Dmitry Sergeyevich Merezhkovsky (; – December 9, 1941) was a
Russian novelist, poet, religious thinker, and literary critic. A seminal figure of the
Silver Age of Russian Poetry, regarded as a co-founder of the
Symbolist movement, Merezhkovsky – with his poet wife
Zinaida Gippius – was twice forced into political exile. During his second exile (1918–1941) he continued publishing successful novels and gained recognition as a critic of
Soviet Union. Known both as a self-styled religious prophet with his own slant on apocalyptic Christianity, and as the author of philosophical historical novels which combined fervent idealism with literary innovation, Merezhkovsky was a nine times nominee for the
Nobel Prize in literature, which he came closest to winning in 1933.