Alexey Petrovich Yermolov was born in 1777 in Moscow. At the age of one, he was enlisted in the Preobrazhensky Life Guards Regiment. In the 18th century, during the reign of Elizabeth Petrovna and Catherine II, it was customary for noble families to enroll their infant children in regiments.

He studied at the Noble Boarding School at the Moscow University. Then he moved to St. Petersburg, was appointed captain in the Nizhny Novgorod Dragoon Regiment, and made a short trip to Moldova. Finally, Captain Yermolov was appointed Adjutant to the Prosecutor General of the Governing Senate, Aleksander Nikolayevich Samoylov.

In 1794, Alexey Yermolov was an artillery officer in the troops of Count Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov and participated in battles against the rebels in Poland. For his bravery, Yermolov received the Order of St. George 4th Class, presented personally by the Generalissimo. For some time, Yermolov lived in Italy and took part in battles against the French as part of Croat (Croatian) units.

Under the command of Major General Valerian Aleksandrovich Zubov, Alexey Yermolov took part in the Persian Expedition. For his valor during the storming of Derbent, he was awarded the Order of St. Vladimir 4th Class and the rank of lieutenant colonel.

In 1798, Yermolov was arrested for alleged participation in conspiracy against Paul I and imprisoned in the Peter and Paul Fortress. He was exiled to Kostroma, where he met and became close to Matvei Ivanovitch Platov (later ataman of the Don Cossack Army). Platov and Yermolov were released after the accession of Alexander I to the throne. In July 1801, Alexey Yermolov was accepted for service in the 8th Artillery Regiment.

In 1805, Yermolov’s company joined the army of Mikhail Illarionovich Kutuzov and earned high praise for its actions in the campaign. For his courage in the Battle of Austerlitz (1805), Alexey Yermolov received the rank of colonel. In the war of 1806–1807, he distinguished himself in the battles near Golymin, Mohrungen, Preussisch-Eylau, Guttstadt, Heilsberg, and Friedland. For the Battle of Borodino, Alexey Petrovich Yermolov was awarded the Order of St. Anna 1st Class.

The original portrait of Alexey Ermolov by George Dawe is kept in the State Hermitage Museum. The Oryol Military History Museum presents a copy created by Valery Anokhin.