POTEMKIN, GRIGORI. (1739-1791). Russian soldier and statesman; lover of Catherine II. LS. (“G. Potemkin”). 2/3p. Folio. N.p. April 6, 1783. To Lieutenant Colonel Korsakov [possibly Russian courtier and former lover of Catherine the Great, IVAN NIKOLAJEVICH RIMSKY-KORSAKOV, 1754 – 1831, who served with Potemkin and was an ancestor of the great Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov]. In Russian with translation.
“Appointed by the Main Office of Artillery and Fortification and on my order, for performing the duties assigned to them by me, presently residing in the fortresses: lieutenants of Engineering Corps Serge Nefed’yev in …, Stepan Nikulin in Keksholm, in Riga – second lieutenant Alexander Novikov, ensign from Revel Stepan Konoplin, from Moscow first class draughtsman Peter Voznov, and residing here ensign Leontii Ignat’yev and first class draughtsman Daniel Heideman – you have to take under your command and use them for the duties defined by my instructions given to you…”
A Russian field marshal, Potemkin joined the coup that brought Catherine II to power. Afterwards, he became her lover and confidant, remaining influential in public affairs long after their intimate relationship ended.
Following its victory in the Russo-Turkish War of 1768–1774, Russia established itself as the major power in the Crimean Peninsula. Beginning in March 1783, Potemkin urged Catherine to annex the Crimea, which she did via a formal proclamation on April 8, 1783 [O.S.], two days after our letter was written. Control of Crimea was a great personal triumph for Catherine, who would soon be regarded as the diplomatic equal of any of her western rivals. History remembers Potemkin for the grand tour of Crimea he arranged for Catherine, where he created elaborated fake, or “Potemkin villages,” in order to impress the czarina. Evidence shows, however, that this allegation is exaggerated and that Potemkin was an able ruler under whom the Crimea flourished. In 1905, a famous mutiny occurred aboard the Russian battleship Potemkin, immortalized in a silent film by the great Soviet director Sergei Eisenstein in 1925.
In overall fine condition and rare.
