Count Ivan Fedoseevich Botsis ( el, Ιωάννης Μπότσης, russian: Иван Федосеевич Боцис, died 18 May 1714Боцис, граф Иван Федосеевич
at ''biografija.ru'') was a Russian admiral of Greek descent and one of the main founders of the

Imperial Russian Navy The Imperial Russian Navy () operated as the navy of the Russian Tsardom and later the Russian Empire from 1696 to 1917. Formally established in 1696, it lasted until dissolved in the wake of the February Revolution of 1917. It developed from ...

under Peter the Great.

Life

Botsis was a

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

from Dalmatia, and served in the Venetian galley fleet for 17 years. He was hired for Russian service by

Pyotr Andreyevich Tolstoy Count Pyotr Andreyevich Tolstoy (russian: Граф Пётр Андреевич Толстой; 1645–1729) was a Russian statesman and diplomat, prominent during and after the reign of Peter the Great. He was the ancestor of all the Counts Tol ...

in 1702. At the time, Russia was engaged in the

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-Swed ...

and the

Tsar Tsar ( or ), also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar'', is a title used by East and South Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word ''caesar'', which was intended to mean "emperor" in the European medieval sense of the ter ...

tried to westernize Russia and establish a modern navy. Many foreigners were therefore invited to Russia and employed in high positions as experts. After his arrival in Russia in 1703, Botsis was appointed as '' shautbenaht'' (a

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

title equivalent to Counter Admiral) and head of the galley squadrons of the newly established Baltic Fleet, based at

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 ...

and the fortress of

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 ...

.Боцис, Иван Федосеевич
/ref> From this position, Botsis oversaw the construction of the Baltic galley fleet. In 1704–1705, he helped General , the commander of St. Petersburg, to repulse the attacks of a Swedish army under General . In 1708 the fleet under Botsis successfully attacked the

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

coast, capturing the town of Borgå, raiding the surrounding villages and burning 15 Swedish merchant ships. In 1710, he commanded a fleet of 270 vessels, and managed to break through the ice-covered sea to bring supplies and reinforcements to the forces besieging the city of Vyborg. In 1712, a 14,000 strong Swedish army under General

Georg Henrik Lybecker Georg Lybecker was a Swedish friherre and Lieutenant General of the Swedish Army, he was son to Georg Henrik Lybecker and Catharina Grissbach. He died on 4 June 1718 at Värsta, Närke (his birth date is unknown). Military career After joining ...

was threatening St. Petersburg. On the night of August 10, Botsis with two dozen ships broke through the Swedish blockade, raided the Swedish coastal positions, and captured 6 warships. In 1713 he commanded the rear guard of the fleet that carried the army of Prince

Mikhail Golitsyn Prince Mikhail Mikhailovich Golitsyn or Galitzin (russian: Михаи́л Миха́йлович Голи́цын, tr. ; 1 November 1675 in Moscow – 10 December 1730) was a Russian Imperial field marshal (1725) and a president of the Colleg ...

to Finland, and participated in the bombardment of

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...

. His naval abilities and his character were highly esteemed by Peter: together with Vice Admiral Cornelius Cruys, Botsis was proxy father to the Tsar in his wedding to the Empress

Catherine Katherine, also spelled Catherine, and other variations are feminine names. They are popular in Christian countries because of their derivation from the name of one of the first Christian saints, Catherine of Alexandria. In the early Christ ...

on 9 February 1712, and when Botsis died, the Tsar took his sword as a souvenir and gave pensions to his family.

References

Sources

*
Боцис, граф Иван Федосеевич
at ''biografija.ru'' *
Боцис, Иван Федосеевич
*
ШАУТБЕНАХТ БОЦИС
Морской флот No.5 (2007), at ''morflot.su'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Botsis, Ivan 1714 deaths Russian military personnel of the Great Northern War Greek admirals Russian people of Greek descent Imperial Russian Navy admirals People from Dalmatia Year of birth unknown