Dmitry Petrovich Buturlin (russian: Дмитрий Петрович Бутурлин; 11 May 1790 – 21 October 1849) was a Russian Empire general and military historian from an old noble family of Ratshid stock. He was admitted into 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 ...

in May 1833 and into the

State Council of Imperial Russia The State Council ( rus, Госуда́рственный сове́т, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj sɐˈvʲet) was the supreme state advisory body to the Tsar in Imperial Russia. From 1906, it was the upper house of the parliament under the ...

in December 1840.

Biography

He took part in many campaigns 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 ...

as aide-de-camp to Prince

Pyotr Mikhailovich Volkonsky Prince Pyotr Mikhailovich Volkonsky russian: Пётр Миха́йлович Волко́нский, tr. ; ) was an Imperial Russian military commander, General-Field Marshal (1843), Adjutant General to Alexander I, member of the State Council ( ...

and

Alexander I of Russia Alexander I (; – ) was Emperor of Russia from 1801, the first King of Congress Poland from 1815, and the Grand Duke of Finland from 1809 to his death. He was the eldest son of Emperor Paul I and Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg. The son of ...

. In 1823 he went to

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 ...

to help suppress the Spanish Revolution of 1820 and distinguished himself in the

Battle of Trocadero The Battle of Trocadero, fought on 31 August 1823, was the only significant battle in the French invasion of Spain in support of King Ferdinand VII. French forces defeated the Spanish liberal forces and restored the absolute rule of Ferdinand. ...

. He retired after the

Russo-Turkish War (1828–1829) The Russo-Turkish War of 1828–1829 was sparked by the Greek War of Independence of 1821–1829. War broke out after the Ottoman Sultan Mahmud II closed the Dardanelles to Russian ships and revoked the 1826 Akkerman Convention in retalia ...

with the rank of

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

, but was recalled to active service on the occasion of the Hungarian Revolt of 1848. After giving up his military career, Buturlin was appointed Director of the

Imperial Public Library The National Library of Russia (NLR, russian: Российская национальная библиотека}), located in Saint Petersburg, is the first, and one of three national public libraries in Russia. The NLR is currently ranked amo ...

in 1843. Buturlin's obscurantist views led him to demand from Czar

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 ...

an all-pervasive system of

censorship Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...

. During the last year of his life he headed the , a secret super-censorship organ that supervised all regular censors. The Committee was disbanded early in the reign of

Alexander II of Russia Alexander II ( rus, Алекса́ндр II Никола́евич, Aleksándr II Nikoláyevich, p=ɐlʲɪˈksandr ftɐˈroj nʲɪkɐˈlajɪvʲɪtɕ; 29 April 181813 March 1881) was Emperor of Russia, Congress Poland, King of Poland and Gra ...

. As a historian Buturlin described in detail the major wars of

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 ...

's reign and the

Patriotic War of 1812 The French invasion of Russia, also known as the Russian campaign, the Second Polish War, the Army of Twenty nations, and the Patriotic War of 1812 was launched by Napoleon Bonaparte to force the Russian Empire back into the continental block ...

. Many of his works are in French. He viewed Alexander I as the true saviour of Russia and ranked the

Battle of Borodino The Battle of Borodino (). took place near the village of Borodino on during Napoleon's invasion of Russia. The ' won the battle against the Imperial Russian Army but failed to gain a decisive victory and suffered tremendous losses. Napoleon ...

among

Kutuzov Prince Mikhail Illarionovich Golenishchev-Kutuzov ( rus, Князь Михаи́л Илларио́нович Голени́щев-Куту́зов, Knyaz' Mikhaíl Illariónovich Goleníshchev-Kutúzov; german: Mikhail Illarion Golenishchev-Kut ...

's mistakes.

References

* Военный Энциклопедический Словарь 'The Military Encyclopaedic Dictionary'' Article "Buturlin, Dmitry Petrovich". Moscow, 1986.
Buturlin's biography
on the

Russian National Library The National Library of Russia (NLR, russian: Российская национальная библиотека}), located in Saint Petersburg, is the first, and one of three national public libraries in Russia. The NLR is currently ranked amo ...

website. {{DEFAULTSORT:Buturlin 1790 births 1849 deaths Imperial Russian Army generals Russian untitled nobility Historians from the Russian Empire Russian military historians Members of the State Council (Russian Empire) Writers from Saint Petersburg Burials at the Dukhovskaya Church Military personnel from Saint Petersburg