Alexander Pavlovich Kutepov (; 28 September 1882 – 26 January 1930) served as an officer in the anti-communist Volunteer Army during the Russian Civil War of 1917–1923. From 1928 to 1930 he chaired the Russian All-Military Union (ROVS). He died after being abducted by OGPU agents in Paris in 1930.
Biography
Family
Alexander Kutepov was born into the family of a personal nobleman, Konstantin Mikhailovich Timofeev, and his wife, Olga Andreevna, in Cherepovets, Novgorod Governorate. In 1890, Konstantin died. In 1892, Olga Andreevna married hereditary nobleman Pavel Aleksandrovich Kutepov, an official for peasant affairs of the Foresters' Corps; after the Stolypin reform, he became chairman of the Land Survey Commission. On 9 March 1893, by a ruling from the Novgorod District Court, children born by Olga Andreevna in her first marriage (including Alexander) were legally adopted by her second husband, Pavel.
Alexander Kutepov was educated at the Arkhangelsk gymnasium (graduated from 7th grade). In 1902 he entered the Junker Infantry School in St. Petersburg, from which he graduated in the 1st category. A year later, the younger clerk-junker Kutepov had been noticed at the parade by the Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich, who appointed him right away to sergeant-major, bypassing the rank of senior caravan-junker.
Participation in the Russo-Japanese War
As a young infantry officer, he fought in the Russo-Japanese War, where he was severely wounded in action and decorated for valor. On 9 August 1904 he was promoted to lieutenant of the 85th Vyborg Infantry Regiment, one of the oldest formations within the Russian Army.
Upon arrival at the regiment, Kutepov asked for the appointment into the survey corps — the group that was entrusted with the most dangerous missions. Soon he led a night-time raid on a Japanese outpost in which Russian scouts captured rich trophies, including machine guns and rifles.
The Order of St. George was awarded to the head of the survey corps, who had not participated in the raid. When the details of the operation became known after the war, efforts were made to ensure that Kutepov also received the order. Kutepov was ultimately awarded the order of the German Crown with swords and on the ribbon of the Iron Cross through the intervention of German emperor Wilhelm, after whom the Regiment was named.
Alexander Pavlovich was returning from Manchuria to the capital separately from his regiment after being appointed to a special team sent to Russia to train new recruits. Here Kutepov first encountered a revolution: en route to Saint Petersburg, they stopped in a community where the local revolutionaries had declared a republic, the administration was confused, and he had to break through, taking full responsibility for the echelon and arresting the strike committee of the railway station. Upon arrival in Saint Petersburg, on a presentation to the emperor, Kutepov received from the Tsar's hands the Order of St. Vladimir of the 4th degree with swords and a bow for his front-line services.
Officer of the Preobrazhensky Regiment
In 1906, he was transferred to the Preobrazhensky Regiment, an elite guards regiment. Beginning as a lieutenant in 1907, he became a captain in 1911, serving as an assistant to the head of the training team, head of the machine gun team, head of the survey team, commander of the 15th company, and head of the training team.
With the beginning of mobilization, the training team was disbanded, and Kutepov accepted the 4th company of the Preobrazhensky Life-Guard Regiment, with which he went to the front in the First World War. He was wounded in a battle near Vladislavov on 20 August 1914. In 1915 he was promoted to captain with seniority from 19 July 1915. He was awarded the Order of St. George 4th degree: "For the fact that on July 27, 1915, in the battle near the village of Petrilov, when the Germans, after intensifying the preparation of heavy guns with artillery fire, captured the trenches of one of the companies, he, being in private support, not being able to receive instructions on the terms of the battle, on his own initiative, he went over to the counter-attack and, despite significant losses, knocked out the enemy from their position and restored his position, and although he was badly wounded, he continued to lead the battle until the evening."