Dmitry Pozharsky

Dmitry Mikhaylovich Pozharsky (Russian: Дми́трий Миха́йлович Пожа́рский; IPA: [ˈdmʲitrʲɪj mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪtɕ pɐˈʐarskʲɪj]; October 17, 1577 - April 30, 1642), a Rurikid prince, led Russian forces against Polish invaders in 1611-1612 towards the end of the Time of Troubles. He obtained from Mikhail I of Russia (reigned 1613-1645) the unprecedented title Saviour of the Motherland.

Pozharsky was descended from a dynasty of sovereign princes which ruled the town of Starodub-on-the-Klyazma near Suzdal. At one point in the 15th century their family patrimony burned to the ground, in consequence of which event they assumed the name of Pozharsky (from pozhar, the Russian word for conflagration). It is interesting to note that Dmitry's mother Maria Feodorovna Pozharskaya came from the Beklemishev family, just like the mother of Mikhail Kutuzov, who would be credited with saving Russia precisely two centuries after him.

The family was never particularly prominent, and Pozharsky's early career was not documented until he took part in the Zemsky sobor which elected Boris Godunov to the throne in 1598. Four years later, he was attested as a stolnik. When the Time of Troubles broke out upon Godunov's death, he was present at the defense of Kolomna (1608) and helped Vasily IV during the Siege of Moscow in 1609. Later that year, he routed the Bolotnikov Cossacks at the Pekhorka River. In 1610, Pozharsky was in command at the defense of Zaraysk against the forces of False Dmitry II, Pozharsky was close to the throne during the rule of Tsar Boris Godunov, which made him quite an influential figure among Russia’s elite.

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