Prince Vasily Vladimirovich Dolgorukov (; c. January 1667 – 11 February 1746,

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 ...

) was a Russian

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

and politician, promoted to

Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...

(''генерал-фельдмаршал'') in 1728. His life and fortune swung like a weather vane, due to complex plots and the troubled time following

Peter the Great Peter I (, ; – ), better known as Peter the Great, was the Sovereign, Tsar and Grand Prince of all Russia, Tsar of all Russia from 1682 and the first Emperor of Russia, Emperor of all Russia from 1721 until his death in 1725. He reigned j ...

's death.

Life

Son of a

boyar A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Bulgaria, Kievan Rus' (and later Russia), Moldavia and Wallachia (and later Romania), Lithuania and among Baltic Germans. C ...

, Vasili Dolgorukov was, starting from 1685, a

stolnik Stolnik (, , , , ) was a court office in Lithuania, Poland, Ukraine and Russia, responsible for serving the royal table, then an honorary court title and a district office. It approximately corresponds to English term wikt:pantler, "pantler". S ...

at the royal court. He was then enlisted in the Preobrazhensky regiment in 1700, starting his true military career. Serving in the Preobrazhensky regiment, he took part in Russian Northern Wars and distinguished himself during the siege of Mitava in 1705. In 1706, he was transferred to

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

, where he was under the command of

Ivan Mazepa Ivan Stepanovych Mazepa (; ; ) was the Hetman of the Zaporozhian Host and the Left-bank Ukraine in 1687–1708. The historical events of Mazepa's life have inspired Cultural legacy of Mazeppa, many literary, artistic and musical works. He was ...

, where he distinguished himself in 1707–1708 during the squelching of the Bulavin Rebellion. During the Battle of Poltava he was the commander of the reserve

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

force. In 1715, he was sent to Poland as a represent of Peter (who was ill at that time), where he concluded, in 1716, a pact with Danzig, forcing the city into an anti-Swedish policy. He also accompanied

during his foreign travels in 1717 and 1718. Despite being a favorite of

, Dolgorukov disapproved a number of Peter's reforms, and eventually became a partisan of tsarevich Alexei Petrovich. In 1718, following Alexei's trial and death, Dolgorukov reproached Peter such a violent behavior towards his own son. Dolgorukov was tried, demoted and exiled to Solikamsk. Following Catherine I's

coronation A coronation ceremony marks the formal investiture of a monarch with regal power using a crown. In addition to the crowning, this ceremony may include the presentation of other items of regalia, and other rituals such as the taking of special v ...

on 7 May 1724. Dolgorukov was brought back from his exile and given the rank of colonel and then

brigadier Brigadier ( ) is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore (rank), commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several t ...

. In 1726, he was appointed commander-in-chief of Caucasus forces. In 1728, as an ultimate consecration of his military career, he was promoted

field marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...

and member of the

Supreme Privy Council The Supreme Privy Council () of Imperial Russia, founded on 19 February 1726 and operative until 1730, originated as a body of advisors to Empress Catherine I. History Originally, the council comprised six members— Alexander Menshikov, Fyodor ...

. After Anna Ioanovna's coronation in 1730, Dolgoroukov was appointed to

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

and made president of College of War. However, reportedly made insulting remarks regarding persecutions staged by Anna against his family. In 1731, after a complex plot, he was accused of insulting remarks regarding the Empress and sentenced to death. His sentence was changed to

life imprisonment Life imprisonment is any sentence (law), sentence of imprisonment under which the convicted individual is to remain incarcerated for the rest of their natural life (or until pardoned or commuted to a fixed term). Crimes that result in life impr ...

first in Schlisselburg fortress, then in Ivangorod in 1737, and finally he was exiled for life to the

Solovetsky Monastery The Solovetsky Monastery (, ) is a fortified monastery located on the Solovetsky Islands in the White Sea in northern Russia. It was one of the largest Christian citadels in northern Russia before it was converted into a Soviet Union, Soviet pris ...

in 1739. In December 1741, following Elizabeth's coronation, Dorgorukov was brought back from his exile and fully rehabilitated. Elizabeth named him president of the College of War, a rank that he assumed until his death. While serving in the War College, Dolgoroukov made significant improvements regarding the organization and logistics of Russian military.

References

* ''Soviet military encyclopedia'' * Bantysh-Kamensky, ''Biographies of Russian generalissimes and field marshals'', Moscow, 1991. *

Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary The ''Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopaedic Dictionary'' (35 volumes, small; 86 volumes, large) is a comprehensive multi-volume encyclopaedia in Russian. It contains 121,240 articles, 7,800 images, and 235 maps. It was published in the Russian Em ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dolgorukov, Vasily Vladimirovich 1660s births 1746 deaths Field marshals of the Russian Empire Vasily Vladimirovich Recipients of the Order of St. George of the Third Degree 18th-century military personnel from the Russian Empire Imperial Russian Army generals Russian military personnel of the Great Northern War Members of the Supreme Privy Council Burials at the Annunciation Church of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Poland)