Juri Gilsher
Encyclopedia
Cavalry Second Lieutenant
Juri Vladimirovich Gilsher (29 November 1894 – 20 July 1917) was a Ukrainian
Russian
fighter ace
of World War I. Initially a cavalryman, but then an airman, Gilsher scored five victories between April and July 1917 before being killed in action
on 20 July, tied for twelfth on the list of Russia's highest-scoring aces of the war.
, in 1894, to a noble family. He enrolled in university and studied civil engineering
, however upon the outbreak of war he joined the Imperial Russian Army
, training as a cavalry
man at the Nikoliavsky Cavalry school, in which he enrolled on 13 December 1914, aged 20.
on 29 August 1915. He attended flight school at Gatchina
before being posted to the 4th Army Air Detachment on 19 November 1915. However, he was set back a few weeks later when his left hand was injured by a moving propeller
.
After recovering, he underwent advanced flight training in Odessa
and returned to active service on 5 April 1916, posted to the 7th Fighter Detachment. He scored two victories in April 1917, both on 13 April, when he downed (along with Lieutenant
Donat Makeenok
and Ensign
Vasili Yanchenko
, the latter being Russia's second highest-scoring ace of the war) two Hansa-Brandenburg C.I
aircraft. However, within five weeks of returning to duty, he suffered another accident; on 9 May 1916 he crashed his Sikorsky S-16. This led to the amputation
of his left leg. Despite calls for him to step down from active duty he continued to fly with a prosthetic leg. Remarkably, only six days after the amputation of his leg, he scored a third victory, an Oeffag C.III
near Boshovze.
After the accident he was appointed temporary commander of the 7th Fighter Detachment. He transferred to a Nieuport 21
, with a serial number of 1872, as opposed to the Sikorsky which he used to use. His final two victories came in July 1917 - firstly on 17 July near Posuchov. His final victory was on 20 July 1917 when he and Vasili Yanchenko
shared a victory near Tarnopol, in modern-day Ukraine
. However, Gilsher's Nieuport, in his combat with 15 Germans, was hit by enemy fire and it broke up, resulting in him falling to his death.
He is buried near Buchach
, in the Galicia region.
Cornet (military rank)
Cornet was originally the third and lowest grade of commissioned officer in a British cavalry troop, after captain and lieutenant. A cornet is a new and junior officer.- Traditional duties :The cornet carried the troop standard, also known as a "cornet"....
Juri Vladimirovich Gilsher (29 November 1894 – 20 July 1917) was a Ukrainian
Ukrainians
Ukrainians are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine, which is the sixth-largest nation in Europe. The Constitution of Ukraine applies the term 'Ukrainians' to all its citizens...
Russian
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
fighter ace
Fighter Ace
Fighter Ace was a massively multiplayer online computer game in which one flies World War II fighter and bomber planes in combat against other players and virtual pilots...
of World War I. Initially a cavalryman, but then an airman, Gilsher scored five victories between April and July 1917 before being killed in action
Killed in action
Killed in action is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their own forces at the hands of hostile forces. The United States Department of Defense, for example, says that those declared KIA need not have fired their weapons but have been killed due to...
on 20 July, tied for twelfth on the list of Russia's highest-scoring aces of the war.
Early life
Gilsher was born in Moscow, then part of the Russian EmpireRussian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
, in 1894, to a noble family. He enrolled in university and studied civil engineering
Civil engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including works like roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings...
, however upon the outbreak of war he joined the Imperial Russian Army
Imperial Russian Army
The Imperial Russian Army was the land armed force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian army consisted of around 938,731 regular soldiers and 245,850 irregulars . Until the time of military reform of Dmitry Milyutin in...
, training as a cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
man at the Nikoliavsky Cavalry school, in which he enrolled on 13 December 1914, aged 20.
Military career
After eight months as a cavalryman, Gilsher transferred to the Imperial Russian Air ForceImperial Russian Air Force
The Imperial Russian Air Force existed in the Russian Empire between 1910 and 1917....
on 29 August 1915. He attended flight school at Gatchina
Gatchina
Gatchina is a town and the administrative center of Gatchinsky District of Leningrad Oblast, Russia, located south of St. Petersburg by the road leading to Pskov...
before being posted to the 4th Army Air Detachment on 19 November 1915. However, he was set back a few weeks later when his left hand was injured by a moving propeller
Propeller (aircraft)
Aircraft propellers or airscrews convert rotary motion from piston engines or turboprops to provide propulsive force. They may be fixed or variable pitch. Early aircraft propellers were carved by hand from solid or laminated wood with later propellers being constructed from metal...
.
