PrinceAlexander Mikhailovich Golitsyn (Russian:Александр Михайлович Голицын; 17 November [O.S. 6 November] 1723 – 27 November [O.S. 15 November] 1807) - was a representative of the younger branch of theHouse of Golitsyn; a Russian envoy to theDutch Republic, Great Britain, andVice-Chancellor. A connoisseur of art, a collector and philanthropist, Golitsyn was one of the key figures of theRussian Enlightenment: he acted as a cultural intermediary between Russia and Europe, inviting foreign artists and sculptors to St. Petersburg, purchasing works of art and books for Catherine II.[1]
He was born on 17 November [O.S. 6 November] 1723, as the eldest son ofGeneral-AdmiralMikhail Mikhailovich Golitsyn from his marriage to Tatiana, the daughter of the Moscow governor Kirill AlekseyevichNaryshkin. He studied in Geneva together withAlexander Sergeyevich Stroganov?[2] In 1742, he began serving at the Russian Embassy inHolland. In 1749, he was on a brief unofficial mission to Paris, as part of the Austrian Embassy. In 1755-1761, he was an envoy to London and became involved in theSeven Years' War.[3][4] In 1762 he was appointed Knight of theOrder of Alexander Nevsky.
He contributed to the accession to the throne ofCatherine II of Russia. During theJune coup of 1762, Golitsyn was sent toPeter III of Russia who wrote to Catherine a letter in which the emperor "asked for a pardon" and permission to retire in a foreign country.[5] He died within a few days inRopsha on his estate Ropshinsky under unclear circumstances.[6][7]Grigory Teplov is named as one of the murderers. EmperorPaul I of Russia was convinced that his father was forcibly deprived of life, but he apparently could not find any evidence of this.
From 9 June 1762 to 2 April 1775 he wasPrivy Councillor (1764), senator, andChief Chamberlain and member of theCollegium of Foreign Affairs. Dmitry Alekseevich Golitsyn carried on a lively correspondence with his cousin, Alexander Mikhailovich Golitsyn. In this correspondence they discussed precisely the problems ofserfdom and issues related to the allocation of property to peasants.[8]
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In 1764 he was involved in the collection of paintings Catharina received fromJohann Ernst Gotzkowsky. which is regarded as the birth ofHermitage Museum.[9] In 1771 he collaborated with his cousinDmitri Alekseyevich Gallitzin in The Hague to acquire rare paintings after the death ofGerrit Braamcamp, but the valuable cargo on board ofVrouw Maria got lost near the coast of Finland in a storm.[10]
As Vice-chancellor for more than a decade, he did not enjoy the Empress's favor. (His cousin expressed criticism on theFirst Partition of Poland in 1772.) Interested mainly in the external side of diplomatic relations, Golitsyn had no influence on affairs; the head of Russian politics wasPanin. Foreigners did not rate Prince Golitsyn's abilities very highly, but they noted that he always stood outside the parties and avoided intrigues. According to the British envoy, he "confused rather than helped, even in the trifles to which he was allowed".[citation needed]
In 1774, he received theOrder of St. Andrew and became a senator; Chief Chamberlain (1775). In 1778, he retired and lived in Moscow, doing charitable work. He was a Honorary Guardian of the Moscow Foster home and a trustee ofPavlovsk Hospital. He ordered to buildGolitsyn Hospital [ru], using the capital of his late cousin PrinceDmitry Mikhailovich Golitsyn the Younger. He enjoyed the attention and favor of the emperorsPaul I of Russia andAlexander I of Russia and especiallyMaria Feodorovna. Prince Golitsyn died on 27 November [O.S. 15 November] 1807 in Moscow. He was buried in theChurch of St. Demetrius, demolished in 1934.
Golitsyn did much to decorate the estatePekhra-Yakovlevskoe [ru]. He collected a whole museum of rare paintings and sculptures. Considering that his collection would be useful to the fatherland, he bequeathed it to the Golitsyn Hospital for eternal storage so that it would not be fragmented.[11] In 1809, his nephew, Sergei Mikhailovich (1774–1859), completed the building that was built on the territory of the hospital by A.M. Golitsyn in 1803 to house an art gallery. It was the first Moscow public gallery of Western European art that exhibited 477 paintings, as well as statues and vases. The gallery lasted until 1817, when its exhibits were sold at auctions.
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