Editing Mikhail Alekseyev (section)

==Biography==
Alekseyev was born in [[Vyazma]], in the [[Smolensk Governorate]] of the [[Russian Empire]] (present-day [[Smolensk Oblast]], [[Russia]]). His father, Vasili Alekseyev, was an army captain in the 64th Kazan Regiment from a modest background. In 1873 Alekseyev entered as a volunteer in the 2nd Grenadiers Regiment in [[Rostov, Yaroslavl Oblast|Rostov]]. He graduated from the Moscow Infantry School in 1876 and was commissioned an ensign in the same 64th Kazan Regiment. He served as an orderly to General [[Mikhail Skobelev]] during the [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)]], and was wounded in combat near [[Pleven]], [[Bulgaria]]. He was promoted to lieutenant in January 1881, and captain in May 1883.

In 1893, Alekseyev entered the [[Nicholas General Staff Academy]], and in 1896 became a lecturer.<ref name=pk/>{{rp|20}}

In 1890 with the rank of [[lieutenant colonel]], he was posted as a senior adjutant in the headquarters of the 1st Army Corps in the [[St. Petersburg]] Military District. In March 1904, he was promoted to the rank of major general.

===Russo-Japanese War===
With the outbreak of the [[Russo-Japanese War]], in October 1904 Alekseyev was appointed [[Quartermaster general|Quartermaster General]] of the Russian [[3rd Manchurian Army]].<ref name=pk/>{{rp|20}} During the war he was awarded a [[Gold Sword for Bravery|gold sword]], the [[Order of St. Stanislav]], and the [[Order of St. Anna|Order of St. Anne]].

After the war, he returned to the General Staff Academy as a Professor of the history of military science.<ref name=pk/>{{rp|20}}

In 1908 he was made [[Chief of staff (military)|Chief of Staff]] of the [[Kiev]] [[military district]] and promoted to [[lieutenant general]]. In 1912 Alekseyev was given command of the 13th Army Corps.

===World War I===
The beginning of [[World War I]] saw Alekseyev appointed Chief of Staff to [[Nikolai Ivanov (general)|N. I. Ivanov]],  Commander of the [[Southwestern Front (Russian Empire)|Southwestern Front]]<ref name=pk/>{{rp|20}} (which held the Third, Fourth, Fifth, and Eighth Armies), where he planned the Russian offensive into [[Galicia (eastern Europe)|Galicia]] with the rank of General-of-Infantry. He was subsequently awarded the [[Order of St. George]] (4th class). In March 1915 Alekseyev became the overall commander of the Russian [[Northwestern Front (Russian Empire)|Northwestern Front]].

On 5 September 1915, when [[Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia (1856–1929)|Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolayevich of Russia]] stepped down as Russian supreme [[Commander-in-chief]] in August 1915 to be replaced by Tsar Nicholas II, Alekseyev was appointed as Chief of Staff of the General Headquarters ([[Stavka]]) and placed in charge of all military operations.<ref name=pk/>{{rp|20}} He served in this capacity from August 1915 to March 1917.

In his capacity as Chief of Staff, Alekseyev proved to be a more adaptable and flexible commander than his predecessor. He was, however, incapable of changing a political system that allowed the promotion of incompetent commanders through nepotism, patronage and the use of court intrigue. Alekseyev remained committed to the Allied cause of the Entente, which is proved by the undertaking of the summer offensive in 1916. However, the Russian Army did not manage to exploit strategic benefits of the successful offensive and the situation at the front did not improve significantly.

===Russian Civil War===
During the [[February Revolution]] of 1917, Alexeyev forwarded telegrams to the Tsar from the generals commanding the front, advising him to abdicate the throne. These telegrams led to the Tsar's decision to abdicate on the 15 March 1917 in favour of his brother [[Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich of Russia|Grand Duke Michael]].<ref name=rm>{{cite book |last1=Massie |first1=Robert |title=Nicholas and Alexandria |date=1967 |publisher=Ballantine Books |location=New York |isbn=9780345438317 |pages=413–418}}</ref>

From March to May 1917, Alekseyev's position remained ambiguous. While he was the Commander-in-chief and later adviser to the [[Provisional Government of Russia, 1917|Provisional Government]], he spoke out against the [[Soviet Union|Soviet]]s and the [[democratization]] of the army. On 30 August 1917 Alekseyev became Chief of Staff of the Stavka under Commander-in-Chief [[Alexander Kerensky]]. His goal was to prevent the Kornilov movement (see [[Kornilov Affair]]) from developing into civil war. That same day, Alekseyev arrived at the General Headquarters, arrested General [[Lavr Kornilov]] and his men and sent them to [[prison]] in [[Bykhaw|Bykhov]] (a town in [[Mogilev]] oblast in [[Belarus]]), from which they would "break away" with the help of General [[Nikolai Dukhonin]].<ref>Preclík, Vratislav. Masaryk a legie (Masaryk and legions), váz. kniha, 219 pages, first issue vydalo nakladatelství Paris Karviná, Žižkova 2379 (734 01 Karvina, Czech Republic) ve spolupráci s Masarykovým demokratickým hnutím (Masaryk Democratic Movement, Prague), 2019, {{ISBN|978-80-87173-47-3}}, pages 36 - 39, 41 - 42, 111-112, 124–125, 128, 129, 132, 140–148, 184–199. 
</ref>  
[[File:Grob generala Aleksejeva na Novom groblju.jpg|thumb|right|Alekseyev's grave at the [[New Cemetery, Belgrade]].]]
On 13 November, after the [[October Revolution]], Alekseyev fled Petrograd, arriving [[Novocherkassk]] on 15 Nov. With the support of the [[Don Cossacks]] [[Ataman]], General [[Alexey Kaledin]], he formed the Alekseev Organization, which would become the core of the anti-Bolshevik [[Volunteer Army]].<ref name="pk">{{cite book |last1=Kenez |first1=Peter |title=Red Attack, White Resistance; Civil War in South Russia 1918 |date=2004 |publisher=New Academia Publishing |location=Washington, DC |isbn=9780974493442 |pages=55–67}}</ref>

On 19 December, he was joined by [[Lavr Kornilov]]. According to [[Peter Kenez]], "As [[Anton Denikin|Denikin]] remarks, it was obvious from the first moment that cooperation between Alekseev and Kornilov would not be easy. Their backgrounds, personalities, and followers were very different, their past associations had left bitter memories, and they disliked each other." On 31 December, Kornilov took military command of the [[Volunteer Army]], while Alekseyev took responsibility for civil authority, foreign affairs and finances.  [[Kaledin]] had responsibility for the government of the Don district.  After the death of Kornilov, Alexeyev appointed Denikin commander of the Volunteer Army,  successfully completing the [[Ice March]]. In June, Alekseyev set up a political office in [[Novocherkassk]].<ref name=pk/>{{rp|74–75,116}}

However, Alekseyev, sick for some time, died of heart failure in [[Ekaterinodar]] in September 1918. He was first buried in the crypt of the [[Cossack]] host cathedral, but his family moved his remains to the [[New Cemetery, Belgrade]], where they remain to this day.