First World War 1914 - 1918, an imperialist war between two coalitions of capitalist powers for the redivision of an already divided world, the redistribution of colonies, spheres of influence and investment of capital, and the enslavement of other peoples. First, the war involved 8 European countries: Germany and Austria-Hungary, on the one hand, Great Britain, France, Russia, Belgium, Serbia and Montenegro, on the other. Later, most countries of the world were involved in it. In total, they participated in the war on the side of the Austro-Germans. bloc 4 states, on the side of the Entente 34 states (including 4 British dominions and the colony of India, which signed the Versailles Peace Treaty of 1919)...
Materials from the Great Soviet Encyclopedia were used.
S. Petlyura’s appeal to Ukrainian soldiers on all fronts. November 1917.
The General Secretariat of the Ukrainian Central Rada, replenished with representatives of all peoples living in Ukraine, takes power in our region into its own hands. Thus, the General Secretariat becomes the highest administrative authority of Ukraine. This joyful, but also difficult, responsible role falls to the General Secretariat in a very difficult time, when the Germans have broken through the front and are approaching our land. Our Ukraine is in dire danger. Ukraine may perish, and with it our young, dear freedom, which we have all been waiting for so long, will perish, and in the name of which we have all made so many sacrifices.
Lansing-Ishii Agreement of 1917, November 2 (SIE, 1965)
LANSING-ISHI AGREEMENT OF 1917 - US-Japanese agreement of November 2. Concluded in the form of an exchange of notes between US Secretary of State R. Lansing and Japan's Commissioner Extraordinary to the USA K. Ishii. It was a temporary deal between the United States and Japan at the expense of China, concluded during the period when the United States, having entered World War 1 on the side of the Entente, became an ally of Japan. The US government recognized that "Japan has special interests in China, particularly in that part of (it) with which its possessions border." Japan recognized the US.
Lansing-Ishii agreement of 1917, November 2 (Vyshinsky, 1948)
Lansing-Ishii agreement of 1917 on US recognition of Japan's "special interests" in China - concluded on December 2 without the knowledge of China, in the form of an exchange of notes between the American Secretary of State Lansing and the head of the special Japanese mission Ishii (...) in Washington. The pretext for sending a special Japanese mission to the United States led by Viscount Ishii was the Japanese government's intention to congratulate the United States on entering the war against a common enemy - Germany. In fact, Japan was concerned about the US entry into the world war, especially since at that time there was already a cooling in Anglo-Japanese alliance relations, and the revolution in Russia deprived Japan of the opportunity to use the Russian-Japanese secret treaty of 1916 on an alliance...
S.V. Petliura. Telegram to army and district headquarters. July 25, 1917
“The enemy’s breakthrough of the front creates a terrible danger for Ukraine. Ukraine may die. First of all, in the interests of Ukraine, it is necessary to support the military authorities in their actions both regarding the defense of the front and regarding the maintenance of order in the rear. The Central Rada 1) and its Secretariat 2) call on all Ukrainians to defend their Native Land. Every Ukrainian must remember that wherever he is, whatever front he is sent to, everywhere he must defend Ukraine and its freedoms. Immediately convene a council of war and explain the terrible danger that threatens us all.
Miliukov's note dated April 18 (May 1), 1917
MILYUKOV'S NOTE - a note from the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the bourgeois Provisional Government P.N. Milyukov to the governments of the Entente countries dated April 18 (May 1), 1917, explaining the position of the Provisional Government on the issue of war. In an environment of rising revolutionary activity of the masses and a general desire for peace, the bourgeois Provisional Government was forced to disguise its imperialist goals with “democratic” phraseology.
From the diary of Nicholas II about the circumstances of his abdication.
In the morning Ruzsky came and read his long conversation on the phone with Rodzianko. According to him, the situation in Petrograd is such that now the ministry from the Duma is powerless to do anything, since the Social Democratic Party, represented by the working committee, is fighting it. My renunciation is needed. Ruzsky conveyed this conversation to headquarters, and Alekseev to all commanders in chief. By 2 1/2 o'clock responses came from everyone. The point is that in the name of saving Russia and keeping the army at the front calm, you need to decide to take this step. I agreed. Headquarters sent a draft manifesto. In the evening, Guchkov and Shulgin arrived from Petrograd, with whom I spoke and gave them the signed and revised manifesto. At one o'clock in the morning I left Pskov with a heavy feeling of what I had experienced.
THEM. Maisky - to the writers' book publishing house in Moscow. December 31 (18), 1915
Dear Sir! I received your letter dated November 26 1. If you think it would be more convenient to split my book into two parts, I probably won’t object. But I understand your proposal to mean that the second part (“Political Germany”) will be published in the not too distant future, that is, say, in the next season of 1916/17. I prefer to title the first part “Germany and war”, and not “German Foreign Policy and War”, because my title seems to me shorter and more expressive, and also less responsible. If I say “German foreign policy, etc.”, this implies that I am giving a complete picture of foreign policy, which is not the case.
First World War 1914-1918. Data. Documentation. Shatsillo Vyacheslav Kornelievich
Documentation
Documentation
1. The truce between the RSFSR, on the one hand, and Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey, on the other hand, concluded in Brest-Litovsk on December 2/15, 1917.
Between the plenipotentiary representatives of the High Commands of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey, on the one hand, and Russia, on the other, the following truce is concluded to achieve a long-lasting and honorable peace for all parties.
1. The truce begins on December 17, 1917 at noon (December 4, 1917 at 2 p.m. Russian time) and will last until January 14, 1918 at noon (January 1, 1918 at 2 p.m. Russian time). The contracting parties have the right to denounce the truce on the 21st day for a period of seven days. If this does not follow, the truce will automatically continue to operate until one of the parties denounces it within a seven-day period.
2. The truce applies to all ground and air forces of the named powers on the land front, on the Russian Black Sea and on the Baltic Sea. In the Russian-Turkish military theaters in Asia, the truce comes into force simultaneously. The contracting parties undertake not to strengthen the military units located on these fronts... Further, the contracting parties undertake... not to make operational movements of troops from the front from the Baltic to the Black Sea...
4. To develop and strengthen friendly relations between the peoples of the contracting parties, organized communication of troops is permitted under the following conditions:
1) Communication is permitted for parliamentarians, for members of the truce commissions and for their representatives... 2) In each sector of the Russian division, organized communication can take place in approximately two or three places. To do this, in the neutral zone, by agreement with the opposing division, points for communication between the demarcation lines must be established, and these points must be marked with white flags. Communication is allowed only during the day from sunrise to sunset. No more than 25 persons from each side without weapons can be present in communication areas at the same time. Exchange of information and newspapers is permitted. Open letters can be forwarded for further delivery. The sale and exchange of everyday goods is permitted at public meeting points...
9. The contracting parties will immediately begin peace negotiations after signing the armistice agreement.
10. Based on the principle of freedom, independence and territorial integrity of a neutral Persian state, the Turkish and Russian high command declare their readiness to withdraw troops from Persia. They will immediately enter into relations with the Persian government in order to settle the details of the recall and those measures that would still be necessary to consolidate the above principle.
(Klyuchnikov Yu. V., Sabanin A. V. International policy of modern times in treaties, notes and declarations. Part 2. M., 1926. WITH. 97–98. Next: International politics.)
2. Declaration made by the Commissioner of the RSFSR L. D. Trotsky at a meeting of the political commission of the peace conference in Brest-Litovsk on January 28 / February 10, 1918.
...We believe that after lengthy debate and comprehensive consideration of the issue, the hour for decisions has come. The peoples are eagerly awaiting the results of the peace negotiations in Brest-Litovsk. People ask when will this unprecedented self-destruction of humanity, caused by the self-interest and lust for power of the ruling classes of all countries, end? If ever a war was waged for the purposes of self-defense, it has long ceased to be so for both camps. If Great Britain takes possession of the African colonies, Baghdad and Jerusalem, then this is not yet a defensive war; if Germany occupies Serbia, Belgium, Poland, Lithuania and Romania and captures the Moonsund Islands, then this is also not a defensive war. This is a struggle for the division of the world. It's clear now: clearer than ever.
We no longer wish to take part in this imperialist war, where the claims of the propertied classes are clearly paid for in human blood. We are equally uncompromising about the imperialism of both camps, and we no longer agree to shed the blood of our soldiers in defense of the interests of one camp of imperialists against the other.
In anticipation of that - we hope, near - hour when the oppressed working classes of all countries will take power into their hands, like the working people of Russia, we are withdrawing our army and our people from the war. Our soldier-plowman must return to his arable land in order to peacefully cultivate the land this spring, which the revolution transferred from the hands of the landowner to the hands of the peasant. Our soldier-worker must return to the workshop to produce there not instruments of destruction, but instruments of creation, and, together with the plowman, build a new socialist economy.
