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Yakov Aleksandrovich Slashchov-Krymsky (; 29 December
O.S. 17 December">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. 17 December1885 – 11 January 1929) was a Russian Empire">Russian
Russian(s) may refer to:
*Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*A citizen of Russia
*Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages
*''The Russians'', a b ...
military officer, member of the White movement during the Russian Civil War. After leaving Crimea with the remnants of Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel, Baron Wrangel's forces, Slashchov eventually reconciled with Soviet Russia, the Soviets and returned from
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 ...
to
Moscow
Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
in 1921. In 1929 he was killed in his Moscow apartment by a Jew named Lazar Kalenberg, apparently in revenge for the execution of Kalenberg's brother, who'd been murdered under Slashchov's command during the Russian Civil War. After learning this, officials ruled that Kolenberg was "temporarily insane" when he killed Slashchov. He had his case archived and was released from custody.
Slashchov, known among his subordinates as "General Yasha",
joined 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 ...
in December 1917 and was appointed
Andrei Shkuro's chief of staff in May 1918. He was promoted to the rank of
Major General in May 1919, and to that of
Lieutenant General
Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...
in May 1920, and was put in charge of the
Crimean-Azov Corps of the Volunteer Army in December 1919. He succeeded in defending the
Perekop Isthmus from the
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...
in late December 1919 and prevented the
Bolsheviks
The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...
from (January to March 1920).
Slashchov and his aide Sharov became notorious for their cruelty against the
Jews
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
and for looting the population (often against Wrangel's orders). In 1919, troops under his command were responsible for the murders of 200 Jews in
Holovanivsk. Slashchov's sometimes bitter criticism of Wrangel's decisions led to him being convicted of insubordination and stripped of his rank. He retired to Constantinople, where he earned his living by gardening before returning to Soviet-ruled Crimea.
Slashov's example proved instrumental in bringing many other retired
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 ...
officers back to Soviet Russia. He published a memoir entitled ''The Crimea in 1920'' (1924) and delivered lectures at the
Vystrel Higher Officers' Courses before he was killed by a man avenging a relative's death. The circumstances leading to his death are disputed. The central character of
Mikhail Bulgakov
Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov ( ; rus, links=no, Михаил Афанасьевич Булгаков, p=mʲɪxɐˈil ɐfɐˈnasʲjɪvʲɪdʑ bʊlˈɡakəf; – 10 March 1940) was a Russian and Soviet novelist and playwright. His novel ''The M ...
's play
''Flight'' is allegedly based on Slashchov.
[Anthony Colin Wright. ''Mikhail Bulgakov: Life and Interpretations''. University of Toronto Press, 1978. Page 125.
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Slashchov
1886 births
1929 deaths
Imperial Russian Army generals
Russian military personnel of World War I
People of the Russian Civil War
Assassinated Soviet people
Assassinated Russian military personnel
Deaths by firearm in Russia
Deaths by firearm in the Soviet Union
Perpetrators of the White Terror (Russia)
Perpetrators of pogroms in the Russian Civil War
White movement lieutenant generals