The Bloody White Baron (45 page)
Read The Bloody White Baron Online
Authors: James Palmer
9
Special Delegation of the Far Eastern Republic,
Letters Captured from Baron Ungern in Mongolia
(Washington, DC, 1921), p. 4.
Special Delegation of the Far Eastern Republic,
Letters Captured from Baron Ungern in Mongolia
(Washington, DC, 1921), p. 4.
12
In the whole of the nineteenth century there was only one Jewish officer in the Russian army, Captain Herzl Yankl Tsam, and he was made a captain only after forty-one years' service.
In the whole of the nineteenth century there was only one Jewish officer in the Russian army, Captain Herzl Yankl Tsam, and he was made a captain only after forty-one years' service.
13
GARF, f. 9427, op. 1, d. 392, p. 38.
GARF, f. 9427, op. 1, d. 392, p. 38.
17
Quoted in Leonid Ieuzefovich,
Samoderzhets pustyni: fenomen sud'by barona RF. Ungern-Shternberga
[
Autocrat of the Desert: The Phenomenon of Baron R. F. Ungern-Sternberg
] (Moscow, 1993).
Quoted in Leonid Ieuzefovich,
Samoderzhets pustyni: fenomen sud'by barona RF. Ungern-Shternberga
[
Autocrat of the Desert: The Phenomenon of Baron R. F. Ungern-Sternberg
] (Moscow, 1993).
19
RGVA, f. 16, op. 1, d. 37, p. 298.
RGVA, f. 16, op. 1, d. 37, p. 298.
24
GARF, f. 9427, op. 1, d. 392, p. 60.
GARF, f. 9427, op. 1, d. 392, p. 60.
25
GARF, f. 9427, op. 1, d. 392, p. 59.
GARF, f. 9427, op. 1, d. 392, p. 59.
27
GARF, f. 9427, op. 1, d. 392, p. 59.
GARF, f. 9427, op. 1, d. 392, p. 59.
30
Pan-Asiatic ideas of the period in Japan lacked much of the aggressive and extreme right-wing tone of the movement in the 1930s and 40s. Instead, they often envisaged bringing liberal, anti-imperialist thought to the rest of Asia, envisaging a federation rather than an empire, albeit one in which the Japanese would be the clear leaders, treating other Asians in a paternalistic fashion.
Pan-Asiatic ideas of the period in Japan lacked much of the aggressive and extreme right-wing tone of the movement in the 1930s and 40s. Instead, they often envisaged bringing liberal, anti-imperialist thought to the rest of Asia, envisaging a federation rather than an empire, albeit one in which the Japanese would be the clear leaders, treating other Asians in a paternalistic fashion.
33
Kuzmin,
Baron Ungern,
p. 70. Immersed as I had become in Ungern's world while researching his life, this reference to Pankhurst came as a jarring reminder that alongside Ungern's Siberia of feudalism and constant war there existed another world, a relatively peaceful one in which the modern struggle for women's rights was taking place.
Kuzmin,
Baron Ungern,
p. 70. Immersed as I had become in Ungern's world while researching his life, this reference to Pankhurst came as a jarring reminder that alongside Ungern's Siberia of feudalism and constant war there existed another world, a relatively peaceful one in which the modern struggle for women's rights was taking place.
34
Konstantin Leontiev, the ultra-conservative Russian writer who influenced Ungern, was not unique among Russian writers and explorers in his liking for virile Asian men.
Konstantin Leontiev, the ultra-conservative Russian writer who influenced Ungern, was not unique among Russian writers and explorers in his liking for virile Asian men.
38
Quoted in Evgenii Belov,
Baron Ungern fon Shternberg: biografiia, ideologiia, voennye pokhody 1920 - 1921
[
Baron Ungern von Sternberg:
Biography, Ideology, Military Campaigns 1920 - 1921
] (Moscow, 2003), p. 28.
Quoted in Evgenii Belov,
Baron Ungern fon Shternberg: biografiia, ideologiia, voennye pokhody 1920 - 1921
[
Baron Ungern von Sternberg:
Biography, Ideology, Military Campaigns 1920 - 1921
] (Moscow, 2003), p. 28.
41
RGVA, f. 16, op. 3, d. 222, p. 14.
RGVA, f. 16, op. 3, d. 222, p. 14.
43
GARF, f. 9427, op. 1, d. 392, p. 47.
GARF, f. 9427, op. 1, d. 392, p. 47.
44
The widespread notion that Ungern believed himself to be Genghis's direct reincarnation seems to have stemmed from a passage in Ossendowski,
Beasts, Men, and Gods
, where Ungern reportedly told the Mongolians that â[Genghis's] soul still lives and calls upon the Mongols to become anew a powerful people and reunite again into one great Mid-Asiatic State all the Asian kingdoms he had ruled' (p. 253). Even here, there is no direct claim to Genghis's soul, only his imperial inheritance.
