Gumilyov vs Voloshin: the last of the twentieth century poets duel

• Gumilyov vs Voloshin: the last of the twentieth century poets duel

In 1837, on the Black River near St. Petersburg took the fatal duel of Pushkin with Dantes. At 72, at the same location, Maximilian Voloshin and Gumilev guns shoot to the middle of the XIX century., Also because of a woman. In the early twentieth century. the duel is already considered an anachronism, fights poets of the Silver Age, as a rule, do without bloodshed and to the use of weapons did not reach. But the duel Voloshin and Gumilev really took place and was the last fight of the poets of the twentieth century.

Nikolay Gumilyov

Nikolay Gumilyov got acquainted with a young poetess Liza Dmitrieva in 1907 in Paris, and in the spring of 1909, they met again in St. Petersburg. Between them erupted feelings, which Dmitriev wrote: "It was a young sonorous passion. "Undeterred and kroyas I look in people's eyes, I found a friend-of-breed swans" - NS wrote on the album, a gift from me. We began to meet frequently, all the days we were together and for each other. Wrote poetry, we went to the "Tower" and returned at dawn to wake up at the pink city. Many times I have asked NS to marry him, I never agreed to this; I was at this time the bride of another. "

E. Dmitriev - the girl, because of which there was a duel

In May 1909 Gumilyov with Dmitrieva went to Koktebel to Maximilian Voloshin. Suddenly formed love triangle. She confessed: "Fate brought us together all three of us together: him, me and M. Al. - because the greatest love in my life, the most unattainable, it was Maximilian Alexandrovich. If N. Art. was for me the flowering of spring, "boy", we were the same age, but he always seemed to me younger, the MA for me was somewhere far away, someone not able to turn their eyes on me, a small and silent " . "Inaccessible" the poet said Dmitrieva reciprocate, and Gumilev had to leave Koktebel alone.

On the left - Boris Kustodiev. Portrait of the Poet M. Voloshin, 1924. Right - A. Della-Vos-Kardovsky. Portrait of the poet Gumilyov 1909

In St. Petersburg, this story had a continuation. On the pages of the new magazine "Apollo" were poems enigmatic poet Cherubin de Gabriac. All have heard about it, but no one ever saw her. As it turns out, this is the loudest hoax Silver Age Voloshin was organized to draw attention to his lover, aspiring poetess Elizabeth Dmitrieva. The mystery was revealed, and everyone knew that the mysterious foreigner with a tragic fate - in fact ordinary Russian girl.

Cherubina de Gabriac, it - Elizaveta Dmitrieva

November 16, 1909 Gumilev made one last attempt to return Dmitriev poet made her another offer and was rejected again. After that, there were rumors that supposedly tells Gumilyov in rough terms about the details of their romance with Dmitrieva. Voloshin could not respond to it. After 2 days he privselyudno gave the offender a slap - it was seen as a challenge to a duel. Alexei Tolstoy witnessed the scene, and then Voloshin's second. Later, he took the side of ENU: "I know and affirm that the prosecution abandoned him - in pronouncing them some incautious words - was false: these words, he did not say and could not say. However, out of pride and contempt, he was silent, while not denying the charges, but when was arranged a confrontation and he heard the lie in the confrontation, it is out of pride and contempt confirmed this lie. "

Maximilian Voloshin

The duel took place on November 22, 1909 Both duelists late: ENU car stuck in the snow, and Voloshin lost in the snow overshoe and her long sought. Gumilyov required to shoot at a distance of five steps, or death. The seconds are not allowed this, and Tolstoy measured out 25 steps. Pistols Pushkin's time were not well suited for shooting in wet weather. In addition, the principals were not able to properly handle a weapon. Both made for 2 shots: Gumilev took aim at the enemy, but missed, and Voloshin shot into the air. In this duel was stopped. Fortunately, the case without bloodshed.

last poets of the Silver Age duelists - Gumilev and Maximilian Voloshin

The next day all the newspapers wrote about the "ridiculous duel." Most of the accused of Voloshin, but both ridiculed. Sasha called Black Max Voloshin Vaks Kaloshin, and this nickname instantly became known throughout St. Petersburg. Each of the duelists was punished by a fine of 10 rubles. Dmitriev after the incident came a creative crisis, she did not write for 5 years. In 1911 she married and moved to Turkestan. Reconciliation between the two poets did not take place.