Aleksey Samuilovich Greig (russian: Алексе́й Самуи́лович Грейг) (6 September 1775 – 18 January 1845), born into the noble Greig family, was an

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

of the

Imperial Russian Navy The Imperial Russian Navy () operated as the navy of the Russian Tsardom and later the Russian Empire from 1696 to 1917. Formally established in 1696, it lasted until dissolved in the wake of the February Revolution of 1917. It developed from a ...

. Born in Kronstadt, he was the son of Admiral Samuel Greig (1735–1788, then Governor of Kronstadt), brother-in-law of

Mary Somerville Mary Somerville (; , formerly Greig; 26 December 1780 – 29 November 1872) was a Scottish scientist, writer, and polymath. She studied mathematics and astronomy, and in 1835 she and Caroline Herschel were elected as the first female Honorary ...

, and father of General

Samuil Greig Samuil Alekseevich Greig (russian: Самуи́л Алексе́евич Грейг; 1827–1887), born into the Greig (Russian nobility), Greig family, was a full general and adjutant general in the Imperial Russian Army. He served during the Hun ...

(1827–1887), Russian Minister of Finance. He studied at the Royal High School, Edinburgh under the Rector

Alexander Adam Alexander Adam (24 June 174118 December 1809) was a Scottish teacher and writer on Roman antiquities. Life Alexander Adam was born near Forres, in Moray, the son of a farmer. From his earliest years he showed uncommon diligence and persevera ...

from 1783 to 1785, and then served as a volunteer on board , under Captain Thomas Troubridge. Greig started his career in the British

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

, serving in

East India East India is a region of India consisting of the Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal and also the union territory of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The region roughly corresponds to the historical region of Magadh ...

and

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

from 1785 to 1796. He returned to

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 ...

to take part in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

expeditions against

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 ...

from 1798–1800. Under the command of Admiral

Dmitry Senyavin Dmitry Nikolayevich Senyavin or Seniavin (russian: Дми́трий Никола́евич Сеня́вин; – ) was a Russian admiral during the Napoleonic Wars. Service under Ushakov Senyavin belonged to a notable noble family of sea ...

, he distinguished himself in 1807 in the

Battle of Athos The Battle of Athos (also known as the Battle of Monte Sancto or the Battle of Lemnos) took place on 1–2 July 1807 as a part of the Napoleonic Wars during the Russo-Turkish War of 1806-1812. Background In December 1806, Ottoman Sultan ...

and the Battle of the Dardanelles, which resulted in the Russian occupation of Lemnos and

Tenedos Tenedos (, ''Tenedhos'', ), or Bozcaada in Turkish language, Turkish, is an island of Turkey in the northeastern part of the Aegean Sea. Administratively, the island constitutes the Bozcaada, Çanakkale, Bozcaada district of Çanakkale Provinc ...

. At the close of the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

he was placed in command of the sea blockade of Danzig during the 1813 siege of Danzig. Greig was not the only Russian officer of Scottish descent. While still a captain, he and another Scotsman, Captain Brown, were involved in some trouble due to the wreck of the Imperial frigate ''Archangel'' in 1797. In the following year, in the squadron off the Texel, he commanded the 64-gun ''Retvizan''; and Captain

Robert Crown Roman (Robert) Vasilievich Crown (russian: Роман Васильевич Кроун); (, near Perth, Scotland – 1841, Saint Petersburg) was a navy officer in British and Russian service. In the later he eventually became an Admiral and serv ...

, said to be a Scot, had the 74-gun ''Utislaw''. In 1801 Greig was banished to Siberia for a time, in consequence of boldly remonstrating with the Emperor Paul for his severity to some British naval prisoners. In 1816 Greig became Commander of the

Black Sea Fleet Chernomorskiy flot , image = Great emblem of the Black Sea fleet.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Great emblem of the Black Sea fleet , dates = May 13, ...

, a post which he kept for 17 years. At the same time, he served as Military Governor of

Sevastopol Sevastopol (; uk, Севасто́поль, Sevastópolʹ, ; gkm, Σεβαστούπολις, Sevastoúpolis, ; crh, Акъя́р, Aqyár, ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea, and a major port on the Black Sea ...

and Nikolayev, introducing many reforms and improvements that the grateful citizens of Nikolayev would later erect a statue to his memory in 1873. During the Russo-Turkish War of 1828–29, Greig's bold

leadership Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets view ...

made itself felt at the Sieges of Varna and

Anapa Anapa (russian: Ана́па, ) is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the northern coast of the Black Sea near the Sea of Azov. Population: History The area around Anapa was settled in antiquity. It was originally a major seaport (Sin ...

. He was in full command of the Russian fleet, which he had brought from Sevastopol: forty vessels, eight being of the line, acting in conjunction with the troops under

Prince Menshikov Prince Aleksander Danilovich Menshikov (russian: Алекса́ндр Дани́лович Ме́ншиков, tr. ; – ) was a Russian statesman, whose official titles included Generalissimo, Prince of the Russian Empire and Duke of Izhora ...

for three months by sea and land. During these operations the Emperor

Nicholas I of Russia Nicholas I , group=pron ( – ) was List of Russian rulers, Emperor of Russia, Congress Poland, King of Congress Poland and Grand Duke of Finland. He was the third son of Paul I of Russia, Paul I and younger brother of his predecessor, Alexander I ...

was his guest on board the ''Parizh'', which had the Diplomatic Chancery and 1,300 persons under her flag. Slade's ''Travels''. In 1833 Greig was recalled to

Saint 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 ...

, where the Emperor Nicholas appointed him a member of the State Council of Imperial Russia and asked him to superintend the construction of the Pulkovo Observatory. An

atoll An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon partially or completely. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical oceans and seas where corals can gr ...

French Polynesia )Territorial motto: ( en, "Great Tahiti of the Golden Haze") , anthem = , song_type = Regional anthem , song = " Ia Ora 'O Tahiti Nui" , image_map = French Polynesia on the globe (French Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of Frenc ...

Niau Niau is a small atoll in French Polynesia, in the commune of Fakarava (Tuamotu archipelago). This atoll has a broad fringing reef, a diameter of 8 km and an area of 53 km2. Niau's lagoon is swampy, hypersaline and entirely enclosed. Th ...

is named Greig after Aleksey Greig. It was named in his honor by the Russian Admiral Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen in 1820.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Greig, Alex 1775 births 1845 deaths People from Kronstadt People from Petergofsky Uyezd Russian people of Scottish descent Members of the State Council (Russian Empire) War Governors of Nikolayev and Sevastopol Imperial Russian Navy admirals People educated at the Royal High School, Edinburgh Russian commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Recipients of the Order of St. George of the Second Degree British emigrants to Russia