The widespread notion that Ungern believed himself to be Genghis's direct reincarnation seems to have stemmed from a passage in Ossendowski,
Beasts, Men, and Gods
, where Ungern reportedly told the Mongolians that â[Genghis's] soul still lives and calls upon the Mongols to become anew a powerful people and reunite again into one great Mid-Asiatic State all the Asian kingdoms he had ruled' (p. 253). Even here, there is no direct claim to Genghis's soul, only his imperial inheritance.
46
GARF, f. 9427, op. 1, d. 392, p. 56.
GARF, f. 9427, op. 1, d. 392, p. 56.
SIX - RAGGED CRUSADE
2
The formula, commonly used in Mongolia and explained to me by the president's nephew, was very exact. One Mongolian is worth two Japanese is worth four Koreans is worth eight Chinese. Notice that the Mongolians are just about the only people in Asia who
actually like
the Japanese - and even then they rank them as distinctively inferior to themselves. I wasn't told where the English fitted in.
The formula, commonly used in Mongolia and explained to me by the president's nephew, was very exact. One Mongolian is worth two Japanese is worth four Koreans is worth eight Chinese. Notice that the Mongolians are just about the only people in Asia who
actually like
the Japanese - and even then they rank them as distinctively inferior to themselves. I wasn't told where the English fitted in.
3
âBig Xu' to Xu Shuzheng's âLittle Xu'. China has always been short on surnames. A much older statesman, but often confused with Little Xu in Western accounts.
âBig Xu' to Xu Shuzheng's âLittle Xu'. China has always been short on surnames. A much older statesman, but often confused with Little Xu in Western accounts.
5
If you come across a ruined monastery in Mongolia, it's just as likely to have been burnt by the Chinese in the 1600s as by the Russians in the 1930s.
If you come across a ruined monastery in Mongolia, it's just as likely to have been burnt by the Chinese in the 1600s as by the Russians in the 1930s.
9
Visiting friends in the countryside near Ulaanbaatar in 2004, I was told that the area was suffering from dangerous overcrowding; it was now possible, with a good eye, for a man to see his neighbour's camp.
Visiting friends in the countryside near Ulaanbaatar in 2004, I was told that the area was suffering from dangerous overcrowding; it was now possible, with a good eye, for a man to see his neighbour's camp.
10
Led by Sir Francis Younghusband, a famous British explorer who, although a far better man, shared some interests with Ungern, such as his concern for martial virtues and his deep, eclectic interest in Eastern mysticism.
Led by Sir Francis Younghusband, a famous British explorer who, although a far better man, shared some interests with Ungern, such as his concern for martial virtues and his deep, eclectic interest in Eastern mysticism.
13
At the victory parade after the end of the Second World War, Stalin was due to ride a white horse in triumph, but it threw him on a practice run and Zhukov was given the honour instead.
At the victory parade after the end of the Second World War, Stalin was due to ride a white horse in triumph, but it threw him on a practice run and Zhukov was given the honour instead.
15
US National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), MID report no. 212 (RH165, file 2657-I-158/3), 30 March, 1921.
US National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), MID report no. 212 (RH165, file 2657-I-158/3), 30 March, 1921.
17
Alioshin presumably means âto heal' here. Horrible as this is, this type of punishment was not unique to Ungern. Cyclical flogging, where the flesh was allowed to heal and was then scourged again, was common in convict-era Australia, where sentences of five hundred or a thousand lashes were sometimes carried out over months at a time.
Alioshin presumably means âto heal' here. Horrible as this is, this type of punishment was not unique to Ungern. Cyclical flogging, where the flesh was allowed to heal and was then scourged again, was common in convict-era Australia, where sentences of five hundred or a thousand lashes were sometimes carried out over months at a time.
23
N. M. Ribo, âThe Story of Baron Ungern Told by His Staff Physician', Hoover Institution, Stanford University, CSUZXX697-A, p. 4.
N. M. Ribo, âThe Story of Baron Ungern Told by His Staff Physician', Hoover Institution, Stanford University, CSUZXX697-A, p. 4.
26
GARF, f. 9427, op. 1. d. 392, pp. 35 - 46.
GARF, f. 9427, op. 1. d. 392, pp. 35 - 46.
30
Ribo, âThe Story of Baron Ungern', p. 6.
Ribo, âThe Story of Baron Ungern', p. 6.
31
The Chinese mountain gods, it must be said, were a little less ferocious than the Mongolian
savdags
, being more petty and bureaucratic than vengeful. I was once involved in building a temple on the minor holy mountain of Taibaishan. Half-way through the process the Daoist leaders declared that the building needed to be widened, because the three gods of the mountain required five bays. We asked why, and it was explained that the gods didn't get on, and so needed an empty space between them, or they would fight and bring disharmony.
When we asked why a fairly small mountain needed three gods anyway, we were told, âEach god will only work eight hours on, sixteen hours off.' Divinity clearly remains a unionised business.