We are leaving the war. We inform all peoples and their governments about this. We give the order for the complete demobilization of our armies, now opposing the troops of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey and Bulgaria. We expect and firmly believe that other nations will soon follow our example. At the same time, we declare that the conditions offered to us by the governments of Germany and Austria-Hungary are fundamentally contrary to the interests of all peoples. These conditions are rejected by the working masses of all countries, including the peoples of Austria-Hungary and Germany. The peoples of Poland, Ukraine, Lithuania, Courland and Estland consider these conditions to be violence against their will; For the Russian people, these conditions mean a constant threat. The popular masses of the whole world, guided by political consciousness or moral instinct, reject these conditions in anticipation of the day when the working classes of all countries will establish their own standards for the peaceful coexistence and friendly cooperation of peoples. We refuse to sanction the conditions that German and Austro-Hungarian imperialism are writing with a sword on the bodies of living peoples. We cannot put the signature of the Russian revolution under conditions that bring oppression, grief and misery to millions of human beings.
The governments of Germany and Austria-Hungary want to own lands and peoples by right of military conquest. Let them do their work openly. We cannot sanctify violence. We are leaving the war, but we are forced to refuse to sign a peace treaty.
In connection with this statement, I convey to the joint allied delegations the following written and signed statement:
In the name of the Council of People's Commissars, the government of the Russian Federative Republic hereby brings to the attention of the governments and peoples of the allied and neutral countries at war with us that, refusing to sign the annexationist treaty. Russia, for its part, declares a state of war with Germany and Austria-Hungary. Turkey and Bulgaria terminated. Russian troops are simultaneously given an order for complete demobilization along the entire front.
L. Trotsky - A. Ioffe. M. Pokrovsky, A. Litsenko In Karschi (International Politics. Part 2. P. (112–114)
3. Peace treaty between the RSFSR, on the one hand, and Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey, on the other hand, concluded in Brest-Litovsk on March 3/17, 1918.
(Representatives: RSFSR - Sokolnikov, Karakhan, Chicherin and Petrovsky; Germany - Kyadman, Rosenberg, Goffman and Gorn; Austria-Hungary - Chernin. Merey von Kaios Mere and Chicherich von Bachann; Bulgaria - Toshev, Ganchev and Anastasov; Turkey - Hakki Pasha and Zeyusi Pasha.)
Article I. Russia, on the one hand, and Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and Türkiye - With the other, declare that the state of war between them has ceased; They decided to henceforth live among themselves in peace and friendship.
Article 2. The contracting parties will refrain from any agitation or propaganda against the government or state or military institutions of the other party. Since this obligation concerns Russia, it also applies to the areas 1 occupied by the powers of the Quadruple Alliance.
Article 3. Areas lying west of ... line [starting from the strait separating the islands of Dago and Ezel from the mainland, through the Gulf of Riga, east of Riga through Frilrichstadg and Dvinsk, Sventsyany, Oshmyany, east of Lida, through Volkovysk, Pruzhai , Kamenets-Litovsk and north of Brest-Litovsk] and previously lying before Russia, God will not be under its supreme power... For the designated regions will not entail any obligations towards Russia from their former affiliation with Russia.
Russia refuses any interference in the internal affairs of these regions. Germany and Austria-Hungary intend to determine the future fate of these areas in relation to their population.
Article 4. Germany is ready, as soon as general peace has been concluded and Russian demobilization has been completely carried out, to clear the territory lying east of the line indicated in paragraph I of Article 3, since Article 6 does not stipulate otherwise. Russia is doing everything in its power to ensure the speedy cleansing of the provinces of eastern Anatolia and their orderly return to Turkey.
The districts of Ardahan, Kars and Batumi are also immediately cleared of Russian troops. Russia will not interfere in the new organization of state-legal and international legal relations of these districts, but will allow the population of the districts to establish a new system in agreement with neighboring states, especially Turkey.
Article 5, [Russia's obligation to carry out the complete demobilization of its army, including military units newly formed by the Soviet government. Transfer of Russian military ships to Russian ports and leaving them in the din until a general peace is concluded. Removal of minefields in the Baltic Sea and in Russian-controlled parts of the Black Sea. The immediate resumption of commercial shipping in these seas and its announcement free]
Article 6. Russia undertakes to immediately conclude peace with the Ukrainian People's Republic and recognize the peace treaty between this state and the powers of the Quadruple Alliance. The territory of Ukraine is immediately cleared of Russian troops and the Russian Red Guard. Russia ceases all agitation or propaganda against the government or public institutions of the Ukrainian People's Republic.
Estland and Lifland are also immediately cleared of Russian troops and the Russian Red Guard. The eastern border of Estonia generally runs along the Narova River Eastern border
Livlandin generally passes through lakes Chudskoye and Pskovskoye... then through Lake Lyubanskoye in the direction of Livenhof Estonia and Livlandia will be occupied by German police power until public safety is ensured there by the country’s own institutions and until state order is established there . Russia will immediately release all arrested or deported residents of Estonia and Lnfland and ensure the safe return of all deported Estonians and Livonians.
Finland and the Åland Islands will also be immediately cleared of Russian troops and the Russian Red Guard, and the Finnish ports of the Russian fleet and Russian naval forces... Russia ceases all agitation or propaganda against the government or public institutions of Finland.
The fortifications erected on the Åland Islands must be demolished as soon as possible. As for the prohibition from future erecting fortifications on these islands, as well as their general position in relation to military and navigation technology, a special agreement must be concluded regarding them between Germany, Finland, Russia and Sweden. The parties agree that, at Germany's request, other states adjacent to the Baltic Sea may also be involved in this agreement.
Article 7. Based on the fact that Persia and Afghanistan are free and independent states, the contracting parties undertake to respect the political and economic independence and territorial integrity of Persia and Afghanistan.
Article 8. [Establishment of mutual exchange of prisoners of war.]
Article 9: [Proclamation of mutual renunciation of reimbursement of military expenses and compensation for war losses.]
Article 10. Diplomatic and consular relations between the contracting parties will resume immediately after the ratification of the peace treaty... Regarding the admission of consuls, both parties reserve the right to enter into special agreements.
Article 13. When interpreting this treaty, the authentic texts for relations between Russia and Germany are Russian and German, between Russia and Austria-Hungary - Russian, German and Hungarian, between Russia and Bulgaria - Russian and Bulgarian, between Russia and Turkey - Russian and Turkish.
Appendix No. 1. [Map.]
Appendix No. 2. [Economic relations between Russia and Germany.]
…1. The Russian-German trade agreement of 1894/1904 no longer comes into force.
The contracting parties undertake to begin, as soon as possible after the conclusion of general peace between Germany, on the one hand, and the European states currently at war with it, the United States of America and Japan, on the other, negotiations regarding the conclusion of a new trade agreement.
2. The basis for Russian-German trade relations is the first addition to Appendix 2, valid until January 1, 1920, with the right of denunciation six months in advance...
[Appendix 1 to Appendix 2 reproduces the text of the Russian-German trade agreement of 1894/1904 with some changes in favor of Germany, in particular with the provision of transit to the East.]
Appendix 3. [Economic relations between Russia and Austria-Hungary.]
[Same provisions as Appendix 2; restoration of the actual validity of the Russian-Austrian trade agreement of 1906.]
Appendix 4. [Economic relations between Russia and Bulgaria.]
1. [After the conclusion of universal peace, the
conclusion of a new trade agreement.]
2. [Until January 1, 1920, mutual granting of most favored nation rights followed by the right of denunciation six months in advance.]
Appendix 5. [Economic relations between Russia and Turkey. Contents are the same as Appendix 4.]
(International Politics. Part 2. pp. 123–126.)
4. Declaration of the Prime Ministers and Foreign Ministers of the countries of the Concord in connection with the conclusion of the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty. March 19, 1918
London
The prime ministers and foreign ministers of the countries of the Concord, gathered in London, consider it their indispensable duty to state the political crime that was committed against the Russian people under the name of the German peace.
Russia was unarmed. Forgetting that for four years Germany had been fighting against the independence of peoples and the rights of mankind, the Russian government, in a fit of strange credulity, expected to achieve through persuasion a “democratic peace” that it could not achieve through war. The result was that the truce that followed in the meantime had not yet expired when the German command, although obliged not to change the disposition of its troops, transferred them en masse to the Western Front, and Russia was so weak that it did not even dare to raise a protest against this blatant violation of Germany's word.
What followed when the “German peace” became reality was of the same nature. It turned out that [this peace] contained an invasion of Russian territory, the destruction or seizure of all defensive means of Russia and such an organization of Russian land as would be beneficial to Germany. These methods are no different from the concept of "annexation", although this word itself was carefully avoided.
Meanwhile, those Russians who had made military operations impossible saw that diplomacy was powerless. Their representatives were forced to declare that, refusing to read the treaty presented to them, they had no choice but to sign it; they signed it, not knowing whether its true meaning was peace or war, and not considering how much the national life of Russia was reduced to a ghost by this world.
For us, the Governments of the Concord, the judgment that will be pronounced by the free peoples of the world on these actions will never be in doubt. Why waste time on Germany's assurances when we see that at no time in the history of its conquests - neither at the moment when it invaded Silesia, nor when it divided Poland - did it show such cynicism in destroying national independence, was it merciless an enemy of human rights and the dignity of civilized nations.
