- Pyotr Potemkin
Pyotr Ivanovich Potyomkin (Potemkin) ( _ru. Пётр Иванович Потёмкин; ? - 1700) was a Russian
courtier , diplomat andnamestnik ofBorovsk during the reigns ofTsar s Alexis I and Feodor III.He was a voivode during the
Russo-Polish War (1654–1667) and tookLublin in 1655 and Kantsy in 1656.Later he became a
stolnik working as a Tsar's ambassador. Potemkin led the embassy to Spain and France in 1667-1668. This embassy established regular diplomatic relations between Russia and Spain. A colorful portrait of Pyotr Potemkin by Spanish painterJuan Carreño de Miranda is on display inMuseo del Prado inMadrid . During his envoy to France he introduced a new term, "Avgardent" (Авгардент), into the Russian diplomatic vocabulary [ [http://supercook.ru/vocab01.html Great Culinary Dictionary] ru icon] . The term meant "distilled spirits", especially Cognacs and Armagnacs. Potemkin considered them harmful and advocated a complete ban on their import to Russia.Potemkin travelled to
Vienna in 1674 to discuss common actions against Polish kingJohn III Sobieski . He also was the envoy of Feodor III to France and England in 1681.Potemkin died in 1700 in the rank of an
okolnichy .According to legend, Pyotr Potemkin, as a diplomat, had an eccentric sense of national pride. During his negotiations in Madrid he insisted that the King of Spain take off his hat every time Potemkin mentioned the title of Tsar of All Russias [http://www.openmag.ru/archive/articul_206.html?sList=8&idList=17 Alexander Zubkov "His Serene Highness", Open!', Spring 2003] ru icon ] . During his embassy to
Copenhagen , the Danish king was ill and could receive Potemkin only lying in bed. Potemkin insisted that the Danes bring a second bed into the chamber and conducted all the talks lying down, thus showing the equality between the countries.Famous Russian statesman Prince
Grigori Alexandrovich Potemkin was his descendant.References
External links
* [http://www.spain.mid.ru/otn4.html History of diplomatic relations between Spain and Russia] ru icon
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