Barclay de Tolly () is the name of a Baltic German noble family of Scottish origin (

Clan Barclay Clan Barclay () is a Scottish clan of the Scottish Lowlands. History Origins of the clan Since the eighteenth century, Barclay historians, noted for their low level in medieval scholarship, have assumed the Scottish family Barclay (de Berch ...

). During the time of the Revolution of 1688 in Britain, the family migrated to

Swedish Livonia Swedish Livonia ( sv, Svenska Livland) was a dominion of the Swedish Empire from 1629 until 1721. The territory, which constituted the southern part of modern Estonia (including the island of Ösel ceded by Denmark after the Treaty of Bröm ...

from Towy (

Towie ''The Only Way Is Essex'' (often abbreviated as ''TOWIE'' ) is a British reality television series based in Brentwood, Essex, England. It shows "real people in modified situations, saying unscripted lines but in a structured way." Originally ...

) in

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire ( sco, Aiberdeenshire; gd, Siorrachd Obar Dheathain) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the County of Aberdeen which has substantially different boundaries. The Aberdeenshire Council area inclu ...

. Its subsequent generations became a German-speaking family in

Livonia Livonia ( liv, Līvõmō, et, Liivimaa, fi, Liivinmaa, German and Scandinavian languages: ', archaic German: ''Liefland'', nl, Lijfland, Latvian and lt, Livonija, pl, Inflanty, archaic English: ''Livland'', ''Liwlandia''; russian: Ли ...

, which became part of 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 the 1700–1721

Great Northern War The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swe ...

. Weinhold Gotthard Barclay de Tolly (; 1734–1781) was a ''

poruchik The rank of lieutenant in Eastern Europe ( hr, poručnik, cs, poručík, pl, porucznik, russian: script=latn, poruchik, sr, script=latn, poručnik, sk, poručík) is one used in Slavophone armed forces. Depending on the country, it is either ...

'' of the Russian Army and a descendant of one of the

burgomaster Burgomaster (alternatively spelled burgermeister, literally "master of the town, master of the borough, master of the fortress, master of the citizens") is the English form of various terms in or derived from Germanic languages for the chie ...

s 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 ...

. He was the first of his family to be accepted into the

Russian nobility The Russian nobility (russian: дворянство ''dvoryanstvo'') originated in the 14th century. In 1914 it consisted of approximately 1,900,000 members (about 1.1% of the population) in the Russian Empire. Up until the February Revolutio ...

. He was married to Margaretha Elisabeth von Smitten (1733–1771), and they had four sons: Emil Johann, a General in the Russian service; B. Michael Bogdanovitch; C. Andrei Bogdanovitch, a Colonel; and Michael Bogdanovitch (known as Prince

Michael Andreas Barclay de Tolly Prince Michael Andreas Barclay de Tolly (german: Fürst Michael Andreas Barclay de Tolly; baptised – ) was an Imperial Russian soldier of Baltic German and Scottish origin, who was commander-in-chief and Minister of War of the Russian Empir ...

), a very prominent military commander who was made 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 1813 and a

prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. ...

in 1815 by

Alexander I of Russia Alexander I (; – ) was Emperor of Russia from 1801, the first King of Congress Poland from 1815, and the Grand Duke of Finland from 1809 to his death. He was the eldest son of Emperor Paul I and Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg. The son o ...

. After the extinction of the original Barclay de Tolly princely line upon the death in 1871 of Prince Michael's son, Magnus,

Alexander II of Russia Alexander II ( rus, Алекса́ндр II Никола́евич, Aleksándr II Nikoláyevich, p=ɐlʲɪˈksandr ftɐˈroj nʲɪkɐˈlajɪvʲɪtɕ; 29 April 181813 March 1881) was Emperor of Russia, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Fin ...

allowed Prince Michael's sister's grandson (through female lineage), Alexander von Weymarn, to assume the title of Prince Barclay de Tolly-Weymarn in 1872.

Notable family members

* Prince

( – ) was an

Imperial Russian 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. Th ...

Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...

and Minister of War during Napoleon's invasion in 1812 and

War of the Sixth Coalition In the War of the Sixth Coalition (March 1813 – May 1814), sometimes known in Germany as the Wars of Liberation, a coalition of Austria, Prussia, Russia, Spain, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Sweden, and a number of German States defeated F ...

. In: ''BBLD – Baltisches biografisches Lexikon digital'' Göttingen 2012- He implemented a number of reforms during this time which improved the supply system in the army, doubled the number of army troops, and implemented new combat training principles. He was also the

Governor-General of Finland The governor-general of Finland ( fi, Suomen kenraalikuvernööri; sv, generalguvernör över Finland; russian: генерал-губернатор Финляндии) was the military commander and the highest administrator of Finland sporadic ...

. * Prince Alexander Barclay de Tolly-Weymarn (December 22, 1824 – May 8, 1905) was an Imperial Russian regiment commander, division commander and corps commander. He was the son of Wilhelm Peter Jost von Weymarn and great-nephew of Prince Michael Andreas Barclay de Tolly. He married Marie Friederike von Seddeler in 1849 and had three children: daughters Alexandrine (Ada) Auguste Olga Barclay de Tolly-Weymarn and Marie (Mira) Georgia Augusta Barclay de Tolly-Weymarn, and son Ludwig (Louis) Alexander Michael Barclay de Tolly-Weymarn.

Sources

Josselson, M., & Josselson, D. (1980). ''The commander : a life of Barclay de Tolly''. Oxford University Press.

Notes

{{Reflist, group=nb Russian noble families Russian families of Scottish origin Livonian noble families