Yekaterina Dashkova Named President of the Russian Academy

Background. The Russian Academy, also called the Imperial Russian Academy, was established in Saint Petersburg in 1783 by Empress Catherine II of Russia together with Princess Dashkova, following the example of the Académie Française. It was created as a research center for Russian language and Russian literature.

The Appointment. In October 1783, Yekaterina was named the first president of the newly created Russian Academy. She concurrently served as Director of the Imperial Academy of Arts and Sciences, to which Catherine the Great had appointed her in January 1783, after her return to Russia at the end of 1782.

Significance. Vorontsova-Dashkova was the first woman in the world to head a national academy of sciences and the first woman in Europe to hold a government office. She helped found the Russian Academy, whose presidency she held, and under her leadership a project for a six-volume dictionary of the Russian language was launched in 1789.