Poland, whose heroic spirit has survived the cruellest of all national tragedies, is threatened by a fourth partition, and in order to increase its misfortunes, the premises by which the last vestiges of its independence are to be destroyed are based on false promises of freedom.
What is true of Russia and Poland is no less true of Romania, which, like them, is a victim of the merciless desire for domination.
They talk loudly about peace, but under the mask of verbal slogans the brutal truths of war and the cruel law of powerless power are hidden.
We will not and cannot recognize peace treaties such as these. Our own goals are completely different. We are fighting and intend to continue to fight to put an end to this policy of robbery once and for all and to establish in its place the peaceful reign of organized justice.
As the events of this long war unfold before our eyes, we see more and more clearly that the manifestations of the struggle for freedom are everywhere interconnected; that these latter do not need special enumeration and that in any case the only, but completely exhaustive, call is the call to justice and right.
Will justice and right win? Since the issue depends on the battles still to come, the peoples whose destinies are at stake can freely place their trust in their armies, which, under conditions even more difficult than the present, have shown that they are more than equal to the great task entrusted to their valor.
(International Politics. Part 2. pp. 135–137.)
5. Rules of the Paris Peace Conference, adopted at the plenary meeting of the conference on January 18, 1919.
Section I. The Conference, assembled for the purpose of fixing the terms of peace, first by peaceful preliminaries, and then by a final treaty of peace, will be composed of representatives of the belligerent Allied and Associated Powers.
The belligerent powers having interests of a common nature - the United States of America, the British Empire, France, Italy and Japan - will participate in all meetings and commissions.
Belligerent powers with interests of a private nature - Belgium, Brazil, the British Dominions and India, China, Cuba, Greece, Guatemala, Haiti, Gejas, Honduras, Liberia, Nicaragua, Panama, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Siam and the Czechoslovak Republic, - will participate in those meetings at which issues affecting them are discussed.
The powers that are in a state of severance of diplomatic relations with the enemy powers - Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru and Uruguay - will participate in meetings at which issues affecting them will be discussed.
Neutral powers and states in the process of formation may be heard either orally or in writing in those cases when they are invited by powers having interests of a common character to meetings devoted specifically to the consideration of questions directly affecting them, but only insofar as these issues are raised.
Division II. The Powers will be represented by plenipotentiary delegates: five - from the United States of America, the British Empire, France, Italy and Japan; three - from Belgium, Brazil and Serbia; two - from China, Greece, the king of Hejas. Poland, Portugal, Romania, Siam and the Czechoslovak Republic; one - from Cuba, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Liberia,
Nicaragua and Panama; one from Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru and Uruguay.
The British Dominions and India will be represented as follows: two delegates each from Australia, Canada, South Africa and India, including the native states, and one delegate from New Zealand.
Although the number of delegates will not exceed the figures mentioned above, each delegation will have the right to request the use of the panel system. Representation of the Dominions, including Newfoundland and India, may be included in the representation of the British Empire on a panel system.
Montenegro will be represented by one delegate, but the rules regarding the appointment of this delegate will not be established until the political situation of that country is clarified.
The conditions for the representation of Russia will be established by the conference at the time when cases concerning Russia are considered.
Division III. Each delegation of commissioners may be accompanied by duly designated technical delegates and two stenographers.
Technical delegates may attend meetings to provide information when required. They will be allowed to speak to give any clarification required.
Division IV. Delegates are ranked by seniority based on the alphabetical order of powers in French.
Section V. The Conference will be declared open by the President of the French Republic. The Chairman of the French Council of Ministers will assume the presidency temporarily immediately thereafter.
A commission consisting of one commissioner from each of the great allied or associated powers will immediately begin to examine the credentials of all members present.
Section VI. During the first meeting of the conference, the latter will proceed to elect a permanent chairman and four vice-chairmen, chosen from among the delegates of the Great Powers in alphabetical order.
Section VII. The Secretariat, not appointed from among the delegates, and composed of one representative each from the United States of America, one from the British Empire, one from France, one from Italy, one from Japan, will be submitted to the approval of the conference by the chairman, who will be the controlling authority. responsible for his work.
This secretariat will be entrusted with the responsibility of editing the minutes of meetings, classifying the archives, taking care of the conduct of the conference and its organization, and generally ensuring the regular and accurate progress of the work entrusted to it. The head of the secretariat will have the responsibility and responsibility for protocols and archives. The archives will always be open to conference members.
Section VIII. Publicity of the work will be ensured by official communiqués drawn up by the secretariat and published. In case of disagreement regarding the editing of these communiqués, the matter will be resolved by the Chief Commissioners or their representatives...
Section X. All documents intended to be entered into the minutes must be served in writing by the representatives presenting them. No document or proposal may be submitted except by or on behalf of one of the authorized persons.
Section XI. Commissioners wishing to make motions unrelated to the item on the agenda or not arising from the debate must give 24 hours' notice to facilitate the debate. However, exceptions to this rule may be made in cases of amendments or minor matters, but not in cases of substantive proposals.
Section XII. Petitions, memoranda, observations or documents submitted to the conference by persons other than delegates shall be received and classified by the secretariat. Those of these messages which are purely political will be summarized in a list which will be distributed to all commissioners. This list will be updated as similar messages are received. All such documents will be stored in archives.
Section XIII. The discussion of the issue to be resolved will consist of a first and second reading. The first will consist of general discussion to reach agreement on important issues. This will be followed by a second reading for more detailed consideration.
Section XIV. The Plenipotentiaries will have the right, subject to the consent of the conference, to permit their technical delegates to submit technical explanations on such points as may be deemed appropriate.
If the conference considers it useful, the technical consideration of individual issues may be entrusted to committees of technical delegates, whose duty it will be to report and propose solutions.
Section XV. The minutes drawn up by the secretariat will be printed and proofread to delegates as soon as possible.
term. To speed up the proceedings of the conference, forward messages made in this way will replace the reading of minutes at the beginning of each meeting. If no changes are proposed by the authorized representatives, the text will be considered approved and archived.
If any change is proposed, the text will be read out by the chairman at the beginning of the next meeting. In any case, the protocol must be read out in full at the request of any authorized person.
Department XVI. A commission will be formed to edit the adopted resolutions. This commission will deal only with those issues that have been resolved. Its only task will be to develop the text of the adopted decision and submit it to the conference for approval.
It will be composed of five members who are not plenipotentiary delegates, and will consist of one representative from the United States of America, one from the British Empire, one from France, one from Italy, one from Japan.
(International Politics. Part 2. pp. 216–219.)
6. Treaty of Versailles
Statute of the League of Nations
High Contracting Parties,
Whereas, in order to develop cooperation between peoples and to guarantee their peace and security, it is important to accept certain obligations not to resort to war,
maintain in full transparency international relations based on justice and honor,
strictly observe the requirements of international law, which are now recognized as a valid rule of conduct for governments,
establish the rule of justice and faithfully observe all obligations imposed by the Treaties in the mutual relations of organized peoples, accept this Statute, which establishes the League of Nations.
The original members of the League of Nations shall be those of the Signatories whose names appear in the Annex to this Statute, as well as the States likewise named in the Annex, which shall enter into this Statute without any reservation, by means of a declaration lodged with the Secretariat within two months of their accession to force of the Statute, of which notification will be made to other Members of the League.
All states, dominions or colonies which are freely governed and which are not specified in the Annex may be made members of the League if two-thirds of the assembly are in favor of their admission, since they have given valid guarantees of their sincere intention to comply with international obligations and because they have accepted the provisions established League regarding their military, naval and air forces and weapons.
Any member of the League may, after two years' prior warning, withdraw from the League, provided that by that time it has fulfilled all its international obligations, including obligations under this Statute...
Article 11.
It is expressly declared that every war or threat of war, whether it directly affects any member of the League or not, is of interest to the League as a whole and that the latter must take measures capable of effectively protecting the peace of nations. In such a case, the Secretary General shall immediately convene the Council at the request of any member of the League.
It is further declared that every member of the League has the right, in a friendly manner, to call the attention of the Assembly or Council to any circumstance likely to affect international relations, and therefore threatening to disturb the peace or good concord between nations, on which peace depends.
Article 12.
All members of the League agree that if a dispute arises between them that could lead to a rupture, they will subject it either to arbitration or consideration by the Council. They also agree that in no case should they resort to war before the expiration of a period of three months after the decision of the arbitrators or the report of the Council.
In all cases provided for in this article, the decision of the arbitrators must be rendered within a reasonable time, and the report of the Council must be drawn up within six months, counting from the date of submission of the dispute to it for consideration.
Part III. POLICY PROVISIONS CONCERNING EUROPE
Division 1. Belgium
Article 31.
Germany, recognizing that the Treaties of April 19, 1839, which established the Belgian regime before the war, do not correspond to existing circumstances, agrees to the abolition
of these Treaties and undertakes henceforth: to recognize and comply with all any agreements which the Principal Allied and Associated Powers or any of them may conclude with the Governments of Belgium or the Netherlands for the purpose of replacing the said Treaties of 1839. If its formal accession to these Conventions or to some of their provisions is required, Germany henceforth undertakes to give it.
