Peter Ludwig Graf von der Pahlen (russian: Пётр Алексе́евич Па́лен, translit= Pyotr Alekseyevich Palen; , Palms Manor,
Palms (now ) – ,
Mitau
Jelgava (; german: Mitau, ; see also #Name, other names) is a state city in central Latvia about southwest of Riga with 55,972 inhabitants (2019). It is the largest town in the region of Zemgale (Semigalia). Jelgava was the capital of the unit ...
(now )), a
Baltic-German courtier and general, played a pivotal role in the assassination of
Emperor Paul
Paul I (russian: Па́вел I Петро́вич ; – ) was Emperor of Russia from 1796 until his assassination. Officially, he was the only son of Peter III and Catherine the Great, although Catherine hinted that he was fathered by her l ...
of
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
in 1801. He became a general 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 ...
in 1798, a
count
Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...
in 1799, and served as the Military Governor of
St. 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 ...
from 1798 to 1801.
Early career
Pahlen stemmed from a family of
Baltic nobles. He was born in the manor of
Palms, in present-day
Haljala Parish
Haljala Parish ( et, Haljala vald) is a rural municipality of Estonia, in Lääne-Viru County. It has a population of 4297 (2021) and an area of 549 km².
Populated places Small borough
Haljala - Võsu
Villages
Aaspere - Aasu - Aasume ...
,
Lääne-Viru County
Lääne-Viru County ( et, Lääne-Viru maakond or ''Lääne-Virumaa'') is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It is in northern Estonia, on the south coast of the Gulf of Finland. In Estonian, ''lääne'' means western and ''ida'' means east or eastern ...
,
Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
. He served in the horse guards and saw service in the
Russo-Turkish Wars
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 ...
. He was wounded at
Bendery
Bender (, Moldovan Cyrillic: Бендер) or Bendery (russian: Бендеры, , uk, Бендери), also known as Tighina ( ro, Tighina), is a city within the internationally recognized borders of Moldova under ''de facto'' control of the un ...
and invested with 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 ...
of the 4th degree. During the
Russo-Turkish War, 1787-92 he distinguished himself during the Siege of
Ochakov
Ochakiv, also known as Ochakov ( uk, Оча́ків, ; russian: Очаков; crh, Özü; ro, Oceacov and ''Vozia'', and Alektor ( in Greek), is a small city in Mykolaiv Raion, Mykolaiv Oblast (region) of southern Ukraine. It hosts the adminis ...
(order of St. George the 3rd degree).
In 1787 Pahlen was put in charge of the
Riga Governorate
Riga Governorate or the Province of Riga (russian: Рижская губерния) was the administrative region of the Russian Empire in modern southern Estonia and northern Latvia from 1713 to 1783. The Province of Riga was formed to replace th ...
. He conducted the negotiations leading to the incorporation of
Courland
Courland (; lv, Kurzeme; liv, Kurāmō; German and Scandinavian languages: ''Kurland''; la, Curonia/; russian: Курляндия; Estonian: ''Kuramaa''; lt, Kuršas; pl, Kurlandia) is one of the Historical Latvian Lands in western Latvia. ...
,
Semigalia
Semigallia, also spelt Semigalia, ( lv, Zemgale; german: Semgallen; lt, Žiemgala; pl, Semigalia; liv, Zemgāl) is one of the Historical Latvian Lands located in the south of the Daugava river and the north of the Saule region of Samogitia. ...
, and other
Biron possessions into the
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. ...
. After that, he was appointed the first Governor General of
Courland Guberniya (1795).
Paul's reign
On December 3, 1796 Pahlen was appointed to command the Cuirassier Regiment of
Riga
Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...
, but soon the new Emperor made him regret his former contacts with the disgraced prince
Platon Zubov
Prince Platon Alexandrovich Zubov (russian: Платон Александрович Зубов; ) was the last of Catherine the Great's favourites and the most powerful man in the Russian Empire during the last years of her reign.
Life
The princ ...
. In January 1797 Pahlen was discharged from the governorship, and on 26 February he was relieved from his post in the regiment and excluded from the service.
However, he was soon again accepted into active service and appointed as Inspector of the Cavalry and the commander of the Household Troops of Horse Regiment. He was rapid in acquiring the sovereign's confidence. Enjoying the unlimited favor of Pavel I, for three years (1798–1801) he served as the military governor of
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 ...
, the governor of the Baltic provinces, the inspector of 6 military districts, the Grand Chancellor of the
Maltese order, the chief director of mail, a member of the Imperial Council and of the Board of Foreign Affairs.
During his time in office the building of
St Michael's Castle
Saint Michael's Castle (russian: Миха́йловский за́мок, ''Mikhailovsky zamok''), also called the Mikhailovsky Castle or the Engineers' Castle (russian: Инженерный замок, ''Inzhenerny zamok''), is a former royal ...
and of the Naval Military School was completed. The
Field of Mars was graced with monuments honoring
Field Marshal Rumyantsev and
Alexander Suvorov
Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov (russian: Алекса́ндр Васи́льевич Суво́ров, Aleksándr Vasíl'yevich Suvórov; or 1730) was a Russian general in service of the Russian Empire. He was Count of Rymnik, Count of the Holy ...
