Kirill Razumovsky Explained

Kirill Razumovsky
Office:Hetman of the Zaporizhian Host
Term Start:1750
Term End:1764
Predecessor:Office re-established (previously Danylo Apostol)
Successor:Office abolished
Birth Date:18 March 1728
Birth Place:Lemeshi, Kiev Regiment, Cossack Hetmanate, Russian Empire
Death Place:Baturin, Chernigov Governorate, Russian Empire
Restingplace:Refectory Church of Resurrection of Christ, Baturyn
Spouse:Yekaterina Naryshkina
Children:11, including Aleksey, Andrey, Grigory and Natalia
Residence:Saint Petersburg
Baturin
Rank:General field marshal (1764)

Count Kirill Grigoryevich Razumovsky or Razumovski (also known as Cyril Razumovski; Russian: Кирилл Григорьевич Разумовский; Ukrainian: Кирило Григорович Розумовський|Kyrylo Hryhorovych Rozumovskyi;[1]  -) was a Russian statesman of Ukrainian Cossack origin who served as the last hetman of the Zaporozhian Host on both sides of the Dnieper (from 1750 to 1764) and then as a General field marshal in the Imperial Russian Army. Razumovsky was also the president of the St. Petersburg Imperial Academy of Sciences from 1746 to 1798.

Biography

Kirill Rozum was born into the Razumovsky family, at that time low-rank family of Cossack Grigory (Hryhoriy) Rozum in the settlement of Lemeshi in the (now in Chernihiv Raion, Chernihiv Oblast, Ukraine) on 18 March 1728.[2]

From 1743 to 1744, Kirill Razumovsky incognito attended the University of Göttingen. Razumovsky's adjutant in his journey to Germany was Grigory Teplov. Teplov wielded influence over Little Russia in his capacity as the secretary and advisor to Kirill Razumovsky (whose cousin he married). Razumovsky was appointed President of the Russian Academy of Sciences when he just turned 18 years old due to the influence of his brother, Aleksey Razumovsky, the morganatic husband of Empress Elisabeth of Russia.

In 1750, Razumovsky was elected and subsequently appointed Hetman of Zaporizhian Host, a title he held until Catherine II of Russia abolished this title in 1764, in exchange Razumovsky was granted a rank of Field marshal of Russian Army in 1764. During his service as Hetman of Zaporizhian Host, Baturin was re-established as residence of the Hetman, and Razumovsky had opulent baroque palaces erected both in Baturin as well as in Glukhov by the imperial architect Andrey Kvasov and Charles Cameron. Together with Grigory Teplov he also planned to open a university in Baturin. Kirill Razumovsky died in January 1803 in Baturin, where he was interred according to his wishes without any pomp, in stark contrast to his rather flamboyant lifestyle.

Kirill married Yekaterina Naryshkina and had five sons, of whom Count Aleksey Kirillovich Razumovsky (1748–1822) was the Minister of Education in 1810–1816, and Prince Andrey Razumovsky (1752–1836) was the Russian plenipotentiary ambassador in Vienna in the years of the Congress 1814–1815. However, Andrey has become better known for his role as patron of Ludwig van Beethoven who dedicated three String Quartets, Op.59 1, 2 and 3, as well as the 5th and 6th Symphonies to him. Any living descendants in the male line of Kirill Razumovsky arise from the progeniture of his fourth son Gregory Razumovsky (1759–1837), who had to emigrate to Western Europe and acquired relative fame as natural scientist and member of a number of distinguished scientific societies in Austria, Prussia and Switzerland.

Coat of arms

Legacy

Further reading

External links

Predecessor
Governing Council
(Yakiv Lyzohub)
Hetman of Zaporizhian Host
1750 - 1764
Successor
Collegium of Little Russia
(post liquidated)

Notes and References

  1. [Oleksander Ohloblyn]
  2. Putro, O. Kyrylo Rozumovsky (РОЗУМОВСЬКИЙ КИРИЛО ГРИГОРОВИЧ). Encyclopedia of History of Ukraine.