Krišjānis Berķis

Krišjānis Berķis (b. April 26 1884 in Īslīce civil parish near Bauska, Courland, modern Latvia -- d. July 29 1942 in Perm, Russia) was a Latvian general. Rising to prominence as an officer of the Latvian Riflemen in World War I, he was later one of Prime Minister Kārlis Ulmanis' principal conspirators in the "coup d'état" of May 15 1934. He served as Commander of the Army from 1934-40 and became Minister of War in 1940. He died in a prison hospital in Russia in 1942. He was married to a Finn, Hilma Lehtonen (1887-1961), whom he met while serving in the Czarist army in Finland. Their only child, Valentins, died in Russia, and their grandson went missing.

Sources

* Rislakki, Jukka: Latvian kohtalonvuodet. Krisjanis Berkiksen ja Hilma Lehtosen tarina. SKS, Helsinki 2005. (With English summary)
* Rislakki, Jukka: Kur beidzas varaviksne. Jumava, Riga 20004.