Article 32.
Germany recognizes full Belgian sovereignty over the entire disputed territory of Morenay (called Neutral Morenay).
Article 33.
Germany renounces in favor of Belgium all rights and title to the territory of the Prussian Morenet, located to the west of the road from Liege to Aachen; the part of the road bordering this territory will belong to Belgium.
Article 34.
Germany renounces, in addition, in favor of Belgium, all rights and title to the territory comprising the entire counties (Kreise) of Eupen and Malmedy.
During the six months following the entry into force of this Treaty, records will be opened at Eupen and Malmedy by the Belgian authorities and the inhabitants of the said territories will have the right to express in writing their desire to see these territories, in whole or in part, remaining under German sovereignty. […]
Division II. Luxembourg
Article 40.
Germany refuses, so far as the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg is concerned, the benefit of any provisions made in its favor in the Treaties of February 8, 1842, April 2, 1847, October 20–25, 1865, August 18, 1866, February 21, and May 11, 1867 years, May 10, 1871, June 11, 1872, November 11, 1902, as well as in any Conventions that followed the said Treaties.
Germany recognizes that the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg ceased to be part of the German Customs Union on January 1, 1919, renounces all rights to operate railways, joins in the abolition of the regime of neutrality of the Grand Duchy and accepts in advance any international agreements concluded by the Allied and Associated Powers regarding the Grand Duchy Duchies. […]
Division III. Left bank of the Rhine
Article 42.
Germany is prohibited from maintaining or constructing fortifications either on the left bank of the Rhine or on the right bank of the Rhine west of a line drawn 50 kilometers east of this river.
Article 43.
Equally prohibited in the zone defined in Article 42 is the maintenance or concentration of armed forces, whether permanent or temporary, as well as all military maneuvers of whatever kind, and the retention of any material means for mobilization.
Article 44.
If Germany were to violate in any way the provisions of Articles 42 and 43, she would be regarded as having committed an act of hostility towards the Signatories to the present Treaty and as seeking to disturb the world peace.
Division IV. Saar basin
Article 45.
As compensation for the destruction of the coal mines in the north of France and on account of the amount of reparations due for war losses due from Germany, the latter cedes to France full and unlimited ownership, free and clear of all debts or obligations and with the exclusive right to exploit the coal mines located in Saar Basin, within the boundaries specified in Article 48. […]
Division V. Alsace-Lorraine
Article 51.
The territories ceded to Germany by virtue of the Preliminary Peace signed at Versailles on February 26, 1871, and the Treaty of Frankfurt of May 10, 1871, returned to French sovereignty as of the Armistice of November 11, 1918.
The provisions of the Treaties establishing the outline of the border before 187] will again come into force. […]
Section VI. Austria
Article 80.
Germany recognizes and will strictly respect the independence of Austria within the limits to be fixed by the Treaty concluded between that State and the Principal Allied and Associated Powers; it recognizes that this independence will be inalienable unless the consent of the Council of the League of Nations follows.
Section VII. Czecho-Slovak State
Article 81.
Germany recognizes, as the Allied and Associated Powers have already done, the complete independence of the Czecho-Slovak State, which will include the autonomous territory of the Rusyns south of the Carpathians. She declares her consent to the boundaries of this State as determined by the Principal Allied and Associated Powers and others interested states.
Article 82.
The border between Germany and the Czecho-Slovak state will be determined by the former border between Austria-Hungary and the German Empire as it existed on August 3, 1914.
Section VIII. Poland
Article 87.
Germany recognizes, as the Allied and Associated Powers have already done, the complete independence of Poland and renounces in favor of Poland all rights and title to the territory limited by the Baltic Sea, the eastern border of Germany, defined as stated in Article 27 of Part II (Borders of Germany) of this Treaty, to a point approximately 2 kilometers east of Lorzendorf, then by a line extending to the acute angle formed by the northern border of Upper Silesia, approximately 3 kilometers northwest of Simmenau, then the border of Upper Silesia until it meets the former border between Germany and Russia, then this border to the point where it crosses the course of the Neman, then the northern border of East Prussia, as defined in Article 28 of the above-mentioned Part II.
However, the provisions of this article do not apply to the territories of East Prussia and the Free City of Danzig, as their boundaries are defined in the said article 28 of part II (Borders of Germany) and in article 100 of section XI (Danzig) of this part.
The frontiers of Poland not designated by this Treaty will be established subsequently by the Principal Allied and Associated Powers.
A commission consisting of seven members, of whom five shall be appointed by the Principal Allied and Associated Powers, one by Germany and one by Poland, shall be constituted fifteen days after the coming into force of this Treaty to fix on the spot the boundary line between Poland and Germany.
The decisions of this commission will be made by majority vote and will be binding on interested parties. […]
Department X. Memel
Article 99.
Germany renounces, in favor of the Principal Allied and Associated Powers, all rights and title to the territories between the Baltic Sea, the north-eastern border of East Prussia, described in Article 28 of Part II (Borders of Germany) of this Treaty, and the former borders between Germany and Russia.
Germany undertakes to recognize the provisions which the Principal Allied and Associated Powers shall make concerning these territories, in particular as regards the nationality of the inhabitants. […]
Article 102.
The Principal Allied and Associated Powers undertake to form a Free City from the city of Danzig with the territory specified in Article 100. It will be placed under the protection of the League of Nations. […]
Section XV. Russia and Russian states
Article 116.
Germany recognizes and undertakes to respect, as permanent and inalienable, the independence of all territories that were part of the former Russian Empire on August 1, 1914.
In accordance with the provisions included in Articles 259 and 292 of Parts IX (Financial Provisions) and X (Economic Provisions) of this Treaty, Germany finally recognizes the abrogation of the Brest-Litovsk Treaties, as well as any other treaties, agreements or conventions concluded by it with the Maximalist Government in Russia.
The Allied and Associated Powers formally stipulate the rights of Russia to receive from Germany all restitutions and reparations based on the principles of this Treaty.
Article 117.
Germany undertakes to recognize the full force of all treaties or agreements which the Allied and Associated Powers may conclude with States which have been or are being formed in all or part of the territories of the former Russian Empire as it existed on 1 August 1914, and to recognize the boundaries of these States as they will be set accordingly.
Part IV. GERMAN RIGHTS AND INTERESTS OUTSIDE GERMANY
Article 118.
Outside her frontiers in Europe as established by this Treaty, Germany renounces all rights, titles or privileges to all territories belonging to or relating to itself or its allies, as well as all rights, title and privileges. privileges which might belong to it, on whatever legal basis whatsoever, in relation to the Allied and Associated Powers.
Germany henceforth undertakes to recognize and accept all orders which have been or will be taken by the Principal Allied and Associated Powers, in agreement, if necessary, with third Powers, in order to settle the consequences of the above resolution.
In particular, Germany declares that it accepts the provisions of the following articles concerning certain special subjects.
Division I, German Colonies
Article 119.
Germany renounces in favor of the Principal Allied and Associated Powers all its rights and title to its overseas possessions. […]
Part V. MILITARY, SEA AND AIR PROVISIONS
With a view to making possible the preparation of a general limitation of the armaments of all nations, Germany undertakes to strictly observe the provisions laid down below - military, naval and air.
Section I. Martial Law
Chapter I. NUMBER AND PERSONNEL OF THE GERMAN ARMY
Article 159.
The German military forces will be demobilized and reduced under the conditions stated below.
Article 160.
1. From March 31, 1920 at the latest, the German army will not have to consist of more than seven infantry divisions and three cavalry divisions.
From now on, the total strength of the army of the states forming Germany should not exceed one hundred thousand people, including officers and non-combatants, and will be exclusively intended for maintaining order in the territory and for border police.
The total number of officers, including headquarters personnel, whatever their formation, will not exceed four thousand.
2. Divisions and headquarters of army corps will be built in accordance with Table No. 1 attached to this department.
The number and numerical composition of infantry, artillery, engineer and technical service units and troops provided for in the said table constitute maximums which must not be exceeded.
The following units may have their own non-combatant units: Infantry Regiment, Cavalry Regiment. Field Artillery Regiment, Sapper Battalion.
3. Divisions cannot be distributed among more than two army corps headquarters.
The maintenance or formation of otherwise grouped forces or other bodies of command or preparation for war is prohibited.
The German Great General Staff and all other similar formations will be dissolved and cannot be restored in any form.
Officers or equivalent personnel of the military ministries of the various states of Germany and the departments under them will not exceed three hundred officers included in the maximum number of four thousand provided for by this article. […]
Article 163.
The reduction of Germany's military forces established in Article 160 can be carried out gradually as follows.
During the three months following the entry into force of this Treaty, the total strength shall be reduced to 200,000 men, and the number of units shall not exceed more than twice the number provided for in Article 160.
