Red Army. Reds against whites: the peoples of Russia in the civil war Whites and reds in the civil war history

1917 divided us into “red” and “white”. Not all of them, really. Actually, there are not so many real “reds” and “whites”. The trouble is that everyone who remained, that is, the majority, caught up in the whirlwind of events, was forced to choose who to follow. And it’s not a simple task to solve: which of them is right? And even today the question: “Who are you for: the Reds or the Whites?” still causes serious difficulties. To solve it, you need to figure out who the “reds” are and who the “whites” are.

At first glance, everything is clear. “Whites” are those who did not accept the seizure of power by the “red” Bolsheviks. But this is a picture of 1918, and a year earlier the political picture was different. Irreconcilable anti-Bolsheviks were equally irreconcilable towards Emperor Nikolai Alexandrovich. That is, they were revolutionaries, and therefore “red”. Literally and figuratively. Decorated with red bows, they happily breathed in the intoxicating air of freedom. The following months were spent deepening the revolution and consolidating all kinds of freedoms. But, as you know, for every revolution there is a counter-revolution. In the autumn of the same year they were overthrown by the “red” Bolsheviks in alliance with the left Socialist Revolutionaries. Now attention! Question: which main parties made up the coalition of the Provisional Revolutionary Government? Cadets (constitutional democrats), Social Revolutionaries (social revolutionaries), Mensheviks (social democrats) and radical democrats. What coalition came to power? Also social democrats (so-called Bolsheviks) social revolutionaries (socialist revolutionaries). True, without the cadets. It turns out that the “red” coalition of democrats-socialists-revolutionaries was overthrown by an “even redder” coalition of the same combination. But that is not all. A month later, the parties of the overthrown coalition won the elections to the Constituent Assembly. But the coalition that won in October and lost the elections closed the Constituent Assembly after the first day of meetings “for not submitting to the will of the people.” The few demonstrations in defense of the establishment were dispersed. In fact, this was the second force victory over representatives of the Provisional Government. And now the former revolutionaries have become counter-revolutionaries in relation to the “real revolutionaries”. This is the tangled knot that tightened around Russia’s neck as a result of the “bloodless February revolution.” The usual political palette of the civil war was established. The "Reds" are fighting against the "Whites". But not only. Also against their recent allies, the “very red” Left Social Revolutionaries. And also against the “orange” separatists (as well as the “white” ones, however). And against the autocratic “greens”, who in turn fought against everyone. On top of everything else, the invasion of foreign troops began. Let's call them "black". The “Red” Bolsheviks managed to defeat everyone.

"Whites" left their homeland. But even in exile, the civil war continued. Between monarchists and supporters of the Constituent Assembly. Another stumbling block was the attitude towards the Bolsheviks. Far away from native land emigrants (refugees), having experienced the tragedy of the loss of their homeland, tried to understand the causes of this common misfortune and look for ways out of it. It was then that the formulation “not red and not white - but Russian” was born. A movement to return to the homeland began. Pure “Whites” called all those who sympathized with the Soviets “pink”, and those collaborating with them as “red”.

In Russia itself, the political color scheme did not change outwardly until the mid-1930s, when the destruction of the “very, very red” began. The old guard of the revolution - the Trotskyists - were put to waste (pardon the expression).

The World War again stirred up the political palette. The “Whites” again relied on the “Blacks” and opposed the “Reds”. And again they were defeated. P.N. Krasnov was executed, adding to the list of dead “white” leaders (M.V. Alekseev, L.G. Kornilov). Survivor A.I. Denikin was among those who sympathized with the struggle Red Army against the Germans. The “Reds” returned almost all of the Russian lands lost as a result of the revolution and intervention. The persecution of the Church was stopped. In essence, they carried out a “white deed” under a red flag. Nikolai Vasilyevich Ustryalov spoke about this back in the thirties, comparing the Soviet Union to a radish - “red on the outside, white on the inside.”

