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Maria Ivanovna Smirnoff - Cooper (1805 London - 1883, Wingham, Manning River NSW)


Yakov Ivanovich Smirnov -Яков Иванович Смирнов (born Linitsky; 1754–1840), also known in Great Britain as James Smirnove, was a prominent Russian Orthodox priest and diplomat who served at the Russian Embassy in London for 60 years.

Born in a priest's family in Kharkov in 1754. His surname at birth was Linitsky, Smirnov being a translation of the original name, supposedly derived from the Latin word for "quiet" into Russian. After studies in Kharkov and England he was posted as the priest of the Russian Embassy Church in London in 1780 and remained in this position until 1837, when he retired due to poor health. Besides his duties as priest, he was involved in almost all the activities of the Embassy: he took care of the Russian students studying in Britain and even paid their fees, helped the Ambassador Semyon Vorontsov to compile the diplomatic dispatches and gathered valuable information. Smirnov was a polymath who had a deep interest in many branches of science and agriculture and made sure the British achievements were known in Russia. 

In 1800 Smirnov was appointed as Russian Charge d Affaires, as the only member of Embassy staff left in London after the departure of the previous Charge d’Affaires Lizakevich, and served in this capacity until 1801. This appointment of a priest as head of an embassy was a unique case in Russian diplomatic history. Though Smirnov carried out his diplomatic duties and maintained contact with the Foreign Office, he never received and presented letters of credence and was only recognized as de facto envoy. Between 1807 and 1812, while state of war was declared between Russia and Britain, he took care of the Russian community in London and of the Embassy assets and papers, once again acting as Russia's diplomatic representative in London. In December 1812, after the French invasion of Russia, Smirnov transferred the keys of the Embassy to the new Ambassador, Prince Christoph von Lieven.

Smirnov was ennobled in 1804, awarded Russian orders of St. Anne (2nd class) and St. John of Jerusalem, as well as a special cross for clergy in memory of the 1812 War and a diamond ring as gift of Emperor Alexander I.

Yakov Ivanovich had three brothers (two of whom were ennobled for their services) and several sisters. Little is known about his wife, even the year of marriage and her death date are unknown. 

Yakov Smirnov had 5 children: 
  1. Konstantin (1782–1843), 
  2. Elizabeth (1788–1869), 
  3. Sophia (1791–1852), 
  4. John (Ivan) (1794–1842 Genoa)- John became a Russian diplomat, in 1825–32 he served in London and was elected Fellow of the Royal Society. In 1836–1842 he was Russian Consul General in Genoa and is buried there. 
  5. Catherine (1798–1872). 
  6. Один из сыновей Я.И.Смирнова (Пётр) стал священником.??
The three daughters remained single, lived in London and were buried in Kensal Green Cemetery with their father.




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Yakov's elder brother was Ivan/John/Jean de Smirnoff (French being the language used in Diplomatic circles in Petersburg and elsewhere). He was born in 1767, in the Ukraine, and, after some years in the Civil Service, was appointed Envoy to the Court of Holland. This was an important position: he was in charge of "victuals" and other logistical supplies to be used by the Russian army after it had pursued Napoleon across the winter snow and out of the country.

Smirnov took his family with him--his wife Maria (nee Masson), his eldest daughter Maria (married Leonard Cooper), Stephen, John, Helena, Louisa and Anette. 

Maria was baptised on 22.10.1805
Northamptonshire, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1532-1812

Elena born on 10.01.1807 , baptised on 22 March 1807
London, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1538-1812

The family hadn't long been in the Netherlands when tragedy struck. According to the police report, dated July 14th 1815, "yesterday, the thirteenth of the month, at the hotel called "The Bathhouse", at approximately half past six in the evening (the Director of Police) found the Consul-General of Russia, Mr Smirnoff, residing at Amsterdam, and who, owing to a heavy loss of blood and through inflicted wounds, was not in a state to give any information as to the causes......it has come to light that in the afternoon of yesterday a certain Basily Mironnof called, describing himself as a Major in the Eighth Class, in Russian Service, serving with the Administration of Foodstuffs sent from St. Petersburg to Rotterdam; that the above mentioned Consul-General, found him there writing, and complained to him that others assumed a hand in affairs which were in his charge; that... he got into a rage and drawing his sword, gave him a slash over the head, and that, whilst the said Consul-General attempted to get away from his attack, he followed him again and punished him by the infliction of several wounds until he fell down powerless."

