Sergey Vladimirovich Mikhalkov[a] (Russian:Сергей Владимирович Михалков; 13 March [O.S. 28 February] 1913 – 27 August 2009 (96 years)) was a Soviet and Russian author of children's books and satiricalfables. He wrote the lyrics for theSoviet andRussian national anthems.
Born in Moscow, into the nobleMikhalkov family, as the son of Vladimir Aleksandrovich Mikhalkov and Olga Mikhailovna (née Glebova).[1] Since the 1930s, he has rivaledKorney Chukovsky,Samuil Marshak andAgniya Barto as the most popular poet writing forRussophone children.[2] His poems about enormously tall "Uncle Styopa" ("Дядя Стёпа") enjoyed particular popularity.[3] Uncle Styopa is a friendly policeman always ready to rescue cats stuck up trees, and to perform other helpful deeds. In English, his name translates as Uncle Steeple.[4]
Mikhalkov in 1944
As a 29-year-old in 1942, Mikhalkov's work drew the attention of theSoviet Union's leaderJoseph Stalin, who commissioned him to write lyrics for a newnational anthem. At the time, the country was deeply embroiled inWorld War II and Stalin wanted a more patriotic theme for the national anthem, to replaceThe Internationale.
Mikhalkov penned words with writerEl-Registan (1899–1945) to accompany a musical score by the composerAlexander Alexandrov (1883–1946) that became known asState Anthem of the Soviet Union. The new anthem was presented to Stalin in the summer of 1943 and was introduced as the country's new anthem on 1 January 1944.
Upon thedeath of Stalin in 1953, the lyrics, which mentioned him by name, were discarded during the process ofde-Stalinization and the anthem continued to be used without words. Mikhalkov wrote new lyrics in 1970, but they were not submitted to thePresidium of the Supreme Soviet until 27 May 1977. The new lyrics, which removed any reference to Stalin, were approved on 1 September and were made official with the printing of the newSoviet Constitution in October 1977.[5]
During the Soviet era, Mikhalkov and his wife, Natalia Konchalovskaya, sometimes worked for theKGB, for example by presenting undercover KGB staff officers to foreign diplomats, as in the case of French ambassador Maurice Dejean, who wascompromised by the KGB in the 1950s.[6] His younger brotherMikhail Mikhalkov was also a notable writer as well as a KGB agent.
Use of the Soviet anthem, with Mikhalkov's lyrics, continued until 1991, when it was retired by PresidentBoris Yeltsin after theUSSR dissolved. However, whenVladimir Putin took over from Yeltsin in 2000, he began to clamor for a restoration of Alexandrov's music in place of Yeltsin's choice.[7]
Mikhalkov was 87 years old by this time and long since retired; in fact, younger Russian generations likely knew him better as the father of popular filmmakersNikita Mikhalkov andAndrei Konchalovsky, the latter of which had dropped part of his name "Mikhalkov-Konchalovsky" when he left Russia.[8] But when Putin's push to restore the old anthem began to pick up momentum, Mikhalkov decided to write new lyrics to go with Alexandrov's score. The result was theNational Anthem of Russia, which was officially adopted on 30 December 2000.
Apart from the national anthem, Mikhalkov produced a great number of satirical plays and provided scripts for several Soviet comedies. He also successfully revived a long derelict genre of satiricalfable. He was awarded threeStalin Prizes (1941, 1942, 1950) and numerous other awards.
In 1936, Mikhalkov married Natalia Petrovna Konchalovskaya (1903–1988), granddaughter ofVasily Surikov. They remained married for 53 years until her death. In 1997, Mikhalkov married physics professor Yulia Valeryevna Subbotina.[9]
Order of St. Andrew (13 March 2008) – the highest Russian honour; for outstanding contributions to the development of national literature and for many years of creativity and social activities.
Order of Honour (13 March 1998) – for great personal contributions to the development of domestic multi-national culture.
Order of Friendship (20 February 1993) – for great personal contributions to the development of arts and literature, and the strengthening of inter-ethnic cultural relations and productive social activities.
Order of the Red Banner (28 February 1945) – for exemplary performance in command assignments at the front in the struggle against the Nazi invaders, and for displaying courage and heroism.
Order of the Red Star (7 March 1943) – for exemplary performance in command assignments at the front in the struggle against the Nazi invaders, and for displaying courage and heroism.
^Голованова, М. П.; В. С. Шергин (2003).Государственные символы России. Москва: Росмэн-Пресс. p. 150.ISBN5-353-01286-0.
^John Barron,KGB: The Secret Work of Soviet Secret Agents. New York: Reader's Digest Press, 1974. London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1974. New York: Bantam Books, 1974.
