A legion commander who carried battlefield success into White politics
Radola Gajda was a Czechoslovak Legion commander who rose to prominence in the First World War and the Russian Civil War, later becoming a general and politician in interwar Czechoslovakia. In 1918 he led the Legion's eastern group, seizing the railway from Novonikolaevsk to Irkutsk and pressing the argument for armed struggle over neutrality. He joined Kolchak's White forces, lost his command, and returned home to serve as acting chief of the general staff before leading the National Fascist Community. His military anti-Bolshevism became fascist politics in Czechoslovakia, while during the Nazi occupation he aided resistance networks.
Career Timeline
- 1910–1911Served in the Austro-Hungarian Army
- 1915–1916Officer in the Montenegrin Army
- 1917Company and regimental commander, Czechoslovak Legion
- 1918Commander, Legion eastern group, directing the capture of Irkutsk and Yekaterinburg
- 1918–1919Commander of Kolchak's Siberian Army
- 1922–1926Divisional commander and acting chief of the Czechoslovak General Staff
- 1927–1939Leader of the National Fascist Community and parliamentarian