Junker (Russia)

Junker (Юнкер in Russian, or yunker) has several meanings in Imperial Russia. The word is from the German language, where it means "young lord".

Junker schools in Russia were introduced in 1864. They were usually located next to district headquarters in a given region. Junker schools prepared low-rank military for officer rank. In 1900, the Russian government established junker infantry schools in Moscow and Kiev, and in 1902 a junker cavalry school in Yelizavetgrad. In 1901, the government transformed all former district junker schools into seven infantry schools (St.Petersburg, Vilna, Tiflis, Odessa, Kazan, Chuguyev, Irkutsk), one cavalry school (Tver) and three Cossack schools (Novocherkassk, Stavropol, Orenburg).

Every junker school had a three-year program. In order to enroll into a junker school, a student had to attend a gymnasium or cadet corps for six years or pass a corresponding exam.

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