After recovering, he underwent advanced flight training in Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
and returned to active service on 5 April 1916, posted to the 7th Fighter Detachment. He scored two victories in April 1917, both on 13 April, when he downed (along with Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
Donat Makeenok
Donat Makeenok
Poruchik Donat Aduiovich Makeenok was a World War I flying ace credited with eight aerial victories. He was the only Polish-born ace to fight against the Central Powers....
and Ensign
Ensign
An ensign is a national flag when used at sea, in vexillology, or a distinguishing token, emblem, or badge, such as a symbol of office in heraldry...
Vasili Yanchenko
Vasili Yanchenko
Praporshik Vasili Ivanovich Yanchenko was a World War I flying ace credited with 16 aerial victories. He was the second ranking Russian ace, trailing only Aleksandr Kazakov. Yanchenko flew on the Eastern Front, gaining his first victory on 25 June 1916, and his last on 14 October 1917.Yanchenko...
, the latter being Russia's second highest-scoring ace of the war) two Hansa-Brandenburg C.I
Hansa-Brandenburg C.I
-See also:-References:# Munson, Kenneth - Bombers, Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft 1914 - 1919 ISBN 0 7537 0918 X# # # -External links:* ....
aircraft. However, within five weeks of returning to duty, he suffered another accident; on 9 May 1916 he crashed his Sikorsky S-16. This led to the amputation
Amputation
Amputation is the removal of a body extremity by trauma, prolonged constriction, or surgery. As a surgical measure, it is used to control pain or a disease process in the affected limb, such as malignancy or gangrene. In some cases, it is carried out on individuals as a preventative surgery for...
of his left leg. Despite calls for him to step down from active duty he continued to fly with a prosthetic leg. Remarkably, only six days after the amputation of his leg, he scored a third victory, an Oeffag C.III
Albatros C.III
-See also:-References:[1] Y. MIlanov: The aviation in Bulgaria in the wars from 1912 to 1945, Vol.I. Sveti Gueorgui Pobedonosetz, Sofia, 1995 -External links:...
near Boshovze.
After the accident he was appointed temporary commander of the 7th Fighter Detachment. He transferred to a Nieuport 21
Nieuport 21
|-See also:-Sources:* Keskinen, Kalevi; Partonen, Kyösti and Stenman, Kari: Suomen Ilmavoimat I 1918-27, 2005. ISBN 952-99432-2-9.* Donald, David: The Encyclopedia of World Aircraft, Aerospace Publishing, 1997. ISBN 1-85605-375-X....
, with a serial number of 1872, as opposed to the Sikorsky which he used to use. His final two victories came in July 1917 - firstly on 17 July near Posuchov. His final victory was on 20 July 1917 when he and Vasili Yanchenko
Vasili Yanchenko
Praporshik Vasili Ivanovich Yanchenko was a World War I flying ace credited with 16 aerial victories. He was the second ranking Russian ace, trailing only Aleksandr Kazakov. Yanchenko flew on the Eastern Front, gaining his first victory on 25 June 1916, and his last on 14 October 1917.Yanchenko...
shared a victory near Tarnopol, in modern-day Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. However, Gilsher's Nieuport, in his combat with 15 Germans, was hit by enemy fire and it broke up, resulting in him falling to his death.
He is buried near Buchach
Buchach
Buchach is a small city located on the Strypa River in the Ternopil Oblast of western Ukraine...
, in the Galicia region.
Decorations
- Order of St. GeorgeOrder of St. GeorgeThe Military Order of the Holy Great-Martyr and the Triumphant George The Military Order of the Holy Great-Martyr and the Triumphant George The Military Order of the Holy Great-Martyr and the Triumphant George (also known as Order of St. George the Triumphant, Russian: Военный орден Св...
, 4th Class - Order of St. VladimirOrder of St. VladimirThe Cross of Saint Vladimir was an Imperial Russian Order established in 1782 by Empress Catherine II in memory of the deeds of Saint Vladimir, the Grand Prince and the Baptizer of the Kievan Rus....
, 4th Class - Order of Saint StanislausOrder of Saint StanislausThe Order of Saint Stanislaus , also spelled Stanislas, was an Order in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and The Kingdom of Poland between 1765 and 1831 and of Russian Empire from 1831 to 1917.-History of the Order of Saint Stanislaus:Stanisław August Poniatowski, King of Poland, established the...
, 3rd Class - Order of St. AnneOrder of St. AnnaThe Order of St. Anna ) is a Holstein and then Russian Imperial order of chivalry established by Karl Friedrich, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp on 14 February 1735, in honour of his wife Anna Petrovna, daughter of Peter the Great of Russia...
, 4th Class - Gold Sword for BraveryGold Sword for BraveryThe Gold Sword for Bravery was a Russian Empire award for bravery. It was set up with two grades on 27 July 1720 by Peter the Great, reclassified as a public order in 1807 and abolished in 1917. From 1913 to 1917 it was renamed the St George Sword and considered as one of the grades of the Order...