Poltava (poem)

Poltava (poem)

Poltava (Полтава) is a narrative poem written by Aleksandr Pushkin in 1828-9 about the involvement of the Ukrainian Cossack hetman Ivan Mazepa in the Battle of Poltava between Sweden and Russia. The poem intertwines a love plot between Mazepa and Maria with an account of Mazepa's betrayal of Tsar Peter I and Peter's victory in battle. Although often considered one of Pushkin's lesser works and critiqued as unabashedly imperialistic, a number of critics have praised the poem for its depth of characterization and its ability to synthesize disparate genres. The poem inspired Tchaikovsky's 1884 opera Mazeppa.

Read more about Poltava (poem):  Outline of The Poem, Historical Sources and Inspiration, Analysis, Composition and Publication, Influence