Georgy Eduardovich Bergmann (3 April 1854 – 2 February 1929) was a Russian

General of the Infantry General of the infantry is a military rank of a General officer in the infantry and refers to: * General of the Infantry (Austria) * General of the Infantry (Bulgaria) * General of the Infantry (Germany) General of the Infantry (, abbr. ) is ...

who was known for organizing the Bergmann Offensive against the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. He was also a commander of the

White Army The White Army, also known as the White Guard, the White Guardsmen, or simply the Whites, was a common collective name for the armed formations of the White movement and Anti-Sovietism, anti-Bolshevik governments during the Russian Civil War. T ...

during the

Russian Civil War The Russian Civil War () was a multi-party civil war in the former Russian Empire sparked by the 1917 overthrowing of the Russian Provisional Government in the October Revolution, as many factions vied to determine Russia's political future. I ...

Early years

From a noble

Baltic-German Baltic Germans ( or , later ) are ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their resettlement in 1945 after the end of World War II, Baltic Germans have drastically decli ...

family in the

Governorate of Livonia The Governorate of Livonia, also known as the Livonia Governorate, was a province (''guberniya'') and one of the Baltic governorates of the Russian Empire, Baltic Governorate-General until 1876. Governorate of Livonia bordered Governorate of E ...

, Bergmann was born in the village of Kurakh,

Dagestan Oblast The Dagestan ''Oblast'' was a province (''oblast'') of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire. It roughly corresponded to most of present-day southeastern Dagestan within the Russian Federation. The Dagestan ''oblast'' was created in 186 ...

. He received his general education at the 2nd Moscow Military Gymnasium. He entered the service as a cadet at the Pavel Military School on August 9, 1873. After graduating from college in 1876, with the rank of ensign, he was sent to the Caucasus in the 21st artillery brigade. He then participated in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878. In 1881 he graduated from the General Staff Academy.

Service of the Caucasus

From 1881 to 1887, Bergmann was senior adjutant of the headquarters of the 21st Infantry Division. On March 19, 1888, he was appointed senior adjutant of the mobilization department of the headquarters of the Caucasian Military District. In 1892 he was promoted to colonel "for distinction in service". *From June 7, 1893, to April 7, 1898 - the commander of the Lori reserve regiment. *From April 7, 1898, to November 28, 1899 - the commander of the 257th infantry reserve Poti regiment. *From November 28, 1899, to November 27, - 1902 the commander of the 81st infantry regiment of Absheron. *On November 27, 1902 "for distinction in service" he was promoted to major general and appointed chief of staff of the 2nd Caucasian Army Corps. The main service took place at the General Staff in the

Caucasus Military District The Caucasus Military District (, ''Kavkazskiy voenniy okrug'') was a military formation of the Imperial Russian Army. It was created in 1865 as the successor to the Russian Caucasus Forces (before 1865), Caucasus Army, and was dissolved in 1917. ...

, and from January 31, 1907, to January 29, 1913, he was the chief of staff of the district.

Service in the Kazan military district

On January 29, 1913, he was transferred to the

Kazan Military District The Kazan Military District was a Military district of the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union, which existed between 1864—1918 and 1945–1946. History The Kazan Military District was originally formed as a military district of the Russian Em ...

and appointed commander of the 24th Army Corps. On April 14, 1913 "for distinction in service" he was promoted to general from infantry.

World War I

On January 2, 1914, he was appointed commander of the 2nd Caucasian Army Corps, with which he entered the

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

. From December 11, 1914, to February 4, 1915, Bergmann was commander of the 1st Caucasus Army Corps. On February 4, 1915, he was appointed at the disposal of the Commander-in-Chief of the Caucasian Army. As the head of the Sarykamysh group of forces, he won a brilliant victory over the Turkish army in the

Battle of Sarikamish The Battle of Sarikamish was an engagement between the Russian Empire, Russian and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empires during World War I. It took place from December 22, 1914, to January 17, 1915, as part of the Caucasus campaign. The battle resul ...

, for which on July 26, 1916, he was awarded the

Order of St. George The Order of Saint George () is the highest military decoration of the Russian Federation. It was originally established on 26 November 1769 Julian (7 December 1769 Gregorian) as the highest military decoration of the Russian Empire for commiss ...

