Theodor Avellan reached the top of the naval staff after a long career in which he appears to have avoided strategic controversy. Grand Duke Alexei's protected influence reduced the formal chief of staff to administration and rewarded an officer unlikely to ask what missions new ships were meant to perform. Avellan was not the main author of the disaster, but he was one of the officials positioned to demand more infrastructure. A theater logistics center and forward stockpiles along the single-track railway would have addressed the most obvious weakness of a fleet based so far from Russian industry.
Chapter · 43:05-48:19
Theodor Avellan administered without challenging strategy
The Russian naval chief of staff handled administration beneath Grand Duke Alexei but did not force the navy to justify procurement or build theater-level support.