The future admiral was born on November 16, 1874 in St. Petersburg. The Kolchak family came from a noble family, father - Vasily Ivanovich Kolchak, major general, mother - Olga Ilyinichna Kolchak. Alexander's mother was very pious, so all the children were baptized in Orthodoxy.

In 1885 he entered the local classical gymnasium and studied there for 3 years. He studies very poorly, so much so that in the 2nd grade, he was almost left for the second year.

On the initiative of his father, he enters the naval cadet corps. There, the young cadet’s numerous talents finally began to emerge, and his studies became an interesting and responsible matter. In his class, Alexander was always among the first in academic performance, and provided assistance to cadets who were lagging behind. During my studies I went to sea several times. Upon entering high school, he was awarded the rank of sergeant major. In 1894 he graduated with honors and was promoted to midshipman.

Subsequently, temporarily, he leaves military service for the sake of science and is entrusted to the Academy of Sciences. Participates in the Russian polar expedition of 1900-1902. During the expedition, he was engaged in oceanography, studying the ice of coastal seas and coastal currents. For the expedition he is awarded an order. At the same time, the engagement to Alexander’s chosen one, Omirova, will take place; the wedding, however, has to be postponed; Kolchak is organizing a polar rescue expedition. The most dangerous expedition at the limit of human capabilities ends with great success; in addition to the main tasks, the group also brought a significant amount of research material.

With the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War, Alexander is transferred back to military service and participates in the war. Participated in the defense of Port Arthur. After the war he studies again scientific work, as well as the restoration of the Russian fleet.

In 1910-1911 he took part in another expedition to the north. After the expedition, he returns to the naval general staff and prepares the fleet for war. In 1912 he was transferred to serve on a destroyer and then continued to serve in the navy until 1914.

The year 1914 marked the beginning of World War I. Kolchak took an active part in it, first participating in the development of plans and operations, and later being appointed commander of a mine division. After 2 years, he received the rank of vice admiral and was appointed commander of the Black Sea Fleet. Alexander Vasilyevich very successfully led the fleet, leading it to great successes; if the February revolution had not happened, the Russian fleet would have taken the entire Bosporus.

The February Revolution placed a large burden on Kolchak’s shoulders, preventing him from finishing his life’s work. As a result of a tough political struggle, he becomes the Supreme Ruler of Russia and fights in the civil war. Such an enterprise was doomed to failure and in 1920, as a result of betrayal, Kolchak fell into the hands of the Bolsheviks.

Interesting facts and dates from life

One of the most interesting and controversial figures in the history of Russia of the twentieth century is A.V. Kolchak. Admiral, naval commander, traveler, oceanographer and writer. Until now, this historical figure is of interest to historians, writers and directors. Admiral Kolchak, whose biography is shrouded in interesting facts and events, is of great interest to his contemporaries. Based on his biographical data, books are created and scripts are written for the theater stage. Admiral Kolchak Alexander Vasilyevich - hero of documentary films and feature films. It is impossible to fully assess the significance of this personality in the history of the Russian people.

The first steps of a young cadet

A. V. Kolchak, admiral Russian Empire, was born on November 4, 1874 in St. Petersburg. The Kolchak family comes from an ancient noble family. Father - Vasily Ivanovich Kolchak, major general of naval artillery, mother - Olga Ilyinichna Posokhova, Don Cossack. The family of the future admiral of the Russian Empire was deeply religious. In his childhood memoirs, Admiral Kolchak Alexander Vasilyevich noted: “I am Orthodox, until the time of my admission to primary school I received under the guidance of my parents." After studying for three years (1885-1888) at the St. Petersburg Classical Men's Gymnasium, young Alexander Kolchak entered the Naval School. It was there that A.V. Kolchak, admiral of the Russian Fleet, first learned about naval sciences, which would later become his life’s work. Studying at the Naval School revealed A.V. Kolchak’s extraordinary abilities and talent for maritime affairs.

The future Admiral Kolchak, whose brief biography shows that his main passion was travel and sea adventures. It was in 1890, as a sixteen-year-old teenager, that a young cadet first entered the sea. This happened on board the armored frigate “Prince Pozharsky”. The training voyage lasted approximately three months. During this time, junior cadet Alexander Kolchak received his first skills and practical knowledge in maritime affairs. Later, during his studies in the Naval Cadet Corps, A.V. Kolchak repeatedly went on campaigns. His training ships were the Rurik and the Cruiser. Thanks to training trips, A.V. Kolchak began to substantively study oceanography and hydrology, as well as navigation maps of underwater currents off the coast of Korea.

Polar exploration

After graduating from the Naval School, young Lieutenant Alexander Kolchak submits a report for naval service in the Pacific Ocean. The request was approved, and he was sent to one of the naval garrisons of the Pacific Fleet. In 1900, Admiral Kolchak, whose biography is closely connected with scientific research of the Arctic Ocean, set off on the first polar expedition. On October 10, 1900, at the invitation of the famous traveler Baron Eduard Toll, the scientific group set off. The purpose of the expedition was to establish the geographical coordinates of the mysterious island of Sannikov Land. In February 1901, Kolchak made a large report about the Great Northern Expedition.

In 1902, on the wooden whaling schooner Zarya, Kolchak and Toll again set off on a northern voyage. In the summer of the same year, four polar explorers, led by the head of the expedition, Eduard Toll, left the schooner and set off on dog sleds to explore the Arctic coast. No one came back. A long search for the missing expedition brought no results. The entire crew of the schooner "Zarya" was forced to return to the mainland. After some time, A.V. Kolchak submits a petition to the Russian Academy of Sciences for a repeat expedition to the Northern Islands. The main goal of the campaign was to find members of E. Toll’s team. As a result of the search, traces of the missing group were discovered. However, there were no longer any living team members. For his participation in the rescue expedition, A.V. Kolchak was awarded the Imperial Order of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir, 4th degree. Based on the results of the work of the polar research group, Alexander Vasilyevich Kolchak was elected a full member of the Russian Geographical Society.

Military conflict with Japan (1904-1905)

With the beginning of the Russo-Japanese War, A.V. Kolchak asks to be transferred from scientific academy to the Naval War Department. Having received approval, he goes to serve in Port Arthur with Admiral S. O. Makarov, A. V. Kolchak is appointed commander of the destroyer "Angry". For six months the future admiral fought valiantly for Port Arthur. However, despite the heroic resistance, the fortress fell. The soldiers of the Russian army capitulated. In one of the battles, Kolchak is wounded and ends up in a Japanese hospital. Thanks to American military intermediaries, Alexander Kolchak and other officers Russian army were returned to their homeland. For his heroism and courage, Alexander Vasilyevich Kolchak was awarded a personalized gold saber and a silver medal “In memory of the Russian-Japanese War.”

Continuation of scientific activities

After a six-month vacation, Kolchak again begins research work. The main theme of his scientific works was the processing of materials from polar expeditions. Scientific works on oceanology and the history of polar research helped the young scientist win honor and respect in the scientific community. In 1907, his translation of Martin Knudsen’s work “Tables of Freezing Points” was published sea ​​water" In 1909, the author’s monograph “Ice of the Kara and Siberian Seas” was published. The significance of A.V. Kolchak’s works lay in the fact that he was the first to lay down the doctrine of sea ice. The Russian Geographical Society highly appreciated the scientific work of the scientist, presenting him with the highest award, the Golden Constantine Medal. A.V. Kolchak became the youngest polar explorer to receive this high award. All his predecessors were foreigners, and only he became the first holder of the high insignia in Russia.