The assailant was put under arrest and imprisoned in Rotterdam. He was transported to the Russian Headquarters on the 29th August 1815, where a court martial sentenced him to be shot. This judgment was executed near Melun, France.

The story ends with this report in the "Rotterdamsche Courante" of Saturday 5th August, l815. "ROTTERDAM AUG 4 The remains of Chevalier Jean de Smirnoff, Consul-General of His Majesty the Czar of all the Russians...were buried here to-day...The funeral was one of the most impressive and striking that can be remembered as ever having been seen in this town. All those who followed the body were touched by the sad fate which had torn such a worthy man and so faithful a servant of his Emperor and Fatherland untimely from his honourable career, and from the arms of his tender loving spouse and six young children, and from the midst of his admiring friends. The order of procession was as follows: The drums and band of the Musketeers and the two flanking companies of the 1st Battalion. Four Mutes. The Arms-bearers, bearing the Coat of Arms of the deceased. Six Russian soldiers with wax candles, who chanted in turn with the Armenian Priest, clad entirely in black, and another carrying in front of him, a picture of St. Nicholas. Several Russian Officers, three of whom bore the insignia of his Order of Chivalry on a black cushion, together with his sword. The hearse was drawn by four black horses, draped with Coats of Arms, and led by four liveried servants; six Russian Officers acted as Pall bearers. Surrounding these, were non-commissioned officers of the Musketeers and of the Russian Troops stationed here, carrying Russian flags.... 

Thus, having arrived at The Groote Kerk (Great or St Lawrence Church) the body was borne by Officers to the graveside in the choir, and, after some religious ceremonies, lowered into the tomb to the sound of three volleys from the Musketeers standing outside the Church...The church bells tolled for several hours." 

The family returned to St Petersburg, where a Grace and Favour residence was provided, debts were paid, a pension supplied and the children educated. Maria was sent to the Smolyni Institute (or St Catherine School), graduated and soon was married. 

Stephen joined the Civil Service, became a member of the Privy Council and Councillor of State at St Petersburg. John joined the army and died in the Crimean War in 1855. Helena married Baron Theodore de Rosen. Louisa married an Artillery Officer, Colonel Alexandroff. And Anette married Alexander de Brelewitch, of the Russian Civil Service.


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Maria Ivanovna Smirnoff - Cooper  (1805 St Petersburg - 1883, Manning River NSW)

Maria Ivanovna Smirnova was born 20 September 1805 in London. She was the daughter of Ivan/John/Jean de Smirnoff (1767-1815) and Maria Masson (c.1777-1833).

Maria was about 9 years old when her father was murdered by a Russian Army Major in Rotterdam and the family had to return to St Petersburg destitute. Tsar Alexander I generously looked after the family and Maria was soon enrolled in St Catherine's School For Noble Girls, later known as the Smolyni Institute. 

How did she get to India?

She married Leonard C Cooper on 18 September 1828 at St George's Church, Madras, Tamil Nadu, India and had 13 children with him.   He was her first cousin. Leonard's mother and Maria’s mother were sisters from the Masson family.

