Russian chess legend who was at the height of his career before rankings were officially adopted and who was one of the first official Grandmasters in the game.
He earned a doctorate in law at Heidelberg University and later became a financial Lawyer.
He was caught fleeing Russia during the Bolshevik Revolution by the Checka and was ordered shot by a firing squad because he was a legal advisor to Bankers but was saved when the superior officer recognized him as a famous chess player.
He was raised in the pre-revolutionary Russian Empire.
He was believed to be an equal of early chess champion Emanuel Lasker.
