Ivan Nikolajevich Rimsky-Korsakov, né ''Korsav'' (29 June 1754 in

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 ...

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

– 31 July 1831 in

) was a Russian courtier and lover of Catherine the Great from 1778 to 1779. He was a member of the same family which produced composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov.

Biography

Ivan Rimsky-Korsakov was introduced to Catherine by

Grigory Potemkin Prince Grigory Aleksandrovich Potemkin-Tauricheski (, also , ;, rus, Князь Григо́рий Алекса́ндрович Потёмкин-Таври́ческий, Knjaz' Grigórij Aleksándrovich Potjómkin-Tavrícheskij, ɡrʲɪˈɡ ...

after he had been vetted by

Praskovja Bruce Countess Praskovya Aleksandrovna Bruce (Прасковья Александровна Брюс; née Rumyantseva; 1729–1785) was a Russian lady-in-waiting and noble, confidant of Catherine the Great. Life {{unsourced, section, date=October 20 ...

. Rumours that Catherine had her ladies-in-waiting 'test' her potential favorites are unsubstantiated by the historical record. Furthermore, Potemkin played an important role in Catherine's life, but there is no evidence to suggest that he literally picked and presented his successors in the bedchamber to Catherine. Catherine called Korsakov ''Pyrrhus'' because of his classic beauty, his singing and his violin playing. In 1779, Catherine caught him being unfaithful with Bruce. It is believed that she was directed to the right room by Aleksandra von Engelhardt on the order of Potemkin, who wished for the fall of both Rimsky-Korsakov and Bruce. In that case, he succeeded since Rimsky-Korsakov and Bruce lost their positions at court. Rimsky-Korsakov lived the rest of his life in Brattsevo, near Moscow, in a relationship with the married Countess Stroganova, née Princess Ekaterina Petrovna Trubetskaya, with whom he had four children (Varvara, Vladimir, Vassily and Sophia). They were given the name Ladomirsky, the name of an extinct Polish noble family, and were ennobled by an imperial ukaze on 11 November 1798. Varvara Ivanovna Ladomirsky married Ivan Dimitrievich Narishkin and was the great-great-grandmother of Prince

Felix Yussupov Prince Felix Felixovich Yusupov, Count Sumarokov-Elston (russian: Князь Фе́ликс Фе́ликсович Юсу́пов, Граф Сумаро́ков-Эльстон, Knyaz' Féliks Féliksovich Yusúpov, Graf Sumarókov-El'ston; – ...

References

* Marie Tetzlaff : ''Katarina den Stora'' (Catherine the Great) (1997) (In Swedish) * Simon Sebac Montefiore : ''Potemkin och Katarina den stora – en kejserlig förbindelse'' (Potemkin and Catherine the Great – an imperial commitment) (2006) (In Swedish) {{DEFAULTSORT:Rimsky-Korsakov, Ivan 1754 births 1831 deaths 18th-century people from the Russian Empire 19th-century people from the Russian Empire Lovers of Catherine the Great Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Poland)