It was because of them that the great poet A.S. Pushkin, and later, his successor, M.Yu. Lermontov. Until now, Lermontov scholars are arguing about who killed Lermontov in a duel and about its causes. This article will consider the most popular and truthful version of what happened, namely the meeting at the barrier of Mikhail Lermontov and Nikolai Martynov. What then happened?
Nikolai Solomonovich Martynov was a rather interesting person. He was a classmate of Lermontov's military school, enjoyed great success with the fair sex, wrote poems and stories, from his youth he dreamed of making a career in the military field.
He quickly received the rank of major, which was rare for young men of his age. But it ended abruptly. It was rumored that the reason for this was the suspicion that he was a card sharper. Martynov resigned in 1841 and left for Pyatigorsk. For young man the end of his career was quite painful. He began to wear mountain clothes and a saber at the ready, surprised society with his strange jokes. Most experts are inclined to believe that it was a joke because of his behavior that caused the fight.
Another version is connected with the Martynov family. Since Mikhail Yuryevich was on friendly terms with Nikolai Solomonovich, then, of course, he often visited the Martynov family. During such visits, the poet liked the sister of a friend, Natalya. But sympathy did not develop into a more serious feeling. Some believed that she became the prototype of Princess Mary, but it is unlikely that the poet described his life situation in the novel. In addition, the girl herself liked both the novel and the heroine.
Some were inclined to think that the Martynovs once asked Lermontov to give his son a letter and money. The money was given, but the message was not. But the incident was hushed up, so the assumption that the cause of the duel could be excessive curiosity unworthy of a nobleman. In addition, the case with the letter was long before the duel itself.
Someone claims that one of the reasons for the painful reaction to the jokes of Mikhail Yuryevich was some kind of creative competition. After all, as you know, Nikolai Martynov also wrote poetry and could not help but understand whom he was challenging to a duel. 
The reason for the duel is considered to be a conflict that occurred between friends on July 13, 1841 at the evening at General Verzilin. The ladies who were invited to this evening confirmed this. Martynov was in love with one of Verzilin's daughters, and Lermontov gave a playful warning to the young lady about a strange young man dressed in mountain clothes. At this time, Prince Trubetskoy finished playing the piano, and therefore everyone heard the words of the poet. The guests laughed at the joke, and Martynova's pride was greatly hurt.
Then, during a private conversation, Nikolai Solomonovich provoked a challenge to a duel. The poet arrived at the meeting place in good spirits, because he had no doubt that the duel would not take place. The participants in the duel, in addition to Lermontov and Martynov, were:
- Mikhail Glebov, Lermontov's second;
- A. A. Stolypin-Mongo, a relative of the poet;
- Alexander Vasilchikov, Martynov's second;
- Sergei Trubetskoy.
On July 15, 1841, a fatal duel took place for Mikhail Yurievich. The participants in that event themselves recalled that the poet was not going to shoot the offended friend and was sure of the same intention on the part of Martynov. During the shot, Lermontov hesitated (according to another version, he fired into the air). Nicholas, with an accurate shot, mortally wounded the poet, who died on the spot from his wound.
During the testimony, the names of Stolypin and Trubetskoy were not mentioned, since they were in disgrace with the emperor. During the interrogation, all participants agreed that the names of the two participants would not be named, and also that the reason for the duel was Lermontov’s disrespectful attitude towards Martynov.
Everyone who knew about the upcoming fight understood the seriousness of the consequences, so they did everything possible to prevent it from taking place. The rules of the duel were specially tightened, since everyone knew that Martynov was not distinguished by great courage. Almost managed to persuade Stolypin and Lermontov to leave Pyatigorsk, Glebov tried to calm Martynov. The duel might not have taken place if Vasilchikov had not agreed to become the poet's friend's second.
Subsequently, everyone gave confused testimony about what happened on that fateful day for Mikhail Yuryevich. Everyone, except Vasilchikov, never told anyone the details of that fight. Yes, and the prince only at the very end of his life shared his memories of that incident. After the incident, Martynov was tormented by remorse, because society blamed him for the early death of the great poet. But he tried to whitewash his name, arguing that Lermontov had a complex character, he had the makings of a good one, but they were ruined by the influence of secular society.