India, Select Marriages, 1792-1948 ( ancestry.com)

Name:Smirnoff
Gender:Female
Marriage Date:18 Sep 1828
Marriage Place:Madras, Madras, India
Spouse:Leonard Cooper
FHL Film Number:521839


Ann Cooper 1829-1829
-Maria Louisa Cooper 1830-1898 ( married Chalon)
-Alexander Cooper 1831-1831
-Leonard Smirnoff Cooper 1832-1900
Samuel George Teed Cooper 1833-1919
Edmund Walker Cooper 1834-1901
-Montague Cooper 1837-1850
Sarah Matilda (Cooper)  1839-1875 ( married Begbie)
Alexander Waldemar Cooper 1841-1925
-Charles William Boulderson Cooper 1842-1917
-John Burnett Cooper 1844-1926
Agnes Emily Cooper 1845-1846
-Ellen Agnes Chalon Cooper 1846-1846

India, Select Births and Baptisms, 1786-1947

After his early death in July 1852 she travelled on a ship "William Prowse" arriving to Sydney on 21 February 1853. 

Maria Cooper 48 years widow travelled with 5 youngest children - Edmund Walker (19), Sarah Mathilda (13) , A.W. - Alexander Waldemar (13), C.W. -Charles William (11) and John Burnett Cooper (9). 

Maria Louisa Cooper married Thomas Bernard Chalon on 14 Aug 1845 in Presidency of Fort St George, India and gave birh to George Chalon in 1850, Robert in 1852, Hugh in 1854 in India. All three brothers later moved to Australia and died in Sydney.

 Samuel George Teed and Edmund Walker Cooper more likely stayed in England to study.

1853 'Advertising', The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), 23 February, p. 2. , viewed 01 Oct 2026, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article12943876

Why to Australia? Her late husband Leonard II Cooper was from a prominent Cooper family which had East India Company connections with Australia. ( a possibility, not confirmed)

Maria (Smirnova/Smirnoff) Cooper passed away 05 November 1883 at Wingham, Manning River, New South Wales, Australian Colonies. 

Death Notice
"Family Notices" The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954) 6 November 1883: page 1.
Deaths  - COOPER.—November 5, at the residence of her son, Norwood, Upper Manning River, Maria, the beloved relict of the late Leonard C. Cooper, formerly Sheriff of Madras, E.I., aged 78 years, leaving a large circle of relatives and friends to mourn their loss.

Maria Cooper had 12 or 13 children.  Maria had claimed in 1848 to have born 12 children, three of whom had died (Ann, Alexander, Agnes Emily, Ellen Agnes)
  1. Ann Cooper 1829-1829  -There was an infant Ann, buried in 1828, who must have been Maria's first child, born a year after her marriage. She would have been called after Maria's sister Ann, who remained in Russia.
  2. Maria Louisa Cooper 1830-1898
  3. Alexander Cooper 1831-1831
  4. Leonard III Smirnoff Cooper 1832-1900, Waverley, Sydney
  5. Samuel George Teed Cooper 1833-1919
  6. Edmund Walker Cooper 1834-1901
  7. Montague Cooper 1837-1850
  8. Sarah Matilda (Cooper) Begbie 1839-1875
  9. Alexander Waldemar Cooper 1841-1925
  10. Charles William Boulderson Cooper 1842-1917
  11. John Burnett Cooper 1844-1926
  12. Agnes Emily Cooper 1845-1846
  13. Ellen Agnes Chalon Cooper 1846-1846




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Leonard Smirnoff Cooper (1832–1900) 

Chief/First Clerk of the Legislative Council of New South Wales 1883- 1893, Second Clerk app in 1871 

Cooper was a prominent 19th-century figure connected to Paddington, Sydney. He is best known historically as the original owner who commissioned the building of what is now famously referred to as "The Pink Palace" in Paddington. His daughter, Maria Charlotte Smirnoff Cooper,  married at Paddington's St. Matthias' Church in 1884.

He married Ida Charlotte Benjamin and raised his family in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs, passing away at his residence in Waverley in December 1900 at the age of 68.

Family Notices (1900, December 8). The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), p. 1. http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article14348659


Deceased, who was for many years closely associated with the officers of the Council and Assem
bly, was born at Madras, India, on 7th April, 1832. He was the eldest son of the late Leonard Cooper, solicitor, for some years High Sheriff of Madras, India. His mother was the daughter of Chevalier Jean de Smirnoff, Russian Minister to the Court of Holland.