But the struggle for Russia continued. The “very reddest”, defeated in 1937, returned to power. The “Khrushchev thaw” has arrived. “Give the revolution a deepening!” And again persecution of the Church. But they again failed to build a peaceful Soviet life. The “Red-White” (they can be called “statist-traditionalists”) were able to remove the “very, very red.” This is how the country survived until 1991. Until the new revolution. This time, to fight the “red-whites”, ideas inherent in the “pure whites” were brought in. First of all, hatred of everything Soviet, as a Bolshevik legacy. But this was not enough. The enormous resources of the “blacks” were used, who, in fact, were the main customers of the new revolution. Or rather, the “blacks” used for their own purposes the “very, very red” ones, raised on freely convertible currency, and the “whites,” as they say, “in the dark” (pardon the expression again).

The fact that the revolution of 1991 was a direct continuation of the revolution of the 17th is evidenced by the fact that the country was again divided into parts. And these breakaway units were set against Russia. As under the Februaryists, the country went downhill. With the direct participation of “blacks”.

Fortunately, Russia survived. And she began to rise from her knees.

Our “partners” did not expect this. And so... the “very, very reds”, who now call themselves “democrats”, simply “reds” and... “whites”, who consider themselves real patriots, came out to Bolotnaya Square in unison. What a picture!

This time the people did not let themselves be deceived. Now the whiteness that has ripened under the red shell of our native “radish” has already clearly appeared. The idea “not “Reds” and not “Whites” - but Russians”, hard-won in exile, turned out to be saving for us. She is Russian in spirit. This statement restores the unity of the history of our long-suffering Motherland, and therefore the unity of the entire people.

Where did the ideas of communism and social democracy originally come from? It is usually assumed that it is the fruit of the creativity of the “people” or its “best representatives”, in general the “lower classes”. The “lower classes” somehow organized themselves and decided to give battle to the “bourgeois”.

In reality, the Reds, the Red Idea, are an organized form of struggle of the ancient aristocracy against the bourgeoisie, city dwellers, peasantry, and in general what is today called the “middle class”. With the involvement of the social lower classes as a weapon.

It’s useful to remember this conspiracy theory from Dugin’s collection:

“Second after Saint-Yves in matters of occult conspiracy theory can be called the extremely strange author of the second half of the 19th century century Claude Sostaing Grace d'Orsay (1828 - 19OO). His name would have been completely forgotten if it had not been for the mention of him in the book of the mysterious 20th century alchemist Fulcanelli. Fulcanelli's followers, and European traditionalists in general, found forgotten numbers in the collections of the National Library of France "Revue Britannica", in which they discovered a series of articles by Grace d'Orsay, methodically describing an alternative occult history of Europe, and especially, of course, France. Particularly striking was the dizzyingly bold decipherment of ancient engravings, folk couplets, heraldic inscriptions, etc., which the author, with the help of the so-called “phonetic cabala” (not to be confused with the Jewish Kabbalah, with two “b”), makes a fascinating narrative about the secret struggle of two powerful "secret societies". It is the confrontation between these organizations that, according to Graça d'Orsay, determines the entire European history.

This phantasmagoric picture can be schematically represented as follows. Initially, on the territory of the Eurasian continent and North Africa, there were two religious types, two cults - Solar and Lunar. These rival religious organizations were in a constant state of conflict. In ancient Gaul there were two main castes - “dwellers of the towers” ​​and “workers”. The “dwellers of the towers” ​​(“zhasy”, “goyim” or “gogtryus”) were Moon worshipers, their goddess was Bellona or Belena (Grace d’Orsay brings together the word “Belena”, the goddess of the Moon among the Celts, and the word “volonte”, “will” "). The "workers" ("pecs" or "picards") worshiped the solar deities Esus and Teutat. At this stage, Grace d'Orsay is clearly guided by the works of Saint-Yves d'Alveidre, known to him, since he calls the Moon Worshipers "Ionians" , descendants of "Aeneas", the founder of the Roman dynasty, and the object of their worship is the sacred cow Io ("Ionians" are the descendants of the cow Io). Like d'Alveidre, he calls the Red Color the fundamental symbol of the "Ionians" (red is the original color of the French oriflamme monarchs). The solar “Dorians” and “Stoic worshipers of Mithras” fought against the lunar “Ionians.” The symbolic colors of the Dorians are Black and White. But in the development of this topic, Grace d'Orsay goes far away from d'Alveidre. He unambiguously identifies the “Ionians” with the bearers of the idea of ​​ancestral aristocracy, with the European nobility. Sun worshipers, in turn, are the people, peasants, artisans, as well as the clergy, the priestly class. The medieval Ghibellines, supporters of the primacy of imperial power over the power of the Pope, and later the Protestants were typical “Ionians.” The Welfs, supporters of the Pope, are “Dorians” and Sun Worshipers. It is curious that Grace d'Orsay touches on the issue of blood magic here, since he claims that the "Ionians", and especially the family of French Capetian monarchs, descending from Catt Vallon, considered themselves bearers of "violet" blood, divine blood, and despised "blue" the blood of the lower castes. Therefore, Moon Worshipers were sometimes called “violet”, and Sun Worshipers - “blue”.

