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XXIV PREFACE. at Auchintoul in 1752, in his eighty-second year, having amused
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Passages from the diary of General Patrick Gordon of Auchleuchries : A.D. 1635-A.D. 1699"
XXIV
PREFACE.
at Auchintoul in 1752, in his eighty-second year, having amused his
old age by writing a * History of Peter the Great,' which was
published at Aberdeen in 1755. It is accompanied by a memoir
of his own life, the accuracy of which, in so far as regards his
career in Russia, is challenged by Dr. Posselt.
Thomas Gordon, a nephew of Patrick Iwanowitsch, distinguished
himself in the sea service of Russia, which he entered in 1717.*^
He was made Admiral in 1727, and died in 1741 at Cronstadt,
of which he had been governor for nearly twenty years.
Edinbcegh,
1'2 th December, 1839.
JOSEPH ROBERTSON.
"^ Dr. Posselt finds him described ia
official documents in the Kussian archives as
the son of William Gordon, a merchant. It
appears elsewhere that he was born at Aber-
deen, and that he married a daughter of Sir
Thomas Elphinstone of Calderhall, by whom
he had a daughter, married in 1726 to Sir
Henry Stirlmg of Ardoch, baronet. — (Mr.
Eraser's Stirlings of Keir and their Family
Papers, pp. 120, 121. Edin. 1858.J
Gordon was brought up and remained a lifelong Roman Catholic, at a time when the Church was being persecuted in Scotland. At age of fifteen, he entered the Jesuit college at Braunsberg, East Prussia, then part of Poland. In 1661, after many years experiences as a soldier of fortune, he joined the Russian army under Tsar Aleksei I, and in 1665 was sent on a special mission to England. After his return, he distinguished himself in several wars against the Turks and Tatars in southern Russia. In recognition of his service he was promoted to major-general in 1678, was appointed to the high command at Kiev in 1679, and in 1683 was made lieutenant-general. In 1687 and 1689 he took part in expeditions against the Tatars in the Crimea, being made a full general. Later in 1689, a revolution broke out in Moscow, and with the troops under his command, Gordon virtually decided events in favor of Peter the Great against the Regent, Tsarevna Sophia Alekseyevna. Consequently, he was for the remainder of his life in high favor with the Tsar, who confided to him the command of his capital during his absence from Russia. In 1696, Gordon's design of a "moveable rampart" played a key role in helping the Russians take Azov. One of Gordon's convinced the Tsars to establish the first Roman Catholic church and school in Muscovy, of which he remained the main benefactor and headed the Catholic community in Russia until his death. For his services his second son James, brigadier of the Russian army, was created Count of the Holy Roman Empire in 1701. At the end of his life the Tsar, who had visited Gordon frequently during his illness, was with him when he died, and with his own hands closed his eyes. General Gordon left behind him a uniquely detailed diary of his life and times, written in English. This is preserved in manuscript in the Russian State Military Archive in Moscow. Passages from the Diary of General Patrick Gordon of Auchleuchries (1635–1699) was printed, under the editorship of Joseph Robertson, for the Spalding Club, at Aberdeen, Scotland, 1859.
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