History UsefulNotes / RomanVonUngernSternberg

* ''Literature/TheLaundryFiles'' (by Creator/CharlesStross): ''The Fuller Memorandum'' suggests that despite being a raving psychopath, he's the one who built the [[spoiler: Wall of Pain]] on the [[spoiler: dead plateau]] to keep the [[spoiler: Sleeper in the Pyramid]] contained and postpone [[spoiler: [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt CASE NIGHTMARE GREEN]]]], something that the Laundry didn't get around to until the 1970s with the [[spoiler: white elephants]]. The summoning of the [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Eater of Souls]] happened due to [[spoiler: carelessness by one of Ungern-Sternberg's subordinates]].

[[caption-width-right:300:[[http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/non_fictionreviews/3672047/Baron-Ungern-Sternberg-meteoric-nutter.html Baron Sternberg, meteoric nutter]]...]]

* HistoricalBadassUpgrade: Especially in alternate history fiction, it's common to depict him as a reasonably competent ruler rather than a delusional warlord. One imagines that in the eyes of many writers enthralled with his tale, all you're left with otherwise is a story about the crumbling rule of a loathsome incompetent psycho.

Going by the full name of Roman (Robert) Fyodorovich von Ungern-Sternberg (born Robert Nikolaus Maximilian Freiherr von Ungern-Sternberg, 10 January 1886 [29 December 1885 in the Old Style calendar] – 15 September 1921) (usually shortened to Roman von Ungern-Sternberg or just Ungern), this blood-soaked Russian warlord seems like a character from a pulp novel, but to his victims he was all too real. Born to a family of Baltic German nobles (these families formed the backbone of the Tsarist state), Ungern relished the ideals of absolute monarchy and feudalism. As Russia was modernized in leaps and bounds, Ungern delved ever more deeply into right-wing extremism and ancient mysticism. A most unorthodox Orthodox Christian, he also absorbed (and horribly misinterpreted) several Buddhist ideals, and showed a general fascination with East Asia.

* Creator/CharlesStross' ''Literature/TheFullerMemorandum'' suggests that despite being a raving psychopath, he's the one who built the [[spoiler: Wall of Pain]] on the [[spoiler: dead plateau]] to keep the [[spoiler: Sleeper in the Pyramid]] contained and postpone [[spoiler: [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt CASE NIGHTMARE GREEN]]]], something that the Laundry didn't get around to until the 1970s with the [[spoiler: white elephants]]. The summoning of the [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Eater of Souls]] happened due to [[spoiler: carelessness by one of Ungern-Sternberg's subordinates]].

Ungern wasn't a bully in school, [[HorrifyingTheHorror but rather one of the kids that scared even the bullies]]. He did badly in the military academy, too [[SpoiledBrat spoiled]] and unstable to [[CantTakeCriticism handle discipline]]. He jumped at the chance to fight the Japanese during the UsefulNotes/RussoJapaneseWar, but most of the conflict ended before he could get there. The seriousness of the situation did serve to drum at least a little bit of discipline into him, and Ungern, for all his Russian pride, admired the skill and courage of the [[UsefulNotes/KatanasOfTheRisingSun Imperial Japanese Army.]]

Perhaps seeing that the Whites were doomed, he led his cavalry forces into {{UsefulNotes/Mongolia}}. There he planned to create a new Mongol Horde, and use it to conquer Russia and usher in a new age of apocalyptic glory. At the time, Mongolia was a mess, reeling from the fallout of the Russian Civil War, as well as an [[UsefulNotes/NoMoreEmperors invasion from China]]. The Chinese had thrown out Mongolia's previous theocratic ruler, Bogd Khan (who was also considered a bodhisattva). The Mongols didn't like the Chinese (or Russians) very much. Ungern exploited the Mongol tensions and beliefs to conquer the region with his half-starved army of looters. He took the capital city by setting fires in the hills surrounding it, making his force seem much bigger than it actually was. This bluff crippled the already frightened Chinese garrison. After this, he was declared a khan with the approval of the Bogd Khan, who was probably wondering what he'd gotten himself into at this point.

