Zhilinsky was born on March 15, 1853, in
Mikhaylov in the
Ryazan Governorate. His family were nobility from the
Smolensk Governorate, and he was born to Colonel Grigori I. Zhilinsky and Catherine Petrovna (née Muromtseva). In an early age, he attended the
Gymnasium Creiman in
Moscow. He joined active service as a cadet in the
Sumy Hussar Regiment. In 1876, he graduated from the in
St. Petersburg and was assigned to the Horse Guards Regiment of the
Imperial Guard as a
cornet. He was considered one of the best riders in the school and was in charge of training the regiment. In 1883, he graduated from
Nikolaev Academy of the General Staff at the first category. For excellent success, he was promoted to
captain. After serving as a senior aide to the staff of the 1st Grenadier Division, he served from 14 February 1894 on the Military Scientific Committee of the General Staff, a
military intelligence organization responsible for the study of foreign countries. During the
Spanish–American War Zhilinsky was a Russian
military observer with the
Spanish Army in
Cuba. On his return, he published a book on the war, which analyzed the causes of Spain's defeat. Zhilinsky was sent as a military representative to France from 1915 to 1916 and was recalled to Russia in the autumn of 1916. On 19 September 1917, he was ordered to retire. ==Honors==