Sergey Uvarov
Count Sergey Semionovich Uvarov (; 5 September [O.S. 25 August] 1786, Moscow – 16 September [O.S 4 September] 1855) was an Imperial Russian classical scholar, best remembered as an influential imperial statesman under Nicholas I of Russia. Biography Uvarov, connected through marriage with the powerful Razumovsky family, published a number of works on Ancient Greek literature and archaeology, which brought him European renown. A confirmed conservative, he was on friendly terms with Alexander Humboldt, Madame de Stael, Goethe, Prince de Ligne, Nikolay Karamzin, and Vasily Zhukovsky. Uvarov studied in Göttingen, and from 1811 to 1822, he curated the Saint Petersburg educational district. In 1832, Uvarov was appointed Deputy Minister of National Education, succeeding his father-in-law Count Alexey Razumovsky. He was elected an Honorable Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences in 1811 and was the president of that venerable institution from 1818 until his death. In the wake of the Decembrist revolt of 1825, the Emperor moved to protect the status quo by centralizing the educational system. He wanted to neutralize the threat of foreign ideas and what he ridiculed as "pseudo-knowledge." However, Uvarov quietly promoted academic freedom and autonomy, raised academic standards, improved facilities, and opened higher education to