THE LATE MR. L. S. COOPER. (1900, December 11). The Daily Telegraph (Sydney, NSW : 1883 - 1930), p. 4. Retrieved September 30, 2026, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article237108770

Deceased Estates Index 1880-1958
Item No: NRS-13340-6-279-[AF00100818] | Reel No: - | Date Duty Paid: 19/07/1901 

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Leonard II Cooper ( -1852)

Sir Leonard Cooper, Solicitor of the Supreme Court, London, and High Sheriff of Madras, India, for the British Imperial Government.

He was appointed to the position of Sheriff of Madras in 1846, succeeding John Findley McKennie. During the British colonial administration, the Sheriff was a prominent non-political legal officer responsible for executing the processes of the local courts and presiding over major civic functions. Prior to and during his time in India, he was a qualified solicitor of the Supreme Court in London.

The Coopers were a real Honorable East India Company family. At least eight Coopers worked for the Company.  The Cooper family network branched across multiple generations serving in the Madras and Bengal presidencies as part of the administrative and military apparatus that transitioned the East India Company from a trading body into a governing territorial power.

Leonard II's father and Maria's uncle was also Leonard I Cooper (1783-1853) , son of Samuel and Margaret, was baptised on 6 April 1783 at St. Marylebone, London. He was appointed a cadet in the East India Company of 4 Feb. 1800 at the age of 17. He was a Lieutenant in the 13 Regiment of the Madras Native Infantry in 1803. He was Captain from 1817. He was Adjutant at Black Town (the mainly Indian suburbs of Madras) from 1815 to 1819; town Adjutant 1820.

Leonard (I) married three times:

1. Firstly (date not given, while he was active in India, he married a Sarah, who was actually Maria's aunt, Sarah Masson. The couple had three sons and a daughter. Sarah's death is given in the Register of Deaths as 1829.
  • Leonard II
  • John Chamier Cooper ( 21 December, 1809, Madras - 28 August 1857, Madras). He became a cadet in 1825 in the 51st Regiment, Madras Native Infantry.
2. Leonard (I) retired in 1834 with the rank of Lieut-Colonel. A second marriage was listed as occurring in that same year, presumably after his return to England. Wife number two was not named, but died in 1839.

3. A third marriage in 1842 to an Elizabeth (b. 1818, d. 1895) resulted in four children:
  • Ellen, born March 1843, m. 24 July 1867;
  • George. horn 24 Nov 1844;
  • Sophia. born 7 April 1846, d. 8 May 1856;
  • Edward, born 10 Feb 1848.

Lieut-Colonel Cooper Leonard (I) died in 1853


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"Norwood" was a prominent historical pioneer estate located on the Upper Manning River in New South Wales, Australia. Established in 1861, the property became the generational home of the Cooper family, a foundational pioneering household in the Manning Valley district.


Begbie descendants

Archdeacon Herbert S Begbie -The Reverend Archdeacon Herbert Smirnoff Begbie (1870–1950) was a prominent Australian Anglican clergyman who served in influential senior roles within the Diocese of Sydney.He served as the Rector of All Souls, Leichhardt, and later became a Canon of St. Andrew's Cathedral in Sydney. He served sequentially as the Archdeacon of West Sydney, Parramatta, and Cumberland. Archdeacon Begbie passed away at his home in Northwood at the age of 81. His funeral service was held on September 11, 1951, conducted by the Archbishop of Sydney.



The Sydney Morning Herald. (Sydney, New South Wales) 1967-03-05 [p 79].


Herbert Gordon Smirnoff Begbie (1905–1973): Known as Gordon Begbie, he followed closely in his father's footsteps, becoming the Archdeacon of Camden, Wollongong, and Cumberland, and eventually serving as the Bishop of Parramatta. 
Alan Edward Smirnoff Begbie (1908–1979): Served as an Anglican minister and became a Reverend Canon. 
Donald Ridley Smirnoff Begbie (1912–1980): An Anglican priest who also served as a Chaplain with the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) during World War II. 
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