author
Mikhail Aleksandrovich Bakunin
1814–1876
A fierce critic of authority, this Russian revolutionary became one of the best-known voices of 19th-century anarchism. His dramatic life carried him from aristocratic beginnings through prison, exile, and constant political struggle across Europe.
1 Audiobook
God and the State
by Mikhail Aleksandrovich Bakunin
About the author
Born into a noble family in Russia in 1814, Mikhail Bakunin first trained for a military career before turning toward philosophy and radical politics. Over time he became one of the central figures in the early anarchist movement, known for his attacks on state power, hierarchy, and all forms of imposed authority.
Bakunin took part in the revolutionary upheavals that swept Europe in 1848 and 1849. After his arrest, he spent years imprisoned by Russian authorities and was later sent into Siberian exile, before eventually escaping and returning to political activism in Europe.
He wrote and argued passionately for a society built on freedom, collective action, and the self-organization of ordinary people. His clashes with Karl Marx helped shape a lasting divide inside the wider socialist movement, and his ideas remained influential long after his death in Bern in 1876.