Dimitri Gamolt

Former leader of a rebel faction during the Kelonian War of Succession, Lt. Col. Dimitri Gamolt was twice acting Commander in Chief of Military Forces in Kelonia and acted as an advisor on guerrilla warfare to the Valor Quin Bahil and other Kelonian Special Forces units. He is now officially retired, and spends his time writing war novels based on his experiences fighting with Kelonian rebel forces.

Early Life/Rebel Warfare

Dimitri Mazalov Gamolt was born on June 16, 1940, in Azipyka, a town in north-western Paztrom, a few miles from the border with the Daylan Masyana panhandle. A keen and talented mechanic from an early age, his skills came in very useful for rebel forces began the War of Succession, initially armed mostly with dilapidated equipment in need of rapid repair. Gamolt initially acted only as a mechanic, covertly operating 'under the radar' of Royalist forces, but later took up arms himself, proving himself an inspirational leader. The rank of Lieutenant Colonel was easily earned by someone adept in the small rebel army he became loyal to, as they were a small-scale group who mostly leant numbers to larger forces rather than mounting assaults on their own, although in later stages of the war they did hold the Azipyka region mostly single-handedly with the help of more up-to-date equipment.

His main claim to fame in the war was his group's assistance of the rebel army led by Maksim Romaninko that successfully took the western half of the city of Pravon in less than a day from fleeing Royalist forces (though it is usually conveniently ignored that it took several weeks to break the strong Royalist holding in the eastern half of the city, across the Preznek River, a fact that turned Pravon into one of the bloodiest battles of the war), although his under-armed group's defence of Azipyka against a Royalist armoured column was near-heroic and owed as much to his astute tactical planning as it did to the dedication of his men.

Later Career

After the War of Succession, Gamolt commanded the 4th Infantry Division and, later, became second-in-command of the Valor Quin Bahil - both during the Kelonian Civil War. While in charge of the 4th Infantry, he was known for commanding from the front, often fighting alongside his men, until in 1981 he was wounded in the hip by enemy gunfire - he spent five months in rehabilitation and, for the second time, refused promotion to full Colonel to take the role of Deputy Commander of the Valor Quin Bahil, Kelonia's most elite Special Forces team. He still frequently visited the front, however he did not take part in combat for the remainder of the war.

In 1986, following the assassination of Gen. Gregor Dafarovic, Gamolt was given the temporary commission of General and made Acting Commander-in-Chief of the Kelonian Military, ruling himself out of the race for the permenant position almost immediately. After eight months he was replaced by Gen. Nivat Skurotko, who was himself assassinated in 1995, After which Gamolt was restored to the position for another six months. Again refusing to take the position permenantly, he did however accept the rank of full Colonel at long last, stepping down to current Commander-in-Chief Mikhail Suvatov after surviving an assassination attempt by Gurovnan seperatists - Suvatov being the first Commander-in-Chief not to have held a command position during either the War of Succession or the Kelonian Civil War, as well as (currently) the first full Commander-in-Chief appointed by the free government not to be assassinated while in office. Gamolt retired from the army officially six years ago, finally accepting a promotion to General as a formality prior to his retirement date, however he has since acted as a civilian advisor for the Valor Quin Bahil and written four novels chronicling his experiences during the two wars. He is also considering running for the position of Governor of Paztrom when the current Governor steps down.

Honours

According to the Official Kelonian Military Database, Dimitri Gamolt has been awarded the following medal(s) during the course of his career;

• 1x Geroysje Kakhrab Medyal (Heroic Conduct Medal - Equivalent of a Medal of Honor)
• 2x Pazran Deyatzve Medyal (Wounded in Action Medal - Equivalent of a Purple Heart)
• 4x Djoradya Slovyat Medyal (Distinguished Service Medal)
• 1x Layadne Medyal (Loyalty Medal)