Revival of the Russian Navy

The loss in the Russo-Japanese War was very hard to bear by the Russian officers. A.V. was no exception. Kolchak, admiral by spirit and researcher by vocation. Continuing to study the reasons for the defeat of the Russian army, Kolchak is developing a plan to create a Naval General Staff. In his scientific report, he expresses his thoughts on the reasons for military defeat in the war, what kind of fleet Russia needs, and also points out shortcomings in the defensive capabilities of sea vessels. The speaker's speech in the State Duma does not find proper approval, and A. V. Kolchak (admiral) leaves service in the Naval General Staff. A biography and photographs from that time confirm his transition to teaching at the Maritime Academy. Despite the lack of academic education, the leadership of the academy invited him to lecture on the topic of joint actions of the army and navy. In April 1908, A.V. Kolchak was awarded the military rank of captain of the 2nd rank. Five years later, in 1913, he was promoted to the rank of captain 1st rank.

Participation of A.V. Kolchak in the First World War

Since September 1915, Alexander Vasilyevich Kolchak has led the Mine Division of the Baltic Fleet. The location was the port of the city of Revel (now Tallinn). The main task of the division was the development of minefields and their installation. In addition, the commander personally conducted naval raids to eliminate enemy ships. This aroused admiration among ordinary sailors, as well as among the officers of the division. The commander's bravery and resourcefulness were widely appreciated in the fleet, and this reached the capital. On April 10, 1916, A.V. Kolchak was promoted to the rank of rear admiral of the Russian Fleet. And in June 1916, by decree of Emperor Nicholas II, Kolchak was awarded the rank of vice admiral, and he was appointed commander of the Black Sea Fleet. Thus, Alexander Vasilyevich Kolchak, admiral of the Russian Fleet, becomes the youngest of the naval commanders.

The arrival of an energetic and competent commander was received with great respect. From the first days of work, Kolchak established strict discipline and changed the command leadership of the fleet. The main strategic task is to clear the sea of ​​enemy warships. To accomplish this task, it was proposed to block the ports of Bulgaria and the waters of the Bosphorus Strait. An operation to mine enemy coastlines has begun. Admiral Kolchak's ship could often be seen performing combat and tactical missions. The fleet commander personally controlled the situation at sea. A special operation to mine the Bosphorus Strait with a swift attack on Constantinople received approval from Nicholas II. However, the daring military operation did not happen; all plans were disrupted by the February Revolution.

Revolutionary rebellion of 1917

The events of the February coup of 1917 found Kolchak in Batumi. It was in this Georgian city that the admiral held a meeting with Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich, commander of the Caucasian Front. The agenda was to discuss the maritime transport schedule and the construction of a seaport in Trebizond (Turkey). Having received a secret dispatch from the General Staff about the military coup in Petrograd, the admiral urgently returned to Sevastopol. Upon returning to the headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet, Admiral A.V. Kolchak gives an order to terminate telegraph and postal communications between Crimea and other regions of the Russian Empire. This prevents the spread of rumors and panic in the fleet. All telegrams were received only by the headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet.

Unlike the situation in the Baltic Fleet, the situation in the Black Sea was under the control of the admiral. A.V. Kolchak for a long time kept the Black Sea flotilla from revolutionary collapse. However, political events did not pass by. In June 1917, by decision of the Sevastopol Council, Admiral Kolchak was removed from the leadership of the Black Sea Fleet. During disarmament, Kolchak, in front of the formation of his subordinates, breaks the award's golden saber and says: “The sea rewarded me, I go to the sea and return the award.”

Russian admiral

Sofya Fedorovna Kolchak (Omirova), the wife of the great naval commander, was a hereditary noblewoman. Sophia was born in 1876 in Kamenets-Podolsk. Father - Fyodor Vasilyevich Omirov, Privy Councilor to His Imperial Majesty, mother - Daria Fedorovna Kamenskaya, came from the family of Major General V.F. Kamensky. Sofya Fedorovna was educated at the Smolny Institute for Noble Maidens. A beautiful, strong-willed woman who knew several foreign languages, she was very independent in character.

The wedding with Alexander Vasilyevich took place in the St. Harlampies Church in Irkutsk on March 5, 1904. After the wedding, the young husband leaves his wife and goes to the active army to defend Port Arthur. S.F. Kolchak goes to St. Petersburg with his father-in-law. All her life, Sofya Fedorovna remained faithful and devoted to her legal husband. She invariably began her letters to him with the words: “My dear and beloved, Sashenka.” And she ended: “Sonya, who loves you.” Touching letters from the wife of Admiral Kolchak on the shore before last days. Constant separations prevented the spouses from seeing each other often. Military service required fulfillment of duty.

And yet, rare moments of joyful meetings did not bypass the loving spouses. Sofya Fedorovna gave birth to three children. The first daughter, Tatyana, was born in 1908, but the child died before she even lived a month. Son Rostislav was born on March 9, 1910 (died in 1965). The third child in the family was Margarita (1912-1914). While escaping from the Germans from Libau (Liepaja, Latvia), the girl caught a cold and soon died. Kolchak’s wife lived for some time in Gatchina, then in Libau. When the city was shelled, the Kolchak family was forced to leave their refuge. Having collected her things, Sophia moved to her husband in Helsingfors, where at that time the headquarters of the Baltic Fleet was located.

It was in this city that Sophia met Anna Timireva, the admiral’s last love. Then there was a move to Sevastopol. All period Civil War she was waiting for her husband. In 1919, Sophia Kolchak emigrated with her son. British allies help them get to Constanta, then Bucharest and Paris. Experiencing a difficult financial situation in exile, Sofya Kolchak was able to give her son a decent education. Rostislav Aleksandrovich Kolchak graduated from the Higher Diplomatic School and worked for some time in the Algerian banking system. In 1939, Kolchak’s son enlisted in the French army and was soon captured by the Germans.

Sophia Kolchak will survive the German occupation of Paris. The admiral's wife died in Lungumeau Hospital (France) in 1956. S.F. Kolchak was buried in the cemetery of Russian emigrants in Paris. In 1965, Rostislav Aleksandrovich Kolchak died. The final resting place of the admiral's wife and son will be the French tomb in Sainte-Genevieve-des-Bois.

The last love of a Russian admiral

Anna Vasilievna Timireva is the daughter of the outstanding Russian conductor and musician V.I. Safonov. Anna was born in Kislovodsk in 1893. Admiral Kolchak and Anna Timireva met in 1915 in Helsingfors. Her first husband is Sergei Nikolaevich Timirev. The love story with Admiral Kolchak still evokes admiration and respect for this Russian woman. Love and devotion forced her to go into voluntary arrest after her lover. Endless arrests and exiles could not destroy tender feelings; she loved her admiral until the end of her life. Having survived the execution of Admiral Kolchak in 1920, Anna Timireva still long years was in exile. Only in 1960 was she rehabilitated and lived in the capital. Anna Vasilievna died on January 31, 1975.

Foreign trips

Upon returning to Petrograd in 1917, Admiral Kolchak (his photo is presented in our article) receives an official invitation from the American diplomatic mission. Foreign partners, knowing his extensive experience in mine affairs, ask the Provisional Government to send A.V. Kolchak as a military expert in anti-submarine warfare. A.F. Kerensky gives his consent to his departure. Soon Admiral Kolchak goes to England and then to America. There he conducted military consultations and also took an active part in training maneuvers for the US Navy.

