View source for Paul I of Russia

{{short description|Emperor of Russia from 1796 to 1801}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name         = Paul I
| image        = Emperor Paul I of Russia.png
| caption      = Portrait by [[Vladimir Borovikovsky]], 1800
| alt          = Portrait of Paul I aged 46
| succession   = [[Emperor of Russia]]
| reign        = 17 (6) November 1796 – {{nowrap|23 (11) March 1801}}
| coronation   = 5 (16) April 1797
| cor-type     = Russia
| predecessor  = [[Catherine the Great|Catherine II]]
| successor    = [[Alexander I of Russia|Alexander I]]
| succession1  = [[Duke of Holstein-Gottorp]]
| reign2       = 9 July 1763 – {{nowrap|23 (11) March 1801}}
| spouses      = {{Ubl
  |{{Marriage|[[Natalia Alexeievna (Wilhelmina of Hesse-Darmstadt)|Wilhelmina Louisa of Hesse-Darmstadt]]|1773|15 April 1776|end=d.}}
  |{{Marriage|[[Maria Feodorovna (Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg)|Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg]]|1776}}
}}
| issue        = {{Ubl
  |[[Alexander I of Russia]]
  |[[Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich of Russia|Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich]]
  |[[Grand Duchess Alexandra Pavlovna of Russia|Alexandra Pavlovna, Palatina of Hungary]]
  |[[Grand Duchess Elena Pavlovna of Russia|Elena Pavlovna, Hereditary Princess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin]]
  |[[Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia (1786–1859)|Maria Pavlovna, Grand Duchess of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach]]
  |[[Catherine Pavlovna of Russia|Catherine Pavlovna, Queen of Württemberg]]
  |[[Grand Duchess Olga Pavlovna of Russia|Grand Duchess Olga Pavlovna]]
  |[[Anna Pavlovna of Russia|Anna Pavlovna, Queen of the Netherlands]]
  |[[Nicholas I of Russia]]
  |[[Grand Duke Michael Pavlovich of Russia|Grand Duke Michael Pavlovich]]
}}
| issue-link   = #Issue
| issue-pipe   = detail
| full name    = {{Ubl
  |Pável Petróvich Románov
  |{{Langx|ru|Па́вел Петро́вич Рома́нов}}
}}
| house        = [[Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov]]
| father       = [[Peter III of Russia]]{{efn|[[Sergei Saltykov]] (rumoured)}}
| mother       = [[Catherine II of Russia]]
| birth_date   = {{Birth date|1754|10|1|df=y}}
| birth_place  = Saint Petersburg, Russia
| death_date   = {{Death date and age|1801|3|24|1754|10|1|df=y}}
| death_place  = [[St Michael's Castle]], Saint Petersburg, Russia
| death_cause  = [[Paul I of Russia#Assassination|Assassination]]
| burial_place = [[Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral, Saint Petersburg|Peter and Paul Cathedral]]
| religion     = [[Russian Orthodox Church|Russian Orthodox]]
| signature    = Paul I signature.svg
}}

'''Paul I''' ({{langx|ru|Па́вел I Петро́вич|Pavel I Petrovich}}; {{OldStyleDate|1 October|1754|20 September}} – {{OldStyleDate|23 March|1801|11 March}}) was [[Emperor of Russia]] from 1796 until his assassination in 1801.

Paul remained overshadowed by his mother, [[Catherine the Great]], for most of his life. He adopted the [[Pauline Laws|laws of succession to the Russian throne]]—rules that lasted until the end of the [[Romanov dynasty]] and of the [[Russian Empire]]. He also imposed the first limitations on [[serfdom in Russia|serfdom]] with the [[Manifesto of three-day corvee]], sought to curtail the privileges of the [[Russian nobility|nobility]], pursued various military reforms which were highly unpopular among officers and was known for his unpredictable behavior, all of which contributed to the conspiracy that took his life.

In 1799 he brought Russia into the [[War of the Second Coalition|Second Coalition]] against [[First French Republic|Revolutionary France]] alongside [[Kingdom of Great Britain|Britain]] and [[Habsburg monarchy|Austria]]; the Russian forces achieved several victories at first but withdrew after facing setbacks. Paul then realigned Russia with France and led the creation of the [[Second League of Armed Neutrality]] to oppose Britain after [[Napoleon]]'s rise to power. Toward the end of his reign, he added [[Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti|Kartli and Kakheti]] in [[Eastern Georgia (country)|Eastern Georgia]] to the Russian Empire. He was planning a joint [[Indian March of Paul|invasion of British India]] with the French before being killed in a fight with his own officers who were trying to force his [[abdication]]. He was succeeded by his son [[Alexander I of Russia|Alexander I]].

He was [[Grand Master (order)|Grand Master]] of the [[Russian tradition of the Knights Hospitaller]] from 1799 to 1801 and ordered the construction of a number of priories of the Order of Malta.<ref>{{cite web|title=Мальтийский орден|url=http://www.encspb.ru/object/2855702197?lc=ru|website=Encyclopaedia of Saint Petersburg}}</ref>

==Early years==
[[File:Rokotov paul 1 as child.JPG|left|thumb|Tsarevich Paul as a child, by [[Fyodor Rokotov]], 1761]]
Paul was son of Emperor [[Peter III of Russia|Peter III]], (nephew and anointed heir of the Empress [[Elizabeth of Russia|Elizabeth]] (second-eldest daughter of Tsar [[Peter the Great]])), and his wife [[Catherine The Great|Catherine II]]. Catherine was born Sophie of [[Principality of Anhalt-Zerbst|Anhalt-Zerbst]], daughter of a minor German prince, who married into the Russian [[Romanov dynasty]]. She subsequently deposed Paul's father, Peter III, to take the Russian throne and become Catherine the Great.<ref>John T. Alexander, ''Catherine the Great: Life and Legend'' (Oxford UP, 1989) pp 3–16.</ref> While Catherine hinted in the first edition of her memoirs published by Alexander Herzen in 1859 that her lover [[Sergei Saltykov]] was Paul's biological father, she later recanted and asserted in the final edition that Peter III was Paul's true father.<ref>{{cite web|last=Safonov|first=M. M.|title=О происхоҗдении Павла І|trans-title=About the origin of Paul I|url=http://history-gatchina.ru/article/pavel_birth.htm|access-date=12 July 2021|website=history-gatchina.ru|language=Russian}}</ref> [[Simon Sebag Montefiore]] argues that while Paul's true paternity is "impossible to know [...] he did look and behave like Peter."<ref>Sebag Montefiore, p. 187</ref>

Paul was taken almost immediately after birth by the Empress Elizabeth, and had limited contact with his mother. As a boy, he was reported to be intelligent and good-looking, but sickly. His pug-nosed facial features in later life are attributed to an attack of [[typhus]], from which he suffered in 1771.{{cn|date=November 2023}} Paul was put in the charge of a trustworthy governor, [[Nikita Ivanovich Panin]], and of competent tutors. Panin's nephew went on to become one of Paul's assassins. One of Paul's tutors, Poroshin, complained that he was "always in a hurry", acting and speaking without reflection.

