If you haven't noticed from my Discord and forum avatars by now, I'm a huge Napoleonic Wars nerd and I have been using some of the great portraits of lesser-known generals (and admirals) as my avatars. Here in this thread is a catalogue of the portraits I have used and brief summaries of the generals' lives and accomplishments.
Napoleonic era generals (and admirals) who have a cool portrait
- Thread starter Picairn
- Start date
This handsome-looking fellow is Prince Mikhail Semyonovich Vorontsov (30 May 1782 – 18 November 1856), Governor-General of New Russia and viceroy of Besserabia (modern day southern Ukraine and Moldova), a Russian nobleman and field marshal who participated in the Napoleonic Wars and the Crimean War.
Born to the illustrious Vorontsov family, his father Count Semyon Vorontsov was an influential diplomat, and his uncle Count Alexander Vorontsov was Chancellor of the Russian Empire in the early years of Tsar Alexander I's reign.
His military career was expansive: From 1803 to 1804 he served in the Caucasus, in Central Europe from 1805 to 1807 (he was present at Pultusk and Friedland), and he participated in the Russo-Turkish War from 1809 to 1811. When Napoleon invaded Russia in 1812, he commanded a grenadier division in Bragation's army, and defended against Davout's attack at Borodino. Wounded in the battle, he rejoined the army in 1813 and fought at Dennewitz and Leipzig. He was in charge of the Russian Occupation Corps in France from 1815 to 1818.
In May 1823 he was appointed Governor-General of New Russia and viceroy of Besserabia. When the Russo-Turkish War of 1828-1829 happened, he captured Varna as commander of the Russian forces besieging the city in September 1828. In 1844, Vorontsov was appointed commander-in-chief and viceroy of the Caucasus.
By 1848 he had captured two-thirds of Dagestan, and the situation of the Russians in the Caucasus, so long almost desperate, was steadily improving. For his campaign against Shamil, and for his difficult march through the dangerous forests of Ichkeria, he was raised to the dignity of prince, with the title of Serene Highness. In the beginning of 1853, Vorontsov was allowed to retire because of his increasing illness. He was made a field-marshal in 1856, and died the same year at Odessa.
He was one of the most outstanding generals and administrators of the Napoleonic and post-Napoleonic period in Russia, and developed a reputation for honest and efficient governance. The above painting was painted in 1821 by British artist Sir Thomas Lawrence, when Vorontsov was visiting his sister in Great Britain and attending George IV's coronation. The painting is currently stored in the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg.
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