In Christian Europe, both of these movements existed not only in the form of ideological and political complexes, but also in the form of “secret societies”, with a special language of signs, symbols, correspondences, passwords, etc. The sun worshipers were united in the secret "Order of the Four", the "Order of the Quart". Another name for them was "Minstrels of Murcia" or "Minstrels of Mercy", i.e. literally "Minstrels of Mercy". Another important sign of the “Quarta” was the Northern Pavilion of the Tuileries Palace and the Winter Solstice. In Rabelais's esoteric coded book, members of the "Quart" are described under the name "Gastrolatrov", "gluttons". In England they manifested themselves in the Whig parliamentary party, i.e. "wigs", since "wig" is the secret password of the "Dorians". The minstrels of Murcia Grasse d'Orsay are associated with townspeople or rural residents, as opposed to aristocrats living in castles, "towers" (a connection between the words "tour" - "tower" and "taureau" - "bull"). Moon worshipers united in the mysterious "Order Five", "Order of Quinta". Otherwise they were called "Minstrels of Morvan" or "Minstrels of Morgan". They are associated with the South, with the Summer Solstice. Their traditional emblem is the Dancing Death, danse macabre, as well as the South Pavilion of the Tuileries, the Pavilion of Flora Grace d'Orsay deciphers the phrase "Minstrels of Morvan" as "dead southern hand", "morte main australe". In Rabelais, the members of the Quinta are Engastromites who hate food. Therefore, the favorite means of the Ionian aristocrats to fight the people and to subjugate them is “organized famine”, “pestilence”. Grace d'Orsay believes that any famine and pestilence in Europe throughout the entire known historical period is not an accident, but the result of a conspiracy of the Moon Worshipers against the people. In England, the "Quinta" is represented by the parliamentary "Tories" ("Tory", "tory" - "inhabitants towers", "tour", worshiping the bull "taureau"). At the level of Christian theology, the roots of "Quarta" stretch to the heretical teaching of Cerdon, one of the first Monophysites who denied the human element in the person of Jesus Christ. Feudal Europe, and especially France, Grace d'Orsay considers for the most part "sunny", ruled by the "Order of the Quart", whose representative, in particular, was Joan of Arc. But some of the ruling royal families belonged to the Moon Worshipers, the “violet” ones. (The banner of the first Capetian monarchs was purple). Reform and Protestantism was entirely the result of the conspiracy of the "Quinta", which sought to free itself from the influence of the Welf priestly-folk Vatican with its Solar orientation. But in addition to the softened purely church and Catholic sunshine, in the West there was also a radical organization of Sun Worshipers, seeking to put an end to the rival Order once and for all. The most ancient solar Tradition, within the framework of Christianity, associated with the Apostle Paul and the heresiarch Marcion (directly opposed in his doctrine to the “Monophysite Cerdon”), was preserved in the Jerusalem Patriarchate, from where it was brought to Europe by the Knights of the Temple, the Templars. Later the solar secret doctrines were transferred to the Portuguese Order of Christ, and still later to the Jesuit Order. Eventually they moved on to European Freemasonry. The Templar banner was just Black and White.

