Field Marshal General Prince Nikolai Vasilyevich Repnin

Prince Nikolai Vasilyevich Repnin belonged to the brilliant cohort of "Catherine's eagles", whose labor won the glory and power of the Russian state in the golden age of Catherine II. A brilliant diplomat, statesman and public figure, commander-this is how the ninth cavalier of the highest military award of the empire went down in history.

Nikolai Vasilyevich Repnin was born on March 11, 1734.* He came from an ancient princely family that traced its roots back to Saint Prince Mikhail of Chernigov. He received a good education at home and, according to the traditions of the time, was enlisted as a soldier in the Preobrazhensky Life Guards Regiment at the age of 11.

Nikolai Repnin received his baptism of fire during the Seven Years' War. As a volunteer, the young officer participated in the battles of Gross-Jägersdorf, the capture of Königsberg, and Marienwerder. For his bravery during the siege of Küstrin (1758), he was promoted to the rank of captain in the Guards. Upon returning to St. Petersburg, Repnin left the Guards and joined the army regiment as a colonel. He then participated in the campaign against Berlin as part of Z.G. Chernyshev's corps. After the war with Prussia, 28-year-old Repnin was promoted to the rank of major general.

Emperor Peter III, who had sworn eternal friendship with King Frederick of Prussia, sent the prince as an ambassador to Berlin, where Repnin stayed until 1763. While at the court of one of Europe's most accomplished military leaders, he continued his military education by studying his tactics and strategy.

The prince put his theory into practice by participating in the battles of Reichenbach and Schweidnitz against his former Austrian allies.

Catherine II, who came to the throne, demanded the return of the prince to Russia. In St. Petersburg, he was favored by the new government, and was awarded the Order of St. John the Baptist. Anna of the 1st degree and appointed director of the land gentry corps. But his service in the field of education was short - lived-within a few months Repnin was sent as Minister plenipotentiary to Poland. Here he led an active policy and contributed to the rapid conclusion of the Warsaw Pact, which gave equal rights to the Catholic and Orthodox population of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The new Polish king, Stanisław Poniatowski, who received the ancient Piast throne largely due to the decisive actions of Nikolai Repnin, awarded him the Order of the White Eagle and the Order of St. Stanisław.

The approaching war with the Ottoman Empire required the prince's return to Russia. He was recalled to St. Petersburg, awarded the Order of St. Alexander Nevsky for his success in Polish affairs, and promoted to the rank of lieutenant general (1768).

The military knowledge he gained in the three European armies came in handy during the war with the Turks. As part of A.M. Golitsyn's 1st Army, Repnin proved himself to be a skilled and courageous military leader. In the 1769 campaign, he participated in the blockade and capture of the Khotyn fortress. The following year, he commanded a separate corps in Moldavia and Wallachia, successfully preventing the 32,000-strong Turkish army from crossing the Prut River. He then fought under Rumyantsev's banner at Larga and Kagul, and was awarded the Order of St. George, 2nd Class, for his example of courage, which inspired his subordinates to overcome difficulties, remain fearless, and achieve victory.

In the campaign of 1771, the prince commanded all the troops stationed in Wallachia. On June 10, near the walls of the Vakareşt Monastery near Bucharest, Repnin led a small detachment and defeated the 10,000-strong Turkish corps of Ahmet Pasha. However, the commander-in-chief of the Russian forces, Field Marshal General P. A. Rumyantsev, criticized him for allowing the Turks to occupy the fortress of Giurgiu, which was surrendered to the enemy by the commandant, Major Gensel, despite the availability of large supplies of food and ammunition. Insulted and distressed by this injustice, Repnin requested to be transferred abroad. However, in 1774, he returned to the theater of war and fought against the Turks near the walls of Silistria. The prince demonstrated his exceptional diplomatic skills in negotiating the terms of the Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca, which he signed on behalf of Russia on July 10.

Rumyantsev sent Repnin to St. Petersburg with news of the successful conclusion of the war. The Empress favored the envoy, promoted him to the rank of general-in-chief, and awarded him the rank of lieutenant colonel in the Izmaylovsky Regiment of the Imperial Guard. From 1775 to 1778, the prince served as the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Turkey, and later became the Governor-General of Smolensk and Oryol.

However, his civil service career did not last long. During the War of the Bavarian Succession, which broke out in 1778,

* All dates are given in the old style.

page 66

between Austria, on the one hand, and Prussia and Saxony, on the other, Nikolai Repnin, at the head of a 30 - thousandth corps, was sent to the Czech Republic to settle the conflict. Either the prince's diplomatic talents affected, or the bayonets of the Russian corps played a role, but Austria made concessions, and peace was concluded at the congress, which took place on May 13, 1779 in Teschen (Silesia). Empress Catherine highly appreciated the Prince's contributions to restoring order in the part of Europe adjacent to the Empire's borders and awarded him the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called. At the same time, King Frederick the Great of Prussia, who maintained a friendly correspondence with the Prince, presented him with the Order of the Black Eagle.

