tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51009132788153307512024-03-14T01:18:08.034-05:00Collecting Soviet HistoryHistory of the Soviet Union with an emphasis on its state security services and their role in maintaining cohesion throughout the USSR. The Cheka and NKVD gradually evolved into the KGB and MVD. Collectively, these agencies enabled the Soviet structure to remain in place as long as it did, and longer than it might have otherwise. (Note: For best results, please read in chronological order starting with the "Introduction" in the column on the right side of the page under "Archive of Chapters")Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-68410563302701814072015-04-19T18:19:00.001-05:002015-05-17T17:54:48.576-05:00Restructuring the Wartime Security Services<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy9VuV1G8hxjLqAqju30_kROkkLMWOyJh4d68KFjOznFH45_-OvBPeuYMixNm94O75Hya_EVUVt27wf-AhQBf_Y5yjopW0sX8EA5xRiSaiRrrIc04E6OKBBcH0qQ1KVQ2e_aBX2cG0jg/s1600/LBeria.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy9VuV1G8hxjLqAqju30_kROkkLMWOyJh4d68KFjOznFH45_-OvBPeuYMixNm94O75Hya_EVUVt27wf-AhQBf_Y5yjopW0sX8EA5xRiSaiRrrIc04E6OKBBcH0qQ1KVQ2e_aBX2cG0jg/s1600/LBeria.jpg" width="355" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">NKVD Chief and from 1943-45 Commissar General of State Security <br />
Lavrentiy Beria wearing the shoulder boards pictured below.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;">When the momentum shifted in favor of the Allies in the latter part of the Great Patriotic War (WWII), powers were once again redistributed among the Soviet security services. Moreover, in April 1943 a new secret service, one of the most notorious security branches - SMERSH - was created as a hybrid of military counterintelligence and the NKVD. Such was the nature of SMERSH that the mere existence of the organization was denied by the Soviets and then for decades by the military and government of the Russian Federation.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwgY7ZAF4hNkKydg9NdDY5F4VIZOouh_kSlhUf7D_Jv2wm1yNh8Jrq6cQKHqpW-cGtbOEzgIaZTLrhMVadU_-am1KheC-cg_X0eYuEd20i6Rdw9DTlwvuNHTkA6uURDCL_aOJqdaNWvg/s1600/Abakumov+photo.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwgY7ZAF4hNkKydg9NdDY5F4VIZOouh_kSlhUf7D_Jv2wm1yNh8Jrq6cQKHqpW-cGtbOEzgIaZTLrhMVadU_-am1KheC-cg_X0eYuEd20i6Rdw9DTlwvuNHTkA6uURDCL_aOJqdaNWvg/s1600/Abakumov+photo.jpeg" width="241" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">People's Commissar of State Security <br />
General Viktor Abakumov</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;">The decision to split the all-powerful Soviet security apparatus under Lavrentiy Beria into three sections was as much political as it was expedient. It is widely believed that Beria - in his height of power - had eyes on Stalin's position; however, Stalin had no plans to abdicate his rule. The first of the three bodies was the NKVD, which was still headed by Beria but with significantly less authority, at least officially. The second was the reincarnation of the NKGB, headed by Vsevolod Merkulov, who also ran it when it existed briefly in 1941. When the NKGB was absorbed by the NKVD, Merkulov was a deputy to Beria. The third organization was what would eventually be known as SMERSH, headed by </span><span style="font-size: large;">People's Commissar of State Security Viktor Abakumov, who had also formerly been a deputy of Beria in the NKVD. Beria, Merkulov and Abakumov reported independently and directly to Stalin.</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn9LJyRzoAsWoD6yovMSUqCIvDLLyIXEUZeOxi84tNs6plK5ZCsj4AmAxyrYg1LAwgXH_tJ3Y3k9WCQE-Kvj82hBO9X5fGZQSnt0TpSpQyl6YDVLqulodI80cDOQS-uPBHH-IfzvzYog/s1600/Beria+prototype+boards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn9LJyRzoAsWoD6yovMSUqCIvDLLyIXEUZeOxi84tNs6plK5ZCsj4AmAxyrYg1LAwgXH_tJ3Y3k9WCQE-Kvj82hBO9X5fGZQSnt0TpSpQyl6YDVLqulodI80cDOQS-uPBHH-IfzvzYog/s1600/Beria+prototype+boards.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Prototype shoulder board for what would have been the position of Marshal of State Security of the USSR.<br />
As the only head of all Soviet state security, Beria sought the creation of this title for himself, but before that <br />
could happen, Stalin and the State Defence Committee split the security services into three organization.<br />
In 1945, <span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">and only because police and security ranks were converted to be uniform with military rank titles </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">and Beria's title </span><span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">was converted to Marshal of the </span><span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">Soviet Union.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;">Beria maintained a great deal of power by having supporters, if not friends, strategically placed in positions within the government and the military who he expected to be able to count on for favors when needed. He was also a founding member of the Stalin-led State Defense Committee, the most powerful political body in the Soviet Union during wartime, more influential even than the <i>Politburo</i>. Shortly before the NKVD was converted to the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) in 1946, he resigned as its chief and moved more toward his political posturing as Deputy Prime Minister and Curator of the Organs of State Security and maintained a certain amount of indirect control from this new political position, but these machinations will be addressed in more detail in a later chapter when the security services underwent another series of name changes before the eventual creation of the infamous KGB. </span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyk2pSfhlOUR_7eqBUmGJQnXig1D8NgW4qdzUQAX7bVpwKsiMhDQx6OBDrpwWhfHtSXJaiDrp2nI7brL7Tgw95UeFtnqrT16HZQ4zlVjb3dIEmhsE6JmpA3sVvJMFFQf64OcGqE-6qIw/s1600/set6b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyk2pSfhlOUR_7eqBUmGJQnXig1D8NgW4qdzUQAX7bVpwKsiMhDQx6OBDrpwWhfHtSXJaiDrp2nI7brL7Tgw95UeFtnqrT16HZQ4zlVjb3dIEmhsE6JmpA3sVvJMFFQf64OcGqE-6qIw/s1600/set6b.jpg" width="274" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Actual shoulder boards of Beria as the last chief of<br />
the NKVD. <span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">Beria is wearing these in the photo </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">of him above. The boards are behind glass.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">At the same time in 1943 when Stalin was reassigning some of the powers of the NKVD, the NKGB - People's Commissariat for State Security - was reestablished on April 19 as the Soviet "secret police" as well as its civil (non-military) foreign and counter-intelligence service. The NKVD was left to concentrate on "internal affairs" including the USSR's infrastructure of militia and firefighters, while maintaining some counterintelligence operations. However, the bulk of the "affairs" addressed by the NKVD more often than not included the widespread repression and elimination of political dissents with an ever-growing number of casualties. The NKVD remained the tool Stalin (and several members of Stalin's State Defence Committee) used to eliminate opposition, either organized or on the individual level. </span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">SMERSH was not simply the third branch of the wartime Soviet </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQb46I8ZqmVUsEC6px8hy1P0awmQGiGkcKZnf5u_GTQxmPRLLfMOHb8AJaEl1AMHbvCWL_l9SFMwvQQnKuhrmdghjM1mAce74s-AaCJHd0qYoG5ZusNBot_levZhXx4_JbiRlfL3VLrg/s1600/Beria+hi-res2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQb46I8ZqmVUsEC6px8hy1P0awmQGiGkcKZnf5u_GTQxmPRLLfMOHb8AJaEl1AMHbvCWL_l9SFMwvQQnKuhrmdghjM1mAce74s-AaCJHd0qYoG5ZusNBot_levZhXx4_JbiRlfL3VLrg/s640/Beria+hi-res2.jpg" width="272" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">intelligence system, it was a vast network of enforcers of Stalin's will as well as that of other elite members of the security services who regularly abused their authority. The list of atrocities attributed to members of SMERSH - both under orders and acting alone - rivals that of the 1930s NKVD. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The leading or administrative branch of SMERSH was the Main Counterintelligence Directorate of the People's Commissariat of Defence of the USSR (abbreviated as GUKR-NKO or simply SMERSH). This section of SMERSH was headed by Abakumov. As director of GUKR-NKO SMERSH, Abakumov reported directly to Stalin. Beria remained in control of the NKVD branch of SMERSH while People's Commissar Nikolai Kuznetsov headed the NKF, or People's Commissariat of the Navy, SMERSH. Each SMERSH section leader answered to Stalin alone, which created a new degree of responsibility. Any errors or failures could no longer be blamed on other departments and/or their leadership. Beria, Abakumov and Kuznetsov were each responsible for their respective organizations and their corresponding SMERSH units. It is widely held that one of the main reasons for Stalin to break up SMERSH into additional components with different leaders, was to check the powers of Beria, who had begun demonstrating ambitions toward succeeding Stalin, possibly challenging him one day. But the focus of the Soviet Union and its leadership was on the war since the survival of the Soviet Union depended upon defeating Hitler and Nazi Germany. Maintaining order and organization was essential for survival, and personal motivations or aspirations had to be reigned in as long as the war continued. Additionally, the sudden change of title and powers caused a welcome degree of confusion in the Abwehr, the Nazi military intelligence organization, for the Soviet leadership.</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYCtNkCIY1D7ny01iTkrHWC91ZfEAsvuNoWs1cTI6G0ttrE8QVNNLmGXs1LwomRajdaeFraIaUS49jPHS5KA-d4Kbi9yDakh7KIZEk6ejSFQbyyYx4EGnTG9Nx-ZObrndCxBbloWfLmg/s1600/Abakumov+SMERSH+ID+doc.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="455" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYCtNkCIY1D7ny01iTkrHWC91ZfEAsvuNoWs1cTI6G0ttrE8QVNNLmGXs1LwomRajdaeFraIaUS49jPHS5KA-d4Kbi9yDakh7KIZEk6ejSFQbyyYx4EGnTG9Nx-ZObrndCxBbloWfLmg/s1600/Abakumov+SMERSH+ID+doc.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Temporary award document for the Soviet Medal for Military Merit to Capt. Ivan Ryabov authorized by SMERSH head<br />
Colonel-General Abakumov in 1945.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;">The responsibilities of each of the three branches of the state security apparatus overlapped each other to some degree and the lines between each organization are blurred, to say the least, and one of the most infamous missions of all of SMERSH was to vet the Red Army (RKKA) from the bottom up. </span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdPxSonSDQM5js2nCwnYFLL5Hw4PKLn0a3qLTktfOUp_uiu0rap0B1_D-TxWoNCCw3ss95sleCee3g2VyXa7epUChDa3x2I-5ddH7FPFNKu2csLPu-wM60W7_QkhN1udqLmoPq2VZscg/s1600/Not+one+step+postage+stamp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdPxSonSDQM5js2nCwnYFLL5Hw4PKLn0a3qLTktfOUp_uiu0rap0B1_D-TxWoNCCw3ss95sleCee3g2VyXa7epUChDa3x2I-5ddH7FPFNKu2csLPu-wM60W7_QkhN1udqLmoPq2VZscg/s1600/Not+one+step+postage+stamp.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Propaganda postage stamp using the "Not one step back!" slogan.* </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">In order to gain control over the mass desertions of Red Army personnel in the face of overwhelming numbers of better equipped German soldiers, Stalin issued the infamous Article № 227 on 28 July 1942, which was later widely known by its line: "Not one step back!" In fact, the phrase (Ни шагу назад! in Russian) was widely used by NKVD and Red Army propagandists and would have
fallen on the ears of terrified soldiers as they prepared to launch an assault or attack against German lines. The direct implications of Article № 227 was that anyone attempting to flee the battlefield or desert the Red Army was to be shot on the spot. The next step was to create "blocking" or "barrier battalions" which would set up machine guns and riflemen in the rear of a Red Army unit preparing for an attack. Member of the barrier battalions (originally made up of NKVD rifle regiments, and later taken over by SMERSH) were ordered to shoot anyone deemed a "coward" by moving in any direction other than towards enemy lines. These barrier battalions were created along with the order preventing retreat, under Article № 227, which required commanders of the various "fronts" along the lines with Germany to utilize "penal battalions" created from middle to high ranking officers and "penal companies" that had been created from NCOs and privates. Both units were comprised of soldiers who had been found guilty - correctly or not - of a crime or cowardice. They were to be deployed in the areas of the heaviest fighting and could be "rehabilitated" or re-earn their stripes through direct combat. Casualties in these penal ranks were considered acceptable. In fact, being killed under these circumstances could merit posthumous reinstatement of former rank and constituent privileges for the surviving family members. Though the creation and use of blocking battalions was officially discontinued in November of 1944, SMERSH had executed an unknown number of RKKA personnel under the guise of "patriotism."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl-ztKQxIbGwS2gyxQA8ctpNm4sn8m03LFwSeVGrAiibNNnDER24Zv-ThYZDomS47FiDEQcvAKYQKNwhj9A4q51z69Q0dKAp4yQ3FTV4dJo1rZ2hd4BLRBL7h0k34fh62AfgGvnDBAzg/s1600/SMERSH+doc+Yerokhin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="443" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl-ztKQxIbGwS2gyxQA8ctpNm4sn8m03LFwSeVGrAiibNNnDER24Zv-ThYZDomS47FiDEQcvAKYQKNwhj9A4q51z69Q0dKAp4yQ3FTV4dJo1rZ2hd4BLRBL7h0k34fh62AfgGvnDBAzg/s1600/SMERSH+doc+Yerokhin.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Verification of powers of SMERSH Lt. Mikhail Ivanovich Yerokhin from 7 May 1943. <span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">The document gives Yerokhin the to power to question, detain and arrest suspected spies or saboteurs - which could be determined </span><span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">at the judgement of the agent. The document also grants him freedom of movement throughout the North-Caucuses Front </span><span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">military district without </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">having </span><span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">to answer to military commanders. The identity document-pass was authorized by Deputy </span><span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">Head of SMERSH, </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">North-Caucuses Front Commissar of State Security </span><span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">M.I. Belkin.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWVmM6iPztkOM87FB2KqCF50Ldh6OHOzq5XWQQq2B6y_6_j2-1Ao_7PQn3D4zJ_K1I1RzXeNQJq5hAbpOm2lPyYb3sbMlUulBuBIpE9XXB_hFzheHcOH6nF4PO62C9tup3Ycx9QcnzIw/s1600/SMERSH+vet+60th.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWVmM6iPztkOM87FB2KqCF50Ldh6OHOzq5XWQQq2B6y_6_j2-1Ao_7PQn3D4zJ_K1I1RzXeNQJq5hAbpOm2lPyYb3sbMlUulBuBIpE9XXB_hFzheHcOH6nF4PO62C9tup3Ycx9QcnzIw/s1600/SMERSH+vet+60th.jpg" width="226" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">60th anniversary of SMERSH badge <br />
commissioned in 2003 by a non-government <br />
organization of veterans of SMERSH. It is<br />
in the standard sword and shield design of the<br />
Soviet-Russian security services.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;">SMERSH agents had many of the same rights to detain and arrest civilians and military personnel as well as demand identification papers of the same. </span><span style="font-size: large;">One of the prominent problems facing SMERSH and the other security agencies was that of German-forged documents for Nazi intelligence officers, recruited local saboteurs, "bandits" and members of organized anti-Soviet rebel groups especially in Ukraine and the Baltic States. Some of these groups were formed as far back as the Bolshevik Revolution as counterrevolutionaries. Identification documents were exceptionally important because signed and stamped papers were the only method of identifying individuals during the chaotic times of wartime border changes. German military and political police personnel who occupied regions of Ukraine and the Baltic States were often helped and joined by members of rebel groups to fight against their long-standing enemy - the Red Army. As the lines on the war maps moved back toward Germany, Nazi military and political intelligence organs left behind agents to infiltrate the Red Army and disseminate false information. The Red Army officers knew this was likely and one of the main reasons SMERSH was created was to combat these sorts of enemy spies and saboteurs. </span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRBEXp_HKC1vlXPhzZK52EUsqhCGp35BaAuq7M8oqM7oDmYMROaxpvZX6A6W0EWZZJ6V-_8FmoQw0OXO9Ncmb10CP5iFcNho7lTrQwAU27X8NTV8aUX-zbuN2OTC0pTyuNudmyvCb6Aw/s1600/Anti-spy+poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRBEXp_HKC1vlXPhzZK52EUsqhCGp35BaAuq7M8oqM7oDmYMROaxpvZX6A6W0EWZZJ6V-_8FmoQw0OXO9Ncmb10CP5iFcNho7lTrQwAU27X8NTV8aUX-zbuN2OTC0pTyuNudmyvCb6Aw/s1600/Anti-spy+poster.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Don't chatter" (Не Болтай) a common propaganda phrase which can be interpreted also as "gossip" is roughly <br />
equivalent to the U.S. wartime propaganda expression, "Loose lips...." The rest of the above text says, "Strictly <br />
keep military and state secrets." Behind the soldiers is a spy eavesdropping on them. A common tactic of the <br />
Soviet propaganda machine was to portray spies as living and working throughout the USSR in all forms <br />
of average citizens. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;">The political propaganda generated by the Soviet government was pervasive and was backed up by the threat of arrest, prison or even execution. This was true for civilians as much as for military personnel. It was this same fervor over rooting out real and imagined spies and saboteurs (also "wreckers" in Russian) that often led to the disgracing arrest and execution of many formerly high-ranking Soviet officials. Being close to Stalin was as dangerous as the Icarus myth. On July 12, 1951, Abakumov, along with General Mikhail Belkin (Commissar of State Security who authorized the identity document/pass above) and a three others in the state security services were arrested on Stalin's order. Abakumov's trial began on 12 December 1954 and a week later, on the 19th, he was executed in Leningrad. He was charged loosely with conspiring with Beria against Stalin. By this point, Beria had already been tried and executed in similar fashion. On July 19, 1945, Abakumov was promoted to the (military) rank of Colonel General. In May of 1946, the NKGB was renamed the Ministry for State Security (MGB) and Abakumov was named as its head. Within a few days of the creation of the MGB, SMERSH was merged with it thus ending all departments of SMERSH. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhacR-Umt7h3ssvmge-foiqLXYxjsP6AdbqUfJTSSByfp4xhQklr2czPo3Am4z5bAFbnsUyHXPQfDkbGjnNVujsyBltRJV7VIXld_dBnkaBJ9tNWuMTE9rHKDEzzU52wR5NB9Xwq4q2OQ/s1600/Abakumov+mug+shots+1952.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhacR-Umt7h3ssvmge-foiqLXYxjsP6AdbqUfJTSSByfp4xhQklr2czPo3Am4z5bAFbnsUyHXPQfDkbGjnNVujsyBltRJV7VIXld_dBnkaBJ9tNWuMTE9rHKDEzzU52wR5NB9Xwq4q2OQ/s1600/Abakumov+mug+shots+1952.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Abakumov's arrest photos from 1952.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The end of SMERSH and the elimination of the main players in the functioning of the organization was not coincidental. After Stalin's death on 5 March 1953, a powerful "de-Stalinization" feeling swept the USSR, catching up many of the most prominent figures from leading positions in the Soviet government and military. People who once had the tentative confidence of Stalin and/or were his political appointments were suddenly targeted by members of the Communist Party and the Politburo who were seeking to distance themselves as much as possible from Stalin and his regime, with the ardent approval of the majority of the population of the post-war Soviet Union. However, the controversial and far too often nefarious deeds of most of Stalin's innermost circle made charging and prosecuting these men relatively easy under the anti-Stalin political and public climate. This popular opposition sentiment helped pave the way for Stalin's ultimate successor, Great Patriotic War hero Nikita Khrushchev, who later denounced his predecessor on two public occasions in 1956 and 1962 when the Cold War tensions between the USSR and the USA were at some of their worst. However, the attempts to undo some of what Stalin did within the borders of the Soviet Union persisted beyond the end of the country in 1991, and some people argue that certain segments of Soviet history still require re-editing to reverse Stalin's revisions in order to reach the objective truth. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-small;">References: </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Parrish, Michael. <i>The Lesser Terror: Soviet State Security, 1939-1953. </i>Praeger Publishers, United States, 1996; electronic publication address: https://books.google.com/books?id=NDgv5ognePgC&pg=PA114&lpg=PA114&dq=Commissar+Belkin+of+SMERSH&source=bl&ots=nvwwopI4Pr&sig=UxhXfz69RQMU9_J2Xpgh3fhEbs4&hl=en&sa=X&ei=p-0zVd-5GImegwSb7YHIDg&ved=0CB4Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Commissar%20Belkin%20of%20SMERSH&f=false</span><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Raoul Wallenberg: Report of the Swedish-Russian Working Group</i>; Ingrid Palmklint and Daniel Larsson, eds. Stockholm, Sweden. Ministry for Foreign Affairs: Department for Central and Eastern Europe, 2000; electronic publication address: </span><span style="font-size: x-small;">http://www.raoulwallenberg.net/wp-content/files_mf/2836.pdf</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>World War II Database: Viktor Abakumov</i>. Lava Development, LLC. Copyright 2004-2015; http://ww2db.com/person_bio.php?person_id=730</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-90708789398044496442013-03-30T22:09:00.000-05:002014-08-09T19:47:44.421-05:00SMERSH and the end of the NKVD <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Part II</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">How Stalin Used SMERSH to Murder Millions</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF2hjmAqLiSh-Mr6VhM_UKLEhMPK13Z60QquKywmsFMdT2ITpAlr7PED8zi6o31ytSemtinJxztoYgky4e0Vs6xj5cNME9ljUo4HAvmZtJ7Ez0GWT-rt5PUBHDKUigUMeCAOkjUo2zOQ/s1600/gossip-helping+the+enemy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF2hjmAqLiSh-Mr6VhM_UKLEhMPK13Z60QquKywmsFMdT2ITpAlr7PED8zi6o31ytSemtinJxztoYgky4e0Vs6xj5cNME9ljUo4HAvmZtJ7Ez0GWT-rt5PUBHDKUigUMeCAOkjUo2zOQ/s640/gossip-helping+the+enemy.jpg" height="456" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: large;">Above: a classic wartime warning propaganda poster designed to make the average Soviet citizen wary of gossiping or talking to strangers as they might be enemy agents (as in the case of the poster - a Nazi in disguise). The literal translation of the text is "Chatting - Helping the Enemy!" Such posters were a common site in Soviet cities during the years of the Great Patriotic War from 1941-1945. These posters were the product of Soviet security services and were one of the many contributing factors to the ultimate fear and paranoia experienced by Soviet citizens after WWII who were indoctrinated into a society of self-imposed terror that the neighbor might either be an anti-Soviet subversive or one of the people who might call the security services (NKVD-KGB) first.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivRkD7AJacZj_zeLFByGiv5dsVzONT4C6DLLM7aNCCPwgGeIuboDEjPlmeE_n7FyxsZnKKMP70aN8K4j0j627NhXHwChA71ZHFiHVHxZCJDGu-RzlzyXOTSMOytm0VD4ku_meAIzrBRw/s1600/Smersh+from+shieldandsword.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivRkD7AJacZj_zeLFByGiv5dsVzONT4C6DLLM7aNCCPwgGeIuboDEjPlmeE_n7FyxsZnKKMP70aN8K4j0j627NhXHwChA71ZHFiHVHxZCJDGu-RzlzyXOTSMOytm0VD4ku_meAIzrBRw/s640/Smersh+from+shieldandsword.jpg" height="465" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">A propaganda poster reminding Soviet citizens to help "Ruthlessly destroy fascist saboteurs." </span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">On paper, SMERSH was a wartime creation to enhance military counterintelligence in the field. It served as a rickety bridge linking the NKVD/NKGB to the MGB/KGB. As a type of "Special Department" or "OO" in abbreviated Russian, SMERSH was supposed to be strictly drawn from the military counterintelligence section of the GUGB (formerly the OGPU - All-Union State Political Directorate but subordinated to the NKVD in 1941). Military counterintelligence had always been and would remain until 1991 under the purview of the state security organizations from the Cheka to the KGB. Military intelligence was under the direction of the GRU (Russian: Главное Разведывательное Управление or transliterated - <em>Glavnoye Razvedyvatel'noye Upravleniye</em>) or Main Intelligence Directorate (of the USSR Army General Staff). However, in practice, when SMERSH was officially formed in March-April 1943 it had numerous incarnations both in its own branch and subordinated groups within the NKVD which were written/typed in official documents as "Smersh" rather than the all-caps "SMERSH" befitting the acronym it is for the Russian s<i>mert' shpionam</i>, or "Death to Spies," allegedly coined by Stalin himself.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br />
<table align="left" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVZD0fxu_PmT926ZJghbvrMChA7nBUPjrmn7FGFaGoRALXqwt3J8L1aqF6BylTSR1E1jJ3SnCv8miCFXHqWb1RIGABc5OSdZSB0QsqD3AHtPXm4rOLcceuHAtzkNelsLOdyn12RZma0w/s1600/poster-02%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVZD0fxu_PmT926ZJghbvrMChA7nBUPjrmn7FGFaGoRALXqwt3J8L1aqF6BylTSR1E1jJ3SnCv8miCFXHqWb1RIGABc5OSdZSB0QsqD3AHtPXm4rOLcceuHAtzkNelsLOdyn12RZma0w/s1600/poster-02%5B1%5D.jpg" height="640" width="409" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">"Do not talk on the phone [carelessly]. </span><span style="font-size: small; text-align: center;">A spy could be listening." A </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small; text-align: center;">propaganda </span><span style="font-size: small; text-align: center;">poster showing an NKVD </span><span style="font-size: small; text-align: center;">officer </span><span style="font-size: small; text-align: center;">hanging up the phone </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small; text-align: center;">another </span><span style="font-size: small; text-align: center;">soldier </span><span style="font-size: small; text-align: center;">was attempting to use.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;">The creation of SMERSH was necessary on many levels - regular Red Army/Navy desertions to problems of Nazi spies and saboteurs infiltrating the Soviet ranks, anti-Soviet partisan groups and even the "peasants" of many of the newly (re-)occupied territories along the fronts between the Soviets and the Germans - all required some "organized assistance" to either work with Stalin's government or be hounded and/or crushed by it. However, as "OO" units and eventually SMERSH grew in size and power, there were practically no guards of the guardians. No one within the ranks of the Soviet Military or civilian population was immune to being arrested, tortured, jailed, sent to prison/work camps (not unlike Nazi concentration camps) or simply executed, often in front of the soldiers they served with or in the case of civilians, in front of the workers they once toiled along side. However, officers in SMERSH were being watched by the NKVD's Smersh agents and vice versa. This "overseeing" allowed Lavrentii Beria (head of the NKVD) to maintain his power after most of the main intelligence/counterintelligence duties were transferred to the reformed NKGB and SMERSH.</span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_IydR3Gtv-ImmTAqZawf-k3MxfKfnCn569sHcFGKIdgUAycDJbbFM-lT78Os_ABs8FVSf24S7XSrgB27sQfJLO5ySH3sBMzYNznJ3wjoSc0lIHLRbAie3DoEmseFRdQ5dvNcwo0yfjw/s1600/Poster150%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_IydR3Gtv-ImmTAqZawf-k3MxfKfnCn569sHcFGKIdgUAycDJbbFM-lT78Os_ABs8FVSf24S7XSrgB27sQfJLO5ySH3sBMzYNznJ3wjoSc0lIHLRbAie3DoEmseFRdQ5dvNcwo0yfjw/s400/Poster150%5B1%5D.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">"Help the Red Army to capture </span><span style="font-size: small; text-align: center;">Spies and Saboteurs" </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small; text-align: center;">- another </span><span style="font-size: small; text-align: center;">Soviet intelligence propaganda </span><span style="font-size: small; text-align: center;">poster.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;">When Stalin recombined all of the security services under the NKVD in 1941 after the Nazis began their <em>blitzkrieg</em> into the Soviet Union in a three-prong attack aimed at the southern regions, Moscow and Leningrad, he continued to keep the Special Services ("OO") in charge of military counterintelligence. Military counterintelligence consisted of many specific duties, some of which are mentioned above such as ferreting out fascist spies (both real and imagined), preventing desertion - often by shooting those that retreated without a direct order from the generals who ordered the original attack - and gathering information from captured German soldiers. These were some of the basic duties of SMERSH later, once they were created to replace - or rather enhance - the OO, but the actual full spectrum of atrocities committed by SMERSH agents has only come to light in recent years. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">SMERSH only came into existence once the momentum shifted in favor of the Allies in April 1943, and powers were once again redistributed among the Soviet security services. Such was the nature of SMERSH that the mere existence of the organization was denied by the Soviets and then only until fairly recently by the Russian government. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">At the same time on April 19, 1943 the NKGB - People's Commissariat for State Security - was reestablished as the Soviet "secret police" as well as its foreign and counter-intelligence service. The NKVD was left to perform the tasks its name suggests - "internal affairs." However, the "affairs" addressed by the NKVD more often than not included the widespread repression and elimination of political dissent with an ever-growing number of casualties. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">SMERSH was not simply the third branch of the wartime Soviet intelligence system, it was a vast network of enforcers of Stalin's will as well as that of other elite members of the security services who regularly abused their authority. The list of atrocities attributed to members of SMERSH - both under orders and acting alone - rivals that of the NKVD itself - even during the "terror" of the 1930s.</span> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVZD0fxu_PmT926ZJghbvrMChA7nBUPjrmn7FGFaGoRALXqwt3J8L1aqF6BylTSR1E1jJ3SnCv8miCFXHqWb1RIGABc5OSdZSB0QsqD3AHtPXm4rOLcceuHAtzkNelsLOdyn12RZma0w/s1600/poster-02%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVZD0fxu_PmT926ZJghbvrMChA7nBUPjrmn7FGFaGoRALXqwt3J8L1aqF6BylTSR1E1jJ3SnCv8miCFXHqWb1RIGABc5OSdZSB0QsqD3AHtPXm4rOLcceuHAtzkNelsLOdyn12RZma0w/s1600/poster-02%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVZD0fxu_PmT926ZJghbvrMChA7nBUPjrmn7FGFaGoRALXqwt3J8L1aqF6BylTSR1E1jJ3SnCv8miCFXHqWb1RIGABc5OSdZSB0QsqD3AHtPXm4rOLcceuHAtzkNelsLOdyn12RZma0w/s1600/poster-02%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVZD0fxu_PmT926ZJghbvrMChA7nBUPjrmn7FGFaGoRALXqwt3J8L1aqF6BylTSR1E1jJ3SnCv8miCFXHqWb1RIGABc5OSdZSB0QsqD3AHtPXm4rOLcceuHAtzkNelsLOdyn12RZma0w/s1600/poster-02%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVZD0fxu_PmT926ZJghbvrMChA7nBUPjrmn7FGFaGoRALXqwt3J8L1aqF6BylTSR1E1jJ3SnCv8miCFXHqWb1RIGABc5OSdZSB0QsqD3AHtPXm4rOLcceuHAtzkNelsLOdyn12RZma0w/s1600/poster-02%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVZD0fxu_PmT926ZJghbvrMChA7nBUPjrmn7FGFaGoRALXqwt3J8L1aqF6BylTSR1E1jJ3SnCv8miCFXHqWb1RIGABc5OSdZSB0QsqD3AHtPXm4rOLcceuHAtzkNelsLOdyn12RZma0w/s1600/poster-02%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVZD0fxu_PmT926ZJghbvrMChA7nBUPjrmn7FGFaGoRALXqwt3J8L1aqF6BylTSR1E1jJ3SnCv8miCFXHqWb1RIGABc5OSdZSB0QsqD3AHtPXm4rOLcceuHAtzkNelsLOdyn12RZma0w/s1600/poster-02%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
</a>
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<br /></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-46156898729420445162012-07-09T20:39:00.000-05:002016-01-24T15:13:33.484-06:00Personal Misuse of Security Services<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div align="left">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<strong><span style="font-size: x-large;">How the First Two Leaders of the Soviet Union Abused the Cheka/OGPU and the NKVD/MVD for Personal Gain</span></strong></div>
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcQShfOP-YClQdBrnVKAIMT9-mmePp1V1zHTx4QDyrNwk7sUcJOL8x1ANNrks2pPOjij1sAFWkGCDrWeMQak-wG1_GgMcW63GE_PDrr105h5nCiJCRljnVCalKuHwBWZhgAd7y4O2GKg/s1600/Cheka+Volgograd+Monument+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="465" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcQShfOP-YClQdBrnVKAIMT9-mmePp1V1zHTx4QDyrNwk7sUcJOL8x1ANNrks2pPOjij1sAFWkGCDrWeMQak-wG1_GgMcW63GE_PDrr105h5nCiJCRljnVCalKuHwBWZhgAd7y4O2GKg/s640/Cheka+Volgograd+Monument+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The obelisk monument in Volgograd to the Cheka. Volgograd was known during the Soviet Era as Stalingrad - the location of some of the greatest losses of human life during the Great Patriotic War (WWII) and the site of the first major military defeat of the Nazis at the hands of the Red Army. The monument is topped with a soldier holding a sword pointed at the sky and the lower section has a large, probably brass or bronze, sword and shield motif that became synonymous with both branches of the Soviet State Security organizations at the time - the NKVD and the NKGB which was the foreign intelligence component of the NKVD during the war. After the war's end, the NKGB was given its independence again as a foreign intelligence service soon known as the MGB or "Ministry of State Security" for a few years until the final and most well-known name was given as the Ministry was reduced to Committee status ("Komitet") in 1954 from fear on the part of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union that the seemingly omnipresent, omniscient and omnipotent NKVD had become under Stalin and Beria (the latter was tried and executed not long after the former's death).</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">This section will serve as a brief refresher on the early security services (i.e. Cheka through MGB) which were the most directly controlled by the leaders of the Soviet Union at the time - in particular, Lenin and then Stalin. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"><strong>Lenin</strong></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGUEezkb6hxvdSzGw2Y5H561Wn_D-tAwIzMOGjyy6mjGodtDBAAMps-UcD8Cf7IFI6ePRZdRzxPFoBOQhSh-il1fXK7Dxht9v9XRZEr4qc_ejyBXqNdbJkqToeCkclbFduCpWbJYWcpQ/s1600/motorcity.com.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGUEezkb6hxvdSzGw2Y5H561Wn_D-tAwIzMOGjyy6mjGodtDBAAMps-UcD8Cf7IFI6ePRZdRzxPFoBOQhSh-il1fXK7Dxht9v9XRZEr4qc_ejyBXqNdbJkqToeCkclbFduCpWbJYWcpQ/s320/motorcity.com.jpg" width="284" /></a>*</div>
