Sex
Male
Status
Deceased
Mr Petro was a White Russian who had taken French Nationality. His wife, Barbara, was a friend of American writer Emily Hahn.
He was a supporter of the Free French. He joined the Volunteers on the penultimate day of the December 1941 hostilities, and was wounded in the leg. Later he escaped Hong Kong via Macau.
Source:
Emily Hahn, China to Me, 1987 ed., 257, 293, 368
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Vladimir PETRO-PAVLOVSKY
Vladimir is also spelled Wladimir, and Pavlovsky is also spelled Pavlovski.
Henry Ching writes:
I have found, on Tony Banham’s excellent Search Garrison lists, a Sub.Lt. W.Petro in the HKRNVR. A note says he was a White Russian with a French passport. He is said to have been admitted to the Queen Mary Hospital on 23rd December.
This list, https://www.academia.edu/2318232/THE_MOST_SECRET_LIST_OF_SOE_AGENTS_P, says he was an SOE agent in WW2, though it isn't clear whether he was already with the SOE in 1941 Hong Kong:
Wladimir PETRO-PAVLOVSKY - born 29.06.1897
Special Operations Executive: Personnel Files (PF Series). Wladimir PETRO-PAVLOVSKY - born 29.06.1897.
Collection: Records of Special Operations Executive
Date range: 01 January 1939 - 31 December 1946
Reference:HS 9/1156/7
Subjects:Oil and gas, Intelligence
That reference refers to a document held at the UK National Archive, see http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/SearchUI/Details?uri=C9215351, which may tell us more.
W. Petrov - author of Triple Commission
Vladimir Petro-Pavlovsky (pen name W. Petro) wrote a fantastic book of his early life published in 1968 "Triple Commission". He married Barbara Rose Shurman, daughter of Dr. Jacob Gould Shurman, foremer President of Cornell and US Minister to China. Fluent in French, Arabic, Russian, English, Chinese and a smattering of Yougoslavian dialect his wes an adventure filled life. His service in the OSS being one of the smaller adventures.
His own reporting on his service during the battle was brief. Arriving from Singapore with a new commission (his 3rd) he reported to Maltby who posted him as a 2LT in 2/14 Punjab Regiment. In a brief chapter on the battle he claims little glory but takes credit for the anecdote (reported elsewhere) of tracking the advance of Japanese troops by calling local police stations and asking if the Japanese were about.
Barbara is memorialised elsewhere on Gwelo.
If anyone had more information on this fascinating individual I would welcome the chance to learn more.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/25909420/wladimir-vassilievitch-pet…
Sir John Keswick, his White Russian deputy Vladimir Petropavlsky
Sir John Keswick was born in 1906 to the third generation of Keswick family in the Jardine, Matheson & Co. His father, Henry Keswick, son of William Keswick, was a Jardine tai-pan and a Conservative Member of Parliament. Sir John followed his father and grandfather into Jardine in 1929 at the age of 23. He worked in Shanghai from 1931 until the outbreak of the Second World War in Europe in 1939.
He then went to Chungking, the wartime capital of China and worked for the Minister of Economic Warfare in the wartime government, attached to the British Embassy as a Special Operations Executive (SOE) Oriental Mission's representative. He negotiated with Commander Chiang Kai-shek for SOE to develop training facilities including the Special Training School on his territory in January 1942.
But the relationship faltered soon after as the head of Chiang's intelligence service, General Tai Li and others insisted that the STS should be headed by a Chinese. As a result, Sir John and his White Russian deputy Vladimir Petropavlovsky were ordered to leave the country in 1943. He was transferred to Lord Mountbatten as a liaison officer with the Southeast Asia Command.
La Cloche tibétaine 1974…
La Cloche tibétaine 1974 Directed by Serge Friedman, Michel Wyn
Miniseries about the Citroen expeditions in 1931/1932 across Asia.
Youtube URL
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlfMLZAT_78mrug3pjS9B1XjRROTfzMRM
Vladimir Petropavlovsky (often called "Petro") was a Russian-born engineer, linguist, and former artillery officer who played a crucial role in the famous 1931–1932 Citroën Middle China Expedition (the Croisière Jaune or Yellow Cruise). He served as a vital interpreter, cartographer, and logistics planner, organizing safe passage and refueling across war-torn China.
Background and Role
Early Life: Born in Russia in 1897, Petropavlovsky became an artillery lieutenant at age 17 before later relocating and working across Asia.
The Citroën Mission: Citroën hired him for his deep knowledge of China, fluent language skills, and survival background.
Key Contributions: He successfully mapped routes, negotiated with local factions, and arranged fuel supply chains for the China-side team during the historic half of the trans-Asiatic caterpillar-track vehicle expedition