Causes of the Civil War - a deep crisis of the social structure that developed during the late Romanov Empire, accompanied by an extreme degree of social class hatred of some sections of society towards others; the presence on both sides of political forces interested in inciting this hatred: on the part of the Reds, this is the Bolshevik Party, interested in establishing the dictatorship of the proletariat, on the part of the Whites, these are the nobility, the bourgeoisie and representatives of the Entente countries, interested in weakening Russia.
Main events and stages:
Before the start of the war (October 1917-spring 1918).
The triumphal procession of Soviet power; the creation of Soviet government bodies in most of the territory of Russia. Consolidation of anti-communist forces; the creation of the Volunteer Army in the south-west of Russia and the Semyonov organization in Manchuria.
The beginning of the war (March-December 1918)
The beginning of the intervention; Germany occupies Ukraine, Crimea, the Baltic states, British troops land in Murmansk, Japanese troops in the Far East. The uprising of the Czechoslovak Legion, with the support of which Socialist-Revolutionary organizations come to power in a number of cities along the Trans-Siberian Railway and Soviet power is liquidated. To the east of the Urals, the Siberian, Ural governments arise. The Semyonov organization occupies Transbaikalia. Ice campaign of the Volunteer Army to the south of Russia. Proclamation of Kolchak as the Supreme Ruler of Russia.
Active stage of the war (1919)
The advance of Kolchak's Eastern White Army into European Russia. The Whites are approaching Kazan and Samara. Yudenich's advance on Petrograd. AFSR advance to the north. By the end of the year, all three offensives were repulsed, and the counteroffensive of the Red Army was launched beyond the Urals. By the beginning of 1920, the Reds take Omsk, the Kolchakites flee from Omsk to the east. Denikin's army was thrown back to the south as a result of the battles near Orel, Kastorna, Tsaritsyn
End of the main part of the war (1920)
The victory of the Red Army is a foregone conclusion. The beginning of the offensive of the Red Army on the positions of the All-Union Socialist League in southern Russia. In Irkutsk, members of the Socialist-Revolutionary-Menshevik political center captured Admiral Kolchak, the remnants of Kolchak adjoin the troops of General Semyonov in Transbaikalia. Kolchak was handed over to the Bolsheviks and shot.
From January to March 1920, the Red Army completes the defeat of Denikin's army. By April, the south of Russia was cleared of the Whites, with the exception of the Crimea.
In April 1920, the Polish army invades Ukraine. The beginning of the Soviet-Polish war. In October - a peace treaty between the RSFSR and Poland: the division of Ukraine and Belarus into western and eastern. November - attack on the remnants of the White troops in the Crimea, the defeat of Wrangel.
End of the Civil War (1921-22)
Offensive in the Far East, the defeat of Semyonov, Ungern. Antonov uprising, uprising of sailors in Kronstadt.
By 1922, all anti-Soviet and anti-communist speeches were suppressed and Soviet power was restored in most of the territory of the former Russian Empire, with the exception of Poland, Finland, Western Ukraine and Belarus, the Baltic states, the Kars region. It became possible creation Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
Every Russian knows that in the Civil War of 1917-1922, two movements opposed - "red" and "white". But among historians there is still no consensus on how it began. Someone believes that the reason was Krasnov's March on the Russian capital (October 25); others believe that the war began when, in the near future, the commander of the Volunteer Army, Alekseev, arrived on the Don (November 2); there is also an opinion that the war began with the fact that Milyukov proclaimed the “Declaration of the Volunteer Army, delivering a speech at the ceremony, called the Don (December 27). Another popular opinion, which is far from unfounded, is the opinion that the Civil War began immediately after February Revolution when the whole society split into adherents and opponents of the Romanov monarchy.
Semyon Mikhailovich Budyonny - Soviet military leader, commander of the First Cavalry Army of the Red Army during the Civil War, one of the first Marshals of the Soviet Union.
He created a revolutionary cavalry detachment that acted against the White Guards on the Don. Together with the divisions of the 8th Army, they defeated the Cossack corps of Generals Mamontov and Shkuro. Troops under the command of Budyonny (14th Cavalry Division Gorodovikov O.I.) took part in the disarmament of the Don Corps Mironov F.K.
Post-war activities:
Budyonny is a member of the Revolutionary Military Council, and then deputy commander of the North Caucasian Military District. Budyonny became the "godfather" of the Chechen Autonomous Region Budyonny is appointed assistant to the commander-in-chief of the Red Army for cavalry and a member of the Revolutionary Military Council of the USSR. Red Army cavalry inspector. Graduates from the Military Academy. M. V. Frunze. Budyonny commanded the troops of the Moscow Military District. Member of the Main Military Council of the NPO of the USSR, Deputy People's Commissar. First Deputy People's Commissar of Defense
Blucher V.K. (1890-1938)
Vasily Konstantinovich Blucher - Soviet military, state and party leader, Marshal of the Soviet Union. Cavalier of the Order of the Red Banner No. 1 and the Order of the Red Star No. 1.
He commanded the 30th Infantry Division in Siberia and fought against the troops of A. V. Kolchak.
He was the head of the 51st Infantry Division. Blucher was appointed commander of the 51st Rifle Division, which was transferred to the reserve of the High Command of the Red Army. In May, he was appointed head of the West Siberian sector of the VOKhR. Appointed Chairman of the Military Council, Commander-in-Chief of the People's Revolutionary Army of the Far Eastern Republic and Minister of War of the Far East.
Post-war activities:
He was appointed commander of the 1st Rifle Corps, then - commandant and military commissar of the Petrograd fortified area.
In 1924 he was seconded to the Revolutionary Military Council of the USSR
In 1924 he was sent to China
Participated in the planning of the Northern campaign.
He served as assistant commander of the Ukrainian military district.
In 1929 he was appointed commander of the Special Far Eastern Army.
During the fighting near Lake Khasan, he led the Far Eastern Front.
Tukhachevsky M.N. (1893-1937)
Voluntarily joined the Red Army, worked in the Military Department of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee. He joined the RCP(b), was appointed military commissar of the Moscow Defense District. Appointed commander of the 1st Army of the Eastern Front being created. Commanded the 1st Soviet Army. Appointed Assistant Commander of the Southern Front (SF). Commander of the 8th Army of the Southern Front, which included the Inza Rifle Division. Takes command of the 5th Army. Appointed commander of the Caucasian Front.
