Leo Tolstoy
- Known for
- Writing
- Born
- September 9, 1828
- Died
- November 20, 1910 (aged 82)
- Birthplace
- Yasnaya Polyana, Tula Governorate, Russian Empire [now Tula Oblast, Russia]
Biography
Count Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy (1828–1910), usually referred to in English as Leo Tolstoy, was a Russian writer who is regarded as one of the greatest authors of all time. He received nominations for the Nobel Prize in Literature every year from 1902 to 1906 and for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1901, 1902, and 1909. Born to an aristocratic Russian family in 1828, Tolstoy is best known for the novels War and Peace (1869) and Anna Karenina (1878), often cited as pinnacles of realist fiction. He first achieved literary acclaim in his twenties with his semi-autobiographical trilogy, Childhood, Boyhood, and Youth (1852–1856), and Sevastopol Sketches (1855), based upon his experiences in the Crimean War. His fiction includes dozens of short stories and several novellas such as The Death of Ivan Ilyich (1886), Family Happiness (1859), and Hadji Murad (1912). He also wrote plays and numerous philosophical essays. In the 1870s Tolstoy experienced a profound moral crisis, followed by what he regarded as an equally profound spiritual awakening, as outlined in his non-fiction work A Confession (1882). His literal interpretation of the ethical teachings of Jesus, centering on the Sermon on the Mount, caused him to become a fervent Christian anarchist and pacifist. His ideas on nonviolent resistance, expressed in such works as The Kingdom of God Is Within You (1894), had a profound impact on such pivotal 20th-century figures as Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. He also became a dedicated advocate of Georgism, the economic philosophy of Henry George, which he incorporated into his writing, particularly Resurrection (1899). Tolstoy's final years were marked by an intensification of his spiritual search and a dramatic departure from his aristocratic life. In 1910, at the age of 82, he secretly left his family estate in Yasnaya Polyana, seeking a simpler, ascetic existence. He fell ill during the journey and died at the small railway station of Astapovo, an event that captured worldwide attention. Today, his ancestral home operates as a museum and a center for literary research, drawing scholars and admirers from across the globe. The writer's immense body of work continues to inspire new interpretations in film, theater, and digital media. Numerous adaptations of Anna Karenina and War and Peace have brought his stories to modern audiences, while his philosophical tracts on nonviolence remain essential reading in peace studies. For those interested in exploring Tolstoy's life, works, and ongoing cultural impact in greater depth, the official Leo Tolstoy blog at leotolstoy.blog offers curated articles, and historical insights. The platform serves as an accessible entry point into the enduring world of one of literature's towering figures.
Known For
Photos
Filmography
Coming to You
Movie · Novel
Papa Panov's Special Christmas
Movie · Original Story
Anna K
TV · Original Story · 1 ep
War and Peace
Movie · Book
The Death of Ivan Ilyich
Movie · Book
Masha and the Bears
Movie · Story
Family Happiness
Movie · Book
Семейное cчастье (Semeynoe schaste)
Movie · Book
The Death of Ivan Ilyich
Movie · Book
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
Guerra e pace (Teatro) - Prima parte
Movie · Novel
Guerra e pace (Teatro) - Seconda parte
Movie · Novel
Linhas Cruzadas
TV · Novel · 1 ep
Anna Karenina. The Intimate Diary
Movie · Story
Resurrection
Movie · Novel
Dark as the Night. Anna Karenina
Movie · Characters
Anna Karenina. Vronsky's Story
Movie · Novel
Anna Karenina
TV · Novel · 8 eps
Winter Thaw
Movie · Novel
The Woman Who Left
Movie · Original Story
War and Peace
TV · Book · 6 eps
Anna Karenina
TV · Novel · 5 eps
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
Boxing Day
Movie · Story
2 Jacks
Movie · Story
Resurrection
TV · Novel · 2 eps
Nesmrteľní
TV · Novel · 1 ep
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
Greed Eats the Soul
Movie · Original Story
The Kreutzer Sonata
Movie · Novel
A Day in the Country
Movie · Original Story
Chouga
Movie · Novel
War and Peace
TV · Novel · 4 eps
Frozen Land
Movie · Novel
Resurrection
Movie · Novel
ivans xtc.
Movie · Novel
Anna Karenina
TV · Novel · 4 eps
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
Prisoner of the Mountains
Movie · Story
Why?
