Commander Mikhail Illarionovich Kutuzov is often depicted with a black patch over his eye. We checked whether the Field Marshal General wore it during his lifetime.

Perhaps the most memorable image of Kutuzov was created in 1962 by Igor Ilyinsky in the comedy by Eldar Ryazanov "Hussar Ballad". The influence of this film on the formation of the stereotype is evidenced by a simple fact: in the cult comedy “The Diamond Arm”, released several years later, Lyolik calls Kozodoev Kutuzov, whose right eye is also bandaged with black cloth.
However, this was not the first appearance of the commander on screen in such a guise. Back in 1941, the biographical film “Suvorov” was shot at the Mosfilm studio, in one of the episodes of which you can see relatively young Kutuzov with a bandage.
Two years later, the biopic “Kutuzov” was released, the title character of which, performed by Alexei Dikiy, also periodically appears with a bandage on his face. Today, the commander with a black bandage on his right eye looks at us from numerous portraits, pedestals and book covers. It is in this form that monuments in Moscow, Maloyaroslavets and Anapa depict him:

However, if we look at the portraits of Kutuzov made in the 19th century, we will not see any bandages on them:

A few years ago, an article appeared on the website of the Moscow branch of the Russian Military Historical Society with the headline “Kutuzov is not a pirate, he doesn’t need an eyepatch!” It said, in particular:

“In recent years, images of the commander-in-chief of the Russian army in 1812, Field Marshal General, His Serene Highness Prince M. I. Golenishchev-Kutuzov, with a bandage on his right eye, have begun to be widely circulated. “One-eyed” Kutuzov can be seen on the covers of books and magazines, in paintings by contemporary artists and on various souvenirs, as well as on busts and monuments.

Such images do not correspond to historical accuracy, since Kutuzov never wore an eye patch. There is not a single memoir or epistolary evidence from Kutuzov’s contemporaries describing the field marshal with a bandage on his right eye. Moreover, Kutuzov had no need to hide his eye under a bandage, since he saw with this eye, although not as well as with his left.

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The Moscow branch of the Russian Military Historical Society appeals to all artists and sculptors, as well as manufacturers of printed and souvenir products, with an appeal to stop falsifying history and stop reproducing images of M.I. Golenishchev-Kutuzov with a bandage on his right eye.”

Indeed, in not a single historical essay or in the memoirs of eyewitnesses is the commander mentioned with an eye patch, which could be a consequence of his wounds in 1774 near the Crimean village of Shuma and in 1788 near Ochakov. With each wound, the bullet passed right through his temple, which put Kutuzov’s life at risk, but each time he recovered. These wounds did not cause him any terrible injuries that would need to be hidden under a bandage. True, his right eye became slightly distorted after that, but he did not stop seeing with it. This, among other things, is evidenced by quotes from letters:

“Thank God, I am healthy, but my eyes hurt from writing a lot” (April 4, 1799).

“Thank God, I’m healthy, but my eyes have so much work to do that I don’t know what will happen to them” (March 5, 1800).

“We are all healthy, but my eyes hurt after, and now they often hurt” (December 26, 1806).

“My eyes are very tired; Don’t think that they hurt me, no, they are just very tired from reading and writing” (November 10, 1812).

Baron Levenstern, who reported to Kutuzov about 15,000 captured French in the battle of Krasnoye in 1812, recalled: “His eyes sparkled with joy.”

This information is confirmed by the historian, author of books about the Patriotic War of 1812, Lydia Ivchenko, according to whom there is quite reliable information that only in the later campaigns did Mikhail Kutuzov’s eyelid weaken and sometimes close his eye.

Thus, according to the assurances of experts, Mikhail Illarionovich Kutuzov did not wear an eye patch.