Leopold von Sacher-Masoch (1836–1895) was an aristocrat and author, and a scholar of his homeland, the historic region of Halychyna (Galicia) in Ukraine.

Best known to Western readers for his novella Venus in Furs (1870), and for his involuntary inspiration of the term ‘masochism’, von Sacher-Masoch wrote the short story Bloody Wedding in Kyiv in 1886. This fictionalised tale of the notorious Olha of Kyiv contains compelling historical details, and reveals some curious insights into the author’s preoccupations.

See also “The Beautiful, Ferocious, Great – Olha Of Rus”.