Paul Lill
Paul-Adolf Lill (25 January 1882 – 13 March 1942) was an Estonian military officer and Minister of War. He served in the Imperial Russian Army, participating in the Russo-Japanese War and World War I. Lill joined the Estonian Army during the 1918–1920 Estonian War of Independence, and held important staff positions. After the war he continued military service, holding posts of Chief of Staff of the Estonian Defence Forces, Undersecretary of the Minister of War, and from 1933 to 1939 Minister of War, reaching the rank of lieutenant general. With the onset of Soviet occupation, he was arrested by NKVD in 1941, and died in imprisonment the following year. Biography Paul Lill was born on 25 January 1882 to a family of a miller in Veski farm in Roobe Parish (now part of Tõrva Parish), Estonia, then part of the Governorate of Livonia of the Russian Empire. He studied 1891–1892 in Jõgeveste and 1892–1894 in Helme parish schools, and 1894–1899 in Valga town school. In 1900, Lill voluntarily joined the Imperial Russian Army, and studied from 1901 to 1904 in Vilnius Military School where he met Johan Laidoner, the future Commander‑in‑Chief of the Estonian Armed Forces. In 1905 Lill participated in Russo-Japanese War as a junior officer in the 6th Rifle Regiment. In 1907 he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant. From 1908 to 1911 Lill studied in Imperial Nicholas Military Academy in Saint Petersburg. After graduation he was promoted to staff captain and served in the staff of Odesa Military District. Having reached rank of captain in 1914, Lill participated in the First World War as a commander of 11th company of 95th Infantry Regiment, and was awarded the Order of Saint Anna and Order of Saint Stanislaus. In October 1914 he was captured in East-Prussia by the Imperial German Army, and was held as a prisoner of war until his release in December 1918. After release, Lill joined the Estonian Army engaged in the Estonian War of Independence, and became Chief of Operations Section of Operations Staff on 18 December 1918. In February 1919 he became temporary, and in May a permanent, Chief of Administrative Agency. In April Lill was promoted to rank of lieutenant-colonel, and in October to rank of colonel, becoming also a member of the War Council and commander of the Reserve Forces. For his service during the War of Independence, Paul Lill was awarded Estonia's Cross of Liberty and Latvia's Order of Lāčplēsis, as well as a farm and 300,000 marks. After the war Lill continued military service, becoming initially acting, and from October 1920 permanent Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces. In December 1921 he was promoted to rank of major general and became a member of the War Council. In January 1925 Lill became Undersecretary of the Minister of War, position which he held for the next 9 years. In 1933 he became Minister of Defence (from 1937 titled again Minister of War). In January 1938 Lill became member of