Nevertheless, Kolchak believed that his foreign voyage was not a success, and a decision was made to return to Russia. While in San Francisco, the admiral receives a government telegram inviting him to run for membership in the Constituent Assembly. It thundered and disrupted all of Kolchak’s plans. The news of the revolutionary uprising finds him in the Japanese port of Yokohama. The temporary stop lasted until the fall of 1918.

Events of the Civil War in the fate of A.V. Kolchak

After long wanderings abroad, A.V. Kolchak returned to Russian soil in Vladivostok on September 20, 1918. In this city, Kolchak studied the state of military affairs and the revolutionary sentiments of the inhabitants of the eastern outskirts of the country. At this time, the Russian public repeatedly approached him with a proposal to lead the fight against the Bolsheviks. On October 13, 1918, Kolchak arrives in Omsk to establish overall command of the volunteer armies in the east of the country. After some time, a military takeover of power takes place in the city. A.V. Kolchak - admiral, Supreme Ruler of Russia. It was this position that the Russian officers entrusted to Alexander Vasilyevich.

Kolchak's army numbered more than 150 thousand people. The coming to power of Admiral Kolchak inspired the entire eastern region of the country, which hoped for the establishment of a strict dictatorship and order. A strong management vertical and proper organization of the state were established. The main goal of the new military formation was to unite with the army of A.I. Denikin and march on Moscow. During Kolchak's reign, a number of orders, decrees and appointments were issued. A.V. Kolchak was one of the first in Russia to begin an investigation into the death of the royal family. The award system of Tsarist Russia was restored. Kolchak’s army had at its disposal the country’s huge gold reserves, which were taken from Moscow to Kazan with the aim of further moving to England and Canada. With this money, Admiral Kolchak (whose photo can be seen above) provided his army with weapons and uniforms.

Battle path and arrest of the admiral

Over the entire existence of the eastern front, Kolchak and his comrades carried out several successful military attacks (Perm, Kazan and Simbirsk operations). However, the numerical superiority of the Red Army did not allow the grandiose seizure of the western borders of Russia to be carried out. An important factor was the betrayal of the allies.

On January 15, 1920, Kolchak was arrested and sent to Irkutsk prison. A few days later, the Extraordinary Commission began an investigative procedure to interrogate the admiral. A.V. Kolchak, admiral (interrogation protocols indicate this), behaved very dignified during the investigative measures. Cheka investigators noted that the admiral answered all questions willingly and clearly, without giving away any of the names of his colleagues. Kolchak's arrest lasted until February 6, until the remnants of his army came close to Irkutsk. In 1920, on the banks of the Ushakovka River, the admiral was shot and thrown into an ice hole. This is how the great son of his Fatherland ended his journey.

Based on the events of military operations in the east of Russia from the autumn of 1918 to the end of 1919, the book “Admiral Kolchak’s Eastern Front” was written, author - S.V. Volkov.

Truth and fiction

To this day, the fate of this man has not been fully studied. A.V. Kolchak is an admiral, unknown facts from whose life and death still arouse interest among historians and people who are not indifferent to this personality. One thing can be said quite definitely: the admiral’s life is a vivid example of courage, heroism and high responsibility to his homeland.

If Kolchak had won, the white groups would not have been able to create a strong unified government. For their political incapacity, Russia would pay the Western powers with large territories

Admiral Kolchak was incredibly popular in Russia until 1917 due to his polar expeditions and activities in the navy before and during the First World War. It was thanks to such popularity (whether it corresponded to real merits or not is a separate question) that Kolchak had the chance to play a significant role in the White movement.

Kolchak met the February Revolution as a vice admiral as commander of the Black Sea Fleet. He was one of the first to swear allegiance to the Provisional Government. “Once the emperor abdicated, then by this he frees him from all obligations that existed in relation to him... I... did not serve this or that form of government, but I serve my homeland.”, he would later say during interrogation by the Extraordinary Investigative Commission in Irkutsk.

Unlike the Baltic Fleet, the first days of the revolution in Sevastopol passed without massacres of sailors against officers. Sometimes this is presented as a brilliant achievement of Kolchak, who managed to maintain order. In fact, however, even he himself named other reasons for the calm. In winter there is ice in the Baltic, and the Black Sea Fleet went out on combat missions all year round and did not stay in ports for months. And therefore, he was subjected to less coastal agitation.

Commander-in-Chief Kolchak quickly began to adapt to revolutionary innovations - sailor committees. He claimed that the committees “brought a certain calm and order.” Been to meetings. He set the time for the elections. Coordinated the candidates.

The directors of the sweet film “Admiral” ignored the pages of the transcript of Kolchak’s interrogation that described this period, depicting only the commander’s endless contempt for the rebellious “sailor rabble.”

“The revolution will bring enthusiasm... to the masses and make it possible to end this war victoriously...”, “The monarchy is not able to bring this war to an end...” — Kolchak later told Irkutsk investigators about his then state of mind. Many people thought the same, for example Denikin. The generals and admirals hoped for revolutionary power, but quickly became disillusioned with the Kerensky Provisional Government, which showed complete impotence. Naturally, they did not accept the socialist revolution.

However, in his rejection of October and the truce with the Germans, Kolchak went further than others - to the British Embassy. He asked to serve in the English army. During interrogation, he explained such an unusual act for a Russian officer with fears that the German Kaiser might prevail over the Entente, who “then will dictate his will to us”: “The only way I can be of any use is to fight the Germans and their allies, whenever and as anyone.”

And, we will add, anywhere, even on Far East. Kolchak went there to fight against the Bolsheviks under British command, and he never hid this.

In July 1918, the British War Office even had to ask him to be more restrained: the chief of military intelligence, George Mansfield Smith-Cumming, ordered his agent in Manchuria, Captain L. Steveny, to immediately “to explain to the Admiral that it would be highly desirable for him to remain silent about his connections with us” .

At this time, the power of the Bolsheviks beyond the Volga was almost universally overthrown in May-June 1918 with the help of the Czechoslovak corps traveling to Vladivostok, stretching in echelons throughout the Trans-Siberian Railway. And with the help of the “real Russian naval commander” Kolchak, Great Britain could more effectively defend its interests in Russia.

After the overthrow of Soviet power, political passions ran high in the Far East. Among the contenders for power, the left-wing Samara Komuch—socialists, members of the dispersed Constituent Assembly—and the right-wing Omsk Provisional Siberian Government (not to be confused with the Provisional Government of Kerensky) stood out. The only thing that prevented them from really grabbing each other’s throats was the presence of the Bolsheviks in power in Moscow: being in an alliance, albeit a shaky one, the Whites were still able to hold the front line. The Entente did not want to supply the small armies and the governments that were interrupted under them, because of their weakness they were not able to control even the already occupied territory. And so in September 1918, a united center of white power was created in Ufa, called the Directory, which included most of the former members Komuch and the Provisional Siberian Government.

Under the pressure of the Red Army, the Directory soon had to hastily evacuate from Ufa to Omsk. But it must be said that the right-wing elite of Omsk hated the left-wing anti-Bolsheviks from Komuch almost as much as they hated the Bolsheviks. The Omsk right-wingers did not believe in the “democratic freedoms” allegedly professed by Komuch. They dreamed of dictatorship. The Komuchevites from the Directory realized that a rebellion was being prepared against them in Omsk. They could only weakly hope for the help of Czechoslovak bayonets and the popularity of their slogans among the population.

