At the Supreme Commander-in-Chief's Headquarters. Memories of an Admiral. 1914—1918

Rear Admiral Alexander Dmitrievich Bubnov dedicated his memoirs to the events of World War I. From the beginning of the war, he was at the Supreme Commander-in-Chief's Headquarters and served there until the October events of 1917. In July 1916, Bubnov was promoted to the rank of captain 1st class "for distinction in service." He became a rear admiral a year later, in July 1917, under the Provisional Government. He divides his service at the Headquarters into three periods: under Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolayevich, who headed the Russian army until August 1915; under Emperor Nicholas II, who took on the duties of the Supreme Commander himself; and under the authority of the Provisional Government, which replaced a number of commanders-in-chief within a few months after February 1917. A.D. Bubnov analyzes the course of military operations during this period and makes a number of interesting, albeit debatable conclusions. As a person directly involved in many events, he is well aware of the facts that remained unknown to outsiders. For instance, the saga of preparing for the Bosphorus operation, which unfortunately did not take place, is familiar to him in minute detail, as he himself worked on developing these plans at the Headquarters. In 1918, he managed to reach Odessa and join the White movement. Admiral Kolchak, who knew Bubnov well, included him in the delegation that was supposed to represent Russia's interests at the Versailles Peace Conference after the end of World War I. However, the Russian White delegation was not allowed to attend the conference; for the Allies, Russia had become a discarded card. Upon returning to Russia, A.D. Bubnov was appointed in 1919 as the chief of staff to the commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Admiral A.V. Nenyukov. In 1920, he left for emigration with his family, never to return to Russian shores...