Vasily Orlov-Denisov

Count Vasily Vasilyevich Orlov-Denisov (8 September 1775 – 24 January 1843) was a Cossack Russian general. He was the son of Vasily Petrovich Orlov, Ataman of the Don Cossacks, and grandson (on his mother's side) of the first Earl of the Cossacks, General of the Cavalry, Fedor Petrovich Denisov. In honour of his grandfather he added his surname to his own, becoming Orlov-Denisov on 26 April 1801. Vasily Orlov-Denisov is not to be confused with Vasily "Vas'ka" Denisov, who appears as a fictional character in Leo Tolstoy's novel War and Peace. Tolstoy has said the similarity in names was a mistake on his part, arising from the "specially typical character" of Orlov-Denisov. He insisted that "nothing resembling the actual facts of [Orlov-Denisov's] life is ascribed to [Vas'ka Denisov] in the novel." References External links The Dictionary of Russian Generals in Napoleonic Wars.