Lev Naryshkin
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Lev Alexandrovich Naryshkin (; also known as Léon Narychkine) (5 February 1785—1846, Naples) was a Russian Imperial aristocrat who fought in the
Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...
.


Biography

He was the son of Alexander Lvovich Naryshkin and his wife Maria Alexeyevna Senyavina, daughter of Admiral Alexei Senyavin. This made Lev brother to Elena Aleksandrovna Naryshkina and first cousin to Prince
Mikhail Semyonovich Vorontsov Prince Mikhail Semyonovich Vorontsov (; ) was a Russian nobleman and field-marshal, renowned for his success in the Napoleonic Wars and most famous for his participation in the Caucasian War from 1844 to 1853. Early life Vorontsov was born on ...
, who fought in the Napoleonic Wars and the conquest of the Caucasus. Naryshkin was educated at home by private tutors under the French abbé Nicol. He entered the court as a page and became a chamberlain on 15 March 1799. He was made a lieutenant on 22 January 1803 in the
Preobrazhensky regiment The Preobrazhensky Lifeguard (military), Life-Guards Regiment (, ''Preobrazhensky leyb-gvardii polk'') was a regiment of the Russian Imperial Guard, Imperial Guard of the Imperial Russian Army from 1683 to 1917. The Preobrazhensky Regiment was ...
, then a cavalry captain on 13 February 1807 in the Hussar Regiment of the
Imperial Guard An imperial guard or palace guard is a special group of troops (or a member thereof) of an empire, typically closely associated directly with the emperor and/or empress. Usually these troops embody a more elite status than other imperial force ...
. He fought at Gutstadt, Heilsberg and Friedland, where he was wounded in the arm and decorated with a gold sabre. He was demobilised and returned to his work as a chamberlain at the court. The
French invasion of Russia The French invasion of Russia, also known as the Russian campaign (), the Second Polish War, and in Russia as the Patriotic War of 1812 (), was initiated by Napoleon with the aim of compelling the Russian Empire to comply with the Continenta ...
forced Naryshkin back into the army as a cavalry captain in the 11th Izyumovsky Hussars Regiment, and he faced the
Grande Armée The (; ) was the primary field army of the French Imperial Army (1804–1815), French Imperial Army during the Napoleonic Wars. Commanded by Napoleon, from 1804 to 1808 it won a series of military victories that allowed the First French Empi ...
at the battle of Ostrovno, near
Smolensk Smolensk is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River, west-southwest of Moscow. First mentioned in 863, it is one of the oldest cities in Russia. It has been a regional capital for most of ...
, on 25 and 26 July 1812, then at
Borodino The Battle of Borodino ( ) or Battle of Moscow (), in popular literature also known as the Battle of the Generals, took place on the outskirts of Moscow near the village of Borodino on 7 September 1812 during Napoleon's invasion of Russia. T ...
, where he was wounded in the head. He then fought under General Ferdinand von Wintzingerode, and they were captured by the French in September 1812. He was freed by Cossacks near
Vitebsk Vitebsk or Vitsyebsk (, ; , ; ) is a city in northern Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Vitebsk Region and Vitebsk District, though it is administratively separated from the district. As of 2025, it has 358,927 inhabitants, m ...
and rejoined his regiment, in which he became colonel on 19 November 1812, in recognition of his bravery at
Berezina The Berezina or Byarezina (, ; ) is a river in Belarus and a right tributary of the Dnieper. The river starts in the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve. The length of the Berezina is . The width of the river is 15–20 m, the maximum is 60 m. The ba ...
. He then fought in the battles near
Kalisz Kalisz () is a city in central Poland, and the second-largest city in the Greater Poland Voivodeship, with 97,905 residents (December 2021). It is the capital city of the Kalisz Region. Situated on the Prosna river in the southeastern part of Gr ...
and helped push the French back into Prussia and Saxony. He was made a major general on 18 January 1814. He then fought under von Wintzingerode's orders again in the Army of the North and faced Napoleon's army at
Großbeeren Großbeeren is a Municipalities of Germany, municipality in the district of Teltow-Fläming in the Germany, German state of Brandenburg. Geography Located about 3 km south of Berlin's city limits. It includes the localities of ''Diedersdorf'' ...
and
Dennewitz Dennewitz is a village of Germany, in the federal state and old Prussian province of Brandenburg, near Jüterbog, 40 km. S.W. from Berlin. It is part of the municipality of Niedergörsdorf, Teltow-Fläming district. History It is memorable a ...
on 6 September 1813, after which he received the
Order of Saint 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 ...
, fourth class, on 9 October 1813. He also received the
Order of Saint Vladimir The Imperial Order of Saint Prince Vladimir () was an Imperial Russian order established on by Empress Catherine the Great, Catherine II in memory of the deeds of Vladimir I, Prince of Kiev, Saint Vladimir, the Grand Prince and the Baptizer of ...
, third class after the
Battle of the Nations A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force c ...
, in which he was wounded. He then commanded a Cossack brigade in Holland and northern France, serving in the forces occupying France from 1815 to 1818. He then returned to Russia and civilian life in 1824. He became squire to the court, and in 1843 was appointed to the personal staff of the Tsar. On 6 December 1843, he was made adjutant general, and in 1844 lieutenant general. Late in life, he went to
Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
for his health and died there. He was buried in the Saint-Lazare cemetery at the
Alexander Nevsky Lavra Saint Alexander Nevsky Lavra or Saint Alexander Nevsky Monastery was founded by Peter I of Russia in 1710 at the eastern end of the Nevsky Prospekt in Saint Petersburg, in the belief that this was the site of the Neva Battle in 1240 when Alexa ...
. He married Countess Olga Potocka (1802–1861), daughter of Count
Stanisław Szczęsny Potocki Count Stanisław Szczęsny Feliks Potocki (; 1751–1805), of the Piława coat of arms, known as Szczęsny PotockiE. Rostworowski, Potocki Stanisław Szczęsny (Feliks) herbu Pilawa, n:Polski Słownik Biograficzny, t. XXVIII, Wrocław–Wars ...
and
Zofia Potocka Zofia Potocka (; – 24 November 1822) was a Greek slave courtesan and a Russian agent, later a Polish noblewoman. She was famous in contemporary Europe for her beauty and adventurous life. During the Russo-Turkish War she was the lover of th ...
, with whom he had a daughter, Sofia (1829–1894) who married Count Pyotr Pavlovich
Shuvalov The House of Shuvalov () is the name of a Russian noble family, which was documented since the 16th century. The Shuvalov family rose to distinction during the reign of Empress Elizabeth and was elevated to the rank of count on 5 September 174 ...
in 1846. {{DEFAULTSORT:Narychkin, Lev 1785 births 1846 deaths Russian commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Lev Burials at the Annunciation Church of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra