Nikolai Petrovich Arkharov (; – January 1814) was a Russian chief of police best known for having given his name to the Russian term ''arkharovtsy'', an ironic appellation of policemen.

Biography

Nikolai Arkharov came from a noble family. In 1754 he was enrolled at the Guards, in 1756 started the service as soldier of 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 ...

and in 1761 was promoted to officer. His rising began after the mission of 1771 into

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

, enveloped by the disastrous

epidemic An epidemic (from Greek ἐπί ''epi'' "upon or above" and δῆμος ''demos'' "people") is the rapid spread of disease to a large number of hosts in a given population within a short period of time. For example, in meningococcal infection ...

of plague and mutiny (known as the Plague Riot), under the direction of Count Grigori Orlov. Count Orlov arrived to Moscow on 26 September 1771 with numerous doctors and four Guards regiments. Arkharov proved himself as energetic and executive officer. Apparently, with the aid of Orlov, with whom he was familiar earlier, Arkharov was transferred into the police with the rank of colonel. After the successfully conducted inquest of the case of

Yemelyan Pugachev Yemelyan Ivanovich Pugachev (also spelled Pugachyov; ; ) was an ataman of the Yaik Cossacks and the leader of the Pugachev's Rebellion, a major popular uprising in the Russian Empire during the reign of Catherine the Great. The son of a Do ...

Arkharov was appointed in 1775 the

Chief of police A chief of police (COP) is the title given to an appointed official or an elected one in the command hierarchy, chain of command of a police department, particularly in North America. A chief of police may also be known as a police chief or somet ...

. Here he distinguished himself as one of the best detective of that time. His subordinates were called by people "arkharovtsy" - this word in the course of time became nominal.

Catherine II 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 III ...

sometimes invited Arkharov into Petersburg for the investigation of serious thefts. On 28 July 1777 he became major general, in 1779 received the Order of St. Anna of the 1st degree and from 1782, he was a Moscow governor. In 1783 Arkharov was elevated into general-ensign, in 1785 became the general-governor of

Tver Tver (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative centre of Tver Oblast, Russia. It is situated at the confluence of the Volga and Tvertsa rivers. Tver is located northwest of Moscow. Population: The city is ...

and

Novgorod Veliky Novgorod ( ; , ; ), also known simply as Novgorod (), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the oldest cities in Russia, being first mentioned in the 9th century. The city lies along the V ...

. From 1790 he was also the director of the water communications and significantly contributed to the canal-building in his region. From 1795 to 1796 he was General Governor of St Petersburg. Upon his accession to the throne, Emperor

Paul I Paul I may refer to: *Paul of Samosata (200–275), Bishop of Antioch *Paul I of Constantinople (died c. 350), Archbishop of Constantinople *Pope Paul I (700–767) *Paul I Šubić of Bribir (c. 1245–1312), Ban of Croatia and Lord of Bosnia *Paul ...

awarded Arkharov the

Order of Alexander Nevsky The Order of Alexander Nevsky () is an Order (distinction), order of merit of the Russia, Russian Federation named in honour of saint Alexander Nevsky (1220–1263) and bestowed to civil servants for twenty years or more of highly meritorious ser ...

, promoted him to full general and appointed him the second general governor of St Petersburg (the first was

Grand Prince Grand prince or great prince (feminine: grand princess or great princess) (; ; ; ; ) is a hereditary title, used either by certain monarchs or by members of certain monarchs' families. Grand duke is the usual and established, though not litera ...

Alexandr Pavlovich). On 15 June 1797 Arkharov was dismissed and was exiled into

Tambov Tambov ( , ; rus, Тамбов, p=tɐmˈbof) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Tambov Oblast, Central Federal District, central Russia, at the confluence of the Tsna River (Moksha basin), Tsna ...

governorate without the right to visit both the capitals. This right was returned to him in the next reign. Nikolai Arkharov died and buried in his estate Rasskazovo near Tambov.

References

* * Длуголенский Я.Н. '' Военно-гражданская и полицейская власть Санкт-Петербурга - Петрограда. Генерал-губернаторы, гражданские губернаторы, градоначальники.'', St Petersburg, 2002 {{DEFAULTSORT:Arkharov, Nikolai Petrovich 1740 births 1814 deaths People from Rasskazovo People from Tambovsky Uyezd Russian nobility Governors-general of Saint Petersburg Governors of Moscow Governorate Generals of the infantry (Russian Empire) Russian municipal police chiefs Police chiefs from the Russian Empire 18th-century military personnel from the Russian Empire Recipients of the Order of St. Vladimir, 1st class Recipients of the Order of St. Anna, 1st class