The phenomenal life of Ukrainian peasant Nestor Makhno (1888-19349 provides the framework for this breakneck account of the downfall of the tsarist empire and the civil war that convulsed and bloodied Russia between 1917 an 1921. As in the days of history´s great chivalric tales, crucial 20th century clashes were fought through stunning cavalry charges and bitter hand-to-hand, saber-wielding combat. Combatants were drawn from several camps: Budyenny´s Red cavalry, the Don Cossacks and Kuban Cossacks (allied with the Whites), Ukrainian nationalists and Makhnovist partisans. Makhno, a formidable strategist characterized by exceptional daring, headed an army of anarchist insurgents – a popular peasant movement which bore his name.