At the expiration of this period and at the end of each subsequent three-month period, the Conference of Military Experts of the Principal Allied and Associated Powers will determine for the next three-month period reductions to be made in such a way that, by 31 March 1920 at the latest, the German total strength will not exceed the maximum figure of 100,000 people provided for in Article 160. With these gradual reductions, the same ratios that are provided for in the said article must be maintained between the number of soldiers and officers and between the number of various types of units. […]
Recruitment and military training
Article 173.
All types of compulsory military service will be abolished in Germany.
The German army can only be built and recruited through voluntary recruitment.
Article 174.
The hiring of non-commissioned officers and soldiers must be for twelve years without interruption.
The proportion of men leaving the service for any reason before the expiration of their period of employment shall not exceed annually five percent of the total strength established by this Treaty. […]
Article 177.
Educational institutions, universities, ex-military societies, shooting and sports or tourist associations and, in general, associations of any kind, whatever the age of their members, should not be involved in any military matters.
They will be especially prohibited from instructing or training their members or causing them to learn or practice in the art of war or in the use of weapons of war.
These societies, associations, educational institutions and universities should not have any connection with the military ministries or with any other military authority.
Article 178.
Any measures for mobilization or tending toward mobilization are prohibited.
In no case should troop units, services or headquarters employ additional personnel. […]
Chapter IV. Fortifications
Article 180.
All land fortifications, fortresses and fortified places located on German territory west of the line drawn fifty kilometers east of the Rhine will be disarmed and demolished.
Within two months from the date of entry into force of this Treaty, those land fortifications, fortresses and fortified places that are located in the territory not occupied by the Allied and Associated Forces must be disarmed and within a second four-month period must be demolished. Those of them located in the territory occupied by the Allied and Associated Forces must be disarmed and demolished within the time limits established by the Allied High Command.
The construction of any new fortifications, whatever their type or significance, is prohibited in the zone specified in the first section of this article.
The fortification system of Germany's southern and eastern borders will be maintained in its current state. […]
Article 183.
After a period of two months from the date of entry into force of this Treaty, the total number of persons involved in the German navy and employed both in fleet crews, in coastal defense, in the semaphore service, and in coastal administration and coastal services, including officers and personnel of every rank and of every kind, should not exceed fifteen thousand people.
The total number of officers and "warrant officers" should not exceed one thousand five hundred.
Within two months from the entry into force of this Treaty, personnel exceeding the number indicated above will be demobilized.
No naval or military formation, no reserve formations, can be created in Germany for the services involved in the fleet in excess of the numerical strength established above. […]
Part VII. sanctions
Article 227.
The Allied and Associated Powers publicly charge Wilhelm II of Hohenzollern, former German Emperor, with a supreme insult to international morality and the sacred power of treaties.
A special court will be constituted to try the accused, providing him with substantial guarantees of defense.
It will consist of five judges appointed by each of the five following powers, namely: the United States of America, Great Britain, France, Italy and Japan.
The Court will judge from the motives inspired by the highest principles of international politics and from a concern for ensuring respect for solemn duties and international obligations, as well as for international morals. It will be for him to determine the punishment which in his judgment should be inflicted.
The Allied and Associated Powers will petition the Government of the Netherlands to deliver the former Emperor into their hands to face trial. […]
Part VIII. REPARATIONS
Division 1. General regulations
Article 231.
The Allied and Associated Governments declare, and Germany acknowledges, that Germany and her allies are responsible for all losses and all damages suffered by the Allied and Associated Governments and their citizens in consequence of the war which was forced upon them by the attack of Germany and her allies. […]
Article 233.
The amount of the said damages that Germany is obliged to compensate will be established by the Inter-Allied Commission, which will take the name of the Reparations Commission and will be constituted in the form and with the rights indicated below and in Appendices II to VII included herein,
This Commission will examine the claims and give the German Government a fair opportunity to be heard.
From the book Jewish Moscow author Gessen Yuliy IsidorovichDOCUMENTS (l. 238) XXIII. Petition of Patriarch Nikon to Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich - regarding the arrival to him, the patriarch, at the Resurrection Monastery, by royal decree, of the Chudov Monastery of Archimandrite Joachim and clerk Dementy Bashmakov with the archers to take him, Nikon,
From the book Foreign Legion authorDocuments Memoirs of the Don Cossack officer Nikolai Matin “On service in the Foreign Legion in Algeria, Tunisia and Syria.” These memoirs were begun in 1922 and completed in 1927. Memoirs of Nikolai Matin, a Don Cossack officer who went to war in November 1920 emigration to
DOCUMENTS “Easy conversations” “In the Soviet Army, discipline is panicky”12. From the resolution of the assistant prosecutor of the Moldavian SSR for supervision of the investigation in state security agencies dated April 29, 1954 in the case of Kuznets A.S.[...] Kuznets A.S. showed: “Guilty
author Kozlov Vladimir AlexandrovichDOCUMENTS How a railway worker Dibrov confused Sverdlov with Trotsky39. From the protest of the Chairman of the Supreme Court of the USSR to the Zheleznodorozhny Collegium of the Supreme Court of the USSR dated June 2, 1953 in the case of Dibrov, P.M. Dibrov was found guilty of the fact that on the night of January 31, 1953, while in
From the book Sedition. Dissent in the USSR under Khrushchev and Brezhnev author Kozlov Vladimir AlexandrovichDOCUMENTS From the inscriptions on ballot papers and leaflets thrown into ballot boxes during elections of supreme and local authorities in the USSR on February 19, 1951, elections to the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR42. Leaflet thrown into a ballot box at a polling station
From the book Sedition. Dissent in the USSR under Khrushchev and Brezhnev author Kozlov Vladimir AlexandrovichDOCUMENTS “We demand the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Hungary”71. Special message from the Deputy Prosecutor of the Yaroslavl Region to the Deputy Prosecutor of the RSFSR dated November 15, 1956. November 7, 1956, during a demonstration of workers of Yaroslavl, Lazaryants Vitaly Emmanuilovich, born in 1939,
From the book Sedition. Dissent in the USSR under Khrushchev and Brezhnev author Kozlov Vladimir AlexandrovichDOCUMENTS “Why Pravda is hypocritically silent about our reality”75. Anonymous letter from Yarushevich P.N. to the editorial office of the newspaper “Pravda”, January 4, 1953. In “Pravda” for December 1 of last year, that is, 1952, there was a photograph of a charming child with the subtitle: “This
From the book Sedition. Dissent in the USSR under Khrushchev and Brezhnev author Kozlov Vladimir AlexandrovichDOCUMENTS A.Y. Pavlovsky - a well-preserved Socialist Revolutionary (December 1952 - January 1953) Biographical information An elderly man wanted to write, not even memoirs, but something like an autobiographical novel. He did not lay claim to literary laurels; he did not even
From the book Sedition. Dissent in the USSR under Khrushchev and Brezhnev author Kozlov Vladimir AlexandrovichDOCUMENTS “Socialist Union of the Struggle for Freedom.” Kyiv, 1956. Information about the organization Anatoly Mikhailovich Partashnikov, born in 1935, student at the Kyiv Medical Institute; Anatoly Shleimovich Feldman, born in 1935, mechanic at the Electric Welding Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR;
From the book Sedition. Dissent in the USSR under Khrushchev and Brezhnev author Kozlov Vladimir AlexandrovichDOCUMENTS Trial of Daniel and Sinyavsky (February 1966)129. Memorandum by the First Deputy Chairman of the KGB under the Council of Ministers of the USSR and the Prosecutor General of the USSR to the Central Committee of the CPSU on the trial of Daniel Yu.M. and Sinyavsky A.D., dated February 16, 1966. In addition to our letter No. 2843c dated
author Balmasov Sergey StanislavovichDocumentation
From the book White emigrants in military service in China author Balmasov Sergey StanislavovichDocuments A letter from Pappengut, written by him to N.A. Shchelokov in Tianjin on August 3, 1933, shortly before his death, is stored in the Civil Aviation of the Russian Federation. F. 5873. Op. 1. D. 8. L. 37, 38. “Dear Nikolai Alexandrovich! I haven't written to you for many years. Life in constant work, worries, difficulties dragged on, and contact
author Andreev Alexander RadevichSoviet and German documents, UPA documents on the activities of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army 1944–1952
From the book Stepan Bandera, leader of the OUN-UPA in documents and materials author Andreev Alexander RadevichSoviet documents, UPA documents on the activities of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army. 1944–1952 1. Draft Plan for the elimination of armed gangs of Ukrainian nationalists operating in the Zhitomir and Rivne regions and the northern regions of Tarnopol and Kamenets-Podolsk
For many years this war remained silent. In the USSR she was considered inglorious and anti-people, and therefore unworthy of public attention. Outside the Union borders, the pages of its history were turned timidly and slowly: victories burned with death, defeats with the tears of those who only yesterday received front-line letters and urgent telegrams. After a long pause, they started talking about the war with their eyes wide open. Not only official documents, but also private archives emerged from the shadow of silence, feeding the soil of great history.