</div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">Below is a short, almost "note" with a deadly order scribbled on it by Lenin himself. It was displayed earlier in a prior chapter, but the significance bears showing it again. The handwritten letter very clearly establishes that the leadership in the Bolsheviks was not concerned with the rights of non-Russians together with a handful of adopted members of other regions that were either joining the USSR and becoming the first of the original 10 republics, as Lenin and his immediate successor Josef Stalin (See "The Spread of Chekist Ideas and Ideals at a High Moral Cost, Part I: The Fear of the 'Disappearing' Citizen" April of 2011). The letter is a hand-written example of an order to Chekist troops and possibly a few soldiers drawn in to aid them in a massacre. The following is an English translation of the text of the letter provided by Smithsonian translators:<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"><em>Send to Penza to Comrades Kuraev, Minkin, and other Penza communists</em><o:p></o:p><br /><br /><em> Comrades! The revolt by the five kulak* volosts**</em><em> must be suppressed without mercy. The interests of the entire revolution demands this, because we have now before us our final decisive battle [with the kulaks]. We need to set an example.</em><o:p></o:p><br /><em>1. You need to hang (hang without fail, so that the public sees) at least 100 notorious kulaks, the rich, and the bloodsuckers.</em><br /><em>2. Publish their names.</em><br /><em>3. Take away all of their grain.</em><br /><em>4. Execute the hostages - in accordance with yesterday's telegram.</em><br /><em> This needs to be accomplished in such a way that people for hundreds of miles around will see, tremble, know and scream out: let's choke and strangle those bloodsucking kulaks.</em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"><em> Telegraph us acknowledging receipt and execution of this.</em><o:p></o:p><br /><br /><em>Yours,</em><o:p></o:p><br /><em>Lenin</em><o:p></o:p><br /><br /><em>P.S. Use your toughest people for this.”</em><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"><em><br /></em></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">[Note: *A "<i>kulak</i>" is Russian derogatory slang for a peasant who had accumulated some manner of modest wealth. **A “<i>volost</i>” was a territorial/administrative unit consisting of a few villages and surrounding land.]</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">This is a photostatic copy of a handwritten letter from Lenin in 1918 to authorities in the Penza Province about 600 miles southeast of Moscow and a grain farming region. Lenin's letter orders the hanging of 100 "Kulak farmers" to set an example for others who opposed his plans.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN5WmWh3CKY_9nPykcEHMtE0YJ1bptwDDuZkPUWV90RIHN3-MWvgL0pqJHFTfZYDYnCRcYUt1paC51b4PXOpQVc6ki5yqHeMLlTAiDDgSgDYA4bdIGiK7OmoIKl4jObe0w09D77AeaCw/s1600/Hanging+order.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="491" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN5WmWh3CKY_9nPykcEHMtE0YJ1bptwDDuZkPUWV90RIHN3-MWvgL0pqJHFTfZYDYnCRcYUt1paC51b4PXOpQVc6ki5yqHeMLlTAiDDgSgDYA4bdIGiK7OmoIKl4jObe0w09D77AeaCw/s640/Hanging+order.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Above is a photostatic copy from the U.S. Smithsonian Institution's collection of declassified Soviet material that was part of a traveling exhibit in 1998.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">The language used in this order is strikingly similar in its vulgar brutality to some of the ones jotted down in thick, sometimes colored pencil over typed intelligence reports by Stalin when he disagreed from paranoia, denial and or delusion with what the sources of the reports had observed.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia"; font-size: x-large;">Lenin issued the decree which officially created the <i>Cheka</i> (<i>VCheka</i>) on December 20, 1917 as an "emergency" (i.e. temporary) body to combat counter-revolutionary activities and saboteurs that might jeopardize the stability of the newly formed Bolshevik Communist government. Lenin chose Polish-born Bolshevik radical Felix Dzerzhinsky to head the <i>Cheka</i> and under his reign the suppressive activities of the Cheka grew to include a practically ever-widening set of people who might be in opposition to the government and included money or goods speculators and wealthy land-owners and merchants. To the Bolsheviks and later the Soviets, "wealthy" was defined as anyone owning more than 10,000 Rubles worth of property of any kind, which would include the aforementioned <em>kulaks</em>.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia"; font-size: x-large;">Others on the "potential" enemy of the state list created by the Cheka in 1918 included all members of the Russian Orthodox clergy, anyone in military or civil service that was suspected of secretly working for the former Imperial government (White Russians) or anyone in the worker-peasant category who showed any sign of <em>not supporting </em>the Soviet government. Obviously, this sort of loosely defined set of potential counter-revolutionaries left the door wide open for agents of the Cheka to operate with impunity in deciding who was a threat to the new government. Moreover, with the powers of arrest, trial and execution, Cheka agents were susceptible to all sorts of abuse of power and corruption. Most likely, there will never be an accurate count of the number of people wrongfully imprisoned and/or executed at the hands of the Cheka and the subsequent security agencies - especially the NKVD during Stalin's reign and his campaigns of terror.</span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV6zQ7Ji9aZE6UsRTqTDo7bJiETm0qrpZdeh58Y2NW4cD6izN_h6HkFBXn0TqbjRioI4AVqa17FKowMCcjTQDWKntlN4y7qpD23Svtm3NW2FVMtqnHxysXJjPj4DPHC1v6WY_-qC8pAQ/s1600/1922+ailing+Lenin+&+Stalin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV6zQ7Ji9aZE6UsRTqTDo7bJiETm0qrpZdeh58Y2NW4cD6izN_h6HkFBXn0TqbjRioI4AVqa17FKowMCcjTQDWKntlN4y7qpD23Svtm3NW2FVMtqnHxysXJjPj4DPHC1v6WY_-qC8pAQ/s640/1922+ailing+Lenin+&+Stalin.jpg" width="555" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">An ailing Lenin sitting with Joseph Stalin in 1922.</span><span style="font-size: small;">***</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "georgia"; font-size: x-large;">Lenin finally died on January 21, 1924 at the age of 54. He had survived two failed assassination attempts (the second resulting in a bullet wound to the neck) which only served to enhance his cult of personality status among his supporters. He subsequently suffered three strokes before succumbing to his poor health. However, when he could still speak, Lenin made it clear to those closest to him that Stalin, who had been the Communist Party General Secretary since 1922. In compiled papers dictated during his final years and published as <em>Lenin's Testiment</em>, "Lenin reported [of Stalin] that the 'unlimited authority' concentrated in him was unacceptable, and suggested that 'comrades think about a way of removing Stalin from that post.' His phrasing, <em>'Сталин слишком груб</em>,' implies 'personal rudeness, unnecessary roughness, lack of finesse,' flaws 'intolerable in a Secretary-General.'"</span><span style="font-family: "georgia"; font-size: x-small;">**</span><span style="font-family: "georgia"; font-size: x-large;"> Unfortunately, Stalin had other plans.</span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOfK-nLzeVnA28wdBTJZjfQSfZf0nzq6p0LDTHflB10-vxTPA89IH_V4jn-QEOH2X8bIX0wrt4LM0_aZetrBfDC7K40dnHYSl3i6Bqt2CmPr6J9GSMRImCqLMoMhkse4_G7ek7GFHFOw/s1600/Lenin-last-photo%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOfK-nLzeVnA28wdBTJZjfQSfZf0nzq6p0LDTHflB10-vxTPA89IH_V4jn-QEOH2X8bIX0wrt4LM0_aZetrBfDC7K40dnHYSl3i6Bqt2CmPr6J9GSMRImCqLMoMhkse4_G7ek7GFHFOw/s640/Lenin-last-photo%5B1%5D.jpg" width="520" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: large;">This is presumably the last photo taken of Vladimir I. Lenin before he died. At this point in his life, Lenin was struck mute by his third stroke in 1923 and was confined to bed.</span><span style="font-size: x-small;">****</span></div>
<div align="left">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpEpMPlWYICdnjcGVi8w6OcQmm7-02aA4UlXLMWyrTtxEnj1LAOHWNrmFJduSG73AjVz7wSdFDnMzEtiuaXThlqocYp-OIwqicSLHwpefON9-pqTSzDlG_R8pIcpyqEI2p4W82n7rk9w/s1600/1924+Lenin+funeral+w+Dzerzhinsky.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpEpMPlWYICdnjcGVi8w6OcQmm7-02aA4UlXLMWyrTtxEnj1LAOHWNrmFJduSG73AjVz7wSdFDnMzEtiuaXThlqocYp-OIwqicSLHwpefON9-pqTSzDlG_R8pIcpyqEI2p4W82n7rk9w/s1600/1924+Lenin+funeral+w+Dzerzhinsky.jpg" /></a></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: large;"> 1924: Pallbearers escort the body of Lenin with Felix Dzerzhinsky at the front of the procession.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">NOTE: For video footage taken during the time Lenin's body was first "on viewing," please follow this YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oStHN2xwWeE</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div align="center">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><strong><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Stalin</span> </strong></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgswWFn0UC3oP57S2iGEGzhVMNYdRoAHK1Ag9jFcp_H_ZS3X7Fo2a5TUaDZ02R3SLNjT3Ecxwpqr7vMYjhWAhziNOhyp6VWQjoTrcmaahfdVDoj-BZXUM3n75wU7fVB0dDtPbWOwrlMVg/s1600/poster-35.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgswWFn0UC3oP57S2iGEGzhVMNYdRoAHK1Ag9jFcp_H_ZS3X7Fo2a5TUaDZ02R3SLNjT3Ecxwpqr7vMYjhWAhziNOhyp6VWQjoTrcmaahfdVDoj-BZXUM3n75wU7fVB0dDtPbWOwrlMVg/s640/poster-35.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">"Under the leadership of the great Stalin - forward towards Communism!" One of thousands of pro-Stalin propaganda posters drawn up to make Stalin seem more like a "man of the people."</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">Despite, or possibly because of his broken but compelling personality, Stalin began to trust only himself and his initial ideas and thoughts. People "close" to Stalin in the form of his favored people of the military and government were most certainly wondering even in the smallest recesses of their minds whether their dictator would get angry with them - meaning death or arrest, and given the conditions and life expectancy in a Siberian forced labor camp, death might have been welcome. It is difficult to tell how much of a "cult of personality" Stalin had or how much most people feared for their own lives and those of their friends' and families'. After the person most responsible for the Red Army's victory over Germany, Marshal Zhukov, was sent to a command post over 800 miles from Moscow, the Central Committee and the rest of the millions in the city who admired him as the "Hero who saved the Soviet Union" were left to look upon Stalin or look upon death. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">Stalin was overly concerned about being the center of any praise and glory in his Moscow. In fact, he was so wrapped up in the notion that he was actually in control of the military as the Red Army and Navy's commander and chief only by accident of self-appointment, that he ignored intelligence from both the Red Army's GRU and agents of the OGPU that warned of the impending initial attack on the USSR by German soldiers massing at the western border in 1941. According to a BBC documentary, <em>War of the Century</em>, a declassified intelligence report from someone with the last name Merkloff was typed up and sent straight to Stalin saying that the Germans were "poised to attack at any moment." Stalin scribbled in colored crayon or what are often called "grease pencils" over the type: "Comrade Merkloff, you can send your source from the headquarters of the German Air Force to his fucking mother. He is not a source. He is a disinformant" (BBC). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">Stalin was known by his followers in the general public as an eloquent spokesman, behind closed doors, he was just as vulgar as any common man. </span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWQEgItnTr7ctRrvzGEYXiCg9xaf5Mzt0JYMxVTIEWIBPLkuAxxfIv1kkwPPY7r6LzforI0j9dhHc77rOw4KAHssFDuRfyqgWvsVNeOP1eDmqhPcmqUKqsGQzclLtu8aAoD-MoKWAezQ/s1600/Katyn_-_decision_of_massacre_p1%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWQEgItnTr7ctRrvzGEYXiCg9xaf5Mzt0JYMxVTIEWIBPLkuAxxfIv1kkwPPY7r6LzforI0j9dhHc77rOw4KAHssFDuRfyqgWvsVNeOP1eDmqhPcmqUKqsGQzclLtu8aAoD-MoKWAezQ/s640/Katyn_-_decision_of_massacre_p1%5B1%5D.jpg" width="441" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">The first page of a memo from the head of the NKVD, Lavrenti Beria, in March of 1940 to "Comrade Stalin" proposing the use of the armed military branch of the NKVD to execute Polish Army officers and members of the Polish national police department who are suspected (by Beria) of being sympathetic or even members of the Nazi Party, or simply being "anti-revolutionary" themselves. At the very beginning of the letter, Beria begins by saying that "In NKVD POW camps in the USSR and in particular in the "...prisons in the western regions of Ukraine and Belarus, there are a large number of former Polish Army officers and policemen..." - many of whom belong to "rebel organizations." The document bears the letterhead of the NKVD (top left corner), the Russian text for "Top Secret" (upper right corner) and the signatures of Stalin and possibly other high-ranking members of the Soviet regime over the original text to indicate they had read it. This is likely the starting point for what was later referred to as the Katyn Massacre of 1940 in which about 4000 Polish personnel were executed and buried in a mass grave in the Katyn Forest after being taken prisoner during the Soviet invasion of Poland in support of the Nazi attack on the same country. According to a comment posted below,<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">"The signatures on the Katyn order from Beria
are from top to bottom: Stalin, Voroshilov, Molotov, and Mikoyan." Kliment
Voroshilov was a Marshal of the Soviet Union and one of Stalin's top advisors.
Vyacheslav Molotov and Anastas Mikoyan were also in Stalin's "inner
circle" (at least at the time of this memo). In addition, the two smaller
signatures in the left margin of the document are those of Mikhail Kalinin and
Lazar Kaganovich, two of the longest surviving original members of the
Bolsheviks who had come to power after the October Revolution. Many of these
early members did not survive Stalin's "purges."</span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large; line-height: 107%;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">Stalin always stood in the shadow of Lenin and perhaps that is what fueled his paranoid insanity and homicidal nature. Whatever the cause, the result of shifting the security services around during the 1930s was that the line between the OGPU and the NKVD blurred. By the original decree (or <em>Указ</em>, pronounced "Ukaz"), the OGPU strictly handled foreign intelligence and the NKVD had control of internal affairs and counterintelligence (the meaning of the last two letters of the acronym which stood literally for People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia"; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia"; font-size: x-large;">For a short documentary excerpt from a Discovery Channel piece: <em>Stalin's Secret Police</em> with rare footage regarding the beginning of the Cheka and the eventual abuse of its successor, the NKVD by Stalin, see the following YouTube link: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtWkn5IhfqU">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtWkn5IhfqU</a></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGIKV37-cWlhJFF28N3LZxAe8kOTV02sfXNidQI3GQ6uMK3xgBSAET0K6IIkG5Jld0j01i34imL9WehX211s0JiyO1u0dpmYoz8fACtLVu74MKPw6v0f5Mg_vSBv3-CAgTGurhFXLGZg/s1600/poster-27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGIKV37-cWlhJFF28N3LZxAe8kOTV02sfXNidQI3GQ6uMK3xgBSAET0K6IIkG5Jld0j01i34imL9WehX211s0JiyO1u0dpmYoz8fACtLVu74MKPw6v0f5Mg_vSBv3-CAgTGurhFXLGZg/s640/poster-27.jpg" width="454" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">"For the Motherland!, For Stalin!, For Peace! [trans.: or "For the World!"], For Communism!" Another propaganda poster linking a vote for Stalin as a vote for all the things good Soviet citizens were supposed to support and favor in their current lives. Considering the elections were a sham, this had a secondary effect of letting the people continue under the delusion that their individual votes mattered in such elections.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">Regardless, Stalin used the NKVD as his private security service throughout the globe, ordering assassinations of Soviet expatriates and in the case of some like Leon Trotsky "enemies of the state." During the same time period, it is well known that the NKVD directly trained certain aspects of the Nazi Gestapo and was the model on which the German secret police was formed. During the 1930s as the Nazi military machine grew ominously in secret, many NKVD agents worked and collaborated with the fascist security service when seemingly innocuous tasks were requested such as arrest and extradition back to Germany of wanted persons, execution of deserters from the German Army crossing into Soviet territory and complicity in a myriad of other joint operations, some included the execution of Jews simply on the word of Gestapo agents. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRuy-kroIBjwtOjNwCK2Ht0ZbeHjLg78KJZfgLU7k5ALCKk7ebKF3w2KGh5ThHeY3Vquz_S5efiAe_5o3HMUu_rbaT8Ulu72C59Ef-G-6OLxk52caSnjAvPXbW4UNtdRgf9JRVHwjqVw/s1600/Hangings+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRuy-kroIBjwtOjNwCK2Ht0ZbeHjLg78KJZfgLU7k5ALCKk7ebKF3w2KGh5ThHeY3Vquz_S5efiAe_5o3HMUu_rbaT8Ulu72C59Ef-G-6OLxk52caSnjAvPXbW4UNtdRgf9JRVHwjqVw/s640/Hangings+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The reality behind all the propaganda was that Soviet citizens were publicly hung at Stalin's orders (much as Lenin had ordered of the <i>kulak</i> classes) as "bandits" and any number of other names while avoiding calling them "counter-revolutionaries" directly for fear of additional anti-Soviet sentiment among the populace which might cause more rebellions and further problems for the security services of the Soviet Union.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXwLgEsbMOpRCpkGdwfBW45j41XpoT97oBkrs4gozNs77_RO9KpDQrkkwSWRZc9kYl4umZfs0nDOYI0VaJsPO9wue201I3Sn-rRDiLzjS9Krg-LPGn0aGceJNDnIXdwa8YSedsTK7pug/s1600/NKID+hanging+001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="561" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXwLgEsbMOpRCpkGdwfBW45j41XpoT97oBkrs4gozNs77_RO9KpDQrkkwSWRZc9kYl4umZfs0nDOYI0VaJsPO9wue201I3Sn-rRDiLzjS9Krg-LPGn0aGceJNDnIXdwa8YSedsTK7pug/s640/NKID+hanging+001.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Another photo similar to the previous one in which unfortunate, and possibly innocent souls were about to be hung for trumped-up crimes by officers of the Stalin-controlled state security services.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">These two agencies had a strong link well into the actual war, and a significant number of neutral people claim the NKVD helped thousands of Nazi war criminals disappear by giving them new identities and even forged visas (official ones were available to Argentina where many Nazis fled to the welcoming arms of Juan and Eva (Evita) Perón). Some of these former Nazis proved useful to the Central Committee and the Red Army as the leaders of the country sought the technology and know-how to make their own atomic bomb. Both the leaders of the United States and of the Soviet Union - and to a lesser degree the United Kingdom - sought out either defectors or in rarer cases abducted German scientists and put them to work immediately under new identities as the Cold War was unofficially underway. </span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiOx1x0CcHalTYoj_F-okk7qcyzDjTJ3g3yGhFTo7m6atOy_p602I_MRrex303adLF-LlmclI0qqHOh6CvmbIuXy_TdoZb633yVMG3Rj3ngVM1q6X3gc9nwKxKxPIN7AoDP0YH7AMjWA/s1600/NKVD1936%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiOx1x0CcHalTYoj_F-okk7qcyzDjTJ3g3yGhFTo7m6atOy_p602I_MRrex303adLF-LlmclI0qqHOh6CvmbIuXy_TdoZb633yVMG3Rj3ngVM1q6X3gc9nwKxKxPIN7AoDP0YH7AMjWA/s1600/NKVD1936%5B1%5D.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: large;">For original, color footage from the above parade - 1938 "Blooming Youth Sports Parade," click the following YouTube link: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QtILBeOMYI">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QtILBeOMYI</a> Take note of the people marching behind the image of Felix Dzerzhinsky and of the Chekist symbol of the shield and sword - the two items each of the marchers is equiped with to represent the Cheka-OGPU-NKVD. This is some very rare footage. </span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"> </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">Since the NKVD were omnipresent in all life and travel documentation within the Soviet Union and by extension through customs the issuing of international passports (with approval stamps of the NKVD), they were able to generate new birth certificates and/or death certificates for Nazis who needed to be "executed" and "reborn" depending on how infamous the original name was. Moreover, if someone needed a non-Russian identity, there were departments of the NKVD that specialized in foreign documents for any number of reasons and was especially busy from 1945 to about 1953 as demand tapered and post-war "de-Stalinization" after the dictator was officially announced dead from a stroke on March 5 of that year. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">In 1945-46, most people fleeing Germany and the Eastern European countries which had been caught between the fascists from the West and the communists from the East. From drafted soldiers stuck in Berlin as the Red Army stormed it to high-ranking members of the Nazi party/military, both sought the "golden ticket" available to many of the aimless people wandering around attempting to separate their original identities from their newly assumed identities. This "golden ticket" was the Red Cross temporary passport. A birth certificate was all people really needed to quickly get a special post-war Red Cross Passport that listed them as refugees and was accepted by nearly every country. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">The NKVD printed and maintained all birth and death certificates in addition to all other necessary travel documents for citizens of the Soviet Union. With the masses of people shifting around in all parts of Europe, including hundreds of thousands of Jews trying to get to the newly recreated Israel in the midst of Palestine and the millions of other people simply left homeless by one side or both, identity documents were more important to many than food. The irony is that falsified documents from a number of Eastern European countries under the temporary operation of the NKVD's border troops were typically fairly easy to come by. However, Stalin had to make a public example of fascists still on Soviet soil just as he was quietly doing to his own troops captured by the Germans and shipped back, very much against their will in most cases, to the USSR after fighting ceased in 1945. They had been told what awaited many of them upon returning to the Soviet Union where many would be tried as traitors, found guilty and imprisoned or executed simply because they had been captured. To Stalin these POWs were all potential "enemies of the state" who had been turned by their fascist captors.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">This line of thinking is consistent with Stalin's irrational fear of Lenin's shadow and anyone who had exposure to Western culture without the proper training beforehand. When the Soviet Union officially claimed that there were no more prisoners of war remaining on Soviet soil, the fate of those kept behind was sealed - prison, death or service in the USSR for advancement in the battle with the new "Main Adversary" - the United States of America and its fledgling Central Intelligence Agency - the first non-military foreign intelligence agency in that country. By "service," the Soviets did as the United States had done in utilizing former German scientists (along with a great deal of successful espionage into the "Manhattan Project") to help them to create their own atomic/nuclear weapons.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSyvL2_NxMlBO-x4xKE4cNfKAofJuMRdsDPa2fm66sAbJdDL6var5raAzgFB2fuGWzQ2AYNN7KUub7WUu5vCMsbtWf6lDAbJ6lFt7CohyphenhyphenWtIo253DiT3tG4l3lLLbcPyAzWO7YmfsKwQ/s1600/Stalin+is+dead.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="472" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSyvL2_NxMlBO-x4xKE4cNfKAofJuMRdsDPa2fm66sAbJdDL6var5raAzgFB2fuGWzQ2AYNN7KUub7WUu5vCMsbtWf6lDAbJ6lFt7CohyphenhyphenWtIo253DiT3tG4l3lLLbcPyAzWO7YmfsKwQ/s640/Stalin+is+dead.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="line-height: 19px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Stalin in his death pose before burial; photographed by Dmitri Baltermants</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "lucida grande" , "lucida sans unicode" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">*****</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">"It has been suggested that Stalin was assassinated. His Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Molotov claimed that Beria had boasted to him that he poisoned Stalin: 'I took him out.'" Khrushchev wrote in his memoirs that Beria had, immediately after the stroke, gone about "spewing hatred against [Stalin] and mocking him," and then, when Stalin showed signs of consciousness, dropped to his knees and kissed his hand. When Stalin fell unconscious again, Beria immediately stood and spat. Later autopsies found that Stalin ingested a flavorless and powerful rat poison. Indeed, Stalin's death arrived at a convenient time for many who feared an imminent purge."</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-small;">*****</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;">Stalin died on March 1, 1953.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 19px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">* Photo from: <a href="http://motorcitytimes.com/mct/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/vladimir-lenin.jpg">http://motorcitytimes.com/mct/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/vladimir-lenin.jpg</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">** From: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Lenin">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Lenin</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">*** Photo from: </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lenin_and_stalin_crop.jpg"><span style="font-size: x-small;">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lenin_and_stalin_crop.jpg</span></a><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: x-small;">**** Photo from: </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lenin-last-photo.jpg" style="background-color: white; font-size: small;">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lenin-last-photo.jpg</a><span style="background-color: white; font-size: x-small;"> </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: x-small;">***** Photo from: </span><a href="http://iconicphotos.wordpress.com/2010/01/14/stalin-is-dead/" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">http://iconicphotos.wordpress.com/2010/01/14/stalin-is-dead/</span></a><span style="background-color: white; font-size: x-small;"> </span></div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-65240854480241057132012-04-21T19:36:00.001-05:002015-05-26T20:23:18.658-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<h2 align="center">
<span style="color: red; font-family: Georgia; font-size: x-large;">A Few Pictures of Older Chekist Materials Whilst Continuing Combing Through the Latest Data on SMERSH for Future Chapters</span></h2>
<div align="center">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2GMPNN-9tPqxCFfQGqLT_U1qNJLmyf8Ty3Q0uRp-1shSKU_U29CkU3R7yMiyl4_BW9fiKy-p4BHvzgQK7TMk_7QYHjDRXHbj_OWVyMCHxm8fMY-3Ea6UGZ5ZzT8Cy2jhm7NP7aQxxQw/s1600/NKVD+soldier+BG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2GMPNN-9tPqxCFfQGqLT_U1qNJLmyf8Ty3Q0uRp-1shSKU_U29CkU3R7yMiyl4_BW9fiKy-p4BHvzgQK7TMk_7QYHjDRXHbj_OWVyMCHxm8fMY-3Ea6UGZ5ZzT8Cy2jhm7NP7aQxxQw/s640/NKVD+soldier+BG.jpg" width="466" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">A photo of what appears to be a NKVD border guard posing in front of a regiment flag/banner. That particular pose, with the same type of PPSh automatic rifle is similar to that of the Medal for Distinguished Service in Protecting the State Border that was issued beginning in 1950 by the State Security Committee of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet [meaning "Council"] of the USSR. Once the NKVD was dismantled into the MVD and the MGB (Ministry of State Security) and in 1954 into the KGB, the Border Guard was placed under the control of the KGB. KGB Border Guard troops played an important role in the Soviet-Afghanistan War - particularly at the outset in December of 1979.</span> </span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div align="center">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPT3aeBLsFWdBuuFWpnM2t76cPiedvoR1jaXZLRRmtKcJEeeleatTE1PNzE1BGVLYLsL8cm-7dyQ1UKxI6FvdHsUnQtgIBWyX_v6vqzYlhLOUC41fHKbcxTa_CvyRfKVl2xu3MXsgrPA/s1600/NKVD+gramota.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPT3aeBLsFWdBuuFWpnM2t76cPiedvoR1jaXZLRRmtKcJEeeleatTE1PNzE1BGVLYLsL8cm-7dyQ1UKxI6FvdHsUnQtgIBWyX_v6vqzYlhLOUC41fHKbcxTa_CvyRfKVl2xu3MXsgrPA/s640/NKVD+gramota.jpg" width="457" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">A почетная грамота ("Pochetnaya </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Gramota") </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">or roughly a "Certificate </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">of Recognition" in </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">honor of the 20th </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">anniversary of the NKVD's </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">armed </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">troops awarded to V.K. Lovanova.</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Gramotas were a common citation </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">awarded to </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">civilians as well as </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">military and security </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">personnel for a </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">variety of reasons and </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">achievements.</span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"> Photo by Robert S. Pandis</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">
Throughout the</span></span></span><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">history of the </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">Soviet security </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">services, leaders </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">and members </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">alike had an
</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">affinity for </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">finely - and </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">especially early </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">on - hand-crafted </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">badges of honor
</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">and/or </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">distinction from </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">both the public </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">and each other.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Typically,
these badges were rather ornate and made from silver, fine enamel work and
frequently were gold-plated in specific areas, particularly the hilt of the
ubiquitous sword.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<br /></div>
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP1p845E4cvWLOM4fllwBDRdWiKgGRitWLY6Avq2TXCmrO5sKLo3kVBgRIn9afotzqHeyEzkBnwNF_3HC1rmyWQ07ADJMW1jp_Yq-6HxMs7Eu0_spqyIxu7hw8nSbLHBHuNW7ZWi3n8g/s1600/honorable_ogpu_badge_01%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP1p845E4cvWLOM4fllwBDRdWiKgGRitWLY6Avq2TXCmrO5sKLo3kVBgRIn9afotzqHeyEzkBnwNF_3HC1rmyWQ07ADJMW1jp_Yq-6HxMs7Eu0_spqyIxu7hw8nSbLHBHuNW7ZWi3n8g/s640/honorable_ogpu_badge_01%5B1%5D.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">If this were a real badge it would be a very rare OGPU honor badge that does not have the ubiquitous Soviet Communist phrase: "Workers of the World Unite" as this one does. Rather, it should read something more along the lines of: "For the Struggle Against the Counterrevolution" since nearly all Soviet Security Service award badges have a text beginning with the Russian word "за" or "for" in English.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Granted, many of the highest ranking members of the Communist regime (generals, commissars and other political "elites" in the Kremlin) were given some of the later commemorative and/or anniversary badges as a token of homage or respect (or as a bribe) for who they were and for the positive influence they could bring to bear in favor of the organizations. This happened more often much after the KGB (Committee for State Security) and the MVD (Ministry of Internal Affairs) came into being in 1954 as the final incarnation of all previous security agencies. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">[Note: the badge above is a copy of a purportedly original OGPU brass honor badge. However, because of the near perfect enamel work without any hairline cracks or chips as is very common with nearly all enameled badges from before 1940 and a number of other details, this one is certainly a fake. In fact, I have neither seen one like this that I consider original nor, for that matter, have I encountered one in any reference book dealing with early Soviet State Security badges. From the first days of the Russian Revolution in 1917 until the late 1930s, many of the highest quality badges were made by hand from a single silversmith who left his/her unique "signature" stamp(s) on the reverse of the badge as seen below.]</span> </span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWvU29Mhv-s9OOtv3hrHx7fdphb_akBU8ZeVnDKbNekJTmNHCNg8y34ksmcu5aahjyTieLcU4rgjnjQpvX_6_h3Kr6MeKo6PTsCqa4rCO3okga-hNC1hJx5nhtnWi397LPnHOm2ieLRQ/s1600/V+and+XV+face.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWvU29Mhv-s9OOtv3hrHx7fdphb_akBU8ZeVnDKbNekJTmNHCNg8y34ksmcu5aahjyTieLcU4rgjnjQpvX_6_h3Kr6MeKo6PTsCqa4rCO3okga-hNC1hJx5nhtnWi397LPnHOm2ieLRQ/s640/V+and+XV+face.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRkYHEIAL5rVXFZwCqixTZbnoYMIeZkkgTA93ANUBidRrkvUUZJZyQj6HzMKVqx95gGRdvnrVsAl0Hsp9vxwrDbt-f6e5MBqXKXvK8CxUVPKnBYY4xqt7vSOWS30nUuDTrlivgyRZOgQ/s1600/V+and+XV+rev.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="521" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRkYHEIAL5rVXFZwCqixTZbnoYMIeZkkgTA93ANUBidRrkvUUZJZyQj6HzMKVqx95gGRdvnrVsAl0Hsp9vxwrDbt-f6e5MBqXKXvK8CxUVPKnBYY4xqt7vSOWS30nUuDTrlivgyRZOgQ/s640/V+and+XV+rev.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small; text-align: -webkit-left;">Photos by Robert S. Pandis</span>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwSDShmf8qUDw21hZKtE31eIX-IAeTqadfbsrPcwFwmQh7hJWuHkwRLRaGX6-SchnJFQnGvhqH5lQ1M8ZLpJ4y4dk89Lnkoa-5tWQ0Q8-SuaCWbxFWC1Nosf_mVmCISAKW_F3_NAvlHA/s1600/V+cover.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwSDShmf8qUDw21hZKtE31eIX-IAeTqadfbsrPcwFwmQh7hJWuHkwRLRaGX6-SchnJFQnGvhqH5lQ1M8ZLpJ4y4dk89Lnkoa-5tWQ0Q8-SuaCWbxFWC1Nosf_mVmCISAKW_F3_NAvlHA/s1600/V+cover.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwSDShmf8qUDw21hZKtE31eIX-IAeTqadfbsrPcwFwmQh7hJWuHkwRLRaGX6-SchnJFQnGvhqH5lQ1M8ZLpJ4y4dk89Lnkoa-5tWQ0Q8-SuaCWbxFWC1Nosf_mVmCISAKW_F3_NAvlHA/s400/V+cover.bmp" width="270" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small; text-align: -webkit-left;">Photos (above and below right) by <br />Robert S. Pandis</span>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">On the left is an ID cover for a five-year anniversary badge of the Cheka-GPU as pictured above. Unfortunately, a photo of the text/document inside was unavailable from the CD "book" by Commander Robert S. Pandis - <em>Cheka: Distinguished Worker Awards of the Soviet Secret Police </em>from which this, the previous two photos and the following two pictures were taken. However, the inner text and background design of the XV badge ID booklet below is likely a good indicator of how the V booklet's inner layout appeared.* </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOYESJz3YnI1-Xd2EtS9pzmGRPohO91W4e6izPI2l_r6n1KTUQoBTIe6bRAhCAnaFKT2965XWQT25qWom0yfR0kSCeDL5yJRavqHRxHlb6trxd3bUDAtFiL_94OHtkJ00rpKsmPmTu9A/s1600/XV+ID+cover.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOYESJz3YnI1-Xd2EtS9pzmGRPohO91W4e6izPI2l_r6n1KTUQoBTIe6bRAhCAnaFKT2965XWQT25qWom0yfR0kSCeDL5yJRavqHRxHlb6trxd3bUDAtFiL_94OHtkJ00rpKsmPmTu9A/s320/XV+ID+cover.bmp" width="226" /></a><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The XVth and the Vth Chekist anniversary badge ID booklet (the former pictured on the right) was awarded - along with the badge itself - to members of the OGPU, despite the markings on the lower ribbon of the badge that read "Cheka-GPU." Regardless, both covers are embossed in gold with an image of the badge they were presented with and the text: "USSR Statute" of the All-Union ("O") State Political Directorate (GPU). Inside, is another representation of the appropriate badge as a background for the text that explains what the badge is for and to whom it was given.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1h2jwrI7zGEgYA1K8z0Bc4ph1HdUAfC3XByVUO2gbj1cxUJJ7M1wPQIlrtm8eJZvR9lVT0j9WjfKUfi0HKAnOP8d-QHFQnt_rlJZNdSb99w383UOu7OR1_MXESlCVazwfSjafrM5bPg/s1600/XV+ID+open.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="497" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1h2jwrI7zGEgYA1K8z0Bc4ph1HdUAfC3XByVUO2gbj1cxUJJ7M1wPQIlrtm8eJZvR9lVT0j9WjfKUfi0HKAnOP8d-QHFQnt_rlJZNdSb99w383UOu7OR1_MXESlCVazwfSjafrM5bPg/s640/XV+ID+open.bmp" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small; text-align: -webkit-left;">Photo by Robert S. Pandis</span>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The inside of the award booklet for the 15th anniversary of the Cheka-GPU (1917-1932) above shows an image of the badge that was given along with the booklet which has the text "Honored Chekist" on either side of the drawing of the badge as well as "VChK" in the paper background on the left side and "GPU" on the right side. This particular document was awarded to V.R. Menzhinsky by the "All-Union" GPU. The awardee's name was simply typed in the space beneath the image of the badge just above the place (Moscow) and date (1931) that the booklet was printed.</span><br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiP7jec-xOnwrkgM9-HkWCdFe9LAWW7j3dxzrqu7mHZXvrQfXDSS8QpvQE1nkGjB2XlwoVJDW_MLKcitFNmumnTdtPFufS1x4AwBk3TXfPBDhO4S1BmYTU03EVuiLggkUeFhx0PLG6mg/s1600/OGPU+ID.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiP7jec-xOnwrkgM9-HkWCdFe9LAWW7j3dxzrqu7mHZXvrQfXDSS8QpvQE1nkGjB2XlwoVJDW_MLKcitFNmumnTdtPFufS1x4AwBk3TXfPBDhO4S1BmYTU03EVuiLggkUeFhx0PLG6mg/s640/OGPU+ID.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The above ID document was issued in 1931 to an officer of the "PP" OGPU, or the полномочное представит - which means a plenipotentiary or "diplomatic agent" of the OGPU. The ID authorizes the holder to carry weapons and act with the full authority of the OGPU as an agent both within and outside the borders of the Soviet Union. This sort of document was carried by OGPU agents who literally had a "license to kill." Such documents are extremely rare for collectors to find and based on the size of the stamp used on each side of the ID, this one was very small (about a third the size of modern U.S. federal agent ID documents).