Robert Bruce (; 1668–1720) was the first chief commander of

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

. Of Scottish descent, he was the brother of Jacob Bruce and father of Alexander Romanovich Bruce.

Biography

In 1683, Bruce joined the personal armed forces of Peter I, in 1695 receiving the rank of captain in the Preobrazhensky Regiment. He took part in the Azov campaigns of Peter I (1695–6) and probably accompanied

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

on his travels abroad (1697–1698). In 1700, he was appointed colonel of one of the infantry regiments, which participated in the siege of

Narva Narva is a municipality and city in Estonia. It is located in the Ida-Viru County, at the Extreme points of Estonia, eastern extreme point of Estonia, on the west bank of the Narva (river), Narva river which forms the Estonia–Russia border, E ...

. In 1702, he was at siege and capture of Noteburg; in 1703 he participated in the capture of

Nyenskans Nyenschantz (; ; ) was a Sweden, Swedish fortress at the confluence of the Neva River and Okhta River, the site of present-day Saint Petersburg, Russia. Nyenschantz was built in 1611 to establish Swedish rule in Ingria, which had been annexed from ...

. On 17 May 1704 he was appointed chief commander of St. Petersburg. In this role, he served the city well, making use of the frequent absences St. Petersburg Governor Alexander Danilovich Menshikov to improve defences. In 1706, he attempted to take the city of

Vyborg Vyborg (; , ; , ; , ) is a town and the administrative center of Vyborgsky District in Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It lies on the Karelian Isthmus near the head of Vyborg Bay, northwest of St. Petersburg, east of the Finnish capital H ...

, ending in failure in October. In 1708, he was sent to protect St. Petersburg and assist Admiral Fedor Matveevich Apraksin. That autumn, he helped Apraksin's expedition to destroy the forces of Swedish general Lyubeker attempting to reverse Russian gains in

Ingria Ingria (; ; ; ) is a historical region including, and adjacent to, what is now the city of Saint Petersburg in northwestern Russia. The region lies along the southeastern shore of the Gulf of Finland, bordered by Lake Ladoga on the Karelian ...

. In 1710, (March to June) – he was at the siege and capture of

, for which he was awarded estates. From July to the first week of September he besieged and conquered Kexholm, taking it on 8 September. Bruce was promoted to Lieutenant General, and ended his military career. Subsequent years until his death he devoted exclusively to life in St. Petersburg, paired with the title of chief commandant. Bruce died in 1720 and was buried within the Peter and Paul Fortress.

References

1668 births 1720 deaths Russian military personnel of the Great Northern War Generals of the Tsardom of Russia Military personnel from Saint Petersburg Russian people of Scottish descent

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, prais ...

17th-century Russian nobility {{Russia-mil-bio-stub