Ivan Lorents
Encyclopedia
Ivan Leopoldovich Lorents was a Polish
-born Soviet diplomat
. He was born 2 October 1890 in Lodz
, Piotrków Governorate
and died 28 July 1941.
In 1913 Lorents graduated from the Faculty of Law at Saint Petersburg University and went on to study at the Mikhailovsk Artillery School, where he graduated in 1915. Subsequent to graduation, he went into service in the Russian Army
.
From March to June 1918, Lorents was attached to the People's Commissariat of Foreign Affairs of the RSFSR in Petrograd when was sent to Berlin
until November of that year to fulfill a position in Soviet Russia
's representative in Germany
.
He returned to Moscow
and worked for a month in the People's Commissariat of Foreign Affairs before joining the 15th Army on the Western Front for a year. In 1920, Lorents moved to Latvia
and served as Secretary to the Plenipotentiary Representative of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
to Latvia. He served in that position for a year before going to Poland
, where he fulfilled various positions.
From 29 August 1923 until 9 July 1925, he was Plenipotentiary Representative of the USSR in Lithuania, followed by Plenipotentiary Representative of the Soviet Union in Finland from 9 July 1925 until 6 July 1927. During his time in Finland, from 24 January 1927, he also was concurrent Plenipotentiary Representative of the USSR in Latvia, and held that position until 14 September 1929. From 17 March 1935 to 31 September 1938, was Plenipotentiary Representative of the Soviet Union in Austria
in Vienna
.
Upon his return to the Soviet Union
, Lorents was arrested on 15 October 1939 and sentenced to death on 7 July 1941 by the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court for participation in "counter-revolutionary terrorist organisations" and espionage
. He was executed on 28 July 1941 and buried in Kommunarka, Moscow Oblast
.
Lorents was posthumously rehabilitated
by the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court in April 1956.
Congress Poland
The Kingdom of Poland , informally known as Congress Poland , created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna, was a personal union of the Russian parcel of Poland with the Russian Empire...
-born Soviet diplomat
Diplomat
A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...
. He was born 2 October 1890 in Lodz
Lódz
Łódź is the third-largest city in Poland. Located in the central part of the country, it had a population of 742,387 in December 2009. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is approximately south-west of Warsaw...
, Piotrków Governorate
Piotrków Governorate
Piotrków Governorate was an administrative unit of the Congress Poland. Its capital was in Petrokov.-History:It was created in 1867, split off from parts of Radom and Warsaw Governorates.-Language:*By the Imperial census of 1897...
and died 28 July 1941.
In 1913 Lorents graduated from the Faculty of Law at Saint Petersburg University and went on to study at the Mikhailovsk Artillery School, where he graduated in 1915. Subsequent to graduation, he went into service in the 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...
.
From March to June 1918, Lorents was attached to the People's Commissariat of Foreign Affairs of the RSFSR in Petrograd when was sent to Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
until November of that year to fulfill a position in Soviet Russia
Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic , commonly referred to as Soviet Russia, Bolshevik Russia, or simply Russia, was the largest, most populous and economically developed republic in the former Soviet Union....
's representative in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
He returned to Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
and worked for a month in the People's Commissariat of Foreign Affairs before joining the 15th Army on the Western Front for a year. In 1920, Lorents moved to Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
and served as Secretary to the Plenipotentiary Representative of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic , commonly referred to as Soviet Russia, Bolshevik Russia, or simply Russia, was the largest, most populous and economically developed republic in the former Soviet Union....
to Latvia. He served in that position for a year before going to Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, where he fulfilled various positions.
From 29 August 1923 until 9 July 1925, he was Plenipotentiary Representative of the USSR in Lithuania, followed by Plenipotentiary Representative of the Soviet Union in Finland from 9 July 1925 until 6 July 1927. During his time in Finland, from 24 January 1927, he also was concurrent Plenipotentiary Representative of the USSR in Latvia, and held that position until 14 September 1929. From 17 March 1935 to 31 September 1938, was Plenipotentiary Representative of the Soviet Union in Austria
Ambassador of Russia to Austria
Russian–Austrian contacts began with Frederick III in 1436, and towards the end of the 15th century, Emperor Maximilian I and Ivan III exchanged diplomatic missions. Regular Russian communications with the Austrian court began in 1698, when Peter the Great led the Grand Embassy to Vienna and met...
in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
.
Upon his return to the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, Lorents was arrested on 15 October 1939 and sentenced to death on 7 July 1941 by the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court for participation in "counter-revolutionary terrorist organisations" and espionage
Espionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
. He was executed on 28 July 1941 and buried in Kommunarka, Moscow Oblast
Moscow Oblast
Moscow Oblast , or Podmoskovye , is a federal subject of Russia . Its area, at , is relatively small compared to other federal subjects, but it is one of the most densely populated regions in the country and, with the 2010 population of 7,092,941, is the second most populous federal subject...
.
Lorents was posthumously rehabilitated
Rehabilitation (Soviet)
Rehabilitation in the context of the former Soviet Union, and the Post-Soviet states, was the restoration of a person who was criminally prosecuted without due basis, to the state of acquittal...
by the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court in April 1956.