the Russo-Swedish War he lost his younger brother Peter Rostopchin whom he later described in his patriotic novel Oh, Those French! He served under Alexander Suvorov who distinguished him. They became good friends, and Rostopchin later defended Suvorov during his exile and was near him during his death. Rostopchin had great influence over Paul I of Russia. In 1796 he was appointed adjutant general, grand-marshal of the court, and in 1799 – the President of the Collegium of Foreign Affairs. Same year he was granted the title of Count. His opposition to the French alliance and the murder of Paul I in 1801 resulted in his falling out of favor. He spent 10 years living in his family estate and writing comedies and satirical novels in which he ridiculed Francophiles. He was restored to favor in 1810 as conditions between France and Russia began to deteriorate. At the end of May 1812 he was appointed a Governor-General of Moscow. He was visited by Germaine de Stael on her way to St. Petersburg and Stockholm. During the French invasion of Russia he was responsible for the defence of the city against Napoleon's Grande Armée, and he took every means available to rouse the population of the town and district to arm and join the army to defend the city against the invaders. After the Battle of Borodino it was clear to the Russian generals that their army could not deal with another battle; half of the population left the city, according to Leo Tolstoy. Rostopchin was invited to the council at Fili but excluded after a few hours and had the remaining population of the city evacuated, including all the city administrators and officials, leaving behind only a few French tutors, foreign shop keepers. In addition, the prisons and asylums were opened and the inhabitants set free by his order. No one came to meet the Emperor Napoleon with keys when he arrived at the city gates on 14 September in the afternoon. On the first night of French occupation a fire broke out in the bazaar and a number of small fires erupted in other quarters. As the French rode through the streets to the Kremlin they found the streets deserted. That night the city began to burn in earnest. Rostopchin had left a small detachment of police, whom he charged with burning his house and the city to the