Fyodor Makhnov
{{short description|Russian giant}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Feodor Andreevich Makhnov
| image = Fedor Maxnov.jpg
| caption = Feodor Andreevich Makhnov
| birth_date = {{birth date|1878|6|18|df=y}}
| birth_place = Kostyuki, Vitebsky Uyezd, Russian Empire
| death_date = {{death date and age|1912|8|28|1878|6|18|df=y}}
| death_place = Kostyuki, Vitebsk Governorate
| nationality = Russian/Belarusian
| relatives =
| other_names =
| known_for = Tall man/person "The Russian Giant"
| height = (Unconfirmed) {{cvt|282|cm|ftin}}{{cite web|url=http://www.thetallestman.com/feodormachnow.htm|title=Feodor Machnow - 7'10" - (239 cm)|website=thetallestman.com|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101101214955/http://www.thetallestman.com/feodormachnow.htm|archive-date=1 November 2010}} or {{cvt|285|cm|ftin}}
around {{cvt|239|cm|ftin}}
}}
Fyodor Andreevich Makhnov ({{langx|ru|Фёдор Андре́евич Махно́в}}, also written as Feodor Machnow in contemporary sources) claimed to be the tallest person in the world, although his exact height and weight is unconfirmed.Ben Hollingum, [https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2024/12/fyodor-andreyevich-makhnov-a-history-of-the-worlds-tallest-people Fyodor Andreyevich Makhnov: A history of the world’s tallest people], Guinness World Records, December 24, 2024
Biography
Fyodor Makhnov was born in 1878 at a khutor near the village of Kostyuki Vitebsky Uyezd, then part of the Russian Empire (now in Belarus) to a poor peasant family.Юшкевич М. Д., Витебский великан, Novopolotsk, 2007, {{ISBN|978-985-90053-6-7}}[https://vitvesti.by/person/vitebskii-velikan-fedor-makhnov-neobychnaia-zhizn-neobychnogo-cheloveka-i-vospominaniia-rodstvennikov.html Витебский великан Федор Махнов: необычная жизнь необычного человека и воспоминания родственников], July 23, 2018
As a young man in his twenties he toured Europe to exhibit his great height. After having spent time in Berlin he visited London in 1905 where he joined the Hippodrome accompanied by his wife and young child. He then toured the United States in 1906 where he met President Roosevelt as well as actor and fellow giant George Auger.{{refn|group=nb|Auger's height is also disputed, with claims ranging anywhere from {{convert|226|to|257|cm|ftin|abbr=on}}.}} Throughout his tour his promoters exaggerated his height, and he was usually accredited with a considerably inflated stature as high as {{convert|9|ft|3|in|cm}} and billed as "The Russian Giant." On the obelisk it is still possible to read: «Фёдор Андреевич Махнов. Родился 6 июня 1878 года. Умер 28 августа 1912 года. Самый высокий человек в мире. Ростом был 3 аршина 9 вершков» ("Fyodor Andreevich Makhnov. Born 6 June 1878. Died 28 August 1912. The tallest man in the world. His height was 3 arshins 9 vershoks [254 centimetres] tall"). Makhnov's wife, Efrosinya wanted to correct the incorrect figure on the monument, but could not do so because of the beginning of the First World War and then the Revolution of 1917.
Photographic evidence suggest that he was not any taller than {{convert|7|ft|10+1/2|in|cm}}. This exaggeration may have been because he wore high hats, and tall boots which added a foot to his height. Although, if this was accurate, he would have been taller than Robert Wadlow, now cited as the world's tallest man.{{Cite web |url=http://tall.by/2013/fedor-mahnov/ |title=Фёдор Андреевич Махнов. История жизни + фото (Feodor Andreevich Makhnov. Life history + photos) |access-date=2022-10-04 |lang=ru |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402121231/http://tall.by/2013/fedor-mahnov/ |archive-date=2015-04-02}}
Makhnov died in 1912 due to pneumonia, and likely complications of acromegaly. He was the father of four children, none of whom reached a height greater than two meters.
See also
References
{{Reflist|group=nb}}
{{Reflist}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Makhnov, Fyodor}}
Category:19th-century people from the Russian Empire