United Baltic Duchy
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The United Baltic Duchy (German: Vereinigtes Baltisches Herzogtum) was a short-lived duchy constructed in 1918. It was made possible through the German Empire's occupation of the territory covering what are now Latvia and Estonia before the end of World War I.
History
On March 8 and April 12 1918 the local Baltic German-dominated Kurländische Landesrat and the Vereinigter Landesrat of Livland, Estland, Riga, and Ösel had declared themselves independent states, known as the Duchy of Courland (Herzogtum Kurland) and Baltic State (Baltischer Staat), respectively. Both states proclaimed themselves to be in personal union with the Kingdom of Prussia, although the German government never responded to acknowledge that claim. These Baltic lands were nominally recognized as a sovereign state by Kaiser William II only on September 22, 1918, half a year after Soviet Russia had formally relinquished all authority over its former Imperial Baltic provinces to Germany in the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. On November 5, 1918, a temporary Regency Council (Regentschaftsrat) for the new state led by Baron Adolf Pilar von Pilchau was formed on a joint basis from the two local Land Councils.
The capital of the new state was to be Riga. It was to be a confederation of seven cantons: Kurland (Courland), Riga, Lettgallen (Latgale), Südlivland (South Livonia), Nordlivland (North Livonia), Ösel (Saaremaa), and Estland (Estonia), the four first cantons thus covering the territory corresponding to today's Latvia and the latter three corresponding to today's Estonia.
The first head of state of the United Baltic Duchy was to be Adolf Friedrich, Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, not as a sovereign monarch, but as a subordinate to the German Kaiser, similar to other dukes and grand dukes of the German Empire. Adolf Friedrich never assumed office, however. The appointed Regency Council consisting of four Baltic Germans, three Estonians and three Latvians functioned until November 28, 1918, without any international recognition, except from Germany. The Baltische Landeswehr was formed by the government of the United Baltic Duchy as its national defense force. Upon taking command of the Baltische Landeswehr, Major Alfred Fletcher, with the backing of the Baltic German land barons, began dismissing native Latvian elements and replacing them with Baltic Germans and Reichsdeutsch troops. Concurrently, German officers assumed most of the command positions. In his book Vanguard of Nazism: The Free Corps Movement in Postwar Germany, 1918-1923, author Robert G.L. Waite notes: “By mid-February 1919, Latvians composed less than one fifth of their own army.” Britain backed down after recognizing the gravity of the military situation, and the White Russian units and the Freikorps moved on and captured Riga on May 22, 1919. After the capture of Riga, the Freikorps were accused of killing 300 Latvians in Mitau, 200 in Tukkum, 125 in Daugavgriva, and over 3,000 in Riga. After taking part in the capture of Riga on 23 May 1919, in June 1919 General von der Goltz ordered his troops not to advance east against the Red Army, as the Allies had been expecting, but north, against the Estonians. On June 19 the Iron Division and Landeswehr units launched an attack to capture areas around Cēsis (Wenden), the Baltische Landeswehr continued its advance towards the Estonian coast preparatory for a push on St. Petersburg, Soviet Russia. However, the Baltic plans were thwarted when the Estonian army attacked and defeated the Baltische Landeswehr at the Battle of Cēsis, 19-21 June 1919. However, in the battles over the following few days they were defeated by the Estonian army (lead by Johan Laidoner) and national Latvian units. On the morning of June 23, the Germans began a general retreat toward Riga. The Allies again insisted that the Germans withdraw their remaining troops from Latvia and intervened to impose a ceasefire between the Estonians and the Freikorps when the Estonians were about to march into Riga. In the meantime, an Allied mission composed of British troops under General Sir Hubert de la Poer Gough had arrived in the Baltic with the task of clearing the Baltic Germans from the region and organizing native armies for the Baltic states. The defeat of Germany in World War I in November 1918, followed by the defeat in 1919 of the Baltische Landeswehr and German Freikorps units of General Rüdiger von der Goltz in Latvia by the Estonian army and national Latvian units, rendered the United Baltic Duchy irrelevant.
Subsequent
To ensure its return to Latvian control, the Baltische Landeswehr was placed under British authority. After taking command of the Baltische Landeswehr in mid-July 1919, Lieutenant-Colonel Harold Alexander (the future Field Marshal the Earl Alexander of Tunis and Governor General of Canada, 1946-1952), gradually dismissed the Baltic German elements. The Baltic nations of Estonia and Latvia were established as republics.
See also
- Pavel Bermondt-Avalov
- Archbishopric of Riga
- Baltische Landeswehr
- Commune of the Working People of Estonia
- Courland
- Duchy of Courland
- Estland
- Kingdom of Livonia
- Livonia
- Livonian Brothers of the Sword
- Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights
- Ober Ost
- Aftermath of World War I
- Freikorps in the Baltic
- Latvian War of Independence
- Estonian Liberation War
- Duchy of Courland and Semigallia (1918)
- Kingdom of Lithuania (1918)
- Kingdom of Finland (1918)
- Kingdom of Poland (1916–1918)
External links
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
