What if the real story of France and Russia is told not by treaties – but by two men who crossed the mirror?
“My life – what a novel!” Napoleon is said to have exclaimed. Two lesser-known men might have echoed that sentiment: a French-born Russian named Traversay, and a Russian-born Frenchman named Peshkov. Opposite in origin, parallel in destiny – their lives form a curious symmetry.
The marquis who became a Russian
All but forgotten by modern reference books, Jean-Baptiste de Traversay – known in Russia as Ivan Ivanovich – was among the most capable naval commanders of his era. The Russian version of his name isn’t a footnote, but a clue: his…
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