Military Wiki
Baron
Alexander Alexandrovich von Bilderling
Bilderling Aleksander02
General Alexander Alexandrovich von Bilderling
Born 5 July [O.S. 23 June] 1846
Died 26 July [O.S. 13 July] 1912 (aged 66)
Place of birth Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire
Place of death Tsarskoye Selo, St. Petersburg, Russian Empire
Buried at Novodevichy Cemetery, Saint Petersburg, Russia
Allegiance Flag of Russia Russian Empire
Service/branch Russian Empire Imperial Russian Army
Years of service 1866-1905
Rank General of the Cavalry
Commands held 17th European Army Corps
Third Manchurian Army
Battles/wars Russo-Turkish War
Russo-Japanese War
Awards see below

Baron[1] Alexander Alexandrovich Bilderling (Russian: Александр Александрович Бильдерлинг, tr. Aleksandr Aleksndrovich Bil'derling; 5 July [O.S. 23 June] 1846 – 26 July [O.S. 13 July] 1912), better known as Baron Alexander Alexnadrovich von Bilderling, was a Russian general of Baltic German descent, noted for his role in the Russo-Japanese War and as an artist and monument designer.

Biography[]

Family[]

Bueldring COA Klingspor 1882

Coat of arms of the Büldring-Bilderling family

Alexander Alexandrovich Bilderling was born on July 5, 1844 in Saint Petersburg into the Baltic German Noble family of Büldring-Bilterling (also known as Bilderling) originating from Westphalia. His father was Alexander Otto Hermann Freiherr von Bilderling, who was an officer in the Imperial Guards Bilderling's grandfather, Georg Friedrich Sigismund Freiherr von Bilterling, was a Lutheran pastor in Mitau (now Jelgava).

Career[]

He graduated with honors from the Page Corps and was commissioned as a cavalry lieutenant in 1864 and promoted to captain in 1866. He graduated from the General Staff Academy in 1870 and served in the Kiev Military District from 1870-1875. Promoted to colonel in 1872, he became commandant of the Tver Cavalry Academy in 1875 and was assigned command of the 12th Dragoon Regiment in 1877 and became commandant of the prestigious Nikolaev Cavalry School in 1878.

From 1877-1878, Bilderling participated in the Russo-Turkish War. He joined the General Staff in 1891 and was promoted to lieutenant-general in 1892. In 1899, he became commander of the 17th Army Corps and was promoted to general of cavalry in 1901.

During the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, Bilderling commanded the 17th European Army Corps from May 1904, accompanying it to Manchuria in the summer of the same year. He was in command of the eastern flank at the Battle of Liaoyang and of the western flank at the Battle of Shaho. After the Battle of Sandepu, Bilderling replaced Alexander Kaulbars as commander of the Third Manchurian Army. However, after the Battle of Mukden, he was relieved of his command from May–September 1905 and was replaced as commander of the Third Manchurian Army by General Mikhail Batyanov. He was later bitterly blamed by General Aleksey Kuropatkin for the defeat. He served as a member of the Board of War from 1905-1912.[2]

In addition to his military career, Bilderling was also a noted painter and designer of monuments. In his declining years, he participated in commissions for installing monuments and organizing commemorative activities.

He was buried at the Novodevichy Cemetery in Saint Petersburg, but his grave is not preserved.

Awards[]

References[]

  • Connaughton, R. M. (1988). The War of the Rising Sun and the Tumbling Bear—A Military History of the Russo-Japanese War 1904–5. London. ISBN 0-415-00906-5. 
  • Jukes, Geoffry. The Russo-Japanese War 1904–1905. Osprey Essential Histories. (2002). ISBN 978-1-84176-446-7.
  • Kowner, Rotem (2006). Historical Dictionary of the Russo-Japanese War. The Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0-8108-4927-5. 

Notes[]

  1. Regarding personal names: Freiherr is a former title (translated as Baron), which is now legally a part of the last name. The female forms are Freifrau and Freiin.
  2. Kowner, Rotem (2006). Historical Dictionary of the Russo-Japanese War. The Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0-8108-4927-5.  page 72
All or a portion of this article consists of text from Wikipedia, and is therefore Creative Commons Licensed under GFDL.
The original article can be found at Alexander Alexandrovich von Bilderling and the edit history here.