In the year of commemoration of the events of a century ago, historians are eager to throw out the bloody statistics of the war: 10 million killed and 20 million wounded from 38 participating countries (or three-quarters of the world's population), which lasted 4 years, 3 months and 10 days (from August 1, 1914 to November 11 1918) were engulfed in a whirlwind of unprecedented scale and cruelty. But there is hardly a historian who would dare to say how many military documents and evidence have been classified, forgotten and lost since the fatal shot of Gavrilo Princip. An even more difficult task is to get out of closets and attics the history of one life, family or small homeland. This is the closed space that, in synthesis with official narratives, can change the punctuation marks in the main sentences printed in red letters in history textbooks.
From the world according to the document: Europeans are writing their war history
Personal archives began to be used as an alternative source of great history in the 1970s. In Britain, where there has long been a strong tradition of oral and written accounts, historian Alf Peacock recorded interviews with eyewitnesses of the First World War. Among them were participants in the Battle of Ypres, doctors saving the lives of the wounded, and even soldiers fleeing the battlefield. The historian’s work did not go unnoticed. The tapes containing the stories of 231 people were sent to staff and volunteers at the York Oral History Society. In 2012, audio recordings of eyewitnesses attracted the interest of the UK Heritage Lottery Fund, which allocated almost fifty thousand pounds for the digitization of unique materials. As a result, 250 hours of film were transferred to a book and a CD.
But the matter did not end there either. Inspired by the example of fellow historians, the British Imperial War Museum and the online community Zooniverse.org set about digitizing the diaries of English soldiers and officers. Once again, the deciphering and publication of one and a half million pages of World War I archives was not without the help of volunteers. This extensive evidence base subsequently served as the basis for over a thousand BBC radio programmes.
400 thousand documents,660 hours of film recordings and 90 thousand personal files and belongings.“Europeana 1914-1918” is a special digital resource dedicated earlier
unpublished documents of the First World War. It included about
The enthusiasm and sense of inner duty of volunteers paved the way to one of the largest digital collections from the First World War, “Europeana 1914-1918”. This online resource, opened on January 28 this year, has already grown to global status: it brings together the collections of many organizations around the world, including archives in Canada, Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand. Initially, the collection of archival materials was created by twenty European countries. It included about 400 thousand documents, 660 hours of unique film materials and 90 thousand personal files and belongings of war participants. “This is a unique collection of historical artifacts that have never been exhibited or published anywhere before,” says Europeana executive director Jill Cousins. “Much of the content is open-licensed, allowing it to be reused over and over again, and we would love for a wide range of people to be able to use the contents of the collection in their own projects.”
Russia collects archives
After a protracted silence, Russian archives have also begun to reconstruct a small history of the big war. If we talk about very little, then we will have to return again to the European venture to create an international collection of archival documents. Few people know that the Russian State Library made a significant contribution to the creation of “Europeans 1914-1918,” providing 270 photographs from its own collections for online use. The Russian State Archive of Film and Photo Documents houses an even richer collection, numbering over a hundred albums on the history of the war. A detailed list of photographic documents from the archive can be found on the Rosarkhiv website.
The largest complex of documents on the First World War to date is stored within the walls of the Lefortovo Palace, where the funds of the Russian State Military Historical Archive (RGVIA) are housed. The Lefortovo archive of military materials contains almost half a million items dating back to the period of the Great War. At a distance of two thousand kilometers from it, in an ancient town near Tyumen, Yalutorovsk, the digitization of documents began. By the end of 2018, the 100th anniversary of the end of the war, it is planned to scan over 7.7 million cards from the Bureau for the Accounting of Losses on the Fronts of the First World War.
Once these racks with a total length of 1120 meters were part of a unit for conducting “special office work for collecting and recording information about those who retired due to death or injury, as well as missing military ranks.” In a few years, an inventory of scanned documents will be posted on the website of the Russian State Military Historical Archive, and the archives will be available on the basis of an electronic application. However, today archivists in Yalutorovsk are already working on requests from individuals and institutions: if the required name is on the lists, the applicant receives a copy of it. With great gratitude, the Tyumen branch of the RGVIA is ready to accept personal (family) archives dating back to the war period.
TSAMO.ORG is an online archive of German documents from the First World War.
He combined 465 cases with a total volume of 36,142 sheets, which are provided
on an open access basis.
Another extensive archival and historical project TSAMO.ORG is a child of the Central Archive of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation (TsAMO). Since 1953, it has housed a large collection of German documents from the First World War. For many years, these materials had neither annotations nor translations and were inaccessible to visitors to the archive. With the support of the German Historical Institute in Moscow, the electronic collection “German Documents of the First World War” was born in mid-July of this year, which contains 465 files with a total volume of 36,142 pages. Most of the digital archive of TsAMO are maps and diagrams (787!), orders and instructions, combat logs of military units, personal files of military personnel and other personnel records documents, special propaganda materials in the enemy army, information reports, personal correspondence, photographs and etc. Electronic versions of digitized documents are publicly available on the website tsamo.org.
The authors of a special project designed with creative inspiration and painstaking work by Lenta.ru and Rambler Infographics claim the title of an alternative textbook of domestic and world history. This site, which is not devoid of aesthetic pretensions, contains facts, thoughts, things and documents about the First World War, which still connect us with the events of the First World War. “Time is often compared to water, and its course to the flow of a river. You can drown in time, you can disappear without a trace, but it also brings the most unexpected artifacts to the surface,” the authors of the special project warn the reader. We can readily agree with them. In order for the cruel rapids of this winding river to leave living marks in the hearts of contemporaries, people, events, things and documents must not remain silent, for silence gives birth to oblivion, and oblivion is a direct path to mistakes.
This unprecedented war must be brought to complete victory. Whoever thinks now about peace, who desires it, is a traitor to the Fatherland, its traitor.
August 1, 1914 Germany declared war on Russia. The First World War (1914-1918) began, which became the Second Patriotic War for our Motherland.
How did it happen that the Russian Empire became embroiled in the First World War? Was our country ready for it?
Doctor of Historical Sciences, professor, chief researcher at the Institute of General History of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IWI RAS), president of the Russian Association of Historians of the First World War (RAIWW) Evgeniy Yuryevich Sergeev told Foma about the history of this war, what it was like for Russia.
Visit of French President R. Poincaré to Russia. July 1914
What the masses don't know
— Evgeniy Yurievich, The First World War (WWI) is one of the main directions of your scientific activity. What influenced the choice of this particular topic?
—This is an interesting question. On the one hand, the significance of this event for world history leaves no doubt. This alone can motivate a historian to study WWII. On the other hand, this war still remains, to a certain extent, “terra incognita” of Russian history. The Civil War and the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945) overshadowed it and relegated it to the background in our consciousness.
No less important are the extremely interesting and little-known events of that war. Including those whose direct continuation we find during the Second World War.
For example, there was such an episode in the history of WWII: On August 23, 1914, Japan declared war on Germany., being in an alliance with Russia and with other Entente countries, supplied weapons and military equipment to Russia. These supplies went through the Chinese Eastern Railway (CER). The Germans organized an entire expedition (sabotage team) there in order to blow up the tunnels and bridges of the Chinese Eastern Railway and interrupt this communication. Russian counterintelligence intercepted this expedition, that is, they managed to prevent the liquidation of the tunnels, which would have caused significant damage to Russia, because an important supply artery would have been interrupted.
- Marvelous. How can it be, Japan, with whom we fought in 1904-1905...
— By the time WWII began, relations with Japan were different. The corresponding agreements have already been signed. And in 1916, an agreement on a military alliance was even signed. We had a very close collaboration.
Suffice it to say that Japan gave us, although not free of charge, three ships that Russia lost during the Russo-Japanese War. The Varyag, which the Japanese raised and restored, was among them. As far as I know, the cruiser "Varyag" (the Japanese called it "Soya") and two other ships raised by the Japanese were bought by Russia from Japan in 1916. On April 5 (18), 1916, the Russian flag was raised over the Varyag in Vladivostok.
Moreover, after the Bolshevik victory, Japan participated in the intervention. But this is not surprising: the Bolsheviks were considered accomplices of the Germans, the German government. You yourself understand that the conclusion of a separate peace on March 3, 1918 (Brest-Litovsk Peace) was essentially a stab in the back of the allies, including Japan.
Along with this, of course, there were very specific political and economic interests of Japan in the Far East and Siberia.
— But there were other interesting episodes in WWII?
- Certainly. It can also be said (few people know about this) that military convoys known from the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 were present during WWII, and also went to Murmansk, which in 1916 was specially built for this purpose. A railway was opened connecting Murmansk with the European part of Russia. The supplies were quite significant.
A French squadron operated together with Russian troops on the Romanian front. Here is a prototype of the Normandy-Niemen squadron. British submarines fought in the Baltic Sea alongside the Russian Baltic Fleet.
Cooperation on the Caucasian front between the corps of General N. N. Baratov (who fought there against the troops of the Ottoman Empire as part of the Caucasian Army) and British forces is also a very interesting episode of WWI, one might say, the prototype of the so-called “meeting on the Elbe” during the Second World War . Baratov made a forced march and met with British troops near Baghdad, in what is now Iraq. Then these were Ottoman possessions, naturally. As a result, the Turks found themselves caught in a pincer movement.
