Alexander Vasilievich Kolchak was born on November 4, 1874 in St. Petersburg. His father, Vasily Ivanovich, was the hero of the defense of Sevastopol during the Crimean War. Continuing family traditions, 16-year-old Alexander, after graduating from the gymnasium, entered the Naval Cadet Corps, where he successfully studied for six years. Upon leaving the corps, he was promoted to warrant officer.

The first exit to the sea took place in 1890. The first ship was the armored frigate "Prince Pozharsky". Later his training ships became "Rurik" and "Cruiser". After graduation, Kolchak served on Pacific.

Polar explorer

In January 1900, Baron E. Toll invited Alexander Vasilyevich to take part in the polar expedition. The expedition was tasked with exploring unknown regions of the Arctic Ocean and searching for the legendary Sannikov Land. Here Kolchak showed himself to be an energetic and active officer. He was even voted the best officer on the expedition.

As a result, several members of the expedition, along with Baron Toll, went missing. Kolchak submitted a petition to continue the expedition in order to find the members of E. Toll's team. He managed to find traces of the missing expedition, but there were no surviving members.

Based on the results of his work, Kolchak was awarded an order and was elected a member of the Russian Geographical Society.

In military service

With the beginning of the Russian Japanese war Kolchak transferred from the Academy of Sciences to the Naval War Department. In the Pacific Ocean, he served under the leadership of Admiral S. O. Makarov and commanded the destroyer "Angry". For heroism and courage, he was awarded a gold saber and a silver medal.

In the First World War, Alexander Vasilyevich commanded the Mine Division of the Baltic Fleet. Courage and resourcefulness were the admiral's hallmarks. In 1916, Nicholas II appointed Kolchak commander of the Black Sea Fleet. The main task of the fleet was to cleanse the sea from enemy warships. This task was successfully completed. The February Revolution prevented the fulfillment of other strategic tasks. In June 1917, Kolchak relinquished command of the Black Sea Fleet.

Civil War and the Supreme Ruler of Russia

After his resignation, Kolchak returned to Petrograd. The interim government sent him, as a leading expert in the fight against submarines, at the disposal of the Allies. First, Kolchak arrived in England, and then in America.

In September 1918, he again found himself on Russian soil, in Vladivostok, and already on October 13, 1918, in Omsk, he joined the general command of the volunteer armies in the east of the country. Kolchak led an army of 150,000, the purpose of which was to unite with the army of A.I. Denikin and a campaign against Moscow. The numerical superiority of the Red Army did not allow these plans to be realized. On January 15, 1920, Kolchak was arrested and ended up in the Irkutsk prison.

The investigation was conducted by the Extraordinary Commission. Eyewitness accounts and documents from the investigation show that the admiral behaved courageously and with dignity during interrogations. On February 7, 1920, the admiral was shot, and his body was thrown into the hole.

Alexander Vasilyevich Kolchak - the famous leader of the White Movement in Siberia, Supreme Commander-in-Chief, Admiral, polar explorer and hydrographic scientist was born in the village of Aleksandrovskoye near St. Petersburg on November 16, 1874 in a family of a hereditary military man. Father - Vasily Ivanovich Kolchak, nobleman and major general of naval artillery, mother - Olga Ilyinichna Posokhova, Don Cossack. In 1888, after graduating from the St. Petersburg classical gymnasium for men, Kolchak entered the Naval Cadet Corps, from which he graduated in 1894 with the rank of midshipman. After graduation, Kolchak in 1895, as an officer of the watch on the cruiser "Rurik", went to Vladivostok across the southern seas. During the transition, he became interested in hydrology and hydrography, at the same time he had a desire to independently engage in scientific research.

Two years later, when he was already a lieutenant, Kolchak returned to the position of the Baltic Fleet on the "Cruiser" clipper. Upon returning to Kronstadt, he is trying to get into the polar expedition on the Ermak icebreaker under the leadership of Vice-Admiral Stepan Makarov, but the icebreaker's team was already complete. Kolchak decided not to give up and, having learned that the Imperial Academy of Sciences was preparing a project to explore the Arctic Ocean in the area of ​​the New Siberian Islands, he made efforts to become one of the expedition participants. Fortunately for Kolchak, the head of the expedition, Baron Toll, was familiar with his scientific publications on hydrology and needed naval officers, so he agreed.

Polar Explorer - Lieutenant Kolchak

Under the patronage of the President of the Academy of Sciences, Prince Konstantin Konstantinovich, Kolchak was temporarily dismissed from military service, entered the order of the Academy and received the post of head of the hydrological work of the expedition. The plans of the researchers were to round Eurasia from the north, round Cape Dezhnev and return to Vladivostok. This was the first academic voyage of Russia in the Arctic Ocean, performed on its own ship. On June 8, 1900, the expedition schooner "Zarya" left St. Petersburg and headed for the Arctic waters, but in September, resting on the impenetrable ice, began to winter in the Taimyr Strait. On August 10, 1901, the ice began to move and the navigation of the Zarya continued, but less than a month later I had to settle for a second wintering near Kotelny Island. During the second wintering, Kolchak takes part in the exploration of the New Siberian Islands, conducting magnetic and astronomical observations. At the end of August, the expedition ended in Tiksi at the mouth of the Lena, and through Yakutsk and Irkutsk by December 1902, Kolchak returned to St. Petersburg.

In 1904, having learned about the beginning of the war with Japan, Kolchak was transferred back to the Naval Department and sent to Port Arthur. There he commanded the destroyer "Angry" for some time, later for health reasons, he was transferred to land and was appointed commander of an artillery battery. After the surrender of the garrison of Port Arthur, having been in Japanese captivity, in the summer of 1905 he returned to St. Petersburg. For his participation in hostilities, he was awarded the Orders of St. Anne, 4th degree and St. Stanislaus, 2nd degree. After the war, Kolchak was engaged in scientific activities, several of his studies on the hydrology of the northern seas were published. In 1908 he was awarded the rank of captain of the 2nd rank. In 1909-10. participates in the exploration of the sea area near Cape Dezhnev on the icebreakers Vaigach and Taimyr. Since the beginning of the First World War, at the headquarters of the Baltic Fleet, he has been developing defensive operations and is engaged in the installation of minefields, taking into account the experience of Port Arthur. In June 1916, Kolchak was appointed commander of the Black Sea Fleet, thus becoming the youngest admiral among all the belligerent powers. Then he was awarded the Order of St. Stanislaus, 1st degree. Being a convinced monarchist, Kolchak received with great grief the news of the abdication of Nicholas II from the throne. Thanks to his leadership and skillful neutralization of the Bolshevik agitators, the Black Sea Fleet managed to avoid anarchy and maintain its combat capability for a long time. In June 1917, Kolchak was removed from office and recalled to Petrograd. As a result of intrigues in the Provisional Government, he was forced to leave Russia, leaving for the United States as part of a Russian naval mission.

Admiral Kolchak during the Civil War

In November 1917, Kolchak arrived in Japan, where he heard the news of the coming to power of the Bolsheviks. In May 1918, with the support of Britain and Japan in Chinese Harbin, he began to form anti-Bolshevik forces around him. In September, Kolchak arrived in Vladivostok, where he negotiated joint actions against the Bolsheviks with the leaders of the Czechoslovak corps. In October, he arrives in Omsk, where he was appointed Minister of War in the Government of the Directory. On November 18, 1918, as a result of a military coup, Kolchak was proclaimed the Supreme Ruler of Russia. His power was recognized by the entire white movement in Russia, including Denikin. Having received military-technical assistance from the United States and the Entente countries and, using the country's gold reserves, Kolchak formed an army of more than 400 thousand people and began an offensive to the West. In December, as a result of the Perm operation, Perm was captured, and by the spring of 1919 - Ufa, Sterlitamak, Naberezhnye Chelny, Izhevsk. Kolchak's troops reached the approaches to Kazan, Samara and Simbirsk, this was the peak of success. But already in June, under the onslaught of the Red Army, the front inevitably rolled eastward, and in November Omsk was abandoned. The surrender of the capital set in motion all forces hostile to Kolchak in the rear, chaos and disorganization began. At the Nizhneudinsk station, he was arrested by his Czechoslovak allies, and in January 1920 he was extradited to the Bolsheviks by them in exchange for a free return home. After his arrest, interrogations began, during which he detailed his biography. The protocols of Kolchak's interrogations in the 1920s were published as a separate book. On February 7, 1920, Alexander Kolchak, together with his associate Minister Viktor Pepelyaev, was shot on the banks of the Angara by the decision of the military revolutionary committee.

