Prince Michael Andreas Barclay de Tolly[nb 1] (baptised 27 December [O.S. 16 December] 1761 – 26 May [O.S. 14 May] 1818) was a Russianfield marshal who figured prominently in theNapoleonic Wars.
Barclay was born into aBaltic German family fromLivland. His father was the first of his family to be accepted into theRussian nobility. In Russian service he was known asMikhail Bogdanovich.[4][3] Barclay joined theImperial Russian Army at a young age in 1776. He served with distinction in theRusso-Turkish War (1787–92), theRusso-Swedish War (1788–1790), and theKościuszko Uprising (1794).
In 1806, Barclay began commanding in the Napoleonic Wars, distinguishing himself at theBattle of Pułtusk that same year. He was wounded at theBattle of Eylau in 1807 while his troops were covering the retreat of the Russian army. Because of his wounds, he was forced to leave command. The following year, he carried out successful operations in theFinnish War against Sweden. Barclay led a large number of Russian troops approximately 100 km (62 mi)across the frozen Gulf of Bothnia in winter during a snowstorm. For his accomplishments, Barclay de Tolly was made aGeneral of the Infantry and appointed Governor-General of theGrand Duchy of Finland. From 20 January 1810 to September 1812 he was theMinister of War of the Russian Empire.
When theFrench invasion of Russia began in 1812, Barclay de Tolly was commander of the1st Army of the West, the largest Army to faceNapoleon. Barclay initiated ascorched earth policy from the beginning of the campaign, though this made him unpopular among Russians. After theBattle of Smolensk failed to halt the French and discontent among Russians continued to grow,Alexander I appointedMikhail Kutuzov as Commander-in-Chief, though Barclay remained in charge of the 1st Army. However, Kutuzov continued the same scorched earth retreat up to Moscow where theBattle of Borodino took place nearby. Barclay commanded the right wing and center of the Russian army for the battle. After Napoleon's retreat, the eventual success of Barclay's tactics made him a hero among Russians. He became Commander-in-Chief in 1813 after thebattle of Bautzen, replacingWittgenstein (who had been appointed after Kutuzov's death early in 1813) and led thetaking of Paris, for which he was made a Field Marshal. His health later declined and he died on a visit to Germany in 1818.
Michael Andreas was born to Gotthard Barclay de Tolly (1734–1781) and his wife Margarethe Elisabeth von Smitten (1733–1771). TheBarclay de Tolly family were German-speaking descendants of theScottishClan Barclay. Their ancestor, Peter Barclay, belonged to theTowie or Tolly branch of the family and settled inRostock in 1621; his son later moved toRiga in Livonia.[5] Michael Andreas was born inPomautsch [lt] in thePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealth[6] and raised inBeckhof, Livonia, which was his mother's family estate. The commonly accepted birth date of 27 December 1761 is actually the day of his baptism in theLutheran church of the town of Zaumel.[7]
Michael Andreas's grandfather, Wilhelm Barclay de Tolly, served as the mayor of Riga, while his father served in the Russian army before being admitted into the ranks of theRussian nobility by the Tsar. From 1765, the young Barclay de Tolly grew up inSt. Petersburg and was raised by his aunt. This was a common occurrence among the German Protestants, and it gave the young man an exposure to higher society unavailable in the Baltic provinces.[8]
The future field marshal started his active service in theImperial Russian Army in 1776, and he would spend the rest of his life with the military. He had two brothers who also served in the Russian army: Axel Heinrich Barclay de Tolly, a Major General of Engineers, and Erich Johann Barclay de Tolly, a Major of Artillery.[citation needed]
Barclay was enlisted in thePskov Carabineer Regiment on 13 May 1776, and he achieved the rank of acornet by May 1778.[citation needed] In the same year, he joined the Imperialjaeger regiments, and with his unit was assigned to the army ofPrince Potemkin.[8] In 1788–1789, during theRusso-Turkish War (1787–92), Barclay served under the command ofVictor Amadeus of Anhalt-Bernburg-Schaumburg-Hoym. During this campaign, he distinguished himself in the taking ofOchakov andAkkerman. For his role in the capture of Ochakov, he was personally decorated by Prince Potemkin.
