Alexander Sergeyevich Menshikov

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Alexander Sergeyevich Menshikov (26 August 1787 – 2 May 1869) was a Russian nobleman, military leader, and statesman. He entered Russian service in 1809 as attaché in Vienna and soon became close to Tsar Alexander I, fighting with him against Napoleon. He rose to adjutant general in 1817, worked briefly in foreign affairs, and retired from the army in 1824.

During the Russo-Persian War of 1826–28 he was briefly under house arrest. He later headed the Naval Headquarters and served as a cabinet minister under Tsar Nicholas I, and he distinguished himself at the Siege of Varna in 1828 when he was wounded by a Turkish shell. In 1830 he joined the State Council, and in 1831 he became Governor-General of Finland, focusing mainly on naval matters. Some critics say his influence slowed the navy’s progress. In 1853 he was sent to Constantinople, and during the Crimean War he was made commander-in-chief on land and sea, leading at Alma and Inkerman before being removed from command in February 1855. He then served as Governor-General of Kronstadt (late 1855–1856) and retired. He died in Saint Petersburg. He was made a Finnish prince, the only prince registered in the Finnish House of Nobility, and the Finnish steamship Furst Menschikoff was named after him.