Until the French Revolution, Freemasonry was the arena of confrontation between two secret Orders: the Quintes and the Quarts. Initially, Freemasonry was created by the Jesuits as a tool in the fight against the omnipotence of the “Ionian” aristocracy. But later many representatives of the Quinta penetrated it and began to fight for dominance within this Order. Sun worshipers within Masonry formed the Order of Herodon, which later became the "Scottish Ancient and Accepted Rite" of 33 degrees. Moon worshipers formed into the Huguenot Masonic brotherhood of the Adelphs, and later the Carbonari. Grasse d'Orsay considers the Revolution to be the peak of occult intrigue in the war between the "Quarts" and the "Quints". European history came to the surface. Grace d'Orsay generally shares the point of view of counter-revolutionary authors - Abbé Barruel, Agustin Cauchin, Bernard Fay, etc. - regarding the involvement of Freemasonry in the Revolution. He even agrees that it is Freemasonry that bears the main responsibility for what happened. But in contrast to the rather simple schemes of ordinary counter-revolutionaries, he puts forward a dizzying and unusually complex version, in which the whole of Masonry appears not as something homogeneous and unified, but as a field of opposition between two even more secret, occult forces and groups.Thus, his conspiracy picture is much richer. Firstly, both secret organizations certainly participated in the preparation of the Revolution. The partly degraded solar brotherhood of the “Quarts” interpreted many of its doctrines literally, and instead of solar equality in spirit, it began to develop democratic vulgarized concepts, directed not only against the Protestant aristocracy, seeking to absolutize its power , suppressing the resistance of the clergy and the people, but also against the social hierarchy generally. Thus, the Bavarian Illuminati and the Duke of Brunswick (rightfully the head of the European Guelph party, i.e. one of the variants of the “Quarta”) prepared the execution of Louis XVI as an absolutist leaning towards the side of the Huguenots and Protestants. If before Louis XV the French monarchs made concessions to the “Quarte”, and even established an alliance with the democratic Guelphs - “Dorians” against the power of the local nobility, then Louis XV and Louis XVI themselves violated the agreement and sided with the Moon-Worshipping Huguenots. They refused to allow the peasants to plow the royal lands and forests (this demand, naturally, was supported by the Church), dissolved the Jesuit Order and created an “artificial famine”, “pestilence”, that is, they showed all the signs of their transition to the side of the “Quinta” and the “Ionians” . A secret meeting of the "Quart" in France, with the participation of representatives of the common classes and clergy under the auspices of the Mother Lodge, a kind of occult parliament, also voted for the death of Louis XVI. Thus, French revolution was the revenge of the pro-Jesuit Freemasonry of the solar ritual on the king, who went over to the side of the lunar ritual and threw in his lot with the Huguenot-Ghibellines. But during the social upheavals of the Revolution, the “solar Order” actually became the bearer of egalitarian sentiments and doctrines. This largely changed the original religious orientation of the movement and led to certain excesses. On the other hand, Freemasonry was already imbued with the Protestant influences of the Quinta. Protestants, according to the traditional logic of the “Party of the Dancing Death,” constantly practiced buying up grain and, under the threat of famine, increased the capital of Protestant banks. Therefore, having lost their ally, Louis XVI, the “Ionians” recouped their economic achievements; participating in the administration of the Republic due to Masonic involvement in the conspiracy, they concentrated finances in their hands. Thus, the aristocrats of “violet” blood firmly linked their fate with the bourgeoisie on the basis of Protestantism and Moon worship. And later, the lunar ritual of the descendants of the Cow Io also became a conspiracy theological orientation of the “capitalists”, who adopted from the authentic “Minstrels of Morvan” primarily economic methods of fighting the common people and the Church. But be that as it may, the degeneration of the solar “Order of Quart” down to democracy and egalitarianism and the transformation of the lunar “Order of Quinta” into the force of capitalism, according to Grace d'Orsay, put an end to the centuries-old history of these “secret societies.”

– In the cult of moon worshipers, one must look for reptilian roots (“Uncle Gena the crocodile swallowed our Sun”). Moon worshipers, the Reds, regularly organize a “harvest” to feed certain astral entities that give them power. Money for them is a consequence, not a goal. Which is generally fair. There is about the lunar cult and the role of the Moon the following words Gurdjieff: “The moon is man's great enemy. We serve the moon. .. We are like the sheep of the moon; she cleans them, feeds them and cuts them, preserving them for her own purposes; and when she gets hungry, she kills them in huge numbers. All organic life works for the moon."

– Initially, the Reds as “inhabitants of the towers” ​​are the customers and inhabitants of such castles:

– The Templars are black and white sun worshipers. As “money magicians,” the “gluttons”—artisans, guild workers, merchants, townspeople, peasants, lower and lower average level clergy (a typical literary and cinematic image of a cunning monk who loves to drink and eat). After the defeat of the Order, the Templars largely fled to Britain, where over time a system of relative political compromise between Quart and Quinta was created. Later they actively participated in the colonization of America, and the USA was initially a state of predominantly Solar cult.

