March 16, 1877 - Pavel Bermondt-Avalov
His notoriety stems less from battlefield valor than from the chaotic independent campaign he launched in the Baltic in 1919, when he turned his German-backed force against Latvia and Lithuania rather than the Bolsheviks he claimed to be fighting — destabilizing a region still forming its post-war order. The venture collapsed under Allied pressure and local resistance, leaving him to spend the remainder of a remarkably long life in emigration.
From Wikipedia
Prince Pavel Rafailovich Bermondt-Avalov (Russian: Павел Рафаилович Бермондт-Авалов) or Prince Avalov (16 March [O.S. 4 March] 1877 – 27 December 1973) was a Russian officer and Cossack adventurer-warlord. He is best known as the commander of the West Russian Volunteer Army which was active in present-day Latvia and Lithuania in the aftermath of World War I.
Born into a Georgian-Russian family, Avalov received a musical education in Warsaw and joined the Russian Imperial Army's Baikal Cossacks Host as a musical conductor. He participated in the Russo-Japanese War, during which he was awarded the Cross of St. George. After converting to Orthodoxy, he was transferred to the Ussuri Cossacks and was promoted to cornet. During the First World War, Avalov worked as a personal adjutant for Pavel Mishchenko, serving in Eastern Prussia and Galicia. Throughout his military career, Avalov was injured seven times.
After being demobilized in 1917, Avalov became involved in the Russian Civil War as an ardent supporter of the White Army.
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