Repeated attempts at legal rehabilitation of Kolchak in the post Soviet time were rejected by the court. In the waiting room of the Irkutsk railway station, there is a memorial plaque in memory of the fact that in this place in January 1920 Kolchak was betrayed by his Czechoslovak allies and surrendered to the Bolsheviks. And at the site of the alleged execution of Kolchak on the banks of the Angara near the Irkutsk Znamensky Monastery in 2004, a monument was erected to him by the work of the national sculptor of Russia Vyacheslav Klykov. The 4.5-meter-high figure of the admiral, made of forged copper, stands on a pedestal made of concrete blocks, on which there are reliefs of a Red Army and a White Guard standing opposite each other with arms crossed. The Irkutsk Regional Museum of Local Lore conducts excursions “Kolchak in Irkutsk”, including the “Museum of the History of the A.V. Kolchak ", which is equipped with an exposition of his former camera.

Kolchak Alexander Vasilievich(November 16, 1874 - February 7, 1920) - Russian military and political leader, scientist-oceanographer. Admiral (1918), a participant in the Russo-Japanese War, during the First World War, commanded a mine division of the Baltic Fleet (1915-1916), the Black Sea Fleet (1916-1917), the leader of the White movement during Civil War, Supreme Ruler of Russia (1918-1920), Supreme Commander of the Russian Army, one of the largest polar explorers of the late XIX - early XX centuries, a member of a number of Russian polar expeditions.

early years

Parents

The Kolchakov clan belonged to the service nobility; in different generations, its representatives very often turned out to be associated with military affairs.

Father Vasily Ivanovich Kolchak 1837 - 1913, was brought up in the Odessa Richelieu gymnasium, knew French well and was an admirer of French culture. In 1853, the Crimean War began and V.I. Kolchak entered service in the naval artillery Cherno navy in the junior officer rank. During the defense of the Malakhov Kurgan, he distinguished himself and was awarded the soldier's St.George Cross. Wounded during the defense of Sevastopol, he received the rank of ensign. After the war, he graduated from the Mining Institute in St. Petersburg. Further destiny Vasily Ivanovich was associated with the Obukhov steel plant. Until his retirement, he served here as the receiver of the Naval Ministry, had a reputation as a direct and extremely scrupulous person. He was a specialist in the field of artillery, published a number of scientific works on steel production. After retiring in 1889 (with the assignment of a general's rank), he continued to work at the plant for another 15 years.

Mother Olga Ilyinichna Kolchak 1855 - 1894, nee Posokhova, came from a merchant family. Olga Ilyinichna had a calm and quiet character, was distinguished by her piety and tried with all her might to pass it on to her children. Having married in the early 1870s, A.V. Kolchak's parents settled near the Obukhovsky plant, in the village of Aleksandrovskoye, practically outside the city limits. On November 4, 1874, their son Alexander was born. The boy was baptized in the local Trinity Church. The newborn's godfather was his uncle, his father's younger brother.

Years of study

In 1885-1888, Alexander studied at the Sixth St. Petersburg classical gymnasium, where he graduated from three out of eight classes. Alexander studied poorly and when he was transferred to the 3rd grade, having received a two in Russian, a three with a minus in Latin, a three in mathematics, a three with a minus in German and a two in French, he was almost left "for the second year." On repeated oral exams in Russian and French, he corrected his grades to three with a minus and was transferred to the 3rd grade.

In 1888 Alexander entered the Naval School "of his own free will and at the request of his father". With the transfer from the gymnasium to the Naval School, young Alexander's attitude towards studying changed: studying for his favorite occupation became a meaningful occupation for him, and a sense of responsibility appeared. Within the walls of the Naval Cadet Corps, as the school began to be called since 1891, Kolchak's abilities and talents were manifested.

In 1890 Kolchak went to sea for the first time. On May 12, upon arrival in Kronstadt, Alexander, along with other junior cadets, was assigned to the armored frigate "Prince Pozharsky".

In 1892, Alexander was promoted to junior non-commissioned officer. When he moved to the midshipman class, he was promoted to sergeant major - as the best in science and behavior, among the few on the course - and was appointed a mentor to the junior company.

In the coming year of 1894, the graduation year for a young officer, two more important events took place in his life. In the fortieth year of life, after a long illness, his mother died. In the same year, Emperor Nicholas II ascended the throne, with whom Alexander Vasilyevich met several times during his life and whose departure from power subsequently determined the end of Kolchak's naval career.

After graduation school year The midshipmen went through a month-long difficult voyage on the Skobelev corvette and started passing their final exams. At the exam in maritime affairs, Kolchak was the only one in the class who answered all fifteen questions. As for the other exams, Kolchak also passed all of them with excellent marks, except for the mine case, which later became the subject of his pride in practice, in which he satisfactorily answered four of the six questions.

By order of September 15, 1894, A.V. Kolchak was promoted to warrant officer among all the released midshipmen.

Scientific work

Leaving the Naval Corps in the 7th naval crew, in March 1895 Kolchak was assigned to navigate the Kronstadt Naval Observatory, and a month later he was assigned as an officer of the watch on the armored cruiser of the 1st rank Rurik, which had just been launched. On May 5 "Rurik" left Kronstadt on a voyage abroad across the southern seas to Vladivostok. During the campaign, Kolchak was engaged in self-education, tried to study Chinese... Here he became interested in oceanography and hydrology of the Pacific Ocean; he was especially interested in its northern part - the Bering and Okhotsk seas.

In 1897, Kolchak filed a report with a request to transfer him to the gunboat "Koreets", which was heading at that time to the Commander Islands, where Kolchak planned to do research work, but instead was sent as a watch teacher to the sailing cruiser "Cruiser", which used to train boatswains and non-commissioned officers.

On December 5, 1898, the "Cruiser" departed from Port Arthur to the location of the Baltic Fleet; on December 6, Kolchak was promoted to lieutenant. In this rank, due to leaving the Imperial Academy of Sciences, Kolchak will stay for about 8 years (at that time the rank of lieutenant was considered high - lieutenants commanded large ships).

Kolchak also wanted to explore the Arctic expanses. For various reasons, the first two attempts failed, but the third time he was lucky: he was part of the polar expedition of Baron E. Tol.

In 1899, upon his return from sailing on the frigate "Prince Pozharsky", Kolchak brought together and processed the results of his own observations of the currents of the Japanese and Yellow Seas and published his first scientific article "Observations over surface temperatures and specific gravity of sea water, produced on the cruisers "Rurik" and "Cruiser" from May 1897 to March 1899 ".

In September 1899 he transferred to the battleship "Petropavlovsk" and went to Far East... Kolchak decided to take part in the Anglo-Boer War that began in the fall of 1899. To this he was pushed not only by a romantic desire to help the Boers, but also by the desire to gain experience in modern warfare, to improve in his profession. But soon, when the ship was in the Greek port of Piraeus, Kolchak was delivered a telegram from the Academy of Sciences from E. V. Toll with an offer to take part in the Russian polar expedition on the schooner Zarya - the very expedition that he was so eager to get into back in St. Petersburg ... Toll, who needed three naval officers, was interested in scientific work young lieutenant in the magazine "Marine collection".

At the end of the Russo-Japanese War, Alexander Vasilyevich began processing materials from polar expeditions. From December 29, 1905 to May 1, 1906, Kolchak was assigned to the Academy of Sciences "to process the cartographic and hydrographic materials of the Russian Polar Expedition." This was a unique period in the life of Alexander Vasilyevich, when he led the life of a scientist and scientific worker.

Kolchak's article "The Last Expedition to Bennett Island Equipped by the Academy of Sciences to Search for Baron Toll" was published in Izvestia Akademii Nauk. In 1906, the Main Hydrographic Department of the Naval Ministry published three maps, which were prepared by Kolchak. The first two maps were compiled on the basis of collective surveys of the expedition participants and reflected the line of the western part of the coast of the Taimyr Peninsula, and the third map was prepared using depth measurements and surveys made personally by Kolchak; it reflected the western coast of Kotelny Island with Nerpichya Bay.

In 1907, Kolchak's translation into Russian of M. Knudsen's work "Tables of freezing points of sea water" was published.

In 1909, Kolchak published his largest study - a monograph summarizing his glaciological research in the Arctic - "Ice of the Kara and Siberian Seas", but did not manage to publish another monograph devoted to the cartographic work of Toll's expedition. In the same year, Kolchak left for a new expedition, so the work on preparing Kolchak's manuscript for printing and publishing the book was done by Birulya, who in 1907 published his book "From the Life of Birds on the Arctic Coast of Siberia."

A. V. Kolchak laid the foundations of the doctrine of sea ​​ice... He discovered that "the Arctic ice pack moves clockwise, and the" head "of this giant ellipse rests on Franz Josef Land, and the" tail "is off the northern coast of Alaska."

Russian polar expedition

In early January 1900, Kolchak arrived in St. Petersburg. The head of the expedition offered him to lead the hydrological work, as well as to act as a second magnetologist.

On a clear day on June 8, 1900, the travelers set off from the pier on the Neva and headed for Kronstadt.

