 He was a member of the Knyazhevich family, which was a Russian family of Serbian origin that included his grandfather Dmitry, a notable writer, and great-uncle Alexander, who served as Minister of Finance under Alexander II.He served in the Russo-Japanese War and later World War I, during which he was promoted to Major General.In 1918 during the Russian Civil War, he was killed in battle against the Bolsheviks.