Mikhail Iurevich Lermontov

Born in Moscow in 1814, Lermontov was raised largely by his wealthy grandmother after the early death of his mother. He became one of Russia’s most important poets and prose writers while still very young, and his work was shaped by personal restlessness, a sharp eye for society, and a lasting fascination with the Caucasus.

He came to wider attention after writing a passionate poem on the death of Alexander Pushkin, which led to trouble with the authorities and exile to the Caucasus. That landscape, along with his rebellious temperament, left a deep mark on his writing. His best-known prose work, A Hero of Our Time, is often seen as a landmark of Russian fiction, and his poems and dramas helped define the emotional power of Russian Romantic literature.

Lermontov died in 1841, at only twenty-six, after a duel in Pyatigorsk. Despite his brief life, his influence was lasting: later readers and writers returned to him for his fierce lyric voice, psychological insight, and unforgettable sense of a gifted mind at odds with the world.