And in such a situation, Vice Admiral Kolchak arrives in Omsk, ready to explode. It is popular in Russia. Great Britain believes him. It is he who looks like a compromise figure for the British and French, as well as the Czechs who were under the influence of the British.

The leftists from Komuch, hoping that London would support them as “more progressive forces,” began, together with the rightists, to invite Kolchak to the post of naval minister of the Directory. He agreed.

And two weeks later, on November 18, 1918, a Bonapartist coup took place in Omsk. The directory was removed from power. Its ministers transferred all powers to the new dictator - Kolchak. On that day he became the "Supreme Ruler" of Russia. And it was then, by the way, that he was promoted to the rank of full admiral.

England fully supported the Kolchak coup. Seeing the inability of the left to create a strong government, the British preferred the moderate-right representatives of the Omsk elite to the “more progressive forces.”

Kolchak’s opponents on the right—Ataman Semenov and others—were forced to come to terms with the personality of the new dictator.
However, you should not think that Kolchak was a democrat, as they often try to present him today.

The “democratic” language of the Kolchak government’s negotiations with the West was an obvious convention. Both sides were well aware of the illusory nature of the words about the upcoming convening of a new Constituent Assembly, which would supposedly consider the issues of sovereignty of the national borderlands and democratization new Russia. The admiral himself was not at all embarrassed by the name “dictator”. From the very first days, he promised that he would overcome the “post-revolutionary collapse” in Siberia and the Urals and defeat the Bolsheviks, concentrating in his hands all civil and military power in the country.

In reality, however, it was not easy to concentrate power in one’s hands at that time.

By 1918, there were already about two dozen anti-Bolshevik governments in Russia. Some of them were “for independence.” Others are for the right to gather around themselves a “united and indivisible Russia.” All this, very opportunely, contributed to the collapse of Russia and the control of the allies over it.

There was much less political disagreement within the Bolshevik Party. At the same time, the Bolshevik-controlled territory of the RSFSR occupied the center of the country with almost all industrial and military enterprises and a wide transport network.

In such a situation, the separated pockets of whites could do almost nothing to help each other. Transport and telegraph worked across borders. So, couriers from Kolchak to Denikin traveled on ships across two oceans and on several trains for months. There could be no talk of the transfer of manpower and equipment, which was promptly carried out by the Bolsheviks.

Kolchak's political task was to ensure a balance between socialists, cadets and monarchists. Some of the leftists found themselves outlawed, but it was vital to come to an agreement with the rest, preventing them from reorienting toward the Bolsheviks. However, if Kolchak had given way to the left, he would have quickly lost the vital support of the right, already dissatisfied with the “leftism” of the government’s course.

The right and left pulled the ruler each in their own direction, and no compromise could be reached between them. And soon Kolchak began to rush between them. Increasingly, his outbursts of emotions alternated with depression and apathy. People around could not help but notice this. “It would be better if he were the most cruel dictator than that dreamer rushing about in search of the common good... It’s a pity to look at the unfortunate admiral, pushed around by various advisers and speakers,” wrote right-wing General A.P. Budberg, one of the leaders of Kolchak’s War Ministry. He was echoed by Kolchak’s consistent political opponent, the founding Socialist Revolutionary E.E. Kolosov: “He was positively the same Kerensky... (the same hysterical and weak-willed creature...), only, having all his shortcomings, he had none of its merits." Instead of bringing the left and right groups closer together, the gap between them widened.

On December 22, 1918, an anti-Kolchak uprising broke out in Omsk. The monarchical military circles, having suppressed it, also dealt with 9 of the former Komuchevites who were in prison. The Komuchevites were awaiting a court decision in prison for their opposition to the admiral’s authority.

D. F. Rakov, a member of the Central Committee of the Socialist Revolutionary Party who survived in the Omsk dungeons, recalled the bloody suppression of the uprising: “...No less than 1,500 people. Entire carts of corpses were transported around the city, as they transport lamb and pork carcasses in winter... the city froze in horror. They were afraid to go out and meet each other.”

And the Socialist Revolutionary Kolosov commented on this reprisal: “It was possible, taking advantage of the unrest, to get all the actual power into one’s own hands to suppress the rebellion and, having suppressed the rebellion, direct the tip of the same weapon... against the “upstart” Kolchak... It turned out to be possible to cope with Kolchak not as easy as, for example, with the Directory. During these days, his house was heavily guarded... by British soldiers, who rolled all their machine guns right into the street.”

Kolchak held on with English bayonets. And, having ensured with the help of the English guards that the rest of the “founders”, who miraculously escaped execution, left Siberia, he was forced to hush up the matter.

Ordinary performers were allowed to hide. Their leaders were not punished. The admiral did not have enough strength to break with the right-wing radicals. The same Kolosov wrote: “Ivanov-Rinov, who intensely competed with Kolchak, deliberately threw the corpses of the “founders” in his face... in the calculation that he would not dare to give up solidarity with them, and all this would tie him in a mutual bloody guarantee with the most vicious of reactionary circles.”

All of Kolchak's reforms failed.

The ruler never resolved the land issue. The law he issued was reactionary for the left (restoration of private property) and insufficient for the right (lack of restoration of landownership). In the countryside, wealthy peasants were deprived of part of their land for monetary compensation that was unacceptable to them. And the Siberian poor, resettled by Stolypin to lands unsuitable for farming and seizing suitable ones from wealthy peasants during the revolution, were even more dissatisfied. The poor were offered either to return what they had seized or to pay dearly to the state for land use.

And the White Army, liberating territories from the Bolsheviks, often arbitrarily, regardless of the law, took land from the peasants and returned it to its former owners. The poor, seeing the return of the bar, took up arms.

The White Terror in Siberia under Kolchak, through which food for the front was confiscated from the population and mobilizations were carried out, was terrible. Only a few months of Kolchak's reign will pass, and at headquarters the maps of Siberia will be colored with hotbeds of peasant uprisings.

Enormous forces will have to be deployed to fight the peasants. And it will no longer be possible to understand in which cases the incredible cruelty of the punitive forces took place with Kolchak’s blessing, and in which - contrary to his direct instructions. However, there was not much difference: the ruler, who himself called himself a dictator, is responsible for everything that his government does.

Kolosov recalled how rebellious villages were drowned in an ice hole:

“They threw a peasant woman there, suspected of Bolshevism, with a child in her arms. So they threw the child under the ice. This was called rooting out treason..."

Similar evidence can be cited endlessly. The uprisings were drowned in blood, but they flared up again and again with even greater force. The numbers of the rebels exceeded hundreds of thousands. Peasant uprisings will be a death sentence for a regime that has decided to conquer the people by force.

As for the workers, they did not experience such lack of rights as under Kolchak either under Nicholas II or under Kerensky. The workers were forced to work for meager wages. The 8-hour day and health insurance funds were forgotten. Local authorities who supported the factory owners closed trade unions under the pretext of fighting Bolshevism. Kolchak's Minister of Labor sounded the alarm in letters to the government, but the government did nothing. The workers of non-industrial Siberia were few in number and resisted weaker than the peasants. But they were also dissatisfied and joined the underground struggle.

As for Kolchak’s financial reform, then, as the Socialist-Revolutionary Kolosov accurately put it, of his unsuccessful reforms, one must give “the palm to the financial measures of Mikhailov and von Goyer, who killed the Siberian monetary unit... (depreciated 25 times - M.M.) and enriched ... speculators” associated with the reformers themselves.

