Barclay de Tolli M.B. (1757-1818), military commander, Field Marshal-General

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BARCLAY DE TOLLI Mikhail Bogdanovt (Michael Andreas) (1757-1818), prince (1815), military leader and field marshal general (1814). From 1776 served with the Russian Army, took part in wars against Turkey (1787-91) and Sweden (1788-90 and 1808-09), in the Polish Campaigns of 1792 and 1794, and in wars against France in 1806-07 and 1812-14. In 1809, he was appointed Governor General of Finland and the Commander-in-Chief of Finnish forces. In 1810-12, he was Minister of War; when Russo-French relations became aggravated, he undertook a number of military reforms that enhanced the Russian Army's fighting efficiency. Together with Emperor Alexander I, he developed a strategic plan for a future campaign against Emperor Napoleon I, which was based on the "tactics of retreat" (also known as the scorched-earth tactic). In 1812, he was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the 1st Western Army; his efficient manoeuvring helped avoid a decisive battle against superior enemy forces. Later, he joined the 2nd Western Army near Smolensk and heroically fought at the Battle of Borodino. He also first introduced the idea of retreating from Moscow in order to save the army. In the end of September 1812, he left the army because of discord with M.I. Kutuzov, the Commander-in-Chief of all Russian Forces, and went to his estate in the Livonia Province. In February 1813, he resumed military activities and commanded the 3rd Army, all Allied Armies, and the Separate Army as well. From 1815, he was Commander-in-Chief of the 1st Army. In 1837, a monument to Barclay de Tolli (sculptor B.I. Orlovsky, architect V.P. Stasov) was erected on the square in front of Kazan Cathedral in St. Petersburg.

References: Тартаковский А. Г. Неразгаданный Барклай: Легенды и быль 1812 г. М., 1996.

D. N. Shilov. Alexander I, Emperor
Barclay de Tolly Mikhail Bogdanovich, Prince (Mikhael Andreas)
Kutuzov (Golenishchev-Kutuzov) Mikhail Illarionovich, Gracious Prince
Orlovsky (real name Smirnov) Boris Ivanovich
Stasov Vasily Petrovich
Тартаковский А. Г. Неразгаданный Барклай: Легенды и быль 1812 г. М., 1996 Kazan Cathedral
1838