The 10th accelerated wartime graduation of the Pavlovsk Military School in the faces and fates of the natives of the Ostsee provinces

Importance. The approach of the 110th anniversary of the Brusilov breakthrough brings to mind the direct participants in the First World War – the lower ranks and representatives of the officer corps of the Russian Imperial Army, who demonstrated a wide ethnic reach. As a result of the fierce and protracted nature of the First World War and the retreat of the Russian Imperial Army in 1915, there was an acute shortage of combat units (including junior officers), which necessitated a large-scale mobilization of the male population in the occupied front-line territories. One of these front-line zones was the Ostsee provinces of the Russian Empire. The purpose of the study is to identify the persons of graduates of the tenth accelerated wartime graduation of the Pavlovsk Military School by personally identifying and examining the fate of natives of the Ostsee provinces of the Russian Empire.

Materials and Methods. The research is based on documents from Baltic museums that are currently unavailable to Russian specialists, as well as files from national federal and regional archives. The methodological basis of the research is the principles of historicism, general scientific, source studies and special historical methods.

Results and Discussion. Based on the work carried out, the full names of 20 natives of the Ostsee provinces of the Russian Empire who received the rank of junior officer of the Russian Imperial Army after graduating from the Pavlovsk Military School in June 1916 were established. The information on the size, national and confessional composition of the specified territories, data on the birth and education level of the cadets, their life and military service in the ranks of the Russian Imperial Army, their place and role at the time of the collapse of the Russian Empire and subsequent fate are given.

Conclusion. Based on various sources, it can be stated that the information found concerns ordinary people unknown to the general public, their names and surnames will not say anything to the ordinary man in the street. At the same time, the example of a specific course shows the massive presence of East Guards in the ranks of cadets of the Pavlovsk Military School. The existing level of education, qualifications and practical experience allowed the majority of former East Guard officers to successfully cope with their duties in the civil service.