Ivan Alexeyevich Gagarin (russian: Иван Алексеевич Гагарин; 16 September 1771,

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

12 October 1832, Moscow) was a Russian Imperial

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

Active Privy Councillor Active Privy Councillor (russian: действительный тайный советник, deystvitelnyi taynyi sovetnik) was the civil rank (ru: чин / chin) in the Russian Empire, according to the Table of Ranks introduced by Peter the Great ...

, from the princely

Gagarin family The House of Gagarin (russian: Гага́рин) is the name of a Russian princely family descending from sovereign rulers of Starodub-on-the-Klyazma. Origins The descendant of the Great Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich, the Christianizer of Ru ...

Biography

He was born to the

Privy Councilor A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

, Alexei Ivanovich Gagarin, and his wife, Irina Grigorievna, daughter of the military officer and statesman, . At the age of only two, he was enrolled in the

Preobrazhensky Regiment The Preobrazhensky Life-Guards Regiment (russian: Преображенский лейб-гвардии полк, ''Preobrazhensky leyb-gvardii polk'') was a regiment of the Imperial Guard of the Imperial Russian Army from 1683 to 1917. The Pr ...

then, at the age of five, in the

Izmaylovsky 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 o ...

. When he began his active service, in 1790, he became a

Praporshchik ( rus, Пра́порщик, 3=ˈprapərɕːɪk, ) is a rank used by the Russian Armed Forces and a number of former communist states. The rank is a non-commissioned officer's and is equivalent to in navies. It is usually equivalent to Warrant ...

(Ensign), and was sent to fight in the

Russo-Turkish War The Russo-Turkish wars (or Ottoman–Russian wars) were a series of twelve wars fought between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire between the 16th and 20th centuries. It was one of the longest series of military conflicts in European histo ...

. For his participation in the

Siege of Izmail The siege of Izmail was a military investment fought in 1790 on the Black Sea during the Russo-Turkish War (1787–1792). The Russians were led by Alexander Suvorov, who had defeated the Ottomans at Kinburn, Ochakov, and Focsani. The Black ...

, he was promoted to

Podporuchik ''Podporuchik'' ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, потпоручник, potporučnik, cs, podporučík, pl, podporucznik, russian: подпору́чик, bg, подпоручик, sk, podporučík) is the most Junior officer in some Slavic armed forces, an ...

(Second-Lieutenant), and was awarded 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 degree. Further promotions followed and, in 1795, he was named a

Chamberlain Chamberlain may refer to: Profession *Chamberlain (office), the officer in charge of managing the household of a sovereign or other noble figure People *Chamberlain (surname) **Houston Stewart Chamberlain (1855–1927), German-British philosop ...

. In 1799, he was appointed an

Equerry An equerry (; from French ' stable', and related to 'squire') is an officer of honour. Historically, it was a senior attendant with responsibilities for the horses of a person of rank. In contemporary use, it is a personal attendant, usually up ...

at the court of Grand Duchess

Elena Pavlovna Elena Pavlovna (; 24 December 1784 S 13 December– 24 September 1803) was born a grand duchess of Russia as the daughter of Paul I, Emperor of all the Russias and later became the Hereditary Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin as the wife o ...

and later held the same position under Grand Duchess

Catherine Pavlovna Grand Duchess Catherine Pavlovna of Russia (russian: Екатерина Павловна; 21 May 1788 S 10 May 1788– 9 January 1819) later Queen Catharina Pavlovna of Württemberg, was the fourth daughter of Tsar Paul I of Russia and Du ...

. In 1810, he was appointed Manager of her court in

Tver Tver ( rus, Тверь, p=tvʲerʲ) is a city and the administrative centre of Tver Oblast, Russia. It is northwest of Moscow. Population: Tver was formerly the capital of a powerful medieval state and a model provincial town in the Russian ...

. For his many years of service, he was awarded the

Order of Saint Anna The Imperial Order of Saint Anna (russian: Орден Святой Анны; also "Order of Saint Anne" or "Order of Saint Ann") was a Holstein ducal and then Russian imperial order of chivalry. It was established by Karl Friedrich, Duke of Hol ...

and the

Order of Saint Alexander Nevsky The Imperial Order of Saint Alexander Nevsky was an order of chivalry of the Russian Empire first awarded on by Empress Catherine I of Russia. History The introduction of the Imperial Order of Saint Alexander Nevsky was envisioned by Emperor ...

. In 1819, he was named a Senator. In the latter part of 1820, together with

Pyotr Andreyevich Kikin Pyotr Andreyevich Kikin (Russian: Пётр Андре́евич Ки́кин; 27 December 1775, Alatyr – 18 May 1834, Saint Petersburg?) was a Russian general and a Secretary of State under Tsar Alexander I. Biography He was one of twelve c ...

and

Alexander Dmitriev-Mamonov Count Alexander Matveyevich Dmitriev-Mamonov (russian: Александр Матвеевич Дмитриев-Мамонов; 30 September 1758 – 11 October 1803, buried in Donskoy Monastery) was a lover of Catherine II of Russia from 1786 to 1 ...

, he was instrumental in founding the

Imperial Society for the Encouragement of the Arts The Imperial Society for the Encouragement of the Arts (Russian: Императорское общество поощрения художеств (ОПХ)) was an organization devoted to promoting the arts that existed in Saint Petersburg from 182 ...

; dedicated to "promoting the dissemination of fine arts in Russia; approving and encouraging the talents of Russian artists". He served as one of the first members of its governing committee. In 1826, for thirty-five years of service, he was awarded the

Order of Saint 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 ...

and, the following year, was appointed to the , charged with judging the

Decembrists The Decembrist Revolt ( ru , Восстание декабристов, translit = Vosstaniye dekabristov , translation = Uprising of the Decembrists) took place in Russia on , during the interregnum following the sudden death of Emperor Al ...

. He died in 1832, aged sixty-one, and was interred in the cemetery at

Novospassky Monastery Novospassky Monastery (''New Monastery of the Savior'', russian: Новоспасский монастырь) is one of the fortified monasteries surrounding Moscow from the south-east. Like all medieval Russian monasteries, it was built by the Ru ...

. He was married twice; first, in 1796, to Elizaveta Ivanovna Balabina (1773–1803), daughter of General and sister of Lieutenant-General . They had six sons and she died in childbirth. Their fifth son was General Alexander Gagarin. His second wife (1828) was the actress,

Ekaterina Semenova Ekaterina Semenova (Russian: Екатерина Семёновна Семёнова; 18 November 1786–13 March 1849) was an actress in the Russian Empire. Life Semenova became a student in the Saint Petersburg Theatre School in 1790 where she wa ...

; his longtime mistress. They are known to have had three daughters and one son.Records from the

References

Biography
from the

Russian Biographical Dictionary The ''Russian Biographical Dictionary'' (RBD, russian: Русский биографический словарь) is a Russian-language biographical dictionary published by the Russian Historian Society edited by a collective with Alexander Po ...

@ Russian WikiSource

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gagarin, Ivan Alexeyevich 1771 births 1832 deaths Military personnel from Moscow Recipients of the Order of St. George of the Fourth Degree Nobility from Moscow