Alexey Kurakin

Prince Alexei Borisovich Kurakin (19 September 1759 – 30 December 1829) was a Russian statesman, Active Privy Councillor of the 1st class (1826), who held a number of top positions in the reign of Paul I and Alexander I. The direct ancestor of all subsequent Kurakin princes. Biography The younger brother of Alexander Borisovich Kurakin, who was brought up together with the crown prince Pavel Petrovich (future emperor Paul I) and this relationship was bound to take off his career in senior government positions, which began in the early days of Paul. From 1775 to 1776 he studied at the Leiden University. In 1777 he received the title of chamber junker. In 1793 he was granted a chamberlain, in 1795 promoted to secret advisers; on 4 December 1796 he was appointed Prosecutor General; a few days later, on 19 December, he received the Order of Saint Alexander Nevsky and took the post of Chief Director of the Russian Assignation Bank. Being a procurator-general, he collected a "laid commission" – three books of laws on criminal, civil and state affairs, and re-established a school of junkers from the nobility under the Senate to train them in jurisprudence. On 5 April 1797 he was granted the rank of Active Privy Councillor, and on 19 December that year he was awarded the Order of Saint Andrew the First Called. Nevertheless, he fell into disgrace of the Emperor: on 8 August 1798 he was dismissed from the post of procurator-general; appointed as the senator, which meant an unconditional downgrade, and soon completely removed from public affairs. His brother Alexander also fell into disgrace. He was again called up for public service by Alexander I; on 4 February 1802 he was appointed Little Russian Governor-General. He was in office for about six years; during this time he spent a canal on the river Ostyor, took care of public education and public health. Mikhail Speransky began his career with Alexei Borisovich; first as Kurakin's personal secretary, later adopted by the patron in the Senate office.