Some famous people get their own Wiki/TVTropes page for being great scientists or politicians. Others for their military skill or artistry. A few get it for simply being so batshit insane that they can't be ignored. Guess which category [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_von_Ungern-Sternberg Baron von Ungern-Sternberg]] falls under?

Given his reactionary personality and political views, it's no surprise that Ungern joined the Whites, who were mainly defined by their opposition to the Bolshevik Reds. Most of the battles were fought in the icy abattoirs of Siberia, atrocities piling up on both sides. Wolves grew fat on human flesh while bandit soldiers terrorized the countryside in armored trains. He was eventually put in charge of Dauria, a remote spot on the Manchurian-Russian border. He ruled absolutely and with horrific violence--Jews were singled out for special brutality. The fact that Dauria doubled as an execution camp for Red prisoners served as another outlet for Ungern's violence. Even among a bunch as cruel as the White leaders, Ungern achieved a reputation for legendary sadism. Unlike the other Whites, he was an ascetic, and lived in the same conditions as his men. This was one of the reasons his soldiers stayed loyal to him in spite of his barbarity and obvious insanity. At this time, Ungern also took up an interest in fortune telling and opium smoking.

Ungern wasn't a bully in school, [[HorrifyingTheHorror but rather one of the kids that scared even the bullies]]. He did badly in the military academy, too [[SpoiledBrat spoiled]] and unstable to [[CantTakeCriticism handle discipline]]. He jumped at the chance to fight the Japanese during the Russo-Japanese War, but most of the conflict ended before he could get there. The seriousness of the situation did serve to drum at least a little bit of discipline into him, and Ungern, for all his Russian pride, admired the skill and courage of the [[UsefulNotes/KatanasOfTheRisingSun Imperial Japanese Army.]]

Some famous people get their own Wiki/TVTropes page for being great scientists or politicians. Others for their military skill or artistry. A few get it for simply being so batshit insane that they can't be ignored. Guess which category Baron Ungern-Sternberg falls under?

Ungern wasn't a bully in school, but rather one of the kids that scared even the bullies. He did badly in the military academy, too spoiled and unstable to handle discipline. He jumped at the chance to fight the Japanese during the Russo-Japanese War, but most of the conflict ended before he could get there. The seriousness of the situation did serve to drum at least a little bit of discipline into him, and Ungern, for all his Russian pride, admired the skill and courage of the [[UsefulNotes/KatanasOfTheRisingSun Imperial Japanese Army.]]

* Baron Sternberg has some popularity among russian Eurasianist and National Bolshevist circles. Dugin and Limonow frequently mention that guy in their works. (For example, on Dugins "recommended reading" list.) According to Limonows biographer Emmanuel Carrere, one reason why Limonow started working with Dugin was, because he hoped Dugin could provide more information about Baron Sternberg. It may seems like a Case of MisaimedFandom that a berserker who wanted to slaughter every bolshevik he could be find, would be idolized by the National Bolshevist party, but it can be suspected that Limonow sees this guy as a kind of crypto anarchist due to his leadership style.

** The SpinOff ''VideoGame/RedFlood'' (based on a DoubleBlindWhatIf in the original ''Kaiserreich'') features him as well, as the starting leader of a Central Asia country named "Imperial Authority" (part of a [[BalkanizeMe balkanized]] Mongolia).

%%!!Tropes as portrayed in fiction:

* He is the starting leader of Mongolia in the ''VideoGame/HeartsOfIron II''[=/=]''Darkest Hour''[=/=]''Hearts of Iron VI'' modification ''VideoGame/KaiserreichLegacyOfTheWeltkrieg'', an AlternateHistory where the Central Powers won World War I. Ungern-Sternberg Mongolia is quite aggressive in this mod, and has plans of [[TakeOverTheWorld conquering the world]], or at least half of Asia. In the ''IV'' version of the mod, Mongolia is in a quasi civil war state during the first months of the campaign, and whether Ungern remains in power or not is up to the Mongolia player.

