A male-line descendant of the 9th-century prince Rurik, Tatischev was born near Pskov on 19 April 1686. Having graduated from the Artillery and Engineering school in Moscow, he took part in the 1700–1721 Great Northern War with Sweden. In the service of Peter the Great he gained a prominent post in the Foreign Office, which he used to oppose the policies of the Supreme Privy Council and support Anna's ascension to the Russian throne in 1730.