– The revolution and civil war in Russia is the most striking example of the struggle between the Sun Worshipers (white, black and white “bourgeois” wing of Freemasonry) and the Moon Worshipers (red, “carbonari”, emissaries of the ancient European aristocracy). The Reds won, which determined future fate Russia.

– To fight the people, the “bourgeoisie”, the Reds, along with the old technologies for organizing “pestilence”, a new one is used - the targeted importation of culturally alien migrants into controlled territories.

The territories controlled by the Moon Worshipers are not always a gulag, famine and Juche. For example, Sweden is one of the “reddest” countries. China is also in the global Red zone, which is nonetheless building a “welfare society” with an expanding middle class base. Here a lot depends on the quality of the people, their self-awareness, and on their elite. If such gop-stop cadres as Comrade are in power. Maduro in Venezuela, then of course things start to go wrong and the country turns into a field of experiments, because “the soul asks.”

Every Russian knows that in Civil War 1917-1922 two movements were opposed for years - "Red and White". But among historians there is still no consensus on where it began. Some believe that the reason was Krasnov's March on the Russian capital (October 25); others believe that the war began when, in the near future, the commander of the Volunteer Army Alekseev arrived on the Don (November 2); There is also an opinion that the war began with Miliukov proclaiming the “Declaration of the Volunteer Army”, delivering a speech at the ceremony called the Don (December 27). Another popular opinion, which is far from unfounded, is the opinion that the Civil War began immediately after February Revolution, when the whole society split into supporters and opponents of the Romanov monarchy.

"White" movement in Russia

Everyone knows that “whites” are adherents of the monarchy and the old order. Its beginnings were visible back in February 1917, when the monarchy was overthrown in Russia and a total restructuring of society began. The development of the “white” movement took place during the period when the Bolsheviks came to power and the formation of Soviet power. They represented a circle of people dissatisfied with the Soviet government, who disagreed with its policies and principles of its conduct.
The “Whites” were fans of the old monarchical system, refused to accept the new socialist order, and adhered to the principles of traditional society. It is important to note that the “whites” were often radicals; they did not believe that it was possible to agree on anything with the “reds”; on the contrary, they had the opinion that no negotiations or concessions were acceptable.
The “Whites” chose the Romanov tricolor as their banner. The white movement was commanded by Admiral Denikin and Kolchak, one in the South, the other in the harsh regions of Siberia.
A historical event that became the impetus for the activation of the “whites” and the transition to their side of the majority former army The Romanov Empire was the rebellion of General Kornilov, who, although suppressed, helped the “whites” strengthen their ranks, especially in the southern regions, where under the leadership of General Alekseev huge resources and a powerful, disciplined army began to accumulate. Every day the army was replenished with new arrivals, it grew rapidly, developed, hardened, and trained.
Separately, it is necessary to say about the commanders of the White Guards (that was the name of the army created by the “white” movement). They were unusually talented commanders, prudent politicians, strategists, tacticians, subtle psychologists, and skillful speakers. The most famous were Lavr Kornilov, Anton Denikin, Alexander Kolchak, Pyotr Krasnov, Pyotr Wrangel, Nikolai Yudenich, Mikhail Alekseev. We can talk about each of them for a long time; their talent and services to the “white” movement can hardly be overestimated.
The White Guards won the war for a long time, and even let down their troops in Moscow. But the Bolshevik army grew stronger, and they were supported by a significant part of the Russian population, especially the poorest and most numerous strata - workers and peasants. In the end, the forces of the White Guards were smashed to smithereens. For some time they continued to operate abroad, but without success, the “white” movement ceased.

