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Ekaterina Dmitrievna Golitsyna | |
|---|---|
 Portrait of Ekaterina Golitsyna,Charles-André van Loo, 1759. | |
| Born | Ekaterina Dmitrievna Cantemir 4 November 1720 Saint Petersburg,Tsardom of Russia |
| Died | 2 November 1761 (1761-11-03) (aged 40) Paris,Kingdom of France |
| Buried | Annunciation Church of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra |
| Noble family | Cantemirești |
| Spouse(s) | Dmitry Mikhailovich Golitsyn the Younger |
| Father | Dimitrie Cantemir |
| Mother | Anastasiya Trubetskaya |
Ekaterina Dmitrievna Golitsyna (Russian:Екатерина Дмитриевна Голицына;née Cantemir [Кантемир]; 4 November 1720 – 2 November 1761), was aRussian noblewoman ofMoldavian ancestry.[1][2]
Born as Ekaterina DmitrievnaCantemir inSaint Petersburg on 4 November 1720, she was the daughter of the Moldavian princeDimitrie Cantemir (1673–1723).[1][3] In 1711, her father acceptedRussian citizenship and moved toRussia. He received, fromPeter I, the title ofGrand Duke and in 1717 married PrincessAnastasiya Ivanovna Trubetskaya. They had three children, but only Ekaterina reached adulthood, later losing her father when she was only four years old.[4]
In 1744, she becamemaid of honor, one of the most beautiful, charming and famous women in the entourage of EmpressElizabeth of Russia. In 1745, together with her mother, she went abroad to join her mother's second husband,Ludwig Gruno of Hesse-Homburg. After his death inBerlin, the mother and daughter did not immediately return home. They traveled extensively, lived inParis for a few years, and, only with the death of their grandfather in 1750, returned to Russia.
Her childhood was very painful, and it is likely that she knew from a young age that she could not have children. For a long time she refused all offers of marriage, and only late in life she married PrinceDmitry Golitsyn,[5] captain of theIzmailovsky Life Guards Regiment. The wedding took place on the 28 January 1751 at the imperial court, a lavish wedding and in the presence of Empress Elizabeth. On the day following the wedding a dinner and ball took place to which 200 people were invited.
In 1755, her mother died. In 1757 they left Russia with their uncle,Ivan Betskoy, arriving inParis.
In 1760, Prince Dmitry Golitsyn was appointed Russian ambassador toParis, and Ekaterina became one of the leading women at the royal palace inVersailles and Paris.[6]
In 1761 Dmitry Golitsyn obtained a new diplomatic post inVienna. However, he was unable to accept the post due to his wife's serious illness.
She died in Paris on 2 November 1761. The following year, the princess' remains were transferred toSaint Petersburg and buried in theChurch of the Annunciation of theAleksandr Nevsky Monastery.