Alexander Gorchakov

Alexander Gorchakov was born in 1798 in Haapsalu, a town in present-day Estonia. He was educated at the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum, where he befriended the poet Alexander Pushkin. He entered the diplomatic service in 1817 and participated in several international congresses. He became the Russian ambassador to Austria in 1854 and played a key role in the negotiations that ended the Crimean War. He was appointed as the foreign minister of the Russian Empire in 1856 and held that position until 1882. He also served as the imperial chancellor from 1866 to 1882. He pursued a policy of restoring Russia's influence and prestige in Europe and Asia, and established friendly relations with France and Prussia. He renounced the restrictions imposed on Russia by the Treaty of Paris (1856) and formed a defensive alliance with Germany and Austria-Hungary (the Three Emperors' League). He also supported the liberation movements in the Balkans and the Caucasus, and opposed the expansion of the British Empire in Central Asia. He was involved in the negotiations that led to the Treaty of San Stefano (1878) and the Congress of Berlin (1878), which reshaped the map of the Ottoman Empire. He died in 1883 in Baden-Baden, Germany, at the age of 84. He is regarded as one of the most influential and respected diplomats of the 19th century.