Tolstoy Farm

colony, Johannesburg, South Africa

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

July 14, 2026

Quick Summary

Tolstoy Farm was a communal settlement established near Johannesburg by Mahatma Gandhi in 1910. Inspired by the writings of Leo Tolstoy, Gandhi created this colony as a place for Indians in South Africa to live and train in nonviolent resistance against racial discrimination. The farm was a precursor to the ashrams Gandhi later established in India.12

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

2 Britannica Sources

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

Mahatma Gandhi
The religious quest
…near Johannesburg; it was named Tolstoy Farm for the Russian writer and moralist, whom Gandhi admired and corresponded with. Those two settlements were the precursors of the more-famous ashrams (religious retreats; see ashrama) in India, at Sabarmati near Ahmedabad and at Sevagram near Wardha.
Read More
…near Johannesburg; it was named Tolstoy Farm for the Russian writer and moralist, whom Gandhi admired and corresponded with. Those two settlements were the precursors of the more-famous ashrams (religious retreats; see ashrama) in India, at Sabarmati near Ahmedabad and at Sevagram near Wardha.
Read More