Nikolay Nikolayevich Muravyov-Karsky (; 13 August 1794 – 4 November 1866) was an

Imperial Russia Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor/empress, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * ...

n military officer and General of the

Russian Army The Russian Ground Forces (), also known as the Russian Army in English, are the Army, land forces of the Russian Armed Forces. The primary responsibilities of the Russian Ground Forces are the protection of the state borders, combat on land, ...

. A member of the mighty Muravyov family. He became famous for the capture of Kars in the

Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...

, for which he was unofficially nicknamed Karsky ("of Kars").

Biography

He founded a circle in Moscow that aimed to establish a

republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...

Sakhalin Island Sakhalin ( rus, Сахали́н, p=səxɐˈlʲin) is an island in Northeast Asia. Its north coast lies off the southeastern coast of Khabarovsk Krai in Russia, while its southern tip lies north of the Japanese island of Hokkaido. An islan ...

and was a member of the Sacred Artel circle (St. Petersburg, 1814–17; many members of both circles became Decembrists). In 1816 he was seconded to the commander of the Separate Georgian (from 1820 Separate Caucasian) Corps Lieutenant-General A. P. Yermolov, in 1817 he travelled to

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

as part of an extraordinary

embassy A diplomatic mission or foreign mission is a group of people from a Sovereign state, state or organization present in another state to represent the sending state or organization officially in the receiving or host state. In practice, the phrase ...

. Muravyov took part in an expedition to the eastern shore of the

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, described as the List of lakes by area, world's largest lake and usually referred to as a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia: east of the Caucasus, ...

, negotiated with the Khan of Khiva on trade between the

khanate A khanate ( ) or khaganate refers to historic polity, polities ruled by a Khan (title), khan, khagan, khatun, or khanum. Khanates were typically nomadic Mongol and Turkic peoples, Turkic or Tatars, Tatar societies located on the Eurasian Steppe, ...

and Russia (1819–20). Muravyov fought well at Akhaltsikhe in the Russo-Turkish War (1828–29) and distinguished himself during the battle of Warsaw (1831) of the

November Uprising The November Uprising (1830–31) (), also known as the Polish–Russian War 1830–31 or the Cadet Revolution, was an armed rebellion in Russian Partition, the heartland of Partitions of Poland, partitioned Poland against the Russian Empire. ...

. Continuing to serve in the military, he took active part in the fights of the

, being

Namestnik A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the Anglo-Norman ''roy'' (Old Frenc ...

and commander of the Separate Caucasus Corps (11.12.1854–3.8.1856). On his arrival in the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

, in a letter to the general of the Infantry Yermolov he accused the Caucasian troops of loss of fighting spirit and "disorder, rooted in many years of careless management" (the letter and a polemical anonymous response to it by Prince D. I. Svyatopolk-Mirsky soon became public). For Muravyov's role in the Siege of Kars, captured on November 28, 1855 (according to

Gregorian calendar The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It went into effect in October 1582 following the papal bull issued by Pope Gregory XIII, which introduced it as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian cale ...

), "Karski/Karsky" ("of Kars") was added to his surname in society and later in literature, although he did not officially receive this title. In 1855 he tried to achieve a truce with Shamil. Instead of "formidable expeditions" against the highlanders, which, in his opinion, had no real result, he advocated increased

colonization 475px, Map of the year each country achieved List of sovereign states by date of formation, independence. Colonization (British English: colonisation) is a process of establishing occupation of or control over foreign territories or peoples f ...

of the occupied territories. Disagreement with these proposals was the reason for his resignation. Member of the State Council (from 1856).

Writings

* ''Война за Кавказом в 1855 году'' ar beyond the Caucasus in 1855 Vols. 1–2. Saint Petersburg, 1876. * ''Турция и Египет в 1832 и 1833 годах'' urkey and Egypt in 1832 and 1833 Pts. 1–4. Moscow, 1870–1874. * ''Путешествие в Туркмению и Хиву в 1819 и 1820 годах'' ravelling to Turkmenia and Khiva in 1819 and 1820 Pts. 1–2. Moscow, 1822. * ''Русские на Босфоре'' ussians on the Bosphorus Moscow, 1869.

Notelist

Sources

* 1794 births 1866 deaths Imperial Russian Army generals Nobility from the Russian Empire Russian people of the November Uprising Russian military personnel of the Crimean War People of the Caucasian War Russian military personnel of the Caucasian War {{russia-mil-bio-stub