Aleksey Kuropatkin Alexei Nikolayevich Kuropatkin ( Russian : Алексей Николаевич Куропаткин , March 17 ( 29 ) 1848 - January 16 , 1925 ) was the Russia n Imperial Minister of War ( 1898 – 1904 ) who is often held responsible for major Russian drawbacks in the Russian - Japanese War , notably the Battle of Mukden and the Battle of Liaoyang . Biography . Early years . Kuropatkin was born in 1848 in what is now Pskov , in the Russian Empire . His father , a retired army captain , was of the landed gentry . Educated in the Cadet Corps and Pavlovsky Military School , Kuropatkin entered the army in 1864 . On August 8 , 1866 he was promoted to lieutenant in the 1st Turkestan Infantry Battalion , he participated in combat in the conquest of Bukhara , the storming of Samarkand and other battles in the Russian conquest of Turkestan . He was promoted to major in August 1870 . From 1872 to 1874 , Kuropatkin studied at the Nicholas General Staff Academy , after which he was dispatched as a military attaché to Berlin and Paris , completing his military studies , and with the French troops in Algiers , accompanying French expedition to Sahara . Returning to Russia in late 1875 , he was assigned to the Turkestan Military District . He was awarded the Order of St . George ( 4th class ) for his role in the Russian conquest of Kokand . From 1875 - 1876 , Kuropatkin was employed in a diplomatic mission to Yaqub Beg ( ruler of Kashgaria ) to resolve the issues of Russian border claims in the Fergana Valley . From September 1877 to September 1878 , he was Chief of Staff of the 16th Infantry Division . In August 1879 , he was commander of the Turkestan Rifle Brigade , which made an 18 - day march across 500 miles of desert to join General Mikhail Skobelev ’ s invasion of Turkmenistan . Kuropatkin led the main assault against the fortress - city of Geok Tepe on January 12 , 1881 . He was awarded the Order of St . George ( 3rd class ) for his victory in the battle . After the war he wrote a detailed and critical history of the operations which was highly regarded . Kuropatkin was promoted to major general on January 29 , 1882 . He joined the General Staff the following year , and was promoted to lieutenant general in 1890 . From 1890 - 1898 , Kurokatkin was governor of the Transcaspian Region in Central Asia , based in Askhabad . During his tenure , he was known to have developed trade , agriculture and towns in an area formerly known for endemic banditry and slavery . He established a local judicial and school system , and encouraged the settlement of colonists from the interior provinces of the Russian Empire . Minister of War . In 1898 , Kuropatkin was recalled to St . Petersburg and appointed War Minister . His first priority was to improving the command structure of the army , as well as living conditions of its officers . His reforms included measures to rejuvenate the army by setting age limits for the line officers and candidates for higher office , and by increasing the period of secondment of officers from the General Staff to combat units . He attempted to improve the quality of officers by raising the two - year cadet training program to three years , and by opening seven new cadet schools . He also increased the number of training maneuvers . However , with respect to the lower ranks , Kuropatkin ' s reforms fell short . While aware of the poor standards of food , clothing , and housing , he was unable to secure the necessary funds for improvements , so his activities were confined to improving morale through the increased use of chaplain s , the abolition of corporal punishment , and improved field kitchens . Russo - Japanese War . Kuropatkin was involved in the negotiations with the Empire of Japan before the Russo - Japanese War in 1904 . He did not support an armed conflict with Japan and opposed the Bezobrazov Circle . His views became firmer after a visit to Japan in June 1903 . Kuropatkin was heavily involved in the fiasco of the Russian land forces during the war . Although the rationale of his military approach was to wage a war of attrition and to avoid an offensive until the Trans - Siberian Railway brought sufficient troops and materiel , his cautiousness and hesitancy markedly influenced the repeated Russian defeats . Military historians consider his indecisiveness and organizational deficiencies in directing large - scale military operations as a major element in the Russian defeat . After the Russian defeat at the Battle of Mukden , Kuropatkin was relieved of command and handed over his post to Nikolai Linevich , formerly commander of the 1st Manchurian Army . However , he insisted that he stay at the front and was given permission to take over Linevich ' s old post . After the end of the Russo - Japanese War , in 1906 Kuropatkin served as a member of the State Council of Imperial Russia . However , in 1907 he retired to his country house , and wrote his own , yet candid , defense , which was published in a number of books in several languages . World War I . At the start of World War I , Kuropatkin requested to be reinstated and to be sent to the front ; however , his requests were blocked by Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich . Nevertheless , once Tsar Nicholas II assumed the post of Supreme Commander , he put Kuropatkin in charge of the Grenadier Corps in October , 1915 . At the end of January 1916 , he was appointed commander of the 5th Army , and in February 1916 , he became Commander of the Northern Front , in succession to General Pavel Plehve , whose health had broken down . In early March , his forces undertook a limited offensive near Riga , but was outflanked and forced to withdraw to the Dvina River . A second and larger offensive later that month only managed to advance a couple of kilometers . Tsar Nicholas II did not accept Kuropatkin ’ s excuses of a lack of artillery support , poor roads and bad weather . He planned a night attack which included setting up batteries of searchlights to blind the German defenders . Unfortunately , his men , on being sent ' over the top ' , were silhouetted and suffered thousands of casualties . Kuropatkin was relieved of command in July 22 , 1916 , and re - assigned to Turkestan , where he served as Governor - General of the Turkestan Military District as well as ataman of the Semirechye Cossacks . Support of the Russian effort in World War I , especially against the Ottoman Empire was extremely unpopular among the indigenous peoples of Turkestan ; however , Kuropatkin was very popular and helping suppress a major rebellion from erupting . Post Revolution . In the February Revolution of 1917 Kuropatkin was in St . Petersburg , and quickly pledged his allegiance to the Russian Provisional Government , cutting the royal insignia off of his uniform . He was confirmed in his post as commander of the Turkestan Military District by Provisional Government War Minister Alexander Guchkov . However , this was disputed by the Bolshevik Tashkent Soviet of Soldiers ' and Workers ' Deputies , who placed him under arrest and sent him back to St . Petersburg . He was freed by order of the Provisional Government and he returned to his home province . Following the October Revolution , he became very skilled at playing the violin and taught at an agriculture school that he had founded , until his death in 1925 .