Count Fyodor Logginovich Heiden (born Friedrich Moritz Reichsgraf van Heiden; russian: Фёдор Логгинович Ге́йден,
tr. ; – ), better known as Count Fyodor Logginovich van Heiden, was a
Russian military commander of
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
-
Dutch extraction, who served in the
Imperial Russian Army
The Imperial Russian Army (russian: Ру́сская импера́торская а́рмия, tr. ) was the armed land force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian Ar ...
. He served as the
Governor-General of Finland 1881–1898. Heiden's 17-year office in the
Grand Duchy of Finland encompassed the entire reign of
Alexander III of Russia
Alexander III ( rus, Алекса́ндр III Алекса́ндрович, r=Aleksandr III Aleksandrovich; 10 March 18451 November 1894) was Emperor of Russia, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Finland from 13 March 1881 until his death in 18 ...
, who appointed him at the start of his own reign, to succeed the courtly and diplomatic Count
Nikolay Adlerberg
Count Nikolay Vladimirovich Adlerberg (; 19 May 1819 – 25 December 1892), was a Russian aristocrat who served as Councilor of State and Chamberlain in the imperial court, as well as governor of Taganrog, Simferopol and Finland.
Biography
...
, and four first years of reign of
Nicholas II of Russia.
Background
Friedrich Moritz Reichsgraf van Heiden was born in
Sveaborg, later renamed Suomenlinna, son of
Dutch Lodewijk Sigismund Gustaaf van Heiden (6 September 1772 – 5 November 1850), who left
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
in 1795 during
French invasion and settled in
Livonia. Admiral van Heiden died in 1850. His mother was lady Anne-Marie Akeleye from a
Danish family. Youngest son of family, Friedrich took military career, converted to
Orthodoxy
Orthodoxy (from Greek: ) is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion.
Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Antiquity, but different Churc ...
and took the Russified name of Fyodor Logginovich Geyden.
Earlier career
Young Heiden fought in
Caucasus
The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...
and against the
Hungarian Revolutionary Army, whom
Nicholas I. assisted Austrian emperor against. He was promoted to colonel in 1849. During
Crimean War
The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia.
Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...
Heiden was chief of staff in Baltic Corps, without participation in notable battles. After the war was he was promoted to Major General in 1855.
He married in 1854 Countess Elisabeth Nikolayevna
Zubova (1833–1894) whose mother was Countess Alexandra
Raimond-Modène (1807–1839). Her father Count
Nikolay Dmitrievich Zubov (1801–1871; russian: Николай Дмитриевич Зубов) was Steward of the
Russian Imperial Court, himself son of princess Paraskeva Viazemskaia and general, count Dmitri Alexandrovich Zubov, one of brothers of prince
Platon Zubov.
Countess Elisabeth was a first cousin of countess Olga
van Suchtelen, one of heiresses of that Finnish comital house whose males in 1860s became extinct.
After the war Heiden was chiefly a member of the General Staff. He participated in
Dmitry Milyutin's military reforms and was appointed as head of the General Staff (Glavni Stab) in 1866. He also chaired the conscription committee that enacted the conscription in Russia in 1874, and was in charge of the mobilization during the
Turkish War
The Great Turkish War (german: Großer Türkenkrieg), also called the Wars of the Holy League ( tr, Kutsal İttifak Savaşları), was a series of conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy League consisting of the Holy Roman Empire, Pola ...
; he was acting Minister of War during Milyutin's absence during the Turkish War.
In 1870 Heiden was promoted to full General. When he was eleven years later appointed as Governor-General of Finland, he had made a long and successful military career.
Governor-General
As it was usual with persons who adopted themselves a new nationality, Heiden was eagerly Russian.
In his position in Finland, the
Slavophile
Slavophilia (russian: Славянофильство) was an intellectual movement originating from the 19th century that wanted the Russian Empire to be developed on the basis of values and institutions derived from Russia's early history. Slavoph ...
Heiden saw his task to
Russify the country. However, his reputation among the Finns is not very bad, because of his subtle methods - his successor,
general Bobrikov, enjoys a really contrasting fame of a russifying tyrant.
To attain his goal Heiden supported use of
Finnish as language of administration, university and military, as opposed to Swedish. In appointments to public offices in government, administration, justice, and military he favored the conservative and monarchist
Finnish Party and persons who had learned the Russian language well and resided longer times there, as opposed to possibly separatist Swedes and liberal
Swedish Party
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used ...
. Heiden furthered trade between Finland and Russia, and had customs formalities reduced.
His chief interest was to clarify jurisdiction within Finland: to define what decisions belonged to the imperial government, what to autonomous local governments in Finland.
He was awarded
Order of Prince Danilo I and a number of other decorations.
References
Sources
* Seitkari, Olavi:
Kenraalikuvernööri kreivi Fedor Logginovits Heiden'', Genos 18 (1947), pp. 80–86
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Geyden, Fyodor
1821 births
1900 deaths
Politicians from Helsinki
People from the Grand Duchy of Finland
Russian people of Dutch descent
Russian people of Danish descent
Governors of the Grand Duchy of Finland
Members of the State Council (Russian Empire)
Converts to Eastern Orthodoxy from Protestantism
Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Russia)
Recipients of the Order of Saint Stanislaus (Russian)
Danish people of Dutch descent
Dutch people of Danish descent
Burials at the Isidorovskaya Church of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra
Finnish people of Dutch descent
Imperial Russian Army generals