E. de Kotzebue

Ernst Paul von Kotzebue (1838–1914), known in Russian service as Ernest Karlovich Kotzebue, was born in Riga and was a grandson of the writer August von Kotzebue. His diplomatic career developed in Frankfurt, Berlin, and Paris. He became embassy counselor in Berlin in 1883 and moved to the same position in Paris the following year, before representing Russia at several German courts from 1892. ¹

In June 1886 Duleep Singh, the deposed ruler of Punjab, appealed to Kotzebue for Russian support against British rule in India, describing the assistance he believed Indian princes could provide. ²

In Washington, Kotzebue pursued the claim of Captain Gustaf Isak Dahlberg, who had been arrested and imprisoned in Mississippi after a dispute aboard his vessel. In April 1896 he pressed Secretary of State Richard Olney for the Justice Department’s findings and supported compensation if the arrest violated the 1832 treaty. The American investigation subsequently concluded that the detention lacked legal authority. ³

He also joined the European representatives who notified Washington of the international blockade of Crete in March 1897. Their communication distinguished prohibited Greek shipping from neutral vessels permitted to deliver goods at occupied ports. Kotzebue retired later that year and died in Vevey, Switzerland, in 1914. ^{4, 1}