Kamenev S.S. (1881-1936)
Since April 1918 in the Red Army. Appointed military head of the Nevelsky district Western section curtain squads. From June 1918 - commander of the 1st Vitebsk Infantry Division. Appointed military leader of the Western section of the curtain and at the same time military instructor of the Smolensk region. Commander of the Eastern Front. He led the offensive of the Red Army on the Volga and the Urals. Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Republic.
Post-war activities:
Red Army Inspector. Chief of Staff of the Red Army. Chief Inspector. Head of the Main Directorate of the Red Army, chief head of the tactics cycle of the Military Academy. Frunze. At the same time a member of the Revolutionary Military Council of the USSR. Deputy People's Commissar for Military and Naval Affairs and Deputy Chairman of the Revolutionary Military Council of the USSR. He was admitted to the CPSU (b). He was appointed head of the Air Defense Directorate of the Red Army
Vatsetis I.I. (1873-1938)
Ioakim Ioakimovich Vatsetis - Russian, Soviet military leader. Commander of the 2nd rank.
After the October Revolution, he went over to the side of the Bolsheviks together. He was the head of the operational department of the Revolutionary Field Headquarters at the Headquarters. He led the suppression of the rebellion of the Polish corps of General Dovbor-Musnitsky. Commander of the Latvian Rifle Division, one of the leaders of the suppression of the Left SR rebellion in Moscow in July 1918. Commander of the Eastern Front, Commander-in-Chief of all the Armed Forces of the RSFSR. Simultaneously commander of the Army of Soviet Latvia. Since 1921, he has been teaching at the Military Academy of the Red Army, commander of the 2nd rank.
Post-war activities:
July 28, 1938 on charges of espionage and participation in a counter-revolutionary terrorist organization by the Military Collegium Supreme Court The USSR was sentenced to death.
Chapaev V.I. (1887-1919)
Elected to the regimental committee, to the council of soldiers' deputies. Joined the Bolshevik Party. Appointed commander of the 138th regiment. He was a member of the Kazan Congress of Soldiers' Soviets. He became the commissar of the Red Guard and the head of the garrison in Nikolaevsk.
Chapaev suppressed a number of peasant uprisings. He fought against the Cossacks and the Czechoslovak Corps. Chapaev commanded the 25th Infantry Division. His division liberated Ufa from Kolchak's troops. Chapaev participated in the battles to unblock Uralsk.
Formation of the White Army:
It began to form on November 2, 1917 in Novocherkassk of the General Staff by General M. V. Alekseev under the name “Alekseevskaya organization. From the beginning of December 1917, General L. G. Kornilov, who arrived on the Don of the General Staff, joined in the creation of the army. At first, the Volunteer Army was staffed exclusively by volunteers. Up to 50% of those who signed up for the army were chief officers and up to 15% were staff officers, there were also cadets, cadets, students, high school students (more than 10%). Cossacks were about 4%, soldiers - 1%. From the end of 1918 and in 1919-1920, due to mobilizations in the territories controlled by the whites, the officer cadre lost its numerical predominance; peasants and captured Red Army soldiers during this period made up the bulk of the military contingent of the Volunteer Army.
December 25, 1917
received the official name "Volunteer Army". The army received this name at the insistence of Kornilov, who was in a state of conflict with Alekseev and dissatisfied with the forced compromise with the head of the former "Alekseevskaya organization": the division of spheres of influence, as a result of which, when Kornilov assumed full military power, Alekseev still remained political leadership and finances. By the end of December 1917, 3 thousand people signed up for the army as volunteers. By mid-January 1918, there were already 5 thousand of them, by the beginning of February - about 6 thousand. At the same time, the combat element of the Dobroarmiya did not exceed 4½ thousand people.General M.V. Alekseev of the General Staff became the supreme leader of the army, and General Lavr Kornilov became the commander-in-chief of the General Staff.
Uniform of the Whites
The uniform of the White Guards, as you know, was created on the basis of the military uniform of the former tsarist army. Caps or hats were used as a headdress. In the cold season, a cap - cloth was worn over the cap. The tunic remained an integral attribute of the uniform of the White Guards - a loose shirt with a standing collar, made of cotton fabric or fine cloth. On it you could see shoulder straps. Another important element of the uniform of the White Guards is the overcoat.
Heroes of the White Army:
Wrangel P.N.
Denikin A.I.
Dutov A.I.
Kappel V.O.
Kolchak A.V.
Kornilov L.G.
Krasnov P.N.
Semenov G.M.
Wrangel P.N. (1878-1928)
Pyotr Nikolaevich Wrangel - Russian military leader, participant in the Russian-Japanese and World War I, one of the main leaders of the White movement during the Civil War. Entered the Volunteer Army. During the 2nd Kuban campaign he commanded the 1st cavalry division, and then the 1st cavalry corps. He commanded the Caucasian Volunteer Army. He was appointed commander of the Volunteer Army, operating in the Moscow direction. Ruler of the South of Russia and Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Army. Since November 1920 - in exile.
Post-war activities:
In 1924, Wrangel created the Russian All-Military Union (ROVS), which united most of the participants in the White movement in exile.
In September 1927, Wrangel moved with his family to Brussels. He worked as an engineer in one of the Brussels firms.
April 25, 1928 died suddenly in Brussels, after a sudden infection with tuberculosis. According to the assumptions of his relatives, he was poisoned by the brother of his servant, who was a Bolshevik agent.
Denikin A.I. (1872-1947)
He took part in the organization and formation of the Volunteer Army. Appointed head of the 1st Volunteer Division. In the 1st Kuban campaign, he acted as Deputy Commander of the Volunteer Army, General Kornilov. He became the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the South of Russia (VSYUR).
1920 - moved to Belgium
The 5th volume of "Essays on Russian Troubles" was completed by him in 1926 in Brussels.
In 1926 Denikin moved to France and took up literary work.
Since 1936 he began to publish the newspaper "Volunteer".
On December 9, 1945, in America, Denikin spoke at numerous meetings and addressed a letter to General Eisenhower with a call to stop the forced extradition of Russian prisoners of war.
