The House of Lieven (; ; ) is one of the oldest and most aristocratic families of Scandinavian and Baltic-German origin.

History

The family is descended from Caupo of Turaida (Latvian, ''Kaupo''), the Livonian ''quasi rex'' who converted to Christianity in 1186, when Bishop Meinhard attempted to Christianize the region. The ''

Livonian Chronicle of Henry The ''Livonian Chronicle of Henry'' () is a Latin narrative of events in Livonia (roughly corresponding to today's Estonia and Latvia) and surrounding areas from 1180 to 1227. It was written by a priest named Henry. Apart from some references ...

'' tells that in the winter 1203–1204 Caupo went to Rome with Theoderich von Treyden, a Cistercian Monk who was later to become the founder of the

Livonian Brothers of the Sword The Livonian Brothers of the Sword (; ) was a Catholic Church, Catholic Military order (monastic society), military order established in 1202 during the Livonian Crusade by Albert of Riga, Albert, the third bishop of Riga (or possibly by Theode ...

and the first bishop of

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

. They were received in Rome by

Pope Innocent III Pope Innocent III (; born Lotario dei Conti di Segni; 22 February 1161 – 16 July 1216) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 January 1198 until his death on 16 July 1216. Pope Innocent was one of the most power ...

who supported their plans to Christianize Livonia, ennobled Caupo and granted him his coat of arms and the name Lieven. Caupo's grandson Nicholas was the first to spell his name Lieven. According to feudal records, the Lieven ancestor Gerardus Līvo (1269) and his son Johannes (1296) entered service as vassals to the Archbishop of Rīga. One of Caupo's daughters married an ancestor of the barons, later Counts, of Ungern-Sternberg.

Notable family members

*Reinhold Lieven of Eksjö, the Swedish governor of Oesel (

Saaremaa Saaremaa (; ) is the largest and most populous island in Estonia. Measuring , its population is 31,435 (as of January 2020). The main island of the West Estonian archipelago (Moonsund archipelago), it is located in the Baltic Sea, south of Hi ...

), in 1653 was the first to be made a

baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often Hereditary title, hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than ...

together with his brother, whose son Lieutenant-General Baron Hans Heinrich Lieven accompanied

Charles XII Charles XII, sometimes Carl XII () or Carolus Rex (17 June 1682 – 30 November 1718 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.), was King of Sweden from 1697 to 1718. He belonged to the House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken, a branch line of the House of ...

in all his campaigns and expeditions. Before, he had studied philosophy at Leiden University in Holland, finishing his studies in 1637. Among Reinhold's descendants, one branch settled in

Courland Courland is one of the Historical Latvian Lands in western Latvia. Courland's largest city is Liepāja, which is the third largest city in Latvia. The regions of Semigallia and Selonia are sometimes considered as part of Courland as they were ...

and was recognized in 1801 as in the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

. *Johann-Christoph Lieven was the first member of the family to gain distinction in the Russian service: he served as Governor of Arkhangelsk under

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 ...

and as General of Infantry under

Emperor Paul Paul I (; – ) was Emperor of Russia from 1796 until his assassination in 1801. Paul remained overshadowed by his mother, Catherine the Great, for most of his life. He adopted the laws of succession to the Russian throne—rules that lasted ...

. *Baron Otto Heinrich Lieven of Eksjö (1726–1781) married in 1766 Baroness Charlotte von Gaugreben (1743–1828), who was entrusted by Emperor Paul with the task of educating his daughters and younger sons,

Nicholas Nicholas is a male name, the Anglophone version of an ancient Greek name in use since antiquity, and cognate with the modern Greek , . It originally derived from a combination of two Ancient Greek, Greek words meaning 'victory' and 'people'. In ...

and Mikhail Pavlovich. In recognition of her services Paul made her a countess in 1799. When her pupil Nicholas became the Emperor of Russia in 1826, the 84-year-old governess was made a Princess with the title of Her Serene Highness. The title was hereditary and passed to her descendants, of which the following were notable. *Her son, Prince Christoph Heinrich von Lieven (1774–1838), accompanied

Alexander I of Russia Alexander I (, ; – ), nicknamed "the Blessed", 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 in 1825. He ruled Russian Empire, Russia during the chaotic perio ...

during the

Battle of Austerlitz The Battle of Austerlitz (2 December 1805/11 Frimaire An XIV French Republican calendar, FRC), also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of the most important military engagements of the Napoleonic Wars. The battle occurred near t ...

and at the signing of the Peace of Tilsit. In 1809 he was sent to represent Russia at the

Prussian court The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918. Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signi ...

and, in the crisis of 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 ...

in 1812, was transferred to London as the Minister Plenipotentiary to the court of St. James's, a post which he kept for 22 years. Somewhat overshadowed by his more illustrious wife, Dorothea von Lieven (née von Benckendorff), Prince Lieven took part in the

Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon, Napol ...

and died in Rome when he accompanied the future

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, Congress Poland, King of Poland and Grand Du ...

on his Grand Tour. *His elder brother, Prince Carl Christoph von Lieven (1767–1844), started his career as an aide-de-camp to

Prince Potemkin Prince Grigory Aleksandrovich Potemkin-Tauricheski (A number of dates as late as 1742 have been found on record; the veracity of any one is unlikely to be proved. This is his "official" birth-date as given on his tombstone.) was a Russian mi ...

