The younger brother of
Alexander Borisovich Kurakin, who was brought up together with the crown prince Pavel Petrovich (future emperor
Paul I) and this relationship was bound to take off his career in senior government positions, which began in the early days of Paul. From 1775 to 1776 he studied at
Leiden University. In 1777 he received the title of chamber junker. In 1793 he was granted a chamberlain, in 1795 promoted to a secret adviser; on 4 December 1796 he was appointed
Prosecutor General; a few days later, on 19 December, he received the
Order of Saint Alexander Nevsky and took the post of Chief Director of the
Russian Assignation Bank. Being a procurator-general, he collected a "laid commission" – three books of laws on criminal, civil and state affairs, and re-established a school of junkers from the nobility under the
Senate to train them in jurisprudence. On 5 April 1797 he was granted the rank of
Active Privy Councillor, and on 19 December that year he was awarded the
Order of Saint Andrew the First Called. Nevertheless, he fell into disgrace with the Emperor: on 8 August 1798 he was dismissed from the post of procurator-general; appointed as a senator, which meant an unconditional downgrade, and soon completely removed from public affairs. His brother Alexander also fell into disgrace. He was again called up for public service by
Alexander I; on 4 February 1802 he was appointed Little Russian Governor-General. He was in office for about six years; during this time he spent a canal on the river Ostyor, took care of public education and public health.
Mikhail Speransky began his career with Alexei Borisovich; first as Kurakin's personal secretary, later adopted by the patron in the Senate office. Since 1804, Alexey Kurakin has been a member of the
Permanent Council; often served as chairman. After the
Peace of Tilsit, he received from Napoleon a large cross of the Order of the
Legion of Honour. From 1807 to 1810, the Minister of the Interior. Being in this position, he arranged for the Main Board of Manufacturers and founded the Northern Mail (the New Saint Petersburg Newspaper). In 1808 he was awarded the highest award of
Denmark – the
Order of the Elephant. Kurakin played a role during the
Ottoman plague epidemic which hit Odessa in the autumn of 1812. Dismissive of any attempt to forge a compromise between quarantine requirements and free trade, Prince Kurakin (the Saint Petersburg-based High Commissioner for Sanitation) countermanded
Richelieu's orders. After leaving the post, again in the State Council. Since 1821, Chairman of the Department of State Economy of the State Council. Since 1826, the Chancellor of Russian orders. Member of the Supreme Criminal Court of the Decembrists. According to Baron Heyking, Prince Kurakin was "a very handsome man, brilliant eyes and thick, black, beautifully drawn eyebrows, would give his appearance a stern expression if it were not softened by his friendly manners and polite tone of speech". ==Family==