==Under Catherine II==
[[File:Natalia Alexeievna of Russia by A.Roslin (1776, Hermitage).jpg|thumb|left|Natalia Alexeievna by [[Alexander Roslin]] 1776]]

Empress Elizabeth died in 1762, when Paul was eight years old, and he became crown prince with the accession of his father to the throne as Peter III. However, within a matter of months, Paul's mother engineered a coup to depose her husband. Peter soon died in prison, either being killed by Catherine's supporters or due to a fit of apoplexy when exerting himself in a dispute with Prince Feodor, one of his jailers. The 8-year-old Paul retained his position as [[Tsesarevich]], or heir apparent.<ref>Sebag Montefiore, p. 309-310</ref>

In 1772, Paul took a mistress, named [[Sophia Razumovskaya]], and had a child with her, named Semyon Veliky (1772 - 1794).
Learning about this, Catherine sent Sophia to marry the son of a field marshal, and went to find Paul a wife.

When her son and heir, Paul, turned eighteen. Paul and his adviser, Panin, believed he was the rightful tsar of Russia, as the only son of Peter III. His adviser had also taught him that the rule of women endangered good leadership, which was why he was so interested in gaining the throne. Distracting him, Catherine took trouble to find Paul a wife among the minor princesses of the [[Holy Roman Empire]]. She chose Princess Wilhelmina of Hesse-Darmstadt, who acquired the Russian name "[[Natalia Alexeievna of Russia|Natalia Alexeievna]]", a daughter of [[Louis IX, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt|Ludwig IX]], [[Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt|Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt]]. The bride's older sister, [[Frederika Louisa of Hesse-Darmstadt|Frederika Louisa]], was already married to the [[Frederick William II of Prussia|Crown Prince of Prussia]]. Around this time, Catherine allowed Paul to attend the council in order that he might be trained for his work as Emperor. Wilhelmina and their child died in childbirth on 15 April 1776, three years after the wedding. It soon became even clearer to Catherine that Paul wanted power, including his separate court. There was talk of having both Paul and his mother co-rule Russia, but Catherine narrowly avoided it. A fierce rivalry began between them, as Catherine knew she could never truly trust her son, as his claim to the throne was superior to hers.<ref>Sebag Montefiore, p. 321-322</ref> Paul coveted his mother's position, and by the laws of succession prevalent then, it was rightfully his.

[[File:Grand Duchess Maria Feodorovna by Roslin (1777, Hermitage).jpg|thumb|[[Maria Feodorovna (Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg)|Maria Feodorovna]], portrait by [[Alexander Roslin]]]]

After her daughter-in-law's death, Catherine began work forthwith on the project of finding another wife for Paul, and on 7 October 1776, less than six months after the death of his first wife and their child, Paul married again. The bride was the beautiful [[Maria Feodorovna (Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg)|Sophia Dorothea]] of [[Kingdom of Württemberg|Württemberg]], who received the new Russian name Maria Feodorovna. Their first child, [[Alexander I of Russia|Alexander]], was born in 1777, within a year of the wedding, and on this occasion the Empress gave Paul an estate, [[Pavlovsk Palace|Pavlovsk]]. Paul and his wife gained leave to travel through western Europe in 1781–1782. In 1783, the Empress granted him another estate, [[Gatchina Palace]], where he was allowed to maintain a brigade of soldiers whom he drilled on the [[Prussia]]n [[Prussianism|model]], an unpopular stance at the time.<ref>E. M. Almedingen, ''So dark a stream; a study of the Emperor Paul I of Russia, 1754-1801'' (1959) pp 56–59.</ref>

===Relationship with Catherine the Great===
Catherine and her son and heir Paul maintained a distant relationship throughout her reign. Empress Elizabeth had taken up the child and proved an obsessive but incapable caretaker, as she had not raised children of her own.<ref name="McGrew1992">McGrew, Roderick E. (1992), ''Paul I of Russia''. (Oxford: Clarendon Press) {{ISBN|0-19-822567-9}}</ref>{{rp|28}} Paul was supervised by a variety of caregivers. Roderick McGrew briefly relates the neglect to which the infant heir was sometimes subject: "On one occasion he fell out of his crib and slept the night away unnoticed on the floor."<ref name="McGrew1992"/>{{rp|30}} Even after Elizabeth's death, relations with Catherine hardly improved. Paul was often jealous of the favours she would shower upon her lovers. In one instance, the empress gave to one of her favourites 50,000 rubles on her birthday, while Paul received a cheap watch.<ref name="Sorokin, 185">Sorokin, 185.</ref> Paul's early isolation from his mother created a distance between them that later events would reinforce. She never considered inviting him to share power in governing Russia. Once Paul's son Alexander was born, it appeared that she had found a more suitable heir. The use made of his name by the rebel [[Yemelyan Pugachev]], who impersonated his father Peter, tended no doubt to render Paul's position more difficult.

Catherine's absolute power and the delicate balance of courtier status greatly influenced the relationship at Court with Paul, who openly disregarded his mother's opinions. Paul adamantly protested{{clarifyme|date=July 2024}} his mother's policies, writing a veiled criticism in his ''Reflections'', a dissertation on military reform.<ref name="Sorokin, 185"/> In it he directly disparaged expansionist warfare in favour of a more defensive military policy. Unenthusiastically received by his mother, the ''Reflections'' questioned her authority and added weight to her suspicion of an internal conspiracy with Paul at its centre. For a courtier to have openly supported or shown intimacy towards Paul, especially following this publication, would have meant political suicide.

[[File:Pulman after Batoni02.jpeg|left|thumb|Grand Duke Paul Petrovich, after [[Pompeo Batoni]], 1782-1787]]

Paul spent the following years away from the Imperial Court, content to remain at his private estates at Gatchina Palace with his growing family and perform Prussian drill exercises. As Catherine grew older, she became less concerned that her son attend court functions; her attentions focused primarily on the future Emperor Alexander I.

It was not until 1787 that Catherine may have in fact decided to exclude her son from succession.<ref name="McGrew1992"/>{{rp|184}} After Alexander and his brother [[Grand Duke Constantine Pavlovich of Russia|Constantine]] were born, she had them placed under her charge, just as Elizabeth had done with Paul. That Catherine grew to favour Alexander as successor rather than Paul is unsurprising. She met secretly with Alexander's tutor, [[Frédéric-César de La Harpe]], to discuss his pupil's ascension, and attempted to convince Alexander's mother Maria to sign a proposal authorizing her son's legitimacy. Both efforts proved fruitless, and though Alexander agreed to his grandmother's wishes, he remained respectful of his father's position as immediate successor to the Russian throne.

==Accession to the throne==
[[File:Imperial Monogram of Tsar Paul I of Russia.svg|thumb|120px|Imperial monogram of Paul I]]

Catherine suffered a [[stroke]] on 17 November 1796, and died without regaining consciousness. Paul's first act as Emperor was to inquire about and, if possible, destroy her testament, as he feared it would exclude him from succession and leave the throne to Alexander. These fears may have contributed to Paul's promulgation of the [[Pauline Laws]], which established the strict principle of [[primogeniture]] in the House of Romanov, leaving the throne to the next male heir.

The army, then [[Persian Expedition of 1796|poised to attack Persia]] in accordance with Catherine's last design, was recalled to the capital within one month of Paul's accession. In a remarkable poem, the Russian court poet [[Gavrila Derzhavin|Derzhavin]] commented bitterly on the inglorious return from that expedition of its commander Count [[Valerian Zubov]], who was the youthful brother of [[Platon Zubov|Prince Platon Zubov]], the lover of the Empress Саtherine.