But still, even after so many years, experts argue about who killed Lermontov in a duel, what are the real reasons behind this. Someone adheres to the version that the reason for this is the disfavor of Nicholas the First, someone claims that all this is due to the Decembrists, whom Lermontov sympathized with. Whatever the real reasons, one thing is certain: on that day, Russia lost one of the great poets who could have created many more beautiful works.
The duel between Lermontov and Martynov entered the history of Russian culture as an absurd and tragic event that robbed Russia of its young genius. Until now, disputes have not subsided about the reason for this duel, about the behavior of its main participants, as well as about the possibilities of avoiding this duel.
Let's try to consider this incident with maximum scrupulousness.
The actual side of the duel between Lermontov and Martynov. eyewitness accounts
The duel between Martynov and Lermontov took place at seven in the evening on July 15, 1841. It happened in the city of Pyatigorsk near Mount Mashuk. As a result of the duel, Lermontov received a wound incompatible with life. The poet died on the spot and was buried in Pyatigorsk.
Next to the duelists were the seconds Glebov and Vasilchikov. Also at the duel were Prince Trubetskoy and Lermontov's relative Stolypin. Only the first two witnesses were involved in the investigation, the others were hidden, "so that the incident does not ruin their careers."
Glebov and Vasilchikov testified that Lermontov, who arrived in Pyatigorsk, showed disrespect for his former classmate Martynov, allowing inappropriate jokes addressed to him. This was the reason for the duel. Martynov himself gave the same testimony.
The seconds and the killer pointed out that the cause of the duel was a quarrel that took place between Martynov and the poet on the eve of July 13 at the evening at General Verzilina's. The ladies present at this evening later confirmed that Lermontov was cheerful and let go of a not entirely successful joke about Martynov. The fact is that Martynov courted the daughter of the general's wife, and Lermontov warned the young girl in French against communicating with a strange man in a mountain outfit with a large dagger at the ready.
Martynov boiled up and later called the poet to a private conversation. Apparently, it was then that he provoked Lermontov to a duel.
As the seconds later showed, Lermontov went to the duel calm and cheerful. He believed that Martynov would cool down and, most likely, would shoot into the air. He himself also did not want to kill his friend and sought to break up with him after a duel in an amicable way.
However, Martynov was in a state of rage. When the duelists were handed pistols, the author of A Hero of Our Time hesitated to fire a shot (there is a version that Lermontov fired into the air), and Martynov killed his opponent with an aimed shot. Lermontov died a few minutes later from a mortal wound.
Later, an investigation and a trial took place in the case, which sentenced the participants in this event to serious punishments. Initially, Martynov was stripped of all ranks and titles, however, later he was sentenced to church penance and arrest, which lasted only a few months.
A little about the personality of Martynov
Nikolai Solomonovich Martynov was an outstanding personality. The same age as Lermontov, his classmate at a military school, a handsome young man who was successful with women, who wrote poetry and poems, from his youth dreamed of military career. At first, his beauty and skills acquired in military school helped him. He reached the rank of major, which for this age was a high rank. However, his career came to an abrupt end. What caused this is not completely known, Martynov himself resigned and received it at the beginning of 1841. Gossips accused him of cheating.
Martynov was painfully worried about this situation. He did not go to Moscow to visit his relatives, but remained in Pyatigorsk on free bread. He wore the clothes of a highlander and amazed those around him with his ridiculous jokes. He was denied even a small thing: the emperor, due to his resignation, ordered not to award him a medal for previous military merits.
In this state, Martynov met with Lermontov, who had come to Pyatigorsk to be cured of his illness. Martynov himself later claimed that he treated the poet kindly, however, he was annoyed by Lermontov's jokes about him, the poet's arrogance and his causticity. In addition, Martynov believed that in 1837 Lermontov committed a cruel joke on him and his family when, without permission, he opened and read a letter from his sister Natalya.
As you know, after the duel, Martynov was tormented by remorse, suffering from the fact that others see him primarily as the killer of the great poet. Thirty years after the fatal duel, he wrote his notes, entitled "My Confession." However, in these notes, Martynov tried to whitewash himself, stating that Lermontov was an unbearable person, with good inclinations, but spoiled by the “light”.
