Tyutchev, Fedor Ivanovich (1803–1873)

Russian lyric poet. He is regarded as Russia's greatest nature poet, and his poems include ‘Silentium’ 1833 and ‘Son na more/A Dream at Sea’ 1836. They use unconventional imagery in describing stock scenes such as sunsets and thunderstorms. His love poems focus on the sufferings lovers inflict on one another.

Tyutchev served in the Russian diplomatic service for 22 years in Germany, where he absorbed the ideas of Romanticism and the idealistic philosophy of his friend Friedrich Schelling. On returning to St Petersburg in 1844, Tyutchev became a prominent figure in society thanks to his wit and conversation. Politically he was a conservative and a supporter of pan-Slavism.