- Ivan Osterman
Count Ivan Andreyevich Osterman ( _ru. Иван Андреевич Остерман) (1725 - 1811) was aRussia n statesman, son ofAndrei Osterman .After Osterman's father had fallen into disgrace, he was transferred from the Imperial Guards to the regular army and then sent abroad, where he would continue his education. In 1757, Osterman was in the Russian service again. He held diplomatic posts in
Paris andStockholm , where he would exercise big influence onGustav III of Sweden . In 1774, Osterman was appointed senator.In 1783, he was appointed
Minister of foreign affairs ofImperial Russia , but would play only a secondary role on this post. His closest associates - CountBezborodko ,Prince Zubov ,Fyodor Rostopchin - were the ones with real power, but they lacked the fluency in languages and oleaginous manner of address which Osterman was famed for.In 1796, Osterman was appointed the
Chancellor of the Russian Empire, again as a puppet of real policy-makers. A year later, the newEmperor Paul dismissed him from office. Ivan Osterman spent the last years of his life inMoscow . As he had no children of his own, his title and last name were inherited by a nephew, the celebrated General Tolstoy.External links
* [http://ostermanniana.ru/index.html Ostermanniana (website about Ostermann)] . (In Russian).
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