Posthumous disputes about the fatal duel
The death of Lermontov shocked his contemporaries to the extent that it caused numerous rumors and speculation. Immediately the question arose of who killed Lermontov in a duel?
The real killer N.S. Martynov seemed so ordinary person that not everyone was satisfied with such a simple answer. Many other versions arose, ranging from bold assumptions that the killers were sent by the gendarmerie, because Lermontov once dared to speak rudely with the empress herself and a lady close to her, and ending with versions of revenge on the part of deceived husbands or lovers of ladies whom the poet could to seduce.
Of course, all these versions were nothing more than gossip spread not by the most smart people trying to gain publicity in this way.
However, literary critics turned their attention to another version of what happened. The letters of the poet's contemporaries indicate that they believed that the unfortunate Martynov was the brother of "Princess Mary". Recall that it was at this time that the novel by M.Yu. Lermontov "A Hero of Our Time", in which main character- Pechorin, tired of life, falls in love with an innocent girl, Princess Mary, out of boredom, in order to later laugh at her feelings and leave her.
It is naive to believe that in the image of the main character Lermontov spoke about his life situation. However, events such as the publication of the novel, its popularity and the death of Lermontov in a duel almost coincided in time, so this version is found in publications dedicated to the memory poet, until now. Although it is hardly close to the truth.
Thus, questions about the early death of Lermontov, the reasons for the duel with Martynov, the circumstances preceding the quarrel between the poet and his opponent have not yet been fully clarified. Only one thing is known: on July 15, 1841, Russia lost her brilliant son, who could write many more talented works.
"Hopeful to return home"
Kirill Giatsintov is a descendant of Nikolai Martynov on the maternal side, he has the blood of two ancient noble families - the Martynovs and the Giatsintovs. Kirill Erastovich is 86 years old, he is a second-generation immigrant - he was born in France and has been living in the USA for many years, he is an American citizen and businessman. He came to St. Petersburg for a few days - on the business of his company, which sells medical equipment, including in Russia. In Russian, Kirill Giatsintov speaks very clearly, not always choosing the right words, but almost without an accent, because both father and mother communicated only in their native language.
My father Erast Giatsintov was born in Tsarskoye Selo, - said Kirill Erastovich. - I know the place where our mansion stood - three blocks from the royal palace (unfortunately, this house no longer exists - it was bombed during the war). Later, my father's ancestors moved to St. Petersburg, he himself studied at the Artillery School. After the revolution, the pope did not recognize the power of the Bolsheviks, fought in Volunteer army, and then emigrated - first to the Czech Republic, then to France, where I was born. Father always repeated that our Motherland is Russia, and believed that the oath that he gave to the emperor was valid until the end of his life. Therefore, although I was born in France, I did not have French citizenship: my parents hoped that our exile was temporary and that we could return home.
The hope of the senior Hyacinths did not come true - they never returned to St. Petersburg. We moved to Germany, then, when Hitler came to power there, to America.
I first came to the USSR exactly half a century ago - in 1966, - says Kirill Giatsintov. - I came as a manager of a medical company, we wanted to discuss the possibility of acquiring some Russian technologies. Although I was the son of an "enemy of the people", the attitude towards our delegation was very good. I even managed to meet with my father's cousin - she was still alive and gave him through me several family heirlooms, for example, a bullet that wounded my father in civil war. In fact, my father was then on the verge of death - the bullet should have hit him right in the heart, but ricocheted off the metal-covered notebook that my father always wore in his breast pocket. In this little book he entered his impressions and then wrote his autobiography, Notes of a White Officer.
“Putin is constantly being poked around here”
Kirill Giacintov came to Russia, according to his own calculations, about 150 times - but always for a short time, as a tourist. He himself calls himself a "Russian American", he is proud that his children and already adult grandchildren also know how to speak the language of their ancestors.
My daughter married an American, but she specifically found a nanny from Russia so that the children had the opportunity to learn the language, says Kirill Erastovich. - We took them to Moscow and St. Petersburg, they are interested in their roots.