"Red" movement

Like the “Whites,” the “Reds” had many talented commanders and politicians in their ranks. Among them, it is important to note the most famous, namely: Leon Trotsky, Brusilov, Novitsky, Frunze. These military leaders showed themselves excellently in battles against the White Guards. Trotsky was the main founder of the Red Army, acting as a decisive force in the confrontation between “whites” and “reds” in the Civil War. The ideological leader of the “red” movement was known to every person Vladimir Ilyich Lenin. Lenin and his government were actively supported by the most massive sections of the population of the Russian State, namely the proletariat, the poor, land-poor and landless peasants, and the working intelligentsia. It was these classes that most quickly believed the tempting promises of the Bolsheviks, supported them and brought the “Reds” to power.
The main party in the country became Russian Social Democratic Bolshevik Labor Party, which was later turned into a communist party. In essence, it was an association of intelligentsia, adherents of the socialist revolution, whose social base was the working classes.
It was not easy for the Bolsheviks to win the Civil War - they had not yet completely strengthened their power throughout the country, the forces of their fans were dispersed throughout huge country, plus the national outskirts began a national liberation struggle. A lot of effort went into the war with the Ukrainian People's Republic, so the Red Army soldiers had to fight on several fronts during the Civil War.
Attacks by the White Guards could come from any direction on the horizon, because the White Guards surrounded the Red Army from all sides with four separate military formations. And despite all the difficulties, it was the “Reds” who won the war, mainly thanks to the broad social base of the Communist Party.
All representatives of the national outskirts united against the White Guards, and therefore they became forced allies of the Red Army in the Civil War. To attract residents of the national outskirts to their side, the Bolsheviks used loud slogans, such as the idea of ​​​​a “united and indivisible Russia.”
The Bolsheviks won the war thanks to the support of the masses. The Soviet government played on a sense of duty and patriotism Russian citizens. The White Guards themselves also added fuel to the fire, since their invasions were most often accompanied by mass robbery, looting, and violence in other forms, which could not in any way encourage people to support the “white” movement.

Results of the Civil War

As has already been said several times, victory in this fratricidal war went to the “reds”. The fratricidal civil war became a real tragedy for the Russian people. The material damage caused to the country by the war was estimated to be about 50 billion rubles was unimaginable money at that time, several times greater than the amount of Russia’s external debt. Because of this, the level of industry decreased by 14%, and agriculture by 50%. According to various sources, human losses amounted to about t 12 to 15 million.. Most of these people died from hunger, repression, and disease. More than one person gave their lives during the hostilities 800 thousand soldiers on both sides. Also during the Civil War, the balance of migration fell sharply - about 2 million Russians left the country and went abroad.

The Russian Civil War had a number of distinctive features with internal confrontations that occurred in other states during this period. The civil war began virtually immediately after the establishment of Bolshevik power and lasted for five years.

Features of the Civil War in Russia

Military battles brought the people of Russia not only psychological suffering, but also large-scale human losses. The theater of military operations did not go beyond Russian state, there was also no front line in the civil confrontation.

The cruelty of the Civil War lay in the fact that the warring parties did not seek a compromise solution, but the complete physical destruction of each other. There were no prisoners in this confrontation: captured opponents were immediately shot.

The number of victims of the fratricidal war was several times higher than the number of Russian soldiers killed on the fronts of the First World War. The peoples of Russia were actually in two warring camps, one of which supported communist ideology, the second tried to eliminate the Bolsheviks and recreate the monarchy.

Both sides did not tolerate the political neutrality of people who refused to take part in hostilities; they were sent to the front by force, and those who were especially principled were shot.

Composition of the anti-Bolshevik White Army

The main driving force of the white army were retired officers imperial army, who had previously sworn an oath of allegiance to the imperial house and could not go against their own honor by recognizing Bolshevik power. The ideology of socialist equality was also alien to the wealthy sections of the population, who foresaw the future predatory policies of the Bolsheviks.

The large, middle bourgeoisie and landowners became the main source of income for the activities of the anti-Bolshevik army. Representatives of the clergy also joined the right, who could not accept the fact of the unpunished murder of “God’s anointed,” Nicholas II.

With the introduction of war communism, the ranks of whites swelled with dissatisfaction government policy peasants and workers who had previously sided with the Bolsheviks.

At the beginning of the revolution, the White Army had a high chance of overthrowing the Communists and Bolsheviks: close relations with major industrialists, rich experience in suppressing revolutionary uprisings and the undeniable influence of the church on the people were impressive advantages of the monarchists.

The defeat of the White Guards is still quite understandable; the officers and commanders-in-chief placed their main emphasis on a professional army, without accelerating the mobilization of peasants and workers, who were ultimately “intercepted” by the Red Army, thus increasing its numbers.

