Nikita Ivanovich Panin

Nikita Ivanovich Panin (born September 29 [September 18, Old Style], 1718, Gdańsk, Poland—died April 11 [March 31], 1783, St. Petersburg, Russia) was a statesman who served as a chief diplomatic adviser to Catherine the Great of Russia (reigned 1762–96). Son of the Russian commandant at Pärnu (Pernau), Estonia, Panin entered the Russian army in 1740, was appointed Russia’s minister to Denmark in 1747, and was then transferred to Sweden, where he served from 1748 to...