Russian emigrants serving at the Military Geographic Institute in Belgrade from 1920 to 1957

Abstract

In the first years after World War I, about 60,000 citizens of tsarist Russia, refugees from the civil war and the changes caused by the October Revolution, joined the newly created Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenians. Most of them were members of the middle and upper classes: mostly officers and members of the civic elite with university degrees. Some moved on soon after, to the west, and about 40,000 decided to stay in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenians. Their contribution to Serbian and Yugoslav society, science, art, culture, and other spheres of life is mostly known and well documented, as are their lives and the issues of refugee and emigrant life. There are numerous books, monographs, newspaper articles, films, and other material that testifies to the life, work, and contribution of Russian emigration to Serbia and Yugoslavia. However, even to the present day, untold stories about their lives can be revealed, such as the one we present in this article. The story of the work and contribution of Russian emigrants to the Military Geographic Institute in Belgrade is the subject of the present paper. These were mostly officers of the Russian Military Geodetic Service (Corps of Military Topographers). These findings were made thanks to a recent study by the Military Geographic Institute, whose comprehensive results are being presented to the general professional public for the first time. According to previous information, it was estimated that there were about thirty officers in the Russian Imperial Army. This research determined the number of at least 99 emigrants who worked at the Military Geographic Institute. Some worked for only a few months, others for several years, and some for more than 35 years. The research revealed that some of them became officers of the Yugoslav Army. Some of those who served in the Military Geographic Institute also gave a broader contribution to the geodetic service in Serbia and Yugoslavia.

Key words: Military Geographic Institute, Corps of Military Topographers, October Revolution, Russian Emigration

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