Mikhail Alekseyev

Mikhail Vasilyevich Alekseyev ( – ) was an Imperial Russian Army general during World War I and the Russian Civil War. Between 1915 and 1917, he served as Tsar Nicholas II's Chief of Staff of the Stavka, and after the February Revolution, was its commander-in-chief under the Russian Provisional Government from March to May 1917. He later played a principal role in founding the Volunteer Army in the Russian Civil War and died in 1918 of heart failure while fighting the Bolsheviks in the Volga region.

Biography Alekseyev was born in Vyazma, in the Smolensk Governorate of the Russian Empire (present-day Smolensk Oblast, Russia). His father, Vasili Alekseyev, was an army captain in the 64th Kazan Regiment from a modest background. In 1873 Alekseyev entered as a volunteer in the 2nd Grenadiers Regiment in Rostov. He graduated from the Moscow Infantry School in 1876 and was commissioned an ensign in the same 64th Kazan Regiment. He served as an orderly to General Mikhail Skobelev during the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878), and was wounded in combat near Pleven, Bulgaria. He was promoted to lieutenant in January 1881, and captain in May 1883.

In 1893, Alekseyev entered the Nicholas General Staff Academy, and in 1896 became a lecturer.

From March to May 1917, Alekseyev's position remained ambiguous. While he was the Commander-in-chief and later adviser to the Provisional Government, he spoke out against the Soviets and the democratization of the army. On 30 August 1917 Alekseyev became Chief of Staff of the Stavka under Commander-in-Chief Alexander Kerensky. His goal was to prevent the Kornilov movement (see Kornilov Affair) from developing into civil war. That same day, Alekseyev arrived at the General Headquarters, arrested General Lavr Kornilov and his men and sent them to prison in Bykhov (a town in Mogilev oblast in Belarus), from which they would "break away" with the help of General Nikolai Dukhonin.

On 13 November, after the October Revolution, Alekseyev fled Petrograd, arriving Novocherkassk on 15 Nov. With the support of the Don Cossacks Ataman, General Alexey Kaledin, he formed the Alekseev Organization, which would become the core of the anti-Bolshevik Volunteer Army.

On 19 December, he was joined by Kornilov. According to Peter Kenez, "As Denikin remarks, it was obvious from the first moment that cooperation between Alekseev and Kornilov would not be easy. Their backgrounds, personalities, and followers were very different, their past associations had left bitter memories, and they disliked each other." On 31 December, Kornilov took military command of the Volunteer Army, while Alekseyev took responsibility for civil authority, foreign affairs and finances. Kaledin had responsibility for the government of the Don district. After the death of Kornilov, Alexeyev appointed Denikin commander of the Volunteer Army, successfully completing the Ice March. In June, Alekseyev set up a political office in Novocherkassk.

However, Alekseyev, sick for some time, died of heart failure in Ekaterinodar in September 1918. He was first buried in the crypt of the Cossack host cathedral, but his family moved his remains to the New Cemetery, Belgrade, where they remain to this day.

Awards Battleship General Alekseyev of the white fleet was named after Alekseyev. Order of St. Anne Grade 4 "for courage" (1878) Order of St. Stanislav Grade 3, with swords and bow (1879) Order of St. Anne Grade 3, with swords and bow (1879) Order of St. Stanislav Grade 2 (1892) Order of St. Anne Grade 2 (1896) Order of St. Vladimir 4 degrees, with swords and bow (1900) Order of St. Vladimir Grade 3 (1901) Order of St. Stanislav Grade 1 with Swords (1905) Golden Sword of St. George "for courage" (1906) Order of St. Anne Grade 1 (1906) Order of St. Vladimir Grade 2 (1911) Order of St. George Grade 4 (1914)