Vasily Iosifovich Romeyko-Gurko (russian: Васи́лий Ио́сифович Роме́йко-Гу́рко; 20 May 1864 in

Tsarskoye Selo Tsarskoye Selo ( rus, Ца́рское Село́, p=ˈtsarskəɪ sʲɪˈlo, a=Ru_Tsarskoye_Selo.ogg, "Tsar's Village") was the town containing a former residence of the Russian imperial family and visiting nobility, located south from the cen ...

– 11 February 1937) served for a brief period as a Chief-of-Staff of the

Imperial Russian Army The Imperial Russian Army (russian: Ру́сская импера́торская а́рмия, tr. ) was the armed land force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian Ar ...

before being forced out of the country in exile following the

October 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 ...

of 1917.

Biography

Gurko was the son of

Iosif Gurko Count Iosif Vladimirovich Romeyko-Gurko (russian: Граф Ио́сиф Влади́мирович Роме́йко-Гурко́, Iósif Vladímirovič Roméjko-Gurkó; — ), also known as Joseph or Ossip Gourko, was a prominent Russian ...

and brother of

Vladimir Gurko Vladimir Iosifovich Gurko (russian: Влади́мир Ио́сифович Гу́рко; December 12, 1862 in Tsarskoye Selo – February 18, 1927 in Paris) was a Russian government official and a member of the Russian Assembly. Life He wa ...

. He graduated from the

Page Corps The Page Corps (russian: Пажеский корпус; french: Corps des Pages) was a military academy in Imperial Russia, which prepared sons of the nobility and of senior officers for military service. Similarly, the Imperial School of Jurisprud ...

, an elite school for the children of Russian nobility in 1885 and from the General Staff Academy in 1892. He served as a

military attaché A military attaché is a military expert who is attached to a diplomatic mission, often an embassy. This type of attaché post is normally filled by a high-ranking military officer, who retains a commission while serving with an embassy. Opport ...

to the

Transvaal Republic The South African Republic ( nl, Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek, abbreviated ZAR; af, Suid-Afrikaanse Republiek), also known as the Transvaal Republic, was an independent Boer Republic in Southern Africa which existed from 1852 to 1902, when it ...

and rode with the Boer Army in the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sout ...

. He was a military attaché to

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

in 1901. During the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...

of 1904 to 1906, he initially held an assignment at the office of the Quartermaster-General of the Manchurian Army, but later commanded a

Cossack The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...

brigade.Kowner, '' Historical Dictionary of the Russo-Japanese War'', p. 137-138. After the end of the war, from 1906 to 1910, he served as chairman of a commission to investigate the reasons for the failure of Russian forces in that conflict. In 1911, Gurko was appointed to command of the 1st Cavalry Division under

Paul von Rennenkampf Paul Georg Edler von Rennenkampf ( rus, Па́вел Ка́рлович Ренненка́мпф, r=Pavel Karlovich Rennenkampf, p=ˈpavʲɪɫ ̍karɫəvʲɪtɕ ˈrʲennʲenˈkampf; – 1 April 1918) was a Baltic German nobleman, statesman an ...

. With the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he led the division in

East Prussia East Prussia ; german: Ostpreißen, label=Low Prussian; pl, Prusy Wschodnie; lt, Rytų Prūsija was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1773 to 1829 and again from 1878 (with the Kingdom itself being part of the German Empire from 187 ...

and at Battle of Lodz in November 1914 before receiving an appointment as Chief of Staff to Mikhail Alexeev. He was assigned command of the Sixth Army Corps, attached to Second Army, from 1915 to 1916. Gurko led the Russian counterattack in the January 1915 at the

Battle of Bolimov A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

. Gurko commanded the Fifth Army during the

Lake Naroch offensive The Lake Naroch offensive in 1916 was an unsuccessful Russian offensive on the Eastern Front in World War I. It was launched at the request of Marshal Joseph Joffre and intended to relieve the German pressure on French forces. Due to lack of reco ...

