Eduards Kalniņš (December 31, 1876 – June 28, 1964) was a Latvian general. He participated in the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War (8 February 1904 – 5 September 1905) was fought between the Russian Empire and the Empire of Japan over rival imperial ambitions in Manchuria and the Korean Empire. The major land battles of the war were fought on the ...

and in the

Latvian War of Independence The Latvian War of Independence (), sometimes called Latvia's freedom battles () or the Latvian War of Liberation (), was a series of military conflicts in Latvia between 5 December 1918, after the newly proclaimed Republic of Latvia was invade ...

. He was Minister of Defence of Latvia in 1926 and 1928 and was recipient of the Latvian military

Order of Lāčplēsis The Order of Lāčplēsis (also Lāčplēsis Military Order, ), the first and the highest Latvian military award, was established in 1919 on the initiative of Jānis Balodis, the Commander of the Latvian Army during the Latvian War of Independ ...

, 2nd and 3rd class, and the Estonian Cross of Liberty.

Biography

Born in Plātere Parish (now

Ogre Municipality Ogre Municipality () is a municipality in Vidzeme, Latvia. The municipality was formed in 2002 by Merger (politics), merging Ogre, Latvia, Ogre town and Ogresgals Parish. In 2009 it absorbed Krape Parish, Ķeipene Parish, Laubere Parish, Madliena ...

Kreis Riga Riga county (, , ) was a historic county of the Duchy of Livonia, the Governorate of Livonia, and the Republic of Latvia which was dissolved during the administrative territorial reform of the Latvian SSR in 1949. History The first iterat ...

, in the

Governorate of Livonia The Governorate of Livonia, also known as the Livonia Governorate, was a province (''guberniya'') and one of the Baltic governorates of the Russian Empire, Baltic Governorate-General until 1876. Governorate of Livonia bordered Governorate of E ...

of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

in a

farmer A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer ...

's family. Graduated Plātere Elementary School and Riga City

Catherine Katherine (), also spelled Catherine and Catherina, other variations, is a feminine given name. The name and its variants are popular in countries where large Christian populations exist, because of its associations with one of the earliest Ch ...

School. In 1894 Kalniņš joined St. Peterburg's Artillery Academy, graduating in 1900. After graduation he was sent to the

Kaunas Kaunas (; ) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius, the fourth largest List of cities in the Baltic states by population, city in the Baltic States and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaun ...

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

base. At the Michail Artillery Academy he passed an exam for the

podporuchik ''Podporuchik'' ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, потпоручник, potporučnik, , , , , ) is the most junior officer in some Slavic armed forces, and is placed below the rank of lieutenant, typically corresponding to rank of second lieutenant in English ...

rank. After that he served at the Novogeorgievsk fortress. In 1904 he was sent to Kwantung. He participated in the

and served at the

Port Arthur naval base A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manche ...

. During service Kalniņš was shell-shocked, wounded several times wounded and captured. In 1906 he returned from captivity and was sent to

Krepost Sveaborg The Krepost Sveaborg was an Russian Empire, Imperial Russian system of land and coastal defence and fortification, coastal fortifications constructed around Helsinki during the First World War. The purpose of the fortress was to provide a secure n ...

(near

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

), where he served until 1918. On January 17, 1919, he voluntarily joined the Latvian Army. In February he was appointed as the North Latvian

Brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...

's artillery commander. He participated in battles against the '' Baltische Landeswehr'' units near Cēsis and Jugla. On July 15, 1919, Kalniņš was appointed commander of the Army Department of Artillery and the Commander-in-Chief headquarter's deputy commander.Biography in Order of Lāčplēsis home page
He was promoted to colonel. From July 18, 1919, to October 18, 1919, he was transferred to post of commander of main army's artillery department. Kalniņš was a signer of the

Latvian–Soviet Peace Treaty The Latvian–Soviet Peace Treaty, also known as the Treaty of Riga, was signed on 11 August 1920 by representatives of the Republic of Latvia and Soviet Russia. It officially ended the Latvian War of Independence. In Article II of the ...

. In 1925 he was promoted to

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

. Between 1926 and 1928 he was Ministers of Defence of Latvia. From 1928 to 1935 he was an inspector of artillery. In 1935 Kalniņš retired from the army. In 1944, before the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

occupied the country, he went to Sweden. In 1954 Kalniņš moved to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

, where on June 28, 1965, he died.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kalnins, Eduards 1876 births 1964 deaths People from Ogre Municipality People from Riga county Ministers of defence of Latvia Latvian generals Imperial Russian Army officers Russian military personnel of the Russo-Japanese War Russian military personnel of World War I Latvian military personnel of the Latvian War of Independence Recipients of the Order of Lāčplēsis, 2nd class Recipients of the Order of Lāčplēsis, 3rd class Latvian World War II refugees Latvian emigrants to Sweden Latvian emigrants to the United States

Biography

See also

References