On August 5, the sailors were already heading in the direction of the Taimyr Peninsula. With the approach to Taimyr, it became impossible to sail in the open sea. The fight against the ice took on a grueling character. It was possible to move only along the skerries, several times "Zarya" ran aground or found itself locked in a bay or fiord. There was a moment when we were about to stop for the winter, having stood for 19 days in a row.

Toll did not manage to fulfill his plan to swim in the first navigation to the little-explored eastern part of the Taimyr Peninsula, now he wanted, not to waste time, to get there through the tundra, for which it was necessary to cross the Chelyuskin Peninsula. Four gathered for the trip, on 2 heavily loaded sledges: Toll with the musher Rastorguev and Kolchak with the stoker Nosov.

Starting on October 10, October 15, Toll and Kolchak reached Gafner Bay. A warehouse with provisions for the planned spring trek from here into the interior of the peninsula was laid by a high cliff.

On October 19, the travelers returned to the base. Kolchak, who made astronomical refinements of a number of points along the way, managed to make significant refinements and corrections to the old map made as a result of Nansen's expedition of 1893-1896.

On the next trip, on April 6 to the Chelyuskin Peninsula, Toll and Kolchak went on a sleigh. Toll's musher was Nosov, and Kolchak's was Zheleznikov. Toll and Kolchak hardly recognized the place near the Gafner Bay, where they laid the warehouse in the fall. Directly above this place, next to the rock, a snowdrift with a height of 8 meters was sketched. Kolchak and Toll spent a whole week on the excavation of the warehouse, but the snow caked and became hard from below, so the excavations had to be abandoned and tried to do at least some research. The desires of the travelers diverged: Kolchak, as a geographer, wanted to move along the coast and photograph it, while Toll was a geologist and wanted to go deep into the peninsula. Brought up on military discipline, Kolchak did not dispute the decision of the head of the expedition, and for the next 4 days the researchers moved around the peninsula.

On May 1, Toll made an 11-hour skiing march. Tolly and Kolchak had to pull the strap along with the remaining dogs. Although the tired Toll was ready to spend the night anywhere, Kolchak always managed to insist on finding a suitable place to sleep, although for this he still had to go and walk. On the way back, Toll and Kolchak managed not to notice and slip past their warehouse. Throughout the entire 500-verst route, Kolchak conducted a route survey.

Toll recovered for 20 days after an exhausting hike. And Kolchak already on May 29 with Dr. Walter and Strizhev went on a trip to the warehouse, which he and Toll slipped through on the way back. Upon his return from the warehouse, Kolchak made a detailed survey of the Zarya raid, and Birulya - the other part of the coastal strip.

Throughout the entire expedition, A.V. Kolchak, like the rest of the travelers, worked hard, carried out hydrographic and oceanographic work, measured depths, studied the state of ice, sailed on a boat, and made observations on terrestrial magnetism. Repeatedly Kolchak also made trips over land, studying and exploring the little-studied territories of various islands and the mainland. As his colleagues testified, Kolchak did not take on different types works. What he thought was important, aroused his interest, the lieutenant did with great enthusiasm.

Kolchak always did his own work in the best way. The certification given to him by Baron Toll himself in a report to the President of the Academy of Sciences, Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich, speaks best of Kolchak's personal role in the expedition.

In 1901, he immortalized the name of A.V. Kolchak, giving his name to one of the islands discovered by the expedition in the Taimyr Bay and a cape in the same area. At the same time, Kolchak himself, during his polar campaigns, named another island and a cape after his bride - Sofia Fedorovna Omirova - who was waiting for him in the capital. Cape Sofya retained its name and was not renamed during the Soviet era.

On August 19, the Zarya crossed the longitude of Cape Chelyuskin. Lieutenant Kolchak, taking with him an instrument for determining latitude and longitude, jumped into the kayak. He was followed by Toll, whose boat was almost overturned by an unexpectedly emerging walrus. On the shore, Kolchak made measurements, a group photo was taken against the background of the built guria. By noon, the landing party returned to the ship and, giving a salute in honor of Chelyuskin, the travelers set off on a voyage. Kolchak and Seeberg, having made calculations, determined the latitude and longitude of the cape, it turned out to be a little east of the real Cape Chelyuskin. The new cape was named "Zarya". At one time, Nordenskjold also missed: this is how Cape Vega appeared on the maps west of Cape Chelyuskin. And "Zarya" has now become the 4th ship after "Vega" with its auxiliary ship "Lena" and "Fram" Nansen, which rounded the northern point of Eurasia.

On September 10, a northeasterly wind blew, and fine ice went over the water. The second wintering of the expedition began. By the forces of the expedition, a house for magnetic research, a meteorological station and a bathhouse were soon built around the house of Vollosovich from the fin carried by Lena to the sea.

During the week spent on the campaign, Kolchak on the Balykty River observed an interesting phenomenon that the soldiers of his Eastern Front would face in 1920 in their famous " Ice hike". In extremely cold weather, the river freezes in places to the bottom, after which, under the pressure of the current, the ice cracks, and the water continues to flow over it until it freezes again.

On the evening of May 23, Toll, Seeberg, Protodyakonov and Gorokhov moved towards Bennett Island on 3 sledges, carrying with them a supply of food for a little more than 2 months. The journey took 2 months, and at the end of the trip the provisions were already running low.

On August 8, having completed some necessary ship work, the remaining members of the expedition set off in the direction of Bennett's Island. According to the memoirs of Katina-Yartsev, the expedition was going to go through the strait between the islands of Belkovsky and Kotelny. When the passage was closed, Mathisen began to bend around Kotelny from the south in order to pass through the Annunciation Strait to Cape Vysoky and take Birulya. In a shallow strait, the vessel was damaged and a leak appeared. There were 15 miles to Vysokoe, but Mathisen was cautious and decided to try to bypass New Siberia from the south. The plan was fulfilled, and by August 16, Zarya was in full swing to the north. However, on August 17, the ice forced Mathisen to turn back and try to re-enter from the west, now not between Kotelny and Belkovsky, but west of the second.

By 23 August, the Zarya had the minimum amount of coal, which Toll spoke about in his instructions. Even if Mathisen could approach Bennett, there would be no coal left for the return trip. None of Mathissen's attempts allowed him to get closer than 90 miles to Bennett. Mathisen could not turn south without consulting Kolchak. Alexander Vasilyevich, most likely, also did not see any other way out, at least subsequently he never criticized this decision and did not dissociate himself from it.

On August 30, the Lena entered the Tiksi bay, the auxiliary steamer that once circled Cape Chelyuskin together with the Vega. Fearing freeze-up, the captain of the steamer gave the expedition only 3 days to collect. Kolchak found a secluded quiet corner in the bay, where they took the Zarya. Brusnev remained in the village of Kazachye and had to prepare reindeer for Toll's group, and if he did not appear before February 1, go to New Siberia and wait for him there.

In early December 1902, Kolchak reached the capital, where he was soon preparing an expedition, the purpose of which was to save Toll's group.

For the Russian polar expedition, Kolchak was awarded the Order of St. Vladimir, 4th degree. As a result of the expedition in 1903, Alexander Vasilyevich was also elected a full member of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society.

Russo-Japanese war

Upon arrival in Yakutsk, Kolchak learned about the attack of the Japanese fleet on the Russian squadron on the roadstead of Port Arthur and about the beginning of the Russo-Japanese War. On January 28, 1904, he telegraphed Konstantin Konstantinovich and asked for his transfer from the Academy of Sciences to the Naval Department. Having received permission, Kolchak petitioned to be sent to Port Arthur.

Kolchak arrived in Port Arthur on March 18. The next day, the lieutenant met with the commander of the Pacific Fleet, Admiral S.O. Makarov, and asked to be appointed to a combat position - a destroyer. However, Makarov looked at Kolchak as a person who crossed his path in preparation for the expedition to rescue E. V. Toll, and decided to hold him back, appointing on March 20 the chief of watch for the 1st rank cruiser Askold. Admiral Makarov, whom Kolchak, despite the latent conflict, considered his teacher, died on March 31 in an explosion on a Japanese mine of the battleship "Petropavlovsk".

Kolchak, who most of all did not like monotonous and routine work, achieved his transfer to the Amur minelayer. The translation took place on April 17. Apparently, this was a temporary appointment, since four days later he was appointed commander of the destroyer "Angry". The ship belonged to the second detachment of destroyers, inferior to the best ships of the first detachment and therefore engaged in the routine work of guarding the entrance to the harbor or escorting trawling ships. The assignment to such a job was another disappointment for the young officer rushing into battle.