* A thinly-veiled {{Expy}} of Ungern-Sternberg (named Ugenberg) is the BigBad of the AlternateHistory FPS game ''VideoGame/IronStorm''. Unlike the real Sternberg, this one succeeded in becoming a 20th century Genghis Khan, taking over large parts of Europe and Asia. The game's story is set in an alternate 1960s, a dystopian CrapsackWorld, where UsefulNotes/WorldWarI [[ForeverWar still rages on]] between [[TheEmpire Ugenberg's empire]] and a questionably democratic [[TheFederation league of free western states]].
* He is also featured on an Website/AlternateHistoryDotCom timeline called ''[[http://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=86666 20th Century Khan : A Timeline]]''. Yes, it's a slightly toned down version of the work above, but yeah...it's Ungern Khan surviving, eventually ruling over Mongolia, forging a deal with Japan, conquering Russia from Stalin, and even making Hitler shudder.
* Comicbook/CortoMaltese met him.
* ''Literature/ACentralEast'' mentions Ungern-Sternberg... in a footnote, where he is killed off. This was a minor TakeThat against his [[MemeticBadass 'fandom']] in the AH community at the time. Either that, or him being TooCoolToLive.
* He is also featured in ''The Clay Machine Gun'' (''Chapayev and Void'') by Victor Pelevin.

* ''Orange Buddha'' (Russian: ''Рыжий Будда'') by Sergey Markov is a fictionalized account of the Bolsheviks' campaign against Ungern.
* Soviet film ''Nomadic front'' (Russian: ''Кочующий фронт'') featured Ungern as one of the antagonists.
* Mongolian film ''Baron Ungern'' is an account of Baron's rule over that country.

* He is the starting leader of Mongolia in the ''VideoGame/HeartsOfIron II''[=/=]''Darkest Hour''[=/=]''Hearts of Iron VI'' modification ''VideoGame/KaiserreichLegacyOfTheWeltkrieg'', an AlternateHistory where the Central Powers won World War I. Ungern-Sternberg Mongolia is quite aggressive in this mod, and has plans of [[TakeOverTheWorld conquering the world]], or at least half of Asia. In the ''IV'' version of the mod, Mongolia is in a quasi civil war state during the first months of the campaign, and whether Ungern remains in power or not is up to the Mongolia player.
** ''VideoGame/{{Kaiserredux}}'', a DenserAndWackier submod for the ''Hearts of Iron IV'' version of ''Kaiserreich'', makes Ungern even crazier. He can crown himself the new Gengis Khan.[[note]]Like many of the ''Kaiserredux'' wacky content, this is based on former ''Kaiserreich'' canon which has been retconned to make the setting more plausible[[/note]]
** The SpinOff ''VideoGame/RedFlood'' (based on a DoubleBlindWhatIf in the original ''Kaiserreich'') features him as well, as the starting leader of a Central Asia country named "Imperial Authority" (part of a [[BalkanizeMe balkanized]] Mongolia).
* TSIDMZ, Italian post-atomic/electro-martial band issued an album called ''Ungern Von Sternberg Khan''.
* A Ukrainian BlackMetal band is named "Ungern" and has a song called "Sinister Warble of Baron Ungern".

* Baron Sternberg has some popularity among russian Eurasianist and National Bolshevist circles. Dugin and Limonow frequently mention that guy in their works. (For example, on Dugins "recommended reading" list.) According to Limonows biographer Emmanuel Carrere, one reason why Limonow started working with Dugin was, because he hoped Dugin could provide more information about Baron Sternberg. It may seems like a Case of MisaimedFandom that a berserker who wanted to slaughter every bolshevik he could be find, would be idolized by the National Bolshevist party, but it can be suspected that Limonow sees this guy as a kind of crypto anarchist due to his leadership style.
* Traditionalist Rene Guenon and Julius Evola also wrote about him.

* He is the leader of Mongolia in the ''VideoGame/HeartsOfIron II'' modification ''VideoGame/KaiserreichLegacyOfTheWeltkrieg'', an AlternateHistory where the Central Powers won World War I. Ungern-Sternberg Mongolia is quite aggressive in this mod, and has plans of [[TakeOverTheWorld conquering the world]], or at least half of Asia.