. The Imperial iron foundry was transferred from
Kronstadt
Kronstadt (russian: Кроншта́дт, Kronshtadt ), also spelled Kronshtadt, Cronstadt or Kronštádt (from german: link=no, Krone for "crown" and ''Stadt'' for "city") is a Russian port city in Kronshtadtsky District of the federal city of ...
to Petersburg and
Nikolai Rezanov
Nikolai Petrovich Rezanov (russian: Николай Петрович Резанов) ( – ), a Russian nobleman and statesman, promoted the project of Russian colonization of Alaska and California to three successive Emperors of All Russia� ...
founded 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� ...
.
Conspiracy and regicide
In August 1800 Pahlen was discharged from his governorship, only to be reappointed on October 21. Seeing how fragile his position was, he joined the conspirators plotting against the emperor in the house of
Olga Zherebtsova
Olga Alexandrovna Zherebtsova, née Zubova, also known as Madame Gerebtzoff (russian: Ольга Александровна Жеребцова, 1766–1849), was a Russian aristocrat and socialite, known foremost for her political involvement and l ...
. Together with
Nicholas Zubov he was one of plot's leaders and organizers. In the plot he played a dual role,
trying in the case of failure to
conceal his participation.
He extracted from the emperor the written order to arrest his son and heir,
Alexander Pavlovich, and showed this to him in order to overcome his fluctuation in the plot. He was present during Paul's strangling on the night of March 12, 1801. After the assassination he acquired an irreconcilable enemy in the Empress
Maria Feodorovna who prevented him from occupying any important post under Alexander's reign. On 1 April 1801, he was discharged from the service and ordered to withdraw into his estates in
Courland
Courland (; lv, Kurzeme; liv, Kurāmō; German and Scandinavian languages: ''Kurland''; la, Curonia/; russian: Курляндия; Estonian: ''Kuramaa''; lt, Kuršas; pl, Kurlandia) is one of the Historical Latvian Lands in western Latvia. ...
. Pahlen died in
Mitau
Jelgava (; german: Mitau, ; see also #Name, other names) is a state city in central Latvia about southwest of Riga with 55,972 inhabitants (2019). It is the largest town in the region of Zemgale (Semigalia). Jelgava was the capital of the unit ...
on February 13, 1826.
Pahlen in film
In 1908
Dmitry Merezhkovsky
Dmitry Sergeyevich Merezhkovsky ( rus, Дми́трий Серге́евич Мережко́вский, p=ˈdmʲitrʲɪj sʲɪrˈɡʲejɪvʲɪtɕ mʲɪrʲɪˈʂkofskʲɪj; – December 9, 1941) was a Russian novelist, poet, religious thinker, ...
wrote the play ''Pavel I'', which enjoyed limited popularity in Russia. In 2003 the director
Vitaly Melnikov adapted the play into the movie ''
Poor Poor Paul
''Poor Poor Paul'' (russian: Бедный, бедный Павел, Bednyy bednyy Pavel) is a 2003 Russian historical drama film. It is a biopic of Czar of Russia, Czar Paul I of Russia and the final film of the historical trilogy of Vitaly Melniko ...
''. In contrast to the play, the accent in the film is made not only on the fate of Pavel I, but also on Pahlen's role in the plot against him. Pahlen is seen as the tragic figure, which arranged the plot against his own will, worrying not about himself, but about the good of Russia. The role of Pahlen was played by
Oleg Yankovsky
Oleg Ivanovich Yankovsky (russian: Оле́г Ива́нович Янко́вский; 23 February 1944 – 20 May 2009) was a Soviet Union, Soviet and Russia, Russian actor who excelled in psychologically sophisticated roles of modern intellectu ...
, that of Paul - by
Viktor Sukhorukov
Viktor Ivanovich Sukhorukov PAR (russian: Виктор Иванович Сухоруков; born 10 November 1951) is a Russian actor. He has appeared in more than 50 films and television shows since 1974. He starred in '' Happy Days'' (1991), ...
.
In 1928,
Lewis Stone
Lewis Shepard Stone (November 15, 1879 – September 12, 1953) was an American film actor. He spent 29 years as a contract player at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and was best known for his portrayal of Judge James Hardy in the studio's popular ''Andy H ...
played Pahlen in ''
The Patriot'', starring
Emil Jannings
Emil Jannings (born Theodor Friedrich Emil Janenz, 23 July 1884 – 2 January 1950) was a Swiss born German actor, popular in the 1920s in Hollywood. He was the first recipient of the Academy Award for Best Actor for his roles in '' The La ...
as Paul I. This film is considered lost, although fragments of it still exist in the UCLA Film Archives.
References
Pahlen in literature
Pahlen in Sartre's 'Nausea'Pahlen in the writing of John Quincy AdamsPahlen in the writings of Thomas Jefferson
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pahlen, Petr Alekseevich
1745 births
1826 deaths
People from Haljala Parish
People from the Governorate of Estonia
Baltic German people from the Russian Empire
Nobility from the Russian Empire
House of Pahlen
Members of the State Council (Russian Empire)
Imperial Russian Army generals
Russian Empire regicides
Recipients of the Order of St. George of the Third Degree
Recipients of the Order of Saint Lazarus
Paul I of Russia