Matvei Ivanovich Platov | |
|---|---|
 Portrait byGeorge Dawe | |
| Born | 19 August [O.S. 8 August] 1753 |
| Died | 15 January [O.S. 3 January] 1818 |
| Allegiance |  Russian Empire |
| Branch | Imperial Russian Army |
| Years of service | 1769–1818 |
| Rank | General of the cavalry |
| Battles / wars | |
CountMatvei orMatvey Ivanovich Platov (Russian:Матвей Иванович Платов; 8 [19N.S.] August 1753[2] – 3 [15 N.S.] January 1818) was a Russian general who commanded theDon Cossacks in theNapoleonic Wars and foundedNovocherkassk as the new capital of theDon Host Province.
Platov was born in Pribilyanskoe (stanitsa informer Starocherkasskaya[3]), into a family ofGreek descent.[4][5] He began his service in the Don Cossacks in 1766 becoming anyesaul in 1769. He distinguished himself in the 1771 Crimean campaign and was promoted to the command of a Cossack regiment in 1772. Between 1774 and 1784 he fought against theCrimean Tatars, in 1774 and again in 1782 serving underAlexander Suvorov in theKuban Valley, Chechnya and Dagestan.[1] In 1790 he was awarded theOrder of St George (4th Class) for his participation in thecapture of Ochakov, and after actions in Akkerman, Bender, and Kaushani for which he was promoted to brigadier general, he was awarded the Order of St George (3rd Class) for thestorming of Izmail.[1] For his bravery during the assault he was promoted toataman of the Ekaterinoslav and Chuguev Cossacks, and on 12 January 1793 he was promoted tomajor-general. During 1796 he was awarded theOrder of St. Vladimir (3rd class) and agolden sword for courage in thePersian Campaign.
Disgraced by the EmperorPaul I of Russia as a result of rumours spread by the emperor's courtiers, he was exiled toKostroma, but later confined to thePeter and Paul Fortress.[1] However, after verifying his innocence, the Emperor awarded him the Commander's Cross of theOrder of St. John of Jerusalem. Unfortunately, this also led to his appointment to the ill-fated and ill-conceivedRussian expedition to India in 1800. Although the expedition only reachedOrenburg, Platov was promoted toLieutenant-General andpokhodny/pokhidnii ataman ("marching ataman"; campaign Cossack leader) of theDon Cossacks with a transfer to their HQ atNovocherkassk.
UponAlexander I's accession to the throne, he was appointedataman of the Don Cossacks. In 1805, he ordered the Cossack capital to be moved fromStarocherkassk to a new location, known as Novocherkassk.
During the Polish campaign of 1806–1807, Platov commanded a Cossack corps and fought against the French at the battles ofEylau,Guttstadt andFriedland, receiving the orders of St. George (2nd class), ofSt. Alexander Nevsky, and the Prussian orders of theBlack Eagle and of theRed Eagle. In 1808–1809, he was activeagainst the Turks in theDanube valley, including at the Battle of Silistra, receiving for it the Order of St. Vladimir (1st class). On 11 October 1809 Platov was promoted to General of Cavalry.[1] Soon after the end of the campaign he returned to the Don Host and continued the reorganisation of the local Cossack administration.
In 1812, Platov supported GeneralBagration's2nd Western Army with a Cossack corps at the Korelichi engagement, atMir and atRomanovo, providing the rear guard during their retreat towardsMogilyov. During the Russian counter-attack atSmolensk Platov foughtat Molevo Boloto. At theBattle of Borodino he, together with General of CavalryFyodor Uvarov, conducted a manoeuver against the French left (northern) flank, but failed to effectively threaten the French, resulting in Platov not receiving a decoration for the battle although ironically it was later disclosed that thisraid had a dramatic effect on Napoleon, causing him to hold back theFrench Imperial Guard.[1] He hounded the French during their retreat fromMoscow in 1812, (for which he received the title ofCount of the Russian Empire), and again after their defeat at theBattle of Leipzig 1813 in Saxony (seeBattle of Altenburg, 28 September 1813).
Platov later accompaniedemperor Alexander toLondon where he was awarded a golden sword. A full-length portrait was painted bySir Thomas Lawrence for theWaterloo Chamber created atWindsor Castle byGeorge IV, thenprince regent. Platov then settled in the Cossack capital ofNovocherkassk where he established a school and was head of the local administration. He died, aged 67, in Epanchitskoe (nearTaganrog). He is buried inNovocherkassk Cathedral.
Thefirst monument to Platov, which existed from 1853 to 1923 in Novocherkassk, was replicated there in 1993. There are alsoequestrian monuments to him in Novocherkassk, Rostov-on-Don and Moscow.Gavrila Derzhavin dedicated the last of hisodes to Platov's exploits. InLeskov'sLevsha (1881),Don Cossack Platov is a prominent figure, even though his portrayal in that folk-styled tale is full ofanachronisms.
An international airport that servesRostov-on-Don and opened in 2017 wasnamed after Platov. A street in the historic old town ofNiagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada is also named after Platov. It is spelled Platoff Street.
From May 1813 to the present, at least 18 ships have been named after ataman of the Don Army M.I. Platov (seelist of ships namedPlatov orPlatoff).Ru
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PLATOV, [...] MATVEI IVANOVITCH, COUNT (1751-1818). A Russian general. He was born on the banks of the Don, August 17 (6), 1751, and was of Greek descent.
Платов, граф империи. Он родился около 1765 года в казачьей семье греческого происхождения (Платов от Платон) и умер в феврале 1818-го. Совсем юным, как и все донские казаки, он научился ездить верхом и обращаться с оружием.