</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUQSimNTd3NQLjSAZLvBmjs8E3VfvgXubjtaAaeFB93Y3hZWRKJ7ohT6ATUI4hGCeZ_6ROvgtRor6sXotYR_SmWHDc78a7rMxATLqZ-kFZ8vniAGtzXWxLJelDLTn0Mkcdvq-_xNeQkQ/s1600/OGPU+10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="491" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUQSimNTd3NQLjSAZLvBmjs8E3VfvgXubjtaAaeFB93Y3hZWRKJ7ohT6ATUI4hGCeZ_6ROvgtRor6sXotYR_SmWHDc78a7rMxATLqZ-kFZ8vniAGtzXWxLJelDLTn0Mkcdvq-_xNeQkQ/s640/OGPU+10.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The partial photo above depicts an OGPU agent wearing the 10th anniversary of the OGPU badge with a "rosette" or (typically) a deep red velvet cloth cut to fit behind the badge to prevent any damage to the uniform itself. What is barely visible on the left is a child sitting on the knee of the officer. It was common practice at the time for both military and Chekist officers to have family portraits taken with the officer in full dress uniform. This example photo is from "slava1stclass" whose photos have appeared elsewhere on this site. The right side shows a closeup of the OGPU 10th anniversary badge with the red enamel flag, lower banner and star at the top. It is difficult to tell which of the gold, silver or bronze background type badges this was from the photo. Note: The man pictured is wearing the famous "Budyonovka" cap that was worn by many non-officer ranking soldiers before and during WWII.</span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGlCoCFTGfYwXWkD_TDwPPBiS498Xe9rJBEJ4XDg22esii8Mi46h1oI6Juqcg9MfABjQgUU0XU0rgXEHcOM72jLP-4rvxZZA3haMfDfA7GbN4sTIJ8KG1cX8iRmlqYQbTRYB3k4aZPXg/s1600/Richie+C+NKGB-MGB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGlCoCFTGfYwXWkD_TDwPPBiS498Xe9rJBEJ4XDg22esii8Mi46h1oI6Juqcg9MfABjQgUU0XU0rgXEHcOM72jLP-4rvxZZA3haMfDfA7GbN4sTIJ8KG1cX8iRmlqYQbTRYB3k4aZPXg/s640/Richie+C+NKGB-MGB.jpg" width="329" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">An NKGB/MGB dress or "parade" </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">tunic from the post WWII era.</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: x-small;">Photo by "Richie C" (Soviet Military Awards Page</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: x-small;">Forum Member)</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Regardless of their earlier reputation, the final versions of these agencies did not have nearly the same powers that their Cheka-GPU predecessors did - particularly when foreign and internal services (NKVD) were combined under Lavrenti Beria when even members of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and government ministers lived in fear of him nearly as much as they did Stalin himself. Moreover, after Stalin died in 1953, Beria had his sights set on replacing him but was arrested by members of the faction supporting Nikita Krushchev as the new leader of the Soviet Union and subsequently executed. Once Beria's influence was essentially removed, attention was focused on the restructuring of the security services he had built up into organizations of terror. The title of "People's Commissariat" (or abbreviation "NK") had already been replaced with "Ministry" so that the NKVD became the <u style="font-weight: bold;">M</u>VD and the NKGB became the <u style="font-weight: bold;">M</u>GB. Though Beria sought to combine the two under the single department of the Ministry for Internal Affairs (MVD) with a branch designated for foreign intelligence and counterintelligence. Those who opposed him - which after the death of Stalin were numerous - not only maintained the separation, but also "demoted" the MGB to the status of "Committee" (or "комитет" in Russian) which resulted in the final name of KGB - subsequently requiring their leadership to report to the Central Committee of the Communist Party or State Duma rather than directly to whomever might be at the helm of the USSR at the time, as had been the case before.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Below is a photo of a group of OGPU personnel in 1924. The photo is cropped from a cardboard "frame" which lists the names of those pictured on the reverse (the entire ensemble is pictured below in smaller frames in the original cardboard "frame" in its current sepia colors).</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI4oTzNAA0mxmvhzN9PlSx2NMUYRJYSvMXw3SJ6IXaLaM2MrnZXg9pyKPO2_ce-uwkdbtyU2vkUiyhEMkAE7Byd2Ki0Q-j-TpHFFldldcsfFIEqNCEfAJ9Pv2ECoxLMj3qL4KO3jA5aA/s1600/OGPU1924+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="489" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI4oTzNAA0mxmvhzN9PlSx2NMUYRJYSvMXw3SJ6IXaLaM2MrnZXg9pyKPO2_ce-uwkdbtyU2vkUiyhEMkAE7Byd2Ki0Q-j-TpHFFldldcsfFIEqNCEfAJ9Pv2ECoxLMj3qL4KO3jA5aA/s640/OGPU1924+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrbg8cpEtTeyfcF1AUBA_IS4BoYWQROzXpDrZxzJkD0aMttAPTaztByzbyP4uaIPv8J99NKMW4_UQ5_46szzKKrCCAe4CK2ijQoFZvsqHHYOd9Brof3ey5wZb3bzEeSF08xRdRJHfe_w/s1600/OGPU+set.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="257" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrbg8cpEtTeyfcF1AUBA_IS4BoYWQROzXpDrZxzJkD0aMttAPTaztByzbyP4uaIPv8J99NKMW4_UQ5_46szzKKrCCAe4CK2ijQoFZvsqHHYOd9Brof3ey5wZb3bzEeSF08xRdRJHfe_w/s640/OGPU+set.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Photos provided by Richie C</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Finally, a "colorized" photo of a group of NKVD class graduates.</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkk-b_juZ4iiMBIQWyeBHMC2_uy25YqguUAB_3FbO9c3SzqVfISyUgjGjgmm5A83nTBy_ITzKv4L-DA4WwXGqYVR-zImjL63g9c2uBq0VBY5dQ187Iy4D8zxGPFPatDy0IRj-Uyrh2lQ/s1600/nkvd2%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="452" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkk-b_juZ4iiMBIQWyeBHMC2_uy25YqguUAB_3FbO9c3SzqVfISyUgjGjgmm5A83nTBy_ITzKv4L-DA4WwXGqYVR-zImjL63g9c2uBq0VBY5dQ187Iy4D8zxGPFPatDy0IRj-Uyrh2lQ/s640/nkvd2%5B1%5D.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">Photo provided by Richie C</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;">This is literally a photograph of NKVD school graduates in field uniforms with the indicative symbol of the People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs - the oval shield with the hammer and sickle motif and the sword pointing downward through the back.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">* Robert Pandis has since published a paper bound edition of the CD with much more information and many more excellent photos of awards and associated documents from the Soviet security services. He envisions another three editions in addition to the current <em>Cheka: Soviet Secret Police Awards 1917-1995.</em> For more information about the book and others he has authored, see </span><br />
</span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.imperialhouseantiques.com/" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: small;">http://www.<wbr></wbr>imperialhouseantiques.com/</span></a><span style="font-size: small;">.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div>
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-74774741498748013792012-02-19T15:21:00.000-06:002015-07-12T15:54:14.713-05:00"SMERSH" and the End of the NKVD<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 18pt;"></span></b><em><span style="font-size: large;">Part I</span></em><br />
<br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 18pt;">Patriotic Hysteria and the Blind Spot it Created in History</span></b></div>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxmSfNKu7Iih2TjOeOfjPksqpyZcMlZ7hIX-de6HbyC9riOiv-jwFT9HfD7v4A_Y4LrjB3L-Gl70g0wukZA-rxyF9cxVmeesYvFio22ZFd1rrejT6pPlwTgsWtrUpKFQxaegPY0rduQw/s640/Anti-fascist+propaganda+001.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="453" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">A wartime Soviet propaganda poster depicting heroic battles between Russians and Germans/Prussians/Hessians (including the German divisions who aided the White Russians during the Russian Civil War - 1918 reference). The main text in the poster says: "We Won, We Defeated and We Will [Again]!"* Of course, the soldiers depicted in the foreground are a Red Army "grunt" putting a bayonet into a German who was holding either a wine/liquor bottle or one of the famous "potato masher" grenades from the Nazi arsenal. It is also worth noting that the German's helmet is topped with two unusual outcroppings that suggest demonic horns rather than any useful battlefield attachments. </span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Stalin was the delusional paranoid
schizophrenic who turned the NKVD-MVD and the GPU-MGB into his personal army
and the "iron fist" with which he maintained power during the
"Great Purge" - both despite and because of the people who were coerced
or in some cases willingly led by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union according to the
way Stalin envisioned it. His main internal enemy, both real and imagined, were the citizens who, for various reasons, simply did not roll over and accept the new circumstances. These people were labeled "counter-revolutionaries" and "enemies of the state" and in one way or another were hunted down and eliminated first by the Cheka and then by Stalin's forces. Of course there was another group of people who just shrugged
their shoulders and carried on under a new system of government and laws, none
of which had most of these "peasants" been able to read in the first place, nor had they really cared to so long as they had the proverbial "food on the table." When the Bolsheviks seized power, these formerly disconnected people were not fools who just rushed into the Bolshevik embrace; however, for the first time in any of their lives, they had the chance, at least in theory, to reach up beyond their means and become part of the ruling class. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Other people who, for the most part, fought
no battles with either gun or knife but rather led some Soviet citizens away
from the dogma of Marxism-Leninism (and for a while "Stalinism")
without threat or intimidation of any kind, were eventually called the "intelligentsia"
by the Soviet leadership - many of whom were summarily dispossessed of all property including homes, locked away in asylums, <em>gulags</em>, or simply executed during Stalin's purges. The people who gladly joined the
"counterrevolution" did so for either intellectual or political
reasons. Granted, some did choose to take sides against the Soviets due to loyalty
to the Romanov monarchy, but they were one of the smaller anti-Soviet groups -
despite the romanticized notion sustained by "acceptable" or
"tolerable" writers working under the Soviet regime that these aristocratic "Whites" continued to plot, mostly as exiles, to return to Russia one day and retake the seat of power and resume the oppressive imperial monarchy. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">The intelligentsia were demonized by the
Bolsheviks along the same lines as they had the <em>kulaks </em>(see: "Breadless Revolution") and the
capitalists or merchant classes who could afford - in the first few years of Soviet rule - to speak out, albeit very quietly, about his or her discontent
with the new government. This group was at first largely made up of
professors and former aristocracy. However, by the 1930s anyone with the least
link by blood or marriage to the Imperial Russian elite who for whatever reason
remained in Russia learned to fade back into the masses, living incognito among
the very people they had oppressed as "lower" or lesser humans than
themselves simply because accidents of birth had made them seem so. These former
people of power and influence were the targets of pro-revolutionaries of any status. Children
were taught in schools that the aristocracy was one type of "enemy of the
people" and were therefore not to be pitied or empathized with in any way. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">There was one more type of remaining former "White Russian." They were far smaller in number than any other group of counter-revolutionaries. They were the people born into wealth who rebelled and either for honest belief in the new Soviet Marxist Communism or for the simple need of self-preservation wholeheartedly joined the revolutionary movement. Even "Iron" Felix Dzerzhinsky was born to a noble Polish family and later became the iconic leader of the security services of the Bolsheviks. Dzerzhinsky was never on the side of the "White Russians." He was one of a few who turned their backs on family to follow a path far different than their families would have envisioned or, under other circumstances, allowed. People like Dzerzhinsky were the de facto <em>intelligentsia</em> of the Bolsheviks.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Even with all of these various groups of potential malcontents, during WWII Stalin focused his disapproving eyes upon the members of the Red Army (RKKA) itself who were doing all they could to stand up against Hitler and the Nazi assault upon Soviet territory.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> He had a specific problem with members of
the military who were in any way considered prisoners of war or citizens of a
town or region that had aided, in any form, the fascists, particularly along the
southern regions of the Soviet Union. The border countries that later fell
under the category of Soviet "Sphere of Influence" regions were, during
the Cold War, targeted for long-term retribution. Bulgaria was so directly
altered to mimic the USSR system of government (including the security
services) that it was often referred to as the "ghost republic" of
the Soviet Union, and even though the country leadership asked for membership in the USSR, their petition was rejected by the Supreme Soviet. Other regions like Eastern Poland, the Baltic States, Ukraine, Romania,
Yugoslavia-Serbia, Hungary and of course East Germany itself were made to pay -
each in their own way - for the viscous atrocities (on both sides) committed
during WWII. There was a specific campaign in place by the KGB to disrupt the "Socialist" governments of Albania, Yugoslavia and Romania.*** As much as Hitler and the Nazis hated the Russians and the other
Slavs as "inferiors," many of the Soviet Union's citizens of all ranks
of the Party and levels of the social order hated Germans practically wholesale
after the GPW. Since this sentiment persists with some people to this day, and it is an
irrational feeling typically spawned by upbringing, it bears mentioning. Someone need not be a former Nazi, or even the descendant of one, to find contempt from Russians simply because they are from Germany - even those born after the war was long over: it seems to be something along the order of "the sins of the fatherland are the sins of its people." </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">As a result of Stalin's and other CPSU (Communist Party of the Soviet Union)
ranking members' wishes, fears and other emotions, and a few practical military
concerns, <em>SMERSH</em> (an acronym for <em>СМЕРть Шпионам</em>, in Russian* that means "Death to Spies") was formed on paper in 1943, but existed
in some form from the troops of the NKVD and OGPU as early as the very
beginning of the Soviet involvement in WWII. Granted, at this time in history
lines were more than a bit blurred between the GRU (Soviet Military
Intelligence), the OGPU** and the NKVD. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOPgIcmvbj79XMnoKFsqV2Jd8yjmcPrMUSkJfNCE5UN0zk42uo7A9SDUkGx9j6ZXSasLg0ssoExYnIuZBA2bH35H-25Kv6LNf4V-RL4Ht9_1C57zZJjb7Lg4vrcCq4GrRprZS8i-AnhQ/s1600/Smersh+unit+photo+1944+site.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="475" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOPgIcmvbj79XMnoKFsqV2Jd8yjmcPrMUSkJfNCE5UN0zk42uo7A9SDUkGx9j6ZXSasLg0ssoExYnIuZBA2bH35H-25Kv6LNf4V-RL4Ht9_1C57zZJjb7Lg4vrcCq4GrRprZS8i-AnhQ/s640/Smersh+unit+photo+1944+site.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">Newly recruited members of <em>SMERSH </em>photographed in 1944 as a unit. Which particular unit these men belonged to is not know to the author, but is it likely that they were soldiers who volunteered for service in <em>SMERSH. </em>By 1944, <em>SMERSH</em> had been at work for at least a year and members were some of the most feared forces off of the battlefield.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">There are many good websites for information
on Soviet security agencies and what they documented as their activities during and
after WWII. Many books have been written on the subject of the functions of
each of these various security organizations (military and "civilian") and the havoc they wreaked. <em>SMERSH
</em>was created to close and seal the gap between military operations moving
onward as planned and the aftermath of those operations - which often created
or spurred on counterrevolutionary organizations, or at least those feelings.
After the Red Army either "liberated" or simply retook a town or
region that had been occupied by any of the fascist armies, a constant threat
of post regime leadership changes left an unknown number of people behind who
were potentially sympathetic to the Nazis or had some other non-Soviet view of
the future of their region regardless of who claimed to have authority over it.
Czech historian Vladimir Bystrov said <em>SMERSH</em> was "an open police
operation aimed at searching for and arrests of people, on occupied territory,
who represented relevant or potential obstacles to future sovietization of the
territory." [trans. <a href="http://www.ustrcr.cz/data/pdf/konference/kgb-aktivity-katalog-en.pdf"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.ustrcr.cz/data/pdf/konference/kgb-aktivity-katalog-en.pdf</span></a>]
An interesting fact that Bystrov points out is that - at least in
Soviet-occupied Czechoslovakia - <em>SMERSH</em> "was in competition"
with other security organizations, even those within the Red Army (GRU) or the
MGB-KGB. He also said that the individual <em>SMERSH</em> units were also in
competition with each other for total number of people arrested and would
therefore not share information they had gathered, much like fishermen are
reluctant to share the location of their favorite fishing spot. This odd
competition between different <em>SMERSH</em> units was in part due to the
demand by the Soviet Central Command for results from these special
organizations and the fear of not producing results via arrests and
intelligence. This attitude among members of <em>SMERSH</em>, or any other
intelligence agency, resulted in an odd mixture of intelligence gathering and
the coveting of said intelligence so that information was often not passed from
one group to another in the same region and often exaggerated for purposes of
reporting back to the main department, whichever agency the specific
group answered to at the time. Thus, historians should avoid relying solely on
information gathered from Soviet intelligence agencies.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">As a counterintelligence move, the creation
of <em>SMERSH</em> appeared to be a necessity since sympathizers and agitators were
typically left behind by the previously occupying force to do what he/she could
to disrupt the functions of the conquering occupier. These people were the
obvious main target of the <em>SMERSH</em> units, but real counterintelligence
agents were generally difficult to capture, which meant that officers under
pressure to make arrests would seize and force a confession from people that
might otherwise have been left alone.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">There are no records of any special awards given to members of <em>SMERSH</em> as is the case with other security agencies (SEE "NOTE" BELOW). In fact, the mere existence of the organization was kept a secret and/or denied until many years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and when the Russian Federation government finally disclosed the fact that <em>SMERSH </em>did exist, they released the news carefully with lots of public relations forethought going into the well-planned "repatriation" of the former members as heroes for a cause. The current government's desire to do lip service for the countless victims of Stalin's madness and of those who were swept up into his true cult of personality, is worrisome at best because the fact remains, as with all history, those with sole access to the truth can control what we learn about the past. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">There are a few exceptions to this monopoly of information and they are the survivors of the original <em>SMERSH</em> organization who have "broken ranks" by speaking out on filmed recordings by non-Russian media organizations or individuals. These veterans freely, and sometimes proudly, admit to wholesale murder for no legitimate reason other than suspicion or hearsay from either an enemy or someone who yelled "witch!" before he or she was called one.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
NOTE: In the last few years, researchers of Soviet military awards using serial numbers have been allowed access to records which state that recipients of some medals and orders were in fact members of <i>SMERSH</i> at the time they performed the "feat" for which they were being awarded, or were part of <i>SMERSH</i> at the time they received the award itself. For the most part, the only references to <i>SMERSH</i> are found in the service record data and not elaborated on. In many cases, members of SMERSH transitioned into the postwar MVD or MGB-KGB, though access to any additional information after that point remains restricted (12 July 2015).<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
* Emphasis on letters used to make the word are from Wikipedia: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMERSH">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMERSH</a><br />
** Additional information on the OGPU (or "All-Union State Political Directorate) can be found elsewhere on this site under entries tagged with "OGPU."<br />
*** <a href="http://www.ustrcr.cz/data/pdf/konference/kgb-aktivity-katalog-en.pdf">http://www.ustrcr.cz/data/pdf/konference/kgb-aktivity-katalog-en.pdf</a> (Jordan Baev's "<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;">International History and MGB/KGB Cooperation with the Bulgarian Intelligence & Security Services 1944–1989")</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"></span></span><br />
<div align="LEFT">
</div>
<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;">
</span></span>
<br />
<div align="LEFT">
</div>
<span style="font-family: RePublicBook-Bold; font-size: xx-small;">
</span>
<br />
<div align="LEFT">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-84115413935824611412011-12-20T23:37:00.002-06:002012-07-10T23:16:05.364-05:00Under "Reconstruction"<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large;"><strong>Recently Published New Information About Soviet Security Services and the Judicial Branch Before WWII May Alter Some of the Chapters Already Posted Here</strong></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">(This Will Certainly Slow the Progress of Presenting New Information Until Said Material Is Digested - the Vast Majority of Which Deals with Stalin's Death Grip Over the Military and His Irrational Fear of Spies, Particularly within the Ranks of the Red Army and the Public at Large)</span></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GOUANjt5dBk/TvqMAaWV5SI/AAAAAAAAAOU/TaPh4q17I60/s1600/Eradicate+spies+%2526+saboteurs%253B+Trotsky-Bukharin%252C+agents+of+fascism+site.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GOUANjt5dBk/TvqMAaWV5SI/AAAAAAAAAOU/TaPh4q17I60/s640/Eradicate+spies+%2526+saboteurs%253B+Trotsky-Bukharin%252C+agents+of+fascism+site.jpg" width="422" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">WWII Counter-Espionage propaganda poster which reads: "Eradicate Spies and Saboteurs, [such as] Trotsky-Bukharin [the] Agents of Fascism!" Even the most elementary psychology acknowledges that power seized by means of subterfuge and violence will instill a need in the new leadership to continue to utilize secret political police while fearing the same.</span><br />
<br /></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">I know it has been a while since I've posted something new, but I am in the midst of scouring over a variety of newly released resource materials (one book has not even been released to the public yet, but is supposed to make it to me in early January since I "pre-ordered" it) pertaining to Stalin and his abuse of every Soviet security service from the NKVD to the variously named foreign intelligence services and finally <em>SMERSH </em>- whose very existence was a state secret until shortly before the fall of the Soviet Union and whose actions were denied by many long after 1991.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Already, some of the new information is causing me to rethink some of the previously published materials in this website/web-book. I was hoping to move on to post-war security service tactics for suppressing dissent and preventing the influence of Western capitalist "Imperialism" from undermining the newly entrenched system of Soviet Communism. What the Bolsheviks had killed so many people to maintain was in jeopardy for the first time with Stalin at the helm of the Communist Party "Flag Ship" (the state security services) leading the rest of the fleet of frightened yet powerful ship captains - generals and admirals of the Soviet Red Army and Navy. These men managed to hold their ground against the Nazi "Bliztkreig" despite the efforts of Stalin to in fact become the commander and chief of the military.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">As I sort out the new information, I will try to remember to add, if nothing else, some interesting photos pertaining to the Soviet security services.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">For now, here are a few photos of some of the "egg" badges from the Cheka-GPU to the NKVD and finally the only one known to exist made for the briefly lived MGB (immediate predecessor of the KGB) housed in the KGB Museum in Moscow.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvQh8NIrFWmGgGspkwxbcP0XXlGyfzLM06WfElzTWv9S2HllBji460n9Wmor6ytQexLt_c4lGEXnjN7n0HkvoAkCAPOMH4RylDa8uLDlJ-pofYibTYg1x29CH9pf3Uk5XfzFJeClO40w/s1600/5th+and+15th+Cheka-GPU+site.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="499" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvQh8NIrFWmGgGspkwxbcP0XXlGyfzLM06WfElzTWv9S2HllBji460n9Wmor6ytQexLt_c4lGEXnjN7n0HkvoAkCAPOMH4RylDa8uLDlJ-pofYibTYg1x29CH9pf3Uk5XfzFJeClO40w/s640/5th+and+15th+Cheka-GPU+site.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Photo from CD-ROM book, <em>Cheka: Distinguished Worker Awards of the Soviet Secret Police</em> by Robert S. Pandis. The above photo shows the faces of the 5th and 15th anniversary badges given to outstanding and/or high-ranking members of the GPU (State Political Directorate - "political police" of the time). These badges were made by silversmiths who were often carry-overs from Imperial Russia who were still making a living in metal working.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEXm2qAeEOCOTfZT-VHYDXcLfgLUZfGnoxxGkWzO0h2H3bDuFlCCGBObImbsKfZYcAkpvLkYY0oyfwxqaT2jUie4N7s5yukY1WO8Rj4hmqH2J3SyAWjg6ggcidEQGliilPuACmYDc0KQ/s1600/OGPU+10th.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEXm2qAeEOCOTfZT-VHYDXcLfgLUZfGnoxxGkWzO0h2H3bDuFlCCGBObImbsKfZYcAkpvLkYY0oyfwxqaT2jUie4N7s5yukY1WO8Rj4hmqH2J3SyAWjg6ggcidEQGliilPuACmYDc0KQ/s640/OGPU+10th.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Pandis: OGPU was the name of the former Cheka in 1927. Their are three main types of this badge: two-piece silver and red enamel badge with (left) a gold profile of Felix Dzerzhinsky encircled in a wreath, (center) silver profile, and (right) single-piece solid bronze and enamel badge. Note the differences between the Cyrillic acronym lettering of "O.G.P.U." from the first issue and the last two. The second issue, silver badge had the widest banner from which the letters were raised.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Pandis made use of a popular OGPU "Gramota" award to an agent as the "cover" of his e-book (shown below):</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8my_vWpp6hM/Tv8DEpiJbeI/AAAAAAAAAOg/aNHDpkOPwfQ/s1600/Pandis+cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="381" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8my_vWpp6hM/Tv8DEpiJbeI/AAAAAAAAAOg/aNHDpkOPwfQ/s400/Pandis+cover.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">Cover of the now rare but extremely important Robert S. Pandis e-book dealing with badges awarded to state security services of the early Soviet Union.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">I will continue to post photos of award badges, documents and propaganda materials as I read though the new books I have acquired recently.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"> Comments are always welcomed.</span></div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-76442940453954453432011-11-17T22:51:00.001-06:002011-11-18T00:33:04.662-06:00Gathering Time (Photos and Info, That Is)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-size: large;">Someone wrote a comment today on one of my posted "chapters" asking for more to be done on this topic and I could not agree more. The problem is that I am not a full time history professor who has the time and resources to post more than I am. I also agree that we need all remember what was some of the most unbelievable, Orwellian nightmare-like dystopia enforced during the Cold War by the KGB. However, the Soviet Union was maintained in its first years by fighting off other pretenders to the Russian Empire's thrown - regardless of what they called the seat of power. Besides the troops fighting in the Russian Civil War, Lenin had already formed the Cheka with the perfect bloodless "clean handed" man to lead it as Chekists executed scores of citizens who did not agree politically with the Bolsheviks. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Throughout the existence of the Soviet Union, secret police empowered by both their leaders and their sadistic natures propped up the regime until shortly before it fell. The fact that the head of the KGB and his minions of loyal agents and troops are the ones who lead the coup that served as the official end of the USSR is often lost on most people. Security agencies across the world still perform unimaginable acts on other humans in the name of "intelligence" while following orders - always following orders. It seems following orders is the perfect excuse for all sorts of crimes against humanity.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I promise to try to finish the next installment as soon as possible. In the meantime, and in order to lighten things up a bit, I present the following photo via slava1stclass. If only every security service agent looked like this fellow, they might not frighten us so much. It is likely that the colonel in the photo is an NKVD officer that eventually became an MVD agent in the early 1950s during the massive reorganization of internal, foreign and border intelligence services. Note the "egg" badge on his uniform (better pictures of these badges coming soon).</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">--Phillip</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHghpX0S0VjPtZP2irRYdALu1rYWQsal5U1ZvMa5B_RMN2spaMRc0rkP-cGraqa00yXCDNnfjA8-S1644r2Zsa2w_eoy-tVFRgHwIvM6CEFSpOu3APjar2eD8UFjcWxKJQlvmrn8-qfA/s1600/new-1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="419" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHghpX0S0VjPtZP2irRYdALu1rYWQsal5U1ZvMa5B_RMN2spaMRc0rkP-cGraqa00yXCDNnfjA8-S1644r2Zsa2w_eoy-tVFRgHwIvM6CEFSpOu3APjar2eD8UFjcWxKJQlvmrn8-qfA/s640/new-1.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-26671190890840438182011-10-25T21:09:00.002-05:002012-07-10T23:16:30.056-05:00Examples of Four of the Most Common Military Awards Members of Soviet State Security Were Eligible For<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div align="center">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><span style="font-size: large;">I</span></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">For the most part, members of a paramilitary organization
such as the NKVD and NKGB (OGPU – later the MGB and finally the KGB) were in a
similar “gray area” as people who were in the Soviet diplomatic corps. At least
periodically, they both answered directly to the Central Committee of the
Communist Party of the Soviet Union instead of the chief of the armed and naval
forces. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">The following are examples of awards and Orders that
the NKVD and sometimes members of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">SMERSH</i>
were eligible to receive.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;">Note: all of the photos below were taken by me of orders and medals in my collection. Any other photos used will be indicated as such. Many of the best awards, flags and uniforms in my collection were once part of collections of very good friends and fellow collectors/historians including Paul J. Schmitt, Norm Braddock, Alexei Merezhko, families of original awardees, others who wish to remain anonymous, and many, many more whose knowledge far surpasses mine in their areas of expertise. I am now and always will be grateful to these trustworthy people who continue to find authentic "needles" in a proverbial "haystack" of counterfeit items made and sold purely for the purpose of turning a profit at the expense of history.</span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2y1fL7qfIAU2YAfpsQgSSzImUofq6jTn8ehD5gC0Ss5jphxfLvZt_nERhymYX6mzEfEcnZcVIc4002NijuVtCrjIjAEsLykdGN1bpTsLD_9X7NoagqByBGj_62iPR9SIZzspdLPhxaA/s1600/BM+for+site.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="342" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2y1fL7qfIAU2YAfpsQgSSzImUofq6jTn8ehD5gC0Ss5jphxfLvZt_nERhymYX6mzEfEcnZcVIc4002NijuVtCrjIjAEsLykdGN1bpTsLD_9X7NoagqByBGj_62iPR9SIZzspdLPhxaA/s400/BM+for+site.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">Early<em> Medal for Bravery</em>. Left-face of the medal;</span><span style="font-size: small;">Right-reverse </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">(serial #106366). The screw plate </span><span style="font-size: small;">used to fix the medal to a </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">uniform may not be </span><span style="font-size: small;">original to this medal. The plate has the </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">Russian </span><span style="font-size: small;">word <em>Monetniy Dvor</em> or simply "mint." The medal is</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">made of silver with enamel filling the Russian words <em>For </em></span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;"><em>Bravery</em> and the initials for the USSR. Photos made possible</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">by Norm Braddock.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">Since NKVD agents tended to come from within the
ranks of the military, they usually had already been awarded one or more medals
by that point. The two most common medals awarded were the Order of Bravery and
the Medal for Combat Service. The first types of both of these medals started
out with 4-sided screw post suspensions before later, under new regulations, the
five-sided ones that all medals and many orders hung from.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnPZVbfbsp-LD9kjNZK7XcRC7DDJFERE5rdo9GFJ3el1Eia0LlT2JS0g5h3cu8A-nYV0h1ZYQmqCiae4ovWjvQN27ap3CZ-LPtNwowE6vJGOjFEVtT77MU02bm1J2CJs_5k63U6A_32w/s1600/CSM+site.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="351" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnPZVbfbsp-LD9kjNZK7XcRC7DDJFERE5rdo9GFJ3el1Eia0LlT2JS0g5h3cu8A-nYV0h1ZYQmqCiae4ovWjvQN27ap3CZ-LPtNwowE6vJGOjFEVtT77MU02bm1J2CJs_5k63U6A_32w/s400/CSM+site.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">Early four-sided suspension <em>Combat Service Medal</em> which was</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">typically awarded to non-officer servicemen and women as</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">well as NKVD and <em>SMERSH</em> troops. This medal is also made </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">from silver </span><span style="font-size: small;">with enamel filling the Cyrillic letters "CCCP" </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">which stood </span><span style="font-size: small;">for USSR in Russian. Photos made possible by</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">Norm Braddock.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">The Bolsheviks had done away with all orders and
medals when they initially assumed power because they thought that such decorations
furthered the imperial notion of class separation. However, it was not very
long before a few awards were instituted. The first order to be issued
nationally was the Order of the Red Banner. For many years, this was the
highest award one could be given either for combat merits or lengthy and
exemplary service in the Red Army. Eventually, a specific set of “irreproachable
service” medals were established and the awarding of orders for long service
was abolished. The Order of the Red Banner was given as a companion award to anyone receiving the Order of Lenin.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">Originally, the Order of the Red Banner was a “screw
back” award with a central screw post that had a large silver screw plate or “nut”
to hold the order in place on the uniform. During WWII, the order was
transformed to hang from a five-sided suspension that pinned to the uniform
