Vrangel' family

Biographical Note

A veteran of the Russian-Japanese War (1904-1905) and World War I General Baron Petr Nikolaevich Vrangel' joined the anti-Bolshevik armies in Southern Russia in late 1917. He was known for many years in Russia as the "black baron" and "the last enemy of the Soviet Republic", while on the other hand he was honored as "the last knight of the Russian Empire" by his comrades. Vrangel' was the commander-in-chief of the White Army in the final stage of the Civil War and leader of the White émigré movement.

After the rout in early 1920 of the Denikin forces, Vrangel' succeeded Denikin in command and soon whipped the demoralized remains of the White Army into shape. He also tried to win popular support with a program for land reform. Vrangel' was successful for a while on the Crimean front, but after the Russian armistice with Poland in October 1920, the Communists were able to concentrate larger forces against him. Vrangel' was forced back into the Crimea, and in November 1920, he had to evacuate his forces to Constantinople. The Russian Civil War thus came to an end. Vrangel' died in exile at Brussels. His children believed he had been poisoned by the Soviet secret police. He is buried in the Russian Cathedral in Belgrade.

This collection contains personal papers of the members of the Vrangel' family: General Baron Petr Nikolaevich Vrangel', his wife Baroness Ol'ga Mikhailovna Vrangel' (including papers relating to her grandfather, conservative Russian journalist Mikhail Katkov), their son Baron Alexis (Aleksei Petrovich) Vrangel', and grandson Baron Petr Petrovich Vrangel', as well as his mother Baroness Maria Dmitrievna Vrangel', his brother Baron Nikolai Nikolaevich Vrangel', and granddaughter Natal'ia.