The House of Zubov () was the Russian noble family, that rose to occupy some of the highest offices of state in the 1790s, when Platon Zubov became the last favorite of Empress

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 ...

(). Members of the family were granted the title

Prince of the Holy Roman Empire Prince of the Holy Roman Empire (, , cf. ''Fürst'') was a title attributed to a hereditary ruler, nobleman or prelate recognised by the Holy Roman Emperor. Definition Originally, possessors of the princely title bore it as immediate vassal ...

in 1796 by Francis I.

History

The Zubovs were first noticed in the service of Muscovite dukes in the 15th century. Nikolay Vasilievich Zubov (1699–1786) served in the Collegium of Economics, and his son (1727–1795) reputedly enriched himself serving as Vice-Governor of Vladimir. Alexander Zubov had one daughter and four sons; in 1793, together with his sons, he received the title of

Count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

. His children were: * Nikolay Zubov (1763–1805), who became a general when his family was still in power. Known as a strongman, he served in Suvorov's army and married (1794) Suvorov's only daughter Natalia Alexandrovna (1775–1844). * (1764–1835), major general in the

Imperial Russian Army The Imperial Russian Army () was the army of the Russian Empire, active from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was organized into a standing army and a state militia. The standing army consisted of Regular army, regular troops and ...

, considered the founder of the Lithuanian branch of the family. He dedicated himself later to agricultural matters. He was married to princess Praskovją Viazemskaja (Прасковья Александровна Вяземская, 1772–1835), with whom he had four daughters and only one son: Jezilaveta, Varvara, Catherine, Nicholas and Anna. * Platon Zubov (1767–1822), whom his distant relative, Nicholas Saltykov introduced to the ageing Empress in 1789 and who soon became her lover and the most powerful man in Russia. He was the fourth (and last) Russian to bear the title of

. * Valerian Zubov (1771–1804), who while serving under Suvorov in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, married a Princess Marianna Lubomirska (1773-1810) and lost his leg in a battle. At the time of Catherine's death in 1796 he was leading the Russian army in

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 ...

. *

Olga Zherebtsova Olga Alexandrovna Zherebtsova (née Zubova; (; 1766–1849), also known as Madame Gerebtzoff, was a Russian aristocrat and socialite, known foremost for her political involvement and love life. She was the sister of the celebrated Zubov brothers, ...

(1766–1849), became involved (along with Nikolay and Platon Zubov) in plotting the assassination of Emperor Paul I, carried out in 1801; she left Russia soon afterwards. The lines of Count Nicholas and of his brother Dmitry continue up to the present. Nicholas's great-grandson Valentin (1884–1969) was a leading authority on the period of the reign of Emperor Paul I and authored several books on the subject. He was director of the

Gatchina Palace The Great Gatchina Palace () is a palace in Gatchina, Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It was built from 1766 to 1781 by Antonio Rinaldi (architect), Antonio Rinaldi for Count Grigori Grigoryevich Orlov, who was a favourite of Catherine the Great, in ...

museum and founded the Art History Institute in

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 ...

before emigrating to

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in 1925. Dmitry's only son, Nicholas, merged with the local Lithuanian nobility and supported the

Lithuanian National Revival The Lithuanian National Revival, alternatively the Lithuanian National Awakening or Lithuanian nationalism (), was a period of the history of Lithuania in the 19th century, when a major part of Lithuanian-inhabited areas belonged to the Russian ...

characterized by cultural and educational activities. So did his descendants, Vladimir Zubov (born 1862) and his son (born 1887). The Zubovs had two family vaults, one at the Donskoy Monastery in

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 ...

built in 1796–1798, and another at the Maritime Monastery of St. Sergius in Strelna near Saint Petersburg, completed in 1809.

References

{{reflist
Zubov family
in the

Great Russian Encyclopedia The ''Great Russian Encyclopedia'' (''GRE''; , БРЭ, transliterated as ''Bolshaya rossiyskaya entsiklopediya'' or academically as ''Bol'šaja rossijskaja ènciklopedija'') is a universal Russian encyclopedia, completed in 36 volumes, publishe ...

Zubov family in the Governorate of Penza
Zubov family