rather than punched a hole through it. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9zY_QvHceKPwumshtFrrGBI9ukVYsowlAn1wBe2_WU5n11bbiKrgssTePfZmdit43xpfr7smqP0O9ekX943N9IFGde9yPEqJo6_Uzy_7tlY-O4o0ICNticmeupMRCXI0bTYmC1hWF3g/s1600/ORB+site.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="307" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9zY_QvHceKPwumshtFrrGBI9ukVYsowlAn1wBe2_WU5n11bbiKrgssTePfZmdit43xpfr7smqP0O9ekX943N9IFGde9yPEqJo6_Uzy_7tlY-O4o0ICNticmeupMRCXI0bTYmC1hWF3g/s640/ORB+site.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: large;">The Order of the Red Banner was originally a "screw back" award, but was converted to be held by a five-sided suspension (above). The ubiquitous phrase of the Soviet era was written in the red flag: "Workers of the World Unite!" as well as the Cyrillic initials for USSR across the lower section of the obverse. The order was made from silver with dramatic red enamel work behind any text with gold and silver plating on specific parts for contrast of iconic symbols of the Bolshevik Revolution such as the hammer, plough and bayonet. The reverse of this particular example shows the words <em>Monetniy Dvor</em> or simply "mint" and the hand-engraved serial number 160410. Many of these orders issued in the 100,000 range were for long service. As soldiers, NKVD and <em>SMERSH </em>troops were eligible recipients of the order.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">Another order that state security troops were eligible
for during WWII and later in the Korean War, Vietnam War and the Afghanistan
War as well as during peacetime was the Order of the Red Star (ORS). The order went
through a number of changes though it remained a screw back until the end of
the Soviet Union. The first of these orders issued were worn with a red silk “rosette”
to make it “pop out” on the uniform. Later, the cloth backing was abandoned and the ORS was worn directly on the uniform. Unlike the previous order and medals, this one was worn on the wearer's right breast (see photos below).</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="height: 847px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; width: 678px;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw9fpWpQrI5RLdZ7U-8aK00oXaKVXV_TWD-HCj6v7CNo6Yk4dT9x6Lvxw1zfPPGZ1A6L5DxfqyEGXKOIwmr2PE4uTgV7y-NF7M-edMDtAR972oBoLeXJ9batkxNhaGdTCWx8nGoCGHnw/s1600/ORS1+site.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw9fpWpQrI5RLdZ7U-8aK00oXaKVXV_TWD-HCj6v7CNo6Yk4dT9x6Lvxw1zfPPGZ1A6L5DxfqyEGXKOIwmr2PE4uTgV7y-NF7M-edMDtAR972oBoLeXJ9batkxNhaGdTCWx8nGoCGHnw/s640/ORS1+site.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: large;">An Order of the Red Star with a serial number in the 1.3 million range which would put the awarding of this ORS in approximately 1944-45. Since over 4 million were issued by 1991 - the vast majority of which were for conduct prior to 1950 - this number is not considered very high by collectors. The previous/original owner clearly polished the silver very heavily since the natural tarnish is very light.</span></div>
<div align="left">
<br />
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBa__ep3PjnYFW5Qflbfqtj2SDqbeJUOCjurmMPwq5besIE_NQN6XBM7LUE9lKBym8J9r-84berX5BBg4MooAcf11aiNmO4S0_qahI_LScz_8eKYMXNR6DKQSocSaKUfbjq2rxHu2e_w/s1600/ORB2+site.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="303" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBa__ep3PjnYFW5Qflbfqtj2SDqbeJUOCjurmMPwq5besIE_NQN6XBM7LUE9lKBym8J9r-84berX5BBg4MooAcf11aiNmO4S0_qahI_LScz_8eKYMXNR6DKQSocSaKUfbjq2rxHu2e_w/s640/ORB2+site.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<div align="left">
<br /></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: large;">This ORS has a serial number over the 2.1 million mark, yet the natural patina of the silver is more evident. Also, this particular type was somewhat wider in the arms of the star and the tips of each arm were slightly rounded unlike the points on the ORS in the first picture. Nearly all Orders of the Red Star with serial numbers above 2.1 million were issued in 1945, according to extrapolation of information in Paul J. Schmitt's book <em>Echoes of War: Researching Soviet Military Decorations.</em>* The serial number is also hand engraved again though in a much larger script.</span> </div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN_Swgd-weH0rngvlptkxiov6BlgwHenpV3_rxmnf_GC8C1Qb2xdscL2S825VOhdO5oD8O-t42SvNINM3CeR49f54Jf-jWktgWFFX-0M0bfCC9_K4BRDhlLg4MdlQ4nOtcXOk7AL2S3Q/s1600/ORS+D+Site.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN_Swgd-weH0rngvlptkxiov6BlgwHenpV3_rxmnf_GC8C1Qb2xdscL2S825VOhdO5oD8O-t42SvNINM3CeR49f54Jf-jWktgWFFX-0M0bfCC9_K4BRDhlLg4MdlQ4nOtcXOk7AL2S3Q/s640/ORS+D+Site.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">A controversial and relatively rare item is the duplicate or <em>dublikat </em>(Russian - дубликат) which was made for recipients of a medal or order who for an acceptable "official" reason had lost the original. On the example above, a Cyrillic "Д" was stamped below the serial number. The original number was sanded off most likely at the mint and was then given a new and in this case, stamped, serial number. Due to this reprocessing, there is no way to tell what the original serial number was though serious collectors could give a safe estimate based on the order's shape, style and weight - all of this type of information is cataloged in numerous sources, but one of the most respected and commonly used is <span class="hps">Ордена и</span> <span class="hps">медали</span> <span class="hps">СССР</span> (Orders and Medals of the USSR) whose web address is </span><a href="http://mondvor.narod.ru/"><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">http://mondvor.narod.ru/</span></a><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">. The controversy comes from debates among collectors as to how reliable a duplicate order or medal is when so many of these Soviet awards are counterfeited with extreme skill and precision.</span></div>
<div align="left">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF_uJvtPYO91cVsYdZ0wgdqF36pGBI-KqHQDYorBjaQXuF7KGrIVWgDIwJIqk8D-rjK1U6fYldwtzFIO4_ZOTSOPPeJZOkPfUvrHEkJ8qtjNbgmnX3PI_-ec3kr0bNIuWWwuW5ZO-PrA/s1600/Blokhin%252C+V.+M.+site.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF_uJvtPYO91cVsYdZ0wgdqF36pGBI-KqHQDYorBjaQXuF7KGrIVWgDIwJIqk8D-rjK1U6fYldwtzFIO4_ZOTSOPPeJZOkPfUvrHEkJ8qtjNbgmnX3PI_-ec3kr0bNIuWWwuW5ZO-PrA/s640/Blokhin%252C+V.+M.+site.jpg" width="518" /></a><span style="font-size: small;">**</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">The portrait above is of NKVD General V.M. Blokhin who is wearing two Orders of the Red Banner on his left breast and an Order of the Red Star on his right breast just above the two shield and sword NKVD fifth and tenth anniversary badges. He also wears an Order of the Red Banner of Labor and Order of the Badge of Honor (last two on top row, right), which are normally non-military awards that security service personnel were also eligible to be given. These and other awards available to Cheka-KGB agents will be discussed in future chapters. One thing that should be mentioned about General Blokhin is that he was a viscious man who was responsible for some of the horrors that made the NKVD under Stalin such an infamous organization. Military decorations do not make a better man or woman.</span> </div>
<div align="left">
<br /></div>
<div align="left">
<br /></div>
<div align="left">
</div>
<div align="left">
<br /></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">*</span><span style="font-size: x-small;">Schmitt, Paul J. <em>Echoes of War: Researching Soviet Military Decorations</em>; Historical Research L.L.C., Lorton, West Virginia, 2006.</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">** </span><span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo courtesy of "slava1stclass" (see note about him in previous chapter).</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-24681449000576317692011-09-26T00:02:00.001-05:002012-07-10T23:17:30.578-05:00Photos of Early Soviet State Security Service Personnel<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div align="center">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: red;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Part 1: The Beginnings</span></span></div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAI0inRo2iqBGqLPDmeqas9i9fsrX9BHU5xvE3ab5xOdezNfWmtU7uEEXR9nh___v95_pmF2UxKbZUMT3sPfkJWIAcsCJn3qyO248sH7Vp-UmxRwDHHz66ofA99ifb_sUmUdBplaEaVA/s1600/Menzhinsky_V_1921-2%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="464" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAI0inRo2iqBGqLPDmeqas9i9fsrX9BHU5xvE3ab5xOdezNfWmtU7uEEXR9nh___v95_pmF2UxKbZUMT3sPfkJWIAcsCJn3qyO248sH7Vp-UmxRwDHHz66ofA99ifb_sUmUdBplaEaVA/s640/Menzhinsky_V_1921-2%255B1%255D.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo from Wikimedia Commons</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Above is a grainy photo from 1921 of the members of the Cheka Presidium which included (from left) Yakov Peters, Jozef Unszlicht, A. Ya Belensky, the infamous Felix Dzerzhinsky and Vyacheslav Menzhinsky. As can be seen by the names, not everyone was of strict Russian origin. Dzerzhinsky, himself, was of Polish noble origin. Many people were welcomed by the Bolsheviks in the first couple decades after the October Revolution so long as they were in idealistic agreement with the new Soviet regime. There were many who came from what is now called the UK, the US and numerous countries bordering the Soviet Union. At the very outset of the construction of the Cheka and its agents, there was no specific uniform and many of the new recruits simply wore black tunics to emulate the ones almost always worn by Dzerzhinsky himself (see photo above). There are rumors that the Checkists in 1917 wore more or less what they pleased with an armband - if they wanted to be identified - while design decisions and manufacturing of a more universal uniform were being carried out.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">[Note: Many of the following photos were contributed by a very active and knowledgeable member of the Soviet Military Awards Page Forum: </span><a href="http://soviet-awards.com/forum/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">http://soviet-awards.com/forum/</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> (and in the column on the right side of this page. This is an invaluable forum filled with an enormous amount of information and rare photographs. In order to see the photos so many of the members are talking about, registration is required - which is free of charge). This member goes by the moniker "slava1stclass" which are the transliterated words for the Order of Glory, 1st class and was one of the highest awards given to the rank and file soldiers. Officers were ineligible to receive any of the three classes of this award which were given mostly during WWII. He has been kind enough to lend his photos anonymously and I extend my gratitude.]</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">If a photo did not come from him, it will be noted as such.</span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLzCQPT7SQJ5iSoSj4m7MIvN3FGYJrIr_rbO7AhEJ2oIIxi4MHCUn8aLdZHZ_ISsOR87VJiYua5Iht0dRQh8zu44qPeQ3EXVl2-AX5-qLHXCqMOXvyqUzTPOMz9FbMKV9247J20XEs0w/s1600/NKVD%2525202%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLzCQPT7SQJ5iSoSj4m7MIvN3FGYJrIr_rbO7AhEJ2oIIxi4MHCUn8aLdZHZ_ISsOR87VJiYua5Iht0dRQh8zu44qPeQ3EXVl2-AX5-qLHXCqMOXvyqUzTPOMz9FbMKV9247J20XEs0w/s640/NKVD%2525202%255B1%255D.jpg" width="486" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">The above officer is wearing, besides the Cheka fifth ("V") badge, an early form of the Order of the Red Banner (the first award to be created by the Soviets after they had discontinued the practice of awards all together because some thought it hearkened too much back to Imperialist Russia's class system in which heavily decorated officers were among the higher echelons of power and influence in the aristocratic society even though they might not be of noble birth. Typically, however, no one rose to the highest ranks of the Tsarist military unless they had exceptional skills on the battlefield or were born among the wealthy and/or nobility. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">The Cheka officer above is also wearing an award that is considered by most collectors to be one of the rarest and most difficult to find - the so-called "Tractor Lenin." The design only existed a few years and was given its nickname because a tractor is displayed prominently in the background of the obverse of the order. All later models were gold with elaborate enamel work whereas this one was made from silver with a small amount of gold plating and enamel. This, together with the 5-year Cheka anniversary badge dates the photo as no earlier than 1922. It is likely he was awarded the Order of Lenin and Order of the Red Banner (which at the time were presented together) as an award for efforts in the Russian Civil War.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">It was very common for servicemen and women of all branches - military and security services - to have their photos taken in full dress uniform, usually after a graduation, promotion or in honor of some occasion or even for their official personnel file. The organization calling for or taking the picture would typically write who the photo was of, his or her rank and was generally signed and/or stamped by the same organization.</span> </span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRrbGWUUy5p7wGdJDNmh5o5jJMOLSeWZfs2oMMTbimGnCinD6706yVUbW4qXBzItkdfUZO40xpqtD3Zu5jQbjbKzkq1oghbnqUTaohZNu-tJ_0mXfRllH53OUS2u3uLEcMnFBYdx4D5g/s1600/%2521B6D86%2528QBGk%257E%2524%2528KGrHqN%252C%2521hUEyrvBoq1LBMwD7%2529020Q%257E%257E_3%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRrbGWUUy5p7wGdJDNmh5o5jJMOLSeWZfs2oMMTbimGnCinD6706yVUbW4qXBzItkdfUZO40xpqtD3Zu5jQbjbKzkq1oghbnqUTaohZNu-tJ_0mXfRllH53OUS2u3uLEcMnFBYdx4D5g/s640/%2521B6D86%2528QBGk%257E%2524%2528KGrHqN%252C%2521hUEyrvBoq1LBMwD7%2529020Q%257E%257E_3%255B1%255D.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
<div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">Disclaimer: I do not know the person's name, nor to whom this picture might belong - it was sent anonymously in an email with a simple typed note asking if I could use this photo for this website. So if anyone knows anything about the current owner of the actual photograph and either wants it removed or given credit, simply show me the reverse in context (such as near a current date on a newspaper) and give contact information and the deal will - whichever - be done.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">In the photo above, a young OGPU officer leans to one side for his photo as a member from Azerbaijan SSR. Though this was taken likely prewar, notice the unique sleeve, rather than what would be come the international standard use of shoulder boards as rank insignia. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">One of the most notable</span> </span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">aspects of the uniform is the unusual, almost corduroy-looking, material it seems to be made from, but this could be simply a number of things including lighting and stitching. The other remarkable thing about the uniform is the enormity of the buttons on the jacket. Also worth noting is the cloth belt. Regulation Red Army belts were leather with a large rectangular single- or double-tong buckle with regular waist belts and some with over-the-shoulder straps. Another variety came along a bit later and were buckles that were more square and had the hammer, sickle and star with "rays" motif but it was usually reserved for officers in all army belts. (See photos below for examples.)</span> </span><br />
<br />
<div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFPooUNuovydU0nofxuZzW-lf-U-gVwVmBz9royTY3zb7AP78A9ChaIVT2poxz-eMf0rDRRAtXYq24cEdkGfkH0AWahrtNR0iA-sAvQ_yyGJsFVPsNnL71CnZndm9dBUqYloxmiCz8cA/s1600/Buckle+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFPooUNuovydU0nofxuZzW-lf-U-gVwVmBz9royTY3zb7AP78A9ChaIVT2poxz-eMf0rDRRAtXYq24cEdkGfkH0AWahrtNR0iA-sAvQ_yyGJsFVPsNnL71CnZndm9dBUqYloxmiCz8cA/s320/Buckle+2.jpg" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwcFknyyhRkuJpQwCXZAmnARYPpKcTY-S6NzL90VhA03gTIVeZm-hrfP-aiq5bKeeeI-UTUqML92-s9mIYhkc-48mSELDhIRJ7j-4kPi2ELAVO8BtXdVRXomdeKkvwf_jBKj_wIGWOjA/s1600/Buckle+use.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwcFknyyhRkuJpQwCXZAmnARYPpKcTY-S6NzL90VhA03gTIVeZm-hrfP-aiq5bKeeeI-UTUqML92-s9mIYhkc-48mSELDhIRJ7j-4kPi2ELAVO8BtXdVRXomdeKkvwf_jBKj_wIGWOjA/s320/Buckle+use.jpg" width="253" /></a></div>
<br /></div>
<div align="left">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCSmqALiCzXuzzxIt27NIkjClKppkcMP7ob9CVAMFaB8_nmsxUlmJTZyA-T6NftLVIwNlwVNvXu16L_dRbQWXmH5jRUPT99EBlp90XFk1gsLWYkfBRMhn1fVb0AvmNivlyDG1naIGOuQ/s1600/%2521B9%2529Zjjw%2521mk%257E%2524%2528KGrHqN%252C%2521gsEy14gEk21BM6u%2529BHLy%2521%257E%257E_3%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCSmqALiCzXuzzxIt27NIkjClKppkcMP7ob9CVAMFaB8_nmsxUlmJTZyA-T6NftLVIwNlwVNvXu16L_dRbQWXmH5jRUPT99EBlp90XFk1gsLWYkfBRMhn1fVb0AvmNivlyDG1naIGOuQ/s1600/%2521B9%2529Zjjw%2521mk%257E%2524%2528KGrHqN%252C%2521gsEy14gEk21BM6u%2529BHLy%2521%257E%257E_3%255B1%255D.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">The belt above is a variation of the previous photo but it is unclear as to what the country of origin it is - whether USSR, a republic or simply another East European country on the side of the Soviet Union during The Great Patriotic War. The point is that it is made identically to the definitely Soviet version. There is a brass stud that comes up from the lower layer of the belt and pushes through the top layer to hold it in place. This design was eventually done away with all together.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Early Chekist-GPU uniforms varied from region to region and often differed from the All-Union Chekist official versions based on a number of reasons from regional customs to distance from Moscow which would cause regulation uniforms to take longer to reach Far-Eastern republics and some areas simply kept the style they had before for preference. </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Ultimately, any effective political police officer would never appear in public wearing any uniform save the standard army clothing. The use of Royal Blue (sometimes referred to as "corn silk blue") as a symbolic color of the security services did not come into regular, widespread use until the late 1920s - early 1930s. </span> </div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<br /></div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-84644596766980024172011-06-12T12:39:00.002-05:002012-07-10T23:19:26.214-05:00Brief Look at NKVD and MGB "Internal Army" Flags<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">A component of the security services of the Soviet Union that most outside observers might not take serious note of is the ever-present armed and trained special operations military units that the each version of the Cheka-KGB as well as the NKVD-MVD had at its disposal. The original concept of these “internal armies” or </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="RU" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">Внутренние войска</span></i><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"> in Russian (“VV” abbreviated in English), was to be the heaviest hand in the body of the special services. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHv8fjcp3mAPeNzYckeqgBMKVHwVEc3N1hwvhageLcEt4E0MiVtKXiYcToI_DGa02hP2Q9dv_wKo0B0UCXztPCADa9igvJEcXrnRwy4J2k87563dgHYlhsLhqPZ0pjmjET4Izgndkiog/s1600/NKVD+flag+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="333" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHv8fjcp3mAPeNzYckeqgBMKVHwVEc3N1hwvhageLcEt4E0MiVtKXiYcToI_DGa02hP2Q9dv_wKo0B0UCXztPCADa9igvJEcXrnRwy4J2k87563dgHYlhsLhqPZ0pjmjET4Izgndkiog/s400/NKVD+flag+1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">A field banner for the 57[th] Rifle Division of the VV </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">NKVD </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">USSR. This one was likely used right after </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">WWII </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">according </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">to what information is available regarding </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">this division. They</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">specialized in fighting armed groups </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">of counterrevolutionaries </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">particularly in Ukraine.</span> </div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">Initially, the units were created to enforce the political policies of the Moscow Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and, of course the man who was general secretary of this committee – a title first held by Stalin. Ironically, he was the same person who so greatly abused these troops that continued to exist long after WWII and Stalin’s death in 1953, when the Khrushchev-era “de-stalinization” of the country and the organizations such as the NKVD-MVD and Cheka-KGB began. In fact, these same "VV" troops from the KGB with names such as <em>Alpha Group, Zenith, </em>and <em>Vymple</em> (Russian for "banner" which was the airborne "group") were the vanguard in the assaults in 1979 on the Tajbeg Palace near Kabul that started the Soviet war with Afghanistan. The initial attack organized by the KGB was called <em>Storm 333</em> in Russian and resulted in not only the taking of the government, but a revolutionary war that lasted nearly 10 years. Even more ironic is the fact that had the Western governments not been so anti-Soviet and backed the USSR instead of the Afghani rebels, Osama Bin Laden and other US-trained militants would most likely never have come to power and the terrorists known as the Taliban would not exist. Of course this is is speculation about what should have and/or could have been.</span></div>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3r-tVcLzkvMHDkp-115GA7qm9LnrGL6eOeXyXYM7WukL9Dpd1yTl3dtz3-MhkZEmtQDVAMe2RxnjoOqSvFKwFoZ7SgUDP6fJL_1ZDY5K_P962LRM2N-NosCJ5z6oSRscL-Vw_zOOOEg/s1600/NKVD+flag+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="335" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3r-tVcLzkvMHDkp-115GA7qm9LnrGL6eOeXyXYM7WukL9Dpd1yTl3dtz3-MhkZEmtQDVAMe2RxnjoOqSvFKwFoZ7SgUDP6fJL_1ZDY5K_P962LRM2N-NosCJ5z6oSRscL-Vw_zOOOEg/s400/NKVD+flag+3.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">The reverse of the above VV NKVD flag.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">The VV NKVD troops were used by Stalin to carry out all sorts of highly controversial and very unpleasant actions before, during and after WWII, in part during the “Great Terror” of the 1930s and later post-war divisions were used to suppress anti-Soviet rebel groups throughout Ukraine and newly acquired Baltic States. The Organization for Ukrainian Nationalists was the most renowned and persistent of the rebel groups (see previous chapter dealing with OUN flag and the organization). The suppression took the roles of direct attack, capture and executions or mass deportation by train of whole ethnic populations to desolate regions in Siberia, or wholesale murder of civilians in small towns and villages suspected of collaborating with anti-Soviet rebels.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPLhNwyCCy7LKQ5ua7ao2MKmsxb4za6cgB4hDfiD4yiCReA5ezvmOjqTbvPynEUFOxSXZo4VgD-bU82w-1xLuwQmk0ZPS60tPIsI0YdUwJ5QiDmEjPPh5osC93pDc1PWboxP9IWMt-9g/s1600/NKVD+flag.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="546" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPLhNwyCCy7LKQ5ua7ao2MKmsxb4za6cgB4hDfiD4yiCReA5ezvmOjqTbvPynEUFOxSXZo4VgD-bU82w-1xLuwQmk0ZPS60tPIsI0YdUwJ5QiDmEjPPh5osC93pDc1PWboxP9IWMt-9g/s640/NKVD+flag.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">A closeup of the hand-sewn numbers and letters, which consist of several rows of stitching side by </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">side and which simply says the name of the rifle division as explained in the previous photo. It is also easy to see the work of hands on the central star. What is interesting about this flag is that it </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">does not have the ubiquitous "Workers of the Country [sometimes translated as "World] Unite" even though </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">there is plenty of room at the top of the front of the flag.</span> </div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZgtf1ILaoklzQhaWuEa89fOGkCAkGRN9vmDOA1MNKGvRdQ0p_u3g_mkACkDiBfs__YHKP6xy6AHcpFo9Ak8StIfeJvl_ZOWHCat9PxtuKRks4f_4hO5U_gCPJOtH9FA4AazRYmK_1HQ/s1600/NKVD+flag+rev.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZgtf1ILaoklzQhaWuEa89fOGkCAkGRN9vmDOA1MNKGvRdQ0p_u3g_mkACkDiBfs__YHKP6xy6AHcpFo9Ak8StIfeJvl_ZOWHCat9PxtuKRks4f_4hO5U_gCPJOtH9FA4AazRYmK_1HQ/s400/NKVD+flag+rev.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">The text of the reverse simply says "For Our Soviet </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">Motherland" </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">together with the hammer and sickle </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">symbol of the original </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">revolution.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">After the war, the foreign intelligence service, the OGPU (All-Union State Political Directorate) which had been subordinated by the NKVD, was once again an independent agency – “Ministry of State Security,” or MGB. They too had a number of “VV” units who also participated in counter-intelligence and espionage elimination of such elements among the counterrevolutionaries. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglZJsWJuLDxCJCaDP8u19hyphenhyphen0iV6OWrRcCSk0H2tCv0M78mf36BvMFgVwTaKpwvVopXAJbqo-nbjr05UXBVEl4qvpeBqpYI8BA1fgGH0dxjyADWDy1SX7a8GYSLEEB13MboUxA102aWfw/s1600/MGB+flag.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="383" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglZJsWJuLDxCJCaDP8u19hyphenhyphen0iV6OWrRcCSk0H2tCv0M78mf36BvMFgVwTaKpwvVopXAJbqo-nbjr05UXBVEl4qvpeBqpYI8BA1fgGH0dxjyADWDy1SX7a8GYSLEEB13MboUxA102aWfw/s400/MGB+flag.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">An award flag for the 88[th] Rifle Regiment of the VV </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">MGB </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">of the USSR with the slogan "For Our Soviet </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">Motherland" </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">sewn in across the top.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">As the KGB inherited this problem from its predecessor during the Khrushchev era, so it was ordered to publicly back off the hunt and pursuit of rebels. However, secretly, the KGB created new forms of VV units with the most famous called <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Vympel</i>, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Zenith, </i>and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Alpha</i>. Each of these special operations units had specific purposes including emergency response teams and by the 1970s, a counter- terrorism unit. Nonetheless, the topic of the KGB and clandestine operations after its inception will be discussed in more detail later.</span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDm4NVMvUHtJbKh34di-bh9i8hP-SsanJo2AcGopjRAxEzNpNJsWM4ZSwN-KGz52XrCGt3whlfUG2G6vwQ8jEUeQ4yy6sEcZ9ecP7F0OlAc2f77kaCCRvLdzq1T-kyUbIgr8pNCqosWA/s1600/MGB+flag+rev.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="627" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDm4NVMvUHtJbKh34di-bh9i8hP-SsanJo2AcGopjRAxEzNpNJsWM4ZSwN-KGz52XrCGt3whlfUG2G6vwQ8jEUeQ4yy6sEcZ9ecP7F0OlAc2f77kaCCRvLdzq1T-kyUbIgr8pNCqosWA/s640/MGB+flag+rev.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">The reverse of the MGB flag with a more standard style state seal and the other, more famous slogan: "Workers of the Country [World] Unite!"</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUfxs0SX1NDhnJSHF1S1JygJCZCftnb6psmGtFrdEBzNhua95mkjT3ZfOpJdnYdLyOQ1wmAMU_DPxE2Nl0nUAOMTDT0d1RcwqgUPfxQ9KZzeI_zahMhYupGbkVTgzoAEysbGqcVEp56g/s1600/MGB+flag+close.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="537" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUfxs0SX1NDhnJSHF1S1JygJCZCftnb6psmGtFrdEBzNhua95mkjT3ZfOpJdnYdLyOQ1wmAMU_DPxE2Nl0nUAOMTDT0d1RcwqgUPfxQ9KZzeI_zahMhYupGbkVTgzoAEysbGqcVEp56g/s640/MGB+flag+close.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Like the NKVD flag above, the text was created by rows of stitching sewn closely together. An all-sewn rendition of Stalin and Lenin on silk is inside the octagon in the center of the flag</span>.</span></div>
<div align="left">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi80CbLIyMETa9PzPYypHIKA2BV7Khdo4cle107dq2YH9jHVaptIo2jpIDJzhpQxV68oitx1I4mnY607fHeZsLmMCXuoo_05V1Qbymma9yQe3Bd8LFtcAwbBOWb3S_qXsjXeDT1oMLgzw/s1600/MGB+flag+gerb+16+rep.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi80CbLIyMETa9PzPYypHIKA2BV7Khdo4cle107dq2YH9jHVaptIo2jpIDJzhpQxV68oitx1I4mnY607fHeZsLmMCXuoo_05V1Qbymma9yQe3Bd8LFtcAwbBOWb3S_qXsjXeDT1oMLgzw/s1600/MGB+flag+gerb+16+rep.jpg" /></a></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">A closeup of the state seal sewn into the reverse of the MGB flag with 16 republics represented by individual banners or "ribbons" each with "Workers of the World [Country], Unite!" in each of the constituent native languages of the republics. This version of the state seal only existed from 1946-1956 until the country was re-divided into the final 15 republics that existed until the union was dissolved in 1990.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-67230323447699672912011-05-31T02:17:00.062-05:002015-05-19T20:52:27.005-05:00NKVD and the Other Security Services<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjrOtY9VSAcL9A02jTJc8Fr3jRl5pJBeMU2-r6NNTKozXeGc8x0tDqXM-Za6BAMtA3fytA55zC73da9nXH1EUynk8jZloBX9VLxLdtBvHXjVpS_59GiclCIzMKPF7OjoetLUmQod29uQ/s1600/flag%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjrOtY9VSAcL9A02jTJc8Fr3jRl5pJBeMU2-r6NNTKozXeGc8x0tDqXM-Za6BAMtA3fytA55zC73da9nXH1EUynk8jZloBX9VLxLdtBvHXjVpS_59GiclCIzMKPF7OjoetLUmQod29uQ/s1600/flag%255B1%255D.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">An security services sergeant posing in front of an OGPU award </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">flag. A viewer pointed out that though the flag is certainly from</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">the OGPU, the uniform the sergeant is wearing is post WWII. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">Therefore, for some reason an older flag is being used as a for</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">the soldier to pose in front of though it will always make a good</span> </div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">backdrop for any Soviet photo. Notice </span><span style="font-size: small;">that there </span><span style="font-size: small;">are only six </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">republics represented on the </span><span style="font-size: small;">state seal which makes this a very </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">early, pre-WWII flag, though a post war photo. </span><span style="font-size: small;">Also note that </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">he is not wearing a pistol as nearly </span><span style="font-size: small;">all NKVD </span><span style="font-size: small;">officers did - </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">though in posed photos, most officers from any </span><span style="font-size: small;">branch of </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">security service is seldom seen armed. </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">(Submitted photo)</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">The NKVD as opposed to the KGB and earlier security services incarnations of the Soviet Union were two equal but separate organizations. The lines between their specific duties were often blurred - especially during the Stalin years. The lines were even more obscure shortly before and especially after the USSR officially joined the fray of WWII. The OGPU ("All-Union State Political Directorate" and nearly immediate successor to the Cheka) as a whole was incorporated as a division/directorate of the NKVD. This included their specially trained military support units as well as all foreign intelligence agents. </span><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQIlqvgbngEu8e15p-A5VkDMUkI4fH5uHDmnCL1FEjJpcOuJY15cxBPndStLip91FSyw97gPnyJWUz0H5YEuYJ0BQx3DsXnxvRsWuzQh9MRn4zS7kvdNF2g6kppqPFoNe1EY218y5-ZQ/s1600/NKVD+soldiers+pic+001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="497" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQIlqvgbngEu8e15p-A5VkDMUkI4fH5uHDmnCL1FEjJpcOuJY15cxBPndStLip91FSyw97gPnyJWUz0H5YEuYJ0BQx3DsXnxvRsWuzQh9MRn4zS7kvdNF2g6kppqPFoNe1EY218y5-ZQ/s640/NKVD+soldiers+pic+001.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">A small group of NKVD agents while taking a break in the field in 1944.* The NKVD political</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">branch had uniforms with bright colors - royal blue and crimson red, particularly on the caps.</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">They did this so that if they were running through a group of khaki-covered "simple Red Army"</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">sea of people in a charge of a battle, they would always be visible and distinct from the "mere" </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">or "average" soldier during WWII. The NKVD border guards's uniforms were more blended to</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">their surroundings and were only easily distinguished by the bright green caps they wore. Soviet</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">Security service/political police felt and were taught that they were superior to anyone who was not in the </span><span style="font-size: small;">Cheka-KGB family. Considering the "perks" political agents received for being members of any of the </span><span style="font-size: small;">Soviet security agencies, throughout the 70 plus years of the Soviet Union, were apparently worth the trade-off of losing friends, neighbors and sometimes family, and the loss, even temporarily for some, of the compassion that makes people human.</span> </div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGtYjn55IZfzTeYm0gWjB7zgcQiwratXbcqY0rkzUYO6pJsv_0ok_cxJ0hHbzFzs9alSd0qYwLztYUBOFA6m76tow3HdJMPsS-qGCalqW_tTjU8LiRys1nckhxZf4TuKzsKoRSoaIHhQ/s1600/NKVD+caps+001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGtYjn55IZfzTeYm0gWjB7zgcQiwratXbcqY0rkzUYO6pJsv_0ok_cxJ0hHbzFzs9alSd0qYwLztYUBOFA6m76tow3HdJMPsS-qGCalqW_tTjU8LiRys1nckhxZf4TuKzsKoRSoaIHhQ/s320/NKVD+caps+001.jpg" width="231" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">Two different types of NKVD caps.</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">The one on top is for an agent/young</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">officer of the state security side of the</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">organization. The one beneath it is for</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">the NKVD border guard. Both caps in </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">remained in use until the entire NKVD</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">broken back up into the MGB and the</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">MVD in the late 1940s and earlier </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">part of the 1950s as the MVD donned</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">new uniforms as did the MGB-KGB.</span> </div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">Eventually, only the colors remained</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">on the respective uniform cap.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">However, in order for most citizens of modern democracies to comprehend the differences between the NKVD (later the MVD - Ministry of Internal Affairs) while Stalin and Lavrentiy Beria had control over them just before, during and more or less up until Stalin's death on March 5 of 1953 and the state security organizations of the Soviet Union, they have to be able to relate to these organizations in terms of their own country's security agencies. After Stalin's death in 1953 Beria subordinated the MGB to his MVD which made many state officials in the Kremlin extremely uncomfortable. In 1954, after Beria was arrested, tried and executed as the post-Stalinist fervor grew, the MGB (Ministry of State Security) was changed to the more renowned KGB (Committee for State Security – a post Stalin-Beria move to "demote" the massive and powerful MGB as separate from the MVD – again) from fear of what such an organization was capable of at the ministry level.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: small;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">In the United States, the closest comparison to the NKVD would be the Federal Bureau of Investigation – if it were given free reign and powers of not only arrest, but trial and execution. The NKVD's "jurisdiction" superseded any local law enforcement or regional agency and, like the FBI, was supposed to only operate within the borders of the country. In fact, most militias (police departments) and fire departments were part of the NKVD itself. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: small;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">On the other hand, the Cheka-KGB was charged with many tasks similar to the US Central Intelligence Agency and, like the CIA, was supposed to operate exclusively outside of the country except in cases of counterintelligence, counterrevolution and/or counterterrorism. </span></span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size: 18pt;">However, the CIA alone is not a sufficient equivalent to the state security services of the Soviet Union. If the US National Security Agency and Department of Homeland Security were combined with the CIA and the National Security Council to give indirect orders, then the comparison is a bit better. In fact, the CIA was the first dedicated and independent of the military security agency ever to exist in the United States and it did not come about until then President Harry Truman signed the National Security Act of 1947 and completed the plans of his presidential predecessor Franklin D. Roosevelt who saw the urgent need for a permanent foreign intelligence service in the US, especially for a young country with high aspirations.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><br />
