AVERESCO, ALEXANDER

(1858), Rumanian soldier, began his military career in war with Turkey (1877-8). He was military attaché at Berlin (1895-8), on his return being promoted brigadier, and then chief of the general staff. As minister of war (1907) he dealt succe fully with the peasant revolt, and during the war with Bulgaria (1913) he acted as chief of the general staff. On Rumania’s entry into the Great War (1916), Averesco commanded the army operating on left flank in Transylvania,. but he was transferred to the Dobrudja to meet an invading force. In Nov. 1916, when Mackensen had compelled a general retreat, he took supreme command of Rumanian forces before Bukharest. After fall of the capital he conducted further Rumanian retreat to the line of the Sereth, and in spite of defection of Ru ia, stubbornly resisted all attempts of the enemy to enter Moldavia. Cut off from allies and supplies, he counter-attacked brilliantly, and in the desperate battles of Mar as est i (Aug. 16-19, 1917) held the Sereth line intact, until, with Ru ia ranged on the side of her enemies after treaty of Brest-Litovsk (Feb. 1918), Rumania was forced to surrender. 14° 4’ £.), small lake, near Naples; crater of extinct volcano. Birds flying over it were said to fall dead, and through it Vergil’s AUuneas descended to Hades; close by is cave of sibyl of Cums.