Restless and somewhat adventurous in character, Kolchak dreamed of raider operations on enemy communications. He, bored of defensive tactics, wanted to participate in offensives, head-to-head battles with the enemy. Once, to the delight of a colleague from the high speed of the ship, the lieutenant sullenly replied, “What's good? Now, if we went so forward, towards the enemy, it would be good! "

On May 1, for the first time since the beginning of hostilities in the east, Kolchak had a chance to take part in a serious and dangerous mission. On this day, the operation began, developed by the commander of the Amur minelayer, Captain 2nd Rank FN Ivanov. "Cupid" with 50 mines on board, not reaching 11 miles to the Golden Mountain, separated from the Japanese squadron, put a mine bank. "Angry" under the command of Kolchak, together with "Fast" walked with trawls in front of "Cupid", clearing the way for him. The next day, the Japanese battleships IJN Hatsuse and IJN Yashima were blown up on placed mines, which was the loudest success of the First Pacific Squadron in the entire campaign.

Kolchak's first independent command of a warship lasted until October 18, with an almost month break to recover from pneumonia in the hospital. And yet Kolchak managed to accomplish a military feat at sea. Carrying out his daily routine work, Kolchak on his destroyer daily trawled the outer raid, was on duty at the passage to the bay, fired at the enemy, and laid mines. He chose a place to install the can, but on the night of 24 August he was prevented by three Japanese destroyers. The officer showed perseverance, on the night of August 25, the "Angry" again went to sea, and Kolchak set up 16 mines in the place of his choice, 20½ miles from the harbor. Three months later, on the night of November 29-30, the Japanese cruiser IJN Takasago blew up and sank on the mines placed by Kolchak. This success was the second most important for Russian sailors after the sinking of the Japanese battleships IJN Hatsuse and IJN Yashima. Alexander Vasilyevich was very proud of this success, mentioned him in his autobiography in 1918 and during interrogation in Irkutsk in 1920.

By this time, work on the destroyer was becoming more and more monotonous, and Kolchak regretted that he was not in the thick of things, where the fate of Port Arthur was being decided.

On October 18, at his own request, due to his health condition, Kolchak was transferred to the land front, where by this time the main events of the military campaign had moved.

Alexander Vasilyevich commanded a battery of different-caliber guns at the Armed Sector of the Rocky Mountains artillery position, the general command of which was carried out by Captain 2nd Rank AA Khomenko. Kolchak's battery included two small batteries of 47 mm cannons, a 120 mm gun firing at distant targets, and a battery of two 47 mm and two 37 mm guns. Later, Kolchak's economy was reinforced with two more old cannons from the Rogue light cruiser.

During the siege of Port Arthur, Lieutenant Kolchak kept records in which he systematized the experience of artillery shooting and collected evidence of the unsuccessful July attempt to break through the ships of the Port Arthur squadron to Vladivostok, showing himself again as a scientist - artilleryman and strategist.

By the time of the capitulation of Port Arthur, Kolchak fell seriously ill: injury was added to the articular rheumatism. On December 22, he was admitted to the hospital. In April, the hospital was evacuated by the Japanese to Nagasaki, and the sick officers were asked to undergo treatment in Japan or return to Russia. All Russian officers preferred their homeland. On June 4, 1905, Alexander Vasilyevich arrived in St. Petersburg, but here his illness worsened again, and the lieutenant again ended up in the hospital.

World War I

Pre-war service in the Baltic Fleet

On April 15, 1912, Kolchak was appointed commander of the destroyer Ussuriets. Alexander Vasilyevich went to the base of the mine division in Libau.

In May 1913, Kolchak was appointed to command the destroyer "Border Guard", which was used as a messenger ship for Admiral Essen.

On June 25, after the demonstration mine laying in the Finnish skerries, Nicholas II and his retinue, Minister IK Grigorovich, Essen, gathered aboard the "Border Guard" commanded by Kolchak. The sovereign was satisfied with the state of the crews and ships, Kolchak and other ship commanders were declared "named royal favor."

The headquarters of the fleet commander began to prepare papers for the production of Kolchak in the next rank. The certification prepared on August 21, 1913 by Alexander Vasilyevich's immediate superior, the commander of the mine division, Rear Admiral I.A.Shorre, characterized Kolchak as follows:

On December 6, 1913, Alexander Vasilyevich was promoted to captain of the 1st rank "for distinction in service" and after 3 days he was already appointed acting chief of the operational department of the headquarters of the commander of the Baltic Fleet's naval forces.

From July 14, Kolchak began to fulfill the duties of the flag-captain in the operational department at the Essen headquarters. On this day, Kolchak was awarded the French Order of the Legion of Honor - French President R. Poincaré came to Russia on a visit.

As one of the closest assistants to the commander of the Baltic Fleet, Kolchak focused on preparatory measures for the rapidly approaching big war... Kolchak's job was to inspect the detachments of the fleet, naval bases, pondering protective measures, mining.

War in the Baltic

On the evening of July 16, the headquarters of Admiral Essen received an encrypted message from the General Staff about the mobilization of the Baltic Fleet from midnight on July 17. Throughout the night, a group of officers led by Kolchak was busy drawing up instructions for the battle.

Subsequently, during interrogation in 1920, Kolchak will say:

The first two months of the war, Kolchak fought as a flag captain, developing operational tasks and plans, while always striving to take part in the battle itself. Later he was transferred to Essen headquarters.

During this war, the struggle at sea became much more complex and versatile than before, defensive measures, primarily in the form of minefields, acquired very important importance. And it was Kolchak who proved himself to be a master of mine warfare. He was considered by the Western Allies to be the best mine specialist in the world.

In August, the German cruiser SMS Magdeburg was captured near the island of Odensholm. Among the trophies was a German signal book. From it, Essen's headquarters learned that the Baltic Fleet was opposed by a rather small force of the German fleet. As a result, the question was raised about the transition of the Baltic Fleet from defensive defenses to active operations.

In early September, the plan for active operations was approved, Kolchak went to defend him at the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander. Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich recognized the active operations of the Baltic Fleet as premature. Feeling the wary attitude of the Headquarters to Essen, Kolchak was very upset about the failure of his mission, "was extremely nervous and complained of excessive bureaucracy that interfered with productive work."

In the fall of 1914, Essen's headquarters decided to use the weakening of vigilance on the part of the Germans, who were confident in the passive tactics of the Russian naval forces, and with the help of the constant work of destroyers "fill up the entire German coast with mines." Kolchak developed an operation for a mine blockade of German naval bases. The first mines were placed in October 1914 near Memel, and on November 4, in the area of ​​this mine bank, the German cruiser Friedrich Carl sank. In November, a bank was also delivered near the island of Bornholm.

At the end of December 1914, near the island of Rügen and the Stolpe banks on the routes by which German ships sailed from Kiel, minefields were set, in which Captain Kolchak took an active part. Subsequently, mines blew up SMS Augsburg and the light cruiser SMS Gazelle.

In February 1915, Captain 1st Rank A. V. Kolchak commanded a "special purpose half-battalion" of four destroyers during a mine-barrage operation in the Danzig Bay. There was already a lot of ice in the sea, and during the operation Kolchak had to apply his experience of sailing in the Arctic. All destroyers successfully reached the minefield site. However, the cover cruiser "Rurik" ran into the stones and got a hole. Kolchak led his ships on without the cover of the cruisers. On February 1, 1915, Kolchak delivered up to 200 mines and successfully returned his ships to the base. Subsequently, mines blew up four cruisers (among them the cruiser Bremen), eight destroyers and 23 German transports, and the commander of the German Baltic Fleet, Prince Heinrich of Prussia, had to order a ban on German ships to go to sea until the time when a means to fight the Russians was found mines.

Kolchak was awarded the Order of St. Vladimir, 3rd degree with swords. Kolchak's name also gained fame abroad: to train him in mine warfare tactics, the British equipped a group of their naval officers in the Baltic.

In August 1915, the German fleet, proceeding to active operations, attempted a breakthrough into the Gulf of Riga. It was the minefields that stopped it: having lost several destroyers on Russian mines and damaged some cruisers, the Germans soon canceled their plans due to the threat of new losses. This then led to the disruption of their offensive. ground forces to Riga, since it was not supported from the sea by the fleet.

At the beginning of September 1915, due to the injury of Rear Admiral P.L. Trukhachev, the post of Chief of the Mine Division was temporarily vacated, and it was entrusted to Kolchak. Having accepted the division on September 10, Kolchak began to establish contacts with the ground command. With the commander of the 12th Army, General R.D. Radko-Dmitriev, they agreed to jointly prevent the German offensive along the coast. Kolchak's division was to repel the large-scale German offensive that had begun, both on water and on land.

Kolchak began to develop an amphibious operation in the German rear. As a result of the landing, the enemy observation post was eliminated, prisoners and trophies were captured. On October 6, a detachment of 22 officers and 514 lower ranks on two gunboats under the cover of 15 destroyers, the battleship "Slava" and the air transport "Orlitsa" went on a campaign. A. V. Kolchak personally supervised the operation. The ratio of casualties was 40 people killed from the German side against 4 wounded from the Russian side. The Germans were forced to take troops from the front to defend the coastline and anxiously await Russian maneuvers from the side of the Gulf of Riga.

