Princess Tarakanova

Grigory Petrovich Danilevsky (1829–1890), author of popular novels from the history of Russia and Ukraine in the 18th–19th centuries, was revered not only in his homeland but also in Europe, where about a hundred translations of his works were published. His ability to capture the color of an era and the engaging nature of his plots earned him fame as the “Russian Cooper.”

Among his best-known works are the trilogy “The Runaways in Novorossia,” “The Runaways Returned,” and “New Places,” where life in the Azov steppes is described with extraordinary romance—and the basis of the plot is kidnapping, the exploits of robbers, chases, and mysterious murders. There is also “Burnt Moscow” about the events of 1812, and “Black Year” about Pugachev’s uprising.

“Princess Tarakanova” is one of Danilevsky’s brightest novels. The story unfolds during the reign of Catherine II, when impostors and adventurers of every kind turned out to be the “backside” of the Age of Enlightenment—with its drive to build a society on the foundations of goodness and justice. The brilliant and tragic fate of a fake princess, who in the 1770s claimed the Russian throne, still invariably attracts readers to this day.

This remarkable woman is also captured in a famous painting by the artist K. D. Flavitsky, preserved in the Tretyakov Gallery. Princess Tarakanova is a love historical novel by Grigory Petrovich Danilevsky, devoted to the tragic fate of the supposed daughter of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna. Duchess Tarakanova’s heart was won (or courted) by Hetman Ogyński, the German ruler Prince Limburg, and Count Alexey Orlov—described as the most cunning Don Juan of the Russian Empire.

This woman was offered up as a sacrifice, but passion and love are immortal.