The creation of the essay “Fire at Sea” was separated from the event described in it by forty-five years. Turgenev left St. Petersburg for Germany on the steamer “Nicholas I” on May 15 (27), 1838; The fire happened on the night of May 18 (30) to May 19 (31). The disaster made a strong impression on Turgenev, and he subsequently wrote a brief note about it in the “Memorial,” a summary of the most important events of his life, under 1838: “In May, for the first time abroad. The fire of “Nicholas”... Traveling through Germany...". Memories of this event forced Turgenev, during a period of serious illness, three months before his death, to realize the idea of an autobiographical sketch.