Commandant of the Fortress (1716–1917)

Position in the Russian army of the Russian Armed Forces of the imperial period was introduced at the beginning of the XVIII century by Peter I. For the first time officially mentioned in the military regulations on posts in 1716 . Depending on the strategic importance and class of the fortress, it was performed by a general or a staff officer , usually with the rank of colonel . In the 18th century, the commandant of the fortress submitted to the governor and the general field marshal , from the second half of the 19th century, to the chief commander of the military district . In the I and II class fortresses, the commandant was appointed directly by the Emperor ^[1] .

The commandant of the fortress is the chief commander for the management of the fortress ( structures and formations ) and exercises the general leadership of all parts of the troops , directorates, institutions, establishments and persons belonging to the fortress garrison , all engineering structures, artillery weapons , various kinds of auxiliary means of defense, as well as warehouses and stocks, both for peaceful and for combat needs of the fortress.

Fortresses, according to the Highest approved schedule, depending on their strategic importance, their weapons and garrison are divided into three classes. In the fortress of I and II classes, commandants are appointed at the direct discretion of the Sovereign Emperor , with the announcement of this in the Supreme Order and in the decree to the Governing Senate . In the fortress of the III class, the Commandants were appointed on the proposal of the Minister of War , with an announcement in the Highest Order ^[2] .

The commandants of the fortresses are under the jurisdiction of the War Minister and are subordinate to the Chief Commanders of the military districts . In areas subordinated to the Military Governors , their mutual relations with the Commandants of the fortresses are determined by a special Provision.

In wartime, in the fortress, located within the current army , the commandants can be appointed commander in chief or army commander , with the submission of these appointments to the highest approval. With the declaration of martial law, the commandants of the fortresses, located within the areas under the authority of the Commander-in-Chief or the Commander-in-Chief of the army, are subject to this last ^[2] .

The general rights and duties of the Commandant in relation to the troops , directorates and persons of the fortress entrusted to him are determined in the fortresses of class I by the rights and duties of the Corps Commander , Class II and III - Division Chief ^[2] .

The commandant , as a direct senior commander in the fortress, is subject to all parts of the serf administration, troops, institutions, establishments and persons, the fortress garrison, or those intended for the needs of the fortress during peacetime or wartime.

In relation to troops lodging within the fortress, not belonging to the fortress garrison, as well as military ranks, institutions and establishments not intended for the needs of the fortress during peacetime or wartime, the Commandant performs duties and enjoys the rights of the Garrison Commander ^[2] .

The commandant of the fortress is the head of a special territorial region - the fortress region , determined by a specially approved plan for this, and within its limits, depending on the position of the fortress, includes not only the space occupied by fortifications but also the surrounding area at a distance of about one transition.

In wartime

The fortress comes from a peaceful situation to the military according to a special imperial command given to the Commandant by the Chief Commander of the military district or by the Commander-in-Chief and the Commander of the army.

The commandant announces the imposition of martial law: a) an order for the fortress and b) a special notice of the fortress area indicating the procedures and rules for the dependence of residents on the military authorities for the wartime established.

With the declaration of martial law, the Commandant immediately replaces, guided by the candidate list, the positions assigned by wartime states, and immediately makes all orders to bring the fortress in readiness for defense, according to the plan approved for this subject. All the shortcomings of the assumptions of this plan both in the personnel and in the material needs of the fortress, he immediately communicates to the Chief of the military district.

With the declaration of martial law, the Commandant takes measures to immediately remove from the fortress the families of employees in the fortress, supplying them with certificates of right to reside at the points they have chosen, and families of military personnel - with the right to use the benefits provided to them. All considerations on the procedure for enforcing this measure should be provided for in the plan to bring the fortress ready for defense ^[2] .

In a state of siege

From martial law to the siege fortress passes: a) by imperial command or by order of the Commander-in-Chief or Army Commander and b) by the Commandant’s own order in the event of a sudden appearance of the enemy or indignation of the inhabitants.

The Commandant declares the imposition of a state of siege by order of a fortress and a serf area and enters the rights of the Commander of a separate corps ^[2] .

With the declaration of a state of siege in the fortress, a Defense Council was established under the chairmanship of the Commandant from the Chiefs of the Fortress Headquarters and the Directorate of Artillery and Engineering, the senior Chief of the infantry garrison and the Chiefs of Defense Departments. At the discretion of the Commandant, the Fortress Quartermaster and the Fortress Doctor take part in the meetings of the Council.

During a state of siege, the Commandant has the right to reduce or increase the statutory allowance for the garrison, as well as to establish the procedures for replacing one product with others.

The city and county police come under the complete subordination of the Commandant of the fortress and executes all his orders. Before the actual taxation of the fortress by the enemy, the Commandant maintains, as far as possible, the established administrative procedure and the usual administration of her duties to the police. Post and telegraph government offices located in the fortress and its area are placed at the disposal of the Commandant.

When, in the opinion of the Commandant, the time of the last defense efforts comes, he is obliged to gather the Military Council from the Members of the Defense Council and other persons, at its discretion, to discuss ways to continue it. The opinion of each of the Members of this Council is entered into the minutes of its meeting. In this case, the Kommandant solves the case individually, choosing from the opinions submitted the most courageous and most appropriate provision for the extension of the defense.

