbaijan all Tagiyev's wealth was nationalized, except his country house in Mardakan settlement, where he was living out his days.Haji Zeynalabdin Tagiyev died in September of 1925 having lived a long and prominent life.There were industrialists much richer than Tagiyev, but no one is comparable with him by the scale of his charity and philanthropy. Unfortunately, the contribution he made to development and enlightenment of Azerbaijan and its nations is not appreciated at its true value up to now.Bakudaily.az