In 1787, a new war broke out with Turkey. General-in-Chief Repnin participated in the siege and capture of Ochakov (1788), and before the arrival of Potemkin, he commanded the Ukrainian army in Moldavia. On September 7, 1788, he defeated the Turkish army of Seraskier Hasan Pasha on the Salcha River.

In February 1791, Commander-in-Chief G. A. Potemkin left for the capital, handing over the army to Repnin, who replaced him, and leaving him instructions to engage only in defensive battles and not to take any active measures.

However, the Turkish command decided to launch a strong attack on the Russian troops. To achieve this, the Grand Vizier, Yusuf Pasha, began to assemble a powerful force in the Machin region. Repnin soon became aware of the Turkish plans. The commander-in-chief decided to preempt the enemy. His plan was to launch a major attack on Machin with the main forces that had crossed the Danube near Galatz, while launching a diversionary attack from the direction of Izmail by the Bug Jäger Corps of Lieutenant General Mikhail Kutuzov, reinforced by the Don Cossacks. To carry out his plan, Repnin began moving his main forces towards Galatz, while ordering Major General Deribas to prepare the crossing facilities.

Kutuzov skillfully executed a diversionary attack, inflicting a heavy defeat on the 20,000-strong Turkish corps near Babadagh. Approximately 1,500 Turkish soldiers were left on the battlefield. Kutuzov then began advancing towards Machin. Meanwhile, Repnin crossed the Danube and marched rapidly in the same direction. On June 27, the Russian regiments regrouped. Prince S. F. Golitsyn's corps was positioned on the right flank. The left flank was occupied by the regiments of General M.I. Kutuzov's Bug Jäger Corps. Between them was the corps of Prince G.S. Volkonsky. In total, there were about 60,000 men under the command of the commander-in-chief. They were opposed by a Turkish army of over 80,000 men.

The battle began at 6 a.m. on June 28. General-Lieutenant Golitsyn was the first to lead his battalions into the attack, and he opened artillery fire on the enemy camp. The Tatar cavalry attacked Golitsyn's square formation, but was repelled by accurate rifle fire. The arrival of Volkonsky's cavalry, which immediately pursued the retreating enemy, completed the victory.

Soon, Prince Volkonsky's regiments joined Golitsyn and also opened artillery fire. Meanwhile, Kutuzov's Jaegers on the right flank of the Turks stormed the dominant heights occupied by the enemy. The battle was extremely fierce. Several times, it seemed that Kutuzov's Jaegers would be overpowered. However, Prince Repnin closely monitored the battle and sent reinforcements to his left flank at the right moment. In vain, the Turkish command tried to cut off Prince Kutuzov's detachment from the main forces and destroy it.

The Turks' attempts to launch a strong attack on the right flank of the Russian forces also ended in failure, as they were repelled with significant losses. The retreating Turks were pursued by the cavalry almost all the way to their camp. Soon, Kutuzov's Jaegers appeared on the enemy's right flank. After this, the Russian offensive became widespread. The Turks fled in panic towards Girsov, abandoning their weapons, ammunition, and supplies. The light cavalry pursued the fleeing enemy. The victory was complete. More than four thousand Turks fell on the battlefield. As trophies, the Russian troops received 35 cannons and fifteen banners. Among the prisoners was one of the leaders of the Turkish army, the two-turbaned Pasha Megmet-Arnaut. Russian losses amounted to only 141 killed and about 300 wounded.

The victory was so significant that the next day, Turkish parliamentarians arrived at the prince's camp with proposals for peace. On July 31, Repnin and the Turkish plenipotentiary signed preliminary peace terms in Galatz: the terms of the Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca were reaffirmed, the border between the two states was established along the Dniester River, and the lands between the Bug and the Dniester were assigned to Russia.

On August 1, Potemkin arrived in Galatz from St. Petersburg. The anger of the Prince, who believed that his victory over the Turks had been stolen, was terrible. Repnin responded to Potemkin: "I have fulfilled my duty and am ready to answer the Empress and the Fatherland." The Empress appreciated the military leader's feat, awarding him the Order of St. George, 1st Class, on July 15, 1791, for his brilliant victory at Machin.

Field Marshal General N.V. Repnin was the last person to be awarded the highest degree of the Order of St. George in the 18th century. During the reign of Paul I, who was critical of his mother's work, no awards were made with this order. This was not because there were no deeds worthy of this honor, but because Emperor Paul, who hated everything Russian, neglected the most prestigious Russian award and preferred the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, which he had established. Emperor Alexander I restored the practice of awarding the highest military order.

He also praised the achievements of Prince Nikolai Vasilyevich Repnin, a military commander and diplomat, and signed a decree two months after his death on May 12, 1801, which stated: "In recognition of our great respect for the military and civil achievements of General Field Marshal Prince Repnin, in memory of his virtues and love for his country... We decree that his own grandson, born to his daughter, Colonel Prince Nikolai Volkonsky, shall take his surname, and henceforth be known as Prince Repnin. That the line of the Repnin princes, who have served their country so gloriously, may not be extinguished with the death of the last member of the family.

page 67