The marriage was unhappy and Pushkin had little peace for intense creative activity. His wife was invited to every ball at the palace, and her frivolous social life led Pushkin into debt and eventually to his early death.

The gossip of an affair between Baron Georges d'Anthes and his wife started to spread. An anonymous note informed Pushkin that he had been elected to "The Serene Order of Cuckolds." Although D'Anthes married Natalya's sister, the scandal was not quite over. The duel took place on January 27, 1837. Pushkin defended his wife's honor with her brother-in-law.

On his way to the designated place for the duel, passing through the city, Pushkin noticed his wife's carriage across the street. He determined for himself that if she recognized him, he would turn around and go back home, but Natalya was shortsighted and let her husband pass by.

D'Anthes fired his pistol first. Fatally wounded, Pushkin also fired his shot and his opponent got a slight wound.

Pushkin died on January 29, 1837. The Czar buried him in the monastery near Mikhailovskoye (the village where Pushkin was born), in secret for fear of popular risings at the funeral. He also paid all the remaining debts of the poet. Natalya received a pension. D'Anthes was expelled from Russia. He died in 1895.