Upon his death in 1762, Peter III had been buried without any honors in the [[Annunciation Church of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra|Annunciation Church]]{{citation needed|date=October 2020}} at the [[Alexander Nevsky Monastery]] in [[St. Petersburg]]. Immediately after the death of his mother, Paul ordered his father's remains transferred, first to the church in the [[Winter Palace]] and then to the [[Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral, Saint Petersburg]], the burial site of the Romanovs.{{citation needed|date=October 2020}} 60-year-old Count Alexei Orlov, who had played a role in deposing Peter III and possibly also in his death, was made to walk in the funeral cortege, holding the Imperial Crown of Russia as he walked in front of Peter's coffin.{{citation needed|date=October 2020}} Peter III had never been crowned so at the time of his reburial, Paul personally performed the ritual of coronation on his remains.{{citation needed|date=October 2020}} Paul responded to the rumour of his illegitimacy by parading his descent from Peter the Great. The inscription on the [[Monument to Peter I (St. Michael's Castle)|monument to the first Emperor of Russia]] near the [[St. Michael's Castle]] reads in Russian "''To the Great-Grandfather from the Great-Grandson''". This is an allusion to the [[Latin]] "PETRO PRIMO CATHARINA SECUNDA", the dedication by Catherine on the '[[Bronze Horseman]]' statue of Peter the Great.

==Purported eccentricities==
{{Main|Personality and reputation of Paul I of Russia}}

Paul was idealistic and capable of great generosity, but he was also mercurial and capable of vindictiveness. In spite of doubts of his legitimacy, he greatly resembled his father, Peter III, and other Romanovs as well and shared the same character. During the first year of his reign, Paul emphatically reversed many of his mother's policies. Although he accused many of [[Jacobinism]], he allowed Catherine's best known critic, [[Alexander Radishchev]], to return from [[Siberia]]n exile. Besides Radishchev, he liberated [[Nikolay Novikov]] from [[Shlisselburg|Schlüsselburg fortress]], and also [[Tadeusz Kościuszko]], yet after liberation both were confined to their own estates under police supervision. He viewed the [[Russian nobility]] as decadent and corrupt, and was determined to transform them into a disciplined, principled, loyal caste resembling a medieval [[chivalric order]]. To those few who conformed to his view of a modern-day knight (e.g., his favourites [[Mikhail Kutuzov]], [[Aleksey Arakcheyev]], and [[Feodor Rostopchin]]) he granted more serfs during the five years of his reign than his mother had presented to her lovers during her thirty-four years. Those who did not share his chivalric views were dismissed or lost their places at court: seven field marshals and 333 generals fell into this category.

Paul made several idiosyncratic and deeply unpopular attempts to reform the [[Imperial Russian Army]]. Under Catherine's reign, [[Grigori Potemkin]] introduced new uniforms that were cheap, comfortable, practical and designed in a distinctly Russian style. Paul decided to fulfill his father Peter III's intention of introducing Prussian uniforms. Impractical for active duty, these were deeply unpopular with the men, as was the effort required to maintain them.<ref>Digby Smith (2008). ''An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Uniforms of the Napoleonic wars... 1792-1815'' {{ISBN|0-7548-1571-4}}. pp. 157-187</ref>

His love of parades and ceremony was not well-liked either. He ordered that ''Wachtparad'' ("Watch parades") take place early every morning in the parade ground of the palace, regardless of the weather conditions.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.napolun.com/mirror/napoleonistyka.atspace.com/img/Russian_military_parade_by_Benois.jpg |title="Russian military parade", Alexandre Benois, 1907 |access-date=2012-09-23 |archive-date=2021-10-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211023194259/http://www.napolun.com/mirror/napoleonistyka.atspace.com/img/Russian_military_parade_by_Benois.jpg |url-status=dead }}</ref> He would personally sentence soldiers to be flogged if they made a mistake, and on one occasion ordered a Guards regiment to march to Siberia after they became disordered during maneuvers, although he changed his mind after they had walked about {{convert|10|mi}}.<ref>Laurence Spring. ''Russian Grenadiers and Infantry 1799-1815''. Ed. Osprey Publishing, 2002. {{ISBN|9781841763804}}. [https://books.google.com/books?id=7NUPxCVT2DAC&pg=PA56 Pg. 56]</ref><ref>Count Cherep-Spriridovich. ''The Secret World Government Or "The Hidden Hand": The Unrevealed in History''. Ed. Osprey Publishing, 2002. {{ISBN|9781841763804}}. [https://books.google.com/books?id=zKFBPKa8vxoC&pg=PA79 p. 79]</ref> He attempted to reform the organization of the army in 1796 by introducing ''The Infantry Codes'', a series of guidelines for the army based largely upon show and glamour. But his greatest commander, [[Alexander Suvorov]], completely ignored them, believing them to be worthless. At great expense, he built three palaces in or around the Russian capital. Much was made of his [[courtly love]] affair with [[Anna Lopukhina]].

Emperor Paul also ordered the bones of [[Grigori Potemkin]], the famed military commander and one of his mother's lovers, dug out of his grave and scattered.<ref>Farquhar, Michael (2001). ''A Treasure of Royal Scandals'', p.192. Penguin Books, New York. {{ISBN|0-7394-2025-9}}.</ref>

==Foreign affairs==
[[File:Paul I by A.F. Mitrokhin.jpeg|thumb|Paul I in the early 1790s]]

Paul's early foreign policy can largely be seen as reactions against his mother's. In foreign policy, this meant that he opposed the many expansionary wars she fought and instead preferred to pursue a more peaceful, diplomatic path. Immediately upon taking the throne, he recalled all troops outside Russian borders, including the struggling expedition Catherine II had sent to conquer [[Qajar Iran]] through the [[Caucasus]] and the 60,000 men she had promised to [[Kingdom of Great Britain|Britain]] and [[Habsburg monarchy|Austria]] to help them defeat the [[French First Republic|French]].<ref>For the Iranian expedition, see Haukeil, 349. For the 60,000 troops to Europe, see McGrew (1992), 282.</ref> Paul hated the French before their revolution, and afterwards, with their republican and anti-religious views, he detested them even more.<ref name="Haukeil, 351">Haukeil, 351.</ref> In addition to this, he knew French expansion hurt Russian interests, but he recalled his mother's troops primarily because he firmly opposed wars of expansion. He also believed that Russia needed substantial governmental and military reforms to avoid an economic collapse and a revolution, before Russia could wage war on foreign soil.<ref name="McGrew1992"/>{{rp|283}}

Paul offered to mediate between Austria and France through Prussia and pushed Austria to make peace, but the two countries made peace without his assistance, signing the [[Treaty of Campoformio]] in October 1797.<ref name="McGrew1992"/>{{rp|286}} This treaty, with its affirmation of French control over islands in the Mediterranean and the partitioning of the [[Republic of Venice]], upset Paul, who saw it as creating more instability in the region and displaying France's ambitions in the Mediterranean. In response, he offered asylum to the [[Louis Joseph, Prince of Condé|Prince of Condé]] and his army, as well as the future [[Louis XVIII]], both of whom had been forced out of Austria by the treaty.<ref name="McGrew1992"/>{{rp|288–289}} By this point, the French Republic had overrun [[Northern Italy]], the [[Dutch Republic]] and [[Old Swiss Confederacy|Switzerland]], establishing [[Sister republic|republics]] with constitutions in each, and Paul felt that Russia now needed to play an active role in Europe in order to overthrow what the republic had created and restore traditional authorities.<ref name="McGrew1992"/>{{rp|289–290}} In this goal he found a willing ally in the Austrian chancellor [[Johann Amadeus Francis de Paula, Baron of Thugut|Baron Thugut]], who hated the French and loudly criticized revolutionary principles. Britain joined Austria and Russia to stop French expansion, liberate territories under their control and re-establish old monarchies. The only major power in Europe who did not join Paul in his anti-French campaign was Prussia, whose distrust of Austria and the security they got from their current relationship with France prevented them from joining the [[War of the Second Coalition|Second Coalition]].<ref name="McGrew1992"/>{{rp|286–287}} Despite the Prussians’ reluctance, Paul decided to move ahead with the war, promising 60,000 men to support Austria in Italy and 45,000 men to help Britain in north Germany and Holland.<ref name="Haukeil, 351"/>

