Prince Aleksey Ivanovich Gorchakov (russian: Алексе́й Ива́нович Горчако́в; – ) was a

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

n general and statesman from the

Gorchakov Gorchakov, or Gortchakoff (russian: Горчако́в), is a Russian princely family of Rurikid stock that is descended from the Rurikid sovereigns of Peremyshl, Russia. Aleksey Gorchakov The family first achieved prominence during the reign of ...

family.

Biography

Aleksey Gorchakov was a son of Prince Ivan

and a sister of the noted Russian ''

generalissimo ''Generalissimo'' ( ) is a military rank of the highest degree, superior to field marshal and other five-star ranks in the states where they are used. Usage The word (), an Italian term, is the absolute superlative of ('general') thus me ...

Alexander Suvorov Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov (russian: Алекса́ндр Васи́льевич Суво́ров, Aleksándr Vasíl'yevich Suvórov; or 1730) was a Russian general in service of the Russian Empire. He was Count of Rymnik, Count of the Holy ...

. Born in Moscow, he enlisted in the Lifa Guard Preobrazhensk Regiment in 1774, and began his service several years later in 1781. In 1786 he entered the regular army as a captain and served with distinction (as an adjudant) under his uncle

Suvorov Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov (russian: Алекса́ндр Васи́льевич Суво́ров, Aleksándr Vasíl'yevich Suvórov; or 1730) was a Russian general in service of the Russian Empire. He was Count of Râmnicu Sărat, Rymnik, C ...

in the Turkish War of 1787–92. Gorchakov distinguished himself in the campaigns of 1789 at Akerman, at Ochakov, the latter for which he received the

Order of St. George The Order of Saint George (russian: Орден Святого Георгия, Orden Svyatogo Georgiya) is the highest military decoration of the Russian Federation. Originally established on 26 November 1769 Julian (7 December 1769 Gregorian) a ...

(4th class) as well as being promoted to lieutenant colonel and becoming an adjudant to Prince Potemkin, at Kaumany, at Bender and in the campaign of 1790. In 1790 he was promoted to colonel of

Azov Azov (russian: Азов), previously known as Azak, is a town in Rostov Oblast, Russia, situated on the Don River just from the Sea of Azov, which derives its name from the town. Population: History Early settlements in the vicinity The mo ...

regiment. In 1792 he fought in the Poland (

Polish–Russian War of 1792 The Polish–Russian War of 1792 (also, War of the Second Partition, and in Polish sources, War in Defence of the Constitution ) was fought between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth on one side, and the Targowica Confederation (conservati ...

) and received the

Order of St. Vladimir The Imperial Order of Saint Prince Vladimir (russian: орден Святого Владимира) was an Imperial Russian order established on by Empress Catherine II in memory of the deeds of Saint Vladimir, the Grand Prince and the Baptize ...

(4th class). Gorchakov took part as a general officer in the Italian and Swiss operations of 1799 together with general Rimsky-Korsakov. He returned to Russia afterwards, and became chef of the Neva Musketeer Regiment on 7 February 1800, while serving as the governor of Vryborg as well as the chef of the Vryborg Garrison regiment between March and August in 1800. He then served in the next war against Napoleon in Poland in 1806–1807 (

Battle of Heilsberg The Battle of Heilsberg took place on 10 June 1807, during the Napoleonic Wars. Overview On 24 May 1807, the Siege of Danzig (1807), Siege of Danzig ended when Kingdom of Prussia, Prussian General Friedrich Adolf, Count von Kalckreuth capitul ...

). He succeeded

Barclay de Tolly Barclay de Tolly () is the name of a Baltic German noble family of Scottish origin (Clan Barclay). During the time of the Revolution of 1688 in Britain, the family migrated to Swedish Livonia from Towy (Towie) in Aberdeenshire. Its subsequen ...

as the

Minister of War A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

in August 1812, and was promoted to

general of the infantry General of the Infantry is a military rank of a General officer in the infantry and refers to: * General of the Infantry (Austria) * General of the Infantry (Bulgaria) * General of the Infantry (Germany) ('), a rank of a general in the German Impe ...

on 11 September 1814. Removed from command in December 1815 after another accusation of "embezzlement", he took a discharge in September 1817. Aleksey Gorchakov died in December 1817 in

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

Family

His brother Andrei Ivanovich Gorchakov (1776–1855) was a general in the Russian army who took a conspicuous part in the final campaigns against

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

. Their cousin Princess Pelageya Nikolayevna Gorchakova (1762–1838) was fictionalized by her grandson

Leo Tolstoy Count Lev Nikolayevich TolstoyTolstoy pronounced his first name as , which corresponds to the romanization ''Lyov''. () (; russian: link=no, Лев Николаевич Толстой,In Tolstoy's day, his name was written as in pre-refor ...

in ''

War and Peace ''War and Peace'' (russian: Война и мир, translit=Voyna i mir; pre-reform Russian: ; ) is a literary work by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy that mixes fictional narrative with chapters on history and philosophy. It was first published ...

''.

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gorchakov, Aleksey Ivanovich 1769 births 1817 deaths Military personnel from Moscow People from Moskovsky Uyezd Aleksey Ivanovich Members of the State Council (Russian Empire) Generals of the infantry (Russian Empire) Russian people of the Polish–Russian War of 1792 Russian commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Recipients of the Order of St. George of the Third Degree Recipients of the Order of St. Vladimir, 4th class Recipients of the Order of St. Anna, 1st class Recipients of the Gold Sword for Bravery Commanders Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresa Commanders of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus Burials at Lazarevskoe Cemetery (Saint Petersburg)