Dmitriy Andreyevich Furmanov (russian: Дми́трий Андре́евич Фу́рманов; 7 November 1891,
Sereda – 15 March 1926,
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...
) was a
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
writer, revolutionary and military officer.
Biography
He was born to a peasant family. For three years, he attended the
Realschule
''Realschule'' () is a type of secondary school in Germany, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It has also existed in Croatia (''realna gimnazija''), the Austrian Empire, the German Empire, Denmark and Norway (''realskole''), Sweden (''realskola''), ...
in
Kineshma. It was there that he developed an interest in literature. He pursued his interests at the
Imperial Moscow University
Imperial Moscow University was one of the oldest universities of the Russian Empire, established in 1755. It was the first of the twelve imperial universities of the Russian Empire.
History of the University
Ivan Shuvalov and Mikhail Lomonoso ...
but, after graduating in 1915, failed the state examinations.
During
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, he served with the
Red Cross
The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for all human beings, and ...
. It was there he met and married . In 1917, he joined the
Union of Socialists-Revolutionaries Maximalists
Union of Socialists-Revolutionaries Maximalists () was a political party in the Russian Empire, a radical wing expelled from the Socialist-Revolutionary Party in 1906.
The Union united agrarian terrorists, the 'Moscow Opposition' and other radica ...
, then became an
Anarchist. He fled Moscow following the
Kornilov affair and settled in
Ivanovo, where he provided support to the
October Revolution
The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key mome ...
. In 1918, he joined the
Russian Communist Party (b) and managed propaganda for the . The following year, he went to the
Eastern Front to serve as a political worker. While there, his wife had an affair with Commander
Vasily Chapayev
Vasily Ivanovich Chapayev or Chapaev (russian: link=no, Василий Иванович Чапаев; 5 September 1919) was a Russian soldier and Red Army commander during the Russian Civil War.
Biography
Chapayev was born into a poor peasan ...
, which resulted in him being transferred to the . There, he was instrumental in helping to quash a rebellion. After that he went to
Kuban, where he was seriously injured.
After his recovery, in 1921, he returned to Moscow, where he was employed by several organizations dealing with military publications and he completed his education at
Moscow University. After 1923, he worked for "
Gosizdat", a publisher of propaganda. He also worked for the (МАПП).
He died of
meningitis and is buried in
Novodevichy Cemetery. In 1941, the town of Sereda, where he was born, was renamed
Furmanov after him.
Despite the affair with his wife, he is best known for his novel about Chapayev. It was translated into English by George and Jeanette Kittell and issued by
Foreign Languages Publishing House in 1940.
Awards
Order of the Red Banner
The Order of the Red Banner (russian: Орден Красного Знамени, Orden Krasnogo Znameni) was the first Soviet military decoration. The Order was established on 16 September 1918, during the Russian Civil War by decree of t ...
. (1922)
See also
*''
Chapayev and Void
''Chapayev and Pustota'' (russian: links=no, italics=yes, Чапаев и Пустота), known in the US as ''Buddha's Little Finger'' and in the UK as ''Clay Machine Gun'', is a novel by Victor Pelevin first published in 1996. It follows the dr ...
'' (novel)
External links
The ''Chapayev'' book*
1891 births
1926 deaths
People from Furmanov
People from Nerekhtsky Uyezd
Bolsheviks
Soviet novelists
Soviet male writers
20th-century male writers
Soviet military personnel of the Russian Civil War
Neurological disease deaths in the Soviet Union
Infectious disease deaths in the Soviet Union
Deaths from meningitis
Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery
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