Another important factor in Paul's decision to go to war with France was the island of [[Hospitaller Malta|Malta]], the home of the [[Knights Hospitaller]]. In addition to Malta, the Order had priories in the Catholic countries of Europe that held large estates and paid the revenue from them to the Order. In 1796, the Order approached Paul about the Priory of Poland, which had been in a state of neglect and paid no revenue for 100 years, and was now on Russian land.<ref name="McGrew1979">McGrew, Roderick E. (1979) "Paul I and the Knights of Malta," in ''Paul I: A Reassessment of His Life and Reign'', ed. Hugh Ragsdale (Pittsburgh: University Center for International Studies, University of Pittsburgh) {{ISBN|0-916002-28-4}}</ref>{{rp|46–48}} Paul as a child had read the histories of the Order and was impressed by their honor and connection to the old order it represented. He relocated the Priories of Poland to St. Petersburg in January 1797.<ref name="McGrew1979"/>{{rp|48}} The knights responded by making him a protector of the Order in August of that same year, an honour he had not expected but, in keeping with his chivalric ideals, he happily accepted.<ref name="McGrew1979"/>{{rp|49–50}}

[[File:Pawlowsk-Palast 2005 b.jpg|thumb|A statue of Emperor Paul in front of the [[Pavlovsk Palace]]]]

In June 1798, the French [[French invasion of Malta|occupied Malta]]; this greatly offended Paul.<ref name="McGrew1979"/>{{rp|51}} In September, the Priory of St. Petersburg declared that Grand Master [[Ferdinand von Hompesch zu Bolheim]] had betrayed the Order by "selling" Malta to Napoleon. A month later the Priory elected Paul [[Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller|Grand Master]] on 24 November 1798, according to the 1847 edition of the ''Glossary of Heraldry''.<ref name="McGrew1979"/>{{rp|55–58}}<ref>[http://www.orderofmalta.int/history/680/the-79-grand-masters/?lang=en The 79 Grand Masters] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111113211958/http://www.orderofmalta.int/history/680/the-79-grand-masters/?lang=en|date=2011-11-13}} – official website of the [[Sovereign Military Order of Malta]]</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=History After Malta|url=http://www.spirituallysmart.com/History_After_Malta.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130521021025/http://www.spirituallysmart.com/History_After_Malta.html|archive-date=2013-05-21|access-date=2013-09-12|publisher=Spirituallysmart.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Ceyrep|url=https://academic.oup.com/nq/article-abstract/s1-XI/286/309/4535653?redirectedFrom=fulltext|title=The grand master of the order of Malta|date=21 April 1855|journal=[[Notes and Queries]]|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|volume=s1-XI|pages=309–310|doi=10.1093/nq/s1-XI.286.309c|issn=0029-3970|oclc=7756812923|issue=286}}</ref> This election resulted in the establishment of the [[Russian tradition of the Knights Hospitaller]] within the Imperial Orders of Russia. The election of the sovereign of an Orthodox nation as the head of a Catholic order was controversial, and it was some time before the [[Holy See]] or any of the Order's other priories approved it. This delay created political issues between Paul, who insisted on defending his legitimacy, and the priories’ respective countries.<ref name="McGrew1979"/>{{rp|59}} Though recognition of Paul's election would become a more divisive issue later in his reign, the election immediately gave Paul, as Grand Master of the Order, another reason to fight the French Republic: to reclaim the Order's ancestral home.

The Russian army in Italy played the role of an auxiliary force sent to support the Austrians, though the Austrians offered the position of chief commander over all the allied armies to Alexander Suvorov, a distinguished Russian general. Under Suvorov, the allies managed to push the French out of Italy, though they suffered heavy losses.<ref>Haukei, 355-57.</ref> However, by this point in time, cracks had started to appear in the Russo-Austrian alliance, due to their different goals in Italy. While Paul and Suvorov wanted the liberation and restoration of the Italian monarchies, the Austrians sought territorial acquisitions in Italy, and were willing to sacrifice later Russian support to acquire them.<ref name="McGrew1992"/>{{rp|299}} The Austrians, therefore, happily saw Suvorov and his army out of Italy in 1799 to go meet up with the army of [[Alexander Korsakov]], at the time assisting the Austrian [[Archduke Charles, Duke of Teschen|Archduke Charles]] to expel the French armies currently occupying Switzerland.<ref>Haukeil, 358.</ref> However, the campaign in Switzerland had become a stalemate, without much activity on either side until the Austrians withdrew. Because this happened before Korsakov and Suvorov could unite their forces, the French could attack their armies one at a time, destroying Korsakov's and forcing Suvorov to fight his way out of Switzerland, suffering heavy losses.<ref>For Archduke Charles withdrawing early, see McGrew (1992), 301. For more information on the battles Korsakov and Suvorov fought, see Haukeil, 361–62.</ref> Suvorov, shamed, blamed the Austrians for the terrible defeat in Switzerland, as did his furious sovereign. This defeat, combined with Austria's refusal to reinstate the old monarchies in Italy and their disrespect of the Russian flag during the taking of [[Ancona]], led to the formal cessation of the alliance in October 1799.<ref>For a summary of the taking of Ancona, see McGrew (1992), 306. For a quick summary of all the issues involved, see Hugh Ragsdale, "A Continental System in 1801: Paul I and Bonaparte," ''The Journal of Modern History'', 42 (1970), 70–71.</ref>

Although by the fall of 1799 the Russo-Austrian alliance had more or less fallen apart, Paul still cooperated willingly with the British. Together, they planned to invade the [[Batavian Republic]], and through that country attack France proper. Unlike Austria, neither Russia nor Britain appeared to have any secret territorial ambitions: they both simply sought to defeat the French.<ref name="McGrew1992"/>{{rp|309}}

The [[Anglo-Russian invasion of Holland]] started well, with a British victory at the [[Battle of Callantsoog]] on 27 August 1799. By the time the Russian army arrived in September, however, the allies found themselves faced with bad weather, poor coordination, and unexpectedly fierce resistance from the Batavian and French armies, and their success evaporated.<ref> For a summary of the invasion of Holland, see McGrew (1992), 309. For a more detailed look at the events, see Haukeil, 364.</ref> As the month wore on, the weather worsened and the allies suffered more and more defeats, eventually signing an armistice in October 1799.<ref>Haukeil, 364.</ref> The Russians suffered three-quarters of allied losses and surviving Russian troops were sent by the British to the [[Isle of Wight]] after the retreat, as it was illegal for foreign troops to enter Britain.<ref name="McGrew1992" />{{rp|309–310}} The invasion's defeat and the perceived poor treatment of Russian troops by Britain strained Anglo-Russian relations, but a definitive break did not occur until later.<ref name="McGrew1992" />{{rp|311}} The reasons for this break are less clear and simple than those of the split with Austria, but several key events occurred over the winter of 1799–1800 that helped: France released 7,000 Russian prisoners of war that Britain had refused to ransom; Paul grew closer to [[Denmark–Norway]] and [[Sweden]], whose claim to neutral shipping rights angered Britain; Paul recalled Britain's ambassador to Russia [[Charles Whitworth, 1st Earl Whitworth|Charles Whitworth]] in 1800 and the [[first Pitt ministry]] did not replace him, without any clear reason given as to why; and Britain, needing to choose between their two allies, chose Austria, who were seen as more reliable than the Russians.<ref>For a summary, with more information on Paul growing closer to the Baltic states, see McGrew (1992), 311–12. For information on the British ambassador and their choice of Austria over Russia, see Ragsdale, "A Continental System in 1801: Paul I and Bonaparte," ''The Journal of Modern History'', 71–72. For Napoleon's actions and Paul's feelings towards him, see Haukeil, 365.</ref>