Composition of the Red Guards

Unlike the White Guards, the Red Army did not arise chaotically, but as a result of many years of development by the Bolsheviks. It was based on the class principle, access of the noble class to the ranks of the Reds was closed, commanders were elected among ordinary workers, who represented the majority in the Red Army.

Initially, the army of the left forces was staffed by volunteers, soldiers who took part in the First World War, the poorest representatives of peasants and workers. There were no professional commanders in the ranks of the Red Army, so the Bolsheviks created special military courses where they trained future leadership personnel.

Thanks to this, the army was replenished with the most talented commissars and generals S. Budyonny, V. Blucher, G. Zhukov, I. Konev. Former generals also went over to the side of the Reds tsarist army V. Egoriev, D. Parsky, P. Sytin.

The Reds played a decisive role in the civil war and became the driving mechanism for the creation of the USSR.

With their powerful propaganda they managed to win the loyalty of thousands of people and unite them with the idea of ​​​​creating an ideal country of workers.

Creation of the Red Army

The Red Army was created by a special decree on January 15, 1918. These were voluntary formations from the worker and peasant part of the population.

However, the principle of voluntariness brought with it disunity and decentralization in army command, from which discipline and combat effectiveness suffered. This forced Lenin to announce universal conscription for men 18-40 years old.

The Bolsheviks created a network of schools to train recruits who studied not only the art of war, but also received political education. Commander training courses were created, for which the most outstanding Red Army soldiers were recruited.

Major victories of the Red Army

The Reds in the civil war mobilized all possible economic and human resources to win. After the annulment of the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty, the Soviets began to expel German troops from the occupied areas. Then the most turbulent period of the civil war began.

The Reds managed to defend Southern Front, despite the considerable efforts that were required to fight the Don Army. Then the Bolsheviks launched a counter-offensive and conquered significant territories. On Eastern Front The situation was very unfavorable for the Reds. Here the offensive was launched by Kolchak’s very large and strong troops.

Alarmed by such events, Lenin resorted to emergency measures, and the White Guards were defeated. Simultaneous anti-Soviet protests and entry into the struggle Volunteer Army Denikin was a critical moment for the Bolshevik government. However, the immediate mobilization of all possible resources helped the Reds win.

War with Poland and the end of the civil war

In April 1920 Poland decided to enter Kyiv with the intention of liberating Ukraine from illegal Soviet rule and restoring its independence. However, the people perceived this as an attempt to occupy their territory. Soviet commanders took advantage of this mood of the Ukrainians. Troops of the Western and Southwestern Fronts were sent to fight Poland.

Soon Kyiv was liberated from the Polish offensive. This revived hopes for a quick world revolution in Europe. But, having entered the territory of the attackers, the Reds received powerful resistance and their intentions quickly cooled. In light of such events, the Bolsheviks signed a peace treaty with Poland.

Reds in the civil war photo

After this, the Reds concentrated all their attention on the remnants of the White Guards under the command of Wrangel. These fights were incredibly violent and brutal. However, the Reds still forced the Whites to surrender.

Famous Red leaders

• Frunze Mikhail Vasilievich. Under his command, the Reds carried out successful operations against the White Guard troops of Kolchak, defeated Wrangel’s army in the territory of Northern Tavria and Crimea;
• Tukhachevsky Mikhail Nikolaevich. He was the commander of the troops of the Eastern and Caucasian Front, with his army he cleared the Urals and Siberia of the White Guards;
• Voroshilov Kliment Efremovich. Was one of the first marshals Soviet Union. Participated in the organization of the Revolutionary Military Council of the 1st Cavalry Army. With his troops he liquidated the Kronstadt rebellion;
• Chapaev Vasily Ivanovich. He commanded the division that liberated Uralsk. When the whites suddenly attacked the reds, they fought bravely. And, having spent all the cartridges, the wounded Chapaev set off running across the Ural River, but was killed;
• Budyonny Semyon Mikhailovich. Creator of the Cavalry Army, which defeated the Whites in the Voronezh-Kastornensky operation. The ideological inspirer of the military-political movement of the Red Cossacks in Russia.

• When workers' and peasants' army showed its vulnerability, former tsarist commanders who were their enemies began to be recruited into the ranks of the Reds.
• After the assassination attempt on Lenin, the Reds dealt especially cruelly with 500 hostages. On the line between the rear and the front there were barrage detachments that fought against desertion by shooting.