The Baku Higher Combined Arms Command School (BVOKU) was one of the

military academies A military academy or service academy is an educational institution which prepares candidates for service in the officer corps. It normally provides education in a military environment, the exact definition depending on the country concerned. ...

of the

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nati ...

. It trained military personnel in a number of specializations. It was located in

Baku Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world an ...

in the

Azerbaijan SSR Azerbaijan ( az, Азәрбајҹан, Azərbaycan, italics=no), officially the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic (Azerbaijan SSR; az, Азәрбајҹан Совет Сосиалист Республикасы, Azərbaycan Sovet Sosialist R ...

History

On November 29, 1939, the school was founded by order of the

People's Commissariat of Defense The People's Commissariat of Defense of the Soviet Union () was the highest military department of the Soviet Union from 1934 to 1946. History In the 1920–1930s, the highest military authority of the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic ...

of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

Marshal Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated o ...

Kliment Voroshilov Kliment Yefremovich Voroshilov (, uk, Климент Охрімович Ворошилов, ''Klyment Okhrimovyč Vorošylov''), popularly known as Klim Voroshilov (russian: link=no, Клим Вороши́лов, ''Klim Vorošilov''; 4 Februa ...

. Colonel Vasily Sytnikov was appointed the first head of the school. In 1950, a two-year training period was introduced. In 1951, the school ranked 6th place among the infantry schools in the country. On November 28, 1966, by order of the Supreme Soviet, the school was given the honorific of the

Supreme Soviet of the Azerbaijan SSR The Supreme Soviet of the Azerbaijan SSR ( Azerbaijani: Азәрбаjҹан ССР Али Совети, ''Azərbaycan SSR Ali Soveti''; Russian: Верховный Совет Азербайджа́нской ССР tr. ''Verkhovnyy Sovet Azerb ...

. In the 1980s, during the period of hostilities of the limited contingent of Soviet troops in Afghanistan, mountain and airborne training of cadets was introduced in the BVOKU. In 1987, the

Ministry of Defense {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in state ...

suggested that the school be closed and its cadets be sent to other parts of the country, which resulted in cadets rioting throughout its premises, which only stopped after Azerbaijani

Politburo A politburo () or political bureau is the executive committee for communist parties. It is present in most former and existing communist states. Names The term "politburo" in English comes from the Russian ''Politbyuro'' (), itself a contracti ...

member

Heydar Aliyev Heydar Alirza oghlu Aliyev ( az, Һејдәр Әлирза оғлу Әлијев, italic=no, Heydər Əlirza oğlu Əliyev, ; , ; 10 May 1923 – 12 December 2003) was a Soviet and Azerbaijani politician who served as the third president of Azer ...

intervened. In 1991, the school was formally disbanded as a result of the collapse of the Soviet government and the following year, was replaced by the Azerbaijan Higher Military Academy. The cadets of the 1988, 1989, and 1990 school years were sent for graduation to other general military schools of the

Russian Federation Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

Honors

Parades

It has a history of participating in military parades in Azerbaijan. Its last

International Workers Day International Workers' Day, also known as Labour Day in some countries and often referred to as May Day, is a celebration of labourers and the working classes that is promoted by the international labour movement and occurs every year on 1 May, ...

Parade was in 1960. In 1965, the school, alongside the

Tbilisi Higher Artillery Command School The Tbilisi Higher Artillery Command School () was one of the military institutions of the USSR. In different years she trained specialists of various military specialties. It was located in Tbilisi in the Georgian SSR. History The school was ...

, opened a parade in

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million pe ...

(the capital of the

Georgian SSR The Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic (Georgian SSR; ka, საქართველოს საბჭოთა სოციალისტური რესპუბლიკა, tr; russian: Грузинская Советская Соц� ...

) in honor of the 20th anniversary of the end of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. During the 1967 October Revolution Day Parade on Lenin Square, the school was represented by the guard of honor of its 4th Cadet Battalion. In October 1970, the school, opened a

military parade A military parade is a formation of soldiers whose movement is restricted by close-order manoeuvering known as drilling or marching. The military parade is now almost entirely ceremonial, though soldiers from time immemorial up until the la ...

of the Baku Garrison in honor of the

golden jubilee A golden jubilee marks a 50th anniversary. It variously is applied to people, events, and nations. Bangladesh In Bangladesh, golden jubilee refers the 50th anniversary year of the separation from Pakistan and is called in Bengali ''"সু� ...

