Rostislav was built to serve as the flagship of Samuel Greig, a Scot who entered Russian service and founded a naval dynasty that later connected with German and Russian nobility. Catherine II, herself born in Prussia, looked to Britain when she wanted naval expertise for Russia. Russian accounts portray Greig as one of the Royal Navy's very best, while a British reading makes him a solid lieutenant whose promotion was not accelerated. Lack of patronage is an incomplete explanation for that slower advancement: patrons had an incentive to recruit able young officers because successful followers enhanced their own reputations. Greig had reached acting lieutenant relatively young and was considered adequate in that role. His later Russian success therefore does not by itself establish that Britain had failed to recognise an exceptional tactical innovator.
Notable Point · 15:12-17:00
Catherine II recruits Samuel Greig from Britain
Greig's move from British to Russian service shows how an expanding navy imported expertise and how later success could enlarge an officer's early reputation.