The Resume

(February 9, 1887-September 5, 1919)
Born in Budayka (now part of Cheboksary), Russian Federation
Red Army commander during the Russian Civil War
Joined the Bolsheviks (September 1917)
Commanded the 138 Infantry Regiment, 2nd Nikolaev Division, and 25th Rifle Division
Shot and drowned in the Ural river while escaping from White Army forces attacking his division near Lbishchensk
Immortalized by Soviet propaganda in the form of Dmitri Furmanov's book 'Chapaev' and a movie of the same name directed by the Vasilyev brothers

Why he might be annoying:

He lived with the widow of his fellow soldier while still legally married to his wife.
To confuse things further, both his wife and the widow he lived with were named Pelageya, and he adopted the latter's children.
He was the butt of many jokes in Russia as a backlash against his image used for propaganda.
Over time, facts about him and the myths Soviet propaganda perpetuated were so intertwined that people have a hard time differentiating fiction from fact.
Some historians have downplayed his involvement in the Russian Civil War.

Why he might not be annoying:

He grew up in a poor peasant family.
He was awarded the Cross of St. George three times during World War I.
Under his command, the 25th Rifle Division suffered no defeats.
Furmanov described him as resolute, resourceful, and experienced, and it helped that Furmanov was the commissar of the 25th Rifle Division who had a firsthand account of Chapayev.
The town where he died near in was renamed in his honor.

Credit: Big Lenny

Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

• A City is Named in My Honor
• Big Lenny's Profiles [Series 04]
• I Died by Drowning
• I Died in 1919 (Ranked: 32)
• I Died in My 30s (Ranked: 32)
• I Have Adopted and Biological Children
• I Took a Bullet
• I'm a Communist
• Look at Me, I'm Armed
• Look at Me, I'm Mounted
• Look at Me, I'm Wearing Military Garb
• Look at Me, My Picture Is Art
• Look at My Flag
• Mustaches
• Profiles 38001-38250 (Ranked: 38136)
• Served in World War I

Year In Review:

In 2023, Out of 6 Votes: 16.67% Annoying
In 2022, Out of 3 Votes: 100% Annoying
In 2021, Out of 3 Votes: 100% Annoying
In 2020, Out of 13 Votes: 46.15% Annoying
In 2019, Out of 28 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
In 2018, Out of 126 Votes: 56.35% Annoying
In 2017, Out of 8 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
In 2016, Out of 6 Votes: 50.0% Annoying