Kappel V.O. (1883-1920)
Kolchak A.V. (1874-1920)
Alexander Vasilievich Kolchak - Russian oceanographer, one of the largest polar explorers, military and political figure, naval commander, admiral, leader of the White movement.Established military regime
dictatorships in Siberia, the Urals and the Far East, liquidated by the Red Army and partisans. Member of the board of the CER. He was appointed military and naval minister of the government of the Directory. was elected the Supreme Ruler of Russia with the production of full admirals. Kolchak was shot along with the Chairman of the Council of Ministers V.N. Pepelyaev at 5 o'clock in the morning on the banks of the Ushakovka River.
Kornilov L.G. (1870-1918)
Commander of the established Volunteer Army. Killed on 04/13/1918 during the assault on Yekaterinodar (Krasnodar) in the 1st Kuban (Ice) campaign.
Krasnov P.N. (1869-1947)
Pyotr Nikolaevich Krasnov - General of the Russian imperial army, chieftain Great Don Army, military and political figure, famous writer and publicist.
Don army Krasnov occupied the territoryRegions of the Don Cossacks, knocking out parts Red Army and he was elected chieftain Don Cossacks. The Don army in 1918 was on the verge of death, and Krasnov decided to unite with the Volunteer Army under the command of A. I. Denikin. Soon Krasnov himself was forced to resign and went toNorthwest Army Yudenich , based in Estonia.
Post-war activities:
Emigrated in 1920. Lived in Germany, near Munich
Since November 1923 - in France.
Was one of the foundersBrotherhood of Russian Truth»
Since 1936 lived in Germany.
Since September 1943 the chief Main Directorate Cossack troops Imperial Ministry of Eastern Occupied Territories Germany.
In May 1945 surrendered to the British.
He was transferred to Moscow, where he was kept in the Butyrka prison.
By verdict Military Collegium of the Supreme Court of the USSRP. N. Krasnov hanged in Moscow, inLefortovo prison January 16, 1947.
Grigory Mikhailovich Semyonov - Cossack ataman, leader of the White movement in Transbaikalia and the Far East,lieutenant general white army . Continued to form Transbaikalia equestrian Buryat-Mongolian Cossack detachment. Three new regiments were formed in Semyonov's troops: the 1st Ononsky, the 2nd Akshinsko-Mangutsky and the 3rd Purinsky. Was created military school for junkers . Semyonov was appointed commander of the 5th Amur Army Corps. Appointed commander of the 6th East Siberian Army Corps, assistant to the chief commander of the Amur Territory and assistant commander troops of the Amur Military District, commander of the troops of the Irkutsk, Trans-Baikal and Amur military districts.In 1946 he was sentenced to death.
Yudenich N.N. (1862-1933)
In June 1919 Kolchak appointed him commander-in-chief of the North-West. army formed by the Russian White Guards in Estonia, and became part of the Russian White Guard North-Western government formed in Estonia. Undertook from the north-west. army second campaign against Petrograd. The offensive was defeated near Petrograd. After the defeat of the north-west. army, was arrested by General Bulak-Balakhovich, but after the intervention of the allied governments, he was released and went abroad. Died frompulmonary tuberculosis.
Results of the Civil War
In a fierce armed struggle, the Bolsheviks managed to keep power in their hands. All state formations that arose after the collapse of the Russian Empire were liquidated, with the exception of Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Finland.
The First World War laid bare the enormous internal problems of the Russian Empire. The consequence of these problems was a series of revolutions and the Civil War, in the main conflict of which the “reds” and “whites” clashed. In a mini-cycle of two articles, we will try to remember how this confrontation began and why the Bolsheviks managed to win.
The centennial anniversaries of the February and October revolutions, as well as the events that followed them, are just around the corner. In the mass consciousness, despite the many films and books about 1917 and the Civil War, and perhaps thanks to them, there is still no single picture of the unfolding confrontation. Or vice versa, it boils down to "there was a revolution, and then the Reds propagandized everyone and kicked the whites in a mob." And you can’t argue - everything was about the same. However, anyone who tries to delve a little deeper into the situation will have a number of fair questions.
Why, in a matter of years, or rather even months, did a single country turn into a battlefield and civil unrest? Why do some people win and others lose?
And finally, where did it all begin?
By the beginning of the twentieth century, Russia seemed (and in many ways was) one of the leading countries in the world. Without her weighty word, issues of war and peace were not resolved, her army and navy were taken into account when planning future clashes, all the great powers. Some feared the Russian "steam roller", others hoped for it as the last argument in the battles of the peoples.
The first alarm bell rang in 1904-1905 - with the beginning Russo-Japanese War. A huge, strong world-class empire actually lost its fleet in one day and with great difficulty was able not to lose to smithereens on land. And to whom? Tiny Japan, despised by all Asians, who from the point of view of cultural Europeans were not considered people at all and half a century before these events lived under natural feudalism, with swords and bows. This was the first wake-up call, which (as viewed from the future) actually painted the contours of future military operations. But then no one began to listen to the formidable warning (as well as to the forecasts of Ivan Bliokh, to which a separate article will be devoted). The first Russian revolution clearly showed to everyone the vulnerability of the political system of the empire. And the "wishers" drew conclusions.
"Breakfast of a Cossack" - a cartoon from the time of the Russo-Japanese War
In fact, fate gave Russia almost a whole decade to prepare for future trials, relying on the Japanese "test of the pen." And it cannot be said that absolutely nothing has been done. It was done, but ... too slowly and fragmentarily, too inconsistently. Too slow.
The year 1914 was approaching...
As has been repeatedly described in the most different sources, none of the participants in the First World War expected that the confrontation would be long - many probably remember famous phrase about the return "before the autumn leaf fall." As is usually the case, military and political thought was far behind developing economic and technological possibilities. And for all the participants it turned out to be a shock that the conflict dragged on, the escalation of "gentleman's" military operations into a high-tech industry of turning people into dead people. One of the most important consequences of this was the notorious "shell hunger" or, if we cover the problem more broadly, a catastrophic shortage of everything and everything that is necessary for the conduct of hostilities. Huge fronts and millions of fighters with many thousands of guns, like Moloch, demanded a total economic sacrifice. And each participant had to solve the grandiose problem of mobilization.
