Toma Cantacuzino

Toma Cantacuzino (b. Bucharest – December 22, 1721, Truhnovo, Russia) was a Romanian Spatharios and general in the tsarist army. He was a member of the Cantacuzino family and cousin of Constantin Brâncoveanu and Ștefan Cantacuzino.

Biography
Toma Cantacuzino was born in 1670 at Bucharest. His father was Matei Cantacuzino and mother was Bălașa Drugănescu. His both parents died when he was young and was raised by his uncle, Şerban Cantacuzino. Brâncoveanu's Italian secretary, Anton Maria del Chiaro, described Toma as a brave man with a vast culture and a good connoisseur of the Latin and Italian languages.

In 1693, he was made second logofat and then, 1704, promoted to grand postelnic. In 1706, he was made grand back which made the entire light cavalry of the ruler under his command.

In 1707, Constantin Brâncoveanu appointed him back, after he had dismissed him from the position of stolnic in 1704.

In April 1711, the Treaty of Lutsk was signed secretly between Dimitrie Cantemir and Peter the Great, following which the Principality of Moldavia sided with Russia in the anti-Ottoman struggle. Constantin Brâncoveanu hesitated to side with him. Toma Cantacuzino, who commanded the cavalry of Wallachia, openly sided with the Russians on June 11 despite Brâncoveanu's orders. This betrayal contributed to the execution of Constantin Brâncoveanu and his four children.

Tsar named him Major General and was ordered to capture the fortress of Brăila. After the conquest of Braila, on July 25, 1711, Toma returned to his home in Filipeștii de Pădure, where he received the news of the conclusion of peace between the Sultan and the Tsar. In 1712, he went to the Russian Empire where the tsar granted him the title of count and appointed him a major general in the Russian imperial cavalry.

He received the command of the troops that supervised the construction of a canal that was supposed to connect the Baltic Sea and Sea of Azov. Due to the very cold northern climate, he died on 22 December 1721.

He is buried in the family crypt of his cousin, Constantin Brâncoveanu, in the church of the Saint Nicholas Monastery in Moscow.