(50th anniversary) of

Soviet Azerbaijan Azerbaijan ( az, Азәрбајҹан, Azərbaycan, italics=no), officially the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic (Azerbaijan SSR; az, Азәрбајҹан Совет Сосиалист Республикасы, Azərbaycan Sovet Sosialist R ...

. All participants in the parade from the school received personal thanks from the Minister of Defense of the USSR

Marshal of the Soviet Union Marshal of the Soviet Union (russian: Маршал Советского Союза, Marshal sovetskogo soyuza, ) was the highest military rank of the Soviet Union. The rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union was created in 1935 and abolished in 19 ...

Andrei Grechko Andrei Antonovich Grechko (, ; – 26 April 1976) was a Marshal of the Soviet Union (from 1955). He was Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union from 1967 to 1976. Early life Grechko was the thirteenth child born to a family of Ukrainian peasant ...

, who the next day visited the location of the BVOKU.

Awards

In 1978, the BVOKU was awarded the Diploma of the Minister of Defense and was recognized as one of the best according to the results of the All-Army review contest dedicated to the

diamond jubilee A diamond jubilee celebrates the 60th anniversary of a significant event related to a person (e.g. accession to the throne or wedding, among others) or the 60th anniversary of an institution's founding. The term is also used for 75th anniver ...

of the

Great October Socialist Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment ...

. In 1980, the school was awarded the Memorial Red Banner of the Central Committee of the

Communist Party of Azerbaijan The Azerbaijan Communist Party ( az, Azərbaycan Kommunist Partiyası; russian: Коммунистическая партия Азербайджана) was the ruling political party in the Azerbaijan SSR, making it effectively a branch of the ...

following the results of a socialist competition in honor of the 110th anniversary of the birth of

Vladimir Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 1 ...

Student life

4th Battalion Honor Guard

The 4th cadet battalion maintained a special

honour guard A guard of honour ( GB), also honor guard ( US), also ceremonial guard, is a group of people, usually military in nature, appointed to receive or guard a head of state or other dignitaries, the fallen in war, or to attend at state ceremonials, ...

unit that served as the official ceremonial ambassador of the military forces of the republic. It participated in the march on of the school battle banner, the welcoming of the Soviet leadership (the

General Secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...

, the

head of state A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and ...

and

head of government The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a ...

) and foreign delegations to Baku, as well public events such as wreath laying ceremonies. In the late 60s, the only ceremonial units in Baku were an army and navy guard, a motorcycle detachment, and a

military band A military band is a group of personnel that performs musical duties for military functions, usually for the armed forces. A typical military band consists mostly of wind and percussion instruments. The conductor of a band commonly bears the ti ...

. The uniform of the unit was based on that of the

154th Preobrazhensky Independent Commandant's Regiment 154th Preobrazhensky Independent Commandant's Regiment serves as the official honor guard regiment of the Russian Armed Forces and serves as the main honor guard unit of the armed forces, stationed in Moscow. Aside from being the honor guar ...

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

. Its first commander was Major S. Akopdzhanyan. It had participated in the welcoming ceremonies of the leaders of

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...

(Prime Minister

Mamadou Dia Mamadou Dia (18 July 1910 – 25 January 2009) was a Senegalese politician who served as the first Prime Minister of Senegal from 1957 until 1962, when he was forced to resign and was subsequently imprisoned amidst allegations that he was p ...

) and

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...

at Binah Airport (now Heydar Aliyev International Airport). It also took part in the visit of

Leonid Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev; uk, links= no, Леонід Ілліч Брежнєв, . (19 December 1906– 10 November 1982) was a Soviet politician who served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union between 1964 and 1 ...

to Baku in 1982 and

ruby jubilee A ruby jubilee marks a 40th anniversary. Ruby jubilees in recent history See also * Hierarchy of precious substances * List of longest-reigning monarchs * Wedding anniversary A wedding anniversary is the anniversary of the date a wedd ...

celebrations of

Victory Day Victory Day is a commonly used name for public holidays in various countries, where it commemorates a nation's triumph over a hostile force in a war or the liberation of a country from hostile occupation. In many cases, multiple countries may ob ...

in 1985. In 1965, the unit had the honor to represent the academy by opening a military parade for the first time.