Visit of French President R. Poincaré to Russia. Photo 1914
Grand plans
- Evgeny Yuryevich, who is to blame for this?the outbreak of the First World War?
—The blame clearly lies with the so-called Central Powers, that is, with Austria-Hungary and Germany. And even more so in Germany. Although WWII began as a local war between Austria-Hungary and Serbia, without the strong support that was promised to Austria-Hungary from Berlin, it would not have acquired first a European and then a global scale.
Germany really needed this war. Its main goals were formulated as follows: to eliminate British hegemony on the seas, seize its colonial possessions and acquire “living space in the East” (that is, in Eastern Europe) for the rapidly growing German population. There was a geopolitical concept of “Middle Europe”, according to which Germany’s main task was to unite European countries around itself into a kind of modern European Union, but, naturally, under the auspices of Berlin.
To ideologically support this war, a myth was created in Germany about “surrounding the Second Reich with a ring of hostile states”: from the West - France, from the East - Russia, on the seas - Great Britain. Hence the task: to break through this ring and create a prosperous world empire centered in Berlin.
— What role did Germany assign to Russia and the Russian people in the event of its victory?
— In case of victory, Germany expected to return the Russian kingdom to the borders of approximately the 17th century (that is, before Peter I). Russia, in the German plans of that time, was to become a vassal of the Second Reich. The Romanov dynasty was supposed to be preserved, but, of course, Nicholas II (and his son Alexei) would be removed from power.
— How did the Germans behave in the occupied territories during WWII?
—In 1914-1917, the Germans managed to occupy only the extreme western provinces of Russia. They behaved there rather restrainedly, although, of course, they requisitioned the property of the civilian population. But there were no mass deportations to Germany or atrocities directed against civilians.
Another thing is 1918, when German and Austro-Hungarian troops occupied vast territories in conditions of the virtual collapse of the tsarist army (let me remind you that they reached Rostov, Crimea and the North Caucasus). Mass requisitions for the needs of the Reich had already begun here, and resistance units appeared, created in Ukraine by nationalists (Petlyura) and Socialist Revolutionaries, who spoke out sharply against the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty. But even in 1918, the Germans could not make much of a turn, since the war was already coming to an end, and they sent their main forces to the Western Front against the French and British. However, the partisan movement against the Germans in 1917-1918 in the occupied territories was still noted.
World War I. Political poster. 1915
Meeting of the III State Duma. 1915
Why did Russia get involved in the war?
— What did Russia do to prevent war?
— Nicholas II hesitated to the end whether to start a war or not, proposing to resolve all controversial issues at a peace conference in The Hague through international arbitration. Such proposals on the part of Nicholas were made to Wilhelm II, the German Emperor, but he rejected them. And therefore, to say that the blame for the start of the war lies with Russia is absolute nonsense.
Unfortunately, Germany ignored Russian initiatives. The fact is that German intelligence and ruling circles were well aware that Russia was not ready for war. And Russia’s allies (France and Great Britain) were not quite ready for it, especially Great Britain in terms of ground forces.
In 1912, Russia began to carry out a large program of army rearmament, and it was supposed to end only by 1918-1919. And Germany actually completed preparations for the summer of 1914.
In other words, the “window of opportunity” was quite narrow for Berlin, and if a war was to start, it had to start in 1914.
— How justified were the arguments of opponents of the war?
— The arguments of the opponents of the war were quite strong and clearly formulated. There were such forces among the ruling circles. There was a fairly strong and active party that opposed the war.
There is a well-known note from one of the major statesmen of that time, P. N. Durnovo, which was submitted at the beginning of 1914. Durnovo warned Tsar Nicholas II about the destructiveness of the war, which, in his opinion, meant the death of the dynasty and the death of Imperial Russia.
There were such forces, but the fact is that by 1914 Russia was in allied relations not with Germany and Austria-Hungary, but with France, and then with Great Britain, and the very logic of the development of the crisis associated with the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, heir to Austria -The Hungarian throne, brought Russia to this war.
Speaking about the possible fall of the monarchy, Durnovo believed that Russia would not be able to withstand a large-scale war, that there would be a crisis of supply and a crisis of power, and this would ultimately lead not only to the disorganization of the political and economic life of the country, but also to the collapse of the empire , loss of control. Unfortunately, his prediction was largely justified.
— Why did anti-war arguments, for all their validity, clarity and clarity, not have the desired impact? Russia could not help but enter the war, even despite such clearly expressed arguments of its opponents?
- Allied duty on the one hand, on the other hand - fear of losing prestige and influence in the Balkan countries. After all, if we had not supported Serbia, it would have been catastrophic for Russia’s prestige.
Of course, the pressure of certain forces inclined towards war, including those associated with some Serbian circles at court and with Montenegrin circles, also had an effect. Famous “Montenegro women”, that is, the wives of the grand dukes at court, also influenced the decision-making process.
It can also be said that Russia owed significant amounts of money received as loans from French, Belgian and English sources. The money was received specifically for the rearmament program.
But I would still put the issue of prestige (which was very important for Nicholas II) to the fore. We must give him his due - he always stood for maintaining the prestige of Russia, although, perhaps, he did not always understand this correctly.
— Is it true that the motive of helping the Orthodox (Orthodox Serbia) was one of the decisive factors that determined Russia’s entry into the war?
— One of the very significant factors. Perhaps not decisive, because - I emphasize again - Russia needed to maintain the prestige of a great power and not turn out to be an unreliable ally at the very beginning of the war. This is probably the main motive.
A sister of mercy writes down the last will of a dying person. Western Front, 1917
Myths old and new
— WWI became the Patriotic War for our Motherland, the Second Patriotic War, as it is sometimes called. In Soviet textbooks, WWI was called “imperialist.” What is behind these words?
— Giving WWI an exclusively imperialist status is a serious mistake, although this point is also present. But first of all, we must look at it as the Second Patriotic War, remembering that the First Patriotic War was the war against Napoleon in 1812, and we had the Great Patriotic War back in the 20th century.
By taking part in WWII, Russia defended itself. After all, it was Germany that declared war on Russia on August 1, 1914. The First World War became the Second Patriotic War for Russia. In support of the thesis about the main role of Germany in the outbreak of WWII, it can be said that at the Paris Peace Conference (which took place from 01/18/1919 to 01/21/1920), the Allied powers, among other demands, set a condition for Germany to agree to the article on the “war crime” "and admit their responsibility for starting the war.
The whole people then rose up to fight against the foreign invaders. War, I emphasize once again, was declared on us. We didn't start it. And not only the active armies, where, by the way, several million Russians were drafted, but also the entire people took part in the war. The rear and the front acted together. And many of the trends that we later observed during the Great Patriotic War originated precisely during the WWII period. Suffice it to say that partisan detachments were active, that the population of the rear provinces actively showed themselves when they helped not only the wounded, but also refugees fleeing the war from the western provinces. The sisters of mercy were active, and the clergy who were on the front line and often raised troops to attack performed very well.
It can be said that the designation of our great defensive wars by the terms: “First Patriotic War,” “Second Patriotic War,” and “Third Patriotic War” is the restoration of that historical continuity that was broken in the period after WWII.
In other words, whatever the official goals of the war, there were ordinary people who perceived this war as a war for their Fatherland, and died and suffered precisely for this.
— And what, from your point of view, are the most common myths about WWI now?
— We have already named the first myth. It is a myth that WWII was clearly imperialist and was carried out exclusively in the interests of the ruling circles. This is probably the most common myth, which has not yet been eradicated even on the pages of school textbooks. But historians are trying to overcome this negative ideological legacy. We are trying to take a different look at the history of WWII and explain to our schoolchildren the true essence of that war.
Another myth is the idea that the Russian army was only retreating and suffering defeats. Nothing like this. By the way, this myth is widespread in the West, where, apart from the Brusilov breakthrough, that is, the offensive of the troops of the Southwestern Front in 1916 (spring-summer), even Western experts, not to mention the general public, there were no major victories of Russian weapons in WWII They can’t name it.
In fact, excellent examples of Russian military art were demonstrated in WWII. Let's say, on the Southwestern Front, on the Western Front. This is both the Battle of Galicia and the Lodz operation. Osovets’ defense alone is worth it. Osowiec is a fortress located on the territory of modern Poland, where the Russians defended themselves against superior German forces for more than six months (the siege of the fortress began in January 1915 and lasted 190 days). And this defense is quite comparable to the defense of the Brest Fortress.
You can give examples of Russian hero pilots. You can remember the sisters of mercy who saved the wounded. There are many such examples.
There is also a myth that Russia fought this war in isolation from its allies. Nothing like this. The examples I gave earlier debunk this myth.
The war was a coalition one. And we received significant assistance from France, Great Britain, and then the United States, which entered the war later, in 1917.
— Is the figure of Nicholas II mythologized?
