[1] Born to a family of a military engineer, Major General Anton Kazimirovich Gertsyk.
In 1877, after graduating from a military school, he was promoted to ensign and assigned to the 16th separate rifle battalion.
In 1898, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and appointed battalion commander of the Pavlovsk Military School.
In 1915, he was promoted to lieutenant general and appointed commander of the 1st Guards Infantry Division, in the same year “For Distinction in Affairs Against the Enemy” he was awarded the Order of St. Anna of the 1st degree with swords.
Brother: Nikolai (1862–1914) – Colonel, commander of the 4th Grenadier Nesvizh Regiment, participant in the First World War.