The Chinese mountain gods, it must be said, were a little less ferocious than the Mongolian
savdags
, being more petty and bureaucratic than vengeful. I was once involved in building a temple on the minor holy mountain of Taibaishan. Half-way through the process the Daoist leaders declared that the building needed to be widened, because the three gods of the mountain required five bays. We asked why, and it was explained that the gods didn't get on, and so needed an empty space between them, or they would fight and bring disharmony.
When we asked why a fairly small mountain needed three gods anyway, we were told, âEach god will only work eight hours on, sixteen hours off.' Divinity clearly remains a unionised business.
34
National State Archives of Mongolia, a. 5, g. 7, n. 288.
National State Archives of Mongolia, a. 5, g. 7, n. 288.
35
D. P. Pershin,
Baron Ungern, Urga i Altan-Bulak
(Stanford, 1933), quoted in Kuzmin,
Baron Ungern
, p. 370.
D. P. Pershin,
Baron Ungern, Urga i Altan-Bulak
(Stanford, 1933), quoted in Kuzmin,
Baron Ungern
, p. 370.
36
NARA, MID Report no. 212 (RG59), 30 March, 1921.
NARA, MID Report no. 212 (RG59), 30 March, 1921.
37
NARA, MID Report no. 212 (RG59), 30 March, 1921.
NARA, MID Report no. 212 (RG59), 30 March, 1921.
38
Henning Haslund,
Tents in Mongolia: Adventures and Experiences Among the Nomads of Central Asia
(London, 1934), p. 306.
Henning Haslund,
Tents in Mongolia: Adventures and Experiences Among the Nomads of Central Asia
(London, 1934), p. 306.
39
Khisight, âBaron Ungern's Mongolian Connection', p. 6.
Khisight, âBaron Ungern's Mongolian Connection', p. 6.
40
NARA, MID Report Di-JI/BMM-SS (RH165, file no. 2657 - 1 - 159/1).
NARA, MID Report Di-JI/BMM-SS (RH165, file no. 2657 - 1 - 159/1).
43
The Jewish matrilineal tradition is sometimes - very probably mistakenly - held to have arisen as a result of rape, ordained by the rabbis so that no prejudice would be shown to the children; a heartbreakingly humane response to an evil practice.
The Jewish matrilineal tradition is sometimes - very probably mistakenly - held to have arisen as a result of rape, ordained by the rabbis so that no prejudice would be shown to the children; a heartbreakingly humane response to an evil practice.
44
Ribo, âThe Story of Baron Ungern', p. 1.
Ribo, âThe Story of Baron Ungern', p. 1.
45
Surreally, they were betrayed by a Korean doctor who was accompanying the mummified body of his three-year-old daughter, a typhus victim, out of the city. The Jews had given him letters to take with him, but he was caught and confessed all to his captors in an attempt to save his own life. He failed.
Surreally, they were betrayed by a Korean doctor who was accompanying the mummified body of his three-year-old daughter, a typhus victim, out of the city. The Jews had given him letters to take with him, but he was caught and confessed all to his captors in an attempt to save his own life. He failed.
SEVEN - LORD OF THE STEPPE
2
National State Archives of Mongolia, a. 4, g. 7, n. 1321.
National State Archives of Mongolia, a. 4, g. 7, n. 1321.
4
Had Ungern forgotten about Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Italy, Belgium, etc., or did they not have the age and tradition to count? Or did he, deprived of news, believe that the revolutionary tide that had swept away the Romanovs, Habsburgs and Hohenzollerns must inevitably have taken the others with it?
Had Ungern forgotten about Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Italy, Belgium, etc., or did they not have the age and tradition to count? Or did he, deprived of news, believe that the revolutionary tide that had swept away the Romanovs, Habsburgs and Hohenzollerns must inevitably have taken the others with it?
5
RGVA, f. 39454, op. 1, d. 9, p. 84.
RGVA, f. 39454, op. 1, d. 9, p. 84.
6
RGVA, f. 16, op. 3, d. 222, p. 123.
RGVA, f. 16, op. 3, d. 222, p. 123.
14
Though the literal meaning in Chinese was âchange the mandate', and implied more a shift of dynasty than what we would think of as revolution.
Though the literal meaning in Chinese was âchange the mandate', and implied more a shift of dynasty than what we would think of as revolution.
19
Ribo, âThe Story of Baron Ungern', p. 2.
Ribo, âThe Story of Baron Ungern', p. 2.
20
Thomas Ewing,
Between the Hammer and the Anvil: Chinese and Russian Policies in Outer Mongolia, 1911 - 1921
(Bloomington, IN, 1980), p. 208.
Thomas Ewing,
Between the Hammer and the Anvil: Chinese and Russian Policies in Outer Mongolia, 1911 - 1921
(Bloomington, IN, 1980), p. 208.
27
Ribo, âThe Story of Baron Ungern', p. 2.
Ribo, âThe Story of Baron Ungern', p. 2.
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