Adrian Karpovich Denisov

Adrian Karpovich Denisov (Адриа́н Ка́рпович Дени́сов; 1763–1841) was a Russian lieutenant-general, a remarkable representative of the Don Host, and an associate of Suvorov.

Biography
In 1780 he was promoted to officer, in 1787 he was given command of a regiment.

In 1789 he for the first time participated in the war with the Turks, having discovered outstanding bravery, for which he was promoted to prime-major. In 1790 he was at the storming of Izmail; at the head of the dismounted Cossacks, despite the contusions, he captured the battery and was awarded the Order of St. George, 4th degree. In June 1791 for successful actions at Maçin he was awarded a gold medal with a portrait of Empress Catherine II.

In 1792, as part of the army of General-in-Chief Kakhovsky, Denisov was in Poland and, participating in the actions at the village of Morachwa, the Valowka, Lyubor, Zieleńce, Horodnica, was awarded the Order of St. Vladimir, 4th degree.

In 1794 he was again in Poland and at Słonim was wounded in the neck and arm with a sabre. Denisov received the Prussian Order of Pour le Mérite for the action on 26 June at Lipovoye Pole, where the Polish detachment of Colonel Dobiek was defeated; in the battle of 31 July near Warsaw Denisov was again wounded by a bullet. On 10 October he took part in the battle of Maciejowice, in which, commanding Cossack regiments, completely defeated the Polish cavalry, crashed into the infantry and pursued his fleeing enemy until Kościuszko was taken prisoner. For the storming of Praga Denisov was awarded a golden sabre with the inscription "For bravery".

In 1796 Denisov went as a volunteer to the Caucasus to V. A. Zubov's army.

In 1798 with 6 Cossack regiments he was part of the vanguard of the Russian corps sent to Italy. On 24 April he, together with Colonel Grekov, broke into the fortress of Bergamo with the Cossacks, captured the city and the citadel, taking more than 100 prisoners and capturing 19 siege guns, many rifles and military supplies. Then Denisov participated in the affair at Lecco, in the battle on the river Adda, where he crushed the French with a flank attack and rescued the Austrians surrounded by the enemy, for the battle of Marengo he was awarded the Order of St. John of Jerusalem with a pension of 1,000 rubles a year. All June and July 1799 Denisov was at Suvorov, with distinction participated in the battle of Novi, for which he was awarded the Order of St. Anna 2nd Class with diamonds. Further, together with Suvorov, Denisov made the crossing of the Alps, where in the battle of the Muottental he was the first to snuck in from the left flank of his enemy through the mountains covered with woods, and at a great distance without stopping chased the French; awarded the Order of St. Anna 1st Class.

In 1801, in view of the proposed campaign to India, Denisov was appointed chief of the Cossack corps. Having formed 11 regiments, Denisov crossed the Volga with them, but, reaching the Irgiz river, received news of the death of Emperor Paul I and the order to return to the Don.

In 1805 Denisov took the post of ataman, in 1807, at his own request, was appointed to the active army in Prussia, where, taking command of 3 regiments, participated in the battles of Guttstadt, Passarg, Semersfeld, Arensdorf and Heilsberg and was awarded a golden sabre decorated with diamonds, with the inscription "For bravery".

In 1808–09 he took part in the war with Turkey.

In 1812 he formed 26 Cossack regiments for the army, encouraging in every possible way the population of the Don Region to donate money, for which he was awarded the Order of St. Vladimir, 2nd degree, and the rank of lieutenant-general.

In 1818, after Platov's death, Denisov was appointed army ataman on the Don. As an honest warrior who loved the Cossacks ardently, he did not remain indifferent to the arbitrary distribution of Cossack lands to persons close to the authorities, and conceived the idea of giving the army administration a new organisation. In 1819 he asked the Supreme Command for the establishment of a committee to draw up "Regulations on the organisation of the Don Army". This aroused against Denisov the discontent of the Don aristocracy, which saw in the committee's activities an encroachment on its privileges. The discontented began to cluster around a member of the committee, Adjutant-General Chernyshyov, relations between Denisov and Chernyshyov became hostile, and all this ended with Denisov's disgrace.

In January 1821 he was unexpectedly dismissed, put under the police supervision, and his property has been seized. Denisov left behind him notes printed in Russkaia Starina 1874–75, volumes X–XII.