Russian poet, soldier, and statesman Gavriil Derzhavin (1743-1816) lived during an epoch of momentous change in Russia--imperial expansion, peasant revolts, war with Turkey, and struggle with Napoleon--and he served three tsars, including Catherine the Great. Here in its first English translation is the masterful biography of Derzhavin by another acclaimed Russian man of letters, Vladislav Khodasevich. Derzhavin occupied a position at the center of Russian life, uniting civic service with poetic inspiration and creating an oeuvre that at its essence celebrated the triumphs of Russia and its...