Pavel Liprandi

Pavel Liprandi
Born	(1796-01-15)15 January 1796 Russian Empire
Died	27 August 1864(1864-08-27)(aged 68) Saint Petersburg,Russian Empire
Allegiance	Russian Empire
Service/branch	Imperial Russian Army
Years of service	1812–1864
Rank	General of the infantry
Battles/wars	Napoleonic Wars Russo-Turkish War November Uprising Hungarian Campaign Crimean War •Charge of the Light Brigade
Awards	Order of St. Vladimir Order of St. George Order of Saint Stanislaus Order of the White Eagle

GeneralPavel Petrovich Liprandi(Russian:Павел Петрович Липранди,pronounced[ˈpavʲɪlpʲɪˈtrovʲɪtɕlʲɪˈpranʲdʲɪ];15 January 1796 – 27 August 1864) was a Russian military officer of Spanish-Italian descent who participated in theCrimean War.

Life

Napoleonic Wars and postwar

On theFrench invasion of Russiain 1812, he unsuccessfully tried to enter theAkhtyrsky Hussars,but had to satisfy himself with being a volunteer on the staff of 6 Corps (commanded byDmitry Dokhturov), in which his brotherIvan Petrovichwas serving as chief quartermaster. Pavel fought with the corps in the battles ofTarutino,MaloyaroslavetsandKrasnoi.Due to this experience was made a sub-ensign in thePskov Musketeer Regimentin 1813, with which he participated in the pursuit of Napoleon's army back across Germany and into France, fighting atKatzbach,after which he was promoted to ensign,Dresden,Brienne,La Rothière,Laffert-sous-Zhoar (for which was made a second lieutenant),Montmirail,Chateau-Thierry,Méré,Craonne,Laon,Soissons and thecapture of Paris.

In 1816 Liprandi was appointed adjutant to GeneralFedor Talyzin,head of the 16th Division; in 1818 (already at the rank of captain) he was transferred to the Life Guards Grenadier Regiment. In 1822 he was transferred to the general staff, with his appointment as adjutant to the corps commander GeneralIvan Sabaneyev,with whom he soon became friends and through whom he became known to CountMikhail Semyonovich VorontsovandPavel Kiselyov.Close interaction with these commanders had a great influence on Liprandi, as was to become manifest later, when he took command himself.

Russo-Turkish War and November Uprising

Before theRusso-Turkish Warof 1828–29, as adjutant and chief of staff to General Kiselev, Liprandi was ordered to the fortress ofIsacceaPasha to deliver the Russian declaration of war, with a secret commission to examine the fortress and find out if the Turks had intelligence of the Russian army's movements. Brilliantly fulfilling this assignment, he was sent toGalaţiin order to find out whether there were suitable vessels for the transport of troops in the planned expedition to Isaccea, another mission he successfully executed. In May 1828 Liprandi participated in the siege and occupation of the fortress ofBrailovand, after the Russian troops crossed the Danube, he was sent to GeneralAleksandr Rudzevichwith orders to capture Isaccea and the road to Brailov, Babadag and Tulcea. On 8 July he participated in the Battle ofShumenand for his conduct there was awarded theOrder of St. Vladimir,4th degree with bow. In 1829, as a lieutenant-colonel, Liprandi was given a secret order to observe everything that took place in theAustrian Empireand to go the border ofMoldovaand there gather as accurate information as possible on the Austrians' plans. In 1830 he was put in charge of the Satunovskiy Quarantine, and on theoutbreak of cholera in the Novorossiysk regionwas appointed chief commander of the fortress ofKinburnandOchakov.

