Mikhail Y. Lermontov (Moscow, 1814-Piatigorsk 1841). Poet and romantic novelist, considered as the Russian Byron. After studying university, he entered the military school of St. Petersburg. Influenced initially by Pushkin, in 1837 he dedicated the elegy The Death of the Poet, in which he blamed the nobility of mourning in which he met his death, for which reason Lérmontov had to go into exile in the Caucasus. His works were severely censored for his passionate defense of freedom and for his anti-religious opinions, but they also contributed to arousing interest in the folklore of the Russian people. He died in 1841 in the Caucasus, as a result of a duel that confronted his companion, also an officer. Although he was only 26 years old at the time of his death, Lermontov had proved to be a brilliant writer endowed with enormous talent, to the point that he was hailed as Pushkin's successor and repository of the best tradition of Russian literature.