In mid-October, when snowfalls began and Kolchak took the ships to the Rogokyl harbor on the Moonsund archipelago, a telephone message came to the flagship destroyer: “The enemy is pressing, I ask the fleet for help. Melikov ". In the morning, approaching the coast, we learned that Russian units were still holding on Cape Ragoz, cut off by the Germans from their main group. Standing on a barrel, the destroyer "Siberian shooter" connected with the headquarters of Melikov. The rest of Kolchak's destroyers approached the shore, opened shrapnel fire on the attacking German lines. On this day, the Russian troops defended their positions. In addition, Melikov asked for Kolchak's help in his counteroffensive. Within an hour, the German positions fell, the city of Kemmern was taken, and the Germans fled hastily. On November 2, 1915, Nicholas II, on a report from Radko-Dmitriev, awarded Kolchak with the Order of St. George, 4th degree. This award was presented to Alexander Vasilyevich for commanding the Mine Division.

Kolchak's return to his former place of service - to the headquarters - turned out to be short-lived: already in December, the recovered Trukhachev received a new appointment, and on December 19, Alexander Vasilyevich already accepted the Mine Division again, and this time as its current commander, on an ongoing basis. However, even for a short time at the headquarters, Captain Kolchak managed to do a very important job: he developed a plan for an operation to mine Vindava, which was successfully implemented later.

Before the ice covered the Baltic Sea, Kolchak, barely having time to take the Mine Division, undertook a new mine-barrage action in the Vindava area. However, the plans were prevented by the explosion and the half-sinking of the destroyer "Bully", which canceled the operation. This was Kolchak's first unsuccessful operation.

In addition to laying minefields, Kolchak often brought groups of ships out to sea under personal command to hunt for various enemy ships, and a patrol service. One of these exits ended in failure, when the patrol ship Vindava died. However, failures were the exception. As a rule, the skill, courage and resourcefulness displayed by the commander of the Mine Division aroused admiration among his subordinates, and quickly spread in the fleet and in the capital.

The glory that Kolchak earned for himself was well-deserved: by the end of 1915, the losses of the German fleet in terms of warships outnumbered similar Russians by 3.4 times; in the part of merchant ships - by 5.2 times, and his personal role in this achievement can hardly be overestimated.

In the spring campaign of 1916, when the Germans launched an offensive on Riga, the role of Kolchak's cruisers Admiral Makarov and Diana, as well as the battleship Slava, consisted in shelling and obstructing the enemy's advance.

With the adoption on 23 August 1915 by Nicholas II of the rank of Supreme Commander in Headquarters, the attitude towards the fleet began to change for the better. Kolchak felt this too. Soon it began to move and present it to the next military rank... On April 10, 1916, Alexander Vasilyevich was promoted to rear admiral.

In the rear admiral rank, Kolchak fought in the Baltic with the transportation of iron ore from Sweden to Germany. The first attack of transport ships by Kolchak was unsuccessful, so the second trip, on May 31, was planned to the smallest detail. With three destroyers "Novik", "Oleg" and "Rurik", Alexander Vasilyevich, within 30 minutes, sank a number of transport ships, as well as all the guards who bravely entered into battle with him. As a result of this operation, Germany suspended shipping from neutral Sweden. The last task that Kolchak was engaged in in the Baltic Fleet was associated with the development of a large landing operation in the German rear in the Gulf of Riga.

On June 28, 1916, by decree of the emperor, Kolchak was promoted to vice admiral and appointed commander of the Black Sea Fleet, thus becoming the youngest of the commanders of the fleets of the belligerent powers.

War in the Black Sea

In early September 1916, Alexander Vasilyevich was in Sevastopol, having visited Headquarters on the way and received secret instructions from the Tsar and his chief of staff. Kolchak's meeting with Nicholas II at Headquarters was the third and last. Kolchak spent one day at Headquarters on July 4, 1916. The Supreme Commander-in-Chief told the new commander of the Black Sea Fleet about the situation on the fronts, conveyed the content of military-political agreements with the allies on the imminent entry of Romania into the war. At Headquarters, Kolchak was familiarized with the decree on awarding him with the Order of St. Stanislav, 1st degree.

According to the methods worked out in the Baltic, after a while, under his personal leadership, Kolchak carried out the mining of the Bosphorus, the Turkish coast, which was then repeated, and practically completely deprived the enemy of the possibility of active actions. 6 enemy submarines were blown up by mines.

The first task assigned by Kolchak to the fleet was to cleanse the sea from enemy warships and to stop enemy shipping altogether. To achieve this goal, feasible only with the complete blocking of the Bosphorus and the Bulgarian ports, MI Smirnov began planning an operation to mine enemy ports. To fight submarines, Kolchak invited to the Black Sea Fleet his comrade in the capital's officers' circle, Captain 1st Rank NN Shreiber, the inventor of a special small mines for submarines; nets were also ordered to block submarine exits from ports.

Transportation for the needs of the Caucasian Front began to be provided with reasonable and sufficient security, and throughout the war this security was never broken by the enemy, and during the time of Kolchak's command of the Black Sea Fleet, only one Russian steamer was sunk.

At the end of July, a mining operation for the Bosphorus began. The submarine "Crab" began the operation, which put in the very throat of the strait for 60 minutes. Then, by order of Kolchak, the entrance to the strait from coast to coast was mined. After that, Kolchak mined the exits from the Bulgarian ports of Varna, Zonguldak, which hit the Turkish economy hard.

By the end of 1916, the commander of the Black Sea Fleet had fulfilled his task, firmly locking the German-Turkish fleet, including SMS Goeben and SMS Breslau, in the Bosphorus, and easing the tension of the transport service of the Russian fleet.

At the same time, Kolchak's service in the Black Sea Fleet was marked by a number of failures and losses, which might not have happened. The biggest loss was the sinking of the flagship of the fleet, the Empress Maria, on October 7, 1916.

Bosphorus operation

The Naval Department of the Headquarters and the headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet developed a simple and daring plan for the Bosphorus operation.

It was decided to strike an unexpected and swift blow at the center of the entire fortified area - Constantinople. The operation was planned by the sailors for September 1916. It was supposed to combine the actions of the ground forces on the southern edge of the Romanian front with the actions of the fleet.

From the end of 1916, a comprehensive practical preparation for the Bosphorus operation began: they conducted training in landing troops, firing from ships, reconnaissance campaigns of destroyer detachments to the Bosphorus, comprehensively studied the coast, and carried out aerial photography. A special landing Black Sea Marine Division was formed, headed by Colonel A.I. Verkhovsky, which was personally supervised by Kolchak.

On December 31, 1916, Kolchak gave the order to form the Black Sea Air Division, the units of which were supposed to be deployed in accordance with the arrival of naval aircraft. On this day, Kolchak, at the head of a detachment of three battleships and two aircraft, undertook a campaign to the shores of Turkey, but due to the increased excitement, the bombardment of the enemy's shores from seaplanes had to be postponed.

M. Smirnov wrote already in exile:

Events of 1917

The events of February 1917 in the capital found Vice-Admiral Kolchak in Batum, where he went to a meeting with the commander of the Caucasian Front, Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich, to discuss the schedule of shipping and the construction of a port in Trebizond. On February 28, the admiral received a telegram from the Naval General Staff about the revolt in Petrograd and the capture of the city by the rebels.

Kolchak remained loyal to the emperor to the last and did not immediately recognize the Provisional Government. However, under the new conditions, he had to organize his work differently, in particular, to maintain discipline in the fleet. Constant appearances in front of the sailors, flirting with the committees allowed for a relatively long time to maintain the remnants of order and prevent the tragic events that occurred at that time in the Baltic Fleet. However, due to the general collapse of the country, the situation could not but worsen.

On April 15, the admiral arrived in Petrograd at the summons of the Minister of War Guchkov. The latter hoped to use Kolchak as the head of a military coup and invited Alexander Vasilyevich to take command of the Baltic Fleet. However, the appointment of Kolchak to the Baltic did not take place.

In Petrograd, Kolchak took part in a government meeting, where he made a report on the strategic situation in the Black Sea. His presentation made a favorable impression. When the conversation about the Bosphorus operation came up, Alekseev decided to take advantage of the situation and finally bury the operation.

Kolchak also participated in the meeting of the commanders of the fronts and armies at the headquarters of the Northern Front in Pskov. From there, the admiral made a heavy impression about the demoralization of the troops at the front, fraternization with the Germans and their imminent collapse.

In Petrograd, the admiral witnessed armed soldiers' demonstrations and believed that they must be suppressed by force. Kolchak considered the refusal of the Provisional Government to Kornilov, the commander of the capital's military district, to suppress an armed demonstration a mistake, along with refusing to do this, if necessary, in the fleet to act similarly.