, 4th degree. It is worth noting that he received the order some time later, since initially the victory was attributed to Lieutenant General

Nikolai Yudenich Nikolai Nikolayevich Yudenich ( Russian: Николай Николаевич Юденич; – 5 October 1933) was a commander of the Russian Imperial Army during World War I. He was a leader of the anti-communist White movement in northweste ...

, chief of the field headquarters of the Caucasian army. From November 13, 1916, to April 5, 1917, Bergmann was commander of the 40th Army Corps on the Southwestern and Romanian Fronts.Alexandru Ioanițiu (Lt.-Colonel), Războiul României: 1916-1918 , vol. 1, Tipografia Geniului, București, 1929 He was a member of the

Volunteer Army The Volunteer Army (; ), abbreviated to (), also known as the Southern White Army was a White Army active in South Russia during the Russian Civil War from 1917 to 1920. The Volunteer Army fought against Bolsheviks and the Makhnovists on the ...

, with which he went to

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

, then to

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

, then moved to

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

, where he headed a branch of the

Russian All-Military Union The Russian All-Military Union (, abbreviated РОВС, ROVS) is a White movement organization that was founded by White Army General Pyotr Wrangel in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes on 1 September 1924. It was initially headquartered ...

. He died on February 2, 1929. His ashes were transferred to the Russian Orthodox Cemetery, Nice on March 9, 1930.

Family

*Wife - Elena Vasilievna (1864-1963), daughter of General

Vasily Potto Vasily Aleksandrovich Potto (; 1 January 1836 – 29 November 1911) was a Russian lieutenant-general (1907) and military historian, known for his landmark works on the history of the Caucasian War. History Born of a noble family of a German de ...

. *Children: Elena, George, Natalia, Maria, Veronica (married Dolittle), Irina.

Awards

* Order of St. Anna, 4th degree (1878) * Order of St. Stanislaus, 3rd class with swords and bow (1878) *Order of St. Anna, 3rd class with swords and bow (1878) *Order of St. Stanislaus, 2nd degree (1884) *Order of St. Anna 2nd degree (1888) * Order of St. Vladimir, 4th degree (1895) *Order of St. Vladimir 3rd degree (1900) *Order of St. Stanislaus 1st degree (1904) *Order of St. Anna, 1st degree (1906) *Order of St. Vladimir, 2nd degree (September 5, 1909) * Order of the White Eagle, (December 6, 1912) *

Order of St. Alexander Nevsky The Imperial Order of Saint Alexander Nevsky was an order of chivalry of the Russian Empire first awarded on by Empress Catherine I of Russia. History The introduction of the Imperial Order of Saint Alexander Nevsky was envisioned by Emperor ...

with Swords (July 7, 1915) *

Order of Saint George The Order of Saint George () is the highest military decoration of the Russian Federation. It was originally established on 26 November 1769 Julian (7 December 1769 Gregorian) as the highest military decoration of the Russian Empire for commiss ...

4th degree (July 26, 1916)

Foreign Awards

Order of the Lion and the Sun The Imperial Order of the Lion and the Sun (Persian language, Persian: نشان سلطنتی شیر و خورشید) was instituted by Fat′h Ali Shah Qajar, Fat’h Ali Shah of the Qajar dynasty in 1808 to honour foreign officials (later extend ...

, 1st Degree *: Persian Order of the Lion and the Sun, 2nd degree *:

Order of the Star of Romania The Order of the Star of Romania (Romanian: ''Ordinul Steaua României'') is Romania's highest civil Order and second highest State decoration after the Order of Michael the Brave. It is the oldest Order of Romania. It is awarded by the Preside ...

with swords (1917)

References

Bibliography

*''Rutych NN'' Biographical reference book of the highest ranks of the Volunteer Army and the Armed Forces of the South of Russia: Materials for the history of the White movement. - M., 2002 *''Zalessky K.A.'' Who was who in the First World War. - M., 2003 *
Berkhman's biography
*

* '' Korsun'
N.G.Sarykamysh operation
- M .: Military Publishing House of the NKO of the USSR, 1937 .-- 164 p.
Sarykamysh operation, 12-24 December 1914: some documents
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bergmann, Georgy 1854 births 1929 deaths Imperial Russian Army generals Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Russia) Recipients of the Order of St. Anna, 1st class Recipients of the Order of Saint Stanislaus (Russian), 1st class White Russian emigrants to France Russian military personnel of the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) Russian military personnel of World War I Nobility from the Russian Empire