The shock hit everyone, but Russia was especially hard. It turned out that behind the façade of the world empire there is a not so attractive underside - an industry that cannot master the mass production of engines, cars and tanks. Everything was not as bad as categorical opponents of "rotten tsarism" often draw (for example, the need for three-inch rifles and rifles was more or less met), but on the whole, the imperial industry was not able to satisfy the needs of the army in most vital positions - light machine guns, heavy artillery, modern aviation, vehicles and so on.
British tanks from World War IMark IVat the Oldbury Carriage Works
photosofwar.net
A more or less adequate production of aviation on its own industrial base, the Russian Empire could deploy at best by the end of 1917, with the commissioning of new defense plants. The same goes for light machine guns. Copies of French tanks were expected at best in 1918. In France alone, already in December 1914, hundreds of aircraft engines were produced, in January 1916 the monthly output exceeded a thousand - and in Russia in the same year it reached 50 pieces.
A separate problem was the transport collapse. The road network, covering a huge country, was forced to be poor. It turned out to be only half of the task to produce or receive strategic cargo from the allies: then it was still necessary to distribute them with epic labors and deliver them to the addressees. The transport system did not cope with this.
Thus, Russia turned out to be the weak link of the Entente and the great powers of the world as a whole. She could not rely on a brilliant industry and skilled workers, like Germany, on the resources of the colonies, like Britain, on a powerful industry untouched by war and capable of gigantic growth, like the States.
As a result of all the aforementioned ugliness and many other reasons that were forced to remain outside the scope of the narrative, Russia suffered disproportionate losses in people. The soldiers simply did not understand what they were fighting and dying for, the government was losing prestige (and then just elementary trust) within the country. The death of most of the trained personnel - and, according to the grenadier captain Popov, by 1917 we had "armed people" instead of the army. Almost all contemporaries, regardless of beliefs, shared this point of view.
And the political "climate" was a real disaster film. The murder of Rasputin (more precisely, his impunity), for all the odiousness of the character, clearly shows the paralysis that has overtaken the entire state system of Russia. And in few places the authorities were so openly, seriously and, most importantly, accused with impunity of treason and helping the enemy.
It cannot be said that these were specifically Russian problems - the same processes were going on in all the warring countries. Britain received the Easter Rising of 1916 in Dublin and another aggravation of the "Irish question", France - mass riots in parts after the failure of the Nivelle offensive in 1917. The Italian front in the same year was generally on the verge of a total collapse, and it was saved only by emergency "infusions" of British and French units. Nevertheless, these states had a margin of safety of the public administration system and some kind of "credibility" among their population. They were able to hold on - or rather hold out - long enough to make it to the end of the war - and win.
A Dublin street after the 1916 uprising.The People's War Book and Pictorial Atlas of the World. USA & Canada, 1920
And in Russia, the year 1917 came, in which two revolutions fell at once.
“Everything turned right upside down. The formidable authorities turned into timid - confused, yesterday's monarchists - into orthodox socialists, people who were afraid to say an extra word for fear of badly connecting it with the previous ones, felt the gift of eloquence in themselves, and the deepening and expansion of the revolution in all directions began ... The confusion was complete. The overwhelming majority reacted to the revolution with confidence and joy; for some reason, everyone believed that she would bring with her, along with other benefits, an early end to the war, since the “old regime system” played into the hands of the Germans. And now everyone will decide the public and talents ... and everyone began to feel the hidden talents in himself and try them in relation to the orders of the new system. How heavy these first months of our revolution are remembered. Every day, somewhere deep in the heart, something was torn off with pain, what seemed unshakable collapsed, what was considered sacred was desecrated.
Konstantin Sergeevich Popov "Memoirs of a Caucasian grenadier, 1914-1920".
The civil war in Russia began far from immediately and grew out of the flames of general anarchy and chaos. Weak industrialization has already brought a lot of troubles to the country, and continued to bring further. This time - in the form of a predominantly agrarian population, "peizan" with their specific view of the world. Hundreds of thousands of peasant soldiers returned arbitrarily, without obeying anyone, from the collapsing army. Thanks to the “black redistribution” and the multiplication by zero of the landlords with fists, the Russian peasant finally literally ate, and also managed to satisfy the eternal craving for the “land”. And thanks to some kind of military experience and weapons brought from the front, he could now defend himself.
Against the background of this boundless sea of peasant life, extremely apolitical and alien to the color of power, political opponents, trying to turn the country in their own direction, were at first lost like pitfalls. They simply had nothing to offer the people.
Demonstration in Petrograd
sovetclub.ru
The peasant was indifferent to any power, and only one thing was required of her - if only "the peasant was not touched." They bring kerosene from the city - good. But they don’t bring it - and we’ll live like that, anyway, the city people start to starve, so they themselves will crawl. The village knew too well what hunger was. And she knew that only she had the main value - bread.
And in the cities a real hell was really going on - only in Petrograd the mortality rate increased more than four times. With the paralysis of the transport system, the task of "simply" bringing already collected bread from the Volga region or Siberia to Moscow and Petrograd was an act worthy of the exploits of Hercules.
In the absence of any single authoritative and strong center capable of bringing everyone to a common denominator, the country was rapidly sliding into a terrible and all-encompassing anarchy. In fact, in the first quarter of the new, industrial twentieth century, the times of the Thirty Years' War were revived, when gangs of marauders raged amidst chaos and general misfortune, changing the faith and color of the banners with the ease of changing socks - if not more.
However, as is known, two main opponents crystallized out of the variety of motley participants in the great turmoil. Two camps that unite most of the extremely heterogeneous currents.
White and Red.
Psychic attack - frame from the film "Chapaev"
Usually they are presented in the form of a scene from the movie "Chapaev": well-trained monarchist officers dressed to the nines against workers and peasants in tatters. However, one must understand that initially both the “whites” and the “reds” were essentially just declarations. Both of them were very amorphous formations, tiny groups that seemed big only against the background of absolutely wild gangs. At first, a couple of hundred people under a red, white or any other banner already represented a significant force capable of capturing a large city or changing the situation on a regional scale. Moreover, all participants actively changed sides. And yet, there was already some kind of organization behind them.