[[File:PavelI-FShubin.jpg|thumb| Portrait of Paul I of Russia by [[Fedot Shubin|F. Shubin]], marble, 1800, [[Russian Museum]], Saint-Petersburg]]

Finally, two events occurred in rapid succession that destroyed the Anglo-Russian alliance completely: first, in July 1800, the [[Royal Navy]] seized a Danish frigate, prompting Paul to close all British factories in St. Petersburg and impound all British merchantmen and cargo in Russian ports; second, even though this crisis was resolved, Paul was incensed by Britain's refusal to hand Malta over to the Knights Hospitaller– and thus to Paul– when they [[Siege of Malta (1798–1800)|captured it from France]] in September 1800.<ref>For information on the Danish frigate, see Hugh Ragsdale, "Was Paul Bonaparte's Fool?: The Evidence of Neglected Archives," in ''Paul I: A Reassessment of His Life and Reign'', ed. Hugh Ragsdale (Pittsburgh: University Center for International Studies, University of Pittsburgh, 1979), 80. For Paul's reaction to the seizure and then the events at Malta, see McGrew (1992), 313–14. For the date of the Maltese events, see Haukeil, 366.</ref> To force Britain to hand over Malta, Paul seized all British vessels in Russian ports, sent their crews to [[concentration camp]]s and took British traders hostage.<ref>For a summary of Paul's reaction, see McGrew (1992), 314. For more details, see Haukeil, 366.</ref> Over the next winter, he went further, using the [[Second League of Armed Neutrality]] he formed with Sweden, Denmark and Prussia to prepare the Baltic against possible attacks by the Royal Navy and prevent them from searching neutral merchant vessels, along with freezing all British trade in Northern Europe.<ref>For information on the military side of these measures, see McGrew (1992), 314. For information on the economic side and how Paul interacted with the Armed Neutrality, see Ragsdale, "Was Paul Bonaparte's Fool?" in ''Paul I: A Reassessment of His Life and Reign'', 81.</ref> As France had already closed most of Western and Southern Europe to British trade, Britain, which relied heavily upon imports such as timber, naval products, and grain, reacted fast to Paul's aggression.<ref>Ragsdale, "A Continental System in 1801: Paul I and Bonaparte," ''The Journal of Modern History'', 81–82.</ref> In March 1801, Britain sent a fleet under Vice-Admiral [[Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson|Horatio Nelson]] to Denmark, [[Battle of Copenhagen (1801)|defeating a Danish fleet]] off Copenhagen in the beginning of April.<ref>Haukeil, 366.</ref> Nelson's fleet then sailed towards St. Petersburg, reaching [[Reval]] on 14 May 1801, but after the conspiracy assassinated Paul on 23 March 1801, the new Tsar Alexander opened peace negotiations with Britain shortly after taking the throne.<ref name="McGrew1992" />{{rp|314}}

The most original aspect of Paul I's foreign policy was his rapprochement with France after the coalition fell apart. Several scholars have argued that this change in position, radical though it seemed, made sense, as Bonaparte became [[First Consul]] and made France a more conservative state, consistent with Paul's view of the world.<ref>For arguments about consistency and Paul's reasons to fight, see McGrew (1992), 318. For the arguments as to why Paul was willing to reach an agreement with Bonaparte, see Muriel Atkin, "The Pragmatic Diplomacy of Paul I: Russia's Relations with Asia, 1796–1801," ''Slavic Review'', 38 (1979), 68.</ref> Paul also decided to [[Indian March of Paul|send an army to invade British India]], as Britain itself was almost impervious to direct attack, being an island nation with a formidable navy, but the British had left their Indian possessions largely unguarded and would have great difficulty staving off a force that came by land to attack it.<ref>Atkin, "The Pragmatic Diplomacy of Paul I," 68.</ref> The British themselves considered this enough of a problem that they signed three treaties with Persia, in [[Anglo-Persian Treaty of 1801|1801]], 1809 and 1812, to guard against a European army invading India through Central Asia.<ref>"While the British were signing treaties with Persia to protect their holding in India in the late 18th century Paul I was working with the [[Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti]] and made them a protectorate of the Russian Empire in 1768 and then in 1801 Georgia was attacked by Iranian forces. This attack would push Paul I to take further steps beyond what was in place in order to protect his interests in the Caucasus. Paul I intended to annex the kingdom but he was assassinated before he could finish the decree but Alexander I, Paul I's successor, would finish the deal and provide full protection."
Atkin, "The Pragmatic Diplomacy of Paul I", p. 69.</ref> Paul sought to attack the British where they were weakest: through their commerce and colonies. Throughout his reign, his policies focused reestablishing peace and the balance of power in Europe, while supporting autocracy and old monarchies, without seeking to expand Russia's borders.<ref>Ragsdale, "Was Paul Bonaparte's Fool?" in ''Paul I: A Reassessment of His Life and Reign'', 88.</ref>

===Irano-Georgian matters===
{{See also|Georgia within the Russian Empire}}
{{Further|Treaty of Georgievsk|Battle of Krtsanisi}}
[[File:Roubaud. Russian troops entering Tiflis in 1799.JPG|thumb|''Entrance of the Russian troops in Tiflis, 26 November 1799'', by [[Franz Roubaud]], 1886]]

In lieu of Russia's failure to honour the terms of the [[Treaty of Georgievsk]], Qajar Iran reinvaded Georgia. Georgian rulers felt they had nowhere else to turn now as Georgia was again re-subjugated by Iran. [[Battle of Krtsanisi|Tbilisi]] was captured and burnt to the ground, and eastern Georgia reconquered. However, [[Agha Mohammad Khan]], Persia's ruler, was assassinated in 1797 in [[Shusha]], after which the Persian grip on Georgia softened again. [[Heraclius II of Georgia|Erekle, King of Kartli-Kakheti]], still dreaming of a united Georgia, died a year later. After his death, a civil war broke out over the succession to the throne of Kartli-Kakheti, and one of the rival candidates called on Russia to intervene and decide matters. On 8 January 1801, Tsar Paul I signed a decree on the incorporation of Georgia (Kartli-Kakheti) within the Russian Empire,<ref>Gvosdev (2000), p. 85</ref><ref>Avalov (1906), p. 186</ref> which was confirmed by Tsar Alexander I on 12 September 1801.<ref>Gvosdev (2000), p. 86</ref><ref>[[David Marshall Lang|Lang]] (1957), p. 249</ref> The Georgian envoy in Saint Petersburg, [[Garsevan Chavchavadze]], reacted with a note of protest that was presented to the Russian vice-chancellor [[Alexander Kurakin]].<ref>Lang (1957), p. 251</ref> In May 1801, after Paul's death, Russian General [[Carl Heinrich von Knorring]] removed the Georgian heir to the throne, [[David Bagrationi|David]] [[Batonishvili]], from power and deployed a provisional government headed by General [[Ivan Petrovich Lazarev]].<ref>Lang (1957), p. 247</ref>

==Assassination==
[[File:Spb 06-2017 img21 StMichael Castle.jpg|thumb|300px|[[Saint Michael's Castle|St. Michael's Castle]] in Saint Petersburg, where Emperor Paul was murdered mere weeks after the opening festivities]]

Paul's premonitions of [[assassination]] were well-founded. His attempts to force the nobility to adopt a code of [[chivalry]] alienated many of his trusted advisors. The Emperor also discovered outrageous machinations and [[corruption]] in the Russian [[treasury]].