</span> <span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">As mentioned above, the state security and political police (OGPU) was subordinated to the NKVD at Beria's request and Stalin's order shortly before war was officially declared on Germany by the Soviet Union. For a brief period in 1941,<strong> </strong>the OGPU (then renamed the NKGB, or "People's Commissariat for State Security) was made autonomous again, but shortly thereafter Stalin and Beria perceived the need to re-subordinate them into the NKVD. The power-hungry Beria, the last head of the NKVD and briefly of the newly named MVD, had hopes of eventually replacing Stalin; in fact, a rumor circulated among the Party elite in the Kremlin that Beria had poisoned Stalin to speed along his own plans to assume the role of General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee – a.k.a. "dictator for life." This rumor was not publicly pursued, particularly since Beria was executed only nine months after Stalin's death. Just as in many cases of "disappeared" persons, there was little, if any fanfare at the announcement of Beria as an "enemy of the people” – a title befitting one who was an enemy of all people who were not Beria and who used the same term to have a large number of Soviet citizens imprisoned or killed (precisely how many people is impossible to say given the “Top Secret” status of many related documents, even to this day).</span></span><br /><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLeXy0zTe5P7BMRpYkBI5HdEQmptcV274EhcTuREBBBfCFROJ6EHa5ta8rTbjcQvjRnD4Fgw0qF6kV_B6aaScOnJIoQey7dU07cuRiVgBeuMlDF0TOUEwPd1wlCsW_twM0_sp_pWFofA/s1600/Smersh+158th+rifle+division+1944+001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLeXy0zTe5P7BMRpYkBI5HdEQmptcV274EhcTuREBBBfCFROJ6EHa5ta8rTbjcQvjRnD4Fgw0qF6kV_B6aaScOnJIoQey7dU07cuRiVgBeuMlDF0TOUEwPd1wlCsW_twM0_sp_pWFofA/s400/Smersh+158th+rifle+division+1944+001.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">A photo of the 158th Rifle Division of <em>SMERSH</em> taken most</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">likely immediately after their graduation from a specialized </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">academy - training course - for <em>SMERSH</em> agents. This was a</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">a new experiment in warfare and control over some</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">morally deficient <em>SMERSH </em>agents and their units was not</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">established. As a result, atrocities were committed sometimes in </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">conjunction with the NKVD. <strong>Please note that many of the </strong></span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;"><strong>agents pictured above are <u>women</u>. The Red Army saw no </strong></span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;"><strong>problem with women carrying a rifle into battle.</strong></span> <span style="font-size: small;">However,</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">though even to this day two years of service in the military is </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">compulsory, women are exempt from conscription during </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">times of peace.**</span> </div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The last group that needs to be mentioned is <em>SMERSH </em>(a semi-acronym for the Russian phrase "Death to Spies" or <span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">СМЕРть Шпионам [emphasis on the pasts of the two words used]</span>). At least for the edification of the public and any other more observant citizen of the young country, the organization was created to capture and/or prevent the work of, for the purposes of propaganda, German spies and saboteurs. It was not long before they were working either without official orders or with the help of military intelligence (GRU).</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The military intelligence division of the Red Army could not compete with the effectiveness of the OGPU and NKVD. Part of this gap in successful operations was in part due to the fact that a majority of the GRU officers were loyal to their superiors and bound by the Red Army's "Code of Military Conduct." However, there are a significant number of documented operations performed by GRU officers that are no better than the things the NKVD agents have been accused of by people who survived the Great Patriotic War only to find themselves fighting daily to stay alive in a <em>Gulag</em> and survived that as well, only finally enjoy their old age and government pension, if lucky enough to be re-approved for the pension and a decrease in their monthly money since inflation had made many pensions nearly worthless after 1991.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Agents with <em>SMERSH</em> had the same powers of arrest, trial and execution of anyone found to either be a collaborator during the Great Patriotic War with any of the invading fascist militaries, or had helped soldiers with these armies (particularly the Germans) in any way.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">There is an entire chapter coming soon that deals entirely with <em>SMERSH</em> and their activities during the GPW, especially since they were often the first in a chain of events that typically ended with the NKVD, either interrogating and/or torturing of prisoners, or forming the troikas which were infamous for convicting a prisoner even before a word was spoken. Eventually, <em>SMERSH</em> agents too often did not like the public credit going to the NKVD for the extensive work, typically undercover work as a member of the same region the spy was sent to for the purposes of observation and infiltration of even the tiniest organization or group of dissidents. Once the leaders of such groups were identified based on an agent's reports, they were captured and normally killed by either members of the NKVD or <em>SMERSH</em>. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">More coming soon on the <em>SMERSH</em>, NKVD-MVD and MGB-KGB pursuits of spies and saboteurs - though more realistically, they were usually after rebels hiding out in various parts of the incredible amount of uninhabited land across the Soviet Union, which reached from the border of Germany to the Pacific Ocean via Soviet regions north of (and including) Mongolia. </span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: small;"> * Bekesi, Laszlo. <em>KGB & Soviet Security Uniforms & Militaria 1917-1991. </em>Photos by Gyorgy Torok. The Crowood Press, Ltd., United Kingdom, 2002.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: small;">** Photo: There are copyrights by the "Group of Authors," the FSB Central Archive, an "artist" and layout designer and some other folks all working for the FSB on this book. Since there is no direct attribution of a copyright or a publisher, and after reading the very specific and frightening explanation of what can happen to someone who reprints the materials inside the book, I will only post one photo that hopefully has reached public domain status due to age. The copyrights listed inside the book were all taken out in 2003.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: small;"> </span><br />
</span><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-59842787486488225702011-04-30T15:50:00.009-05:002015-07-15T18:02:07.059-05:00The Spread of Chekist Ideas and Ideals at a High Moral Cost: Part II<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"><strong>Other Battles Faced by the Soviet Government Against Its Own Citizens</strong></span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><img border="0" height="283" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVFlIGHwoOpsl7ccVk62PEMDnOpZeRM1kpzML0qISXEcorgjmforTnD1KaIotY9Kje2huJe-0LHNm3cbxtEqzHZaO6QC7HXUSUYXmg8hirCGEMW9FVyvjkN_LWGSoa0rCWO_3mH39vlQ/s400/Counter-revolution.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">A political poster from the Bolsheviks which literally translated</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;">means: "<span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Electrification and Counter-Revolution" and makes no</span></span></span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;">sense out of historical context. <span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">At this point in time the first</span></span></span></span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Soviet government was pushing for and promising the public</span></span></span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">the <span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">availability of</span> electricity throughout the country. The implied</span></span></span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">meaning is that "light" shed by the completion of such a huge </span></span></span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">task would help find counter-revolutionaries. The usual group</span></span></span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">of potential suspects includes an officer from the Imperial White</span></span></span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Guard, a high-ranking clergyman from the Russian Orthodox</span></span></span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Church, a "wealthy" merchant/capitalist and in the center, a </span></span></span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">spy/saboteur - commonly depicted as a thin German complete</span></span></span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">with stereotypical monocle and the attire of a member of the </span></span></span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">foreign service or possibly an ambassador. </span></span></span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Stalin's and later Soviet Union leaders' attempts at maintaining public order to keep the ideals of the Revolution not only alive, but in practice despite continuous, organized pockets of resistance - especially after WWII - was a constant battle that involved the extensive use of the NKVD and subsequently MGB/KGB specialized troops. However, long before Stalin attempted to repress counter-revolutionary pockets throughout the Soviet Union, the first major battles were fought in the form of an Imperial Russian - Bolshevik Russian Civil War from 1917-1923. The war started after the collapse of the short-lived Provisional Government established after Tsar Nicholas II abdicated and turned over the reigns of power to a number of revolutionary groups varying in degrees of communism and socialism. (See early chapters here regarding the revolutions of 1917 and the resulting turmoil for more information.) When the Bolsheviks were clearly on one side, they were referred to as the "Red Guard" and later, more formally as the "Red Army." The Imperialists and their supporters were called the "White Guard." Other splinter groups not clearly in either of these groups either joined one side or the other with hopes of a better future for themselves or formed their own paramilitary organizations, such as the Organization of Ukrainian Nationals (OUN). During the Russian Civil War several other countries joined in the fight (usually against the Red Guard) for at least some of the time - but most lost interest as the Bolsheviks gained the upper hand on the battlefield throughout Russia and her component parts.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="border: currentColor; clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY8eCIgI-f5OrAHWTm-LnT3i88l_5mL2lJhVfddtBGiNwKe2SVEhVQMJ22RHO5q77AlRWvD8qHPs_XbTbGjBdz48HgveGx_-MLrP8L0m_kQTTlq7wfXeqiWrls2oqTL0NPzBA8HozWZw/s1600/OUN+flag+rev+W.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><img border="0" height="356" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY8eCIgI-f5OrAHWTm-LnT3i88l_5mL2lJhVfddtBGiNwKe2SVEhVQMJ22RHO5q77AlRWvD8qHPs_XbTbGjBdz48HgveGx_-MLrP8L0m_kQTTlq7wfXeqiWrls2oqTL0NPzBA8HozWZw/s400/OUN+flag+rev+W.jpg" width="400" /></span></a><strong><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Post-WWII Rebels</span></strong><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"> When counter-revolutionaries were suspected within the contexts of cities, teachers or professors, writers, musicians and other members of the intelligentsia, or even just an average Soviet citizen who said something within earshot of the wrong person who would then turn said person in to the current security organization, the matter was dealt with a bit differently than the all too common battles waged against whole organizations - the most prominent and enduring of which was the OUN. The OUN was formed almost immediately after the Bolsheviks seized power in 1917 and became a constant problem for MGB/KGB troops.</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="border: currentColor; clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="uk"><span class="hps" title="Click for alternate translations"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"> <span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Above is a photo of the reverse of a velvet banner made for "Friends"/"Supporters" of the Ukrainian Nationalists. The Ukrainian inscription (слава україні) simply means "Glory to Ukraine." The front of the flag (below) has the national symbol of Ukraine (currently in use again) and three Cyrillic letters for D, U, and N, or </span><span id="result_box"><span title="Click for alternate translations"><span class="hps"><span lang="UK" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: UK;">Друзі</span></span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="UK" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: UK;"> <span title="Click for alternate translations"></span></span><span class="hps"><span lang="UK" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: UK;">українських</span></span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="UK" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: UK;"> <span title="Click for alternate translations"></span></span><span class="hps"><span lang="UK" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: UK;">націоналістів for </span></span><em><span lang="UK" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: UK; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Friends of Ukrainian Nationalists</span></em><span class="hps"><span lang="UK" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: UK;">. This particular flag was allegedly captured by NKVD or NKGB/MGB troops depending on whether it was seized during or shortly after WWII. Regardless of when it was captured, those who were arrested or killed immediately because of it were certainly treated as enemy combatants and were referred to by the Soviets as an "Enemy of the People" - a term that came to be known under the NKVD's and Stalin's "terror" as synonymous with a death warrant from the security services.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="border: currentColor; clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><br />
</span></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8LPvaCs2pQFlCsmghDwFMqfjY7wnHnemeArOwKuodGnhyphenhyphen1UY9X4FI3DkmtzQ3j8A61iYQBvPcUl3tldz7jCKLKVaH5FnaNq7zLQlUSQ2vqIpb5A2J6sEMg0EWjinGxgUSqXTEJoO3Kw/s1600/OUN+flag+1+W.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8LPvaCs2pQFlCsmghDwFMqfjY7wnHnemeArOwKuodGnhyphenhyphen1UY9X4FI3DkmtzQ3j8A61iYQBvPcUl3tldz7jCKLKVaH5FnaNq7zLQlUSQ2vqIpb5A2J6sEMg0EWjinGxgUSqXTEJoO3Kw/s1600/OUN+flag+1+W.jpg" /></span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia;"> <span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">The OUN was most noticeable and problematic for the Soviets in the decades immediately following WWII, as were a number of other independence groups formed in parts of Mongolia and the newly annexed Baltic States of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania. In fact, the Lviv Oblast (something like "county" or "parish" in English) and the city of Lviv was a bastion of continuous ill will toward Soviet rule. The city was once part of Poland but after WWII became a permanent part of western-most Ukraine. As a border region that had ties to Poland and Germany in addition to Ukraine many people got tastes for other governments varying from Imperial to Nazi and of course Communism. The city was a regular source of irritation for the KGB and its predecessor the Ministry of State Security (MGB) since it spawned anti-Soviet groups including members of the ranks of the most organized of them, the OUN. Because of this ongoing problem with the local public opinion, the KGB established one of its most notorious regional offices in Lviv. Serving as an agent there was either a punishment or a chance to gain notoriety and move up the ranks faster than in other parts of the USSR, and which situation it was depended on the individual officer and why he (very few women were actually KGB agents - despite various spy novel authors' fantasies) was assigned to that location. The security services and the border guard were always closely linked if not under the same agency name and this is understandable given the unstable nature of borderlands and the thought processes of people who have been rapidly shifted from one regime to another and the division of loyalties that results.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">The pictures below show close-ups of the embroidery work on a flag from a prominent Ukrainian rebel-supporting group ostensibly from a group called the DUN or <em><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Druzhnnik</span></em> or "friends"/"supporters" of the Ukrainian Nationalists. This flag was likely made during the early part of the Soviet involvement in WWII. Germany had been a potential ally of the Ukrainian people against the Soviets as early as the initial series of revolutions in 1917 when German troops were sent in support of members of the White Guard and other imperialists who wanted to maintain the status quo as far as the Russian Empire and the leadership thereof. (See <a href="http://www.soviethistory.org/index.php?page=subject&SubjectID=1917armyrevolt&Year=1917">http://www.soviethistory.org/index.php?page=subject&SubjectID=1917armyrevolt&Year=1917</a> for more information on the White Guard and the initial revolutions.)</span></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEA9xMD8Vt25M8KIbIlbPMHzMCpInzaNvx-dlub1MlbVv0asAkQg7jjCzxYbB6xCZSLyUjmrdtzCD3u9M8PIjQQmyHTTaXkszigpdkN5TmSLQgdCTDXXUu617YHYMvFGOw7BIVh-blzQ/s640/OUN+flag+embroidery1+W.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="636" /></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">In the photos above and below, some of the especially intricate details of this obviously handmade flag are more visible than from a distance. Besides the unusually long-fibered construction of the velvet, sheets of silk and the embroidery discussed above were sewn together in this weighty example of what one might expect was a form of public announcement about the group and where their sympathies lay - a potentially life-threatening gamble depending on who saw the flag. The national colors of dark blue over a gold field are the dominant colors and have since been restored on the current Ukrainian flag.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtU5_49W7V6ZCb3b6tyvvHEU6bAo611K64cnX0oHE6aj3N3WgGZ_wFzqXVwT1ZXOd7DhUicqVkvRguGchesmgBfsQ67XmMV7IKUHBtd3Ejh836q3NIh952MoisMY3Zvg5bKqUrtvsQuw/s1600/OUN+flag+hilt+W.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtU5_49W7V6ZCb3b6tyvvHEU6bAo611K64cnX0oHE6aj3N3WgGZ_wFzqXVwT1ZXOd7DhUicqVkvRguGchesmgBfsQ67XmMV7IKUHBtd3Ejh836q3NIh952MoisMY3Zvg5bKqUrtvsQuw/s640/OUN+flag+hilt+W.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><br />
</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong>Gulags and Asylums</strong> </span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Those who spoke out against the Soviet system in whatever form, faced severe reprisals from the security service personnel in a variety of forms. Arrest was merely an initial step in the final disposition of an individual's case. Most victims of political or alleged criminal activity that wound them up in the hands of the security services were exiled to potentially lethal servitude in one of many forced labor camps (widely known by the Russian acronym: <em><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">GULAG</span></em>). A disturbingly high number of people who were arrested particularly by the NKVD during Stalin's reign, were executed either publicly or in secret without a body ever turning up for family members to claim and bury. Both imprisonment and execution were almost always prefaced by some sort of torture. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><br />
</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">One of the oldest jokes told about the KGB hearkens back to the theme of beating a confession out of someone, whether real or more likely an elaborately imagined one presented by the interrogating officers: Agents from the CIA, MI6 and the KGB were each told that they had to launch a mission to route out a a certain black rabbit. As per the joke, the British and MI6 were first up. The set about immediately to form organizational groups, discuss and debate strategy, until they finally deemed the whole project unfeasible economically and abandoned the whole task. The Americans and their CIA were up next and after a brief discussion among the highest members of the organization, decided to call in a massive air strike laying the whole forest barren and desolate - much to the protests of the locals. "But at least we know he is not alive down there or at worst, he has gotten away somewhere else," was the CIA agents' response. The KGB officers approached for their assignment already a little tipsy on vodka - but it was almost noon and this is understandable. "You want black rabbit, we get black rabbit." Three KGB officers went into the scorched woods and returned a few minutes later with a brown bear in cuffs and custody, mumbling and rubbing his whole head delicately. Finally, as the KGB officers and the bear approach the judging table, the badly beaten brown bear is heard saying, "Sure, I'm a black rabbit; anybody else you want me to be? I see the evil inherent in just being just a bear."</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span><br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><img border="0" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT_YZScRU8HtI3X8R0inphXVK8wX5ux1E73r_ZU1sGVMpH2zdqcSw1X55pU1FN3MzTqzGzpior66MN5OnSLqHebCgLiADX4lmEsEuE4EAyx2MYAuTNPgS9G8qQagoOn6CrF5zN8zMIVw/s400/lifeingulag-49%255B1%255D.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;">"I'm...a British, French, American, Japonese, Italian, German and some</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">other kind of spy probably..." [trans]. This drawing was reportedly </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">done by an inmate of a gulag depicting members of the current</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">security service (possibly Smersh, probbably NKVD) obtaining a </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">"confession"from an arrested individual. This drawing and others below</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"> are from abook <em>Drawings from the Gulag</em> by Danzig Baldaev.*</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT_YZScRU8HtI3X8R0inphXVK8wX5ux1E73r_ZU1sGVMpH2zdqcSw1X55pU1FN3MzTqzGzpior66MN5OnSLqHebCgLiADX4lmEsEuE4EAyx2MYAuTNPgS9G8qQagoOn6CrF5zN8zMIVw/s1600/lifeingulag-49%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">The very existence of the <em>gulags </em>was a means for the security forces to eliminate the "enemies of the people" sent there together with hardened criminals - the ones who not only ran the prisons but also did some of the killings the NKVD wanted done in some of these labor prisons. Actual criminal convicts who had been multiple offenders and were sentenced to lengthy prison stays were known as the "thieves by law" and occupied a certain rank above more petty, non-violent criminals. Among these "lesser" prisoners, the counter-revolutionaries or "enemies of the people" were the lowest class and if they survived the initial tortures that brought them to the <em>gulags</em> then the were very often killed by either prison guards (NKVD) or hired or otherwise motivated members of the "thieves by law" groups. Those that survived the prison camps were either very clever or very lucky - or both.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">The prisoners at the top of the hierarchy in <em>gulags </em>dispensed their form of "justice" based on the orders of the guards and on the whims of the the gangs of "thieves by law" and could be capricious at best. </span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFBaDDmSvQAZDBQFLGbayEFPewbz3s7uEGHv0lsCFbOJabm4r_eCLoM0ASQPZLA29L6DNLxhR9uWiPUN21lj-6eeEbn2YBrbxRh1NPBFZK_xACF6DHDlYlWU_Trxj1GYAITrQ-Y6Xocw/s1600/lifeingulag-53%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><img border="0" height="370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFBaDDmSvQAZDBQFLGbayEFPewbz3s7uEGHv0lsCFbOJabm4r_eCLoM0ASQPZLA29L6DNLxhR9uWiPUN21lj-6eeEbn2YBrbxRh1NPBFZK_xACF6DHDlYlWU_Trxj1GYAITrQ-Y6Xocw/s400/lifeingulag-53%255B1%255D.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;">According to the author of <em>Drawings from the Gulag</em> the leading</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">gangs executed other prisoners with the cooperation of the guards</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">and administration as well as on their direct orders. The drawing above</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">shows a sentence of beheading ordered by a "court of thieves" according</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">to the author.* </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Another fate faced some people rather than being publically branded an “enemy of the people” for various reasons including being “saved” by influential Communist Party members who were either friends or family. One of the most common ways to make someone “disappear” other than by execution or <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">gulag</i> was to have them committed indefinitely to insane asylums. The theory was that if someone objected to the party line, then he or she must not be thinking correctly. The type of person sentenced to this sort of fate varied, but more often than not, this is where an artist, musician or writer might spend his or her life at least while Stalin remained in control of the Soviet Union. A very large number of people were either released from whichever sort of prison they found themselves in as a result of Stalin's paranoia or were "posthumously rehabilitated" - which meant that even though they had died in captivity, their families were not held to blame and their names were restored to good standing. This happened, of course, after Stalin's death during the subsequent reforms to the system. In order to prevent obvious discrepancies between the Communist Party dogma and the repatriation of accused and sentenced "enemies of the people," the task of freeing political prisoners was not a swift one. It crawled along and continued until well after the collapse of the Soviet Union itself.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">* </span><a href="http://englishrussia.com/index.php/2011/04/26/the-breath-of-death/#more-48292"><span style="font-size: x-small;">http://englishrussia.com/index.php/2011/04/26/the-breath-of-death/#more-48292</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-77719530238255613002011-04-11T03:26:00.009-05:002012-08-25T14:10:22.552-05:00The Spread of Chekist Ideas and Ideals at a High Moral Cost<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: black; color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: black; color: white;"></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span><strong><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Part I: The Fear of the "Disappearing" Citizen</span></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">The Cheka (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Chesvychaika</i>) did not allow the Soviet Communist Party to seize power, but it allowed it to maintain it in Russia and the Soviet Union. Even as the less visible, more secretive GPU and eventually the KGB, they were the means by which leaders like Lenin, killers like Stalin and do-nothings like Brezhnev were able to keep control over an enormous, nine-time-zone country after WWII. The most unfortunate side effect or in some cases the result, was the deaths of tens of thousands - most of them innocent of anything but difference of political view point than those of the leadership. The elimination of opposition by physically removing them from their homes, families and eventually their lives, was so rampant during the early years of Bolshevik rule that the activities of the Cheka-GPU was called the "Red Terror" by both opposition, foreign and domestic, and the members of the Cheka itself.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Many Western journalists attempted to make their careers by reporting on the newly-formed government in Russia. One such anonymous British reporter wrote in 1929 that a high-ranking member of the Cheka said: "We have executed some twenty or thirty thousand persons, perhaps fifty thousand. They were all spies, traitors, enemies within our ranks, a very small number in proportion to the persons of this kind then in Russia. We instituted the red terror at a time of war, when the enemy was marching upon us from without and the enemy within was preparing to help him. Scotland Yard executed spies and traitors also in war time."*</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_w2X9Q7nPQXta5sQrkvyJohs5YvtDIYsAZdFFWShOEtrpsZ1jXVZ2KNHoD438Y_RTIc0EvQ3JwDsmfkdKn56FuLLsZwa4nQc2E1DKgSY5sDn0AS0l84USHUxmAqhYm56Pb46wj0KQIg/s1600/RossijaLubjanka%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="409" q6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_w2X9Q7nPQXta5sQrkvyJohs5YvtDIYsAZdFFWShOEtrpsZ1jXVZ2KNHoD438Y_RTIc0EvQ3JwDsmfkdKn56FuLLsZwa4nQc2E1DKgSY5sDn0AS0l84USHUxmAqhYm56Pb46wj0KQIg/s640/RossijaLubjanka%255B1%255D.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">The Lubyanka All-Russia Insurance Company headquarters building was built in 1898. This photo above was taken before the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution, after which it became the headquarters for the Soviet Secret and political police until 1991 when the KGB was officially disbanded. Though the basic structure has remained the same, multiple renovations and a massive addition have changed the building and the Lubyanka Square it occupies radically. In all, there are a total of three conjoined buildings that make up the final design of the most infamous security agency ever created. A section of the FSB (Federal Security Service) Border Guard is still housed here as well as a museum-memorial and a new statue in place of the giant one of Dzerzhinsky has been erected across from the main building as a memorial to those tortured and/or killed in the massive underground network of prison cells and "special purpose" rooms. Often, people were arrested and taken to Lubyanka without their families' ever knowing what happened to them.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman;"></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman;"></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman;"></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Victor Serge, a controversial character in his own right, with Polish-Russian parents had a difficult time even getting into Russia after the 1917 revolution. Serge spent his early life in France as a radical revolutionary eventually becoming a member of the Socialist Revolutionary Party (slightly right of the Bolsheviks), and despite his confinement in a French prison until 1915 near the end of WWI, was reportedly rejected by the Cheka when he tried to move into Russia and join the revolutionaries. He was eventually allowed into the country in 1919 and spent his early years in Russia as a member of the Bolsheviks working under Maxim Gorky. He eventually became disenchanted with the Soviet Party and became a follower of Stalin's greatest foe - Leon Trotsky. By 1933 Serge had been spared execution only to find himself arrested by the GPU and locked up in the bowels of Lubyanka prison. He wrote of his time there in <em>Memoires of a Revolutionary (</em>1945):</span></div>
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<br /></div>
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFUDlQj6Osde43U85T3hXlkuLuT4sIP2acD6fC9J9MV4uPHowq-owv6g5oogyHy0nlI3sU1hUTMmgALWHPMnbvgoe2f71osDO41iTuCS4i9c_fMyiMYH_MYcMdl0-krqgHmN7X_OL6sQ/s1600/Lubyanka+CIA+1950s.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="311" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFUDlQj6Osde43U85T3hXlkuLuT4sIP2acD6fC9J9MV4uPHowq-owv6g5oogyHy0nlI3sU1hUTMmgALWHPMnbvgoe2f71osDO41iTuCS4i9c_fMyiMYH_MYcMdl0-krqgHmN7X_OL6sQ/s400/Lubyanka+CIA+1950s.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The first acknowledged photo of the Lubyanka taken by a CIA operative<br />
soon after the agency was created in 1947. The photo is from the early 1950s.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Times;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">“Here, in absolute secrecy, with no communication with any person whatsoever, with no reading-matter whatsoever, with no paper, not even one sheet, with no occupation of any kind, with no open-air exercise in the yard, I spent about eighty days. It was a severe test for the nerves, in which I acquitted myself pretty well. I was weary with my years of nervous tension, and felt an immense physical need for rest. I slept as much as I could, at least twelve hours a day. The rest of the time, I set myself to work assiduously. I gave myself courses in history, political economy - and even in natural science! I mentally wrote a play, short stories, poems.”</span><br />
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"></span><br />
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
</div>
Serge added: "Lubyanka was originally occupied by insurance company offices. Each floor formed a prison on its own, sealed off from the others, with its individual entrance and reception-kiosk; coloured electric light-signals operated on all landings and corridors to mark the various comings and goings, so that prisoners could never meet one another. A mysterious hotel-corridor, whose red carpet silenced the slight sound of footsteps; and then a cell, bare, with an inlaid floor, a passable bed, a table and a chair, all spic and span."</span><br /></div>
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<br /></div>
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<br /></div>
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkQedfFeGyx_qSoIN4m8DRKLp-TzhNEWKSj8RRB_UVIUFhGOdAMwD6-prrsDh-s3UXMdTcvAHwW8mDNzbqHJCo3f_x7VWR9KYMkRCWHJBnkjLu-oFR32sm-xHEaG7N7TUdR8g4j-JXxg/s1600/Lubyanka+training.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkQedfFeGyx_qSoIN4m8DRKLp-TzhNEWKSj8RRB_UVIUFhGOdAMwD6-prrsDh-s3UXMdTcvAHwW8mDNzbqHJCo3f_x7VWR9KYMkRCWHJBnkjLu-oFR32sm-xHEaG7N7TUdR8g4j-JXxg/s640/Lubyanka+training.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">The caption on the above photo simply says: "In the Courtyard of the Lubyanka prison. 1928." It is most likely a weapons training session for NKVD and/or Cheka-GPU agents. As can be seen in the photo, women were often employed by the Soviet security services especially for so-called "undercover" assignments. By the time SMERSH was formed after the Soviet Union was embroiled in WWII, women played a prominent role in the ranks of SMERSH agents.<span style="font-size: x-small;">****</span></span></div>
<div align="left">
</div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">"I believe that the formation of the Chekas was one of the gravest and most impermissible errors that the Bolshevik leaders committed in 1918 when plots, blockades, and interventions made them lose their heads. All evidence indicates that revolutionary tribunals, functioning in the light of day and admitting the right of defence, would have attained the same efficiency with far less abuse and depravity. Was it necessary to revert to the procedures of the Inquisition?</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">"By the beginning of 1919, the Chekas had little or no resistance against this psychological perversion and corruption. I know for a fact that Dzerzhinsky judged them to be 'half-rotten,' and saw no solution to the evil except in shooting the worst Chekists and abolishing the death-penalty as quickly as possible," Serge also proclaimed.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbrfAM8flDcHeY9ihiGKut2kNGy0BY06psWp-M1tUHc7o-_WmEDD11gGeeNzxdt-hrwSqJknJlf291rqS7ZFuhP842xvZw-T1ISN-BBvW0ao1RiDXr8sYiajrX5THh-gN1KPbK4f-aaw/s1600/kgb-DNSC8601094_JPG%255B1%255D.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">
The above photo is of the Lubynka taken in the 1980s with the statue of state security service founder Felix Dzerzhinsky prominently adorning the square on which the expanded building dominates the surface but hides a labyrinth of prison cells and torture chambers under the building and the street where automobiles continue to drive around above to this day. However, the statue of Dzerzhinsky was removed (not torn down as in other areas with similar statues) in 1991 and replaced with a modern monument to the memory of all those who were tortured and/or killed by officers from whatever security agency occupied the building and ran the prison at the time.
