Constantine Kromiadi | |
|---|---|
| Константин Григориевич Кромиади (Russian) Κωνσταντίνος Γκριγκόριεβιτς Κρομιάδης (Greek) | |
 Kromiadi inRussian National People's Army uniform | |
| Commandant of the Headquarters of theRussian National People's Army | |
| In office 1942–1943 | |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Position abolished |
| General of theRussian Liberation Army | |
| In office 1942–1945 | |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Position abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 21 January 1893 |
| Died | 25 April 1990 (aged 97) |
| Awards | |
| Nickname | Sanin |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Russian Empire(1914-1917) Russian State(1918-1920)  Nazi Germany(1941–1945)  Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia(1944–1945) |
| Years of service | 1914–1945 |
| Commands | |
| Battles/wars | World War I Russian Civil War World War II |
Constantine Gregorievich Kromiadi (Russian:Константин Григориевич Кромиади,Greek:Κωνσταντίνος Γκριγκόριεβιτς Κρομιάδης; 21 January 1893 – 25 April 1990)[1] was aRussian military officer ofGreek origin. A staunchanti-communist, he served in theImperial Russian Army and theWhite Army, later heading thecollaborationistRussian National People's Army and commanding the headquarters of theRussian Liberation Army.
Kromiadi was born inKars (then part of theRussian Empire), into aGreek family, in 1893.[2][3] He entered service in theImperial Russian Army as a volunteer and fought duringWorld War I inPersia and also on theCaucasus Front, where manyArmenians,Caucasus Greeks,Georgians, andRussians fought against the forces of theOttoman Empire. During theRussian Civil War Kromiadi joined theWhite movement, achieving the rank ofcolonel. After the war he emigrated toMunich where he worked as automobilist.[4]
DuringWorld War II, Kromiadi became a Nazi official and a pioneer of theRussian Liberation Movement. In 1942, he headed theRussian National People's Army, an armed unit of Russians, under the pseudonym of Sanin.[5][6] He was also a general in theRussian Liberation Army. Kromiadi became close with fellow collaboratorAndrey Vlasov, thus becoming Vlasov's firstwhite émigré ally. In late 1942, Vlasov gave Kromiadi command of his headquarters. Kromiadi made several attempts to attract white émigrés to Vlasov, and was finally successful by the time of thePrague Manifesto, having secured the support of two branches of theRussian Orthodox Church.
Kromiadi believed that theRussian Liberation Army was a 30-year Christian liberation war against Communism.[7]
In the final days of WWII, Kromiadi was wounded in the leg and, when Vlasov and his staff relocated to Füssen, he was placed in a private residence in order to recover. A few days later they head towardssouthern Bohemia, but they left Kromiadi behind in Füssen since he was still recuperating from his injury.[8] Vlasov and his staff ended up getting captured by the Americans and handed over to the Soviets, who executed them. Kromiadi was living amongst the civilians in Füssen at the time and escaped this fate.[8] After the end of WWII, Kromiadi took an active part in saving Russian collaborators from extradition to the USSR.[2]
In 1980, he wrote a book on his experience in the Russian Liberation Movement calledFor Land, for Freedom..., which was published in San Francisco. He died in 1990 inMunich.