The Red Army in 1917 - drawing by Boris Efimov
http://www.ageod-forum.com/
It would seem that the Bolsheviks in this confrontation were doomed from the very beginning. The Whites surrounded a relatively small piece of “red” land in a dense ring, took control of the grain-growing regions, enlisted the support and help of the Entente. Finally, the whites outnumbered the red opponents on the battlefield, and regardless of the balance of power.
It seemed that the Bolsheviks were doomed...
What happened? Why were memoirs in exile written mostly by "gentlemen" and not "comrades"?
We will try to answer these questions in the continuation of the article.
The seizure of power by the Bolsheviks marked the transition of civil confrontation into a new, armed phase - civil war. With the help of weapons, a new government was established in the Cossack regions of the Don, Kuban, and the South Urals. At the head of the anti-Bolshevik movement on the Don stood Ataman A.M. Kaledin. He declared the insubordination of the Don Cossacks to the Soviet government. Everyone dissatisfied with the new regime began to flock to the Don. At the end of November 1917 General M.V. Alekseev began the formation of the Volunteer Army to fight the Soviet regime.
This army marked the beginning of the white movement, so named in contrast to the red revolutionary. White color as a symbol of law and order. Simultaneously with the anti-Soviet speeches on the Don, the movement of the Cossacks in the South Urals began. Ataman A.I. stood at its head. Dutov. In Transbaikalia, the fight against the new government was led by ataman G.S. Semenov. However, the protests against the Soviet regime, although they were fierce, were spontaneous and scattered, did not enjoy the mass support of the population and took place against the backdrop of a relatively quick and peaceful establishment of the power of the Soviets almost everywhere. Therefore, the rebellious chieftains were defeated fairly quickly. A civil war is a clash of various political forces, social and ethnic groups, individuals defending their demands under banners of various colors and shades. Causes of the defeat of the white movement. The leaders of the white movement failed to offer the people a sufficiently constructive and attractive program. In the territories they controlled, the laws of the Russian Empire were restored, property was returned to its former owners. In addition, one of the reasons for the defeat was the moral decay of the army, the application to the population of measures that did not fit into the white code of honor: robberies, pogroms, punitive expeditions, violence. One of the main provisions of the Bolshevik doctrine was the statement about the inseparable connection between the revolution and the civil war. January 15, 1918 Decree of the Council of People's Commissars proclaimed the creation of the Workers 'and Peasants' Army. On January 29, a decree was adopted on the organization of the Red Fleet. In July 1918 Decree on universal military service of the male population aged 18 to 40 was published. In September 1918 a unified command and control structure for fronts and armies was created. In the first half of May 1919, when the Red Army won decisive victories. The real danger for the Bolsheviks was Denikin's Volunteer Army, which captured by June 1919. Donbass, a significant part of Ukraine, Belgorod, Tsaritsyn. In July, Denikin's offensive against Moscow began. In September, the "whites" entered Kursk and Orel, occupied Voronezh. The critical moment for the Bolshevik power has come. Another wave of mobilization of forces and means began under the motto: "Everyone to fight Denikin!" The First Cavalry Army of S.I. played an important role in changing the situation at the front. Budyonny. Significant assistance to the Red Army was provided by insurgent peasant detachments led by N.I. Makhno, who deployed a "second front" in the rear of Denikin's army. The rapid offensive of the "Reds" in the fall of 1919. led to the division of the Volunteer Army into two parts - Crimean and North Caucasian. February-March 1920 its main forces were defeated and the Volunteer Army itself ceased to exist. A significant group of "whites" led by General Wrangel took refuge in the Crimea. In November 1920 troops of the Southern Front under the command of M.V. The Frunze crossed the Sivash and, breaking through the defensive forces of Wrangel on the Perekop Isthmus, broke into the Crimea. The last battle between the "Reds" and "Whites" was especially furious and cruel. The remnants of the once formidable Volunteer Army rushed to the ships of the Black Sea squadron concentrated in the Crimean ports. Almost 100 thousand people were forced to leave their homeland. The civil war ended with the victory of the Reds.
32. The policy of "war communism" and its consequences.
Social economic policy Soviet power in the period 1918-1920. has undergone significant changes due to the need to concentrate all material and human resources to defeat enemies. December 2, 1918 Decree on the dissolution of the committees was promulgated. The dissolution of the committees of the rural poor was the first step towards the policy of appeasing the middle peasantry. January 11, 1919 Decree "On the allocation of bread and fodder" was issued. According to this decree, the state reported in advance the exact figure of its needs for grain. Then this number was distributed (distributed) among the provinces, counties, volosts and peasant households. The implementation of the grain procurement plan was mandatory. Moreover, the surplus did not come from the possibilities farms, but from very conditional "state needs", which in fact meant the withdrawal of all surplus grain, and often the necessary stocks. In 1920 surplus appropriation extended to potatoes, vegetables and other agricultural products. In the region of industrial production a course was taken for the accelerated nationalization of all industries. Proclaiming the slogan "Who does not work, he does not eat", Soviet authority introduced universal labor conscription and labor mobilization of the population for the performance of works of national importance: logging, road, construction, etc. In order to ensure the existence of the worker, the state tried to compensate for wages "in kind", giving out food rations, food stamps in the canteen, and basic necessities instead of money. Then the payment for housing, transport, utilities and other services was abolished. The logical continuation of the economic policy of the Bolsheviks was the actual abolition of commodity-money relations. First, the free sale of food was prohibited, then other consumer goods, which were distributed by the state as naturalized wages. Such a policy required the creation of special super-centralized economic bodies in charge of accounting and distribution of all available products. The totality of these emergency measures was called the policy of "war communism." "Military" - because this policy was subordinated to the only goal - to concentrate all forces for a military victory over their political opponents, "communism" - because the measures taken by the Bolsheviks surprisingly coincided with the Marxist forecast of some socio-economic features of the future communist society.
