(1739–91). One of the most influential men in Russia in the mid-18th century was the army officer and statesman Grigory Potemkin. An ambitious, talented, and detail-oriented administrator, he helped strengthen Russia’s international political and economic position.
Grigory Aleksandrovich Potemkin was born in Chizhovo, Russia, on September 24, 1739 (September 13, according to the calendar in use at the time). He was educated at the University of Moscow and entered the Horse Guards in 1755. Potemkin was among those who helped bring Catherine the Great to power, and for this he was given a small estate. He distinguished himself during Russia’s first war with Turkey (1768–74), and he was made commander in chief and governor-general of New Russia, or southern Ukraine.
Potemkin accomplished a great deal because of his position. He created the plans by which Crimea was later annexed. After he became field marshal in 1784, he introduced many reforms into the army and built a fleet in the Black Sea. Potemkin also built the arsenal of Kherson and the harbor of Sevastopol.
Joseph II of Austria made Potemkin a prince of the Holy Roman Empire in 1776, and Catherine made him prince of Tauris in 1783. During the second war with Turkey, he was commander in chief of the Russian army, and in 1791 he was put in charge of the peace negotiations with Turkey. He died near Iai, now in Romania, on October 16, 1791 (October 5, according to the old calendar).