Minister of Finance I. A. Mikhailov was also criticized by the right wing in the person of General Budberg: “He understands nothing about finance, he showed this with the idiotic reform of removing kerenoks from circulation...”, “Reform... on such a scale that Vyshnegradsky, Witte and Kokovtsev stayed, and it took several days.”

Products became more expensive. Household goods—soap, matches, kerosene, etc.—became in short supply. Speculators got rich. Theft flourished.

The capacity of the Trans-Siberian Railway itself did not allow enough cargo to be delivered from distant Vladivostok to supply Siberia and the Urals. Difficult situation the overloaded railway was aggravated by partisan sabotage, as well as constant “misunderstandings” between the whites and the Czechs guarding the highway. Corruption added to the chaos. Thus, Kolchak’s Prime Minister P.V. Vologodsky recalled the Minister of Railways L.A. Ustrugov, who gave bribes at stations so that his train would be allowed to go ahead.

Due to the chaos on the lines of communication, the front was supplied intermittently. Cartridge, gunpowder, cloth factories and warehouses in the Volga region and the Urals were cut off from the White Army.

And foreigners brought weapons from different manufacturers to Vladivostok. The cartridges from some did not always fit others. Confusion arose during supplies to the front, which in some places had a tragic impact on combat effectiveness.

Bought by Kolchak for Russian gold clothing for the front was often of poor quality and sometimes fell apart after three weeks of wear. But these clothes also took a long time to arrive. Kolchakovets G.K. Gins writes: “The uniforms... rolled along the rails, as the continuous retreat did not allow for the opportunity to turn around.”

But even the supplies that reached the troops were poorly distributed. General M.K. Diterichs, who inspected the troops, wrote: “Inaction of the authorities... criminal bureaucratic attitude towards their duties” . For example, out of the 45 thousand sets of clothing received by the quartermasters of the Siberian Army, 12 thousand went to the front; the rest, as the inspection found, were gathering dust in warehouses.

Food did not reach the malnourished soldiers on the front line from warehouses.

The theft of rear officials and the desire to profit from the war were observed everywhere. Thus, the French general Jeannin wrote: “Knox (English general - M.M.) tells me sad facts about the Russians. The 200,000 sets of uniforms with which he supplied them were sold for next to nothing and part of them ended up with the Reds.”

As a result, Allied Army General Knox, according to Budberg’s recollections, was nicknamed by Omsk newspapermen "Red Army quartermaster". A mocking “letter of gratitude” was composed and published to Knox on behalf of Trotsky for the good supplies.

Kolchak failed to achieve competent campaigning. Siberian newspapers became a weapon of information wars among whites.

Dissension grew within the white camp. Generals, politicians - everyone sorted things out among themselves. They fought for influence in the liberated territories, for supplies, for positions. They set each other up, denounced each other, slandered each other. Minister of Internal Affairs V.N. Pepelyaev wrote: “We were assured that the Western Army... had stopped withdrawing. Today we see that she... has leaned back quite a bit... Out of a desire to finish (the general - M.M.) Gaida here is distorting the meaning of what is happening. There must be a limit to this."

The memoirs of the Whites clearly indicate that there were not enough competent commanders in Siberia. The existing ones, in conditions of poor supplies and weak interaction between the troops, began to suffer successive defeats by May 1919.

The fate of the Combined Shock Siberian Corps, completely unprepared for battle, but abandoned by the Whites to cover the junction between the Western and Siberian armies, is indicative. On May 27, the Whites set out without communications, field kitchens, convoys, and partially unarmed. Company and battalion commanders were appointed only at the moment the corps advanced to positions. Division commanders were generally appointed on May 30, during the defeat. As a result, in two days of fighting, the corps lost half of its soldiers, either killed or voluntarily surrendered.

By autumn the Whites had lost the Urals. Omsk was surrendered by them practically without a fight. Kolchak appointed Irkutsk as his new capital.

The surrender of Omsk aggravated the political crisis within the Kolchak government. The left demanded from the admiral democratization, rapprochement with the Social Revolutionaries and reconciliation with the Entente. The rightists advocated for a tightening of the regime and a rapprochement with Japan, which was unacceptable for the Entente.

Kolchak leaned towards the right. Soviet historian G. Z. Ioffe, citing the admiral's telegrams to his prime minister in November 1919, proves Kolchak's shift from London to Tokyo. Kolchak writes that “Instead of rapprochement with the Czechs, I would raise the question of rapprochement with Japan, which alone is able to help us with real force in protecting the railway.”

Socialist-Revolutionary Kolosov wrote gloatingly about this: "Story international politics Kolchak is the story of a gradually deepening break with the Czechs and a growing connection with the Japanese. But he walked along this path... with the hesitant steps of a typical hysteric, and, already on the verge of death, he took a decisive... course towards Japan, it turned out that it was too late. This step ruined him and led to his arrest by virtually the same Czechs.”

The White Army was marching from Omsk on foot and was still far away. The Red Army was advancing quickly, and foreign allies feared a serious clash with the Bolsheviks. Therefore, the British, already disappointed in Kolchak, decided not to suppress the uprising. The Japanese also did not help the Kolchakites.

Ataman Semenov, sent by Kolchak to Irkutsk, with whom he urgently had to put up with, was unable to suppress the uprising alone.

In the end, the Czechs surrendered Kolchak and the Russian gold reserves with him to the Irkutsk authorities in exchange for unhindered passage to Vladivostok.

Some members of the Kolchak government fled to the Japanese. It is characteristic that many of them - Gins, the financial “genius” Mikhailov, etc. - will soon join the ranks of the fascists.

In Irkutsk, during interrogations arranged by the government, Kolchak gave detailed testimony, transcripts of which were published.

And on February 7, 1920, the Whites, retreating from the Red Army, came close to Irkutsk. There was a threat of capturing the city and freeing the admiral. It was decided to shoot Kolchak.

All perestroika and post-perestroika attempts to rehabilitate Kolchak were unsuccessful. He was recognized as a war criminal who did not resist the terror of his own government against civilians.

It is obvious that if Kolchak had won, the white groups, even at critical moments on the fronts, sorting things out among themselves and rejoicing at each other’s defeat, would not have been able to create a strong unified government. For their political incapacity, Russia would pay the Western powers with large territories.

Fortunately, the Bolsheviks turned out to be stronger than Kolchak at the front, more talented and flexible than him in state building. It was the Bolsheviks who defended the interests of Russia in the Far East, where the Japanese were already in control under Kolchak. The “Allies” were escorted out of Vladivostok in October 1922. And two months later the Soviet Union was created.

based on materials from M. Maksimov

P.S. This is what this “polar explorer” and “oceanographer” was like; first of all, he was the executioner of the Russian people, whose hands were stained with blood, and a military man who worked for English crown, that’s what he was not, and a patriot of his country, that’s for sure, but lately they’ve been trying to present us with everything the other way around.

Kolchak Alexander Vasilyevich (November 4 (16), 1874, St. Petersburg province - February 7, 1920, Irkutsk) - Russian politician, vice admiral of the Russian Imperial Fleet (1916) and admiral of the Siberian Flotilla (1918). Polar explorer and oceanographer, participant in expeditions of 1900-1903 (awarded by the Imperial Russian Geographical Society with the Great Constantine Medal). Participant in the Russian-Japanese, World War I and Civil Wars. Leader and leader of the White movement in the East of Russia. The Supreme Ruler of Russia (1918-1920), was recognized in this position by the leadership of all white regions, “de jure” - by the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, “de facto” - by the Entente states.