A [[List of conspiracies (political)|conspiracy]] was organized, some months before it was executed, by Counts [[Peter Ludwig von der Pahlen]], [[Nikita Petrovich Panin]], and [[José de Ribas|Admiral de Ribas]], with the alleged support of the [[List of ambassadors of Great Britain to Russia|British ambassador in Saint Petersburg]], Charles Whitworth.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Newton|first1=Michael|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F4-dAwAAQBAJ|title=Famous Assassinations in World History: An Encyclopedia|date=2014|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=9781610692861|volume=1|location=Santa Barbara, California|page=411|chapter=Paul I of Russia (1754-1801)|quote=The plot's mastermind was Count Nikolay Alexandrovich Zubov .... Count Zubov hatched the conspiracy with Count Peter Alekseyevich Pahlen .... Allegedly financed by Zubov's sister, Olga Zherebetsova, with funds procured from her lover—Charles Whitworth, 1st Earl Whitworth, Britain's envoy-extraordinary and minister-plenipotentiary at St. Petersburg under Catherine—the conspirators recruited others.|author-link1=Michael Newton (author)|access-date=2019-05-27}}</ref>

The death of de Ribas in December 1800 delayed the assassination; but, on the night of {{OldStyleDate|{{nowrap|23 March}}|1801|11 March}}, a band of dismissed officers murdered Paul at the newly completed palace of [[Saint Michael's Castle]]. The assassins included General [[Levin August, Count von Bennigsen]], a [[Hanover]]ian in the Russian service; and General [[Vladimir Mikhailovich Yashvil]], a Georgian. They charged into Paul's bedroom, flushed with drink after dining together, and found the emperor hiding behind some drapes in the corner.<ref>Radzinsky, Edvard. ''Alexander II: The last great tsar'' Freepress, 2005. pp. 16–17.</ref> The conspirators pulled him out, forced him to the table, and tried to compel him to sign his [[abdication]]. Paul offered some resistance, and [[Nikolay Alexandrovich Zubov|Nikolay Zubov]] struck him with a sword, after which the assassins strangled and trampled him to death. Paul's successor on the Russian throne, his 23-year-old son Alexander, was actually in the palace at the time of the killing; he had "given his consent to the overthrow of Paul, but had not supposed that this would be carried out by means of assassination".<ref>''A History of Russia'' by George Vernadsky, Yale University Press.</ref> Zubov announced his accession to the heir, accompanied by the admonition, "Time to grow up! Go and rule!" Alexander I did not punish the assassins, and the court physician, [[Sir James Wylie, 1st Baronet|James Wylie]], declared [[apoplexy]] the official cause of death.<ref>Marbot, Jean. (Oliver C. Colt, trans.) ''The Memoirs of General the Baron de Marbot'', Volume 2, [http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/2401/pg2401-images.html Chapter 3 "The intrigues of Count Czernicheff"]</ref><ref>Hutchison, Robert. "A Medical Adventurer. Biographical Note on Sir James Wylie, Bart., M.D., 1758 to 1854." ''Proceedings of the Royal Society of Medicine'', 06/1928; 21(8):1406.</ref>

==Legacy==
[[File:Paulparade.jpg|thumb|300px|''Military Parade of Emperor Paul in front of Mikhailovsky Castle'' painting by [[Alexandre Benois]], taken from the art book ''[[Mir iskusstva]]'']]

There is some evidence that Paul I was venerated as a saint among the Russian Orthodox populace,<ref>Zhevakhov, Prince N. D. (1993) Reminiscences, V.2, p.273. Moscow.</ref> even though he was never officially canonized by any of the Orthodox Churches.

The city of [[Pavlograd]] (Pavlohrad) in [[Eastern Ukraine]] is claimed to have been named for Paul (the city was renamed from "Luhanske" in 1783), although the modern government have denied this, saying the name refers to [[Saint Paul]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Влада Павлограду подала до суду через спроби перейменувати місто |date=September 25, 2024 |url=https://nashemisto.dp.ua/2024/09/25/vlada-pavlohradu-podala-do-sudu-cherez-sproby-pereimenuvaty-misto/ |language=uk}}</ref>
===Portrayals in popular culture===
* In 1906, [[Dmitry Merezhkovsky]] published his tragedy ''Paul I''; the most prominent performance of which was made on the [[Russian Army Theatre|Soviet Army Theatre]]'s stage in 1989, with [[Oleg Borisov]] as Paul.
* ''[[The Patriot (1928 film)|The Patriot]]'' (1928 film), directed by [[Ernst Lubitsch]], is a biopic starring [[Emil Jannings]] as Paul. It won the [[Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay|Best Writing]] Oscar at the [[2nd Academy Awards]]. It is now mostly [[lost film|lost]], with about one-third of the film preserved in archives.
* The Soviet film ''[[Lieutenant Kijé (film)|Lieutenant Kijé]]'' (1937), directed by Aleksandr Faintsimmer and based on a novella of the same name by Yury Tynyanov, satirizes Paul's obsession with rigid drill, instant obedience, and martinet discipline.
* In [[Jean-Paul Sartre|Sartre]]'s novel ''[[Nausea (novel)|Nausea]]'' (1938), Marquis de Rollebon, a fictional character being studied by the protagonist Antoine Roquentin, is implicit in Paul I's assassination.
* The Soviet experimental film ''[[Assa (film)|Assa]]'' (1987) has a subplot revolving around Paul's murder; Paul is portrayed by {{interlanguage link|Dmitry Dolinin|ru|Долинин, Дмитрий Алексеевич}}.
* ''[[Poor Poor Paul]]'' (2003; Бе́дный бе́дный Па́вел) is a film about Paul's rule produced by [[Lenfilm]], directed by Vitaliy Mel'nikov, and starring [[Viktor Sukhorukov]] as Paul and [[Oleg Yankovsky]] as Count Pahlen, who headed the conspiracy against him. The film portrays Paul more compassionately than the long-existing stories about him. The movie won the Michael Tariverdiev Prize for best music to a film at the Open Russian Film Festival [[Kinotavr]], in 2003.
* The young Paul appears in the 2014 [[Russia-1]] television series [[Ekaterina (TV series)|''Ekaterina'']] and features heavily as a main character in its second, third, and fourth seasons.
* The young Paul is portrayed by [[Joseph Quinn]] in the 2019 [[HBO]] mini-series ''[[Catherine the Great (miniseries)|Catherine the Great]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://deadline.com/2018/08/howards-end-joseph-quinn-helen-mirren-jason-clarke-hbo-sky-catherine-the-great-1202442494/ |title='Howards End' Star Joseph Quinn Set To Join Helen Mirren & Jason Clarke In HBO-Sky Drama 'Catherine The Great' |work=Deadline |last=Wiseman |first=Andreas |date=9 August 2018 |access-date=12 July 2021 }}</ref>
* An adult Paul is portrayed by [[Bruce Langley]] in the third season of the 2020 [[Hulu]] series ''[[The Great (TV series)|The Great]]''.

