blame on Muravyov for the crisis in China (Muravyov had insisted on taking Port Arthur against Witte's advice); because there was a wound on his left temple when he died, there was a rumor that he had committed suicide, but "the official government announcement asserted that, after rising late, he had merely slipped in his study and grazed his temple on the sharp side of a bureau." He was awarded Order of the White Eagle and a number of other decorations. Notes References 1845 births 1900 deaths Diplomats from Saint Petersburg People from Saint Petersburg Governorate Counts of the Russian Empire Foreign ministers of the Russian Empire Russian people of the Boxer Rebellion Members of the State Council (Russian Empire) Ambassadors of the Russian Empire to Denmark