In the USA, Kirill Giatsintov heads the Russian Nobility Assembly, where the descendants of emigrants communicate with each other. As such, there are almost no "purebred" nobles left.
I am one of the few whose father and mother were noblemen, - says Kirill Giatsintov. - Although initially the emigrants of the first generation dreamed that their children would intermarry, retaining the nobility, even special parties were held at which the surviving princesses and counts met. But there were very few such couples, and now hearing Russian speech from members of our congregation is a rarity. Some people just don't know how to speak Russian, some are shy. But traditions remain, noble principles - to be honest, decent, to keep the faith, to protect relatives - this remains, it has not disappeared.
Now, given the aggravation of Russian-American relations, some "Russian Americans" may not want to advertise their Russian roots. Kirill Giacintov himself served in the army and fought in Vietnam, and then worked in the US government, but he cannot forgive the US authorities for attacking his historical homeland.
In our country, for any reason, they are trying to unleash all the dogs on Putin! - he is indignant. - In the press they constantly spy on him, so, they say, he is tightening the screws, leading the country back to communism. They impose anti-Russian sanctions, which greatly spoil the life of me and my business. But I support the President of Russia. Talking about democracy is one thing, but leading a huge country is another, there is no time for ranting.
Martynov stood up for the honor of his sister
If at home in the United States, Giacintov does not hesitate to admit that he is Russian, then in Russia he does not hide that he is a descendant of the same retired officer Nikolai Martynov, who shot Lermontov in a duel in 1841.
I even went to the estate of Lermontov Tarkhany, where I laid a wreath on his grave, - says Kirill Giatsintov. - In our family, the act of Nikolai Solomonovich Martynov has never been hushed up. In Russia, the version is accepted that Lermontov and Martynov quarreled over a trifle, and my ancestor could not forgive Mikhail Yuryevich for mocking him in the presence of females. But we know the truth - in fact, the conflict between Lermontov and Martynov arose a long time ago.
According to the "family" version, they were initially friends - they studied together at the school of guard ensigns, both wrote poetry, Lermontov often visited the parents of Nikolai Martynov.
This is the story my aunt, who was born in the very late XIX century and lived to be 102 years old, - says Kirill Giatsintov. - When Nikolai Solomonovich Martynov fought in the Caucasus, Lermontov, on the way there, stopped by to visit his parents in a family estate near Penza. He did not behave very worthily - he dragged after his sisters, so the mother of Nikolai Martynov did not really like such a guest. Nevertheless, she asked me to give the letter and the 300 rubles invested in it to my son. Martynova's sister also sent a letter through Lermontov to her lover, who served in the same place, in the Caucasus. Lermontov took both letters, but during one of the stops, being in the company of other officers and drinking with them, he took out the letters and read them, speaking rather cynically about the feelings of a young girl. After some time, Martynov became aware of this. It was the honor of the sister that became the main reason for the duel, and Lermontov's jokes on Martynov were only an excuse. This has been known in our family for more than a century and a half, and when I voiced this to the director of the Tarkhany Museum-Reserve, she, taking me aside, quietly said that this version is not very favored in Russia, although it looks like the truth .
MK versions
Who killed Mikhail Lermontov?
There are several versions about the circumstances under which the great Russian poet actually died.
Victim of ridicule
Bored in Pyatigorsk, Lermontov endlessly showered ridicule on Martynov, mocking his outfit - the officer liked to walk in a mountain hat with a dagger. During one of the evenings, Martynov's patience ran out, and he demanded satisfaction from the mocker. During a duel on Mount Mashuk, Lermontov fired into the air, and Martynov hit the poet right in the heart.
The poet was "ordered" by Nicholas I
IN Soviet times it was actively argued that the duel was not accidental - Emperor Nicholas I and his entourage wanted to get rid of the disgraced poet and, with the help of Martynov, set up a duel. He allegedly killed Lermontov not in the heat of resentment, but on the orders of the king. This fact is supported by a very mild punishment for a duel for those years - a ten-year penance was imposed on Martynov in the temple of the city of Kyiv, which was canceled a few years later.