==Archives==
Paul's letters to his first mother-in-law, [[Countess Palatine Caroline of Zweibrücken]], (together with letters from his first wife to her mother) are preserved in the Hessian State Archive (Hessisches Staatsarchiv Darmstadt) in [[Darmstadt]], Germany.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://arcinsys.hessen.de/arcinsys/detailAction.action?detailid=v3325185 |title=Briefe der Großfürstin Wilhelmine (Natalija) an ihre Mutter [Karoline] |publisher=Hessisches Staatsarchiv Darmstadt|lang=de|trans-title=Letters from Grand Duchess Wilhelmine (Natalija) to her mother [Karoline]}}</ref> In addition, Paul's letters to his first father-in-law, Louis IX, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt, (together with letters from his first wife to her father) are also preserved in the Hessian State Archive in Darmstadt.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://arcinsys.hessen.de/arcinsys/detailAction.action?detailid=v3557098 |title=Korrespondenz des Landgrafen Ludwig IX. mit seiner Tochter Großfürstin Natalija von Russland, seinem Schwiegersohn Großfürst Paul und dem russischen Hof |publisher=Hessisches Staatsarchiv Darmstadt|lang=de|trans-title=Correspondence of Landgrave Ludwig IX. with his daughter Grand Duchess Natalija of Russia, his son-in-law Grand Duke Paul and the Russian court}}</ref>

Paul's correspondence with his brother-in-law, King [[Frederick I of Württemberg]] (Maria Feodorovna's brother), written between 1776 and 1801, is preserved in the State Archive of Stuttgart (Hauptstaatsarchiv Stuttgart) in Stuttgart, Germany.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.landesarchiv-bw.de/plink/?f=1-1137990 | title=König Friedrich (1754-1816) - Briefwechsel mit dem kaiserlichen Hause von Russland - 3. Briefwechsel mit Kaiser Paul, 1776-1801 | publisher=Hauptstaatsarchiv Stuttgart | access-date=22 November 2021|lang=de|trans-title=King Frederick (1754-1816) - Correspondence with the Imperial House of Russia - 3. Correspondence with Emperor Paul, 1776-1801}}</ref> Paul's correspondence with his parents-in-law, [[Frederick II Eugene, Duke of Württemberg]], and [[Princess Friederike of Brandenburg-Schwedt|Friederike of Brandenburg-Schwedt]], written between 1776 and 1797, is also preserved in the State Archive of Stuttgart.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.landesarchiv-bw.de/plink/?f=1-1173812 | title=Herzog Friedrich Eugen (1732-1797) - Briefwechsel des Herzogs mit dem kaiserlichen Hause von Russland, 1776-1797 | publisher=Hauptstaatsarchiv Stuttgart | access-date=22 November 2021|lang=de|trans-title=Duke Friedrich Eugen (1732-1797) - Correspondence of the Duke with the Imperial House of Russia, 1776-1797}}</ref>

==Issue==
{{More citations needed section|date=September 2025}}[[File:Paul I of Russia with family - silhouette.jpg|thumb|Paul and Maria Feodorovna with some of their children|center]]
Paul and Sophie had ten children; nine survived to adulthood (and from whom can be traced [[List of grandchildren of Paul I of Russia|30 legitimate grandchildren]]):
{| class="wikitable"
!Name
!Birth
!Death
!Notes
|-
|[[Alexander I of Russia|Alexander I, Emperor of Russia]]
|12 December 1777
|19 November 1825
|m. [[Elizabeth Alexeiyevna (Louise of Baden)|Luise Auguste, Princess of Baden (Elizabeth Alexeiyevna)]] (1779–1826), and had two daughters (both died in childhood).
|-
|[[Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich of Russia|Grand Duke Constantine of Russia]]
|27 April 1779
|15 June 1831
|m. first [[Juliane of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld|Juliane, Princess of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (Anna Feodorovna)]]<ref>{{Cite book |last=Tondini |first=Caesar |title=The Pope of Rome and the Popes of the Oriental Orthodox Church |year=1871 |pages=61}}</ref> (divorced 1820); married second [[Countess Joanna Grudzińska]] morganatically. He had with Joanna one child, Charles (b. 1821) and 3 illegitimate children: Paul Alexandrov from first relationship; Constantine Constantinovich and Constance Constantinovna from second relationship.
|-
|[[Alexandra Pavlovna of Russia|Grand Duchess Alexandra Pavlovna]]
|9 August 1783
|16 March 1801
|m. [[Archduke Joseph of Austria, Palatine of Hungary|Joseph, Archduke of Austria, Count Palatine of Hungary]] (1776–1847), and had one daughter (both mother and infant died in childbirth).
Formerly engaged with King [[Gustav IV of Sweden]]
|-
|[[Elena Pavlovna of Russia|Grand Duchess Elena Pavlovna]]
|13 December 1784
|24 September 1803
|m. [[Frederick Louis, Hereditary Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin|Friedrich Ludwig, Hereditary Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin]] (1778–1819), and had two children.
|-
|[[Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia (1786–1859)|Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna]]
|4 February 1786
|23 June 1859
|m. [[Charles Frederick, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach|Karl Friedrich, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach]] (1783–1853), and had four children.
|-
|[[Catherine Pavlovna of Russia|Grand Duchess Catherine Pavlovna]]
|21 May 1788
|9 January 1819
|m. [[Duke George of Oldenburg|Georg, Duke of Oldenburg]] (1784–1812), had two sons; married [[William I of Württemberg|Wilhelm I, King of Württemberg]] (1781–1864), and had two daughters.
|-
|[[Grand Duchess Olga Pavlovna of Russia|Grand Duchess Olga Pavlovna]]
|22 July 1792
|26 January 1795
| died age 2 years, 6 months from complications of a tooth abscess.
|-
|[[Anna Pavlovna of Russia|Grand Duchess Anna Pavlovna]]
|7 January 1795
|1 March 1865
|m. [[William II of the Netherlands|Willem II, King of the Netherlands]] (1792–1849), and had five children.
|-
|[[Nicholas I of Russia|Nicholas I, Emperor of Russia]]
|25 June 1796
|18 February 1855
|m. [[Alexandra Feodorovna (Charlotte of Prussia)|Charlotte, Princess of Prussia (Alexandra Feodorovna)]] (1798–1860), and had seven children by her.
|-
|[[Grand Duke Michael Pavlovich of Russia|Grand Duke Michael Pavlovich]]
|8 February 1798
|9 September 1849
|m. [[Elena Pavlovna of Württemberg|Charlotte, Princess of Württemberg (Elena Pavlovna)]] (1807–1873), and had five daughters.
|}

===Mistresses and illegitimate children===
* [[Sophia Razumovskaya]]  (1746–1803), lady in waiting of [[Catherine the Great]].
** Semyon Afanasyevich Velikiy (1772 – 13 August 1794)– became a naval officer and died in a shipwreck in the [[Caribbean]].<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20160922010223/http://www.royal-genealogy.com/persons/russia/semyon_velikiy_1772.html Semen Velikiy]}} Retrieved 20 January 2022</ref>
* Mavra Yuryeva (1760–1828), spouse of Aleksey Vakar
** Marfa Pavlovna Musina-Yuryeva (1801–1803) – died prematurely