— In many ways, of course, it is mythologized. Under the influence of revolutionary agitation, he was branded almost as an accomplice of the Germans. There was a myth according to which Nicholas II allegedly wanted to conclude a separate peace with Germany.
In fact, this was not the case. He was a sincere supporter of waging war to a victorious end and did everything in his power to achieve this. Already in exile, he received the news of the Bolsheviks concluding a separate Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty extremely painfully and with great indignation.
Another thing is that the scale of his personality as a statesman turned out to be not entirely adequate for Russia to be able to get through this war to the end.
None I emphasize , no documentary evidence of the desire of the emperor and empress to conclude a separate peace not found. He didn't even allow the thought of it. These documents do not exist and could not exist. This is another myth.
As a very clear illustration of this thesis, we can cite Nicholas II’s own words from the Act of Abdication (March 2 (15), 1917 at 3 p.m.): "In the days of the greatstruggle against an external enemy who had been striving to enslave our homeland for almost three years, the Lord God was pleased to send Russia a new and difficult test. The outbreak of internal popular unrest threatens to have a disastrous effect on the further conduct of the stubborn war.The fate of Russia, the honor of our heroic army, the good of the people, the entire future of our dear Fatherland require bringing the war to a victorious end at all costs. <…>».
Nicholas II, V.B. Fredericks and Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich at Headquarters. 1914
Russian troops on the march. Photo 1915
Defeat a year before victory
— Was the First World War, as some believe, a shameful defeat of the tsarist regime, a catastrophe, or something else? After all, as long as the last Russian Tsar remained in power, the enemy could not enter the Russian Empire? Unlike the Great Patriotic War.
- You are not entirely right that the enemy could not enter our borders. It nevertheless entered the Russian Empire as a result of the offensive of 1915, when the Russian army was forced to retreat, when our opponents transferred virtually all their forces to the Eastern Front, to the Russian front, and our troops had to retreat. Although, of course, the enemy did not enter the deep regions of Central Russia.
But I would not call what happened in 1917-1918 a defeat, a shameful defeat of the Russian Empire. It would be more accurate to say that Russia was forced to sign this separate peace with the Central Powers, that is, with Austria-Hungary and Germany and with other participants in this coalition.
This is a consequence of the political crisis in which Russia finds itself. That is, the reasons for this are internal, and not at all military. And we must not forget that the Russians actively fought on the Caucasian front, and the successes were very significant. In fact, the Ottoman Empire was dealt a very serious blow by Russia, which later led to its defeat.
Although Russia did not fully fulfill its allied duty, this must be admitted, it certainly made its significant contribution to the victory of the Entente.
Russia literally didn't have enough for a year. Maybe a year and a half in order to finish this war with dignity as part of the Entente, as part of a coalition
— How was the war generally perceived in Russian society? The Bolsheviks, representing an overwhelming minority of the population, dreamed of the defeat of Russia. But what was the attitude of ordinary people?
— The general mood was quite patriotic. For example, women of the Russian Empire were most actively involved in charitable assistance. Many people signed up to become nurses without even being professionally trained. They took special short-term courses. A lot of girls and young women from different classes took part in this movement - from members of the imperial family to the simplest people. There were special delegations of the Russian Red Cross Society that visited prisoner of war camps and monitored their maintenance. And not only in Russia, but also abroad. We traveled to Germany and Austria-Hungary. Even in war conditions, this was feasible through the mediation of the International Red Cross. We traveled through third countries, mainly through Sweden and Denmark. During the Great Patriotic War, such work, unfortunately, was impossible.
By 1916, medical and social assistance to the wounded was systematized and took on a targeted character, although initially, of course, much was done on private initiative. This movement to help the army, to help those who were wounded in the rear, had a nationwide character.
Members of the royal family also took an active part in this. They collected parcels for prisoners of war and donations for the wounded. A hospital was opened in the Winter Palace.
By the way, one cannot help but say about the role of the Church. She provided enormous assistance both to the active army and to the rear. The activities of regimental priests at the front were very versatile.
In addition to their immediate duties, they were also involved in drawing up and sending “funerals” (death notices) to the relatives and friends of fallen soldiers. Many cases have been recorded when priests walked at the head or in the first ranks of advancing troops.
The priests had to do the work of, as they would say now, psychotherapists: they held conversations, reassured, tried to remove the feeling of fear that was natural for a person in the trenches. It's at the front.
On the home front, the Church provided assistance to the wounded and refugees. Many monasteries set up free hospitals, collected parcels for the front, and organized the sending of charitable aid.
Russian infantry. 1914
Remember everyone!
— Is it possible, given the current ideological chaos in society, including in the perception of WWI, to present a sufficiently clear and clear position on WWII that would reconcile everyone regarding this historical phenomenon?
“We, professional historians, are working on this right now, striving to create such a concept.” But this is not easy to do.
In fact, we are now making up for what Western historians did back in the 50s and 60s of the 20th century - we are doing work that, due to the peculiarities of our history, we did not do. The entire emphasis was on the October Socialist Revolution. The history of WWI was hushed up and mythologized.
— Is it true that it is already planned to build a temple in memory of the soldiers who died in WWII, just as the Cathedral of Christ the Savior was built with public money in its time?
- Yes. This idea is being developed. And there is even a unique place in Moscow - a brotherly cemetery near the Sokol metro station, where not only Russian soldiers who died here in rear hospitals, but also prisoners of war of the enemy armies were buried. That's why it's fraternal. Soldiers and officers of different nationalities are buried there.
At one time, this cemetery occupied quite a large space. Now, of course, the situation is completely different. Much has been lost there, but the memorial park has been recreated, there is already a chapel, and restoring the temple there would probably be a very correct decision. The same as the opening of a museum (with a museum the situation is more complicated).
You can announce a fundraiser for this temple. The role of the Church is very important here.
“In fact, we can put an Orthodox church at the crossroads of these historical roads, just as we used to put chapels at the crossroads where people could come, pray, and remember their dead relatives.
- Yes, that's absolutely right. Moreover, almost every family in Russia is connected with WWI, that is, with the Second Patriotic War, as well as with the Great Patriotic War.
Many fought, many had ancestors who took part in this war in one way or another - either on the home front or in the active army. Therefore, it is our sacred duty to restore historical truth.
The year 2014 marks the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War - a new type of war that acquired features that have become common in armed conflicts of the 20th century. This includes the inseparability of the rear from the front, the total mobilization of the economy for military needs, and the waging of an information war on a state scale. Land battles enriched military science with the tactics of tank attacks. For the first time, an underwater war was launched at sea, and against civilian ships. In fact, during the war, a new type of armed forces emerged - aviation, which became a full-fledged means of conducting armed struggle. In this war, the Russian Empire was part of a military-political bloc with France and Great Britain, which was opposed by the Central Powers - Germany and Austria-Hungary. The war, initially perceived by many contemporaries as the Second Patriotic War (by analogy with the War of 1812), quickly contributed to the development of crisis phenomena in all spheres of life of the state and society. The quickly emerging difficulties in supplying the army and the front revealed the unpreparedness of the production base and the weakness of the infrastructure, especially the railway, for the needs of a major war. The government’s attempts to solve the growing difficulties led to the now common phenomenon of “ministerial leapfrog,” and cooperation between government and private capital turned out to be insufficiently productive. The powerful influx of rural population into the cities led not only to a supply crisis, but also to a change in the social image of the townspeople. A series of defeats at the front contributed to the deterioration of the situation inside the country.
For the Russian state, the Great War turned out to be the turn of the era, the transition from an estate monarchy to a socialist republic, accompanied by revolutionary upheavals and the devastation of the Civil War. The political conjuncture of the Soviet era assigned the definition of “imperialist” to the First World War, which in practice meant viewing it mainly as a catalyst for revolutionary events. The epithet “forgotten war”, which has become widespread in recent years, reflects not only the poor knowledge of this time period, but also its actual loss from the historical memory of the nation.
The main materials for presentation in the collection are research, journalism, official documents, archival materials (including a card file of war heroes), leaflets and fiction. Particular attention is paid to memoirs and visual sources reflecting Russia's participation in the First World War.
The collection includes more than 1200 items.
To prepare this collection, numerous materials were used from the collections of the Arkhangelsk Regional Scientific Library named after. N. A. Dobrolyubov, Belgorod State Universal Scientific Library, Library of Congress of the United States, Library of Natural Sciences of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Military Historical Museum of Artillery, Engineering Troops and Signal Corps of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, State Archives of the Russian Federation, State Archives of the Tyumen Region, State Fund films of the Russian Federation, State Socio-Political Library, State Public Historical Library, Children's Postcard Museum, Moscow Regional State Scientific Library named after. N.K. Krupskaya, Omsk State Regional Scientific Library named after. A. S. Pushkin, Perm State Regional Universal Library named after. A. M. Gorky, Russian State Library, Russian State Archive of Film and Photo Documents, Russian State Historical Archive, Russian History Channel, St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg State Theater Library, Central Naval Library, Center for Information Technologies and Executive Systems authorities.