Aleksandras Plechavičius (1 June 1897 – 6 May 1942) was a Lithuanian military officer in the

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

and then the

Lithuanian Army The Lithuanian Armed Forces () are the military of Lithuania. The Lithuanian Armed Forces consist of the Lithuanian Land Forces, the Lithuanian Naval Force and the Lithuanian Air Force. In wartime, the Lithuanian State Border Guard Service ( ...

. In the service of Lithuania, he rose to the rank of

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

in the

interwar In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the First World War to the beginning of the Second World War. The interwar period was relativel ...

period. He was a younger brother to the more famous

Povilas Plechavičius Povilas Plechavičius (1 February 1890 – 19 December 1973) was an Imperial Russian and then Lithuanian military officer and statesman. In the service of Lithuania he rose to the rank of General of the army in the interwar period. He is best kn ...

Early life

Aleksandras Plechavičius was born on 1 June 1897, in farmstead in the Židikai District to the Lithuanian farmer Ignas Plechavičius. His mother was the Lithuanian noblewoman Konstancija Bukontaitė. Aleksandras had ten siblings. He studied at the Mitau Gymnasium.

Active military service

Aleksandras Plechavičius was mobilised to the

in 1914. Together with his elder brother Povilas, he completed the . While fighting against the

Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

and the

Ottomans The Ottoman Turks ( tr, Osmanlı Türkleri), were the Turkic founding and sociopolitically the most dominant ethnic group of the Ottoman Empire ( 1299/1302–1922). Reliable information about the early history of Ottoman Turks remains scarce, ...

, he was injured twice. In 1917, he was promoted to the commander of his cavalry squadron. He returned from the front with his brother Povilas to Lithuania in July 1918. In November 1918, he enlisted as a volunteer in the

. From December 1918 to February 1919 he actively participated in the fighting against the invading Bolsheviks with partisans in the areas of Seda,

Telšiai Telšiai (; Samogitian: ''Telšē'') is a city in Lithuania with about 21,499 inhabitants. It is the capital of Telšiai County and Samogitia region, and it is located on the shores of Lake Mastis. Telšiai is one of the oldest cities in Lith ...

and

Akmenė Akmenė () is a city in northern Lithuania. Following the discovery of large reserves of limestone and clay in the region, in 1947 construction work began on one of the largest cement production complexes in the Baltic States. Nearby, a new town ...

. On 7 February 1919, he was designated the commander of the headquarter company (''komendantūra'') of Seda–

Mažeikiai Mažeikiai (; Samogitian: ''Mažeikē''; lv, Mažeiķi) is a city in northwestern Lithuania, on the Venta River. It has a population of around 43,547, making it the eighth largest city in Lithuania. The city is the administrative center of M ...

and was its

commandant Commandant ( or ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ran ...

's deputy. A few months later, in July, he was the commandant of

Utena Utena () is a city in north-east Lithuania. It is the administrative center of Utena district and Utena County. Utena is one of the oldest settlements of Lithuania. The name of the city is most probably derived from a hydronym. The name of th ...

and organised the headquarters of the district and town. In December 1919, he became the 5th Infantry Regiment's commandant. In September and October 1920, he participated in fighting against the attacking Polish Army. After the fighting, in November 1920 he was transferred to the 2nd Uhlan Regiment. In December, he became the commander of a squadron and from July 1921, the deputy of the colonel. Then, in December 1921, he was the chairman of the regiment's court.

Later life

He finished the Higher Officers' Courses in 1923. Three years later, he was the colonel of the 2nd Uhlan Regiment, and a year later, the commander. In 1929, he was sent to train with the

Reichswehr ''Reichswehr'' () was the official name of the German armed forces during the Weimar Republic and the first years of the Third Reich. After Germany was defeated in World War I, the Imperial German Army () was dissolved in order to be reshaped ...

. In 1933, he retired and became a farmer. After the Soviet Union occupied Lithuania in June 1940, he was arrested by the

NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (russian: Наро́дный комиссариа́т вну́тренних дел, Naródnyy komissariát vnútrennikh del, ), abbreviated NKVD ( ), was the interior ministry of the Soviet Union. ...

on 13 July 1940. He was brutally interrogated in the prison of

Raseiniai Raseiniai (; Samogitian: ''Raseinē'') is a city in Lithuania. It is located on the south eastern foothills of the Samogitians highland, some north from the Kaunas–Klaipėda highway. History Grand Duchy of Lithuania Raseiniai is one of t ...

, and in July 1941 was deported to the Sol Iletsky in the Chkalov Oblast and in October to

Petropavl Petropavl ( kk, Петропавл, Petropavl ) or Petropavlovsk () is a city on the Ishim River in northern Kazakhstan close to the border with Russia. It is the capital of the North Kazakhstan Region. Population: 218,956. The city is also k ...

. His younger brother Kazimieras (born in 1909) was deported together with him. Plechavičius died in prison in May 1942.

Awards

He was awarded the following orders: *

Order of the Cross of Vytis The Order of the Cross of Vytis ( lt, Vyčio Kryžiaus ordinas) is a Lithuanian presidential award conferred for heroic defence of Lithuania's freedom and independence. November 23 is a holiday in honour of the Order of the Cross of Vytis. Histo ...

, 5th class (1927) *

Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas The Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas is the Lithuanian Presidential Award which was re-instituted to honour the citizens of Lithuania for outstanding performance in civil and public offices. Foreign nationals may also be awarded this ...

, 3rd class (1928) *

Order of Vytautas the Great The Order of Vytautas the Great is the Lithuanian Presidential Award.''Lietuvos Respublikos Konstitucija. 84 straipsnis''. Priimta 1992 It may be conferred on the heads of Lithuania and foreign states, as well as their citizens, for distinguished ...

, 3rd class (1933)

Memory

There is a statue dedicated to Aleksandras Plechavičius in the Kalniškiai village of the

Stalgėnai eldership Stalgėnai eldership ( lt, Stalgėnų seniūnija) is an Elderships of Lithuania, eldership in the centre of Plungė District Municipality. The administrative center is Stalgėnai. Largest villages *Stalgėnai *Milašaičiai *Luknėnai Other v ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Plechavicius, Aleksandras Lithuanian Army officers 1897 births 1942 deaths Lithuanian people of World War I Russian military personnel of World War I Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Vytis Recipients of the Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas Recipients of the Order of Vytautas the Great Lithuanian people who died in Soviet detention People who died in the Gulag People from Mažeikiai District Municipality