, administered the garrison of Arkhangelsk under Paul and ended his career as Imperial Minister of Education (1828–33). *Prince Alexander Friedrich von Lieven (1801–1880), son of the preceding, Major-General, served as Governor of

Taganrog Taganrog (, ) is a port city in Rostov Oblast, Russia, on the north shore of Taganrog Bay in the Sea of Azov, several kilometers west of the mouth of the Don (river), Don River. It is in the Black Sea region. Population: Located at the site of a ...

in 1844–1853, and senator 1853–1880. *Prince Nikolaus Wilhelm Karl Johannes von Lieven (1831- 1900), married to Mathilde Sophie v. Manteuffel born 16.11.1847 in Saarenhof decided in Innsbruck 1930. *Prince Andrey Alexandrovich Lieven (1839–1913), his son, was the Senator and Minister of State Properties in 1877–81. * Jelena Lieven (1842–1917), Imperial Russian pedagogue, sister of the above. *Prince Alexander Karl Nikolai von Lieven (1860-1914), was an admiral 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 being dissolved in the wake of the February Revolution and the declaration of ...

: in 1878 entered in service; in 1911 was appointed chief of the naval general staff. *Prince Anatol Leonid von Lieven (1872–1937) commanded a Russo-German battle group in

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

; Lieven forbade his men to fight the Estonian Army in

Vidzeme Vidzeme (; Old Latvian orthography: ''Widda-semme'', ) is one of the Historical Latvian Lands. The capital of Latvia, Riga, is situated in the southwestern part of the region. Literally meaning "the Middle Land", it is situated in north-centra ...

, unlike the rest of the '' Baltische Landeswehr''. His ''Liventsy'' performed only rear security services for the ''Landeswehr'' during the campaign. After the

Latvian War of Independence The Latvian War of Independence (), sometimes called Latvia's freedom battles () or the Latvian War of Liberation (), was a series of military conflicts in Latvia between 5 December 1918, after the newly proclaimed Republic of Latvia was invade ...

he became a Latvian citizen and a manufacturer of bricks. * Elena Lieven (born 1947), a developmental psychologist at the

Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology The Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology (, shortened to MPI EVA) is a research institute based in Leipzig, Germany, that was founded in 1997. It is part of the Max Planck Society network. Well-known scientists currently based at ...

in Leipzig and the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...

. *

Dominic Lieven Dominic Lieven (born 19 January 1952) is an English research professor at Cambridge University (Senior Research Fellow, Trinity College) and a Fellow of the British Academy and of Trinity College, Cambridge. Education Lieven was educated at ...

(born 1952), senior research fellow,

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

, and

Fellow of the British Academy Fellowship of the British Academy (post-nominal letters FBA) is an award granted by the British Academy to leading academics for their distinction in the humanities and social sciences. The categories are: # Fellows – scholars resident in t ...

. *

Anatol Lieven Anatol Lieven (born 28 June 1960) is a British author, journalist, and policy analyst. He is currently a visiting professor at King's College London and senior fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. Background Peter ...

(born 1960), visiting professor,

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

, and senior fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. *Dame Nathalie Lieven (born 1964), a Justice of the

High Court of Justice The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal (England and Wales), Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Courts of England and Wales, Senior Cour ...

of England and Wales

In popular culture

Thomas Lieven is the name of the fictional protagonist of the tongue-in-cheek spy novel "It Can't Always Be Caviar" by Austrian writer Johannes Mario Simmel.

References

External links

Lieven family, Latvian Encyclopedia (Latvian)

- Genealogy handbook of

Baltic nobility The Baltic German nobility was a privileged social class in the territories of modern-day Estonia and Latvia. It existed continuously from the Northern Crusades and the medieval foundation of Terra Mariana. Most of the nobility consisted of Bal ...

von Lieven
in

Svenskt biografiskt handlexikon ''Svenskt biografiskt handlexikon'' () is a compact Sweden, Swedish dictionary of biography first published in 1873–1876 by the physician and antiquarian Herman Hofberg (1823–1883). The second, updated edition was published in 1906, under th ...

von Lieven
in

Nordisk familjebok (, 'Nordic Family Book') is a Swedish language, Swedish encyclopedia that was published in print from between 1876 and 1993, and that is now fully available in digital form via Project Runeberg at Linköping University. The public domain edit ...

Lievens
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