the Latvian army. He was ordered to form a Latvian reserve battalion. After two months the battalion became a regiment. Later it became 2nd. Cēsis infantry regiment and Berķis was appointed as commander. In the May 1919 regiment was deployed to the front and participated in battles in Vidzeme. On 1 June, the regiment entered Valmiera and later Cēsis. After fighting in Battle of Cēsis the regiment chased retreating Germans until the Strazdumiža ceasefire. On 6 July with other Latvian units, the regiment entered Riga. In August Berķis was appointed commander of and promoted to colonel in October. He participated in all battles against Bermontians and later also in liberation of Latgale. Post-War years After Latvian War of independence he stayed in the military and continued his service as commander of 3rd. Latgale infantry division. In 1925 he was promoted to general. In 1930 he graduated 8 monthlong officer courses. Later he was moved to Army HQ. Berkis was one of Prime Minister Kārlis Ulmanis' principal co-conspirators in the coup d'état of May 15, 1934. After the coup he was appointed commander of 2nd. Vidzeme infantry division and commander of Riga garrison. He served as Commander-in-Chief of the Army from 1934 - 1940 and briefly became Minister of War in spring 1940. In his short term as minister he tried to promote Latvian cooperation with Estonia, Finland and even Great Britain, but it was too late. After the Soviet Latvian occupation he was dissmised from his post and retired from the army. Together with family he managed to get to Finland, however on 12 July he decided to return to Latvia. On his way back some friends managed to discourage Berķis from such move and he stopped in Tallinn. There he was arrested by the Soviet authorities and deported to Usollag, Molotov Oblast, Siberia, where he died in a prison hospital in 1942. His only child, Valentins, died in Russia, and their grandson went missing. Decorations Latvian military Order of Lāčplēsis, all three classes (1920, 1927, 1927) Lithuanian Order of the Cross of Vytis, 1st class French Order of the Legion of Honour Order of the White Rose of Finland 1st class Cross of Liberty (Estonia)1st class Order of Viesturs 1st class Order of the Three Stars, 1st and 2nd classes Orders of the Russian empire: Stanislav II, III class, Anna II, III, IV class, Vladimir IV class, Cross of