28 Facts About Johan Laidoner

Johan Laidoner was appointed commander-in-chief during the 1924 Communist coup attempt, and then again from 1934 to 1940.

Johan Laidoner was born on Raba estate in Vardja, Viiratsi Parish, to a farmhand Jaak Laidoner and his wife Mari as the first of four sons.

Johan Laidoner studied at Viiratsi Elementary School and finished his basic education at Viljandi Town School in 1900.

Johan Laidoner graduated top of his class in April 1905 and was promoted to the rank of sub-lieutenant.

Johan Laidoner was then sent to serve in the 13th Yerevan Grenadier Regiment, which was then stationed in Manglisi, Georgia.

From 1909 to 1912, Johan Laidoner studied at the Imperial Nicholas Military Academy in Saint Petersburg, graduating with a 1st grade diploma.

On 30 October 1911, while studying in Saint Petersburg, Johan Laidoner married Maria Skarbek-Kruszewska, a descendant of Polish nobility, whom he had met earlier in Vilnius.

Michael Johan Laidoner died on 21 April 1928, aged fifteen, from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head while alone in his bedroom.

Johan Laidoner then served at the Staff of the Caucasus Military District.

At the outbreak of World War I, Johan Laidoner served as staff aide of the 3rd Caucasus Army Corps.

In March 1915, Johan Laidoner was appointed to the senior staff of the 21st Infantry Division of the same corps.

In October 1915, he was made aide to the commander of the intelligence department of the Staff of the Western Front and on 15 August 1916, Johan Laidoner was promoted to the rank of Podpolkovnik.

On 5 January 1918, Johan Laidoner was appointed commander of the newly formed 1st Estonian Division.

On Estonia's first independence day on 24 February 1919, Johan Laidoner reported that the Soviet forces have been driven out of Estonia, as well as capturing over 6,000 men and 40 guns.

Johan Laidoner had a crucial role in organizing and training the army in a very short time as well as establishing an effective command structure within the armed forces.

Johan Laidoner served as the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee and was part of the Estonian delegation in the General Assembly of the League of Nations from 1922 to 1929, where he was known for his isolationist stance.

In 1925, Johan Laidoner was commissioned by the League of Nations to head a special mission to Iraq, investigating the allegations made against Turkey regarding the mistreatment and deportations of Christians in the Mosul region.

The report Johan Laidoner's committee submitted played an important role in demarcating the border between Turkey and Iraq.

Together with Pats and Kaarel Eenpalu, the Minister of the Interior, Johan Laidoner established an authoritarian rule, disbanding political parties and limiting free speech, the so-called "Era of Silence".

Johan Laidoner remained commander-in-chief of the armed forces and oversaw national defence politics.

Johan Laidoner's reforms included a large-scale weapons and equipment modernization program, expanding the military via conscription, and introduction of military training in universities.

On 16 April 1952, Johan Laidoner was sentenced to 25 years in prison.

Johan Laidoner was sent to Vladimir Central Prison, where he died on 13 March 1953.

Johan Laidoner was buried at the prison cemetery, but his remains have not been found.

Johan Laidoner died in Solikamsk labor camp on 26 November 1941 with chest trauma listed as the cause of death.

Maria Johan Laidoner was released in 1954 and was allowed to return to Estonia.

Johan Laidoner died in 1978 in Jamejala, near Viljandi, and was buried in Tallinn at Siselinna Cemetery, next to her son Michael.

Johan Laidoner has a number of monuments, memorials and places named after him.