Biography.guide
Home › People › Poet › Lev Mei
Portrait of Lev Mei

Lev Mei

1822 – 1862

Russian writer

Don't just read it — keep itBiographies to ownE-book · Audio · Video From $7 →

About Lev Mei

Lived 1822 – 1862 (aged 40). Lev Mei was a Russian poet, translator, writer and dramatist.

Lev Aleksandrovich Mei or Mey (; ) was a Russian dramatist and poet.

Biography Mei was born on , in Moscow. His father was a German officer who was wounded in the Battle of Borodino and died young. His mother was Russian. Mei completed his studies in Moscow in 1841 and served in the office of the Governor for 10 years. He became part of the "young editorial staff" of Mikhail Pogodin's Moskvityanin. For a time, he taught secondary school, but was forced to retire because of conflicts with his colleagues. He moved to Saint Petersburg, where he was active in literary endeavors. It was during this period that he contributed to the leading Russian magazines, including Biblioteka Dlya Chteniya, Otechestvennye Zapiski, Syn Otechestva, Russkoye Slovo, Russkiy Mir, and Svetoch.

Mei wrote the historical dramas, The Tsar's Bride (1849), Servilia (1854) and The Maid of Pskov (1859), all three of which the composer Rimsky-Korsakov later used as the basis for operas.

Mei lived a dissipated and bohemian life, with a great fondness for drink, which led to his untimely death on 16/28 May 1862.

Biography shop

Don’t just read it —
keep it.

Full-length biographies made to live with: read them, listen on the way to work, watch them tonight.

  • E-book
  • Audio
  • Video
Browse the shop — from $7

Instant download · yours to keep · every purchase keeps this site free

Important facts

Birth century
Education
Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum, Moscow Institute of nobility
Also known as
Lev Meï, Lev Aleksandrovich Mei

People in Lev Mei's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Lev Mei's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Lev Mei?

Russian writer (1822-1862)

When was Lev Mei born?

Lev Mei was born on 13 February 1822 in Moscow.

When did Lev Mei die?

Lev Mei died on 16 May 1862 in Saint Petersburg.

What was Lev Mei's occupation?

Lev Mei was a poet, translator, writer and dramatist.

What nationality was Lev Mei?

Lev Mei was Russian.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Lev Mei

· Wikidata: Q2717801

· DBpedia: Lev Mei

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Lev Mei. https://biography.guide/lev-mei/

MLA: "Lev Mei." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/lev-mei/.

Chicago: "Lev Mei." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/lev-mei/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

Page generated 2026-09-27 05:25 UTC