Lermontov, Mikhail Yuriyevich 1814-41
Russian poet

Born of Scottish parents in Moscow, he attended Moscow University and then the military cavalry school of St Petersburg, where he received a commission in the guards. A poem written in 1837 on the death of Alexander Pushkin caused his arrest and he was sent to the Caucasus. Reinstated, he was again banished following a duel with the son of the French ambassador. Another duel was the cause of his death in 1841. He wrote from an early age, but much of his work was not published until his last years and his fame was posthumous. The scenery of the Caucasus inspired his poetry, but he is best known for his novel Geroy nashevo vremeni (1839, Eng trans A Hero of Our Times, 1854). He also wrote the romantic verse play Maskarad (1842, 'Masquerade').

Bibliography: J Garrard, Mikhail Lermontov (1982)