Returning from Petrograd, Kolchak took an offensive position, trying to enter the all-Russian political scene. The admiral's efforts to prevent anarchy and the collapse of the fleet bore fruit: Kolchak managed to raise the spirits in the Black Sea Fleet. Impressed by Kolchak's speech, it was decided to send a delegation from the Black Sea Fleet to the front and to the Baltic Fleet to raise morale and agitate for the preservation of the combat capability of the troops and the victorious end of the war, "so that the war can be actively waged with full effort."

Kolchak, in the fight against defeatism and the collapse of the army and navy, was not limited solely to supporting the patriotic impulses of the sailors themselves. The commander himself sought to actively influence the sailors' mass.

With the departure of the delegation, the situation in the navy worsened, people began to be in short supply, while anti-war agitation intensified. Due to defeatist propaganda and agitation on the part of the RSDLP (b), which intensified after February 1917 in the army and navy, discipline began to fall.

Kolchak continued to regularly withdraw the fleet to the sea, as this made it possible to distract people from revolutionary activity and pull them up. Cruisers and destroyers continued bypassing the enemy coast, and submarines, regularly replacing, were on duty near the Bosphorus.

After Kerensky's departure, confusion and anarchy in the Black Sea Fleet began to intensify. On May 18, the committee of the Zharkiy destroyer demanded that the ship's commander GM Veselago be written off ashore “for being too brave”. Kolchak ordered to put the torpedo boat in reserve, and Veselago was transferred to another position. The sailors' dissatisfaction was also aroused by Kolchak's decision to put the battleships Three Saints and Sinop for repairs with the distribution of their overly revolutionary-minded teams to other ports. The growth of tension and left-wing extremist sentiments among the Black Sea residents was also facilitated by the arrival in Sevastopol of a delegation of sailors of the Baltic Fleet, consisting of Bolsheviks and equipped with a huge load of Bolshevik literature.

In the last weeks of his command of the fleet, Kolchak no longer expected and did not receive any help from the government, trying to solve all problems on his own. However, his attempts to restore discipline met with opposition from the rank and file of the army and navy.

On June 5, 1917, the revolutionary sailors decreed that officers must surrender their firearms and edged weapons. Kolchak took his saber of St. George, received for Port Arthur, and threw it overboard, saying to the sailors:

On June 6, Kolchak sent a telegram to the Provisional Government with a message about the riot that had taken place and that in the current situation he could no longer remain in the post of commander. Without waiting for an answer, he handed over the command to Rear Admiral V.K.Lukin.

Seeing that the situation was getting out of control, and fearing for Kolchak's life, M.I.Smirnov called A.D.Bubnov via a direct wire, who contacted the Naval General Staff and asked to immediately report to the minister about the need to call Kolchak and Smirnov in order to save them. lives. The reply telegram of the Provisional Government arrived on June 7: "The Provisional Government ... orders Admiral Kolchak and Captain Smirnov, who allowed an obvious riot, to immediately leave for Petrograd for a personal report." Thus, Kolchak automatically fell under investigation and was removed from the military-political life of Russia. Kerensky, who had already seen Kolchak as a rival, used this chance to get rid of him.

Wandering

The Russian naval mission consisting of A. V. Kolchak, M. I. Smirnov, D. B. Kolechitsky, V. V. Bezuar, I. E. Vuich, A. M. Mezentsev left the capital on July 27, 1917. Alexander Vasilyevich traveled to the Norwegian city of Bergen under a false name - to hide his tracks from German intelligence. From Bergen the mission proceeded to England.

In England

Kolchak spent two weeks in England: he got acquainted with naval aviation, submarines, anti-submarine warfare tactics, and visited factories. With the British admirals, Alexander Vasilyevich developed good relationship, the allies confidentially initiated Kolchak into military plans.

IN THE USA

On August 16, the Russian mission on the cruiser Glonseester left Glasgow for the shores of the United States, where it arrived on August 28, 1917. It turned out that the American fleet had never planned any Dardanelles operation. The main reason for Kolchak's trip to America disappeared, and from that moment on his mission was of a military-diplomatic nature. Kolchak stayed in the United States for about two months, during which time he met with Russian diplomats headed by Ambassador B.A. Bakhmetyev, naval and military ministers and Secretary of State USA. On October 16, Kolchak was received by the American President V. Wilson.

Kolchak, at the request of his fellow allies, worked at the American Naval Academy, where he consulted the students of the academy on mine work.

In San Francisco, already on the west coast of the United States, Kolchak received a telegram from Russia with a proposal to nominate himself for the Constituent Assembly from the Cadet Party in the Black Sea Fleet District, to which he agreed, but his reply telegram was late. 12 October Kolchak went with the officers from San Francisco to Vladivostok on the Japanese steamer "Kario-Maru".

In Japan

Two weeks later the steamer arrived at the Japanese port of Yokohama. Here Kolchak learned about the overthrow of the Provisional Government and the seizure of power by the Bolsheviks, about the beginning of negotiations between the Lenin government and the German authorities in Brest on a separate peace, which Kolchak could not have imagined more shameful and enslaving.

Kolchak now had to solve the difficult question of what to do next, when power was established in Russia, which he did not recognize, considering it treasonous and guilty of the collapse of the country.

In the current situation, he considered his return to Russia impossible and reported his non-recognition of a separate peace to the allied British government. He also asked to be accepted into the service "as you like and anywhere" to continue the war with Germany.

Soon Kolchak was summoned to the British Embassy and informed that Great Britain willingly accepts his offer. On December 30, 1917, Kolchak received a message about his appointment to the Mesopotamian Front. In the first half of January 1918, Kolchak left Japan via Shanghai for Singapore.

In Singapore and China

In March 1918, having arrived in Singapore, Kolchak received a secret assignment to urgently return to China to work in Manchuria and Siberia. The change in the British decision was associated with the persistent petitions of Russian diplomats and other political circles, who saw the admiral as a candidate for the leader of the anti-Bolshevik movement. The first steamer, Alexander Vasilyevich returned to Shanghai, where he ended, before he could begin, his English service.

With the arrival of Kolchak in China, the period of his wanderings abroad ended. Now the admiral faced a political and military struggle against the Bolshevik regime inside Russia.

Supreme ruler of Russia

Kolchak, as a result of the November coup, became the Supreme Ruler of Russia. In this position, he tried to restore law and order in the territories under his control. Kolchak spent a number of administrative, military, financial and social reforms... Thus, measures were taken to restore industry, supply peasants with agricultural machinery, and develop the Northern Sea Route. Moreover, from the end of 1918, Alexander Vasilyevich began to prepare the Eastern Front for the decisive spring offensive of 1919. However, by this time, the Bolsheviks were able to pull up large forces. For a number of serious reasons, by the end of April, the White offensive was exhausted, and then they came under a powerful counterattack. A retreat began, which could not be stopped.

As the situation at the front worsened, discipline in the troops began to fall, and society and the higher spheres were demoralized. By the fall it became clear that the white struggle in the east had been lost. Without relinquishing responsibility from the Supreme Ruler, we nevertheless note that in the current situation there was practically no one next to him who was able to help solve systemic problems.

In January 1920, in Irkutsk, Kolchak was extradited by the Czechoslovakians (who were no longer going to participate in the Civil War in Russia and tried to leave the country as quickly as possible) to the local revolutionary council. Prior to that, Alexander Vasilyevich refused to run and save his life, saying: "I will share the fate of the army." On the night of February 7, he was shot by order of the military revolutionary committee of the Bolsheviks.

Awards

• Medal "In commemoration of the reign of the emperor Alexander III"(1896)
• Order of St. Vladimir, 4th degree (December 6, 1903)
• Order of St. Anne, 4th degree with the inscription "For Bravery" (October 11, 1904)
• Golden weapon "For Bravery" - a saber with the inscription "For the difference in cases against the enemy near Port Arthur" (December 12, 1905)
• Order of St. Stanislaus 2nd class with swords (December 12, 1905)
• Great Gold Constantine Medal (January 30, 1906)
• Silver medal on the Georgievskaya and Aleksandrovskaya ribbons in memory of the Russian-Japanese war of 1904-1905 (1906)
• Swords and bow to the personal order of St. Vladimir, 4th degree (March 19, 1907)
• Order of St. Anne, 2nd degree (December 6, 1910)
• Medal "In commemoration of the 300th anniversary of the reign of the Romanov dynasty" (1913)
• French Legion of Honor Officer's Cross (1914)
• Cross "For Port Arthur" (1914)
• Medal "In Commemoration of the 200th Anniversary naval battle at Gangut "(1915)
• Order of St. Vladimir 3rd class with swords (February 9, 1915)
• Order of Saint George 4th degree (November 2, 1915)
• Order of the Bath (1915)
• Order of St. Stanislaus 1st class with swords (July 4, 1916)
• Order of St. Anne 1st class with swords (January 1, 1917)
• Golden Weapon - Dagger of the Union of Army and Navy Officers (June 1917)
• Order of St. George 3rd degree (April 15, 1919)

Memory

Memorial plaques in honor and memory of Kolchak are installed on the building of the Marine Corps, which Kolchak graduated from, in St. Petersburg (2002), on the station building in Irkutsk, in the courtyard of the Nikolai Mirlikisky chapel in Moscow (2007). On the facade of the building of the Museum of Local Lore (the Mauritanian Castle, the former building of the Russian Geographical Society) in Irkutsk, where Kolchak read a report on the Arctic expedition of 1901, the honorary inscription in honor of Kolchak, destroyed after the revolution, was restored - next to the names of other scientists and researchers of Siberia. Kolchak's name is engraved on the monument to the heroes of the White movement ("Gallipoli Obelisk") at the Parisian cemetery of Sainte-Genevieve-des-Bois. In Irkutsk, a cross has been erected at the "resting place in the waters of the Angara".

