Albert Salamonsky

Albert Salamonsky (June 18, 1839 – June 22, 1913) was a German equestrian performer, horse trainer, acrobat, and circus proprietor.

Albert Wilhelmovich Salamonsky was born on June 18, 1839.^[1]

Albert was the son of circus rider Wilhelm Salamonsky.^[1] His father, a member of an old Jewish circus family, established himself in Berlin and worked as an associate of the renowned circus director Ernst Renz of Circus Renz.^[2] Albert trained under his father and gained renown as a bareback rider.^[1]

Albert Salamonsky began his career as an equestrian performer and gymnast.^[3] An advertisement for London's Holborn Theatre on November 6, 1868, commended Salamonsky's three-horse act titled "Le Jeux Romains" (French: The Roman Games).^[4]

Salamonsky married the accomplished equestrian Lina Schwartz in 1868.^[5]

He soon set up his own circus, the Circus Salamonsky, in Warsaw, Poland, at Włodzimierzowska Street (now Czackiego Street).^[6] After founding his circus in 1873, Salamonsky and Oscar Carré held two of the largest circuses in Europe and became the principal competitors to Ernst Renz.^[7] In November 1873, he acquired sizable buildings at Neuer Markt in Berlin for £75,000 and renovated them into a multi-purpose circus complex with dining and refreshment amenities.^[8] There, he established Salamonsky's Grand Circus and amphitheatre.

By 1875, his circus traveled via a special train comprising at least fifty carriages when moving between towns, with Berlin serving as his winter quarters.^[9] Salamonsky left for Saint Petersburg with his circus establishment in 1879.^[7] In Saint Petersburg, Salamonsky vied with the Italian impresario Gaetano Ciniselli for control of the circus industry.^[10]

His tour of Odesa, the Russian Empire's fourth-largest city at the time, inspired Salamonsky to settle there and build a stationary circus venue. He opened Odesa's first circus in 1879, located at 37 Koblevskaya Street.^[11]

On October 20, 1880, Salamonsky opened Moscow's first circus, the Moscow Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard.^[12] At the premiere performance, he himself took part as a performer.^[13]

His next venture following his establishments in Moscow and Odessa was a circus venue in Riga, Latvia.^[14] Salamonsky commissioned the circus building, which opened in 1888 in the city center adjacent to Vērmane Garden, featuring a large dome structure.^[15]

Albert Salamonsky died on June 22, 1913, in Moscow, Russia, at age 74. He was interred at Vvedenskoye Cemetery.