</span><br />
</span></span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"></span> </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">What could befall practically anyone who lived in or entered Revolutionary Russia and later the Soviet Union became more than legend. Everyone who had an opinion that was contrary - or "counter" - to the revolutionary Bolshevik thought process was either forced to remain silent on the matter or suffer from a varying array of ill fates demanded by the political elite and enforced by the political police. When the Cheka was created it was to prevent political dissent or anything that might increase the instability of the new regime. As time passed and the Cheka-KGB re-formed society and itself to conform with a number of Party leadership changes and general attitudes, the once temporary "necessity" as both and Lenin and Stalin had called it for not-so-different reasons, was as much a part of Soviet Union Communist ideology and practice as the Party itself.</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;"></span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: #20124d; color: white;"></span><br /></div>
<br />
<div align="left">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_N_tjNihhO3v74IkIyOvDnd4j8lqr2K79jNtb-yPUuKaOkVZk0QjEzobyy78xDExVmFgQ0nKDBvAZjMz78TS9paAN3PKn2MiUOtKvpTWnN6VeDkwKyMB43hY04YkhzGsASUuLxSweTw/s1600/Lubyanka+last.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="347" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_N_tjNihhO3v74IkIyOvDnd4j8lqr2K79jNtb-yPUuKaOkVZk0QjEzobyy78xDExVmFgQ0nKDBvAZjMz78TS9paAN3PKn2MiUOtKvpTWnN6VeDkwKyMB43hY04YkhzGsASUuLxSweTw/s640/Lubyanka+last.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lubyanka post-1991 without the prominent statue of Dzerzhinsky.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Before the post-war world changed global maps and theories of government forced new political maps to be drawn between the Western democracies and the Eastern Bloc of Communist countries, Lenin had a number of battles with the various classes of people who opposed his (modified) Marxist principles that included groups as diverse as writers, artists, philosophers and other members of the intelligentsia to farmers who strongly opposed collectivization. Most of these farmers had been so-called peasants who had managed their farms in such a way that they made enough profits to make them financially self-sufficient - though not "wealthy" by the imperial definition. This "class" was known in non-affectionate terms as the Kulaks and were considered dangerous by Lenin and his devoted followers. They were a powerful class in a supposedly classless society. The battle between Lenin and the Kulaks was both open by means of public opinion and very private in the sense that he signed a number of warrants for the whole scale executions of hundreds of these independent farmers at a time - a task ultimately completed by Stalin. The battle between the Soviets and the Kulaks was so intense that violence was the standard way for both sides to approach the situation.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"> </span></span></div>
<div align="left">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMRqjvQb4TI7MUr3MPC5rFVk6wW_dT3mwsRnWn7TPyZZoZTOO6ENLEkYTjEVLgCSyrwKoquruAZ-9iKgVQ7cYDnx7RSK3jjevOrwmB_BPS1K1An9H_xONbamNeKwPeSRdGZwfXhMEV9Q/s1600/Lubianka_Barry_Kent%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMRqjvQb4TI7MUr3MPC5rFVk6wW_dT3mwsRnWn7TPyZZoZTOO6ENLEkYTjEVLgCSyrwKoquruAZ-9iKgVQ7cYDnx7RSK3jjevOrwmB_BPS1K1An9H_xONbamNeKwPeSRdGZwfXhMEV9Q/s1600/Lubianka_Barry_Kent%255B1%255D.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo of the rearmost part of the contemporary Lubyanka building and square it centers. (Photo by Barry Kent)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div align="left">
</div>
<div align="left">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht5aLkbeiAoInw7Oi2246HZn5IGfvZiDJ7NxZOSYaUwEdEaFdGRwXgCMqb6DoaSWngc9geowZ10cTluH5tJ44t8jd0juoNGdIsZjIb2EL0Q4mVG0HsU1V8Jst6aaEZziM_CBDgz_DUeQ/s1600/destroy+the+kulaks+as+a+class.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht5aLkbeiAoInw7Oi2246HZn5IGfvZiDJ7NxZOSYaUwEdEaFdGRwXgCMqb6DoaSWngc9geowZ10cTluH5tJ44t8jd0juoNGdIsZjIb2EL0Q4mVG0HsU1V8Jst6aaEZziM_CBDgz_DUeQ/s640/destroy+the+kulaks+as+a+class.jpg" width="455" /></a></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">For decades, the Kulaks, a group of people who were the "middle class" long before the term was widely accepted in academic circles in the US until the early 1950s. Again, the idea of financially self-sufficient groups within the Soviet system of government precluded an official separation of peoples by birth, title, land or other wealth.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">The poster at right is a prime example of the attempt by the Communist Party leadership trying to demonize the Kulaks and achieve the goal of a classless society devoid of aristocracy and other forms of social class distinction, regardless of what it was based on.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">After WWII when the maps had been redrawn, the next war waged by the Communist Part of the Soviet Union (CPSU) was against organized groups of rebels in areas of Ukraine, the Baltic States and other Warsaw Pact countries that were not necessarily part of the Soviet Union proper, but also in the new regions considered under the stewardship (voluntary or not) of the Soviet Union known as "Spheres of Influence." The war to maintain communist and/or socialist forms of government friendly to the Soviet Union was one that lasted the entire lifespan of the SU itself, an antagonistic situation faced by every leader of the SU from 1917 to 1991.</span></span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIteURNaHBtp_x0eu35XiJwOVfXzLW1KUDaQum79x9Zfh50Dpv21bpdyJVvVJbLDMIydi1GFQoIIwk84kVb0D7rB-sFzi_YD3bEmTiYscpnLLY-bnSA6gTTwVnOlRANrSM8DS4foPbzA/s1600/Kulak+hanging+order+2+001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIteURNaHBtp_x0eu35XiJwOVfXzLW1KUDaQum79x9Zfh50Dpv21bpdyJVvVJbLDMIydi1GFQoIIwk84kVb0D7rB-sFzi_YD3bEmTiYscpnLLY-bnSA6gTTwVnOlRANrSM8DS4foPbzA/s640/Kulak+hanging+order+2+001.jpg" width="384" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjPathbhdmaJQ-hlkKAhllwrk1rj-n4Ky9sHFLAwvPadiXrlQVK9VgtUug4apGPbfBPotKVExSAD2nR_NvTXfkfvHd1anc-s5Kb8os_9ZOQonf2Ht3Gyq6CiD9A0YZm9c6atYDu0RtSQ/s1600/Kulak+hanging+order+1+001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjPathbhdmaJQ-hlkKAhllwrk1rj-n4Ky9sHFLAwvPadiXrlQVK9VgtUug4apGPbfBPotKVExSAD2nR_NvTXfkfvHd1anc-s5Kb8os_9ZOQonf2Ht3Gyq6CiD9A0YZm9c6atYDu0RtSQ/s400/Kulak+hanging+order+1+001.jpg" width="275" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span></div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">This is a photo static copy of a handwritten letter from Lenin in 1918 to authorities in the Penza Province about 600 miles southeast of Moscow and a grain farming region. Lenin's letter orders the hanging of 100 "Kulak farmers" to set an example for others who opposed his plans.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">This letter is from the archives of the Smithsonian Institution acquired on loan from the Russian Federation MVD with the approval of several other federal organizations. The following is the English translation of the text of the letter provided by Smithsonian translators:<o:p></o:p></span><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">“<em><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Send to Penza to Comrades Kuraev, Minkin, and other Penza communists</span></em></span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<em><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Comrades! The revolt by the five kulak volosts must be suppressed without mercy. The interests of the entire revolution demands this, because we have now before us our final decisive battle [with the kulaks]. We need to set an example.</span></em><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<em><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">1. You need to hang (hang without fail, so that the public sees) at least 100 notorious kulaks, the rich, and the bloodsuckers.</span></em><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<em><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">2. Publish their names.</span></em><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<em><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">3. Take away all of their grain.</span></em><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<em><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">4. Execute the hostages - in accordance with yesterday's telegram.</span></em><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<em><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">This needs to be accomplished in such a way that people for hundreds of miles around will see, tremble, know and scream out: let's choke and strangle those bloodsucking kulaks.</span></em><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<em><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Telegraph us acknowledging receipt and execution of this.</span></em><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<em><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Yours,</span></em><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<em><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Lenin</span></em><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<em><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">P.S. Use your toughest people for this.”</span></em><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">“Translator's note: A “volost” was a territorial/administrative unit consisting of a few villages and surrounding land.”</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Without question, the “toughest people for this” brutal public display and executions were members of the local Cheka. If nothing else, the letter demonstrates the absolute contempt which Lenin felt for the <em><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Kulaks</span></em> and those like them who had become financially independent, but had not achieved any social rank during the period of the Russian Empire. </span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">*</span> <span style="font-size: x-small;">Whether or not the quote is true to the alleged speaker, the quote is true of the questionable and certainly controversial actions of the Cheka through the KGB. </span><a href="http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/RUScheka.htm"><span style="font-size: x-small;">http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/RUScheka.htm</span></a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">**</span> <span style="font-size: x-small;">Wikimedia Commons photo</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">*** <a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/%D0%93%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%B3%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%B9_%D0%A0%D0%B0%D1%81%D0%BF%D1%83%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%BD_%281914-1916%29b.jpg">http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/%D0%93%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%B3%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%B9_%D0%A0%D0%B0%D1%81%D0%BF%D1%83%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%BD_%281914-1916%29b.jpg</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">**** <a href="http://my.opera.com/savana51/albums/showpic.dml?album=4806182&picture=73325952">http://my.opera.com/savana51/albums/showpic.dml?album=4806182&picture=73325952</a></span></div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-22544747926466878522011-04-03T18:03:00.004-05:002013-05-09T21:24:53.983-05:00The Soviets and the Russian Orthodox Church<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<strong>Lenin in God's House</strong><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhVHoM6g8GV3DdF6_Gw2JlrOo9YUXotSWpMp6xW0dP20wKfsIMsg8SV1sV2svrvgPaimS0G4leMgn3b75q6lXxvsMYcBemYVamkfwZMCGAuScSX5ywqaSGOC3QiPRzrctZP9cFGUwQXA/s1600/%25D0%2593%25D1%2580%25D0%25B8%25D0%25B3%25D0%25BE%25D1%2580%25D0%25B8%25D0%25B9_%25D0%25A0%25D0%25B0%25D1%2581%25D0%25BF%25D1%2583%25D1%2582%25D0%25B8%25D0%25BD_%25281914-1916%2529b%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhVHoM6g8GV3DdF6_Gw2JlrOo9YUXotSWpMp6xW0dP20wKfsIMsg8SV1sV2svrvgPaimS0G4leMgn3b75q6lXxvsMYcBemYVamkfwZMCGAuScSX5ywqaSGOC3QiPRzrctZP9cFGUwQXA/s320/%25D0%2593%25D1%2580%25D0%25B8%25D0%25B3%25D0%25BE%25D1%2580%25D0%25B8%25D0%25B9_%25D0%25A0%25D0%25B0%25D1%2581%25D0%25BF%25D1%2583%25D1%2582%25D0%25B8%25D0%25BD_%25281914-1916%2529b%255B1%255D.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grigori Rasputin, also known by the names<br />
"Mad Monk" and "Black Monk." <br />
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons***</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">This site is not intended to cover every aspect of what created the USSR so much as how power was maintained by the Communists through the various state security agencies they had at their disposal. However, some aspects of how Lenin and subsequent leaders maintained control over the people of the Soviet Union are highly controversial yet significant historical facts. For example, one of the first organized oppositions to the Bolsheviks' support of the provisional government after the abdication, exile and later execution of Tsar Nicholas II was the Orthodox Church. For the 300 years of Romanov rule, beginning with Peter the Great, the Russian Orthodox Church enjoyed a certain amount of freedom to maintain its "state within a state" with an abundance of money and even more land and other properties. Orthodox Church leaders were regularly members of court and spiritual counselors to the tsars, ending with the most infamous Russian spiritual adviser Grigori Rasputin. Though Rasputin was a peasant wandering monk more than an ambassador of the Church, he nonetheless represented to many critics of the tsarist rule all that had become corrupt within the Russian Orthodox Church - and the Bolsheviks made good use of this attitude in propaganda designed to sway people away from organized religion (specifically the Russian Orthodox Church) and toward the atheist materialism of the followers of Marx. In fact, some historians have credited , perhaps a bit too strongly, Rasputin with unwittingly aiding in the fall of the Romanov dynasty through his open abuse of his position. He was brought to St. Petersburg at the behest of Empress Alexandra, Nicholas' wife, because of the serious illness of the only male heir, Alexei because he had gained a reputation throughout peasant-populated regions of Russia as a powerful healer. More can be read about the life and murder of Rasputin at the following website</span>: <a href="http://it.stlawu.edu/~rkreuzer/indv5/rasp.htm"><span style="color: blue;">http://it.stlawu.edu/~rkreuzer/indv5/rasp.htm</span></a></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTFC-5Y2nOqg2ooYdWa3bHpJ7gPg63c5wSdDfGgvbw00hYVK9NwpFyPKGGajRp1GmMV8yGj3LyxEPPqqVY8M5sL5iM_u-58olECmeWvvmjfBNXBrK46vtLzRq0MvgZoZK6x0ni-pKCQg/s1600/Religion+is+opium.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTFC-5Y2nOqg2ooYdWa3bHpJ7gPg63c5wSdDfGgvbw00hYVK9NwpFyPKGGajRp1GmMV8yGj3LyxEPPqqVY8M5sL5iM_u-58olECmeWvvmjfBNXBrK46vtLzRq0MvgZoZK6x0ni-pKCQg/s400/Religion+is+opium.jpg" width="248" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Once the Bolsheviks had a tenuous hold on the government of the Russian Empire in October of 1917, Lenin began his typically indirect assaults on the Russian Orthodox Church and the property it held. Since the philosophy of Karl Marx was one of the planks of the stage from which the Communists shouted their borrowed ideas, Lenin focused in on the now famous phrase from Marx: "Religion is the opiate of the people [German preferred scholarly translation]" or in German: <i>Die Religion... ist das Opium des Volkes.</i> The quote in context as it appeared in Marx's work, <i>Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Right</i> in 1943, is "Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, just as it is the spirit of a spiritless situation. It is the opium of the people." Marx's critique of organized religion was that since it was a reflection of society, problems within the Church represented problems within society. More simply put, religion is not the cause of society's problems, it is merely a reflection of them. Lenin, however, used the single statement from the entire critique of religion from Marx as a mantra of sorts justifying the revolutionaries' actions toward the Church. Though the Bolsheviks did not ban religion all together (they had learned from history that this would have been a serious mistake), they did appropriate Church property, demolish many churches and monasteries in order to convert them into public use facilities such as arenas, meeting places, and in the case of the Nikolo-Ugreshky (full name in English: St. Nicholas the Miracle-Worker) monastery in the town of Dzerzhinsky was converted by Felix Dzerzhinsky himself into a commune for homeless children. The chapels and other religious buildings were converted into more utilitarian structures of various functions over the years including converting the massive cathedral on the grounds into a gymnasium and basketball court for the "advancement of the physical culture" of the people. Originally, there was no "town" or settlement outside of the monastery walls, but when the commune and children's labor colony grew far beyond the confines of the walls, the new settlement was given the name Dzerzhinsky in 1938 and is currently an industrial town of about 44,000 people.</span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="400" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQB3gCAnaptNVWyJL3mHuGKqJBdmDoPep76v8wNC79-ReAxRywcfYoicYqZ2842z-9CVxCCyBhJoI7oMsUOBmSRcqmH5NKtjJwa5ZOMexkDa9RcoZ25_TOo3lQr2L4i7gA0IAgeSb_Rg/s400/Dzerzhinsky+monestary+1994.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="272" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nikolo-Ughreshy Monastery cathedral (view from<br />
inside the monastery walls) in 1994.The photo <br />
only shows a small portion of the entire compilation <br />
of buildings (photo at right) that remained essentially <br />
unkempt until 1991.**</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJYN4uZDimngRzZivZy3llmcmzA9wbGUWetwjBYuT0wi2JEjWf413WZV-wDMP9w3WkAPNW9IgUpQDHFB-XNZ3PXSMyAvOZhAdS65QxbkX7wcyeOSSFhoykVUrx6dYWJGqCtTU5JbafRw/s1600/Dzerzhinsky+monestary+now.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="305" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJYN4uZDimngRzZivZy3llmcmzA9wbGUWetwjBYuT0wi2JEjWf413WZV-wDMP9w3WkAPNW9IgUpQDHFB-XNZ3PXSMyAvOZhAdS65QxbkX7wcyeOSSFhoykVUrx6dYWJGqCtTU5JbafRw/s320/Dzerzhinsky+monestary+now.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The rear of Nikolo-Ugreshky Monastery after many years of reconstruction and modification. This photo includes the bell tower which is the tallest in all of Russian Orthodox Church architecture. Even when buildings on the grounds of the monastery were in disrepair, the faithful still attended masses on Sundays held in another building adjacent to the cathedral. The citizens of the town of Dzerzhinsky which was created by the overflow of the Soviet children's labor commune are especially proud of this historically and strategically important monastery.*</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<br /></div>
<div style="clear: both; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">In many ways, this particular example was what the Soviets claimed to want to achieve in seizing churches, monasteries and convents. The first direct takeovers of churches were all "military" Church properties which were basically any religious institution built with walls at a strategic part of the country and heavily occupied by military personnel, and in this as in many cases, it was built on the Moscow river. (The study of the history behind walled/fortified monasteries is a lengthy one best served elsewhere.)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><br />
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">By the time the KGB officially came into existence in 1954, they already had several operatives who were trained by and posed as Orthodox priests. As the Cold War accelerated and the mistrust of its own people became nearly as profound and widespread as it was during Lenin's "Red Terror" and Stalin's "Great Terror" or "Great Purge," Orthodox priests were commonly forced through various means, most often blackmail, to become informants for the KGB. It was important the <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Second Main Directory: Counterintelligence, because they believed they could best root out groups from the solitary individual who is disillusioned with the Soviet Union as an ideology to those planning and organizing anti-Soviet activities. Until the end of Communist rule the Church was rife with KGB agents and informants - a problem that took many years after 1991 and the initially tacit restoration of the of the status of the Church to resolve since most people knew better than to trust the average Russian Orthodox clergy member.</span> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKzkyNbd_2QnBTH2JRqstD8YCSfOpWUuaGLlX6-B63TTo3G43TE14JgaByyuhZuS32Mw6gxcf5IwC7mWZWyVagiucU_wPDjztknwqgA0E-K-VeRIHwXbiBBcKZ4yg45A3KdzowWLWhjQ/s1600/Christ_saviour_demolition.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="341" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKzkyNbd_2QnBTH2JRqstD8YCSfOpWUuaGLlX6-B63TTo3G43TE14JgaByyuhZuS32Mw6gxcf5IwC7mWZWyVagiucU_wPDjztknwqgA0E-K-VeRIHwXbiBBcKZ4yg45A3KdzowWLWhjQ/s400/Christ_saviour_demolition.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo taken in 1931 during the demolition of Christ the Savior Cathedral in<br />
Moscow. It had served as the seat of the Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox<br />
Church since its completion in 1860 as a monument by Alexander I to <br />
commemorate the withdrawal of Napoleon's troops from Russia in 1812.*</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Not long after the death of Lenin the most famous demolition of a Russian church took place in Moscow. By indirect order of Stalin, on December 5, 1931 Christ the Savior Cathedral was demolished to allegedly be replaced by Stalin's "Palace of the Soviets" - which due to variety of reasons was never built, including the lack of funds and the required build up of troops after Hitler's Nazi's started to grow restless within the confines of Germany. By the time the Red Army was fully committed to WWII, construction had only been completed for the foundation of the Palace of the Soviets. As the largest Christian Orthodox Cathedral ever built, the destruction drew the attention of many people across the country as a symbol of a faith along similar lines as if the Vatican were flatted one day and the Roman Catholics around the world could say nothing out of fear of being locked away in an insane asylum or a prison labor camp and/or execution if a state security agent overheard him or her voicing dissensions. All of the fearful possibilities existed for anyone who got the wrong person's attention by speaking out against anything Stalin approved of. For many years after the war various projects were considered, but since water had a tendency to collect and flood the area, some civil engineer was certainly awarded well for coming up with the notion of making the former foundation of an enormous cathedral into an enormous public swimming pool that was simply called "Moscow." The pool was plagued with "structural problems" and was practically never open in the 34 years it remained before reconstruction of the cathedral began. </span></div>
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmWUvAB3ve-E42hwyqv9ShpUErlUt9Hr2pRYAGMr5K_Px91MHeKl8bU6-8BN6zuG7oOr_5gUhgUb0Qq8uNmI_anDwcIuKz8FP9G6X00xVXaWmFJ_sL93mCJekv9b7LH8pEJ02VJNLPjA/s1600/Moscow-Cathedral.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmWUvAB3ve-E42hwyqv9ShpUErlUt9Hr2pRYAGMr5K_Px91MHeKl8bU6-8BN6zuG7oOr_5gUhgUb0Qq8uNmI_anDwcIuKz8FP9G6X00xVXaWmFJ_sL93mCJekv9b7LH8pEJ02VJNLPjA/s400/Moscow-Cathedral.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A postcard of the rebuilt Cathedral of Christ the Savior.*</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">In 1990, permission was given by the still Soviet Government to rebuild the cathedral in replica of the original. Despite many controversies ranging from the architectural design to the actual rebuild on ground which some believe is "cursed," the cathedral was officially consecrated on August 19, 2000. That same year the last Imperial Russian Tsar Nicholas II and his family were canonized as saints within the Russian Orthodox Church. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The shift from enemy of the state to sainthood for Nicholas II is about as far a departure from the Soviet ideology of atheism as imaginable.</span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGNFxEnM5MxQVnNnO-qnVEwU755k6eYV7v1Shh1BT4ziQLJPQy8hfRsQnj5Wa1W5wqGfPZGZX8VKtEKeg6AoeB-084UDmlLy12k2MKvKAkmGcxInyyZ6-jFo40UkYKmiIm5hrb_h5DJw/s1600/Moscow+Cathedral+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGNFxEnM5MxQVnNnO-qnVEwU755k6eYV7v1Shh1BT4ziQLJPQy8hfRsQnj5Wa1W5wqGfPZGZX8VKtEKeg6AoeB-084UDmlLy12k2MKvKAkmGcxInyyZ6-jFo40UkYKmiIm5hrb_h5DJw/s320/Moscow+Cathedral+2.jpg" width="268" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A photo of the cathedral from across the bridge over the Moscow River leading to the former public pool.*</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div align="left" class="separator" style="border: currentColor; clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQB3gCAnaptNVWyJL3mHuGKqJBdmDoPep76v8wNC79-ReAxRywcfYoicYqZ2842z-9CVxCCyBhJoI7oMsUOBmSRcqmH5NKtjJwa5ZOMexkDa9RcoZ25_TOo3lQr2L4i7gA0IAgeSb_Rg/s1600/Dzerzhinsky+monestary+1994.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="border: currentColor; clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: x-small;">* Photos from Wikimedia Commons.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="border: currentColor; clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: x-small;">** Photo by Phillip de Valcourt, copyright 1994, 2011, 2013</span></div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-49162535212130114172011-03-20T05:49:00.010-05:002011-08-21T00:58:59.987-05:00Chekist Badges and the Enduring "Egg" Design<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">From the outset of awards for members of the state security agencies the basic shape with the oval "shield" and the sword pointing downward across it has survived - at least with the MVD - to this day. The badges shown in the chapter on NKVD badges illustrates the design that became the standard for at least four agencies with much more enamel than the earliest types.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">The first anniversary badge, like the rest, was given to high-ranking officers in the Chekist and internal security agencies for "honorable" or "meritorious" service. Below is an example of the first such badge with an enamel-filled Roman numeral "V" across the obverse. Like most of the earliest Soviet awards, they were not only made from silver, but by individual or groups of silversmiths rather than mass produced in a factories or mints.*</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimjHZWa6viUQkyV4pQnW3eGsAUXK8PpDy1t9rTnCZBv-6PhjDYihRuLPNpgNqmj5NMrpQDJxj2jF5mNV8QZ0DOEIn5q-5wfQJnoD5VwZCbg0XclxWUYrkPzR8fD3IYfiYiIwWvqXZSkQ/s1600/Cheka+5+first.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimjHZWa6viUQkyV4pQnW3eGsAUXK8PpDy1t9rTnCZBv-6PhjDYihRuLPNpgNqmj5NMrpQDJxj2jF5mNV8QZ0DOEIn5q-5wfQJnoD5VwZCbg0XclxWUYrkPzR8fD3IYfiYiIwWvqXZSkQ/s1600/Cheka+5+first.png" /></a>*</td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">This first design had the initials for the V. Cheka and the GPU raised from the ribbon/banner. Later versions had the letters depressed in the same locations filled with a black or blue paint, as in the following.</span></div><div align="left"><br />
</div><div align="left"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdeUuZkOwRiNAtbcjdpX8uR8ARWaiS_uwtWnKI6ZOOjEbf2Bw40zxLpgbXRbFGARoDIvAunsMxA6BEKyXxJvdXjmvITank6TV4KWOtiF6iDidu5367GVqfYl0F2tu45TsZHnH3lWymgQ/s1600/New+Picture+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="cssfloat: left; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="502" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdeUuZkOwRiNAtbcjdpX8uR8ARWaiS_uwtWnKI6ZOOjEbf2Bw40zxLpgbXRbFGARoDIvAunsMxA6BEKyXxJvdXjmvITank6TV4KWOtiF6iDidu5367GVqfYl0F2tu45TsZHnH3lWymgQ/s640/New+Picture+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div align="left"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">Examples of the obverse of both the 5th and the 15th Anniversary of the Cheka-GPU badges which were awarded in 1922 and 1932 respectively. These are some of the most difficult to find originals, but at the same time they are heavy counterfeited and sold as originals. Even the silversmith's maker's marks common on the reverse are replicated.</span> </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div align="left"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="521" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnEjlu4EUmx3Jo0y8wUduBEAg7-zv4mh_yJ83fteWUeOLzaXpdj7fsX2KnQw9vteXQWjTLqiHHSJuHf_iEgcm_KuRj8mjV0huHrgiGap6IJmpTG9sqTEOrGNxLG5ZeJ05NozeN-67ebQ/s640/New+Picture.jpg" width="640" />*</div><div align="left"><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">Typically, all awarded security service badges, including today, have serial numbers to identify who was given the award. The simple and at the same time ingenious design of these early badges was greatly in part due to the fact that silversmiths from Imperial Russia were essentially drafted to work for the Bolsheviks as were most skilled craftsmen. The swords, and on the 5th anniversary badge, the "V" were held in place on the shield by either relatively thick wires that were bent on the reverse or the same wire cut and shaped into "rivets" as pictured above. The ribbons/banners and hammer and sickle were soldered on by hand. In addition, the troughs in the shapes of the "V" and the "XV" were smooth or textured to provide a design for the enamel to enhance. The texture was especially true of the 5th Anniversary of the Cheka badges as can be seen above. A "textured design" was used in the ribbon/banner section of the KGB badges, but not the direct descendants of these designs followed by the NKVD, MVD and MGB (the last name change the Chekist side of the security services underwent before the final and renown KGB). Below is an example of of another NKVD Honored Chekist badge and a photo from the only known copy of the MGB version and is from the KGB Museum which is housed in the Lubyanka building and can be visited by prior approval only.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJi8kC33akTXUKMGYvXzY5jDtZPOAW3fkP6ynDQP9Rtke21-n3nlCydnQ1vi5FQCWTPi6hDAofkEN2iyRqyIYnbmiTC2ni9gmjy6JFRP0271XQFJXMDR8_Amex3aRvhsvIHb4wgORk-A/s1600/NKVD%252520Victim%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJi8kC33akTXUKMGYvXzY5jDtZPOAW3fkP6ynDQP9Rtke21-n3nlCydnQ1vi5FQCWTPi6hDAofkEN2iyRqyIYnbmiTC2ni9gmjy6JFRP0271XQFJXMDR8_Amex3aRvhsvIHb4wgORk-A/s640/NKVD%252520Victim%255B1%255D.jpg" width="526" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div align="justify" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">The above contributed photo and text below is from "Slava1stclass"* and shows "Zveryev, Yulian Lvovich. He was Russian and born on June 21st, 1895 in Saint Petersburg. He began his association with the VChK-OGPU-NKVD in 1920...His career culminated as follows: May 21st 1934 - July 10th, 1934 - Chairman, GPU of Turkmen SSR GPU; July 15th, 1934 - July 20th, 1937 - People's Commissar for Internal Affairs Turkmen SSR; October 21st, 1937 - [he was] arrested; September 7th, 1938 - [tried,] convicted/sentenced and executed by firing squad; January 23rd, 1958 - "rehabilitated" by order of the Supreme Court of the SSSR; rank: senior major GB [(state security)] effective 29 November 1935; awards: Honorary Chekist (V) Badge - serial number 472 awarded in 1929; Order of the Red Banner [pictured above] - serial number 21280/20280 awarded 3 April 1930."</span></span></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Like many who were victims of Stalin's purges, he was <span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"></span></span></div></span><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">"rehabilitated" and awards restored sometimes decades after t</span><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">heir murders - which was the post-Stalinist government's way there had been a mistake and the victim was in fact, innocent of whatever charges were used as a case for execution. More about "destalinization" is discussed in other chapters here.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;">However, before going that far forward, the main 10th anniversary OGPU badge design is essential to illustrate. As can be seen below, the design was far different than the 5th and 15th with a profile of Dzerzhinsky in the center as well as a laurel wreath and large banner behind the head. This badge was unique in that it had no sword and shield motif and the only presence of the H&S is inside the flagpole finial.</span> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="319" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqPFZvEbHzGZrRGoqKfgEXYdmIPyvjqzd39m3wNQe2N_cfwjN1lkpR0PkGmFw9T0HYEl-afikT5t3tdxr_otIaYSJBrtz8-F1CsWywJFI8yxVf06PThrmrqo1NgeKxgLCAvHg0PoaXIQ/s640/Cheka+badge+15.png" width="640" />*</div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">They were made from various metals and combinations of metals, enamels and paints. Some were made of solid silver, others solid brass while some of the earliest and most uncommon designs used gold for Dzerzhinsky's profile.</span></div><div align="left"><br />
</div><div align="left"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr98Rv_K1u1aBDUTvFjhQk0OqO0aRfHIhiXsqrta_uKCOtxrtEvEdoFxNh4OjMi1dvFChbuWHtXqTWo_1yn5n1GmMqdZAEMTv9LA1tS10Kv2BRRxc_FRGHZ5GHRQYmGfpu6z3XJmW2ZQ/s1600/OGPU+10+gold.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr98Rv_K1u1aBDUTvFjhQk0OqO0aRfHIhiXsqrta_uKCOtxrtEvEdoFxNh4OjMi1dvFChbuWHtXqTWo_1yn5n1GmMqdZAEMTv9LA1tS10Kv2BRRxc_FRGHZ5GHRQYmGfpu6z3XJmW2ZQ/s320/OGPU+10+gold.bmp" width="263" /></a><span style="font-size: small;"></span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">The rarest gold profile and wreath surrounded by red and white enamel on a base of silver. There are crossed swords at the base of the badge as well as red enamel backing the letters OGPU (All-Union State Political Directorate - both the successor and later predecessor of the GPU) and filling the star above Dzerzhinsky's head.*</span></div><div align="left"><br />
</div><div align="left"><br />
</div><div align="left"><br />
</div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">And here is an example of the solid silver base and Dzerzhinsky profile and wreath together with red enamel.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJLSiyJQZN11fClf10am0-N5BWX3UKTyLqvxetzISn8XiAsrq1LXl3MTJIIz-ellSCtCsHUIjuclIKyWExgPHwTIzVOzIDS3QlEEhTs2X2kUQn42F7_tYx4B5H-zvHGUmGgRTUkBDFXw/s1600/OGPU+10+silver.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJLSiyJQZN11fClf10am0-N5BWX3UKTyLqvxetzISn8XiAsrq1LXl3MTJIIz-ellSCtCsHUIjuclIKyWExgPHwTIzVOzIDS3QlEEhTs2X2kUQn42F7_tYx4B5H-zvHGUmGgRTUkBDFXw/s320/OGPU+10+silver.bmp" width="244" /></a></div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">Finally, the least expensive versions were produced from bronze and/or brass with red paint replacing the enamel. There were even a final lot made of only brass with no paint or enamel at all - just the design itself.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbZoVy4EgsbPmMR-ML7BZ1qI1FFcSS0YE1lNofjqbiTpqYZZevNiI6eTeABJQ0RW47jZkGy4RUXWEPsf9UjNaRu5vGukWQXF5Y98jYkbVWmGvgrdFyxjKHmY9NXdarN__CYGg49qA2Hw/s320/OGPU+10+bronze.bmp" width="240" />*</div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"> The "Honored NKVD Employee" badge resumed the oval shield with sword pointing downward atop it and the world renown hammer and sickle resting on top of the sword, but as the most prominent symbol on the badge. Designers continued to use various metals including silver and gold. Much later in the 1960s when MOOP was the name of the MVD, the base metal was an simple brass. Prior to that, real gold layers had been tried on the sword hilt and especially on the H&S, but this proved too likely to peel, tear or wear, so a gold-based allow was used to coat both the hilt and the H&S in a very thick layer that proved to hold up to use much better than previous attempts. It was this alloy that was used at least until 1991 and likely onward.</span></div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="640" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFftiEs4E4LKpQb4_eXNM4LHKms6aFFyNlAX2kGck8-v9pUXghRls_2Fs-iuE6VFvLN6jTADTMl_PQxzAEhn-Xd7M5QTmza9q1r4ltK4cJSnl1yJnRnjJyJNQePTipbSKI2-oOKk7Fzw/s640/NKVD+bagde+Pandis.png" width="425" /> *</div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">This pre-WWII NKVD badge once had a thin layer of gold coating the hammer and sickle in the center which likely wore off from everyday use and the color of the upper parts of the ribbon/banner suggest that the enamel has been repaired - which is extremely common since the enamel in early badges of this type were notoriously fragile. Rumors circulated that ingredients in the traditional red colored enamel used included blood and gold. The former was supposed to create a mystical quality while the latter was supposed to give the red its unique color. Neither have ever been found to be true.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYMqDyQQhhXb69JrkfYrPDuuVx9umI96dxBwkr3Gil1RbFNDnzvq6YxaMTjmyIpbOIUx9ANdyDzF_zcJIjX-hlYdVyHGkA-Hj_UgKbpDz7PXNxUbipAggfaHQIueY2DWOs4GUeZWoRRA/s1600/MGB+badge.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYMqDyQQhhXb69JrkfYrPDuuVx9umI96dxBwkr3Gil1RbFNDnzvq6YxaMTjmyIpbOIUx9ANdyDzF_zcJIjX-hlYdVyHGkA-Hj_UgKbpDz7PXNxUbipAggfaHQIueY2DWOs4GUeZWoRRA/s1600/MGB+badge.png" /></a></div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">The only widely known "Honored Chekist" MGB badge. This may have been a prototype, but curators at the KGB Museum in the Lubyanka building (and partial FSB counterintelligence headquarters) have not made an official statement about productions of these rarest of all "egg" badges. This is also the only design of this type to use text on the ribbon/banner. Later KGB badges did make use of text on the red enamel (see the top of the site page), but it was considerably thinner ribbon/banner to include text, but not on this large scale.* Also, KGB "shield and sword" badges were a unique design that has lasted well into the current era of Russian Federation FSB, SVR and MVD honor badges. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">In 1962 Khruschev, in all likelihood to limit the enormous powers of the MVD (roughly equivalent to the US Federal Bureau of Investigation) accrued by Beria who had been "tried" and executed after Stalin's death, the powers that were dissolved the "all-union" MVD and created a new, localized "Ministry for the Preservation for Public Order," or MOOP. This lasted until Khruschev was forced to resign and Brezhnev took over. Since the MVD was the "supercharged" internal police with the job of counterintelligence as well as combating crime and the new regional-only MOOP was not handling the job very effectively, Brezhnev started the process of returning the all-union status of the former MVD in 1966 and formally restored the MVD, name and all, in 1968.</span></div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ0WJxvU2zXdINCfwSkhHpDj-s7A0i6tSj9AfXCPHTpiR5K9sbsHY2dTdl5zSK8X6JMDHVxxYaALLKAOCvfCzg2VAHcBFUguCV0d6k0FCgjO8Xwqwf_OLBqIbXUTdoJnTekmZ40zV0WA/s1600/MOOP+brass+egg.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ0WJxvU2zXdINCfwSkhHpDj-s7A0i6tSj9AfXCPHTpiR5K9sbsHY2dTdl5zSK8X6JMDHVxxYaALLKAOCvfCzg2VAHcBFUguCV0d6k0FCgjO8Xwqwf_OLBqIbXUTdoJnTekmZ40zV0WA/s1600/MOOP+brass+egg.png" /></a>*</td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">In the example pictured above, the base metal used for the H&S, the backing of the ribbon/banner and the lettering appears to be simple brass. Judging from other examples of brass-based badges of this "egg" type, the oval shield is likely silver plated as is the sword blade. The sword hilt still has gold plating on it and the H&S and lettering probably had gold plating that wore off since these are the areas most prone to regular contact from hands, clothing and any number of reasons including excessive polishing and a very thin layer of gold over the base metal.</span></div><div align="left"><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;">Though the MGB "egg" badge is by far the most scarce of this type for obvious reasons stated above, the MOOP version is the second most difficult for collectors to find for a couple of reasons. The first is that the organization under he name of MOOP only existed for six years. The second is that, as in the case of the NKVD badge being MVD simply because the badges were so complex to make that leftovers from one name of the agency to the next were given out until supplies were depleated. Thus MOOP agents were likely given MVD badges until those stocks were exhausted, and by the time MOOP badges were fully in production the name was changed back to MVD, thus logic dictates that far fewer MOOP badges were made and awarded to officers than would be expected between 1962 and 1968.</span> </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div align="left"><br />
