Boris Petrovich Sheremetev

Boris Petrovich Sheremetev (Борис Петрович Шереметев) (1652 – 1719) was a Russian count (1706), a military leader and a diplomat, and a general-field marshal (1701).

From 1671 he served at the imperial court. In 1681 he was Tambov leader, he commanded the armies working against the Crimean Tatars, and from 1682 he was a boyar. In 1685–87 he participated in negotiations and the conclusion of the "Eternal Peace of 1686" with Poland and the allied treaty with Austria. From the end of 1687 he commanded the armies in Belgrade covering southern border, and participated in the Crimean campaigns.

After Peter I gained power in 1689, he became his fellow campaigner. During the Azov campaigns in 1695–96 he commanded armies on Dnieper River in actions against the Crimean Tatars. In 1697–99 he carried out diplomatic assignments in Poland, Austria, Italy and Malta. During the Great Northern War 1700–21 he proved to be a capable but extremely cautious and a little bit sluggish military leader.

In the Battle of Narva in 1700 he commanded noble cavalry, and in 1701–05 he commanded armies in Livonia where he gained victories at the Battle of Erestfer in (1701), and the battle of Hummelshof in (1702). He seized Koporye fortress in (1703) and Dorpat (today called Tartu) in (1704). He supervised the suppression of the Astrakhan revolt in 1705–06. In 1708 in command posts in the main forces of army, in the Poltava battle 1709 he commanded armies of the center of the fighting order. In 1710 armies under the command of Sheremetev seized Riga. In 1711 he headed the main forces of army in Prut campaign. In 1712–13 he commanded southern observant armies on Turkish borders, in 1715–17 he commanded armies in Pomorze and Mecklenburg.

He died in 1719 in Moscow and is buried in St.Petersburg.