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Mikhail Drozdovsky

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Russian general (1881–1919)

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Mikhail Gordeevich Drozdovsky
General Mikhail Drozdovsky
Born	(1881-10-07)October 7, 1881 Kiev,Russian Empire
Died	January 1, 1919(1919-01-01) (aged 37) Rostov-on-Don,South Russia
Allegiance	Russian Empire Provisional Government Russian Republic General Command of South Russia
Branch	Russian Imperial Army Russian Army (1917) White Army
Years of service	1899–1919
Rank	Major general
Battles / wars	Russo-Japanese War World War I Russian Civil War (DOW)

Mikhail Gordeevich Drozdovsky (Russian:Михаи́л Горде́евич Дроздо́вский;Ukrainian:Михайло Гордійович Дроздовський,romanized: Mykhailo Hordiiovych Drozdovskyi; October 7, 1881 – January 1, 1919) was aRussian army general and one of the militaryleaders of the anti-Bolshevik White movement during theRussian Civil War. In early 1918 he led a regiment of volunteers from theRomanian Front on amarch to southern Russia, where they joined theVolunteer Army of the White movement.

Biography

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Drozdovsky was born inKiev. His father had served in theCrimean War of 1853-1856 and became a highly-decorated general. Mikhail Gordeyevich's mother died when he was twelve, and he was largely raised by his elder sister, Yulia, who became a decorated nurse during theRusso-Japanese War of 1904-1905.

He started his military career early in life, entering the Polotsk Cadet Corps in 1892, and subsequently transferring to theKiev Vladimir Cadet Corps, from which he graduated in 1899. In August 1899 he enrolled in thePavlovsk Military School inSt. Petersburg, famous for its strict discipline and considered a model in the training of officers of theImperial Russian Army. He graduated in 1901 at the top of his class.

From 1901 Drozdovsky served in theLife Guards Regiment inWarsaw and was promoted to lieutenant in 1904. With the start of the Russo-Japanese War in 1904 he was sent to the front lines with the1st Siberian Corps of the2nd Russian Manchurian Army. He was wounded in the thigh during theBattle of Sandepu (January 1905), but remained on the front lines through the end of the conflict and was awarded with several decorations for heroism.

After the end of the Russo-Japanese War in September [O.S. August] 1905, Drozdovsky completed his studies at theGeneral Staff Academy in 1908 and was promoted toShtabs-kapitan, and tocaptain in 1910. He was stationed at the Headquarters of theAmur Military District inHarbin,Manchuria. In November 1911, he was appointed Assistant to the Senior Staff of theWarsaw Military District.

With the start of theFirst Balkan War in October 1912 he volunteered for service with the Serbian or Bulgarian armies, but failed to gain permission to do so. Instead, he was assigned (1913) to theSevastopol Aviation School, where he became a pilot and trained on aerial reconnaissance. He also trained with theImperial Russian Navy, taking a dive in asubmarine, and also diving using adiving suit. After this training, he returned to the Warsaw Military District.

At the start ofWorld War I in 1914, Drozdovsky served as a staff officer for the Russian27th Army Corps in the2nd Army within theNorthwestern Front. He made a number of reconnaissance missions using an airplane and a balloon. From December 1914 he was assigned to the headquarters of the26th Army Corps. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel in March 1915, and became Chief of Staff of the64th Infantry Division in May 1915.

He led his division from the front in numerous battles to the end of 1915. From October 1915 he was chief of staff of the26th Army Corps. From the summer of 1916 he was on the General Staff as a colonel, serving within theSouthwestern Front. Wounded in the hand during a battle on August 31, 1916, he was awarded theOrder of St. George (4th class).

With theFebruary Revolution of 1917, the Russian military faced the collapse of central authority. Known as a staunch monarchist, Drozdovsky refused to acknowledge the formation of committees of enlisted men which challenged the authority of (and often murdered) their superior officers. He suppressedBolshevik elements within his command through executions, and managing to maintain discipline and order, continued combat operations against the Germans until late August 1917.

After the Bolshevik seizure of power in theOctober Revolution of 1917, and the signing ofTreaty of Brest-Litovsk in March 1918, Drozdovsky took the initiative to supportMikhail Alekseev'sVolunteer Army on theDon with volunteer units from theRomanian front. By March, this included 800 fromKishinev, and 900 fromIaşi. According toPeter Kenez, during theIași–Don March, "The small army moved quickly through the Ukraine; at times the soldiers covered 40 to 45 miles a day." On 4 May, Drozdovsky arrived atRostov-on-Don, then helped captureNovocherkassk on 6 May.^[1]

Drozdovsky's private notes written during the march show him as a patriotic officer who felt that he had no choice but to fight the Bolsheviks—whom he considered the destroyers of Russia. The notes often reveal a sense of doomed resignation. This, however, did not prevent him from acting with great energy and from being an inspiration to his men.

On April 21, 1918, Drozdovsky briefly capturedRostov-on-Don. While battling for Rostov's train station, Colonel Voinalovich, Drozdovsky's second-in-command and closest advisor, was killed in action. Three days later, Drozdovsky's force came to the assistance of theDon Cossacks desperately battling Red forces atNovocherkassk. The Reds were defeated and Drozdovsky's men marched into Novocherkassk. It is here, after a 900-mile march from Romania to the Don, that Drozdovsky and his men officially became part of the Volunteer Army.

In June 1918, at the start of theSecond Kuban Campaign, GeneralAnton Denikin promoted Drozdovsky to the rank ofMajor General, and his unit, now augmented with an influx of new volunteers, was designated as the 3rd Infantry Division. Drozdovsky's unit became one of the elite formations of the Volunteer Army (later called theArmed Forces of South Russia). Drozdovsky was one of the first among the White Army commanders to augment his forces with Red Army prisoners they captured in battle. Although the initial performance of these former Red Army troops exceeded Drozdovsky's expectations, as their numbers increased their reliability decreased.

General Drozdovsky was wounded in October 1918, during a battle nearStavropol. Although initially it was thought that the wound was not serious, he never recovered and died on January 1, 1919, in the vicinity of Rostov-on-Don. Subsequently the 3rd Infantry Division, which consisted of several regiments, became known as the Drozdovsky Rifle Division, one of the famous"colored" units of theVolunteer Army. The Drozdovsky Division was well known for its esprit de corps. In 1920, before the departure of theVolunteer Army fromCrimea, General Drozdovsky's remains were secretly reburied by his men inSevastopol,Crimea, to prevent their defilement by the Bolsheviks (as happened with the remains of GeneralLavr Kornilov). Their exact location remains unknown to this day.