Assassin - Cossack mercenary
The doctors testified that the bullet entered the poet's body from the bottom up at an angle of 35 degrees, which could not happen, since the duelists were face to face. Therefore, there is a version that the duel is just a staging, but in fact Lermontov was shot from a gun by an unknown Cossack mercenary, who then disappeared.
There was no duel
However, there is another explanation for such a trajectory of a bullet. Allegedly, Martynov challenged Lermontov not to a duel at all, but to a face-to-face conversation. And during a meeting in a secluded place, he simply shot (while the poet was on horseback, and Martynov dismounted). And only then, in hindsight, a duel was staged.
Grave without a cross
“With lead in my chest, I lay motionless,” “the wound was still smoking bloody, my blood was sharpening drop by drop” - Lermontov wrote these poems about a month before the fatal duel.
It was forbidden to write about the duel between Lermontov and Martynov for 30 years. Then many volumes of research were written, but to this day, in fact, nothing is known about it for sure! It is not known, for example, the exact place of the duel, although a conventional memorial sign was installed. The place of the first burial of the poet in the necropolis of the old Pyatigorsk cemetery is also not clear - when the coffin was removed for transportation to Tarkhany, the grave was filled up along with the tombstone, only its drawing was preserved, which was made by a friend of the poet Arnoldi. Another prophecy of Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov came true - about his future "bloody grave, without prayer, without a cross" ...
1841, July 27 (15) - a duel between Lermontov and Martynov took place, near Mount Mashuk in the Caucasus, at seven o'clock in the evening.
Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov was killed in a duel (with 10 steps, almost point blank, the poet died instantly), which occurred because of a trifling reason for today's concepts. Lermontov was killed in a duel by his former comrade in the cadet school, Nikolai Martynov. Eyewitnesses said different things about the quarrel between the poet and Martynov, which ended in a duel, but everyone agrees that Martynov was outraged by the witticism of the poet directed at him. Alas, the concept of honor in the 19th century had its negative sides. An innocent joke could cost a life.
How the duel went, and Lermontov's death was more fully and more accurately described by the poet's second, Prince Alexander Vasilchikov.
eyewitness account
Reason for the duel
“Once, at one of the evenings at General's Verzilina, Lermontov, in the presence of the ladies, let out some new joke, more or less sharp, on Martynov. What was said we could not hear; I only know that, leaving the house on the street, Martynov approached Lermontov and spoke to him in a very quiet and even voice in French; “You know, Lermontov, that I very often put up with your jokes, but I don’t like to be repeated in front of the ladies,” to which Mikhail replied in the same calm tone: “And if you don’t like it, then demand satisfaction from me.”
There was nothing more between them that evening and in the following days, before the duel, at the very least, we, Stolypin, Glebov (other seconds) and me, are unknown, and we considered this quarrel so insignificant and petty that until the last we were sure that it will end in reconciliation.
Attempts at reconciliation
Nevertheless, all of us, and especially M.P. Glebov, who combined with courageous bravery the most amiable and cordial good nature and enjoyed the same respect and friendship of both opponents, all of us, I say, exhausted our peace-loving efforts in three days without any success. And although the formal challenge to a duel followed from Martynov, anyone would agree that the above words of Mikhail “demand satisfaction from me” already contained an indirect invitation to the challenge, and then it remained to decide which of the two was the instigator and who should have done before whom the first step towards reconciliation.
This ruined all our efforts; a three-day delay did not lead to anything, and on July 15 at 6-7 pm we went to a fateful meeting; but even here, at the last minute, we, and, I think, Lermontov himself, were sure that the duel would end with empty shots and that, having exchanged two bullets for honor, the opponents would shake hands and go ... to dinner.
When we went to Mount Mashuk (near Pyatigorsk) and chose a place along the path that led to the colony (I don’t remember the name), a dark, thunderous cloud rose from behind the neighboring Mount Beshtau.
Duel. How it all happened
Glebov and I measured 30 steps; the last barrier was set at 10, and, having separated the opponents to extreme distances, they put them together for 10 steps each on the “march” command. The pistols were loaded. Glebov gave one to Martynov, I gave another to Lermontov, and they commanded: "Get together!"
fatal shot
Lermontov remained standing motionless and, cocking the trigger, raised the gun muzzle up, shielding himself with his hand and elbow, in accordance with all the rules of an experienced duelist. At that moment, and for the last time, I looked at him and I will never forget that calm, almost cheerful expression that played on the face of the poet before the muzzle of a pistol already pointed at him. Martynov quickly walked up to the barrier and fired. Lermontov fell, as if he had been beveled on the spot, without making any movements either back or forward, without even having time to grab a sore spot, as wounded or bruised people usually do.
