Aleksei Pavlovich Bolotov (1803-1853), professor at the Military Academy, was one of the most important geodesists dnd cartographers in Russia. Bolotov developed his main ideas in the mid-1840s, yet during his lifetime he did not have a real opportunity to realize them in actual sur veys due to the political situation at the Russian General Staff. His innovations came to be fully appreciated only thirty years later, when in the 1870s Russia reformed its system of military-topographical work. Bolotov’s suggestions included measuring altitude during surveys, using the Gauss cartographic projec tion to represent Russia’s territory on maps, instead of Bonne’s projection, and improving the process of instrument production. He also designed a special system of hatches (hachures) to represent topographic relief, which differed from the tra ditional Leman system. Bolotov educated many followers and can be regarded as the founder of the Russian national tradition in geodesy and cartography.