Paul Menesius (1637–1694, Latinized from

Menzies Menzies is a Scottish surname, with Gaelic forms being Méinnearach and Méinn, and other variant forms being Menigees, Mennes, Mengzes, Menzeys, Mengies, and Minges. Derivation and history The name and its Gaelic form are probably derived f ...

, Russian transliteration: Павел Гаврилович Менезиус or Менезий or Миннюст) was a Scottish soldier and diplomat, who spent most of his life in the service of the

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

n Tsar Alexei.

Life

Menesius came from an old wealthy Scottish family of Catholic and traditional background from

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), a ...

, who were forced by religious persecution to emigrate to France in 1639. Menesius studied at the

Douai College The English College (''College des Grands Anglais'') was a Catholic seminary in Douai, France (also previously spelled Douay, and in English Doway), associated with the University of Douai. It was established in 1568, and was suppressed in 1793. ...

. After

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three ...

's death in 1658 the family returned to Scotland when Charles II returned the family's land. However, their wealth was lost and Paul, the youngest son, had to seek his own living. He joined the Polish army. In 1660 he defected to Russia. There, he received a master's rank and later married a Russian woman. Menzies' friendship with Kirill Naryshkin, who since 1671 was the Tsar's father-in-law, and Patrick Gordon and others placed him close to Tsar Alexei. When in 1671 - 1672 during a return to Scotland, his fortunes took a further turn. The Russian state was looking for allies among the European states to fight

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...

. Menesius with his linguistic skills and Catholic faith was enlisted as an ambassador and sent in 1672, to

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...

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and

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. Although he was welcomed, he did not receive any direct response to the appeal for alliance. However, despite Austrian suspicion; in Vienna when he announced that the Turks had conquered the Kamenets and Russian arsenals, the Austrian Emperor led an army to the borders to defeat the infidel invader.

Meeting with the pope

On the embassy to Rome in 1673, the legate was warmly welcomed. Menesius delivered a letter from Tsar Alexei to

Pope Clement X Pope Clement X ( la, Clemens X; it, Clemente X; 13 July 1590 – 22 July 1676), born Emilio Bonaventura Altieri, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 April 1670 to his death in July 1676. Elected pope at ag ...

requesting his help against their common enemy the Turk and asking him to intercede and write to the Kings of England and France that they might aid him against the enemies of Christians. He was also to solicit the Pope on behalf of Alexis for formal recognition of the title of Tsar. Rome recognized Alexis only as the Grand duke of Muscovy who had conferred the title of Tsar upon himself. The Pope was not convinced that Alexis professed the faith in such a manner as to give any assurance of his Catholic intentions. However an audience was refused when Menzies would not agree to kiss the Pope's foot. Despite an attempt to arrange a secret audience, the negotiations ended unsuccessfully.

Later life

On his return to Russia in 1674 he was promoted to the rank of major general and was made a tutor for the Tsarevich Peter (the future

Peter I Peter I may refer to: Religious hierarchs * Saint Peter (c. 1 AD – c. 64–88 AD), a.k.a. Simon Peter, Simeon, or Simon, apostle of Jesus * Pope Peter I of Alexandria (died 311), revered as a saint * Peter I of Armenia (died 1058), Catholicos ...

) in military matters; consisting mainly of rowdy outdoor games with live ammunition. Come 1682, the regent

Sophia Alekseyevna Sophia Alekseyevna ( rus, Со́фья Алексе́евна, p=ˈsofʲjə ɐlʲɪˈksʲejɪvnə; ) was a Russian princess who ruled as regent of Russia from 1682 to 1689. She allied herself with a singularly capable courtier and politician, Pr ...

sent him off to war against the Crimean Tatars. In 1684, along with Patrick Gordon and Alexander Livingston, fellow Scottish soldiers in the Tsar's service, Menesius signed a petition for the opening of a first

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

congregation in Russia. The permission was granted. This was the first time that a Roman Catholic church was built in Moscow. By the summer of 1689, Peter took power from his half-sister Sophia, whose position had been weakened by two unsuccessful Crimean campaigns. Menesius, till his death in 1694, enthusiastically defended the interests of Russia, but still remained a staunch Catholic and Scottish patriot.

References and notes

* *
Scottish Influence in Russian History
A. Francis Steuart (1913), Chapter IV: General Patrick Gordon of Auchleuchries. * "''Paul Menzies and his mission from Muscovy to Rome, 1672-1674''"

Paul Dukes Sir Paul Henry Dukes (10 February 1889 – 27 August 1967) was a British MI6 officer and author. Early life and family Paul Henry Dukes was born the third of five children on 10 February 1889 in Bridgwater, Somerset, England. He was the ...

in The Innes Review, XXXV (Autumn 1984), pp. 88–95. *Passages from the diary of General Patrick Gordon of Auchleuchries : A.D. 1635-A.D. 1699;

: Printed for the Spalding Club, 185
archive.org: pp. 39, 40, 41, 46, 53, 84, 85, 111, 113, 163, 178, 183, 213; index: 229

Life

Meeting with the pope

Later life

References and notes

See also

Further reading