In 1789, during the Russo-Swedish War, he was transferred to the Finnish front.[8] Four years later, he fought in thePolish Campaign of 1794, and was decorated for his role in the capture ofVilnius.[8] He was a lieutenant colonel by 1794 after serving asaide-de-camp to various senior officers in several campaigns. In that year, he was appointed commander of the Estland Jaeger Corps, and three years later commander of the 4th Jaeger Regiment, becoming its chief in 1799, soon after being promoted to general major for his service inPoland.[9]
In the war of 1806 against Napoleon, Barclay took a distinguished part in theBattle of Pultusk (December 1806) and was wounded at the Battle of Eylau (7 February 1807), where his conduct won him promotion to the rank oflieutenant general.[10] After a period of convalescence, Barclay returned to the army and in 1808 commanded operations against the Swedes during theFinnish War. In 1809, he successfully marched over the frozenGulf of Bothnia, which allowed him to surprise the enemy and seizeUmeå in Sweden.[10] For this exploit, immortalized by the Russian poetBaratynsky, he was madefull general, namely ageneral of the infantry,[4] and Governor-General of Finland. A year later, he became Minister of War, retaining the post until 1813.[10]
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During Napoleon's invasion of Russia in 1812, Barclay assumed the supreme command of the 1st Army of the West, the largest of the Russian armies facing Napoleon. He used a strategy of retreat leaving behindscorched earth from the beginning of the campaign in order to draw the French supply lines deep into Russian territory and retreated to the village ofTsaryovo-Zaimishche betweenMoscow andSmolensk, although some consider the strategy merely a confluence of diverse circumstances and not attributable to the will of one man.[11]
Nevertheless, the Russians keenly opposed the appointment of a non-Russian as commander-in-chief. His rivals spread rumors of his being Napoleon's agent, and the populace condemned him as a coward. Barclay was forced by his subordinates and the Tsar to engage Napoleon atSmolensk (17–18 August 1812). Napoleon forced Barclay to retreat when he threatened Barclay's only escape route. After the loss of the "Holy City" of Smolensk, the outcry of officers and civilians grew to a point where the Tsar could no longer ignore it. He appointedKutuzov, previously a general at the battle of Austerlitz, as the over-all commander of the Russian forces. Barclay remained General of the 1st Army of the West.
Barclay commanded the right flank at the Battle of Borodino (7 September 1812) with great valour and presence of mind, and during thecelebrated council atFili advised Kutuzov to surrender unfortified Moscow to the enemy. His illness made itself known at that time and he was forced to leave the army soon afterwards.
After Napoleon was driven from Russia, the eventual success of Barclay's tactics made him aromantic hero, misunderstood by his contemporaries and rejected by the court. His popularity soared, and his honour was restored by the tsar.
Barclay was re-employed in the field and took part in theGerman Campaign of 1813 and theFrench Campaign of 1814, which ended theWar of the Sixth Coalition (1812–1814).[12]
After Kutuzov's death, he once again became commander-in-chief of the Russian forces at theBattle of Bautzen (21 May 1813), and in this capacity he served atDresden (26–27 August 1813),Kulm (29–30 August 1813) andLeipzig (16–19 October 1813). In the latter battle, he commanded a central part of the Allied forces so effectively that the tsar bestowed upon him the title ofcount.
Barclay took part in the invasion of France in 1814 and commanded thetaking of Paris, receiving the baton of a Field Marshal in reward. In 1815 he again served as commander-in-chief of the Russian army, which after theHundred Days occupied France, and he was made a prince at the close of the war. As his health grew worse, he left the military and settled down in hisJõgeveste manor (German exonym:Beckhof,Polish:Tepelshof) (in what is now southern Estonia).[13]
Barclay de Tolly died atInsterburg (Chernyakhovsk),East Prussia, on 26 May 1818 (14 May, Old Style) on his way from his Livonian manor to Germany, where he wanted to renew his health. His and his wife Helene Auguste Eleonore von Smitten's remains were embalmed and put into the mausoleum built to a design byApollon Shchedrin andVasily Demut-Malinovsky in 1832 in Jõgeveste.
A grand statue of him was erected in front ofKazan Cathedral, St Petersburg at the behest of EmperorNicholas I. A full-size bronze-mounted statue by Vladimir Surovtsev inChernyakhovsk, a bust monument inTartu, and the so-called "Barclay's leaning house" in Tartu (which was acquired by his widow after his death). He was also commemorated by a modern statue inRiga,[14] until it was subsequently dismantled on 16 October 2024.[14][nb 2]
In 1791, Michael married his cousin, Auguste Helena Eleonora von Smitten (1770–1828), daughter of Hinrich Johann von Smitten (1731–1782) and Renata Helena vonStackelberg (1749–1786). After the extinction of the Barclay de Tolly princely line with his son Magnus on 29 October 1871 (17 October, Old Style),Alexander II allowed the field marshal's sister's grandson through female lineage,Alexander von Weymarn, to assume the title ofPrince Barclay de Tolly-Weymarn on 12 June 1872 (31 May, Old Style).[16][17]
Russian Empire:
Kingdom of Prussia:
Austrian Empire:
Kingdom of Sweden:
Kingdom of France:
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland:
United Kingdom of the Netherlands:
Kingdom of Saxony:
In 2013, JSC Aeroflot-Russian Airlines received theBoeing 777-300ER aircraft manufactured by the Boeing Corporation, named in honor of the outstanding Russian military leader - M. Barclay de Tolly.[21]
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This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: "Барклай де-Толли" .Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary (in Russian). 1906.
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| Preceded by | Governor-General of Finland 1809–1810 | Succeeded by |
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| Preceded by | Minister of Land Forces of Russia 1810–1812 | Succeeded by |
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