Nikolai Nikolaevich Baratov (russian: Николай Николаевич Баратов) (February 1, 1865 – March 22, 1932) was an

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 ...

general during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

and the

Russian Civil War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Russian Civil War , partof = the Russian Revolution and the aftermath of World War I , image = , caption = Clockwise from top left: {{flatlist, *Soldiers ...

Early career

Baratov was born in

Vladikavkaz Vladikavkaz (russian: Владикавка́з, , os, Дзæуджыхъæу, translit=Dzæwdžyqæw, ;), formerly known as Ordzhonikidze () and Dzaudzhikau (), is the capital city of the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania, Russia. It is located i ...

, in the

Terek Oblast The Terek Oblast was a province ('' oblast'') of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire, roughly corresponding to the central part of Russia's North Caucasian Federal District. Тhe ''оblast'' was created out of the former territories of ...

of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War ...

. Although of ethnic Georgian descent (his real name was Baratashvili), he was also an

ataman Ataman (variants: ''otaman'', ''wataman'', ''vataman''; Russian: атаман, uk, отаман) was a title of Cossack and haidamak leaders of various kinds. In the Russian Empire, the term was the official title of the supreme military command ...

of the Terek Cossacks. He entered the military in 1882, and graduated from the Konstantinovskoe Artillery School and the Saint Petersburg Military Engineering-Technical University (Nikolaevsky) in 1885. He was assigned to the 1st Sunzha-Vladikavkaz Regiment of the Terek Cossack Army and was promoted to '' sotnik'' in December of the same year. In 1891 he graduated from the Nikolaev General Staff Academy with the rank of captain, and was assigned to serve in the Caucasus Military District. He commanded a squadron of

dragoon Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat w ...

s from 1893–1894, and was assigned to the Stavropol Cossack Cadet School as an instructor from 1895-1897. He was promoted to colonel in the cavalry in July 1900. On March 29, 1901 he was made commander of the 1st Sunzha-Vladikavkaz Regiment, and was awarded the Gold Sword of the Order of St. Anne for his actions in battle 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 ...

. He became chief of staff of the Consolidated Cavalry Corps from August 1905 to March 1906, when he was promoted to major general. From July 1907, he served as Chief of Staff of the 2nd Caucasus Army Corps, and was promoted to lieutenant general on November 26, 1912.

First World War

After the outbreak of

, he headed the 1st Caucasus Cossack Corps on the Caucasus Front and was prominent at the

Battle of Sarikamish The Battle of Sarikamish (''Sarighamishi chakatamart''), russian: Сражение при Сарыкамыше; tr, Sarıkamış Harekatı, lit=''Operation Sarıkamış'' was an engagement between the Russian and Ottoman empires during World ...

. During the Persian Campaign Baratov was successful in defeating Kerim Pasha's rear troops on August 5, 1915 after the Battle of Kara Killisse. His task was to counter the pro-German forces in Persia (headed by Georg von Kanitz), and to link Russian forces with the British expeditionary forces in

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. In October 1915, he landed at Bandar-e Anzali and by December 3, 1915, took the ancient Persian capital of

Hamadan Hamadan () or Hamedan ( fa, همدان, ''Hamedān'') (Old Persian: Haŋgmetana, Ecbatana) is the capital city of Hamadan Province of Iran. At the 2019 census, its population was 783,300 in 230,775 families. The majority of people living in Ham ...

. With the occupation of

Qom Qom (also spelled as "Ghom", "Ghum", or "Qum") ( fa, قم ) is the seventh largest metropolis and also the seventh largest city in Iran. Qom is the capital of Qom Province. It is located to the south of Tehran. At the 2016 census, its pop ...

and

Kermanshah Kermanshah ( fa, کرمانشاه, Kermânšâh ), also known as Kermashan (; romanized: Kirmaşan), is the capital of Kermanshah Province, located from Tehran in the western part of Iran. According to the 2016 census, its population is 946,68 ...