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| The leaders of the Red Army during the Civil War - Vatsetis, Kamenev / Tukhachevsky, Frunze, Blucher, Yegorov, Budyonny. The head of the Revolutionary Military Council during the Civil War was Trotsky. Chairman of the Council of Labor and Defense during the Civil War - Lenin. The leaders of Western states that advocated active intervention in the civil war in Russia are Lloyd George (UK), Clemenceau (France), Wilson (USA), Pilsudski (Poland). The leaders of the white movement in the period gr. war - Kolchak, Denikin, Miller, Yudenich, Wrangel, Alekseev, Kornilov, Shkuro. In the 20s - 30s. Kalinin served as chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. After Lenin, A. M. Rykov was the chairman of the Council of People's Commissars. Bukharin - Soviet party statesman, academician. In 1917-1918 he was the leader of the "Left Communists". Ideological views: against the curtailment of the NEP, the sharp forcing of collectivization, he considered it necessary to support the individual economy, regulate the market through flexible purchase prices, and actively develop light industry. Soviet leaders who surrounded Stalin in the 1920s: Molotov, Beria, Kuibyshev, Kaganovich. The leaders of the opposition of the CPSU (b) in the 20s: Trotsky, Bukharin, Zinoviev, Rykov. During the Second World War, Stalin held the following positions: General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU, Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR and the State Defense Committee of the USSR, People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR, Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of the USSR. Outstanding Soviet commanders of the WWII period: Zhukov, Konev, Vasilevsky, Rokosovsky, Chuikov. During the Second World War, Shvernik headed the Evacuation Council. Leaders of the partisan movement during the Second World War: Kovpak, Ponomorenko, Fedorov. Three times heroes of the USSR who received this award for military exploits during the Second World War: Pokryshkin, Kozhedub. On behalf of the Soviet Supreme High Command, Zhukov signed the act of surrender of Germany. From 1953 to 1955 Malenkov was the chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, since 1955 the minister of power plants. The name of Khrushchev is associated with criticism of Stalin's personality cult. After Khrushchev, Brezhnev was at the head of the country. From 1964 to 1980 Kosygin was chairman of the USSR Council of Ministers. Under Khrushchev and Brezhnev, Gromyko was Minister of Foreign Affairs. After the death of Brezhnev, Andropov took over the leadership of the country. Gorbachev was the first president of the USSR. |
Sakharov - Soviet scientist, nuclear physicist, creator of the hydrogen bomb. Active fighter for human and civil rights, pacifist, Nobel Prize winner, academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences.
Founders and leaders of the democratic movement in the USSR in the late 80s: A. Sobchak, N. Travkin, G. Starovoitova, G. Popov, A. Kazannik.
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US leaders who participated in Soviet-American negotiations in the 80s: Reagan, Bush.
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The documents
Chapaev Vasily Ivanovich(1887-1919), hero of the Civil War. Since 1918 he commanded a detachment, a brigade and the 25th rifle division, which played a significant role in the defeat of the troops of A. V. Kolchak in the summer of 1919. He died in battle. The image of Chapaev is captured in the story of D. A. Furmanov ‘Chapaev’ and the film of the same name.
H Apaev Vasily Ivanovich, hero of the Civil War 1918-20. Member of the CPSU since September 1917. Born into the family of a poor peasant. Since 1914 - in the army, participated in the 1st World War 1914-18. Awarded for courage 3 St. George's crosses, a medal, received the rank of lieutenant. In 1917 he was in a hospital in Saratov, then moved to Nikolaevsk (now the city of Pugachev, Saratov Region), where in December 1917 he was elected commander of the 138th reserve infantry regiment, and in January 1918 he was appointed commissar of internal affairs of the Nikolaev district. At the beginning of 1918, he formed a Red Guard detachment and suppressed the kulak-SR rebellions in the Nikolaev district. From May 1918 he commanded a brigade in battles against the Ural White Cossacks and White Czechs, from September 1918 the head of the 2nd Nikolaev division. In November 1918 he was sent to study at the Academy of the General Staff, where he stayed until January 1919, and then, at his personal request, he was sent to the front and appointed to the 4th Army as commander of the Special Alexander-Gai Brigade. From April 1919 he commanded the 25th Rifle Division, which distinguished itself in the Buguruslan, Belebeev and Ufa operations during the counteroffensive of the Eastern Front against Kolchak's troops. On July 11, the 25th division under the command of Ch.
liberated Uralsk. On the night of September 5, 1919, the White Guards suddenly attacked the headquarters of the 25th division in Lbischensk. Ch. with his associates courageously fought against the superior forces of the enemy. Having shot all the cartridges, the wounded Ch. tried to swim across the river. Ural, but was hit by a bullet and died. Awarded the Order of the Red Banner. The legendary image of Ch. is reflected in the story "Chapaev" by D. A. Furmanov, who was the military commissar of the 25th division, in the film "Chapaev" and other works of literature and art.
It's all bullshit!" - so capaciously and specifically reviewed the book by Dmitry Furmanov "Chapaev" and the film of the same name by the Vasilyev brothers, former associates of the divisional commander. And they delegated historical justice to Moscow to demand the offended relatives of the military leader - the widow and children. Those, having found the address of the commissar-writer, came to him right at home, on the Arbat, and ... forgot all the insults. Accepted by the generous, hospitable and powerful Furmanov, who fed and watered the family and procured 20 rubles of pension each (at that time - very decent money), they did not tell the world about the real Chapaev. Surely Furmanov explained to the visitors that not a single newspaper, even a lousy one, would publish their revelations. Indeed, in those days, society was given examples of heroism and high morality, trying to hide the homespun truth behind fiction. “Behind nonsense,” the real Vasily Ivanovich would say. No, the real would have used a stronger word.
So, it was decided - we are talking about Chapaev the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Based on the documents of the Central State Archive of the Red Army and on the evidence of the daughter of divisional commander Claudia Vasilievna, who survived until the time of glasnost. But first, let's look at the Chapaev Museum, which is open in Cheboksary (in the homeland of the hero).
cock shepherd
There, in the Chuvash village of Budaika - Tmutarakan with 22 yards - on January 28, 1887, Vasilek was born. He lived here only the first years of his childhood, but the memory of them is carefully preserved by the entire Chuvash people. The Chapaev Museum, for example, was opened.
Vasin's father Ivan Stepanovich was the poorest peasant in the village: no cows, no horses - only sheep and chickens. There was one pair of shoes for five children. So soon the Chapaevs, having sold everything they could, went to look for a better life to the large commercial and industrial village of Balakovka (Saratov region).
