Sergey Vasilyevich Vikulov (russian: Серге́й Васи́льевич Ви́кулов; September 13, 1922 — July 1, 2006) was a Soviet and Russian poet, editor, and the

Union of Soviet Writers The Union of Soviet Writers, USSR Union of Writers, or Soviet Union of Writers (russian: Союз писателей СССР, translit=Soyuz Sovetstikh Pisatelei) was a creative union of professional writers in the Soviet Union. It was founded ...

' official.

Biography

Sergey Vikulov was born in the village of Yemelyanovskaya in

Cherepovets Governorate Cherepovets Governorate (russian: Череповецкая губерния, ''Cherepovetskaya guberniya'') was a governorate ('' guberniya'') of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic from 1918 to 1927. Its seat was in the city of Cher ...

into a poor peasant family. In October 1942, he volunteered for the

Soviet Army uk, Радянська армія , image = File:Communist star with golden border and red rims.svg , alt = , caption = Emblem of the Soviet Army , start_date ...

and as a flak and artillery battery commander fought at the Kalinin, then Stalingrad Fronts. Later he became the 247th Zenith and Artillery regiment's Chief of Stuff's deputy and demobilized in the rank of a Guard captain, a chevalier of several high-profile military awards, including two

Orders of the Red Star The Order of the Red Star (russian: Орден Красной Звезды, Orden Krasnoy Zvezdy) was a military decoration of the Soviet Union. It was established by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 6 April 1 ...

. In the late 1940s Sergey Vikulov started to write poetry. In 1951 he graduated the Vologda State pedagogical institute's literary faculty and became the member of the Union of Writers of the USSR. In 1972, for his poem ''Alone Forever'' (1970) as well as ''The Plough and the Furrow'' (1972) collection he was awarded the RSFSR Maxim Gorky State Prize. In 1959-1989 Vikulov edited , an influential conservative ( neo-Slavophiliac) magazine set to propagate the traditional Russian values, as opposed to the Western-style liberal ideas. Among his best friends and allies were the authors who contributed to the magazine regularly:

Viktor Astafyev Viktor Petrovich Astafyev also spelled Astafiev or Astaf'ev (russian: Ви́ктор Петро́вич Аста́фьев; 1 May 1924 – 29 November 2001), was a Soviet and Russian writer, playwright and screenwriter. He was recognized with th ...

Valentin Rasputin Valentin Grigoriyevich Rasputin (; russian: Валентин Григорьевич Распутин; 15 March 193714 March 2015) was a Russian writer. He was born and lived much of his life in the Irkutsk Oblast in Eastern Siberia. Rasputin's w ...

Fyodor Abramov Fyodor Aleksandrovich Abramov (russian: Фёдор Алекса́ндрович Абра́мов) (29 February 192014 May 1983) was a Russian novelist and literary critic. His work focused on the difficult lives of the Russian peasant class. H ...

Vasily Belov Vasily Ivanovich Belov (russian: link=no, Васи́лий Ива́нович Бело́в; 23 October 1932 – 4 December 2012) was a Soviet and Russian writer, poet and dramatist, who published more than sixty books which sold (as of 1998) seven ...

Yuri Bondarev Yuri Vasilyevich Bondarev (russian: link=no, Юрий Васильевич Бондарев, 15 March 1924 — 29 March 2020) was a Soviet and Russian writer and screenwriter. He was best known for co-authoring the script for the serial film fran ...

Vladimir Soloukhin Vladimir Alexeyevich Soloukhin (russian: Влади́мир Алексе́евич Солоу́хин) (June 14, 1924 – April 4, 1997) was a Russian poet and writer. Biography Born in Alepino, a village in what is now in Sobinsky Dis ...

. Several major

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn Aleksandr Isayevich Solzhenitsyn. (11 December 1918 – 3 August 2008) was a Russian novelist. One of the most famous Soviet dissidents, Solzhenitsyn was an outspoken critic of communism and helped to raise global awareness of political repress ...

's works were published by with Vikulov at the helm. In 1990 he joined the group of authors who signed the anti-reformist "" which led to the break up of the

and the formation of the 'patriotic'

Union of Writers of Russia The Union of Writers of Russia (russian: Союз писателей России, translit=Soyuz pisatelei Rossii) is a creative union of professional writers in Russia. It is the successor of the Union of RSFSR Writers, which was founded in 1958. ...

and the 'democratic'

Union of Russian Writers The Union of Russian Writers (russian: Союз российских писателей, translit=Soyuz rossiyskikh pisateley) is a non-governmental organization uniting Russian and writers (novelists, poets, essayists, etc.). It was established i ...

. Sergey Vikulov died on July 1, 2006, in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

. He was buried at the

Troyekurovskoye Cemetery The Troyekurovo Cemetery (russian: Троекуровское кладбище, Troyekurovskoye kladbishche), alternatively known as ''Novo-Kuntsevo Cemetery'' (russian: Ново-Кунцевское кладбище, Novo-Kuntsevskoye kladbishch ...

Select bibliography

Books of poetry

*''Beyond the Lake'' (, , 1956) *''There Will Be Good Weather'' (, , 1961) *''Bread and Salt'' (, , 1965) *''Bird-cherry Tree By the Window'' (, , 1966) *''Plough and Furrow'' (, , 1972) *''The Family Tree'' (, , 1975) *''Trace Left in the Field'' (, , 1979) *''Green Shoots'' (, , 1982)

Major poems

*''In Blizzard'' (, , 1955) *''Galinka's Summer'' (, , 1957) *''Hard-earned Happiness'' (, , 1958) *''By Rights of a Fellow Countryman'' (, , 1961) *''The Overcoming'' (, , 1962) *''Windows Facing the Dawn'' (, , 1964) *''Against the Skies, On Earth'' (, , 1967) *''The Iv-Mountain'' (, , 1969) *''Forever Alone'' (, , 1970) *''The Thought of Motherland'' (, , 1977)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vikulov, Sergey Vasilyevich 1922 births 2006 deaths 20th-century Russian male writers People from Belozersky District, Vologda Oblast Communist Party of the Soviet Union members Recipients of the Order of Friendship of Peoples Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour Recipients of the Order of the Red Star Socialist realism writers Russian magazine editors Russian male poets Russian male writers Soviet editors Soviet male poets Soviet military personnel of World War II Burials in Troyekurovskoye Cemetery