Russia has been paying tribute to one of its greatest authors Alexander Solzhenitsyn, who has died at the age of 89. The Russian President, Prime Minister, and the last leader of the Soviet Union have all expressed their condolences. From Moscow, James Rodgers reports:

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Mikhail Gorbachev, the last leader of the Soviet Union, has described Mr Solzhenitsyn as "one of the first people who spoke up about the inhumanity of Stalin's regime and about the people who lived through this but were not broken".

The Russian Orthodox Church has praised the former prison camp inmate as an example of human dignity.

The Russian Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, has called Alexander Solzhenitsyn's death "a heavy loss for the whole of Russia". It is perhaps a sign of the rocky historical road which Russia has travelled that one of its highest profile dissidents should now receive such a tribute from a former officer of the KGB.

James Rodgers, BBC News, Moscow

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compatriots pay tribute
people from his country show their respect, gratitude and admiration

a chronicler
someone who records an event or, as in this case, a series of events in chronological order

spoke up about
publicly criticised

inhumanity
when people are treated in an extremely cruel way (as if they are not human)

were not broken
did not lose the determination to oppose the regime; did not accept defeat

inmate
someone who is kept in a prison or a hospital for mentally ill people

dignity
an understanding of your own importance, a sense of pride and self-respect

rocky historical road
history full of difficult periods

travelled
here, survived, lived through, experienced

highest profile dissidents
here, best known people who have publicly disagreed with the Soviet political system

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