I don’t know if it’s worth believing the recollections of Vasya’s teacher with the rock and roll surname Grebenshchikov (they sound very characteristically soviet), but, alas, history has not preserved other characteristics of the young Chapai: “Vasyatka greedily reached for knowledge. Back then, there were no special textbooks. Sometimes, you give the task to read something at home from newspapers, magazines, Vasyatka was the first to raise his hand and tell in detail where and what he managed to read ... "
Other museum relics are sustained in the same spirit, so let's not delve into the childhood and youth of the hero, let's plunge into the passion of fiery days.
Vasya's dad is strong in mate...
And we will immediately pay tribute to Vasya's parent, who all his life brought up a real man in his son with a whip and a belt. Yes, so intensely that I did not notice how quickly the guy matured. Chapaev's daughter Claudia recalls: “Once dad, already a divisional commander, returned from the battle and left carts in the yard. My grandfather Ivan Stepanovich Chapaev went with other old men to unharness the horses (he worked as a groom or something in the division?). He returned and let's whip the father's whip. Barely relieved. Due to the fact that felt sweaters were not put under the saddles, iron rods took off the skin of the horses. Chapaev knelt before his father, buried his forehead in his felt boots:
“Daddy, I’m sorry, I overlooked…”
The answer, you see, is a worthy man.
Even fists in a fist
Ask, who entrusted Chapaev, who really did not finish either gymnasiums or academies, with the command of an entire division? Who trusted Makhno? Yes, history is unfair to its sons. He elevates one to heaven, the other lowers nowhere below. Both Chapaev and Makhno (this one in the Urals, that one in Ukraine) beat the White Guards, dispossessed kulaks, each created his own freemen, both were courageous commanders, outstanding strategists, even anarchists at one time were listed. And the popular rumor calls one a hero, and another a bandit.
Just like Nestor, Vasily made an armed formation out of fellow villagers and relatives, to which later the lads from neighboring villages pulled themselves up. But not in order to rob and kill, but to protect themselves and their wives from white, green, German marauders-marauders.
No doubt, in some way this guard resembled a gang. And try to keep in your fist the eternally drunk, armed daredevils, and besides, your guys are on the board. But Chapai, spitting on kindred feelings, held on as best he could. Strongly. (By the way, he himself never took alcohol in his mouth and did not even smoke.) We read his orders stored in the “Red Army archive”: “For playing toss for money ... demoted to the rank and file. For playing cards fined ... a hundred rubles. For going to fornication in a neighboring village ... 40 lashes. For looting and extortion of money ... shoot!”
And here is a later report to Moscow: “29 Red Army soldiers were shot for refusing to go on the offensive. After that, a heated speech was made by comrade. Chapaev ... after which the entire male population of Nizh. Pokrovki up to 50 years old inclusive joined our ranks and rushed to the attack. Over 1000 White Cossacks were killed. After the battle among the prisoners German soldiers, Czechoslovaks and Hungarians organized a communist cell. Refuseniks were shot."
This is how the Chapaev Guard grew, and, apparently, at all times the people were scrapped to fight.
Chapaev was reputed to be tough, but fair. He came up with a "cash of comradely mutual assistance", into which the Red Army soldiers "threw off" their salaries, and the funds were spent on medicines and payments to the families of the dead. He created his own state: with yards-factories for car repair and household appliances, bakery mills, furniture factories and even schools.
With the hands of the ataman, the checkers and the lives of his people, who faithfully served the commander, the communists defeated the enemy in the Urals. The time has come to drive the people into holes and change the Chapaev power to the Soviet one.
Chapaev Vasily Ivanovich (1887, the village of Budaika, Kazan Province - 1919, the Ural River, approx. Lbischensk) - a participant in the civil war.
Genus. in the family of a peasant carpenter. Together with his father and brothers, he worked as a carpenter, working for hire, he was able to learn to read and write.
In 1914 he was called up for military service. After graduating from the training team, Chapaev rose to the rank of non-commissioned officer. For his courage in the battles of the First World War, he was awarded three St. George's crosses and the St. George medal. In the summer of 1917 he was elected a member of the regimental committee, in December. - Regiment commander.
A member of the RSDLP (b) since 1917, Chapaev was appointed military commissar of the city of Nikolaevsk. In 1918 he suppressed a number of peasant uprisings, fought against the Cossacks and the Czechoslovak Corps. In November 1918 he began to study at the Academy of the General Staff, but already in January. 1919 was sent to Vost. front against A. V. Kolchak. Chapaev commanded the 25th Infantry Division, and was awarded the Order of the Red Banner for successful leadership in combat operations. During a sudden attack by the White Guards on the headquarters of the 25th division in Lbischensk, the wounded Chapaev died while trying to swim across the river. Ural.
Thanks to the book YES. Furmanov "Chapaev" and set according to this book. the film in which Chapaev was brilliantly played by the actor B.A. Babochkin, Chapaev's rather modest role in the civil war was widely known.
Used materials of the book: Shikman A.P. Figures of national history. Biographical guide. Moscow, 1997 Literature: Biryulin V.V. People's commander: On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the birth of V.I. Chapaev. Saratov, 1986.
There is another danger, they will allocate some money, and then they will start to command: this is possible, this is not. Although he, a rock, is accustomed to the fact that the opportunistic guiding "sleeves" poked, poked at his "cliffs", and also flowed past him.
The chapel, which now houses the Yermak Museum, that is, Vasily Alenin, a resident of the Nizhnechusovsky Gorodki, for example, he brought across the Arkhipovka River, to his Postnikov-grad, even under the communists.
There were leading wise men who demanded that the crosses crowning her be cut down - they say, you, Leonard Dmitrievich, made a mistake. Boris Vsevolodovich Konoplev unexpectedly helped to save them (the first secretary of the regional committee of the CPSU, if anyone does not know). Having visited the school of the Olympic reserve, where Postnikov was the director, he regally said: “Don’t stop there, keep going, otherwise we will be misunderstood.”
And the Yermak Museum itself was saved - you won't believe it ... - Chapaev. “Why create a memory of some robber,” Postnikov was taught. “Choose another worthy candidate.” “Have you watched the film“ Chapaev ”? So there, before the last fight, the fighters of Vasily Ivanovich sing a song about Yermak, ”he wriggled out.
The Postnikovsky Museum (everyone notes) is good because it does not have museum sterile preservation. In a rural trading shop, pot-bellied two-bucket samovars, cast-iron sledges upholstered in velvet can be touched, you can hold them in your hands. In the museum wooden toy- pull the strings of funny hares and bears. That is, the spirit of the original, native (as one of the guests quoted, “you can’t squeeze a village out of a person”) lives here freely among antiquities.
