NIKOLAI GUMILYOV (1886-1921) - 1886–1921,
an influential Russian poet. With his wife, the poet Anna Akhmatova,
and Gorodetsky Gumilev founded the Acmeist school of poetry in
1912. He traveled widely in Europe and, especially, in Africa,
and his poetic imagery is enhanced by the frequent use of foreign
and exotic elements. The Pillar of Fire (1921) contains much of
his best work. Gumilev was executed by the Bolsheviks for alleged
conspiratorial activities.
Among the English-language poets, he should be best compared with
Rupert Brooke.