''For the Russian minister of the Navy, see Stepan Arkadyevich Voyevodsky'' Stepan Vasilievich Voyevodsky (russian: Степан Васильевич Воеводский, born 1803 – died September 17, 1884) was an admiral of

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 ...

, Governor of

Russian America Russian America (russian: Русская Америка, Russkaya Amerika) was the name for the Russian Empire's colonial possessions in North America from 1799 to 1867. It consisted mostly of present-day Alaska in the United States, but a ...

in 1854–1859 and military governor of

Astrakhan Astrakhan ( rus, Астрахань, p=ˈastrəxənʲ) is the largest city and administrative centre of Astrakhan Oblast in Southern Russia. The city lies on two banks of the Volga, in the upper part of the Volga Delta, on eleven islands of the ...

in 1860s. Stepan Voyevodsky was born in

Smolensk Governorate Smolensk Governorate (russian: Смоленская губерния, Smolenskaja gubernija), or the Government of Smolensk, was an administrative division (a '' guberniya'') of the Tsardom of Russia, the Russian Empire, and the Russian SFSR. It ex ...

in the family of a retired Army officer. He joined the Naval Cadets Corps in 1818, and was commissioned as

midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...

(russian: мичман) in March 1822. Voyevodsky served in the

Baltic Fleet , image = Great emblem of the Baltic fleet.svg , image_size = 150 , caption = Baltic Fleet Great ensign , dates = 18 May 1703 – present , country = , allegiance = (1703–1721) (1721–1917) (1917–1922) (1922–1991)(1991–present) ...

until 1834. In 1824 Voyevodsky sailed to

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

, in 1825 to

Mediterranean Sea 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 ea ...

. In 1827–1830 lieutenant Voyevodsky served on ''Jezekiel'', a

ship-of-the-line A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactic known as the line of battle, which depended on the two colum ...

of count

Login Geiden Lodewijk Sigismund Vincent Gustaaf Reichsgraf van Heiden (german: Ludwig Sigismund Vinzent Gustav Reichsgraf van Heyden, russian: Ло́ггин Петро́вич Ге́йден, transliterated Russian name: ''Loggin Petrovich Geyden''; 6 Septemb ...

's Mediterranean squadron; he participated in the

Battle of Navarino The Battle of Navarino was a naval battle fought on 20 October (O. S. 8 October) 1827, during the Greek War of Independence (1821–29), in Navarino Bay (modern Pylos), on the west coast of the Peloponnese peninsula, in the Ionian Sea. Allied fo ...

in October 1827 and in the

naval blockade A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It includ ...

of the

Dardanelles The Dardanelles (; tr, Çanakkale Boğazı, lit=Strait of Çanakkale, el, Δαρδανέλλια, translit=Dardanéllia), also known as the Strait of Gallipoli from the Gallipoli peninsula or from Classical Antiquity as the Hellespont (; ...

during the Russo-Turkish War of 1828–1829. After four peaceful seasons with the Baltic Fleet (1830–1834) Voyevodsky was transferred from the Navy to the

Russian-American Company The Russian-American Company Under the High Patronage of His Imperial Majesty (russian: Под высочайшим Его Императорского Величества покровительством Российская-Американс� ...

. He crossed Asia by land, reaching

Okhotsk Okhotsk ( rus, Охотск, p=ɐˈxotsk) is an types of inhabited localities in Russia, urban locality (a urban-type settlement, work settlement) and the administrative center of Okhotsky District of Khabarovsk Krai, Russia, located at the mou ...

, and sailed to Novoarkhangelsk with ''Sitka''. He commanded ''Sitka'' and ''Yelena'' until 1839 and was promoted to captain-lieutenant in 1837. In 1841 he sailed from the Pacific 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 ...

, and returned to the Baltic Fleet. By 1849 he attained the rank of captain (russian: капитан первого ранга) and was in command of a ship-of-the-line. In the beginning of the

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 ...

(July 1853), Voyevodsky was appointed Governor of

. He reached Novoarkhangelsk on board of ''Sitka'' in April 1854; the ship soon seized by the British. Apart from this accident, the war did not hurt Russian America directly: lands of Russian America and the British

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business div ...

were declared neutral and remained neutral throughout the war. Voyevodsky remained in charge of Russian America until June 1859; upon his return to Russia he was appointed commander of

port and military governor of Astrakhan. Voyevodsky attained the rank of full admiral in 1877; he died in Saint Petersburg and was buried at the Smolenskoye Cemetery.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Voyevodsky, Stepan Vasiliyevich Governors of the Russian-American Company Imperial Russian Navy admirals 1803 births 1884 deaths Naval Cadet Corps alumni