Good afternoon, Gossips! Several years ago, or rather after watching the film "Admiral" I was very interested in Kolchak's personality. Of course, everything in the film is too "correct and beautiful", that is why it is a film. In fact, there is a lot of different and contradictory information about this person, as is the case with many famous historical characters. Personally, I decided for myself that for me he is the personification of a real man, an officer and a patriot of Russia. Today marks the 138th anniversary of the birth of Alexander Vasilyevich Kolchak. Alexander Vasilyevich Kolchak- Russian politician, Vice Admiral of the Russian Imperial Fleet (1916) and Admiral of the Siberian Flotilla (1918). Polar explorer and oceanographer, participant of expeditions in 1900-1903 (awarded the Great Constantine Medal by the Imperial Russian Geographical Society, 1906). Member of the Russian-Japanese, World War I and Civil War. The leader of the White movement both on a national scale and directly in the East of Russia. The supreme ruler of Russia (1918-1920), Alexander Vasilyevich was born (4) on November 16, 1874 in St. Petersburg. His father, an officer of the Naval Artillery, instilled in his son from an early age a love and interest in naval affairs and scientific pursuits. In 1888, Alexander entered the Naval Cadet Corps, which he graduated in the fall of 1894 with the rank of midshipman. Went sailing to the Far East, Baltic, Mediterranean sea, participated in the scientific North polar expedition. V Russo-Japanese War 1904-1905 he commanded a destroyer, then a coastal battery in Port Arthur. Until 1914 he served in the Naval General Staff. During the First World War, he was the chief of the operations department of the Baltic Fleet, then the commander of a mine division. Since July 1916 - Commander of the Black Sea Fleet. After the February Revolution of 1917 in Petrograd, Kolchak accused the provisional government of the collapse of the army and navy. In August, he left at the head of a Russian naval mission to the UK and the United States, where he stayed until mid-October. In mid-October 1918, he arrived in Omsk, where he was soon appointed Minister of War and Naval Minister of the Government of the Directory (a bloc of Right SRs and Left Cadets). On November 18, as a result of a military coup, power passed into the hands of the Council of Ministers, and Kolchak was elected Supreme Ruler of Russia with the promotion of full admirals. In the hands of Kolchak was the gold reserve of Russia, he received military-technical assistance from the United States and the Entente countries. By the spring of 1919, he managed to create an army with a total strength of up to 400 thousand people. The highest successes of Kolchak's armies fell on March-April 1919, when they occupied the Urals. However, after this defeat began. In November 1919, under the onslaught of the Red Army, Kolchak left Omsk. In December, Kolchak's train was blocked in Nizhneudinsk by Czechoslovakians. On January 14, 1920, in exchange for free travel, the Czechs extradite the admiral. On January 22, the Extraordinary Commission of Inquiry began interrogations, which continued until February 6, when the remnants of Kolchak's army came close to Irkutsk. The Revolutionary Committee issued a resolution on the execution of Kolchak without trial. On February 7, 1920, Kolchak, together with Prime Minister V.N. Pepelyaev was shot. Their bodies were thrown into a hole in the Angara. Until now, the burial site has not been found. Kolchak's symbolic grave (cenotaph) is located at the place of his "resting place in the waters of the Angara" not far from the Irkutsk Znamensky Monastery, where a cross is installed. Few facts about personal life. Kolchak was married to Sofya Fedorovna Kolchak who bore him three children. Two of whom died in infancy and the only son, Rostislav, remained. Sofia Fedorovna Kolchak and her son were rescued by the British and sent to France. But of course the more famous woman in Kolchak's life is Timireva Anna Vasilievna. Kolchak and Timireva met at the house of Lieutenant Podgursky in Helsingfors. Both were not free, each had a family, both had sons. The entourage knew about the sympathies of the admiral and Timireva, but no one dared to speak about it aloud. Anna's husband was silent, and Kolchak's wife said nothing. Maybe they thought that soon everything would change, that time would help. After all, lovers for a long time - for months, and once a whole year - did not see each other. Alexander Vasilievich carried her glove with him everywhere, and in his cabin there was a photo of Anna Vasilievna in a Russian costume. "... I spend hours looking at your photograph, which stands in front of me. It has your sweet smile, with which I have associated ideas about the morning dawn, about happiness and joy of life. Maybe that's why, my guardian angel, deeds are going well, "the admiral wrote to Anna Vasilievna. She confessed her love to him first. "I told him I love him." And he, for a long time and, as it seemed to him, hopelessly in love, replied: "I did not tell you that I love you." - "No, I say it: I always want to see you, I always think about you, it is such a joy for me to see you." "I love you more than I love you" ... In 1918 Timireva announced to her husband her intention to "always be near Alexander Vasilyevich" and was soon officially divorced. By this time, Kolchak's wife Sophia had already been living in exile for several years. After that, Anna Vasilievna considered herself Kolchak's common-law wife. Together they stayed for less than two years - until January 1920. When the admiral was arrested, she went to jail after him. Anna Timireva, a twenty-six-year-old young woman who, having arrested herself, demanded that the governors of the prison give Aleksandr Kolchak the necessary things and medicines, since he was ill. They did not stop writing letters ... Almost until the very end, Kolchak and Timireva addressed each other with "you" and by name and patronymic: "Anna Vasilievna", "Alexander Vasilievich". In Anna's letters, only once breaks out: "Sasha". A few hours before the execution, Kolchak wrote her a note, which never reached the addressee: "My dear dove, I received your note, thank you for your affection and care for me ... Don't worry about me. I feel better, mine. colds pass. I think that transfer to another cell is impossible. I think only about you and your fate ... I don’t worry about myself - everything is known in advance. Every step I take is watched, and it is very difficult for me to write ... Write to me. scraps are the only joy I can have, I pray for you and bow to your sacrifice. My dear, my beloved, do not worry about me and save yourself ... Goodbye, kiss your hands. "After Kolchak's death, Anna Vasilievna lived for another 55 years. She spent the first forty years of this period in prisons and camps, of which her occasionally were released into the wild for a short time. recent years life Anna Vasilievna wrote poems, among which there is this: Half a century I can not accept, Nothing can be helped, And you all go away again On that fateful night. And I am condemned to go, Until the term has passed, And the paths of the well-worn roads are confused. But if I am still alive, Contrary to fate, Then only as your love And the memory of you.
An interesting fact is that Anna Vasilievna worked as an etiquette consultant on the set of Sergei Bondarchuk's film War and Peace, which was released in 1966.

Alexander Kolchak remained in history the leader of the White movement, the Supreme ruler and Supreme Commander Russian army. George Knight, Admiral.

History knows no examples when a famous person would be perceived either only positively or exclusively negatively. Such controversial personalities include Alexander Kolchak, over whose merits historians are still breaking spears. During the Civil War, he became the Supreme Ruler of Russia, who, with the help of the White Army, tried to change the political structure in the country. He was tough, sometimes even cruel. But on the other hand, if we forget for a moment about this fratricidal war, then we see the figure of a hero, a famous military leader, statesman, scientist-oceanographer, polar explorer, naval commander. How such opposite personalities coexisted in one person remained a mystery.

Childhood

Alexander Kolchak was born on November 16, 1874 in St. Petersburg. His father Vasily Kolchak graduated from the Odessa Richelieu gymnasium at one time, spoke French perfectly and was fond of French culture. He served in naval artillery in the Black Sea Fleet, after being wounded in the Crimean War he was promoted to ensign. Further studies at the Mining Institute of St. Petersburg, work at the Obukhovsky steel plant, then at the Marine Ministry. He retired in 1889 with the rank of general.

Mom - Olga Kolchak (Posokhova) comes from a merchant family. Calm, reasonable, very pious, she taught children from an early age to church.

