Countess Anna Ivanovna Tolstaya Russian: А́нна Ива́новна Толста́я, née Princess Baryatinskaya (Russian: Баря́тинская; December 5, 1774 - April 12, 1825) was the sister of prince Ivan Baryatinsky, wife of Marshal Nikolai Alexandrovich Tolstoy (1765–1816), a close friend of the Empress Elizabeth Alexeyevna and memoirist Countess Varvara Golovina.
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Biography
Daughter of Prince Ivan Baryatinsky, the Russian ambassador in Paris, and Princess Catherine Petrovna Holstein-Beck of Oldenburg, Princess Baryatinskaya held a high position in Russian society. To be invited to her house was considered a great honor. Wealth allowed her to live well and in great style. The poet Ivan Dolgorukov was a frequent guest of Princess Baryatinskaya; he participated in performances at her home and took care of her daughter.
In 1787, Anna became the wife of Count Nikolai Alexandrovich Tolstoy. In May 1793 he was appointed chamberlain to Grand Duke Alexander Pavlovich, the future Alexander I of Russia.
Countess Anna Tolstoy became a member of Grand Duke Alexander Pavlovich's court. She developed a friendship with the Grand Duchess Elizabeth Alexeievna, the former Louise of Baden, who called her la longue (long), as Anna was very tall. This became her nickname amongst her friends.