</div><div align="left"><br />
</div><div align="left"><span style="font-size: small;">*Most photographs in this chapter (except where otherwise noted are from <span style="font-family: CourierNewPSMT;">Robert S. Pandis' compilation <em>CHEKA: Distinguished Worker Awards</em> Parts I, II and III, Ver. 8/6/01 and are copyrighted material. Formerly, these were on a website that is no longer active: <span style="font-family: CourierNewPSMT;"><a href="http://www.geocities.com/huskeradmi/cheka.html">http://www.geocities.com/huskeradmi/cheka.html</a> Pandis' work is some of the best in the field of Soviet security services information and photography. </span></span></span></div><div align="left"><br />
</div><div align="left"><span style="font-size: small;">** "Slava1stclass" - which is the English for Слава класс 1 and one of the highest awards junior and non-commissioned officers could receive mainly for military duty, will appear in photo contributions extensively in other areas throughout this work. He uses that name as his "handle" on the Soviet Military Awards Page Forum where he is an active and knowledgeable member. It is also what he wanted me to call him in all credits.</span></div></td></tr>
</tbody></table></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-91771949858261294792011-03-08T01:18:00.006-06:002012-09-02T18:37:02.197-05:00NKVD Honored Employee Badges and Documents<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Before leaving The Great Patriotic War and moving on to the development of the new security agencies such as the NKGB (People's Commissariat of State Security), MGB (Ministry of State Security), the return of the MVD and disbandment of the NKVD - or at least reshuffling duties and personnel, there are some awards that are essential to understanding the system of rewarding merit within these agencies. After all, one of the main objectives of this website is to show examples of security service and other awards. <br />
<br />
The first and by far the most famous security service award is the so-called "egg" badge of the NKVD. These were awarded to top officers and service personnel for outstanding accomplishments or completion of extremely important/dangerous assignments. The basic design of the badge is not new. The oval with the sword and the hammer and sickle and the ribbon/banner were used from the beginning of the Cheka and the GPU with anniversary badges awarded for the fifth, tenth and fifteenth years of its existence.<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcZC3PcBGJLnNO2i3hM122NKdLgAJDFUGvn8G2slDbqDe0_AtZ1p7XlX3zU_WfzB36p04-IyNLm_mfknm7h_jdWn7j4shqFDY_hUtOwS2IIqXb5dIKXC7r2KSXFaPMzpNkoXZvM2tRdQ/s1600/Cheka+symbol.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" q6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcZC3PcBGJLnNO2i3hM122NKdLgAJDFUGvn8G2slDbqDe0_AtZ1p7XlX3zU_WfzB36p04-IyNLm_mfknm7h_jdWn7j4shqFDY_hUtOwS2IIqXb5dIKXC7r2KSXFaPMzpNkoXZvM2tRdQ/s1600/Cheka+symbol.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">The "sword and shield" symbol of the Cheka, NKVD, MVD and KGB in various </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">forms </span><span style="font-size: small;">as it was carried in parade along with a portrait of founder Felix Dzerzhinsky.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">Click on YouTube link: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QtILBeOMYI">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QtILBeOMYI</a> for</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">complete color footage of the above parade from 1938.</span> </div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
The design of this early badge became famous throughout the Soviet Union as representing far more than the simple motif of an oval "shield" with a red enamel scallop shell design in the background and a sword pointing downward laid across the top of the shield. On top of the sword was a hammer and sickle (H&S) making the whole badge engaging to the eye because of the multiple-level three dimensional effect. There was also a flowing "ribbon" filled with red enamel and the letters "NKVD" rising up through the enamel of the horizontal portion of that ribbon.<br />
<br />
When the NKVD was broken back up after the war into the MVD and MGB, the former kept the badge design with the use of "MVD" in place of "NKVD" and picked up the serial numbers from where they left off so that serial numbers on these badges - which continued to be awarded until 1991 and a few "catch-up" awards well into the mid 1990s. <br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="border: currentColor; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk_SSSkCWvISjLtVk0ZuqUfcgP6GDnwf-RLI6SvJ_h7GNNIw091YJm83DkDwjVKWWo5KLDkj1Ez_9m8t_36vBmoRjCPYS8oTKMYbiZc5_DNVJKG0R2rHQPNbo0APbg70flpfhRsdzd7g/s1600/NKVD+and+doc+Pandis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="416" q6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk_SSSkCWvISjLtVk0ZuqUfcgP6GDnwf-RLI6SvJ_h7GNNIw091YJm83DkDwjVKWWo5KLDkj1Ez_9m8t_36vBmoRjCPYS8oTKMYbiZc5_DNVJKG0R2rHQPNbo0APbg70flpfhRsdzd7g/s640/NKVD+and+doc+Pandis.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="border: currentColor; text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">This document is somewhat suspect as to authenticity even though it is from Robert Pandis' CD-ROM book discussing </span><span style="font-size: small;">the history of the awards system of every security agency that existed throughout the lifespan of the Soviet Union. It is also noteworthy that Beria's "autopen" signature is on this document. This badge design became known to collectors as the "egg" badge which stayed with the MVD until the end of the Soviet Union, while the KGB adopted a riveted shield, sword and instead of just an H&S and a star was added with the H&S inside (see photo in right sidebar "Honored KGB Badge 1." For the most part, the KGB badges were only awarded to a very deserving operative and/or a high-ranking officer (politics have always had a role in the award </span><span style="font-size: small;">system in every branch of service)</span> .</div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2OcTTaCgWcFgLALfobbgUdiIToidozgDiHtCs-GaTW9gHkfpnx0CvWa2kH5alX60Ka3GXmpBJoNTxLHtQf8boR6xAy8D9iLmQTxMYWpHfAy99TCZGUs0ym3BuWIetf3MXGWAAlXjMgg/s1600/NKVDBDID%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" q6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2OcTTaCgWcFgLALfobbgUdiIToidozgDiHtCs-GaTW9gHkfpnx0CvWa2kH5alX60Ka3GXmpBJoNTxLHtQf8boR6xAy8D9iLmQTxMYWpHfAy99TCZGUs0ym3BuWIetf3MXGWAAlXjMgg/s640/NKVDBDID%255B1%255D.jpg" width="416" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">Though the quality of this photo is poor, these images of the NKVD "egg" and the award booklet are most certainly real and also come from the Pandis CD-Rom. An interesting feature of both this booklet and later MVD versions is the relief image of the badge itself in the leather cover. The lettering is done in gold and the cover itself is a deep red color. Note that in the above example, the photo of the recipient is in place and one of the two circular stamps seals the photo in place.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoOEVUON0-wSMUqvXfRAyW-BRftH0VDDcqOR9_Bq1bDznmvXjfodUUikoT5q8ByLsZxhomibGZVJ4IAxBeNjLA2EgfxwNOh0BDUYPDHHu9CQvG5WpguImE_JGstWVBX-xvbLW0NHau4A/s1600/KGBeggfront%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" q6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoOEVUON0-wSMUqvXfRAyW-BRftH0VDDcqOR9_Bq1bDznmvXjfodUUikoT5q8ByLsZxhomibGZVJ4IAxBeNjLA2EgfxwNOh0BDUYPDHHu9CQvG5WpguImE_JGstWVBX-xvbLW0NHau4A/s400/KGBeggfront%255B1%255D.jpg" width="248" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">A closeup of the obverse of the badge itself </span><span style="font-size: small;">shows the detail of workmanship and the exquisite</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">and fragile enamel work in the form of sun rays </span><span style="font-size: small;">spreading upward from just above the "NKVD"</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">in the ribbon above that section. The same design </span><span style="font-size: small;">was used by the MVD. In fact, there was a certain amount of "overlap" when the NKVD became the MVD again in March of 1946 and officers scheduled to receive the award badge were often given one with the "NKVD" lettering still at the base rather than waste the stock of badges that had already been made. Considering the amount of labor necessary to make them, it is not surprising that none were simply thrown out because of the name change. The badges were </span><span style="font-size: small;">originally made from brass with silver plating, then </span><span style="font-size: small;">were made from solid silver and later back to silver </span><span style="font-size: small;">plating with at least a shiny sword blade and gold </span><span style="font-size: small;">plating on the hilt and hand guard of the sword. Though the basic design continued to be used throughout the history of the USSR mostly with the NKVD and the MVD, there is evidence that at least one badge - a prototype, perhaps - was made for the MGB and had the words "Honored Chekist" in Russian on the upward running arms of the ribbon on each side of the badge.</span></div>
<div align="left">
<br /></div>
<div align="center">
<span style="font-size: small;">* * * * * * * *</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
The NKVD advanced a culture of fear begun by the Cheka that had only been enhanced by the fear and propaganda campaign launched by Stalin's regime to frighten the citizens and/or foreigners (always potential spies) even as the Germans retreated together with anyone who thought, and rightly so, that they might be persecuted and/or executed by the members of the NKVD, SMERSH or the newly formed, post-war MGB. One of the most famous images and only one of many posters warning against the dangers of idle gossip eventually became synonymous with a warning from the KGB, though it was originally created as propaganda against speaking carelessly when foreign (especially German and later American) spies were thought to be everywhere. The text roughly translates to: "Be quiet! Watch that what you say isn't treasonous." [Literally, не болтай means "Do not talk" but in the sense of spreading idle rumors. "No gossiping" is often used as the translation.] Modern T-shirt designers for tourists often put this poster image on the reverse of shirts with a KGB sword and shield motif. With people "disappearing" in the night after NKVD agents would show up at an apartment door, and later when resistance groups in Ukraine and the Baltic States, Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and just about any place where there was a Soviet "Sphere of Influence," an entire generation of people were made to feel afraid in their own homes. This often justified paranoia was passed from one generation to the next so that remnants of it are still present in Russia and Former Soviet Union (FSU) republics and socialist regions. Many people who emigrate from one of these areas to Western countries, especially the US, find it difficult to let go of the notion that they are being watched and their actions being recorded.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm4FOVCp3m5Xpf9HRrrBvPFpEYiBnz1MLFTIJzuCPnNGdqj9iIzwRnDHQjDSd3kePCkM3E4ZqjwKTQ_2H-DLwr4p-XIxakkaFdBcNz6f86Src_K9mQwDgqn4juQcsEIkoA29S9L60Eag/s1600/Be+quiet%2521+Be+careful+what+you+say+isn%2527t+treason..jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" q6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm4FOVCp3m5Xpf9HRrrBvPFpEYiBnz1MLFTIJzuCPnNGdqj9iIzwRnDHQjDSd3kePCkM3E4ZqjwKTQ_2H-DLwr4p-XIxakkaFdBcNz6f86Src_K9mQwDgqn4juQcsEIkoA29S9L60Eag/s640/Be+quiet%2521+Be+careful+what+you+say+isn%2527t+treason..jpg" width="408" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">"Be quiet! Always be careful what you say."</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-31424998776831408262011-03-05T15:29:00.000-06:002011-04-16T01:43:53.008-05:00War with JapanThough Hitler's deep hatred of Russian Communists essentially guaranteed war between the Nazis and the Soviets, Stalin had intended to avoid war with Japan. In fact, on April 13, 1941 a similar peace treaty to the secret Non-Aggression pact established with the Nazis was signed between the USSR and Japan. Stalin had no particular aims on Japan other than keeping them at more than arm's length from his Eastern borders. However, the peace was short lived. The Japanese Army's incursions into northern China were a concern for Stalin, but that was the least of his worries after Germany, Italy, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria began the invasion of the Soviet Union known as Operation Barbarossa in June (an action all of the participating countries except Italy would come to seriously regret during the Cold War and the Communist reciprocation - especially Bulgaria). Since Stalin was forced to declare war on all of the Axis powers which included Japan, he had no choice but to go to war with Japan as well. <br />
<br />
Prior to WWII, the Soviets and Japanese had already faced off in 1939. The most famous of this Eastern conflict was the Battles of Khalkhin Gol in Mongolia (a Soviet protectorate and ally) near the border with Manchuria, a Japanese-propped "puppet" state. In terms of WWII, practically none of the fighting with the Japanese began for the Soviets until the Red Army had taken back all of its territories from the Nazis (and then some) as well as conquered Berlin itself.<br />
<br />
At that point, maintaining his promise to the Allies, Stalin turned his attention to the East. It has been suggested by many historians that Stalin also had an interest in expanding the USSR into more areas of the Eastern borderlands and had designs on portions of an already divided China, particularly Manchuria which the Red Army invaded. Though direct conflict with the Japanese did not start until 1945, the Red Army was a significant factor in winning the War in the Pacific. Soviet forces met little resistance they could not overcome and after the US atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japanese Emperor Hirohito announced his county's surrender on August 15, 1945.<br />
<br />
Nonetheless, the Soviet Union had suffered greatly during the war with over 20 million men, women and children killed as a direct result of The Great Patriotic War. Casualties suffered as an indirect result of the war - namely millions who were relocated, imprisoned and executed by Stalin and his private "secret service" the NKVD - will be discussed elsewhere.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGwVlgfD-yt7qYqioHgqmBd9_mrXrRdqOAGmkKGNVTzl5_xpAeafe9Uh5YGu9cqV2OC_uacFvgM27Jij8SCTrqa29tXZXReTXPssPVeee_VPjXBb0kd01KACRDySpNtz-CPEH12qYldA/s1600/War-Japan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="532" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGwVlgfD-yt7qYqioHgqmBd9_mrXrRdqOAGmkKGNVTzl5_xpAeafe9Uh5YGu9cqV2OC_uacFvgM27Jij8SCTrqa29tXZXReTXPssPVeee_VPjXBb0kd01KACRDySpNtz-CPEH12qYldA/s640/War-Japan.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This painting depicts Communist Chinese troops and the capture of the Presidential Palace in Japan after the end of WWII. </td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-70263547330289009652011-03-04T03:02:00.000-06:002012-07-17T23:45:38.472-05:00Images of an Emerging New World II<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Here are a few more propaganda posters that were used to keep the spirits and patriotism of the Soviet citizens high during WWII (Great Patriotic War), much like the US had plastered in areas of high foot traffic such as outside cinemas, concert halls and metro stations.<br />
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnWkybzg_KvEX7pqYqM_wVXzFrCcQUzUj3oAZfsAiZ1QsaTz0U70-D96Flh59nkRn288vgyAgf2tmsHRDnqU8VBkmLr1lxpyuA9cuEuasj3dMw5jjUU76sol91JZH4HWDC9wHZm3ueiw/s1600/Anti-gossip+%2528smersh%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnWkybzg_KvEX7pqYqM_wVXzFrCcQUzUj3oAZfsAiZ1QsaTz0U70-D96Flh59nkRn288vgyAgf2tmsHRDnqU8VBkmLr1lxpyuA9cuEuasj3dMw5jjUU76sol91JZH4HWDC9wHZm3ueiw/s400/Anti-gossip+%2528smersh%2529.jpg" width="288" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">"Gossip[ers] - A great prize for the enemy"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">One of many such posters warning the</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">public to watch what they say because</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">they never know who might be listening.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">(Note the surreptitious eavesdropping</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">man behind the red-nosed, drunken speaker </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">on the phone.) </span><span style="font-size: small;">Ironically, regularly listening </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">in on Soviet</span><span style="font-size: small;">citizens' - and especially </span><span style="font-size: small;">foreign </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">tourists' </span><span style="font-size: small;">and dignitaries' telephone </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">conversations </span><span style="font-size: small;">would become standard practice </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">for the KGB </span><span style="font-size: small;">during the Cold War years - a </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">practice still </span><span style="font-size: small;">used by the FSB today in the </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">Russian Federation where </span><span style="font-size: small;">telephone </span><span style="font-size: small;">operators</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> are </span><span style="font-size: small;">encouraged and </span><span style="font-size: small;">rewarded </span><span style="font-size: small;">for reporting </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">"suspicious" </span><span style="font-size: small;">conversations </span><span style="font-size: small;">they happen to be </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">listening </span><span style="font-size: small;">in on during the course of their jobs.</span><br />
<br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZOp-zMLdki1WiFe8i7eRSEeQAJsURnAhBchipWz_s5kXVdgw1umoLfC3YAVSrjZi400mxAKhZTCki4H7F4c9eAGYq1Bf1VGWc9Kd8WYHl9FFwa-sLBK5d0SJbimhkmz9WBaBzWyvH-w/s1600/Leningrad+medal+prop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZOp-zMLdki1WiFe8i7eRSEeQAJsURnAhBchipWz_s5kXVdgw1umoLfC3YAVSrjZi400mxAKhZTCki4H7F4c9eAGYq1Bf1VGWc9Kd8WYHl9FFwa-sLBK5d0SJbimhkmz9WBaBzWyvH-w/s400/Leningrad+medal+prop.jpg" width="291" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Another propaganda poster designed to bolster the morale of the citizens and soldiers. In this case, the </span><span style="font-size: small;">medal for "The Defense of Leningrad" </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">is shown. </span><span style="font-size: small;">This medal, like other "campaign medals" produced </span><span style="font-size: small;">to honor those who helped defend and/or defeat </span><span style="font-size: small;">invading German armies was awarded to soldiers,</span><span style="font-size: small;">naval personnel, </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">civilians and members of the</span><span style="font-size: small;">armed troops of the NKVD (internal security service during </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">The Great Patriotic War). </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-31838094459737440582011-02-28T01:01:00.006-06:002012-07-17T23:46:11.455-05:00Images of an Emerging New World<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
As the war drew to an end, Stalin had already decided what he wanted from the spoils of war, even though occupying some Eastern European countries and annexing the Baltic states is still a question of morality and the right to take over countries.<br />
<br />
Before I venture into the end of WWII (to the Russians, "The Great Patriotic War"), and the "Cold War" - I thought a few posters and other pictures of propaganda from a War ravaged and politically untrusting government bent on "winning the hearts and minds" with promises for the stomach.<br />
<br />
Intentional famines in the southern regions of the Soviet Union by Stalin to force compliance to his collectivisation laws and taxes among the <em>Kulaks</em> (or rather <em>ex-Kulaks</em>) of the agrarian lands well south of Moscow. These minor land-owners, or "wealthy peasants" were a significant problem for both Stalin and Lenin because these land-owning peasants became so because of Russian Imperial reform about 10 years before the October Revolution. They vehemently opposed the entire notion of Leninist-Marxist socialism-communism, especially since they had essentially bought their freedom and managed to create a profit through their work which allowed them to buy the land they worked.<br />
<br />
The <em>Kulaks</em> and how they were systematically eradicated by Stalin (though Lenin began the killing with the Cheka) and his NKVD and Smersh troops, along with entire cultural and ethnic peoples will be discussed elsewhere.<br />
<br />
The following are a few posters and other political art from the 1930s-1940s. <br />
<br />
Please enjoy (those who are old enough - or watched enough old Warner Brothers' <em>Bugs Bunny </em>cartoons may recognize the Soviet Versions of some of our own WWII propaganda posters - like "Rosie the Riveter" and some of those old cartoons themselves).<br />
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg61yiwPRpO-xUleE-gCL7w8IbKfGS9F-INIh6OuCD4vTOnCh0o5Dq75_agrTe6CDkkf3rAD7cuQ-mjFAyVBbmSYMf0izbXyvjq5Wc3x0QZCaeLYZm4Rk-8GMMiY120TXoUIQOzlm5X8A/s1600/Stalingrad+prop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg61yiwPRpO-xUleE-gCL7w8IbKfGS9F-INIh6OuCD4vTOnCh0o5Dq75_agrTe6CDkkf3rAD7cuQ-mjFAyVBbmSYMf0izbXyvjq5Wc3x0QZCaeLYZm4Rk-8GMMiY120TXoUIQOzlm5X8A/s400/Stalingrad+prop.jpg" width="283" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Battle of Stalingrad and Hitler's resounding,<br />
and more importantly, humiliating defeat there started<br />
a complete role reversal of battle tactics - namely the<br />
Nazi War Machine had broken down and was loping<br />
back to Berlin without a single significant win when<br />
fighting the Red Army until the Soviets were standing<br />
atop the Reichstag's making the famous replacement<br />
of the Nazi headquarters flag for the USSR hammer<br />
and sickle on that great red field. The rifle has the<br />
word "Stalingrad" and the caption is basically -<br />
"We beat the malicious Fuhrer here, we can beat<br />
him anywhere." </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEholEikLN7382-zCTOLSFm96QEK6Md3P8EH-h58F-pSOAZs1qLzltDZ_1RG_f3sDIlmtbGJscYmggUxMaURUq55gBJUYIuLXHLDEz0BoVCl2oxuQSE5Vj9RajGlyzL1WYs6DTF8bht8xw/s1600/Moscow+medal+prop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEholEikLN7382-zCTOLSFm96QEK6Md3P8EH-h58F-pSOAZs1qLzltDZ_1RG_f3sDIlmtbGJscYmggUxMaURUq55gBJUYIuLXHLDEz0BoVCl2oxuQSE5Vj9RajGlyzL1WYs6DTF8bht8xw/s400/Moscow+medal+prop.jpg" width="310" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Propaganda poster for winning of the Battle of Moscow<br />
and a likeness of the actual medal awarded to all those<br />
who were responsible in some capacity for keeping the enemy at the gates out - whether they were bankers given<br />
a rifle or a trained soldier or NKVD trooper.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX7DQPEAa9Vv-0kFMxbQpxM_HNgEQ0hfq83IzUnu_QjRIipXG2vdjqaWhc9nCFol_xOZp-4Pxbotk3sitOcG7MF8eKM36XVBZka4yi4Lgu-W48vsUpNt1PkmC1i5F_jgrqOS2EylNGsQ/s1600/Sniper+or+Norm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="459" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX7DQPEAa9Vv-0kFMxbQpxM_HNgEQ0hfq83IzUnu_QjRIipXG2vdjqaWhc9nCFol_xOZp-4Pxbotk3sitOcG7MF8eKM36XVBZka4yi4Lgu-W48vsUpNt1PkmC1i5F_jgrqOS2EylNGsQ/s640/Sniper+or+Norm.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">"The sniper strikes from afar, but he always is certain [acurate - trans.]!"</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi82jWcKbCjKm87MSFcB5XzJWA3gaQUCyR6dbmPwU-TPRLYRAy5iYYmqnp6tF9gk5iloi2_SaAy0PMv7-wEKXX3w8XQfdQp85FuHnGbKb5_K1SUM5MmlgU0Rxk0mRIcPS3BNA3uCVRWHA/s1600/mercilessly+smash+and+destroy+the+enemy%2521.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi82jWcKbCjKm87MSFcB5XzJWA3gaQUCyR6dbmPwU-TPRLYRAy5iYYmqnp6tF9gk5iloi2_SaAy0PMv7-wEKXX3w8XQfdQp85FuHnGbKb5_K1SUM5MmlgU0Rxk0mRIcPS3BNA3uCVRWHA/s1600/mercilessly+smash+and+destroy+the+enemy%2521.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This propaganda piece alludes to the Non-Agression Pact signed between Germany and the Soviet Union, which Hitler violated brought the full rath of not only the government, but of the public as well. This is reminiscent of the the <br />
Warner Bros' cartoons featuring <em>Bugs Bunny</em> and several anti-Nazi nd pro US Army rediness and dominance cartoons. The newspaper Hitler is hiding behind has a headline about the Non-Agression Pact and the text at the top reads:<br />
"Mercilessly smash and destroy the enemy!"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4vR8kRFfhDcSz5HZuWBMDhaTapNEr9FdzwmSyH6UvtmaR8f41dF0pRlFc-uhVODWUmsZHnDhRC-bnuKp9CkTdVLdI-GQf7scSJ5KcFtmpHYpCp-KiQ61vpnxM09u7L8bhm7m6ll3WYA/s1600/Smersh-partizan-+the+glory+of+the+heroes+of+the+guerrillas%252C+destroying+fascist+Rear.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4vR8kRFfhDcSz5HZuWBMDhaTapNEr9FdzwmSyH6UvtmaR8f41dF0pRlFc-uhVODWUmsZHnDhRC-bnuKp9CkTdVLdI-GQf7scSJ5KcFtmpHYpCp-KiQ61vpnxM09u7L8bhm7m6ll3WYA/s1600/Smersh-partizan-+the+glory+of+the+heroes+of+the+guerrillas%252C+destroying+fascist+Rear.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">"Glory to the Partisan Heroes Who Destroy the Enemy's Rear Line [preventing them from leaving spies, mines</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">or having any </span><span style="font-size: small;">other means of escape - trans.]" </span><span style="font-size: small;">Partisans from countries with the former "Soviet Sphere of Influence" were greatly admired and given practically a </span><span style="font-size: small;">hero status among both the public and the government. Countries like Hungary, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia </span><span style="font-size: small;">and Poland as well as members of the Baltic States. The most obvious problem with the partisan movements is that some of </span><span style="font-size: small;">them, particularly Ukrainians formed resistance groups which before WWII fought the Red Army and the Bolsheviks </span><span style="font-size: small;">and many of them continued to refocus their attention on the Soviets, the most prominent was the Organisation of </span><span style="font-size: small;">Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) which had arranged and trained itself to be a formidable enemy for the officers and </span><span style="font-size: small;">armed troops of the NKVD, NKGB, MGB and to an extent, the KGB.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
</div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
</div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-85498213642788371422011-02-11T01:26:00.004-06:002012-07-10T23:21:10.727-05:00Stalin, Hitler and the Treaty of Non-Aggression<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
While Stalin was busy with having millions arrested, tortured, imprisoned and/or executed, he also turned a blind eye toward Hitler and the Nazi genocide of German Jews. In many ways, the two dictators were operating with similar goals - complete domination of their respective kingdoms - and used similar methods - mass removal of entire populations from their homes to prison camps, or in Stalin's case, relocating the population of a region to another simply to punish their perceived misdeeds. One of the most remembered is the systematic relocation by train of practically the entire population of Chechnya because too many among them refused to bend to his will and turn over the allotted amount of production as a state "tax."<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFDcARXanhPFG3Jg8r5ufYhpb46qedY1GRj1IZtWOt6VkdE0mYkyRwph1KGooi1-TJPlRGY6ncgqmKBWW7n7r5mDH-XMlH2i-3rvwBoZT67vWXM9N-a6GmOIyyclCZVQ2bTgRGTHAhGg/s1600/478px-MolotovRibbentropStalin%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" h5="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFDcARXanhPFG3Jg8r5ufYhpb46qedY1GRj1IZtWOt6VkdE0mYkyRwph1KGooi1-TJPlRGY6ncgqmKBWW7n7r5mDH-XMlH2i-3rvwBoZT67vWXM9N-a6GmOIyyclCZVQ2bTgRGTHAhGg/s1600/478px-MolotovRibbentropStalin%255B1%255D.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Soviet Foreign Minister Molotov signs the German-Soviet non-aggression pact; <br />
Joachim von Ribbentrop and Josef Stalin stand behind him, Moscow, August 23, 1939**</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Hitler despised Stalin as he did all Slavic peoples and Stalin did not trust Hitler, but the two men needed the peace treaty for their own ends, much to the anger and bitter frustration of many of the Baltic States and especially Poland, the first country Hitler's armies invaded. The peace held until 1941 when Hitler was no longer content with conquering Western Europe and decided he could use his Panzers and Blitzkrieg tactics to take Moscow within a year. He was wrong. Like many other invaders of Russia, including Napoleon, he did not fully take into account the severity of Russian winters and a terrain of Taiga forests that when blanketed with snow provided no sense of direction nor allowed for soldiers and commanders to get their bearings accurately. Despite these major handicaps, the Nazi army eventually came within only about one hundred kilometers of Moscow before they were stopped cold by a brutal arctic blizzard that pounded an army already stretched very thin and without adequate supplies of food and warm clothing. The German invaders had underestimated what both the Red Army and Mother Nature could do to prevent invading soldiers from reaching their goal.<br />
<br />
The "Treaty of Non-Aggression" signed by representatives of the Soviet Union and Germany in August of 1939 was touted as a simple extension of the previous neutrality agreement signed between the two countries in 1926. The treaty was nicknamed the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact by the average citizens because of the two men who drafted and signed the brief agreement, Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov and German foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop. The non-aggression treaty, signed during the night of August 23 in Moscow, 1939 asserted that each country would remain neutral in the event either was attacked by a third party. Article II: "In case one of the contracting parties should become the object of war-like acts on the part of a third power the other contracting party will not support that third power in any form."* For Hitler, this meant he did not have to worry about a war on two fronts and could continue his march across Western Europe. For Stalin, it meant that he was free to flush out saboteurs and "wreckers" among the rank and file of the Soviet Union.<br />
<br />
Most of the articles of the treaty favored Germany and Hitler's plans for conquering the planet. In fact, Article IV was worded practically in anticipation of the formation in 1941 of the Allied nations against Nazi Germany which consisted of "The Big Three" - the British Empire, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the United States - as well as 16 other countries including France, Czechoslovakia, Canada, Australia, Greece, Yugoslavia, Poland and Brazil. The article stated that "Neither of the two contracting parties will participate in any grouping of powers which is indirectly or directly aimed against the other party." Of course, the minute Hitler ordered his armies to invade the Soviet Union just after 3 a.m. of June 22, 1941, the treaty was voided. However, Stalin had ignored warnings from intelligence services that such an attack was not only likely, but imminent. Because of this blind blunder the Red Army suffered 4.3 million casualties and three million more were captured in only six months after the initial invasion.<br />
<br />
The treaty itself was an initial step on Hitler's part to buy time while he waged war in Western Europe and there is no direct evidence that he ever had any intention of honoring the agreement any longer than it suited him. But the treaty signed by the two foreign ministers was not the only agreement that the two countries decided upon. What no one outside the walls of the Kremlin other than Hitler and his closest advisers was that there was a "secret protocol" attached to the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact which divided up Eastern Europe between Germany and the Soviet Union into so-called "spheres of influence." Finland, Latvia and Estonia were assigned to the Soviet sphere while Poland was split between the two countries based on presumed political motives within the country and Lithuania was at first under the German sphere then later shifted to the Soviets. The maps below show the initial intent of the division according to the "Secret Protocol" (left) and the actual division in which the Soviet Union annexed the Baltic States and added them formally as republics of the Soviet Union in 1948 (right), without the consent of the citizens of these countries. At the same time, Finland and the USSR went to war over the Soviet attempt to annex them as well and eventually the Red Army backed down from this venture, although the USSR did gain two small portions of Finland - Karelia and Salla as can be seen below.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLv85lisz8UxwgKPe5mWiVYYql_2Het4jzIouuBZjk1q954YiKbasdZeHbcOsmr1ye00DN8TKxAFBvvXOTxWGPETWczNqsVRevp-kPBRCLldlq5Un7F4bq9UFUGNa2LgErodrCXlnqdQ/s1600/800px-Ribbentrop-Molotov%255B1%255D.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" h5="true" height="464" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLv85lisz8UxwgKPe5mWiVYYql_2Het4jzIouuBZjk1q954YiKbasdZeHbcOsmr1ye00DN8TKxAFBvvXOTxWGPETWczNqsVRevp-kPBRCLldlq5Un7F4bq9UFUGNa2LgErodrCXlnqdQ/s640/800px-Ribbentrop-Molotov%255B1%255D.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
Since Hitler's first country of choice to invade was Poland, he did not want opposition from the Soviet Union at this stage of his overall plan. Hitler was allowed to expand the German borders as he wished within Eastern Europe which later included invasions of Hungary, Romania and Greece.<br />
<br />
The pact was a treaty of convenience for both parties. Stalin wanted the UK and the US to agree to his wish to annex the Baltic States, but since they would not, he decided it would be better to have a peace treaty with Germany for the meantime until the Allies (in 1939 the "Allies" consisted of the UK, France and the US, even though the US had not officially gone to war yet) were more willing to see things his way.<br />
<br />
Another aspect of this treaty with Germany was that the NKVD met with the Gestapo on several occasions in Poland and helped train the SS on tactics for killing large numbers of captives at one time. It is well known that the Gestapo itself was founded in the image of the NKVD by German officers who had trained in the Soviet Union and many other tactics for dealing with rebels and "undesirables" (or as the Soviets termed them, "bandits") because high ranking members of the Gestapo noticed during their collaboration with the NKVD on border areas that the NKVD was far more efficient and effective in carrying out Stalin's murderous plans. It was not uncommon for NKVD officers to capture German Jews who fled from Germany and across the border into a Soviet Sphere of Influence and then turn them over to members of the Gestapo.<br />