BVOKU Band

The

band Band or BAND may refer to: Places *Bánd, a village in Hungary *Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania *Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, I ...

of the school () consisted in the early 60s of 25 musicians, which was around the national average at the time for Russian military bands. Most of the band were active duty servicemen, with around two-fifths being students. Many were also members of the headquarters bands of the 4th Army and the Baku Air Defense District. The band was responsible for accompanying cadets with music at events such as morning assemblies, parades and pass outs of cadets. It also often participated in the review of bands in the

Transcaucasian Military District The Transcaucasian Military District, a military district of the Soviet Armed Forces, traces its history to May 1921 and the incorporation of Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia into the Soviet Union. It was disbanded by being redesignated as a Gr ...

. The band dormitory and studio was located at the BUO (Training Support Battalion).

Rectors

The following have led the BVOKU since 1939: * Colonel Vasily Sytnikov (29 November 1939 – 12 July 1942) * Colonel G. Shelkov-Yezov (13 July-30 August 1942) * Lieutenant Colonel Timofey Bilyuga (30 August–October 1942) * Major General Vladimir Molchanov (October 1942 – 1947) * Major General Yuri Smirnov (1947-1950) * Major General Georgy Preobrazhensky (1950-1953) * Major General Leonid Gredinarenko (1953-1956) * Major General Hajibaba Zeynalov (1957-1960) * Major General Vasily Fedotov (1960-1965) * Major General Konstantin Sevastyanov (1965-1970) * Major General Fedor Alexandrov (1970-1977) * Lieutenant General Valeh Barshatly (1977-1987) * Major General Alexander Lobanov (1987-1990) * Major General Victor Koshevoy (1990-1991)

Notable alumni

* Safar Abiyev - former Defense Minister of Azerbaijan * Seyran Ohanyan - former

Defense Minister of Armenia The Defence Minister of Armenia () is the head of the country's Ministry of Defence, who is charged with the political leadership of the Armed Forces of Armenia. The position was originally created in 1918 and was re-established in January 1992 ...

* Ziya Bunyadov - Azerbaijani historian *

Zakir Hasanov Zakir Asker oghlu Hasanov (; born 6 June 1959) is an Azerbaijani politician and colonel general who has been the Minister of Defence of Azerbaijan since 2013. Early life and education He was born on 6 June 1959 in the Astara District. He gradu ...

- Minister of Defense of Azerbaijan * Stanislav Zas - State Secretary of the

Security Council of Belarus The Security Council of Belarus ( Belarusian: Савет бяспекі Рэспублікі Беларусь, Russian: Совет безопасности Республики Беларусь) is an interdepartmental body with a mandate to ens ...

* Polad Hashimov - Azerbaijani

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

Arkady Ter-Tadevosyan Arkady Ivani Ter-Tadevosyan ( hy, Արկադի Իվանի (Հովհաննեսի) Տեր-Թադևոսյան; russian: Аркадий Иванович Тер-Тадевосян; May 22, 1939 – March 31, 2021), also known by his nom-de-guerre Kom ...

- Armenian military leader during the

First Nagorno-Karabakh War The First Nagorno-Karabakh War, referred to in Armenia as the Artsakh Liberation War ( hy, Արցախյան ազատամարտ, Artsakhyan azatamart) was an ethnic conflict, ethnic and territorial conflict that took place from February 1988 t ...

* Elchin Guliyev - Chief of State Border Service of Azerbaijan

Alumni and historical organizations

A public organization of veterans called Commonwealth of BVOKU graduates is currently active and hosts meetings of alumni, commanders, teachers and family members, usually held on the anniversaries of the school. A museum of the history of the school is located on the premises of the Azerbaijan Higher Military School. A virtual museum of the BVOKU is on a website dedicated to the 4th Cadet Battalion.Четвёртый батальон БВОКУ
/ref>

Gallery

File:Рота почетного караула на параде, 1966 г.jpg, The Honor Guard of the Academy during a parade in 1966 File:Боевое знамя БВОКУ с именем Верховного Совета Азербайджанской ССР.jpg, The march of the school colours File:Генерал армии Куркоткин вручает золотую медаль выпускнику БВОКУ лейтенанту Дорофееву А.А. Баку 1968..jpg, The release of lieutenants in 1968 File:КПП училища.jpg, The headquarters of the school File:Генерал-майор Лобанов Александр Иванович.jpg, Major General Alexander Lobanov who commanded the school from 1987 to 1990 File:4-й батальон на встрече министра обороны СССР Маршала Гречко А.А., 1970 г.jpg, During a visit by Minister of Defense of the USSR

in 1970

References

{{authority control Educational institutions established in 1939 Education and training establishments of the Soviet Army Military academies of Azerbaijan Military command schools 1939 establishments in the Soviet Union