Until the age of eleven, Sasha studied at home, then in 1885 he was sent to the 6th St. Petersburg gymnasium, where he barely studied for three years.

Due to poor performance in some subjects, the boy was almost left for the second year in the second grade, but after the retake he was still transferred to the third. He always liked the sea, so in 1888 he became a cadet in the Naval Cadet Corps, and began to bring home only excellent marks.

In 1892, Kolchak received the rank of junior non-commissioned officer. When he began to study in the midshipman class, he became a sergeant major and mentor of the junior company. In 1894, Alexander graduated from the Cadet Corps. The young man emerged from its walls as a midshipman.

Career

In 1895-1899, the Baltic, and then the Pacific Fleet became the place of service of Alexander Kolchak. He visited three times travel around the world, conducted research in the Pacific Ocean, paying maximum attention to its northern territories. In 1900, the young lieutenant was transferred to the Academy of Sciences. Kolchak became the author of several scientific works, where he devotes more attention to the study of sea currents. However, he was interested not only in theory, Kolchak wanted to learn the unknown in practice - he dreams of visiting a polar expedition.

Kolchak's publications aroused the interest of the renowned explorer of the Arctic latitudes, Baron E. Toll, who invited him to search for "Sannikov Land". In 1902, Kolchak, as part of an expedition led by Eduard Toll, again went on a polar campaign. This time they chose the wooden whaling schooner Zarya for the trip. In the summer of 1902, Toll and several polar explorers boarded dog sleds and set off to explore the Arctic coast. None of them came back. Even after a long search, no one was found, so the remaining crew of the schooner returned to their home port. After some time, Kolchak leads a rescue operation to the Northern Islands, they manage to find only traces of the group, and not a single living person. For this expedition, Kolchak received the Order of the "Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir" IV degree. The hike ended with severe pneumonia, which was very difficult.

Russo-Japanese war

In the spring of 1904, at the very beginning of the war with the Japanese, Alexander submits a report on his transfer to Port Arthur. He did not wait for a complete recovery, and went to a new place of service. Kolchak was appointed commander of the "Angry" destroyer, whose task was to install depth mines near the Japanese raid. The team successfully completed the mission, several Japanese ships were blown up by barrage mines.

Then Alexander led the coastal artillery, which caused the enemy a lot of trouble. In one of the battles, Kolchak was wounded, and after the fortress fell, he was captured by the enemy. The Japanese saw in him an adversary worthy of respect, so they did not hold him prisoner, and even left him all his weapons. Kolchak's heroism was also appreciated by the Russian authorities. As a reward, he received the St. George weapon, the Order of St. Anna and St. Stanislaus.

The fight for the fleet

Alexander was treated in a hospital, and then he was encouraged to leave for six months. He was not indifferent to the deplorable state of the fleet after the Japanese war, and he begins to engage in its revival.

In the summer of 1906, Kolchak was appointed chairman of the commission at the headquarters of the navy, which is engaged in clarifying the reasons for the defeat in the battle of Tsushima. As a military expert, Kolchak often attended State Duma hearings, and advocated the allocation of the necessary funding for the fleet.

On the basis of his project, a theoretical basis for military domestic shipbuilding was created in the pre-war period. From 1906 to 1908, Kolchak himself headed the construction. During this time, they created 4 battleships and 2 icebreakers.

Kolchak's merits research work in the Russian North brought him the title of a member of the Russian Geographical Society. That was his name - Kolchak-Polar.

Alexander continues his scientific activity, systematizes the materials obtained by previous expeditions. In 1909, he published a work on the ice cover of the Siberian and Kara seas. She was recognized as the best in this field of oceanography.

World War I

German troops were ready to instantly capture St. Petersburg. At the head of the German fleet was Heinrich of Prussia, who was going to enter the Gulf of Finland from the first days of the war, and from there defeat the capital with powerful guns.

After all the main objects were destroyed, he conceived the landing of an assault force, the capture of the city and a complete victory over Russia. However, he did not take into account the fact that Russian officers have extensive experience in conducting this kind of battle, and that their actions can also be instantaneous and successful.

The Russian command understood that Germany was superior in the number of ships, so for a start it was decided to use the tactics of mine warfare. The division under the command of Kolchak in a few days from the beginning of the war managed to deliver more than six thousand deep-sea mines, thus blocking the enemy's path to the Gulf of Finland. The plans of the German command were thwarted.

Then Kolchak began to insist on the use of not only defensive tactics, but also the transition to the offensive. By the end of 1914, the sailors under his command mined the Danzig Bay, right "under the nose" of the enemy, which led to the death of thirty-five German ships. Thanks to the success of this operation, Kolchak received a new appointment.

In September 1915, the Mine Division was under his command. A month later, Alexander developed a new operation, and the landing force landed in the Gulf of Riga to provide assistance to the Northern Fleet. The operation was instant and successful, the Germans did not even realize that the Russians were already nearby.

In the summer of 1916, the Tsar promoted Kolchak to the commander-in-chief of the Black Sea Fleet.

The revolution

Alexander Kolchak never broke the oath of loyalty given to the emperor. The February Revolution did not break him either. When the revolutionary sailors demanded that he surrender all his weapons, Kolchak threw his saber into the sea, saying that even the Japanese left him all the weapons, and he was not going to give them to anyone.

Upon arrival in Petrograd, Alexander made accusations against the Provisional Government for allowing the country and the army to be destroyed. The ministers did not stand on ceremony with the admiral for a long time, they offered him to lead an allied mission in the United States. In fact, it was a political link.

In December 1917, Kolchak appeals to the British government with a request to accept him to serve in its troops. But by that time, the figure of the admiral was already being considered in certain circles as a candidate for the place of a leader who would rally the troops around himself and start a war with the Bolsheviks.

In the southern regions of the country dominated Volunteer army, in the east and north, there were several independent governments. In September 1918, they decided to unite and called themselves the Directory. But without a "strong hand" they could not claim victory. After the "white coup" representatives of the Directory contacted Kolchak and offered him to become the Supreme Ruler of Russia.

Kolchak's goals

First of all, Kolchak was engaged in the restoration of the foundations of the empire. He issued decrees prohibiting the work of all extremist parties. In Siberia, they wanted to reconcile the entire population, they developed an economic reform that was supposed to help in the creation of industry.

In the spring of 1919, Kolchak's army occupied the Urals, and this was his greatest achievement. But success soon gave way to a streak of failure, and there are many explanations for this. First of all, Kolchak had no experience in governing the state, he refused to settle the agrarian question. In addition, the scattered partisan units and Socialist-Revolutionaries put up powerful resistance to his army, and it was not possible to come to a political agreement with the allies.

November 1919 marked the beginning of the end of his career. Kolchak left Omsk, at the beginning of 1920 he gave up his powers in favor of Denikin. Then he was betrayed by the Czech Allied Corps, and in Irkutsk Alexander was captured by the Bolsheviks.

Personal life

It cannot be said that in his personal life Alexander Kolchak was distinguished by constancy, but he was married once. In 1904, he took Sophia Omirova down the aisle, a hereditary noblewoman who had to wait for her betrothed from the expedition for several years. They got married in one of the Irkutsk churches. In 1905, their daughter was born, but she died as an infant. In March 1910, they became the parents of a son, Rostislav, and two years later another daughter, Margarita, was born, but she lived only two years.

In 1919, Sophia managed to emigrate to Constanta, and from there to Paris. She lived there with her son until 1956, the place of her burial was the Russian cemetery of Saint-Genevieve-des-Bois.

The admiral's son, Rostislav, worked in the Algerian bank, fought on the side of the French resistance in World War II. He died in 1965. In 1933, the grandson of Alexander Kolchak, also Alexander, was born. All his life he lives in France, in Paris.

In addition to his wife, there was also a great love in Alexander's life, which he retained until last days... Her name was Anna Timireva. They first met in Helsingfors in 1915, where she was with her husband, also a naval officer. The feelings were so strong that Anna divorced her husband in 1918 and went after Kolchak. They were arrested together, Alexander was shot, and Anna was sentenced to imprisonment. In total, she spent almost three decades in prison and exile. Then her case was reviewed and rehabilitated. Timireva died in Moscow in 1975.

Death

The biography of Alexander Kolchak has a tragic ending. According to some sources, the instruction about Kolchak was given by Lenin himself, in a secret message. He was afraid that the admiral would be freed from the hands of the revolutionaries by the troops under the command of Kappel. Therefore, they did not hesitate with the death sentence, and on February 7, 1920 he was shot in Irkutsk.

Over time, everything is perceived in a different light, and therefore Kolchak's personality does not cause only negative emotions. He was famous historical figure, his contribution to the science and development of the fleet is difficult not to appreciate, so the memory of the heroic admiral lives among the descendants. Monuments are erected to him, memorial plaques are opened, films are made about his difficult biography.

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