We ran. A wound was smoking in the right side, blood was oozing in the left, the heart and lungs were pierced by a bullet.
Although the signs of life had apparently already disappeared, we decided to call the doctor. At our preliminary invitation to attend the duel, the doctors we turned to, all flatly refused. I rode on horseback to Pyatigorsk, called on two doctors, but got the same answer that they could not go to the place of the duel on the occasion of bad weather (it was pouring rain), but would come to the apartment when the wounded was brought there.
Death of Lermontov
When I returned, Lermontov was already dead in the same place where he had fallen; near him Stolypin, Glebov and Trubetskoy. Martynov went straight to the commandant to announce the duel. A black cloud that was slowly rising on the horizon burst into a terrible thunderstorm, and the rolling thunder sang eternal memory newly deceased servant Michael.
Stolypin and Glebov went to Pyatigorsk to arrange for the transfer of the body, while Trubetskoy and I were left with the dead man. As now, I remember the strange episode of that fateful evening; our seat in the share with the corpse of Mikhail lasted a very long time, because the cabbies, following the example of the courage of the doctors, also refused to go one by one to transport the body of the murdered. Night fell and the rain didn't stop...
Suddenly we heard the distant clatter of horses along the same path where the dead man lay, and in order to drag him aside, we wanted to lift him up, as usually happens, stale air came out of the chest, but with such a sound that it seemed to us that it was alive and a painful sigh, and for several minutes we were sure that Lermontov was still alive.
Who killed Lermontov in a duel?
Questions remain
Giving evidence, the seconds deliberately increased the distance between the shooters to 15 steps. In addition, they concealed from the investigation the fact that even before the start of the duel, Mikhail Yuryevich's intention not to shoot at the enemy was obvious. He said it himself.
And, as he said, he shot into the air first. He was still standing with his hand raised up when he was hit by a bullet. And the most important thing is that they did not say that Martynov fired after the count of three. That said about the end of the duel. They also concealed the special conditions of the duel, which were very cruel for an insignificant quarrel. Shoot from three attempts, and in case of misses, the opportunity to call to the barrier again. All this will become known much later. As well as the fact that there were not 2 seconds, but 4.
Emperor's jealousy?
At court, the wayward poet was hardly tolerated. Especially after the verse "On the death of Pushkin." He, of course, was not published, but he went on the lists and was known throughout high society. And Emperor Nicholas 1 also had a personal reason for hostility. This was due to jealousy of his wife, who was in love with Lermontov. And it was for what. The light style of his poems and the sad look were simply mesmerizing. However, could the sovereign's jealousy cause the freedom-loving poet's death? Why not? In this case, Nikolai Martynov could carry out an order for a political assassination. In this case, it is easy to explain why all the participants in the duel received a rather symbolic punishment.
Government conspiracy?
In general, Martynov was a bad shooter, and he himself repeatedly spoke about this. However, with the very first shot, he was able to mortally wound the enemy. And perhaps it was not him who shot, but someone else from a secret shelter? A theory arose that the poet was the victim of a government conspiracy orchestrated and disguised as an assassination duel. A lurking Cossack hired killer shot at the poet from a gun. Why from a gun? Because the wound was very terrible. The wound was not like those usually received during fights.
The fate of Martynov
The killer of the poet tried to write his memoirs about Lermontov (after all, he knew him for many years) and, probably, wanted to justify himself to some extent before his contemporaries and descendants. He started his notes twice and gave up both times after writing several pages; he did not go further than memories of studying at the cadet school.
Martynov lived to be 60 years old and died 34 years after the duel. He wanted to be buried in the village that belonged to his father near Moscow, in a remotely standing grave, without any inscriptions, so that no one could understand that this was the grave of the murderer Lermontov, and the memory of him would disappear forever. However, they didn't. family vault, last resort was until the children from the children's colony found out who was buried there. The crypt was broken and, according to various sources, the remains of Martynov were either scattered around the estate, or thrown into a pond.