Liprandi commanded theEletski Infantry Regiment,which participated in the war against theNovember Uprisingin Poland, being first in the unit of GeneralTheodor von Rüdigerfor operations againstJózef Dwernicki,then fighting at the siege of the fortress atZamość,where he fought with distinction and was made a colonel. He then fought in thestorming of Warsaw's fortifications,where he commanded 1st Brigade 2nd Infantry. When BaronTeodor Geismarwas shot, Liprandi replaced him as commander of the entire assault column and was the first to ascend the ramparts of fortifications 54 and 22, for which he was awarded theOrder of St. George3rd degree number 453, with the citation "in reward for the courage and bravery shown on 25 and 26 August 1831 in the storming of the fortifications of Warsaw". After the conquest of Warsaw, he joined the vanguard of Lieutenant-GeneralVladimir Sievers,pursued the retreating Polish rebels to Lublin and participated in the siege of the fortress at Lublin.

Military reform

At the end of hostilities Liprandi proceeded to implement reforms he had already started beforehand to improve soldiers' living conditions, which he developed with generals Sabaneev, Kiselev and Vorontsov. After two years the Eletskii Regiment became so outstanding in its performance that on 28 January Liprandi was appointed aide-de-camp to the Tsar, and in 1835 wasgranted estates in the Polish kingdom.On 26 March 1839 Liprandi was promoted to major general and given command of the King Frederick William III Grenadier Regiment (later known as theSt. Petersburg Life Guard RegimentLife Guards of St. Petersburg) and in 1842 was appointed commander of theSemenov Life Guards Regiment.In 1844 he was granted theOrder of Saint Stanislaus1st class. Still concerned with improving the soldiers' living conditions, Liprandi created the role of special instruction company commander of a contentment company (later adopted by the leadership in all parts of the lifeguards), built a pumping tower with a filter for the regiment by the side of theKryukov Canaland so improved the regiment's financial state that he could refuse sending soldiers to voluntary work. Throughout his 17 years commanding various regiments, Liprandi never arrested an officer or private unless he was condemned to corporal punishment, proving that the harsh methods of command more common at that time were prejudiced. In 1848 Liprandi was promoted to lieutenant general, appointed Chief of Staff of the Grenadier Corps and admitted to the Guards Corps, the General Staff and the lists of the Life Guards Semenov regiment.

Hungarian Revolution and Crimean War

With the announcement in 1849 of themilitary campaign in Hungary,Ivan Paskevich's proposal that Liprandi command the 12th Infantry Division was approved, and in theCrimean WarLiprandi was appointed head of the Little Valahskiy unit, to cover the right flank of the Southern Army and protect LesserWallachia.Chepurchei Liprandi drove the Turks fromCalafat,and received theOrder of the White Eagle,with swords. From Bessarabia Liprandi's division moved to the Crimea.Emperor Nicholas Irecommended Liprandi as commander in chief in the following terms: "To General Liprandi, can instruct a separate unit, and it can be safely relied upon, as an experienced general." Liprandi was not slow in justifying this recommendation. He commanded the army at theBattle of Balaklava,during which he was wounded by grenade shrapnel in the leg, but remained on the field. Liprandi went on to take part in thebattles at Inkerman,and at theChernaya.

Later life and death

Liprandi in the 1860s

In 1855 Liprandi was in command of 6th Infantry Corps, but in 1856 he took indefinite leave. Having in 1858 inherited the village ofEfimievo,Nizhny Novgorod province, and becoming a landowner, Liprandi immediatelyreleased his peasants.By 1859, at the personal request ofEmperor Alexander II,Liprandi took command of 2nd Infantry Corps, located in the Kingdom of Poland, but in 1861, due to a disagreement with theViceroy of Poland,Karl Lambert,he was instead appointed a member of the Military Council, and in 1862 Inspector of troops.

He died in 1864 and is buried in St. Petersburg at theMitrofaniyevskoe cemetery.

Family

Liprandi married Maria Fedorovna Talyzina (1808–1843) in 1833. She was the daughter of Lieutenant General F. I. Talyzin. Their son, Rafail Pavlovich (1838-1909) was a Major General of the General Staff. He fought with distinction in theRusso-Turkish War (1877–1878),including at theBattle of Shipka Pass,for which he was awarded gold weapons and theOrder of St. George4th class.