Count Alexander Romanovich Vorontsov (russian: Алекса́ндр Рома́нович Воронцо́в) (4 February 17412 December 1805) was the Chancellor of the Russian Empire during the early years of

Alexander I Alexander I may refer to: * Alexander I of Macedon, king of Macedon 495–454 BC * Alexander I of Epirus (370–331 BC), king of Epirus * Pope Alexander I (died 115), early bishop of Rome * Pope Alexander I of Alexandria (died 320s), patriarch of ...

's reign. He began his career at the age of fifteen in the

Izmailovsky regiment The Izmaylovsky Regiment (russian: Изма́йловский лейб-гва́рдии полк, Izmáylovskiy leyb-gvárdii polk) was one of the oldest regiments of the Imperial Russian Army, a subdivision of the 1st Guards Infantry Division ...

of the Guards. He was the son of Russian General-in-chief Roman Illarionovich Vorontsov (1707—1783) and Marfa Ivanovna Surmina (1718—1745). In 1759, Alexander's uncle, the grand chancellor

Mikhail Illarionovich Vorontsov Count Mikhail Illarionovich Vorontsov (russian: Михаи́л Илларио́нович Воронцо́в) (12 July 171415 February 1767) was a Russian statesman and diplomat, who laid foundations for the fortunes of the Vorontsov family. At ...

, sent him to

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

and

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

to train him in

diplomacy Diplomacy comprises spoken or written communication by representatives of states (such as leaders and diplomats) intended to influence events in the international system.Ronald Peter Barston, ''Modern diplomacy'', Pearson Education, 2006, p. 1 ...

. Under Peter III, who was in love with his sister Elizabeth, he represented Russia for a short time at the

court of St James's The Court of St James's is the royal court for the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. All ambassadors to the United Kingdom are formally received by the court. All ambassadors from the United Kingdom are formally accredited from the court – & ...

Catherine II , en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes , house = , father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst , mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp , birth_date = , birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anha ...

created him a

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

and president of the Board of Trade; but she never liked him, and ultimately (1791) compelled him to retire from public life. In 1802, Alexander I summoned him back to office and appointed him imperial chancellor. This was the period of the triumph of the Vorontsovs, who had always insisted on the necessity of a close union with

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

and

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

,Карабанов П. Ф. Списки замечательных лиц русских / �оп.: П. В. Долгоруков — М.: Унив. тип., 1860. — 112 с. — (Из 1-й кн. «Чтений в О-ве истории и древностей рос. при Моск. ун-те. 1860») in opposition to

Nikita Panin Count Nikita Ivanovich Panin (russian: Ники́та Ива́нович Па́нин) () was an influential Russian statesman and political mentor to Catherine the Great for the first 18 years of her reign (1762-1780). In that role, he advocated ...

and his followers, who had leaned on

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...

till the outbreak of the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

made friendship with France impossible. Vorontsov was also an implacable opponent of

Napoleon Bonaparte 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 ...

, whose "topsy-turvyness" he was never weary of denouncing. The rupture with Napoleon in 1803 is mainly attributable to him. He also took a leading part in the internal administration and was in favour of a thorough reform of the

Governing Senate The Governing Senate (russian: Правительствующий сенат, Pravitelstvuyushchiy senat) was a legislative, judicial, and executive body of the Russian Emperors, instituted by Peter the Great to replace the Boyar Duma and last ...

and the ministries. He retired in 1804. A lifelong bachelor, he possessed an extraordinary memory and a firm and wide grasp of history. His ''Memoirs of My Own Times'' is printed in vol. VII of the ''Vorontsov Archives''.

Family members

Vorontsov Vorontsov (russian: Воронцо́в), also Woroncow and de Woroncow-Wojtkowicz,is the name of a Russian noble family whose members attained the dignity of Counts of the Holy Roman Empire in 1744 and became Princes of the Russian Empire in ...

- his family *

- his uncle *

Ekaterina Romanovna Vorontsova-Dashkova Yekaterina Romanovna Vorontsova (russian: Екатери́на Рома́новна Воронцо́ва) (28 March, 1743 – 15 January, 1810) This source reports that Prince Dashkov died in 1761. was an influential noblewoman, a major figure o ...

- his sister *

Elizaveta Vorontsova Elizaveta Romanovna Vorontsova (russian: Елизавета Романовна Воронцова; 13 August 1739 – 2 February 1792) was a Russian noblewoman and lady-in-waiting. She was a mistress of Emperor Peter III of Russia (reigned Febr ...

- his sister *

Semyon Romanovich Vorontsov Count Semyon Romanovich Vorontsov (or Woronzow, russian: Семён Романович Воронцо́в; 26 June 17449 July 1832) was a Russian diplomat from the aristocratic Russian Vorontsov family, whose siblings included Alexander Vorontso ...

- his brother *

Mikhail Semyonovich Vorontsov Prince Mikhail Semyonovich Vorontsov (russian: Князь Михаи́л Семёнович Воронцо́в, tr. ; ) was a Russian nobleman and field-marshal, renowned for his success in the Napoleonic wars and most famous for his participati ...

- his nephew.

References

External links

Online Museum of the Vorontsov Family
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vorontsov, Alexander Romanovich Senators of the Russian Empire Foreign ministers of the Russian Empire Chancellors of the Russian Empire Members of the State Council (Russian Empire) Counts of the Russian Empire 1741 births 1805 deaths Ambassadors of the Russian Empire 18th-century people from the Russian Empire

Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

Ambassadors of the Russian Empire to the United Kingdom