Boris Shteifon

Boris Aleksandrovich Shteifon (December 6, 1881 - May 30, 1945) (Борис Александрович Штейфон) was an officer (General Lieutenant) of the Russian Tsarist army, the Russian anti-communist White army, and the leader of the Russian Corps in Serbia during World War II.

Biography

Shteifon was born on December 6, 1881 in the city of Kharkov (currently Ukraine). His father was a Jewish merchant (converted to Orthodox Christianity), his mother was the daughter of a Russian Orthodox deacon.

Shteifon completed his education in Kharkov and went to serve as a volunteer in the rank of private in the 122nd Voronezh regiment of the Imperial Russian Army. In 1901 he advances to the rank of lieutenant. Shteifon saw action in the Russo-Japanese war and received a concussion. He was also awarded for bravery and excellence five times, receiving the medal of St. Vladimir amidst others.

In 1911, Shteifon completed the Imperial Nikolaevsky Military Academy with the rank of captain. During World War I he serves on the Caucasus front, and is awarded the Order of St. Anne, Order of St. George, and a British medal for conducting intelligence operations. In January 1917 he was placed in charge of the headquarters of the 161 infantry division and then in August of that year the 3rd Finnish division. He was raised to the rank of colonel.

In the wake of the October Revolution and the collapse at the Russian front, Shteifon returned to his native Kharkov where he headed an underground organization to recruit and relay officers who want to join the Volunteer Army. In the fall of 1918 he arrived at Volunteer Army headquarters in Ekaterinodar and commands several units.

In January 1920 Shteifon was promoted to the rank of general. He was forced to evacuate into Poland with his men, then arrived in Crimea to continue active duty under General Pyotr Wrangel. He evacuated with the Russian Army of Wrangel to Constantinople and arrived to the Gallipoli camp for white Russian refugees. He arrived as a private, but was quickly promoted to be the commandant of the camp.

On April 25, 1921 he was put in charge of the 1st Army Corps. He moved to the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes.

During the 1920s and 1930's, Shteifon published a series of military tactical and historical works, and became a professor of military sciences.

In 1941, he became the commander of the staff of the Russian Corps in Serbia, and three days later was promoted to the commander of the Corps, a position he held until his death in Zagreb, Croatia. He was buried in Ljubljana, Slovenia at a German military cemetery (block VIII, row 6, grave 16).