Count Ivan Petrovich Saltykov (; 28 June 1730 – 14 November 1805) was a
Russian field marshal, the
governor-general of Moscow from 1797 to 1804, and owner of the grand estate of
Marfino.
Biography
Ivan was the only son of Field-Marshal
Pyotr Semyonovich Saltykov. He began military service at the age of 15 in the
Semenovsky Regiment
The Semyonovsky Lifeguard Regiment (, ) was one of the two oldest guard regiments of the Imperial Russian Army. The other one was the Preobrazhensky Regiment. In 2013, it was recreated for the Russian Armed Forces as a rifle regiment, its na ...
at the rank of private. In 1758 he was inducted into the Imperial Court at the junior rank of
Kamer-Junker.
During the
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...
Saltykov distinguished himself at the capture of both
Königsberg
Königsberg (; ; ; ; ; ; , ) is the historic Germany, German and Prussian name of the city now called Kaliningrad, Russia. The city was founded in 1255 on the site of the small Old Prussians, Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teuton ...
and
Elbing, and at the
Battle of Zorndorf
The Battle of Zorndorf, during the Seven Years' War, was fought on 25 August 1758 between Russian troops commanded by Count William Fermor and a Prussian army commanded by King Frederick the Great. The battle was tactically inconclusive, with b ...
. After the onset of peace he received a promotion to
major general and was decorated with the
Order of St. Anna, 2nd class, by
Peter III. At
Catherine the Great
Catherine II. (born Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst; 2 May 172917 November 1796), most commonly known as Catherine the Great, was the reigning empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796. She came to power after overthrowing her husband, Peter I ...
's coronation, he was awarded the
Order of St. Alexander Nevsky
The Imperial Order of Saint Alexander Nevsky was an order of chivalry of the Russian Empire first awarded on by Empress Catherine I of Russia.
History
The introduction of the Imperial Order of Saint Alexander Nevsky was envisioned by Emperor ...
.
At the start of the
Russo-Turkish War of 1768–1774 the now Lieutenant-General Saltykov served under the command of
Rumyantsev at the
Battle of Kagul
The Battle of Kagul or Cahul (, ) occurred on 1 August 1770 (21 July 1770 in Julian Calendar) during the Russo-Turkish War of 1768–1774. It was the decisive and most important land battle of the war and one of the largest battles of the 18th ce ...
. He was also present at the seizure of
Khotyn
Khotyn (, ; , ; see #Name, other names) is a List of cities in Ukraine, city in Dnistrovskyi Raion, Chernivtsi Oblast of western Ukraine, located south-west of Kamianets-Podilskyi. It hosts the administration of Khotyn urban hromada, one of th ...
. Commanding the army's heavy cavalry forces, he gained marked distinction for his bravery and received both the
Order of St. George
The Order of Saint George () is the highest military decoration of the Russian Federation. It was originally established on 26 November 1769 Julian (7 December 1769 Gregorian) as the highest military decoration of the Russian Empire for commiss ...
, 2nd Class, and the
Gold Sword for Bravery
The Gold Sword for Bravery () was a Russian award for bravery. It was set up with two grades on 27 July 1720 by Peter the Great, reclassified as a public order in 1807 and abolished in 1917. From 1913 to 1917 it was renamed the Saint George ...
with Diamonds.
With the end of yet another war, Saltykov was now a full General and sent to command a corps stationed in the newly acquired Polish provinces of the empire.
In 1780, to improve the health of his family he set out on an extended journey beyond the borders of Russia. With his wife and young children he traveled to
Berlin
Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
,
Dresden
Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...
, and
Brussels
Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...
. They lived for three months in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
and spent the better part of a year in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, where the Saltykovs lived so extravagantly that a Russian messenger to the French court wrote to Count
Alexander Vorontsov
Count Alexander Romanovich Vorontsov () (4 February 17412 December 1805) was the Chancellor of the Russian Empire during the early years of Alexander I of Russia, Alexander I's reign.
He began his career at the age of fifteen in the Izmailovsky ...
that "They are the disgrace of our whole nation."
[Е. П. Карнович. Замечательные богатства частных лиц в России.- Спб., 1874.- С. 95.]
