Princess Katharina Alexandra Dorothea von Lieven (, tr. ), née Freiin von Benckendorff, 17 December 1785 – 27 January 1857), was a Baltic German noblewoman and the wife of Prince Christoph Heinrich von Lieven, who served as the Russian ambassador to London between 1812 and 1834. She became an influential figure among many of the diplomatic, political, and social circles of 19th-century Europe. Early life Dorothea von Benckendorff was born into Baltic German nobility in Riga in what is now Latvia. She was the daughter of the General of the Imperial army Baron Christoph von Benckendorff (Friedrichsham, 12 January 1749 – 10 June 1823), who served as the military governor of Livonia, and his wife, Baroness Anna Juliane Charlotte Schilling von Canstatt (Thalheim, 31 July 1744 – 11 March 1797), who held a high position at the Romanov Court as senior lady-in-waiting and best friend of Empress Maria Feodorovna. Dorothea was the paternal granddaughter of Johann Michael von Benckendorff and wife Sophie von Löwenstern. Dorothea was the sister of the Russian generals Alexander and Konstantin von Benckendorff. Her sister Maria von Benckendorff (Saint Petersburg, 1784 – 1841) married Ivan Georgievich Sevitsch. Educated at St. Petersburg's exclusive Smolny Convent Institute, Dorothea was assigned as a maid of honour to Maria Feodorovna. In St. Petersburg on 1 February 1800, at age fourteen, some months after finishing her studies, Dorothea married General Count (later Prince) Christoph von Lieven. Although the marriage was arranged, the couple managed to live in harmony for many years; only in the last years did serious differences arise between them that led to a total estrangement. They had one daughter and five sons, three of whom predeceased their mother: Magdalena (15 January 1804 – 1805), Paul (24 February 1805 – 13 October 1864), Alexander (9 March 1806 – 5 October 1885), Konstantin (24 April 1807 – 17 October 1838), Georg (27 October 1819 – 20 February 1835) and Arthur (1825 – 23 March 1838). Ambassador's wife In 1810, her husband was appointed minister to Berlin. When Tsar Alexander I appointed Count von Lieven ambassador to Great Britain in 1812, Dorothea von Lieven used her intelligence, charisma, and social skills to make herself a leader of London's politicized society, thereby contributing materially to the success of her husband's embassy. In London, Princess Lieven cultivated friendships with the foremost statesmen of her day. Moreover, she and Austrian Chancellor Metternich cultivated a