Antiochus Kantemir

[3] His illiterate grandfather Constantin had been made voivode of Moldavia by the Ottomans in 1685 and was succeeded by his well-educated sons Antioch and Demetrius.

Kantemir was the son of Demetrius by his wife, Princess Kassandra Cantacuzene, who claimed descent from the Byzantine dynasty of the same name.

[citation needed] He was then educated by his father and at the St Petersburg Academy[1] before moving to the family estate near Dmitrovsk.

[citation needed] He is best remembered for his satires in the manner of Juvenal, including To My Mind: On Those Who Blame Education and On the Envy and Pride of Evil-Minded Courtiers, which were among the first such works in the Russian language.

When Kantemir's teacher, Christopher Gross, asked the academy to publish the translation, the responsible manager of the chancellery, Johann Daniel Schumacher, wanted to first get permission from the government and the Holy Synod.