Zofia Potocka

Zofia Potocka
Born11 January 1760
Bursa, Anatolia, Ottoman Empire
Died24 November 1822(1822-11-24) (aged 62)
Berlin, Prussia
Spouse(s)
IssueIvan Osipovich de Witt
Konstanty Potocki
Mikołaj Potocki
Helena Potocka
Aleksander Potocki
Mieczysław Potocki
Zofia Potocka
Olga Potocka
Bolesław Potocki [pl][1]
FatherConstantine Clavone
MotherMaria Clavone

Zofia Potocka née Clavone (11 January 1760 – 24 November 1822) was a Greek slave courtesan and a Russian agent, later a Polish noblewoman. She was famous in contemporary Europe for her beauty and adventurous life. During the Russo-Turkish War she was the lover of the Russian commander Prince Grigory Potemkin and acted as an agent in Russian service.[2]

Compatriots of her time wrote: "She was beautiful as a dream, a child of southern countries. All those who have seen her admire her beauty, igniting a fire in the hearts of men and envy in the eyes of women."

  1. ^ "Wielka Genealogia Minakowskiego - M.J. Minakowski". wielcy.pl. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
  2. ^ Simon Sebag Montefiore (2006). Potemkin och Katarina den stora – en kejserliga förbindelse (Potemkin: Catherine the Great's Imperial Partner) (in Swedish). prisma. ISBN 9789151844978.