Stenka Razin, Russian Rebel

Though not a poor peasant himself, Stenka Razin has become immortalized as the leader of the most famous peasant revolt in Russian history. A Cossack from the Don River area in southern Russia, Razin was a trained fighter whose ability, charisma and message of social equality aimed against the Russian nobility enabled him to assemble an army of rebels. Finally, in 1670, the Russian cavalry defeated his ill-equipped troops. Razin was seized, brutally tortured and executed; his sympathizers were also hunted down and destroyed. However, Razin became a folk hero whose exploits have been celebrated by poets, composers, and musicians, and folksongs and operatic and symphonic works about him are still performed today.

1. Stenka Razin remains a Russian folk hero. Read an English translation of a popular Russian song about him, and, by clicking on "Melody," hear the music, at
   http://ingeb.org/songs/stenkara.html#deutsch
   or, for another example, visit
   http://www.civilization.ca/cultur/doukhobors/dou07eng.html
2. Read short articles about the Cossacks, with references to Stenka Razin, at
   http://www.bartleby.com/65/do/DonCossa.html and
   http://www.ifccsa.org/cossack.html
3. A contemporary engraving of Razin and his brother on the way to execution is available at
   http://www.history.uiuc.edu/steinb/219images/razin.jpg