==Ancestry==
{{Ahnentafel|collapsed=yes|align=center|ref=<ref>{{Cite book|title=Genealogie ascendante jusqu'au quatrieme degre inclusivement de tous les Rois et Princes de maisons souveraines de l'Europe actuellement vivans| trans-title=Genealogy up to the fourth degree inclusive of all the Kings and Princes of sovereign houses of Europe currently living |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AINPAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA23|year=1768|publisher=Frederic Guillaume Birnstiel|location=Bordeaux|language=fr|page=23}}</ref>
| boxstyle_1 = background-color: #fcc;
| boxstyle_2 = background-color: #fb9;
| boxstyle_3 = background-color: #ffc;
| boxstyle_4 = background-color: #bfc;
| 1 = 1. '''Paul I of Russia'''
| 2 = 2. [[Peter III of Russia]]
| 3 = 3. [[Catherine the Great|Catherine II of Russia]]
| 4 = 4. [[Charles Frederick, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp]]
| 5 = 5. [[Grand Duchess Anna Petrovna of Russia]]
| 6 = 6. [[Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst]]
| 7 = 7. [[Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp|Princess Johanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp]]
| 8 = 8. [[Frederick IV, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp]]
| 9 = 9. [[Hedvig Sophia of Sweden]]
| 10 = 10. [[Peter the Great]]
| 11 = 11. [[Catherine I of Russia]]
| 12 = 12. [[John Louis I, Prince of Anhalt-Dornburg]]
| 13 = 13. Christine Eleonore von Zeutsch
| 14 = 14. [[Christian August of Holstein-Gottorp, Prince of Eutin|Prince Christian August of Holstein-Gottorp]]
| 15 = 15. [[Princess Albertina Frederica of Baden-Durlach]]
}}

==See also==
* [[Manifesto of three-day corvee]]
* [[Tsars of Russia family tree]]

==Notes==
{{notelist|30em}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

===Attribution===
{{refbegin}}
* {{EB1911|wstitle = Paul I.|volume=20}}
* {{cite NIE|wstitle = Paul I., Petrovitch}}
{{refend}}

==Bibliography==
{{See also|Bibliography of Russian history (1613–1917)}}
* {{cite book|last1=Alexander|first1=John T.|title=Catherine the Great: Life and Legend|publisher=Oxford University Press|year= 1989}}
* {{cite book|last1=Almedingen|first1=E. M.|title=So Dark a Stream: a Study of the Emperor Paul I of Russia, 1754-1801|year=1959|url=https://archive.org/details/sodarkstreamstud0000alme}}
* {{cite book|last1=Haukeil|first1= Henry A.|last2=Tyrrell|first2= H.|title=The History of Russia from the foundation of the Empire to the War with Turkey in 1877–78|volume=1|place=London|publisher= The London Printing and Publishing Company, Limited|year=1854}}
* {{cite book|last1=Macek|first1= Bernhard A.|year=2012|title= Haydn, Mozart und die Großfürstin: Eine Studie zur Uraufführung der "Russischen Quartette" op. 33 in den Kaiserappartements der Wiener Hofburg|lang=de|trans-title=Haydn, Mozart and the Grand Duchess: A study for the premiere of the "Russian Quartets" op. 33 in the imperial apartments of the Vienna Hofburg| place=Wien|publisher= Schloß Schönbrunn Kultur- und Betriebsges.m.b.H.|isbn=978-3-901568-72-5}}
* {{cite book|last1=de Madariaga|first1= Isabel|title=Russia in the Age of Catherine the Great|publisher=Yale U.P.|year= 1981}}
* {{cite book|last1=Kamenskii|first1= Aleksandr|title=The Russian Empire in the Eighteenth Century: Searching for a Place in the World|year=1997|pages=265–280}}
* {{cite book|last1=Massie|first1=Robert K.|title=Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman|publisher=Random House|place=New York, NY|year= 2011}}
* {{cite book|last1=McGrew|first1=Roderick E.|year=1979|chapter=Paul I and the Knights of Malta|title=Paul I: A Reassessment of His Life and Reign|editor-first1=Hugh|editor-last1= Ragsdale|place=Pittsburgh|publisher=University Center for International Studies, University of Pittsburgh|isbn=0-916002-28-4|pages=44 ff}}
* {{cite book|last1=McGrew|first1= Roderick E.|year=1992|title=Paul I of Russia|place=Oxford|publisher=Clarendon Press|isbn=0-19-822567-9}} [https://www.jstor.org/stable/24657306 online review]
* {{cite journal|last1=Alexander|first1= J. T.|year=1993|title=Review of Paul I of Russia 1754-1801, by R. E. McGrew|journal=Russian History|volume=20|issue=1/4|pages=281–283|doi= 10.1163/187633193X00243|url= http://www.jstor.org/stable/24657306|jstor=24657306|url-access=subscription}}
* {{cite book |editor-last1=Ragsdale |editor-first1=Hugh |title=Paul I: A Reassessment of His Life and Reign |publisher=University Center for International Studies |place=University of Pittsburgh |year=1979 |isbn=9780916002282}}
* {{cite book|last=Sebag Montefiore|first=Simon|title=The Romanovs: 1613—1918|publisher=Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group|year=2016}}
* {{cite book|last1=Sorokin|first1=Iurii Alekseevich|year=1996|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/emperorsempresse00akhm/page/178|chapter=Emperor Paul I, 1796–1801|title=The Emperors and Empresses of Russia: Rediscovering the Romanovs|editor-first1=Donald J.|editor-last1= Raleigh|place=Armonk, NY|publisher= M.E. Sharpe|isbn=1-56324-759-3}}
* {{cite book|last1=Waliszewski|first1= K.|title=The Story of a Throne|place=London|year= 1895}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* [http://www.alexanderpalace.org/palace/Paul.html Paul I of Russia] at AlexanderPalace.org{{Self-published inline|date=November 2021|certain=y}}
* {{OL subject|person:paul_i_emperor_of_russia_(1754-1801)}}

{{S-start}}
{{s-hou|[[House of Romanov|House of Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov]]|1 October|1754|23 March|1801|[[House of Oldenburg]]|name=Emperor Paul I of Russia}}
{{s-reg|}}
{{Succession box|title=[[Emperor of Russia]]|before=[[Catherine the Great|Catherine II]]|after=[[Alexander I of Russia|Alexander I]]|years=6 November 1796 – 23 March 1801}}
{{s-reg|de}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Peter III of Russia|Charles Peter Ulrich]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Holstein-Gottorp|Duke of Holstein-Gottorp]]|years=17 July 1762 – 1 July 1773}}
{{s-non|reason=Ceded to [[Kingdom of Denmark|Denmark]]}}
{{s-brk}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Christian VII of Denmark|Christian]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Count of Oldenburg]]|years=1 July 1773 – 14 December 1773}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Frederick Augustus I, Duke of Oldenburg|Frederick August]]}}
{{s-hon}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Ferdinand von Hompesch zu Bolheim|Ferdinand von Hompesch<br>zu Bolheim]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller|Grand Master of the<br>Knights Hospitaller]]| years=October 1798 – 23 March 1801}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Nikolay Saltykov]]}}
{{S-end}}

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{{Russian emperors}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Paul 01 Of Russia}}
[[Category:Paul I of Russia| ]]
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