New-York tribune., 1905-06-09
RUSSIAN PRINCE WITH SCOTCH NAME

RUSSIAN PRINCE WITH SCOTCH NAME
General Prince Barclay de Tolly. who has just
died at an advanced old age at Dresden, was one
of the most distinguished generals OF the Russian
army, and. like many other members OF the
Muscovite nobility. was of Scottish origin. oelng
descended from a cadet of the grand old Scottish
house of Barclay of Tollie who took service under
King Adophus Gustavus in the Thirty Years war
and afterward entered the Russian army. Bar
clay de TolIy of the most famous generals
of the Russian army in the Napoeonc wars IN the
early part of the nineteenth century and was Gre
ated prince of the Muscovite Empire by Alexan-
der I The prince who has Just died was the grand
son of this Barclay of the Napoleonic era and may
be said to have been reared at court, being g.
favorite aide-de-camp, first of Emperor Nicholas
and afterward of the latter's son. Alexander H.
both of whom he invariably accompanied on the
occasion of their frequent visits to Berlin; more
over he was the intimate friend. confldant and ad-
wiser of that Duke George of Meckenburg- -Strelftz
who, after marrying the Russian Grand Duchess
Catherine made his home at st. Petersburg and
adopted Russian nationality.
The prince was with the i'll fated Alexander II
on the day of his assassination and had it not
been that he was following in another carriage
instead of driving with his imperial MASTER he
would have shared his tragic fate. After Alexander
III came TO throne he fell into disgrace as the
result of bitter quarrel with the Procurator of
the Holy Synod Pobiedonosteff. Being devout
Protestant. he took exception to the persecution
inaugurated by the Procurator against the Catholics
PrOteStantS-in
not belong to the national Church Of Russia-and
absolutely declined to conform to the new law de-
sed by the Procurator, decreeng that the children
Of mixed marriages should invariably be baptized
as n ennbers of the Russian Church. In fact, when
his first grandson born he insisted the child
being christened as a Protestant. in spite of the
fact that the babys mother belonged to the ortho
dox Church. This public defiance Of the new law
created all the more sensation owing to the fact
that the prince was at the time general in COM
mand of the metropolitan district of ST. Peters
hurg and the chief aide-de-canp of the Gear. The
latter at the New Years reception of 1888 rebuked
the prince before all the assembled generals and
great dgnitares of the empire for his fragrant dis
obedience to what he described being the laws
Of the land and ordered him to consider himself
under arrest This lasted a month at the close of
which he deprived of mis- command At the
same time the baptism of his little grandson
declared null and void and the child christened
afresh according TO the rites of the Russian
tional Church.
The prince, profoundly embittered withdrew to
Dresden, and only returned to Russia. It
on the occasion Of the funeral of the late Emperor,
when as his aide de-camp-he had been allowed to
retain that of1ce-he invited by the present
Car to act of the pa1lbearers. Long is the
be mentioned having been, like the late Prince
Barclay of Scotch origin. One of them. indeed
Baron Constantine Ramsay, gentleman waiting
to the Czar-is married to the daughter of w.
FitzhUgh Whitehouse. of New-York.