On July 15, 1841, at the beginning of the seventh evening, a shot rang out at the foot of Mount Mashuk near Pyatigorsk. A bullet fired by the hand of Nikolai Martynov hit Mikhail Lermontov. The shot was fatal. The poet was killed in a duel, just like the one he idolized - Alexander Pushkin. Immediately after the duel, dark clouds covered the sky and a terrible thunderstorm broke out. For several hours Lermontov's body lay in the pouring rain. Nature itself mourned and mourned the outstanding man who died so absurdly.
The death of Lermontov, who was called the successor and follower of Alexander Sergeevich, stunned his contemporaries, as a result, rumors and speculation about what had happened multiplied. And after a century and a half, disputes about the causes of that ill-fated duel do not subside.
Causes of the conflict between Lermontov and Martynov
Mikhail Lermontov and Nikolai Martynov were familiar with young years. The estate of the poet's uncle, where Mikhail liked to come to rest, was located a few kilometers from the estate of Martynov. Family visits to each other were frequent. The young people were not friends - they were friends, as befits representatives of the same circle. But life has pushed them together more than once, as if “rehearsing” the last meeting that ended in tragedy.
One of the meetings happened at the cadet school, when the young men, in the fashion of that time, were already trying their hand at versification. But if Mikhail's unique gift was obvious, then Nikolai's abilities were limited to imitating someone else's successful opuses. According to contemporaries, Martynov did not shine with an outstanding mind, but he was extremely ambitious. Perhaps it was then, due to character traits, that Martynov developed a persistent rejection of the more gifted. And it was pure hatred for a bright, non-standard personality and black envy for his unique talent.
On the eve of the duel
In May 1841, on his way to his place of service in the Tengin Infantry Regiment, Lermontov made a stop in Pyatigorsk to rest and improve his health. And at the same time visit an old friend Martynov. Young people spend time at the resort in simple provincial entertainment, visiting the hospitable house of the Cossack general Verzilin, where social events are regularly held.
On the evening of July 13, the youth, as usual, entertained themselves with conversations, music and dancing. In a few seconds of silence - the loud music suddenly stopped - the words of Lermontov, insulting Martynov, were clearly heard. And it was all about the ridiculous attire of the Russian cavalry guard - a Circassian dress and a large dagger on the belt. At the end of the party, the enraged Martynov demanded satisfaction from the poet.
oddities
It was forbidden to speak and write about the duel for 30 years. After the “quarantine” expired, Martynov presented his “Confession” to the court of the inhabitants, in which he tried to justify and whitewash himself. In his presentation, Lermontov looked absurd and sarcastic, not missing an opportunity so as not to ridicule those around him. And he literally had no choice but to duel the headstrong poet. And at the same time, contemporaries unanimously declared that Mikhail Yuryevich was a kind and bright person, and all his bravado was only protection from an unjust and sometimes very cruel world.
In this duel, a lot of strange and mysterious intertwined. Why were merciless, almost deadly conditions chosen, leaving no chance for the participants to survive - to shoot from ten steps, even in three attempts? And this is because of a petty verbal quarrel.
Why later did the seconds go for an outright lie, assuring that the distance between the duelists was at least 15 steps? And why did they hide the fact that before the fight Lermontov announced his refusal to shoot at the opponent. What, in fact, he did - the first shot into the air. There were also discrepancies with the number of seconds - immediately after the duel it was about two, and only much later it turned out that there were four of them.
Why, according to eyewitnesses, was Lermontov completely calm and even cheerful before the duel? Hoped for the prudence of the opponent? Didn't believe that the irreparable would happen? And how did it happen that Martynov pulled the trigger after the count of "three", when, according to dueling laws, the duel is formally considered over? It is no longer possible to obtain unambiguous answers to these questions after centuries.
But in fact, it is not so important what the reasons for the duel were, and who was vitally interested in just such a final duel. Much more important are the consequences, terrible, tragic - an irreparable loss for Russian culture brilliant poet, who could create more than one worthy work.
