View source for Peter Ludwig von der Pahlen

{{Short description|Baltic German noble, general, statesman}}

{{Redirect|Count Pahlen|the racehorse|Count Pahlen (horse)|other members of Pahlen family|Pahlen family}}
[[Image:Palen P A.jpg|thumb|Count Peter Ludwig von der Pahlen]]

'''Peter Ludwig Graf<ref>{{German title Graf}}</ref> von der Pahlen''' ({{langx|ru|Пётр Алексе́евич Па́лен|translit= Pyotr Alekseyevich Palen}}; {{osd|28 July|1745|17}}, [[Palmse]], [[Governorate of Estonia]] – {{osd|25 February|1826|13}}, [[Mitau]], [[Courland Governorate]] (now Jelgava, Latvia)) was a Russian courtier and general of [[Baltic Germans|Baltic German]] stock, who played a pivotal role in the assassination of Emperor [[Paul I of Russia]] in 1801. He became a general in the [[Imperial Russian Army]] in 1798, a [[count]] in 1799, and served as Military Governor of Saint Petersburg from 1798 to 1801.

==Early career==

Pahlen stemmed patrilineally from the Baltic German [[Baltic German nobility|noble]] family of [[Pahlen]]. He was born in the manor of Palmse (Palms), in present-day [[Lääne-Viru County]], [[Estonia]], then part of the [[Russian Empire]]. He served in the horse guards and saw service in the [[Russo-Turkish Wars]]. He was wounded at [[Bendery]] and invested with the [[Order of St George]] of the 4th degree. During the [[Russo-Turkish War, 1787-92]] he distinguished himself during the Siege of [[Ochakov]] (order of St. George the 3rd degree).

In 1787, Pahlen was put in charge of the [[Riga Governorate]]. He conducted the negotiations leading to the incorporation of [[Courland]], [[Semigallia]], and other [[House of Biron|Biron]] possessions into the Russian Empire. After that, he was appointed the first Governor General of the [[Courland Governorate]] (1795).

==Paul's reign==

On December 3, 1796 Pahlen was appointed to command the Cuirassier Regiment of [[Riga]], but soon the new Emperor made him regret his former contacts with the disgraced prince [[Platon Zubov]]. In January 1797 Pahlen was discharged from the governorship, and on 26 February he was relieved from his post in the regiment and excluded from the service.

However, he was soon again accepted into active service and appointed as Inspector of the Cavalry and the commander of the Household Troops of Horse Regiment. He was rapid in acquiring the sovereign's confidence. Enjoying the unlimited favor of Pavel I, for three years (1798–1801) he served as the military governor of [[Saint Petersburg]], the governor of the Baltic provinces, the inspector of 6 military districts, the Grand Chancellor of the [[Knights Hospitaller|Maltese order]], the chief director of mail, a member of the Imperial Council and of the Board of Foreign Affairs.

During his time in office the building of [[St Michael's Castle]] and of the Naval Military School was completed. Monuments honoring [[Pyotr Rumyantsev|Field Marshal Rumyantsev]] and [[Alexander Suvorov]] were erected at the [[Field of Mars (Saint Petersburg)|Field of Mars]]. The Imperial iron foundry was transferred from [[Kronstadt]] to Saint Petersburg and [[Nikolai Rezanov]] founded the [[Russian-American Company]].

==Conspiracy and regicide==
[[File:Kaucmindes pils.jpg|thumb|[[Kauzmünde]] manor, where Count Pahlen lived in exile.]]
In August 1800, Pahlen was discharged from his governorship, only to be reappointed on October 21. Seeing how fragile his position was, he joined the conspirators plotting against the emperor in the house of [[Olga Zherebtsova]]. Together with [[Nicholas Zubov]] he was one of plot's leaders and organizers. In the plot he played a dual role,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://filemonia.com/index.php/2016/12/17/17-december-peter-ludwig-von-der-pahlen/|title = 17 December: Peter Ludwig von der Pahlen – Filemonia| date=17 December 2016 }}</ref> trying in the case of failure to conceal his participation.

He extracted from the emperor the written order to arrest his son and heir, [[Alexander I of Russia|Alexander Pavlovich]], and showed this to him in order to overcome his fluctuation in the plot. He was present during Paul's strangling on the night of 12 March 1801. After the assassination the Empress [[Maria Feodorovna (Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg)|Maria Feodorovna]] became his irreconcilable enemy and prevented Pahlen from occupying any important post under Alexander's reign. On 1 April 1801, he was discharged from the service and ordered to withdraw into his estates in Courland. Pahlen died in Mitau (Jelgava) on 13 February 1826.

==Pahlen in film==
In 1908, [[Dmitry Merezhkovsky]] wrote the play ''Pavel I'', which enjoyed limited popularity in Russia. In 2003 the director [[Vitaly Melnikov (film director)|Vitaly Melnikov]] adapted the play into the movie ''[[Poor Poor Paul]]''. In contrast to the play, the accent in the film is made not only on the fate of Pavel I, but also on Pahlen's role in the plot against him. Pahlen is seen as the tragic figure, which arranged the plot against his own will, worrying not about himself, but about the good of Russia. The role of Pahlen was played by [[Oleg Yankovsky]], that of Paul - by [[Viktor Sukhorukov]].

In 1928, [[Lewis Stone]] played Pahlen in ''[[The Patriot (1928 film)|The Patriot]]'', starring [[Emil Jannings]] as Paul I. This film is considered lost, although fragments of it still exist in the UCLA Film Archives. Stone received an Academy Award nomination For Best Actor for his performance.

==References==
{{reflist}}
{{more citations needed|date=January 2021}}

==Pahlen in literature==
*[https://books.google.com/books?id=PmBFoNx-QQ8C&dq=Sartre+Nausea+Pahlen&pg=PA7 Pahlen in Sartre's 'Nausea']
*[https://books.google.com/books?id=GIBCdAQaCrEC&dq=PAhlen&pg=PA108 Pahlen in the writing of John Quincy Adams]
*[https://books.google.com/books?id=g2Pjb1hhFg4C&dq=PAhlen&pg=RA2-PA394 Pahlen in the writings of Thomas Jefferson]
{{Governors of Saint Petersburg}}
{{Governors-General of Baltic Provinces}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pahlen, Petr Alekseevich}}
[[Category:1745 births]]
[[Category:1826 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Haljala Parish]]
[[Category:People from Kreis Wierland]]
[[Category:Baltic-German people from the Russian Empire]]
[[Category:Nobility from the Russian Empire]]
[[Category:House of Pahlen]]
[[Category:Members of the State Council (Russian Empire)]]
[[Category:Imperial Russian Army generals]]
[[Category:Regicides from the Russian Empire]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Order of St. George of the Third Degree]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Order of Saint Lazarus]]
[[Category:Paul I of Russia]]
[[Category:Ethnic German people from the Russian Empire]]
[[Category:Governors-general of Saint Petersburg]]