Toma Cantacuzino (c. 1670, Bucharest, Wallachia – 22 December 1721,Trukhnovo, Russia) was a RomanianSpătar and general in theTsarist army. He was a member of theCantacuzino family and cousin ofConstantin Brâncoveanu andȘtefan Cantacuzino.
Toma Cantacuzino was born around 1670 inBucharest. His father was Matei Cantacuzino and mother was Bălașa Drugănescu. Both parents died when he was young and was raised by his uncle,Șerban Cantacuzino. Brâncoveanu's Italian secretary,Anton Maria Del Chiaro, described Toma as a brave man with a vast culture and a good connoisseur of the Latin and Italian languages.
In 1693, he was made secondLogofăt and then assigned asGrand Postelnic in 1704. In 1706, he was madeGrand Spătar which placed the entirecavalry of theWallachian army under his command.[1]
In April 1711, theTreaty of Lutsk was signed secretly betweenDimitrie Cantemir andPeter the Great, following which thePrincipality of Moldavia sided with Russia in theanti-Ottoman struggle.Constantin Brâncoveanu hesitated to side with him. Toma Cantacuzino, who commanded the cavalry ofWallachia, openly sided with the Russians on 22 June despite Brâncoveanu's orders. This betrayal contributed to the execution of Brâncoveanu and his four children.[2][3][4]
After joining the Russians with eight Wallachian cavalryregiments, the Tsar named himmajor general and offered him the command of adragoon regiment. He was then ordered to aid GeneralCarl Ewald von Rönne in thecapture of the Brăila fortress. After the conquest of Braila, Toma returned to his home inFilipeștii de Pădure on 25 July 1711, where he received the news of the conclusion of peace between the Sultan and the Tsar. In 1712, he went to theRussian Empire where the Tsar granted him the title ofCount and appointed him as major general in the Russian imperial cavalry. In 1717, he brought his family to Russia after their lands were confiscated PrinceNicholas Mavrocordatos.[1][5]
In December 1720, he received the command of the troops that supervised the construction of a canal that was supposed to connect theBaltic Sea andSea of Azov. Due to the harsh northern climate, he died on 22 December 1721. He was transported toMoscow on 22 January 1722 where he was buried in the church of the Saint Nicholas Monastery.[1]