Alexander Vasilyevich was born into the family of a representative of this family, Vasily Ivanovich Kolchak (1837-1913), a staff captain of the naval artillery, later a major general in the Admiralty. V.I. Kolchak received his first officer rank after being seriously wounded during the defense of Sevastopol during the Crimean War of 1853-1856: he was one of the seven surviving defenders of the Stone Tower on Malakhov Kurgan, whom the French found among the corpses after the assault. After the war, he graduated from the Mining Institute in St. Petersburg and, until his retirement, served as a receptionist for the Maritime Ministry at the Obukhov plant, having a reputation as a straightforward and extremely scrupulous person.

Mother Olga Ilyinichna Kolchak, née Kamenskaya, was the daughter of Major General, Director of the Forestry Institute F.A. Kamensky, the sister of the sculptor F.F. Kamensky. Among the distant ancestors were Baron Minich (the brother of the field marshal, an Elizabethan nobleman) and Chief General M.V. Berg (who defeated Frederick the Great in the Seven Years' War).

The future admiral received his primary education at home, and then studied at the 6th St. Petersburg Classical Gymnasium.

In 1894, Alexander Vasilyevich Kolchak graduated from the Naval Cadet Corps, and on August 6, 1894 he was assigned to the 1st rank cruiser "Rurik" as an assistant watch commander and on November 15, 1894 he was promoted to the rank of midshipman. On this cruiser he departed for the Far East. At the end of 1896, Kolchak was assigned to the 2nd rank cruiser “Cruiser” as a watch commander. On this ship he went on campaigns in the Pacific Ocean for several years, and in 1899 he returned to Kronstadt. On December 6, 1898, he was promoted to lieutenant. During the campaigns, Kolchak not only fulfilled his official duties, but also actively engaged in self-education. He also became interested in oceanography and hydrology. In 1899, he published the article “Observations on surface temperatures and specific gravities of sea water made on the cruisers Rurik and Cruiser from May 1897 to March 1898.”

Upon arrival in Kronstadt, Kolchak went to see Vice Admiral S. O. Makarov, who was preparing to sail on the icebreaker Ermak in the Arctic Ocean. Alexander Vasilyevich asked to be accepted into the expedition, but was refused “due to official circumstances.” After this, for some time being part of the personnel of the ship "Prince Pozharsky", Kolchak in September 1899 transferred to the squadron battleship "Petropavlovsk" and went to the Far East on it. However, while staying in the Greek port of Piraeus, he received an invitation from the Academy of Sciences from Baron E.V. Toll to take part in the mentioned expedition

In the spring of 1902, Toll decided to head on foot north of the New Siberian Islands together with magnetologist F. G. Seberg and two mushers. The remaining members of the expedition, due to a lack of food supplies, had to go from Bennett Island to the south, to the mainland, and then return to St. Petersburg. Kolchak and his companions went to the mouth of the Lena and arrived in the capital through Yakutsk and Irkutsk.

Upon arrival in St. Petersburg, Alexander Vasilyevich reported to the Academy about the work done, and also reported on the enterprise of Baron Toll, from whom no news had been received either by that time or later. In January 1903, it was decided to organize an expedition, the purpose of which was to clarify the fate of Toll’s expedition. The expedition took place from May 5 to December 7, 1903. It consisted of 17 people on 12 sledges pulled by 160 dogs. The journey to Bennett Island took three months and was extremely difficult. On August 4, 1903, having reached Bennett Island, the expedition discovered traces of Toll and his companions: expedition documents, collections, geodetic instruments and a diary were found. It turned out that Toll arrived on the island in the summer of 1902, and headed south, having a supply of provisions for only 2-3 weeks. It became clear that Toll's expedition was lost.

In December 1903, 29-year-old Lieutenant Kolchak, exhausted from the polar expedition, set off on his way back to St. Petersburg, where he was going to marry his bride Sofia Omirova. Not far from Irkutsk, he was caught by the news of the beginning of the Russo-Japanese War. He summoned his father and bride by telegram to Siberia and immediately after the wedding he left for Port Arthur.

The commander of the Pacific Squadron, Admiral S. O. Makarov, invited him to serve on the battleship Petropavlovsk, which was the flagship of the squadron from January to April 1904. Kolchak refused and asked to be assigned to the fast cruiser Askold, which soon saved his life. A few days later, the Petropavlovsk hit a mine and quickly sank, taking to the bottom more than 600 sailors and officers, including Makarov himself and the famous battle painter V.V. Vereshchagin. Soon after this, Kolchak achieved a transfer to the destroyer "Angry". Commanded a destroyer. By the end of the siege of Port Arthur, he had to command a coastal artillery battery, since severe rheumatism - a consequence of two polar expeditions - forced him to abandon the warship. This was followed by injury, the surrender of Port Arthur and Japanese captivity, in which Kolchak spent 4 months. Upon his return, he was awarded the Arms of St. George - the Golden Saber with the inscription “For Bravery.”

Freed from captivity, Kolchak received the rank of captain of the second rank. The main task of the group of naval officers and admirals, which included Kolchak, was to develop plans for the further development of the Russian navy.

In 1906, the Naval General Staff was created (including on Kolchak’s initiative), which took over the direct combat training of the fleet. Alexander Vasilyevich was the head of his department, was involved in developments for the reorganization of the navy, and spoke in the State Duma as an expert on naval issues. Then a shipbuilding program was drawn up. To obtain additional funding, officers and admirals actively lobbied their program in the Duma. The construction of new ships progressed slowly - 6 (out of 8) battleships, about 10 cruisers and several dozen destroyers and submarines entered service only in 1915-1916, at the height of the First World War, and some of the ships laid down at that time were already being completed in the 1930s.

Taking into account the significant numerical superiority of the potential enemy, the Naval General Staff developed a new plan for the defense of St. Petersburg and the Gulf of Finland - in the event of a threat of attack, all ships of the Baltic Fleet, upon an agreed signal, were to go to sea and place 8 lines of minefields at the mouth of the Gulf of Finland, covered by coastal batteries.

Captain Kolchak took part in the design of special icebreaking ships "Taimyr" and "Vaigach", launched in 1909. In the spring of 1910, these ships arrived in Vladivostok, then went on a cartographic expedition to the Bering Strait and Cape Dezhnev, returning back to the autumn Vladivostok. Kolchak commanded the icebreaker Vaygach on this expedition. In 1908 he went to work at the Maritime Academy. In 1909, Kolchak published his largest study - a monograph summarizing his glaciological research in the Arctic - “Ice of the Kara and Siberian Seas” (Notes of the Imperial Academy of Sciences. Series 8. Physics and Mathematics Department. St. Petersburg, 1909. T.26, No. 1.).

Participated in the development of an expedition project to study the Northern Sea Route. In 1909-1910 The expedition, in which Kolchak commanded the ship, made the transition from the Baltic Sea to Vladivostok, and then sailed towards Cape Dezhnev.

Since 1910, he was involved in the development of the Russian shipbuilding program at the Naval General Staff.

In 1912, Kolchak transferred to serve in the Baltic Fleet as a flag captain in the operational department of the fleet commander's headquarters. In December 1913 he was promoted to captain of the 1st rank.

