Valerian Zubov
Encyclopedia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n general who led the Persian Expedition of 1796
Persian Expedition of 1796
The Persian Expedition of Catherine the Great, alongside the Persian Expedition of Peter the Great, was one of the Russo-Persian Wars of the 18th century which did not entail any lasting consequences for either belligerent....
. His siblings included Platon Zubov
Platon Zubov
Prince Platon Alexandrovich Zubov was the last of Catherine the Great's favourites and the most powerful man in Russian Empire during the last years of her reign....
and Olga Zherebtsova
Olga Zherebtsova
Olga Alexandrovna Zherebzova, née Zubova, also known as Madame Gerebtzoff , was the sister of the celebrated Zubov brothers, Prince Platon and Counts Nicholas and Valerian....
.
As a young man Zubov had flattering prospects of a brilliant military career due to his brother Platon's ascendancy at Catherine II's court. He was reputed by contemporaries as "the handsomest man in Russia". The legend has it that the aged Empress flirted with him, secretly from his brother.
During her reign he was much lionized as a military hero of incredible valor. He was appointed General-Major and sent to assist Suvorov in quelling the Kościuszko Uprising
Kosciuszko Uprising
The Kościuszko Uprising was an uprising against Imperial Russia and the Kingdom of Prussia led by Tadeusz Kościuszko in Poland, Belarus and Lithuania in 1794...
in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, where he was said to treat both the Polish noblemen and their wives brazenly and "in the most lowly manner". During this stay in Poland, he married Teodor Lubomirski
Teodor Lubomirski
Prince Teodor Lubomirski was a Polish nobleman .He was owner of Lańcut, Ujazdów and Połonne. Voivode of Kraków Voivodeship and starost of Spisz....
's granddaughter and lost his leg in a toy battle.
Several months before Catherine's death, 24-year-old Zubov was invited to take charge of the army heading for Persia. The expedition
Persian Expedition of 1796
The Persian Expedition of Catherine the Great, alongside the Persian Expedition of Peter the Great, was one of the Russo-Persian Wars of the 18th century which did not entail any lasting consequences for either belligerent....
, engineered by both Zubov brothers and aiming at the conquest of all Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
up to Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
, was not successful. Zubov managed little beyond taking Derbent
Derbent
Derbent |Lak]]: Чурул, Churul; Persian: دربند; Judæo-Tat: דארבּאנד/Дэрбэнд/Dərbənd) is a city in the Republic of Dagestan, Russia, close to the Azerbaijani border. It is the southernmost city in Russia, and it is the second most important city of Dagestan...
and was recalled to Russia in disgrace.
Zubov's return from his luckless expedition occasioned an ode by Derzhavin, meditating on the fleeting nature of fortune and success.