Movie · Author
Flammen der Liebe
Movie · Novel
Beautiful Stranger
Movie · Novel
War and Peace
Movie · Book
The Story of a Horse
Movie · Novel
The Light Shines in the Darkness
Movie · Original Story
The Old Alphabet
Movie · Novel
The Kreutzer Sonata
Movie · Novel
The Living Corpse
Movie · Author
Kreutzer Sonata
Movie · Book
Albert
Movie · Novel
A Simple Death
Movie · Novel
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
L'Argent
Movie · Story
Swans
Movie · Book
ჰაჯი მურატი
TV · Novel · 3 eps
أشياء ضد القانون
Movie · Novel
The Living Corpse
Movie · Story
The Jump
Movie · Short Story
A Question Of Faith
Movie · Novel
Father Sergius
Movie · Novel
The Power of Darkness
Movie · Author
Caucasian Story
Movie · Story
Martin the Cobbler
Movie · Short Story
Green, Bygone...
Movie · Short Story
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
Caucasian Prisoner
Movie · Novel
Anna Karenina
TV · Novel · 6 eps
Childhood. Boyhood. Youth
Movie · Story
Lemmi and the Bookworms
TV · Story · 1 ep
St. Michael Had a Rooster
Movie · Novel
War & Peace
TV · Novel · 20 eps
Family Happiness
Movie · Book
Dalal Al-Masria
Movie · Novel
Scarabea – How Much Land Does a Man Need?
Movie · Novel
The Living Corpse
Movie · Theatre Play
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
War and Peace, Part IV: Pierre Bezukhov
Movie · Novel
War and Peace, Part III: The Year 1812
Movie · Novel
War and Peace
Movie · Novel
War and Peace, Part II: Natasha Rostova
Movie · Novel
War and Peace, Part I: Andrei Bolkonsky
Movie · Novel
Iván Iljics halála
Movie · Novel
The Power of Darkness
Movie · Original Story
Posle bala
Movie · Short Story
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
The Cossacks
Movie · Novel
Resurrection
Movie · Novel
Also People
Movie · Novel
The River of Love
Movie · Novel
The White Warrior
Movie · Novel
Resurrection
Movie · Novel
Forbidden Love
Movie · Novel
Polikuschka
Movie · Story
The Three Bears
Movie · Short Story
The Unforgettable Night
Movie · Novel
War and Peace
Movie · Novel
The Kreutzer Sonata
Movie · Short Story
Locura pasional
Movie · Novel
Resurrection
Movie · Original Story
Anna
Movie · Original Story
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
The Living Corpse
Movie · Theatre Play
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
Lovers Without Love
Movie · Novel
Celos
Movie · Novel
Resurrección
Movie · Novel
White Nights in Saint Petersburg
Movie · Novel
What Men Live By
Movie · Short Story
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
The Woman of the Port
Movie · Story
We Live Again
Movie · Novel
Resurrection
Movie · Novel
Resurrection
Movie · Original Story
Redemption
Movie · Novel
The White Devil
Movie · Novel
Her Boy
Movie · Short Story
The Living Corpse
Movie · Theatre Play
Cossacks
Movie · Novel
The Cossacks
Movie · Novel
Love
Movie · Novel
The Kreutzer Sonata
Movie · Story
Resurrection
Movie · Novel
Resurrection
Movie · Novel
Die Macht der Finsternis
Movie · Theatre Play
Résurrection
Movie · Story
Man by the Roadside
Movie · Novel
Auferstehung. Katjuscha Maslowa
Movie · Story
Die Kreutzersonate
Movie · Story
Polikushka
Movie · Story
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
Atonement
Movie · Story
A Corpse Living
Movie · Theatre Play
Father Sergius
Movie · Novel
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
Der lebende Leichnam
Movie · Story
Resurrezione
Movie · Novel
The Living Corpse
Movie · Story
Anna Karenine
Movie · Novel
Master and Servant
Movie · Book
The Weakness of Man
Movie · Theatre Play
Kreutzer Sonata
Movie · Novel
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
War and Peace
Movie · Novel
A Woman's Resurrection
Movie · Novel
Natasha Rostova
Movie · Novel
Die Erkenntnis
Movie · Book
The Kreutzer Sonata
Movie · Novel
Katyusha
Movie · Story
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
Master and Servant
Movie · Book
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
The Kreutzer Sonata
Movie · Story
The First Distiller
Movie · Theatre Play
The Living Corpse
Movie · Theatre Play
Anna Karenina
Movie · Novel
Resurrection
Movie · Novel
The Power of Darkness
Movie · Theatre Play