To protect the capital from a possible attack by the German fleet, the Mine Division, on the personal order of Admiral Essen, set up minefields in the waters of the Gulf of Finland on the night of July 18, 1914, without waiting for permission from the Minister of the Navy and Nicholas II.

In the fall of 1914, with the personal participation of Kolchak, an operation to blockade German naval bases with mines was developed. In 1914-1915 destroyers and cruisers, including those under the command of Kolchak, laid mines at Kiel, Danzig (Gdansk), Pillau (modern Baltiysk), Vindava and even at the island of Bornholm. As a result, 4 German cruisers were blown up in these minefields (2 of them sank - Friedrich Karl and Bremen), 8 destroyers and 11 transports.

In addition to successfully laying mines, he organized attacks on caravans of German merchant ships. From September 1915 he commanded a mine division, then naval forces in the Gulf of Riga.

In April 1916 he was promoted to rear admiral.

In July 1916, by order Russian Emperor Nicholas II Alexander Vasilyevich was promoted to vice admiral and appointed commander of the Black Sea Fleet.

After the February Revolution of 1917, in the spring of 1917, Headquarters began preparing an amphibious operation to capture Constantinople, but due to the disintegration of the army and navy, this idea had to be abandoned (largely due to active Bolshevik agitation). He received gratitude from the Minister of War Guchkov for his quick and reasonable actions, with which he contributed to maintaining order in the Black Sea Fleet.

In June 1917, the Sevastopol Council decided to disarm officers suspected of counter-revolution, including taking away Kolchak’s St. George’s weapon - the golden saber awarded to him for Port Arthur. The admiral chose to throw the blade overboard with the words: “The newspapers don’t want us to have weapons, so let him go to sea.” On the same day, Alexander Vasilyevich handed over the affairs to Rear Admiral V.K. Lukin. Three weeks later, the divers lifted the saber from the bottom and handed it to Kolchak, engraving on the blade the inscription: “To the Knight of Honor Admiral Kolchak from the Union of Army and Navy Officers.” At this time, Kolchak, along with the General Staff infantry general L.G. Kornilov, was considered as a potential candidate for military dictator.

It was for this reason that in August A.F. Kerensky summoned the admiral to Petrograd, where he forced him to resign, after which he, at the invitation of the command of the American fleet, went to the United States and at the request of the Provisional Government to advise American specialists on the experience of Russian sailors using mine weapons in the Baltic and Black Seas during the First World War.

In San Francisco, Kolchak was offered to stay in the United States, promising him a chair in mine engineering at the best naval college and a rich life in a cottage on the ocean. Kolchak refused and went back to Russia.

Arriving in Japan, Kolchak learned about the October Revolution, the liquidation of the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief and the negotiations begun by the Bolsheviks with the Germans

On October 13, 1918, he arrived in Omsk, where at that time a political crisis erupted. On November 4, 1918, Kolchak, as a popular figure among officers, was invited to the post of Minister of War and Navy in the Council of Ministers of the so-called “Directory” - the united anti-Bolshevik government located in Omsk, where the majority were Socialist Revolutionaries. On the night of November 18, 1918, a coup took place in Omsk - Cossack officers arrested four Socialist Revolutionary leaders of the Directory, led by its chairman N.D. Avksentiev. In the current situation, the Council of Ministers - the executive body of the Directory - announced the assumption of full supreme power and then decided to hand it over to one person, giving him the title of Supreme Ruler of the Russian State. Kolchak was elected to this post by secret ballot of members of the Council of Ministers. The admiral announced his consent to the election and with his first order to the army announced that he would assume the title of Supreme Commander-in-Chief.

In January 1919, His Holiness Patriarch Tikhon blessed the Supreme Ruler of Russia, Admiral A.V. Kolchak to fight against the God-fighting Bolsheviks. Earlier, Patriarch Tikhon refused to bless the command of the “democratic” Volunteer Army of the South of Russia, organized by generals Alekseev and Kornilov, the perpetrators of the abdication and subsequent arrest of Sovereign Nicholas II. Admiral Kolchak was not involved in these tragic events. That is why at the beginning of January 1919 (crossing the front line) a priest sent by Patriarch Tikhon came to see Admiral Kolchak. The priest brought the admiral a personal letter from the Patriarch with a blessing and a photograph of the image of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker from the St. Nicholas Gate of the Moscow Kremlin, which was sewn into the lining of a peasant scroll.

MESSAGE OF PATRIARCH TIKHON TO ADMIRAL KOLCHAK

“As is well known to all Russians and, of course, Your Excellency, before this Icon, revered throughout Russia, every year on December 6, on the day of winter St. Nicholas, a prayer was offered, which ended with the nationwide singing of “Lord, save Thy people” by all those praying on their knees. And so on December 6, 1918, the people of Moscow, faithful to Faith and tradition, at the end of the prayer service, knelt down and sang: “God save us!” The arriving troops dispersed the worshipers, firing at the Icon with rifles and cannons. The saint on this icon of the Kremlin wall was depicted with a cross in his left hand and a sword in his right. The bullets of the fanatics fell all around the Saint, not touching the Pleasant of God anywhere. The shells, or rather, fragments from explosions, knocked off the plaster on the left side of the Wonderworker, which destroyed almost all of the Icon. left side Saint with a hand in which there was a cross.

On the same day, by order of the authorities of the Antichrist, this Holy Icon was hung with a large red flag with a satanic emblem. An inscription was made on the Kremlin wall: “Death to faith is the opium of the people.” The next day, December 7, 1918, many people gathered for a prayer service, which, undisturbed by anyone, came to an end! But when the people, kneeling down, began to sing “God Save!” - the flag fell from the Image of the Wonderworker. The atmosphere of prayerful ecstasy is beyond description! It had to be seen, and whoever saw it remembers and feels it today. Singing, sobbing, screams and raised hands, rifle fire, many wounded, some were killed, and the place was cleared.

The next early morning, by my Blessing, the Image was photographed by a very good photographer. The Lord showed the Perfect Miracle through His Saint to the Russian people in Moscow. I am sending a photographic copy of this Miraculous Image as Mine to you, Your Excellency, Alexander Vasilyevich - Blessing - to fight the atheistic temporary power over the suffering people of Rus'. I ask you to consider, venerable Alexander Vasilyevich, that the Bolsheviks managed to recapture the left hand of the Pleasant with the cross, which is, as it were, an indicator of the temporary trampling of the Orthodox Faith. But the punishing sword in the right hand of the Wonderworker remained to help and Blessing Your Excellency, and your Christian struggle for the salvation of the Orthodox Church and Russia.”

Admiral Kolchak, having read the Patriarch’s letter, said: “I know that there is a sword of the state, a surgeon’s lancet. I feel that it is the strongest: a spiritual sword, which will be an invincible force in the crusade - against the monster of violence!

On the initiative of the Siberian bishops, a Temporary Higher Church Administration was created in Ufa, headed by Archbishop Sylvester of Omsk. In April 1919, the Omsk Council of the Clergy of Siberia unanimously approved Admiral Kolchak as the temporary head of the Orthodox Church in the Siberian territories liberated from the Bolsheviks - until the liberation of Moscow, when His Holiness Patriarch Tikhon will be able (not constrained by the atheists) to fully take up his duties. At the same time, the Omsk Council decided to mention Kolchak’s name during official church services.

