Grigory Grigoryevich Orlov
Encyclopedia
Count Grigory Grigoryevich Orlov (1734–1783) was the lover of Empress Catherine the Great of Russia who fathered two of her children.

He was the son of Gregory Orlov
Orlov
Orlov is the name of a Russian noble family which produced several distinguished statesmen, diplomatists and soldiers. The family first gained distinction in the person of four Orlov brothers, of whom the senior was Catherine the Great's paramour, and the two junior were notable military...

, governor of Great Novgorod. He was educated in the corps of cadets at St Petersburg, began his military career in the Seven Years' War
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War was a global military war between 1756 and 1763, involving most of the great powers of the time and affecting Europe, North America, Central America, the West African coast, India, and the Philippines...

, and was wounded at Zorndorf
Battle of Zorndorf
The Battle of Zorndorf was a battle fought on August 25, 1758 during the Seven Years' War, fought between the forces of the Russians troops under the command of Count William Fermor – and a Prussian army under King Frederick the Great...

. While serving in the capital as an artillery officer he caught the fancy of the then Grand Duchess Catherine Alekseyevna
Catherine II of Russia
Catherine II, also known as Catherine the Great , Empress of Russia, was born in Stettin, Pomerania, Prussia on as Sophie Friederike Auguste von Anhalt-Zerbst-Dornburg...

, and was the leader of the conspiracy which resulted in the dethronement and death of her husband, Emperor Peter III
Peter III of Russia
Peter III was Emperor of Russia for six months in 1762. He was very pro-Prussian, which made him an unpopular leader. He was supposedly assassinated as a result of a conspiracy led by his wife, who succeeded him to the throne as Catherine II.-Early life and character:Peter was born in Kiel, in...

 (1762).

After the event, Empress Catherine raised him to the rank of count and made him adjutant-general, director-general of engineers and general-in-chief. They had two illegitimate children, Yelizaveta and Aleksey, were born in 1761 and 1762 respectively. The son was named after the village of Bobriki where he lived; from him descends the line of Counts Bobrinsky
Bobrinsky
Counts Bobrinsky or Bobrinskoy are a Russian noble family descending from Catherine the Great's natural son by Count Grigory Orlov - Aleksey Grigorievich Bobrinsky .-The first count:...

. Orlov's influence became paramount after the discovery of the Khitrovo plot to murder the whole Orlov family. At one time the Empress thought of marrying her favorite, but the plan was frustrated by her influential advisor Nikita Panin.

Orlov was no statesman, but he had a quick wit, a fairly accurate appreciation of current events, and was a useful and sympathetic counsellor during the earlier portion of Catherine's reign. He entered with enthusiasm, both from patriotic and from economical motives, into the question of the improvement of the condition of the serfs and their partial emancipation. As the President of the Free Economic Society
Free Economic Society
Free Economic Society for the Encouragement of Agriculture and Husbandry was Russia's first learned society which formally did not depend on the government and as such came to be regarded as a bulwark of Russian liberalism.-18th century:...

, he was also their most prominent advocate in the great commission
Nakaz
Nakaz, or Instruction, of Catherine the Great was a statement of legal principles authored by Catherine II of Russia, and permeated with the ideas of the French Enlightenment. It was compiled as a guide for the All-Russian Legislative Commission convened in 1767 for the purpose of replacing the...

 of 1767, though he aimed primarily at pleasing the empress, who affected great liberality in her earlier years.

He was one of the earliest propagandists of the Slavophile
Slavophile
Slavophilia was an intellectual movement originating from 19th century that wanted the Russian Empire to be developed upon values and institutions derived from its early history. Slavophiles were especially opposed to the influences of Western Europe in Russia. There were also similar movements in...

 idea of the emancipation of the Christians from the Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

 yoke. In the year of 1771 he was sent as first Russian plenipotentiary to the peace congress of Focşani
Focsani
Focşani is the capital city of Vrancea County in Romania on the shores the Milcov river, in the historical region of Moldavia. It has a population of 101,854.-Geography:...

; but he failed in his mission, owing partly to the obstinacy of the Ottomans, and partly (according to Panin) to his own outrageous insolence. On returning without permission to his Marble Palace
Marble Palace
Marble Palace is one of the first Neoclassical palaces in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is situated between the Field of Mars and Palace Quay, slightly to the east from New Michael Palace....

 at St Petersburg, he found himself superseded in the empress's favor by the younger Potemkin.

In order to rekindle Catherine's affection, Grigory presented to her one of the greater diamonds of the world, known ever since as the Orlov Diamond. When Grigory Potemkin
Grigori Alexandrovich Potemkin
Prince Grigory Aleksandrovich Potemkin-Tavricheski was a Russian military leader, statesman, nobleman and favorite of Catherine the Great. He died during negotiations over the Treaty of Jassy, which ended a war with the Ottoman Empire that he had overseen....

, in 1771, superseded Vasil'chikov, Orlov became of no account at court and went abroad for some years. He returned to Russia a few months previously to his death, which took place at Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...

in 1783. For some time before his death he was out of his mind. Late in life he married his niece, Madame Zinovyeva, but left no children by that marriage.
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