In the event of the fall of the fortress, the Commandant is in no case separated from the garrison and must bear the same fate as him. He should try to achieve the most favorable conditions for the garrison and the inhabitants of the fortress.

If the fortress is taken by the enemy, then its Commandant is put on trial, whose composition is determined each time by a special Supreme Command. An assessment of the measures taken by the Commandant of the fortress for defense depends on this court, and then the recognition whether he has fulfilled his duty or whether the fall of the fortress should be imputed to him; the same court also considers the actions and responsibilities of other Members of the Serf Military Council ^[2] .

To control the fortress under the Commandant, there are: a) the Fortress Headquarters and the Serf Administrations: b) Engineering, c) Artillery, d) Quartermaster and e) Medical.

The chiefs of staff and directorates of the Engineering, Artillery, Quartermaster and Medical personnel management in the first class fortresses enjoy the rights of the division commander , and in the second and third class fortresses the brigade commander ^[2] .

In addition to the general bodies of serf control, the Commandant of the fortress is assigned where it will be necessary: ​​the naval department officer - to manage the maritime or river defenses, and after declaring the fortress on a martial law - the ranks of the military judicial department for the investigation and trial, and according to preliminary agreement of the Ministers of Military and Finance - the ranks of the latter for the formation of the Fortress Treasury ^[2] .

By decree of the Council of People's Commissars of December 16, 1917, “On the Equation of All Military Personnel in Rights”, the commandants of the fortresses were deprived of generals and officers, but the position, with some changes in functions, continued to exist in the subsequent period. ^[one]

• A. S. Kelin - Russian Major General , commandant of the fortress of Poltava during its defense during the Northern War .
• I. Bakhmetev - commandant of the fortress Ochakov .
• M. I. Kutuzov - commandant of the fortress Ismail .
• F. E. Shtokvich - colonel , commandant of Bayazet during the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-78 .
• I. N. Lvov - the last Russian commandant of the fortress-warehouse Dvinsk .

Class I Fortresses

• Bobruisk fortress (1810–1897)
• Brest-Litovsk fortress (1830-1916)
• Dvina Fortress (1810-1918)
• Kovno fortress (1880-1918)
• The Novorogievsky Krepost (1832-1915)
• Ochakov fortress (1791-1917)
• Peter and Paul Fortress (1703-1921)
• Sveaborg fortress (1809–1918)

Class II Fortresses

• Warsaw Fortress (1832–1915)
• Vladivostok fortress (1860–1922)
• Grodno fortress (1887–1916)
• Ivangorod fortress (1837–1916)
• The fortress of Gangut (1808-1854)
• Kerch Fortress (1771–1835, 1857–1910)
• Kronstadt Fortress (1703–1918)
• Omsk fortress (1716-1864)
• Osovets fortress (1882—1916)
• Friedrichsgamsk fortress (1742-1835)

Class III Fortresses

• The Azov Fortress (1696–1711, 1736–1741, 1769–1810)
• Anadyr fortress (1647-1770)
• Ust-Labinsk fortress (1794–1849)
• Bender Fortress (1770–1774, 1789–1791, 1806–1897)
• Vyborg fortress (1710-1918)
• Gizhiginsky fortress (1753—1850)
• Dmitrievskaya fortress (1761-1826)
• Ust-Dvinskaya fortress (1710-1918)
• Dubna fort (1883-1916)
• Zegrzh fortress (1895-1910)
• The fortress of St. Anne (1730-1762)
• Kars Fortress (1855-1856, 1877-1918)
• Kiev fortress (1706-1918)
• Kizlyar Fortress (1736-1857)
• Kushkinskaya fortress (1885-1918)
• Kyumengorod Fortress (1808–1836)
• Libau Castle (1892-1914)
• Mikhailovsky Fortress (1878–1918)
• Narva Fortress (1704–1863)
• Nikolaev fortress (1869-1918)
• Orsk fortress (1735–1861)
• Port Arthur Fortress (1898-1904)
• The fortress of the fortress (1794-1859)
• Rochensalmskoy fortress (1792–1826, 1828–1835)
• Sevastopol fortress (1783-1856, 1892-1918)
• Taganrog fortress (1696-1712, 1769-1810)
• Temnoleskaya Fortress (1793-1856)
• Fort Alexander (1846-1895)
• Schlisselburg Fortress (1702–1917) ^[3]

• Commandant
• Fortress

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• The Commandant, in the Armed Forces // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : 86 tons (82 tons and 4 extra). - SPb. , 1890-1907.
• Commandant of the fortress // Encyclopedia of Military and Marine Sciences / [Ed.: G. A. Leer]. T IV. [Type of. V. Bezobrazov and Comp.]: SPb. 1883-1897
• The Commandant // Military Encyclopedia : [in 18 t.] / Ed. VF Novitsky [et al.]. - SPb. ; [ M. ]: Type. t-islands I. D. Sytin , 1911-1915.
• Military encyclopedic lexicon / [Ed. Ii]. T IV. SPb. 1853
• The statute of the military on the posts of field marshal generals and the entire generals and other ranks. [SPb]. 1826;
• Decrees of Soviet power. M., 1957. T. 1. No. 167;