Admiral Kolchak actually declared a crusade against the atheists. He gathered more than 3.5 thousand Orthodox clergy, including 1.5 thousand military clergy. On Kolchak’s initiative, separate combat units were even formed, consisting only of clergy and believers (including Old Believers), which was not the case with Kornilov, Denikin and Yudenich. These are the Orthodox squad of the “Holy Cross”, “333rd regiment named after Mary Magdalene”, “Holy Brigade”, three regiments of “Jesus Christ”, “Virgin Mary” and “Nicholas the Wonderworker”. On Kolchak’s personal instructions, investigator for particularly important cases Sokolov organized an investigation into the villainous murder of the Royal Family in Yekaterinburg.

In March 1919, Kolchak’s troops launched an attack on Samara and Kazan, in April they occupied the entire Urals and approached the Volga. However, due to Kolchak’s incompetence in organizing and managing the ground army (as well as his assistants), the militarily favorable situation soon gave way to a catastrophic one. The dispersion and stretching of forces, the lack of logistics support and the general lack of coordination of actions led to the fact that the Red Army was able to first stop Kolchak’s troops and then launch a counteroffensive.

In May, the retreat of Kolchak’s troops began, and by August they were forced to leave Ufa, Yekaterinburg and Chelyabinsk.

In June 1919, the Supreme Ruler of Russia rejected K. G. Mannerheim’s proposal to move a 100,000-strong army to Petrograd in exchange for recognizing the independence of Finland, declaring that he would never give up “the idea of ​​a great indivisible Russia” for any minimal benefits.

On January 4, 1920, in Nizhneudinsk, Admiral A.V. Kolchak signed his last Decree, in which he announced his intention to transfer the powers of the “Supreme All-Russian Power” to A.I. Denikin. Until the receipt of instructions from A.I. Denikin, “the entirety of military and civil power throughout the entire territory of the Russian Eastern Outskirts” was granted to Lieutenant General G.M. Semyonov.

On January 5, 1920, a coup took place in Irkutsk, the city was captured by the Socialist-Revolutionary-Menshevik Political Center. On January 15, A.V. Kolchak, who left Nizhneudinsk on a Czechoslovak train, in a carriage flying the flags of Great Britain, France, the USA, Japan and Czechoslovakia, arrived on the outskirts of Irkutsk. The Czechoslovak command, at the request of the Socialist Revolutionary Political Center, with the sanction of the French General Janin, handed over Kolchak to his representatives. On January 21, the Political Center transferred power in Irkutsk to the Bolshevik Revolutionary Committee. From January 21 to February 6, 1920, Kolchak was interrogated by the Extraordinary Commission of Inquiry.

On the night of February 6-7, 1920, Admiral A.V. Kolchak and the Chairman of the Council of Ministers Russian government V.N. Pepelyaev were shot on the banks of the Ushakovka River without trial, by order of the Irkutsk Military Revolutionary Committee. The resolution of the Irkutsk Military Revolutionary Committee on the execution of the Supreme Ruler Admiral Kolchak and Chairman of the Council of Ministers Pepelyaev was signed by A. Shiryamov, the chairman of the committee and its members A. Snoskarev, M. Levenson and the committee manager Oborin. The text of the resolution on the execution of A.V. Kolchak and V.N. Pepelyaev was first published in an article by the former chairman of the Irkutsk Military Revolutionary Committee A. Shiryamov

At the end of the Civil War in the Far East and in subsequent years in exile, February 7 - the day the admiral was executed - was celebrated with memorial services in memory of the “killed warrior Alexander” and served as a day of remembrance for all fallen participants in the White movement in the east of the country, primarily those who died during the retreat of Kolchak’s army winter 1919-1920 (the so-called “Siberian Ice March”). Kolchak’s name is carved on the monument to the heroes of the White movement (“Gallipoli Obelisk”) at the Parisian cemetery of Saint-Genevieve-des-Bois.

In the post-Soviet “democratic” Russian Federation, Irkutsk and other patriotic organizations repeatedly tried to achieve the rehabilitation of A.V. Kolchak. In 1999, this issue was considered by the military court of the Trans-Baikal Military District in accordance with the Law of the Russian Federation “On the rehabilitation of victims of political repression.” By a court ruling, Kolchak was declared not subject to rehabilitation. This ruling was appealed to the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, which came to the conclusion that there were no grounds for canceling the court decision made in the case. The last time the prosecutor's office of the Omsk region refused rehabilitation was in January 2007.

From n Letter from Kolchak to his son Rostislav: "My dear darling Slavushok ... I wanted you too, when you grow up, to follow the path of serving the Motherland that I have followed all my life. Read military history and the deeds of great people and learn from them how to act - this is the only way to become a useful servant of the Motherland. There is nothing higher than the Motherland and serving Her."

And ice, and the fleet, and the scaffold. Who was, is and will be Admiral Kolchak for Russia?

The name of Admiral Kolchak today is again in the center of political and cultural attention. Why did they start talking about him almost a century later? again?S On the one hand, his Arctic research is becoming particularly relevant due to the fact that in the international arena there is now an active struggle for the redistribution of the territories of the Arctic Ocean. On the other hand, on October 9, Russian viewers will enjoy a large-scale premiere of the film “ Admiral "(the picture is released in a record number of copies - 1250), dedicated to life, career, love and death Kolchak.O about how big Kolchak’s role was in Russian history, and about how his fate may be of interest to a wide audience today, “ AiF " asked the editor and one of the authors of the book to tell us " Admiral . Encyclopedia of Film” by Doctor of Historical Sciences Yulia KANTOR.

Arctic Kolchak

— In my opinion, in Russian history the beginning XX century, it is difficult to find a more striking and controversial figure than Kolchak. If Kolchak’s historical and political mission can still be interpreted in different ways and needs a comprehensive study free of ideology, then his role as a scientist and Arctic researcher is unlikely to cause conflicting assessments. But, alas, to this day it is still underestimated and little known.

Kolchak's role as an outstanding military leader and naval commander during the First World War also deserves attention. He did a lot, firstly, to create the Russian military fleet as such. Secondly, Kolchak made a great contribution to the protection of the shores of the Baltic Sea. And the famous “mine nets” he invented, placed to ward off the enemy during the First World War, were also useful during the Great Patriotic War.

Path to Golgotha

The figure of Kolchak has caused and continues to cause considerable controversy, primarily in connection with his activities as a politician. Yes, the admiral was absolutely not a politician. However, he assumed the position of Supreme Ruler with dictatorial powers. He did not have a political program as such, Kolchak did not know how to be a diplomat at all, he was a suggestible and trusting person, and this is destructive even in simpler historical periods. In addition, the admiral was a man of duty and honor - “inconvenient” qualities for a politician. But it is naive to assume that he is a democrat - a clear authoritarianism is visible in his aspirations. At the same time, the admiral was very vulnerable, reflective and insecure.

This becomes quite obvious when you read his personal correspondence. And at the same time, you understand what efforts it took him, as he himself said, “to accept the cross of this power.” Kolchak was well aware of the Calvary he was ascending to, and had a presentiment of how everything could end for him.

Today, a sufficient number of films are being released about historical characters, which filmmakers were prohibited from addressing in Soviet times. But there is a special interest in Kolchak. Both cinema and literature will remember him more than once. He is a complex, multifaceted personality, his life is interesting to understand. And then, which is important for works of art, through Kolchak’s biography there passes a strikingly beautiful, uncomplicated love story - for Anna Timireva . This is a novel of stunning depth and tragedy, unfolding against the backdrop of dramatic historical events and having a documentary basis. And love is a theme for all time.

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