. Subsequently, Gurko commanded the 5th Special Army on the Southwestern Front from August 1916. In October 1916, he replaced Alexeev as chief-of-staff and from March 1917 became commander of the Western Front. However, he was relieved of his command only two months later by the

Russian Provisional Government The Russian Provisional Government ( rus, Временное правительство России, Vremennoye pravitel'stvo Rossii) was a provisional government of the Russian Republic, announced two days before and established immediately ...

for expressing support of the monarchy. He was imprisoned at

Peter and Paul Fortress The Peter and Paul Fortress is the original citadel of St. Petersburg, Russia, founded by Peter the Great in 1703 and built to Domenico Trezzini's designs from 1706 to 1740 as a star fortress. Between the first half of the 1700s and early 1920s i ...

for two months, and then exiled in September 1917 to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. He later settled in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

and participated in the anti-Soviet

Russian All-Military Union The Russian All-Military Union ( rus, Русский Обще-Воинский Союз, abbreviated РОВС, ROVS) is an organization that was founded by White Army General Pyotr Wrangel in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes on 1 Septembe ...

. He refused an offer to command White movement forces in northern Russia in 1919. After his death in 1937, he was buried at the

Protestant Cemetery, Rome The Cimitero Acattolico (Non-Catholic Cemetery) of Rome, often referred to as the Cimitero dei protestanti (Protestant Cemetery) or Cimitero degli Inglesi (English Cemetery), is a private cemetery in the rione of Testaccio in Rome. It is near ...

Honours and awards

Order of St. Stanislaus The Order of Saint Stanislaus ( pl, Order Św. Stanisława Biskupa Męczennika, russian: Орден Святого Станислава), also spelled Stanislas, was a Polish order of knighthood founded in 1765 by King Stanisław August Ponia ...

3rd class (1894); 2nd class with swords (1905); 1st class (1908) * Order of Saint Anna ribbon bar

Order of St. Anna The Imperial Order of Saint Anna (russian: Орден Святой Анны; also "Order of Saint Anne" or "Order of Saint Ann") was a Holstein ducal and then Russian imperial order of chivalry. It was established by Karl Friedrich, Duke of Holst ...

, 3rd class (1896); 2nd class with swords (1905) * Saint vladimir (bande)

Order of St. Vladimir The Imperial Order of Saint Prince Vladimir (russian: орден Святого Владимира) was an Imperial Russian order established on by Empress Catherine II in memory of the deeds of Saint Vladimir, the Grand Prince and the Baptize ...

, 4th class (1901); 3rd class (1905) *

Gold Sword for Bravery The Gold Sword for Bravery (russian: Золотое оружие "За храбрость") was a Russian award for bravery. It was set up with two grades on 27 July 1720 by Peter the Great, reclassified as a public order in 1807 and abolished ...

(1905) *

RUS Order of Saint George 4th class ribbon 2000

Order of St. George The Order of Saint George (russian: Орден Святого Георгия, Orden Svyatogo Georgiya) is the highest military decoration of the Russian Federation. Originally established on 26 November 1769 Julian (7 December 1769 Gregorian) a ...

, 4th class (1914); 3rd class (1915)

Writings

* ''War and revolution in Russia, 1914-1917'', Macmillan, 1919.

References

External links

Short biography

War And Revolution In Russia 1914-1917

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gurko, Vasily 1864 births 1937 deaths People from Pushkin, Saint Petersburg People from Tsarskoselsky Uyezd Imperial Russian Army generals Russian Provisional Government generals Russian military personnel of World War I Russian military personnel of the Russo-Japanese War Russian monarchists Russian All-Military Union members White Russian emigrants to Italy Emigrants from the Russian Empire to Italy Recipients of the Order of Saint Stanislaus (Russian), 1st class Recipients of the Order of St. Vladimir, 3rd class Recipients of the Order of St. George of the Third Degree Recipients of the Order of St. Anna, 2nd class Recipients of the Gold Sword for Bravery Burials in the Protestant Cemetery, Rome Russian nobility Prisoners of the Peter and Paul Fortress