Aleksander Einseln (25 October 1931 – 16 March 2017) was an

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

n general, the

Commander of the Estonian Defence Forces The Commander of the Defence Forces () is the Chief of the Estonian Defence Forces and the national defence organisations. List of officeholders , -style="text-align:center;" , colspan=8, ''Vacant'' Soviet and German occupations , - , -st ...

from 1993 to 1995 and previously a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), 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 colon ...

. Born in Estonia, his mother and he fled the Red Army, which was resuming its occupation of the country. From 1950 to 1985, he served in the US Army, taking part in the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

, and as a Special Forces A-team commander in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. In 1993, at the request of President

Lennart Meri Lennart Georg Meri (; 29 March 1929 – 14 March 2006) was an Estonian writer, film director, and statesman. He was the country's foreign minister from 1990 to 1992 and President of Estonia from 1992 to 2001. Early life Meri was born in Tallin ...

, he returned to Estonia to serve as the first Commander of the Estonian Defence Forces following the restoration of Estonia's independence."Suri endine kaitseväe juhataja kindral Aleksander Einseln"
/ref>

Biography

Aleksander Einseln was born in

on 25 October 1931. Einseln's father was

deported Deportation is the expulsion of a person or group of people by a state from its Sovereignty, sovereign territory. The actual definition changes depending on the place and context, and it also changes over time. A person who has been deported or ...

by the Soviet occupants. His mother and he sought refuge in the West in 1944, becoming displaced persons in postwar Germany. In 1949 they emigrated to

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Just before the outbreak of the

in 1950, Einseln enlisted in the

, and served as a paratrooper. In 1955, he was commissioned as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

, and in 1964 completed the US Army Special Forces officer qualification course. He served with

Special Forces Special forces or special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

during 1965–1966. In 1968, he graduated from

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

, and the next year from the Army Staff College. Einseln served another tour in Vietnam in 1971–1972. During 1975–1976 he served in staff training positions at Army headquarters. After graduating from the National Defense College senior course, Einseln served from 1977 to 1982 as head of the European and North Atlantic Treaty Organization office in the Planning and Policy Division of the

Joint Chiefs of Staff The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) is the body of the most senior uniformed leaders within the United States Department of Defense, which advises the president of the United States, the secretary of defense, the Homeland Security Council and ...

. After that, he held post of Deputy Inspector General in the

United States Pacific Command The United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM) is the unified combatant command of the United States Armed Forces responsible for the Indo-Pacific, Indo-Pacific region. It is the oldest and largest of the unified combatant commands. Lead ...

until his retirement in 1985. During his career in the US Army, Einseln commanded infantry, paratroop, Special Forces and training units, earning 28 medals and retiring as a

. In 1993, at the request of Estonian President

, Einseln returned to Estonia to take command of its military forces, over the objections of the

U.S. State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs ...

. The U.S. threatened to terminate Einseln's military pension and even to revoke his U.S. citizenship. However, after getting support from several U.S. senators, Einseln received official permission from the U.S. authorities to take on his new post.Toivo Miljan
''Historical Dictionary of Estonia.''
Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2004. ; pp. 185–186 Einseln kk nr 1

In January 1995, after the start of the

First Chechen War The First Chechen War, also referred to as the First Russo-Chechen War, was a struggle for independence waged by the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria against the invading Russia, Russian Federation from 1994 to 1996. After a mutually agreed on treaty ...

, Einseln issued an order stating that in the event of foreign troops crossing the border, Estonian Defence Forces were to immediately initiate active resistance, and not cease fighting until ordered to do so by the

President of Estonia The president of the Republic of Estonia () is the head of state of the Estonia, Republic of Estonia. The current president is Alar Karis, elected by Parliament on 31 August 2021, replacing Kersti Kaljulaid. Estonia is one of the few parliam ...

. This was intended as a mechanism to prevent surrender without resistance as had happened in 1939. In 2014, after the beginning of the

Russo-Ukrainian war The Russo-Ukrainian War began in February 2014 and is ongoing. Following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity, Russia Russian occupation of Crimea, occupied and Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, annexed Crimea from Ukraine. It then ...

, active Commander-in-Chief General Riho Terras noted that Einseln's decree is still in force. Earlier, on 4 December 1995, General Einseln handed in his resignation as Commander of the Armed Forces due to a disagreement with the Minister of Defense. In February 1996, he was awarded the Estonian

Order of the Cross of the Eagle The Order of the Cross of the Eagle (; ) was instituted in 1928 by the Estonian Defence League to commemorate the tenth anniversary of Estonian independence. It was adopted as a state order in 1936. The Order of the Cross of the Eagle is bestowe ...

. Einseln died on 16 March 2017, aged 85. His ashes were buried on 2 April 2018 at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

alongside other veterans of the Korean and Vietnam Wars.

Effective dates of promotion

Estonian Army

:''See

Military ranks of Estonia Present Estonian system of rank insignia is a direct descendant of various systems used in the past in the Estonian Defence Forces. Some of the grades trace their name back to the period of World Wars, for instance, the rank of aspirant literally ...

Awards, decorations, and recognition

Awards and decorations

Notes

External links

* http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20105981,00.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Einseln, Aleksander 1931 births 2017 deaths Military personnel from Tallinn Estonian generals Estonian emigrants to the United States United States Army colonels United States Army personnel of the Korean War United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War Recipients of the Military Order of the Cross of the Eagle, Class II Estonian World War II refugees Child refugees 20th-century Estonian military personnel Burials at Arlington National Cemetery