And Postnikov cherishes this freedom. And yet, his museum has long gone beyond the framework of amateur performances and required a serious foundation, including financial ones: in order to preserve what he had collected, in order to develop further. The city deducts some money for the maintenance of the already created city. But the status of a city and a regional one promises support from two budgets. This means that his work will live on. Only for this, it seems, he agreed to a public celebration of the 20th anniversary of the museum, which, with the support of Chusovsky's sponsors, steel plant organized by his friends and friends of his hospitable miracle city.
It was obvious that being on stage was a real torment for him: he wanted to go to his beloved world - to the wise cat Klava, the museum church of St. George the Victorious under construction, to his beloved Don Quixote and Chapaev's biography, which he is now passionate about. But all the same, thanks to everyone: fellow countrymen, who are somehow transformed by their native land in a special way.
Moscow critic Valentin Kurbatov handed out gifts from a bag. Poet Yuri Belikov - administered. The mayor of Chusovoy, Viktor Buryanov, admitted that he had to “reach out” to his noble countrymen.
And vice-governor Tatyana Margolina “chirped” so sweetly with dissident from Ukraine Dmitry Stus that he was surprised for a long time that, it turns out, he was talking with a representative of the authorities, in relations with whom he always tried to stay away.
Such are the miracles in Chusvenskaya land.
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Education
During the years of the Civil War, whites and reds by any means sought to achieve power and complete destruction of the enemy. The confrontation was not only on the fronts, but also in many other aspects, including in the economic sector. Before the economic policy of the Whites and the Reds during the years of the Civil War is analyzed, it is necessary to study the main differences between the two ideologies, the confrontation of which led to the fratricidal war.
The Reds did not recognize private property, they defended the belief that all people should be equal both legally and socially.
For the Reds, the tsar was not an authority, they despised wealth and intelligentsia, and the working class, in their opinion, should have become the leading structure of the state. Religion was regarded by the Reds as the opium of the people. Churches were destroyed, believers were mercilessly exterminated, atheists were held in high esteem.
For whites, the sovereign-father, of course, was the authority, imperial power is the basis of law and order in the state. They not only recognized private property, but also considered it the main milestone of the country's welfare. The intelligentsia, science and education were held in high esteem.
Whites could not imagine Russia without faith. Orthodoxy is the foundation. It was on it that the culture, self-consciousness and prosperity of the nation were based.
The polar policy of the Reds and Whites could not but lead to confrontation. The table clearly demonstrates the main differences:
The social, cultural and economic policies of the whites and reds had their supporters and ardent enemies. The country was divided. Half supported the Reds, the other half supported the Whites.
Denikin dreamed of the day when Russia would again become great and indivisible. The general believed that the Bolsheviks must be fought to the end and, as a result, completely destroyed. Under him, the "Declaration" was adopted, which retained the right to land for the owners, and also provided for the interests of the working people. Denikin canceled the decree of the Provisional Government on the grain monopoly, and also developed a plan for the "Land Law", according to which the peasant could buy land from the landowner.
The priority direction in Kolchak's economic policy was the allocation of land to small-land peasants and those peasants who had no land at all. Kolchak believed that the seizure of property by the Reds was arbitrariness and looting. All the loot must be returned to the owners - manufacturers, landowners.
Wrangel created a political reform, according to which large-scale landownership was limited, land allotments for middle peasants were increased, and it also provided for the provision of peasants with industrial goods.
Both Denikin, and Wrangel, and Kolchak canceled the Bolshevik "Decree on the Land", but, as history shows, they could not come up with a worthy alternative. The unsustainability of the economic reforms of the white regimes lay in the fragility of these governments. If not for the economic and military assistance of the Entente, the white regimes would have fallen much earlier.
During the Civil War, the Reds adopted the "Land Decree", which abolished the right of private ownership of land, which, to put it mildly, did not please the landlords, but was good news for the common people. Naturally, for the landless peasants and workers, neither the reform of Denikin, nor the innovations of Wrangel and Kolchak were as desirable and promising as the decree of the Bolsheviks.
The Bolsheviks actively pursued the policy of "war communism", according to which the Soviet government set a course for the complete nationalization of the economy. Nationalization is the transition of the economy from private to public hands. A monopoly on foreign trade was also introduced. The fleet was nationalized. Partnerships, large entrepreneurs suddenly lost their property. The Bolsheviks sought to centralize the management of the national economy of Russia as much as possible.
Didn't like many new features common people. One of these unpleasant innovations was the forced introduction of labor service, according to which the unauthorized transition to new job as well as walks. Subbotniks and Sundays were introduced - a system of unpaid work, mandatory for everyone.
The Bolsheviks put into practice the monopoly on bread, which at one time was proposed by the Provisional Government. Control was introduced by the Soviet government over the rural bourgeoisie, which hid grain stocks. Many historians emphasize that this was a forced temporary measure, since after the revolution the country lay in ruins, and such a redistribution could help to survive in famine years. However, serious excesses on the ground led to the massive expropriation of all food supplies in the countryside, which led to severe famine and extremely high mortality.
Thus, the economic policy of whites and reds had serious contradictions. A comparison of the main aspects is given in the table:
As can be seen from the table, the economic policies of whites and reds were directly opposite.
The policies of the Whites and the Reds in the Civil War were radically different. However, none of them were 100% effective. Each strategic direction had its disadvantages.
"War Communism" was criticized even by the communists themselves. After the adoption of this policy, the Bolsheviks expected unprecedented economic growth, but in reality everything turned out differently. All decisions were economically illiterate, as a result, labor productivity was reduced, people were starving, and many peasants saw no incentive to overwork. The output of industrial products has decreased, there has been a decline in agriculture. IN financial sector hyperinflation was created, which was not even under the tsar and the Provisional Government. People were crippled by hunger.
The big disadvantage of the white regimes was their inability to pursue an intelligible land policy. Neither Wrangel, nor Denikin, nor Kolchak worked out a law that would be supported by the masses represented by the workers and peasants. In addition, the fragility of white power did not allow them to fully realize their plans for the development of the state's economy.