In 1784 he was given governorship over both Vladimir and Kostroma Viceroyalties while also being appointed a
General-Adjutant. In 1788
War
War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...
broke out anew with Turkey, and the general was called to join the ranks of the field army.
His army succeeded in retaking the
Khotyn Fortress
The Khotyn Fortress (, , , ) is a fortification complex located on the right bank of the Dniester River in Khotyn, Chernivtsi Oblast (oblast, province) of southwestern Ukraine. It lies within the historical region of northern Bessarabia, a Roman ...
. In 1790 Catherine entrusted him with command of
the army based in Finland. During this,
an unsuccessful operation was conducted under his supervision. Upon the signing of the
Treaty of Värälä, Saltykov was granted the honorary lieutenant-colonelcy of the
Life Guard Horse Regiment
The Life Guard Horse Regiment () was a cavalry regiment of the Imperial guard of Russian Empire. The regiment was founded in the reign of Peter the Great and was disbanded after the October Revolution in 1917. Its annual feast day was 25 March. ...
and the
Order of St. Andrew with Diamonds.
Saltykov's military leadership was primarily distinguished by his tremendous bravery. His skills in other areas of command were considered somewhat lacking.
Suvorov, for example was reportedly highly skeptical of his abilities. Additionally, Saltykov became enmeshed in a controversy with Rumyantsev which forced him in 1795 to retire, yet the following year
Paul
Paul may refer to:
People
* Paul (given name), a given name, including a list of people
* Paul (surname), a list of people
* Paul the Apostle, an apostle who wrote many of the books of the New Testament
* Ray Hildebrand, half of the singing duo ...
ascended to the throne and recalled him to the service. The new emperor showered him with distinctions, updating his rank to full general, making him the chief of
His Majesty's Cuirassier Regiment, and
Governor-General
Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...
of
Kiev
Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...
. Not soon after he was made a field marshal and inspector general of cavalry for the entire army.
Towards the end of 1797, Saltykov was appointed Governor-General of Moscow, which in a previous era had been held by his father. In reality, the reins of government were held by another appointee of Paul; the Prussian-born police chief
Fyodor Ertel. The Count left for himself only the responsibilities of command over the city's military parades and ceremonial appearances. Muscovites for a long time afterwards recalled his magnificent and wasteful lifestyle.
The death of his wife in 1802 was a heavy blow for Saltykov, and was a major factor in the decline of his own health, which prompted him to ask for retirement in 1804. He moved to
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 ...
, living in the home of his wealthy son-in-law
Pyotr Myatlev, and died soon after. He was buried near his father at the village of Nikolskoye near
Rostov
Rostov-on-Don is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East European Plain on the Don River, from the Sea of Azov, directly north of t ...
.
Family
Count Saltykov was married to
Darya Petrovna Saltykova, daughter of the noted diplomat
Pyotr Grigoryevich Chernyshyov. She was esteemed as a pillar of the Moscow high society and had an extremely close relationship to her husband. Together they had four children: Praskovya (1772–1859), Ekaterina (1776–1815), Anna (1777–1824), and Pyotr (1784–1813). The daughters all served as ladies-in-waiting at the Imperial Court, and two went on to marry and have children. Pyotr followed in his father's footsteps as a cavalry officer. He became a decorated colonel in the army during Napoleon's Invasion of Russia, but died less than a year later from medical complications that resulted from being wounded in battle. He was unmarried and childless.
References
Bibliography
* Великий князь Николай Михайлович. «Русские портреты XVIII и XIX столетий». Выпуск 2, № 104.
* Бантыш-Каменский, Д. Н. 33-й Генералъ-Фельдмаршалъ Графъ Иванъ Петровичь Салтыковъ // Биографии российских генералиссимусов и генерал-фельдмаршалов. В 4-х частях. Репринтное воспроизведение издания 1840 года. – М.: Культура, 1991.
Governors-general of Moscow
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saltykov, Ivan Petrovich
1730 births
1805 deaths
Field marshals of the Russian Empire
Governors-general of Kiev
Sheikh Mansur Movement
Saltykov family