Ivan Mazepa
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Ivan Mazepa, historically spelled as Mazeppa; circa 1640—August 28, 1709) was a Cossack leader in Ukraine, one of the first Ukrainian leaders to take a stand against the Russian Tsar. The historical events of Mazepa's life have inspired Mazeppa by Lord Byron, made famous by Adah Isaacs Menken. The events were also beautifully rendered in a c.1820 painting by Géricault.
Historical legacy
Mazepa's decision to abandon his allegiance to the Russian Empire was considered treason by the Russian tsar. A positive view of Mazepa was taboo in the Soviet Union and considered as a sign of "Ukrainian bourgeois nationalism". During the years of Perestroika, however, many historical works saw light which viewed Mazepa differently. After Ukraine's independence in 1991, Mazepa became somewhat of a national hero in Ukraine's history books and mainstream media. This is because he was one of the first post-treaty hetmans to take a stand against the Russian Tsar.
Cultural legacy
The historical events of Mazepa's life have inspired many literary and musical works:
- Lord Byron - Mazeppa, poem (1819)
- Alexander Pushkin - Poltava, poem (1828–1829)
- Victor Hugo - Mazeppa, poem (1829)
- Juliusz Słowacki - Mazeppa, poem (1840)
- Ferenc Liszt - Mazepa, symphonic poem (1851); Transcendental etude #4.
- Pyotr Tchaikovsky - Mazepa, opera (1881–1883)
- Michael Balfe. "The Page" Cantata. (1861). Performed at the University of Manitoba, March 2006.
- Taras Shevchenko
- Kondraty Ryleyev
Recently, a Ukrainian-language film loosely based on historical facts, called "A Prayer for Mazepa" was released [1].
