He served as the minister of finance from October 27, 1880, to May 6, 1881, and unsuccessfully urged the tsar to transform Imperial Russia into a constitutional monarchy.

Alexander Abaza was born on July 24, 1821, in the Borovinsky distillery in Vyshnevolotsk County, Tver province, in the family of a major landowner and sugar refiner Aggei Vasilievich Abaza and his wife Praskovia, daughter of State Councilor Loggin Mikhailovich Manzey, a Scotsman by birth.

Abaza took part in hostilities in the Caucasus and was awarded the Order of St. Vladimir, 4th class, with swords,[7] in 1843.

He joined the enlightened circle grouped around the Grand Duchess Elena Pavlovna and became one of the preachers of the "great reforms".

In October 1880 - May 1881, minister of finance of Russia:[2] initiated the abolition of the salt excise tax, insisted on the state construction of railroads and their redemption from private owners; carried out an increase in customs duties.

Together with M. T. Loris-Melikov and N. K. Bunge he developed the program of social and economic transformations in the sphere of taxation, currency circulation, railway building and financial management.

Abaza was considered as passionate gamer and in English club played on the biggest amounts of money.

Vitte got information that Abaza made operation on the stock market for reducing cost of ruble's exchange rate.

10 of Mart 1893 was fired from all posts and sent to vaccation on indefinite period, but was stayed as member of State Council.

His first wife was the daughter of millionaire Dmitriy Benardaki, so she brought to Abaza big trousseau and made him wealthy.

Brothers: Erast Ageevich Abaza (1819–1855), major, amator musician, the author of romance to the poems of I.S Turgenev "Foggy morning", was mortally wounded during the Crimean war.

Bibliography Polunov, Alexander (2005) Russia in the Nineteenth Century: Autocracy, Reform, and Social Change.