, the Russian forces under Baratov effectively isolated Persia from Ottoman Turkey, thus securing Persia for the Entente Powers. Baratov was decorated with the Order of St. George of the Fourth degree in October, 1916. After returning to Russia on March 24, 1917, he commanded the Caucasus Military District. On May 25, 1917 was appointed commander of the 5th Caucasus Army Corps. However, after the British defeat at the

Siege of Kut The siege of Kut Al Amara (7 December 1915 – 29 April 1916), also known as the first battle of Kut, was the besieging of an 8,000 strong British Army garrison in the town of Kut, south of Baghdad, by the Ottoman Army. In 1915, its population ...

, the Turks launched a massive offensive, forcing Baratov to return to Persia. He was made a general of cavalry on September 8, 1917. General Baratov, Russian Cossack at a meeting with British officers and the leaders of the Kurdish tribes in Kermanshah 1917

General Baratov, Russian Cossack at a meeting with British officers and the leaders of the Kurdish tribes in Kermanshah 1917

Russian Civil War

After 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 mom ...

of 1917, Baratov disbanded his corps and lived in exile in

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

for five months. During the

, he joined the White movement. In June 1919, General

Denikin Anton Ivanovich Denikin (russian: Анто́н Ива́нович Дени́кин, link= ; 16 December Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._4_December.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New St ...

, leader of the anti-Soviet

Volunteer Army The Volunteer Army (russian: Добровольческая армия, translit=Dobrovolcheskaya armiya, abbreviated to russian: Добрармия, translit=Dobrarmiya) was a White Army active in South Russia during the Russian Civil War from ...

and the

Armed Forces of South Russia The Armed Forces of South Russia (AFSR or SRAF) () were the unified military forces of the White movement in southern Russia between 1919 and 1920. On 8 January 1919, the Armed Forces of South Russia were formed, incorporating the Volunteer Arm ...

, sent Baratov to settle uneasy relations with

Democratic Republic of Georgia The Democratic Republic of Georgia (DRG; ka, საქართველოს დემოკრატიული რესპუბლიკა ') was the first modern establishment of a republic of Georgia, which existed from May 1918 to F ...

, with the promise of security to Georgia's northern borders in reward for free passage of White Movement forces through Georgia. On September 13, 1919 Baratov was heavily wounded in a terrorist incident in

Tiflis Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million pe ...

, resulting in the amputation of his leg. From March to April 1920 Baratov served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the South Russian government. After the final defeat of the White Movement in November 1920, he lived in exile in France, where he headed various Russian emigre organizations, notably the Union of Disabled Persons and the Overseas Union of Russian people with disabilities. He was buried at the Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois Russian Cemetery.

Awards

Order of St. Stanislav 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 ...

Grade 3, (1893) * Order of St. Anna Grade 3 (1895) * Order of St. Stanislav Grade 2(1899) * Order of St. Anne Grade 2 degree (1904) * The golden gun "for courage" (1905) * Swords of the Order of St. Anne Grade 2 (1906) * Order of St. Vladimir Grade 4, with swords and bow (1906) * Order of St. Vladimir Grade 3 (6 December 1909) * Order of St. Stanislav Grade 1 (6 December 1912) * Order of St. George Grade 4 (15 October 1916) - for the successful operation in July 1915 in the Agridag mountain range . *

Grand Croix of the Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon B ...

(1916)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baratoff, Nikolai 1865 births 1932 deaths People from Vladikavkaz People from Terek Oblast Georgian generals with the rank "General of the Cavalry" (Imperial Russia) Georgian generals in the Imperial Russian Army Russian untitled nobility Imperial Russian Army generals Russian military personnel of the Russo-Japanese War Russian military personnel of World War I White movement generals Recipients of the Order of Saint Stanislaus (Russian), 1st class Recipients of the Order of St. Anna, 2nd class Grand Croix of the Légion d'honneur Recipients of the Order of St. Vladimir, 3rd class Russian amputees Burials at Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois Russian Cemetery Emigrants from the Russian Empire to France