Mihail Lascăr

Who was Mihail Lascăr?

Mihail Lascăr was a Romanian General during World War II and Romania's Minister of Defense from 1946 to 1947.

After graduating from the Infantry Officer School in 1910 with the rank of 2nd lieutenant, he fought in the Second Balkan War and in World War I, being promoted to major. He became colonel in 1934, and brigadier general in 1939.

On January 10, 1941, he was appointed commanding officer of the 1st Mountain Brigade, an elite military unit of the Third Army. On June 22, 1941, Operation Barbarossa commenced, with the Mountain Brigade entering Northern Bukovina. From there, Lascăr and his unit swung East, crossing the rivers Dniester, Bug, and Dnieper. He fought in the Battle of the Azov Sea, and then in the Battle of Crimea, remaining in charge of the Mountain Brigade until February 10, 1942. On March 11, 1942, he took charge of the 6th Division of the Romanian Third Army, and fought at the Battle of Stalingrad. He was taken prisoner on November 22, 1942, spending the years 1943-1945 in captivity in the Soviet Union.