Jānis Balodis
| Jānis Balodis | |
|---|---|
| Born |
20 February 1881 Trikāta parish, Valka District, Governorate of Livonia |
| Died | 8 August 1965 (aged 84) Saulkrasti, Latvian SSR, Soviet Union |
| Buried at | Riga |
| Allegiance |
 Russian Empire (1898–1917) Latvia (1918–1921)
|
| Service/branch |
Imperial Russian Army Latvian Army |
| Years of service | 1898–1921 |
| Rank | General |
| Battles/wars |
Russo-Japanese War First World War Latvian War of Independence |
| Awards | Order of Lāčplēsis |
Jānis Balodis (20 February 1881 – 8 August 1965) was an army general, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Latvia (1919–1921), Minister of War (1931–1940) and politician who was one of the principal figures during the Latvian War of Independence and the dictatorship of Kārlis Ulmanis, when he officially was the number two of the regime as the Minister of War, Deputy Prime Minister and Vice President.
Jānis Balodis father was historian and teacher Voldemārs Balodis. In 1898 he joined the Imperial Russian Army and served in Kaunas. From 1900 until 1902 he studied at the Vilnius War School. From November 1904 until July 1905 he participated in the Russo–Japanese War and was seriously wounded in the arm. From 1906 until 1914 Balodis served in Vilnius. At the beginning of World War I he was lightly wounded during the battles in East Prussia, for which he received a number of decorations. On 20 February 1915, while recuperating in hospital, he was captured by the German Army and spent the rest of the war in a POW camp in Silesia.
Balodis returned to Latvia immediately after the end of World War I in November 1918, and joined the first armed units of the newly established Republic of Latvia on 18 December 1918. When Riga was threatened by the advancing Red Army, Balodis retreated from Riga together with the army and the government on 3 January 1919. On 26 February 1919 he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant colonel. After the death of Oskars Kalpaks on 6 March 1919 he was further promoted to the rank of Colonel and took control of the few Latvian soldiers in Courland. During the spring of 1919, after a string of victories over the Red Army, Balodis was given command over larger units and eventually over the Southern Group of the armed forces. In this role he was forced into an uneasy alliance with German troops. In the second half of 1919 Balodis led the 1st Courland division in battles against the Red Army in Latgale.
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