Anna Andreyevna Akhmatova (1889, 1966), a renowned Russian poetess of the 20th century, as well as a writer, translator, critic, and literary scholar. She created the famous poem "Requiem," dedicated to the repressions of the 1930s. Before the arrival of Soviet power, her work enjoyed wide popularity, but from the mid-1920s, her poems ceased to be published due to their inconsistency with the ideology of the time.

Anna Akhmatova was born on June 11 (June 23) 1889 in Odessa. She received her initial education at the Mariinsky Gymnasium in Tsarskoye Selo, then studied at the Fundukleyev Gymnasium in Kyiv and attended historical and literary women's courses.

Akhmatova's first poem was published in 1911, and in 1912 her first book of poems "Evening" was released. In 1914, her second collection "Rosary" was published with a print run of 1,000 copies, which brought her real fame. Three years later, her third book "The White Flock" was released with a print run twice as large.

In 1910, Anna married Nikolai Gumilev, and in 1912 they had a son, Lev. In 1918, she divorced Gumilev and soon married poet and scholar V. Shileiko. In 1921, Gumilev was executed. She separated from her second husband, and in 1922 began a relationship with art historian N. Punin.

Many of Akhmatova's close ones experienced tragic events. Nikolai Punin was arrested three times, and her son Lev spent more than 10 years in prison. Akhmatova's work often touched on tragic themes. The poem "Requiem" (1935, 1940) reflects the heavy fate of a woman whose loved ones suffered from repression.

In June 1941, Anna Akhmatova met Marina Tsvetaeva in Moscow; this was their only meeting. For Akhmatova, poetry was a way to convey the truth to people. She proved to be a subtle psychologist and a connoisseur of the human soul.

Akhmatova's poems about love demonstrate her deep understanding of human nature. Her works exhibit high morality, as well as reflections on the tragedies of the people, not just personal experiences.

Anna Akhmatova passed away on March 5, 1966, in a sanatorium in the Moscow region and was buried at Komarovo Cemetery near Leningrad. Streets in various cities of the former USSR are named in her honor. The Anna Akhmatova Literary and Memorial Museum is located in the Fountain House in St. Petersburg, where several monuments to her are also installed. Memorial plaques in her honor have been erected in Moscow and Kolomna.