<br />
Perhaps the most disturbing result of the pact pertained to Poland and the officers and soldiers who fought the Germans when they invaded and/or the Soviet Red Army when it began occupying western Poland (see maps above). In 1939, about 180,000 Polish prisoners of war were turned over to the Red Army which divided them up with the regular soldiers being taken to labor camps and the officers and other ranking leaders who fought the Nazi invasion taken to three "special camps." There was a total of approximately 15,000 men placed in camps at Kozelsk (near Smolensk), Starobelsk (near Kharkov), and Ostashkov (Kalinin district). All three camps were under NKVD control and all of the prisoners were subjected to intense interrogations and Soviet propaganda.<br />
<br />
After the USSR reestablished diplomatic ties with the Polish government in exile in London, the Soviets assured the Poles that the prisoners from these three camps would be released and later insisted that they had been released. However, no one outside of the NKVD ever saw any of them again.<br />
<br />
In 1943, German soldiers discovered several mass graves in the Katyn Forest near the Kozelsk camp and the Nazis announced the discovery to the world press. At first, the Stalin and the Polit Bureau remained silent while the Germans announced that all of the 4,400 dead in the mass graves had their hands bound behind them and were each shot in the back of the head. When world leaders began demanding answers the Soviet propaganda machine tried to turn the tables on the Nazis saying that it was the German army that had killed these people and tried to label it as another Nazi atrocity.<br />
<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
In 1946, none of the judges would put blame on either party for the Katyn Massacre, even though the Soviets continued to point the finger at the Nazis. It was not until 1990 that two similar sites of mass graves were found near the other two special camps, and the many years of not knowing for certain who was responsible for all of the killings came to an end in 1992 when then president Boris Yeltsin of the Russian Federation turned over documents to the Polish government proving beyond all doubt that the 15,000 people had been executed under Stalin's orders by the NKVD.</div>
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-fuE_SZ1ZUX7-u-i-rxy_hgi9Wg_YEDL2k-HPQEerFUQdK_fyfFCwsBNpZsjiALRhBxfR-csqJKtc4u8-YsLL_eQHaa-iHn3J_q_lJjJaGtApDArnVIXat8ysro8CAziPq0zIOZGdlA/s1600/300px-Je%25C5%2584cy1%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" h5="true" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-fuE_SZ1ZUX7-u-i-rxy_hgi9Wg_YEDL2k-HPQEerFUQdK_fyfFCwsBNpZsjiALRhBxfR-csqJKtc4u8-YsLL_eQHaa-iHn3J_q_lJjJaGtApDArnVIXat8ysro8CAziPq0zIOZGdlA/s400/300px-Je%25C5%2584cy1%255B1%255D.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red Arny soldiers escorting Polish prisoners to one<br />
of the "special camps"***</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL00GPwLk_7PU3JdxViY4cFl1vLHs8w3FUpGF2b8q3QAL85G-ESojoVcS540F-VWXHnYFr5Y1P6eZQ7gti8yhnG7pF2TNtbEj8G6so6ChmByNsadu6C88JAUWWQOLbWbhczDODO5U5cw/s1600/422px-%25D0%2594%25D0%25BE%25D0%25BA%25D0%25BB%25D0%25B0%25D0%25B4%25D0%25BD%25D0%25B0%25D1%258F_%25D0%25B7%25D0%25B0%25D0%25BF%25D0%25B8%25D1%2581%25D0%25BA%25D0%25B0_%25D0%25BD%25D0%25B0%25D1%2580%25D0%25BA%25D0%25BE%25D0%25BC%25D0%25B0_%25D0%25B2%25D0%25BD%25D1%2583%25D1%2582%25D1%2580%25D0%25B5%25D0%25BD%25D0%25BD%25D0%25B8%25D1%2585_%25D0%25B4%25D0%25B5%25D0%25BB_%25D0%25A1%25D0%25A1%25D0%25A1%25D0%25A0_%25D0%259B.%25D0%259F._%25D0%2591%25D0%25B5%25D1%2580%25D0%25B8%25D0%25B8_%25D0%2598.%25D0%2592._%25D0%25A1%25D1%2582%25D0%25B0%25D0%25BB%25D0%25B8%25D0%25BD%25D1%2583%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" h5="true" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL00GPwLk_7PU3JdxViY4cFl1vLHs8w3FUpGF2b8q3QAL85G-ESojoVcS540F-VWXHnYFr5Y1P6eZQ7gti8yhnG7pF2TNtbEj8G6so6ChmByNsadu6C88JAUWWQOLbWbhczDODO5U5cw/s400/422px-%25D0%2594%25D0%25BE%25D0%25BA%25D0%25BB%25D0%25B0%25D0%25B4%25D0%25BD%25D0%25B0%25D1%258F_%25D0%25B7%25D0%25B0%25D0%25BF%25D0%25B8%25D1%2581%25D0%25BA%25D0%25B0_%25D0%25BD%25D0%25B0%25D1%2580%25D0%25BA%25D0%25BE%25D0%25BC%25D0%25B0_%25D0%25B2%25D0%25BD%25D1%2583%25D1%2582%25D1%2580%25D0%25B5%25D0%25BD%25D0%25BD%25D0%25B8%25D1%2585_%25D0%25B4%25D0%25B5%25D0%25BB_%25D0%25A1%25D0%25A1%25D0%25A1%25D0%25A0_%25D0%259B.%25D0%259F._%25D0%2591%25D0%25B5%25D1%2580%25D0%25B8%25D0%25B8_%25D0%2598.%25D0%2592._%25D0%25A1%25D1%2582%25D0%25B0%25D0%25BB%25D0%25B8%25D0%25BD%25D1%2583%255B1%255D.jpg" width="281" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The first page of a letter from Beria to<br />
Stalin suggesting the execution of the<br />
Polish prisoners***</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQlL-ZlmOxmzFzzF6iDOP822w63beRdw_GA54v-LohnF8ZYvj_mXLcfub5xMQmXa0XjB4s6CAq7_O1EBDyhNQsyY_hqTu_eqg-c8KTt93lH1_F82B57X8sLGbDtcimvYHDXG7qhyphenhyphensbFQ/s1600/Katy%25C5%2584%252C_ekshumacja_ofiar%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" h5="true" height="451" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQlL-ZlmOxmzFzzF6iDOP822w63beRdw_GA54v-LohnF8ZYvj_mXLcfub5xMQmXa0XjB4s6CAq7_O1EBDyhNQsyY_hqTu_eqg-c8KTt93lH1_F82B57X8sLGbDtcimvYHDXG7qhyphenhyphensbFQ/s640/Katy%25C5%2584%252C_ekshumacja_ofiar%255B1%255D.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bodies found after the excavation of one of the mass graves at Katyn***</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
*<span style="font-size: x-small;"> <u><span style="color: #0066cc;"><a href="http://www.soviethistory.org/index.php?page=article&ArticleID=1939pact1&SubjectID=1939annex&Year=1939">http://www.soviethistory.org/index.php?page=article&ArticleID=1939pact1&SubjectID=1939annex&Year=1939</a></span></u><span style="font-size: x-small;">page=article&ArticleID=1939pact1&SubjectID=1939annex&Year=1939</span></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"></span></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
** <span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo: </span><a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MolotovRibbentropStalin.jpg"><span style="font-size: x-small;">http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MolotovRibbentropStalin.jpg</span></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">
*** <span style="font-size: x-small;">Photos from Wikimedia Commons - public domain</span></div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-87963591422940319832011-02-07T02:39:00.005-06:002015-05-05T14:31:30.168-05:00NKVD and the Great Terror Part I<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div align="center" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Beginnings of the Great Purge/Terror</span></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<span style="font-size: large;">The NKVD, or People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (Russian: <span lang="ru" xml:lang="ru">Народный комиссариат внутренних дел), was created shortly after the 1917 October Revolution, but inherited an overwhelming number of duties from its Imperial predecessor, the MVD. Under Stalin the NKVD was transformed in 1934 for the initial purpose of being both the standard public police/militia and the Soviet secret/political police. The organization was a combination of the MVD, Ministry of Internal Affairs (Russian: МВД or Министерство внутренних дел), and the OGPU, All-Union State Political Directorate (Russian: ОГПУ or Объединённое государственное политическое управление) which was the direct descendant of the Cheka founded by Felix Dzerzhinsky. </span></span></div>
<br />
<span lang="ru" style="font-size: large;" xml:lang="ru">The NKVD from 1936-1938 is infamous as the instrument by which Stalin "purged" the Communist Party, Soviet military and generally anyone who spoke out in opposition to his regime - including some who were quite innocent of the fabricated charges made against them. Stalin gave the NKVD the same powers of arrest, trial and execution that the now subordinate OGPU once had (see No. 5 in decree below). Their main and most feared concept was the <em>troika</em> or three man "extrajudicial" system which was charged with the duty of taking some of the burden off of the standard Soviet judicial system at the time by means of trying those arrested by the infantry units of the NKVD. History has shown that it is unlikely that anyone brought before a<em> troika </em>received anything remotely near a fair trial and were often simply executed in accordance with the "speedy trial" mandate.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The following is a translation of the decree from the Central Executive Committee of the USSR which transformed the NKVD on July 10, 1934 and was originally published in the Soviet Union's official newspaper, <em>Izvestiya</em>:</span><br />
<br />
<div style="font-size: 11px; line-height: 15px;">
<span style="font-size: small;">The Central Executive Committee of the USSR decrees: </span></div>
<div style="font-size: 11px; line-height: 15px;">
</div>
<div style="font-size: 11px; line-height: 15px;">
<span style="font-size: small;">1. To establish the All-Union People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs and to include in it the Unified [All-Union] State Political Department (OGPU). </span></div>
<div style="font-size: 11px; line-height: 15px;">
<span style="font-size: small;"></span> </div>
<div style="font-size: 11px; line-height: 15px;">
<span style="font-size: small;">2. The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs is to be charged with the following duties: Internal ensuring of revolutionary order and security of the State. Internal safeguarding of public (socialist) property. Internal registration of civil acts (registration of births, deaths, marriages and divorces). Internal guarding of frontiers.</span> </div>
<div style="font-size: 11px; line-height: 15px;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span> </div>
<div style="font-size: 11px; line-height: 15px;">
<span style="font-size: small;">3. To form the following departments in the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs: </span></div>
<div style="font-size: 11px; line-height: 15px;">
<ul>
<li><span style="font-size: small;">Chief Administration of Security of the State.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;">Chief Administration of Workers' and Peasants' Police.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;">Chief Administration of Security of frontiers and of order in the country.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;">Chief Administration of Fire Defense.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;">Chief Administration of Correctional and labor camps and labor settlements.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;">Chief Administration of Civil Acts.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;">Internal Administrative and Economic Department.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<span style="font-size: small;">4. To organize, in the allied republics, republican People's Commissariats for Internal Affairs which are to function on the basis of the same Regulations as the All-Union People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs, and to establish in the Russian Soviet Federal Socialist Republic, instead of the republican People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs, the office of Plenipotentiary Representative of the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs of the USSR To organize in autonomous republics, provinces and regions, local departments of the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs of the allied republics.</span> <br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span> <br />
<span style="font-size: small;">5. To abolish the judicial commission of the OGPU. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"></span> <br />
<span style="font-size: small;">6. The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs and its local departments are to hand over the papers regarding criminal offenses which are investigated by them, after the investigation has been completed, to the courts in correspondence with their jurisdiction and in accordance with the existing legal procedure.</span> <br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span> <br />
<span style="font-size: small;">7. Documents relating to cases investigated by the Department of Security of the State in the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs, are to be handed over to the Supreme Court of the USSR, and the papers relating to such crimes as treason, espionage and the like, are to be handed over to the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court of the USSR or to the Military Tribunals according to their jurisdiction. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"></span> <br />
<span style="font-size: small;">8. To form a special Council attached to the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs of the USSR which, in accordance with its Statute, shall have power to issue orders regarding administrative deportation, exile, imprisonment in correctional and labor camps for a term not exceeding 5 years and deportation outside the confines of the USSR.</span> <br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span> <br />
<span style="font-size: small;">9. To instruct the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs of the USSR to present the Statute of the Pan [All]-Union People's </span><span style="font-size: small;">Commissariat for Internal Affairs to the Council of People's Commissariat of the USSR for confirmation. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"></span> <br />
<span style="font-size: small;">President of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR, M. Kalinin Secretary of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR, A. Enukidze*</span> <br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzsT6rpU7xgyFO7S4eR-C1_8YheCSbaDUH_2IOgEDBMfj90lgy5NJMa1OcN2ELJqyl_ut7mbGtriX9E7YT7qknfgjJzrbGf5_NXuBnaPUIUhMlcrKEIyCEVVoj8DKqdMptJDhFENBfog/s1600/Ezhov%255B1%255D.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" h5="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzsT6rpU7xgyFO7S4eR-C1_8YheCSbaDUH_2IOgEDBMfj90lgy5NJMa1OcN2ELJqyl_ut7mbGtriX9E7YT7qknfgjJzrbGf5_NXuBnaPUIUhMlcrKEIyCEVVoj8DKqdMptJDhFENBfog/s200/Ezhov%5B1%5D.png" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nikolai Yezhov, Head of NKVD<br />
from 1936-1938</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT9J5qQ6AeYu3ZwBNFJfIaqCBWmGURHyNao3wO6Km8nYRWN7AaWs-Y7j8U50gdXJ7doGRna8WYcm5FhV1ezg3eCw4zkxw3Ze_lLfigrnxoyrvw5_CDrc8_TYfo4YuRhzqQGXsEDnkDxw/s1600/1936_genrich_grigorijewitsch_jagoda%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" h5="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT9J5qQ6AeYu3ZwBNFJfIaqCBWmGURHyNao3wO6Km8nYRWN7AaWs-Y7j8U50gdXJ7doGRna8WYcm5FhV1ezg3eCw4zkxw3Ze_lLfigrnxoyrvw5_CDrc8_TYfo4YuRhzqQGXsEDnkDxw/s200/1936_genrich_grigorijewitsch_jagoda%5B1%5D.jpg" width="175" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Genrikh Yagoda, head of NKVD<br />
from 1934-1936</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<span style="font-size: large;">The NKVD was given enormous power and at the same time was expected to coordinate the task of manning and operating every aspect of foreign or state security (with the help of the now subordinate OGPU) together with the more mundane duties of running local police and fire departments. Moreover, they were expected to administer the state border guard and the gulag system. Under normal circumstances it is unwise to give this much authority or power to a single organization, but with the leadership Stalin installed at the head of the NKVD (namely Yagoda, Yezhov and Beria) he was content with a false sense of "security" in believing that every charge on the NKVD's long list of duties was being performed to the best or highest possible standards. As a paranoid and delusional despot, Stalin felt more comfortable with being in total control of every aspect of foreign and internal intelligence and security, which also made it easier for him to hunt, find and judge his prey (either indirectly or directly) through orders to the chiefs of the NKVD, particularly Yezhov. In fact, the height of the Purge during 1937-1938 is referred to in Russian history as <em>Yezhovshchina,</em> or literally "Yezhov Regime." When Yezhov was later "purged" himself by Stalin, all traces of his existence were erased from Soviet history, going even so far as to alter photographs which showed Yezhov and Stalin together. The most famous example is below from a photograph where in the original (left) Stalin is walking along the Moscow-Volga Rivers Canal with three of the highest ranking officials of his government: from left, Marshal Kliment Voroshilov, Vyacheslav Molotov and Yezhov on the right. After Yezhov was tried and executed for crimes against the state in 1939, all of the original photos were replaced with the retouched one on the right until 1991. Yezhov was accused of crimes ranging from "incompetence" to "sexual deviancy" to simply treason. Today, best estimates suggest that Yezhov, acting mostly on Stalin's orders, arrested over 1.3 million Soviet citizens. Of these, over 680,000 were executed for "crimes against the state" and the rest were sent into the Gulag system where well over 140,000 died of malnutrition or disease brought about by malnutrition and a weakened state of health.</span><br />
<br />
(Photo source: <a class="external free" href="http://www.tate.org.uk/tateetc/issue8/erasurerevelation.htm" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: #3366bb;">http://www.tate.org.uk/tateetc/issue8/erasurerevelation.htm</span></a>)</div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2LJUNp7xNpPso9sOvnzGfh5D5vYYINGJ6wW_n2h8ZXgOEpbutMncE5a6Q1Qja8BWtGiRmY7RktgwdMnq8UJH07f-uyRegHH0pWtTPHHzSWtokTZAa8NIgn_LaLxkTrqib_xlm5h9qZQ/s1600/The_Commissar_Vanishes_2%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" h5="true" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2LJUNp7xNpPso9sOvnzGfh5D5vYYINGJ6wW_n2h8ZXgOEpbutMncE5a6Q1Qja8BWtGiRmY7RktgwdMnq8UJH07f-uyRegHH0pWtTPHHzSWtokTZAa8NIgn_LaLxkTrqib_xlm5h9qZQ/s320/The_Commissar_Vanishes_2%5B1%5D.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqL5oOyuMQf3ySxQgiTAKYyhmDFflozlFShTcgDPWYvczG3JNkIiGFlKwaIJEodqo_R6ZdL9Q2d2fCtrANJ4UL9N9-u0-3lwjEPCdttXrQobOCte83PhUoEIZRUeAFkZ0Itg1-tfHCRw/s1600/Voroshilov%252C_Molotov%252C_Stalin%252C_with_Nikolai_Yezhov%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" h5="true" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqL5oOyuMQf3ySxQgiTAKYyhmDFflozlFShTcgDPWYvczG3JNkIiGFlKwaIJEodqo_R6ZdL9Q2d2fCtrANJ4UL9N9-u0-3lwjEPCdttXrQobOCte83PhUoEIZRUeAFkZ0Itg1-tfHCRw/s320/Voroshilov,_Molotov,_Stalin,_with_Nikolai_Yezhov%5B1%5D.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzGw5bIOw7BI86DFcXFEHCriEz-2qcRxxeRExAKfsTwk4aFmymbREd_9QJgL0W1fR63Zg2hfjvRdh1yVL15lMnsVdaQG-45qCeSNvue8Gl7zb_tGhRDWIJ0qUfAzuUjrVTjV37L-ISgg/s1600/MarshalBeria%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" h5="true" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzGw5bIOw7BI86DFcXFEHCriEz-2qcRxxeRExAKfsTwk4aFmymbREd_9QJgL0W1fR63Zg2hfjvRdh1yVL15lMnsVdaQG-45qCeSNvue8Gl7zb_tGhRDWIJ0qUfAzuUjrVTjV37L-ISgg/s200/MarshalBeria%5B1%5D.jpg" width="236" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lavrenty Beria, chief of the <br />
NKVD and later MVD from <br />
1938-1953**</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;">Perhaps the most dangerous of all of the chiefs of the NKVD under Stalin was Lavrenty Beria who was a power-hungry man with his own driving aspirations for control of the Soviet Union similar to those of Stalin. After Stalin's death in 1953 and with the NKVD no longer at the helm of the foreign intelligence services since the creation of the People's Commissariat of State Security (NKGB) in 1943, Beria was desperate to regain all of the security services under his NKVD again. In 1946, all People's Commissariats (NKs) were renamed "Ministries" and thus the NKGB became the MGB and the NKVD became the MVD (again). Ironically, it wasn't until after Beria's arrest and Stalin's death in 1953 that the MVD took control of the MGB until 1954 when they were split again and would remain the MVD and KGB. The KGB was abolished in 1991 and replaced by several separate agencies - one dealing with foreign intelligence and many others handling counterintelligence and anti-terrorism within the Russian Federation. The MVD remains under the same name today.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">For more information on the role of Beria in the Stalin administration, see the chapter, "Restructuring the Wartime Security Services" from 19 April 2015 here: http://www.collectingsoviethistory.com/2015/04/restructuring-wartime-security-services.html</span></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<span style="color: lime; font-size: large;"><b>For additional information on the NKVD, Cheka, KGB or other Soviet and Cold War security agencies and subjects, please click on the dates in the column on the right.</b></span><span style="color: lime; font-size: x-large;"> </span></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
*<span style="font-size: x-small;">Source: </span><a href="http://www.soviethistory.org/index.phppage=article&ArticleID=1934nkvd1&SubjectID=1934kirov&Year=1934"><span style="font-size: x-small;">http://www.soviethistory.org/index.phppage=article&ArticleID=1934nkvd1&SubjectID=1934kirov&Year=1934</span></a></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
**<span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo from Wikimedia: </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:MarshalBeria.jpg"><span style="font-size: x-small;">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:MarshalBeria.jpg</span></a></div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-79624321923146721432011-02-03T01:28:00.006-06:002015-05-02T19:46:26.514-05:00A Brief History of the Soviet State Security Services Part II<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Perceived Power</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">As the power of Lenin and the Bolsheviks grew, the former co-socialists from lesser parties such as the Mensheviks, grew jealous and alienated. This was not a matter of delusion or paranoia on their parts because Lenin's goal was a single, unified socialist/communist political leadership. The Mensheviks and other "right wing" socialist revolutionary groups were eventually considered "enemies of the state" by Stalin and "sanitized" or "eliminated" by means of exile and/or imprisonment for the lucky or execution for for the less fortunate.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuZYI9A2pN3rI0fg1H3O66tRXInbbVpupQ7IH0-YyiSWOZewm3piSD1sBUPG5yMag7h-MeQ4dDbyvzl9QZ20e0OZ5KMEIdwCapDRblF5I1rTKsBRoVklyG2kqS5SCSL8ubDqOAeTzTZQ/s1600/Dzerzhinsky.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuZYI9A2pN3rI0fg1H3O66tRXInbbVpupQ7IH0-YyiSWOZewm3piSD1sBUPG5yMag7h-MeQ4dDbyvzl9QZ20e0OZ5KMEIdwCapDRblF5I1rTKsBRoVklyG2kqS5SCSL8ubDqOAeTzTZQ/s400/Dzerzhinsky.jpg" height="290" s5="true" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">"Felix Dzerzhinsky with Children" (1950) painted by L. Krivitsky</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">long after Dzerzhinsky's death, but while he was still a cult figure</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">for many of the idealistic Communists in the Soviet Union and </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">across the globe. Dzerzhinsky's face appeared almost as often</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">as that of Lenin throughout the entire lifespan of the Soviet Union</span>.</div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">In order to maintain an effective grip over other political parties, no matter how closely they resembled Bolshevism politically, Lenin found that he was unable to accomplish his goal without the "persuasive powers" of the Cheka, which included the power of arrest, trial [term used loosely] and execution without ever really having to answer to anyone since their leader, Felix Dzerzhinsky, was considered by Lenin as one of the heroes of the revolution and was beyond question in his actions. The Cheka was Dzerzhinsky's hand-picked creation designed to suppress internal political threats to the new Bolshevik regime. As these threats grew, or more likely as they were simply recognized despite being ever-present, Dzerzhinsky and the Cheka were granted increasingly significant powers and resources. In a very short time, they were known and feared by the entire population for their ruthless pursuit and elimination of any <em>perceived</em> counter-revolutionary elements. In fact, as the Russian Civil War expanded throughout the country and its territories, Dzerzhinsky was charged with raising an internal army to enforce the Cheka's authority.</span> <br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The word <em>Cheka</em> is an acronym of sorts for the All-Russian Extraordinary Commission for Combating Counter-Revolution and Sabotage. The word "Extraordinary" implies a certain temporary quality to the Cheka that, though its creators may have firmly believed it would be at the time, it evolved many times and even though it was even officially dissolved in 1991, the legacy of the Cheka and the KGB is as active as ever in the government of the Russian Federation. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">"The Commission itself...outlined its duties as follows: To cut off at the roots all counterrevolution and sabotage in Russia; to hand over to the revolutionary court all who are guilty of such attempts; to work out measures for dealing with such cases; and to enforce these measures without mercy. It was necessary to make the foe feel that there was everywhere about him a seeing eye and a heavy hand ready to come down on him the moment he undertook anything against the Soviet Government."* </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">One of the reasons that the state security services of the Soviet Union were so effective whether as the Cheka, the (O)GPU, GUGB, NKGB, MGB or KGB (with a little help from the NKVD/MVD), was the fanaticism of its earliest members and their leadership. It was relatively easy to attract young, bright people to the cause of the Soviet state because so many of the <em>intelligentsia</em> worldwide were drawn to the romanticized notions, ideals and goals presented by the leadership of the Soviet Union. As with the French Revolution, there were numerous sympathizers and members of the working classes - or <em>proletariat</em> - who looked upon the November Revolution as perhaps a better way of life after the end of WWI when the world had lost its innocence on the battlefield. It was not difficult for the Cheka and the GPU/OGPU to persuade or simply recruit citizens of many European countries, particularly in England as spies, or agents provocateur, and it was even less problematic to establish "front" organizations such as the Communist International (Comintern) in countries throughout the world. Granted, not all members of the Comintern were also members of the state security services, but in terms of foreign policy, their goals were the same - eliminate or at least weaken any opposition to the Communist ideals. With idealists who converted to Communism with a fervor such as the Cambridge Five, the Soviets got a significant lead over other countries in the eventual game of "spy versus spy" that we know today. In fact, it was not until several years after WWII that the United States even formed a peacetime foreign intelligence service - the Central Intelligence Service in 1947 with the National Security Act. By then, however, the MGB (soon to be KGB) was already running scores of "illegals" or undercover agents in governments around the world, and in particular in the US and UK.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">In 1922 Lenin proposed a resolution to the Tenth Party Congress that banned all factions within the Communist Party on the grounds that they only weakened the overall effectiveness of the Party. When the resolution was passed, Lenin was free to dictate policy as he felt fit. As the leader of the new country, a union of republics with Russia at the helm, Lenin rose to the status of a superior being especially after his death in 1924 and his cult of personality remained central to Soviet policy and propaganda alike until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. However, starting in 1922, the Cheka was renamed the GPU (State Political Directorate) of the NKVD (People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs) of the RSFSR (Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic) for nearly two years before being converted to the All-Union State Political Directorate which was separate from the NKVD and operated across the entire USSR which was founded in December 1922. Though officially the GPU had fewer powers than the Cheka, losing the power of arrest and trial, the OGPU regained all of the power of the Cheka and then some. The jurisdiction of the OGPU overshadowed all other local or republic level authorities until Stalin had it re-subordinated to the NKVD in 1934.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-nl-sDw_cgvQRJAiKbU3i0CKzsnb5DI1MqUcbCYWAK8zq3HaNiyGp2bnUX8k9axEd_rMgvzH0ztZpAdf4uj60unF_GX595ICXj3lpElWRPTHvxmEVfoCfnZ7XFKvsOFD2tGgLkMWVPg/s1600/GPU2+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-nl-sDw_cgvQRJAiKbU3i0CKzsnb5DI1MqUcbCYWAK8zq3HaNiyGp2bnUX8k9axEd_rMgvzH0ztZpAdf4uj60unF_GX595ICXj3lpElWRPTHvxmEVfoCfnZ7XFKvsOFD2tGgLkMWVPg/s640/GPU2+%25282%2529.jpg" height="640" s5="true" width="464" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">Propaganda poster depicting how the GPU would </span><span style="font-size: small;">strike down </span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-size: small;">"counter-revolutionary saboteurs"</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">When Stalin picked up the reigns of power in 1924, he gradually used and then abused the security services - particularly in 1934 when he combined the NKVD (People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs) and</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the OGPU under a single director that answered to Stalin personally. This "new" section of the NKVD was the GUGB, or Main Directorate of State Security (Russian: <em>Glavnoe Upravlenie Gosudarstvennoi Bezopasnosti</em>). This department lasted from 1934 to 1943 - at which point the Great Patriot War was nearing its most critical phase - and the need for a specific foreign intelligence agency separate from the NKVD was apparent even to Stalin. It was at that point the NKGB (People's Commissariat for State Security) was reformed - having existed a for a short time from February 3 to July 20, 1941. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13px; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 28px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #408641;"><br /></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">The NKVD became Stalin's personal army used to sway the minds of anyone who might have a political opinion that differed from his. The NKVD began what is known as the "Great Purge" or "Great Terror" which lasted from 1936-1938 and cost millions of people their lives, even founding members of the Communist Party and those closest to Stalin, including his own appointed heads of the NKVD - Genrikh Yagoda, then Nikolai Yezhov and finally Lavrenty Beria. All three of these men were the most powerful members of the regime other than Stalin himself, which is perhaps why they did not remain in Stalin's favor for very long (although Beria was arrested and executed shortly after Stalin's death under the lesser known Premier Georgy Malenkov who lost a power struggle two years later in 1955 to Nikita Krushchev). This period of Soviet history and the NKVD abuses of power is regarded by many as the lowest point in terms of ethical and humane treatment of citizens and soldiers alike. An unknown number of millions were arrested and either locked up in asylums as mentally ill or were sent to the rapidly growing number of labor camps or Gulags mostly in Siberia where conditions were such that many did not survive their incarceration. And most unfortunately, a large number of those arrested and tried by NKVD "troikas" (three judge tribunals) were executed at the hands of their captors and often at the direct order of Stalin. It was during these two years prior to the Soviet Union's involvement in WWII that nearly everyone lived in fear of being arrested by the secret police (NKVD) in the middle of the night and taken from their families only to be interrogated, tortured and otherwise coerced into making "confessions" of their crimes against the state, and either executed or exiled. The threat was real and citizens were encouraged to report suspicious behaviors of their neighbors, friends and families, and sometimes this was done as a sort of preemptive strike to divert the NKVD's attention away from themselves. Everyone lived in a constant state of fear of undercover NKVD agents and even their fellow citizens who might report them if they said the wrong thing, even as a joke. This level of paranoia and terror was so intense that to this day residents of the thousands of apartment buildings in Moscow keep an eye on each other and telephone operators are encouraged to listen in on private conversations and report any conversations of a suspicious or illegal nature, often with a monetary reward for doing so.</span></span><br />
<br />
*Source: James Bunyan and H.H. Fisher, ed., Bolshevik Revolution, 1917-1918; Documents and Materials (Stanford: Stanford University Press; H. Milford, Oxford University Press, 1934), pp. 295-296. <a href="http://www.soviethistory.org/index.php?page=article&ArticleID=1917latsis1&SubjectID=1917security&Year=1917">http://www.soviethistory.org/index.php?page=article&ArticleID=1917latsis1&SubjectID=1917security&Year=1917</a></div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-26193437681522188132010-11-07T23:36:00.328-06:002012-07-17T23:46:58.608-05:00The Road to Revolution<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
One of the greatest weapons in any fight to win over the masses in any country at any time is a well-worded speech, editorial or slogan. Human beings survive on the very notion of communicating some idea or individual concept that they find important and worth sharing. Playing upon this basic need has been the cornerstone of nearly every major political change throughout the history of civilization. The more radical a departure the new ideas are from the ones they are meant to displace, the more necessary it is to sell those ideas as better than the ones they are intended to replace. Without the modern means of information sharing and gathering of the Internet, television or even regular broadcast radio (which would later become the main Soviet means of disseminating propaganda), the only thing the new government officials had were newspapers, pamphlets and the clever use of political posters on the streets of cities, small towns and villages - anywhere "workers and peasants" could be found.<br />
<br />
Russia and its constituent "co-countries" and later republics under the Soviet Union was one of the few remaining regions of the world that had crossed the boundary into the 20th century with a functioning monarchy that kept the society in a duality of wealth and power - one small group had both while hundreds of millions were disillusioned, starving and desperate for some kind of change, a hope that the next day would not be their last. There had never been a significant "middle class" in Russia, and for over 300 years only merchants, high-ranking "professional" military officers, members of the Russian Orthodox Church and others who profited in some small way by the grace or goodwill of the Romanov family ever knew anything but poverty and a life dependent upon the monarchy for survival. <br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdfqS-GruPUEwxQXmBoV16qk_L_CowPfUalDVhwx7WB7uc5sFMGXmUy3swOCuS-bcRPDZ8-2rDDtAC3ALEtrvMxiH3MPvArjAovKw9Yi17P1m8r6ToXwNJFW3Rj45LR7-yArgfsAmNGw/s1600/RUSU1270%5B2%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="483" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdfqS-GruPUEwxQXmBoV16qk_L_CowPfUalDVhwx7WB7uc5sFMGXmUy3swOCuS-bcRPDZ8-2rDDtAC3ALEtrvMxiH3MPvArjAovKw9Yi17P1m8r6ToXwNJFW3Rj45LR7-yArgfsAmNGw/s640/RUSU1270%5B2%5D.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div>
Who Is Against the Soviets? Down with the Soviets! "Proletariat of the World, unite!" In this poster issued by the state press, it is obvious who would be against the soviets: the officer, the banker, the priest and the merchant.</div>
<div class="source">
<div class="txt11 bold">
Source:</div>
<div class="txt11">
<div class="txtc00 noul" onclick="window.open('http://hoohila.stanford.edu/poster/')" style="cursor: pointer;">
<span class="iconOpenNewWin noul"><img 0?="" height="11" src="http://www.soviethistory.org/images/iconOpenNewWin.gif" width="12" /></span> <span class="ul"><i>Hoover Political Poster Database</i>. 2007</span></div>
</div>
</div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div style="border: currentColor;">
Intellectual unrest had been spreading throughout Europe for much of the 19th century with Friedrich Engels and Karl Marx organizing workers into early unions in Germany during the 1840s under their theories of communism as a means for everyone to live together on an equal footing while still producing the necessary goods and services to maintain a functioning society. The now famous <em>Communist Manifesto</em> was published in 1848 and was one of the basic tenets of the founding of the Soviet Union. Looking back it is easy to see that such a Utopian existence is unobtainable at our current stage of human development; however, at the time, the have-nots of European society were at the point where they could at least entertain any notions that involved them being outside of the lives they were subjected to. </div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
Since the start of the 20th century the Russian people were in the throes of an economic depression that was only worsened by expansionist policies of the tsar's government. As a result of attempts to gain dominion over regions in the Far East in 1904, Nicholas II went to war with Japan over contested areas in China (Manchuria) and Korea since both empires were trying to dominate the same territories. The Russo-Japanese War did not end until September 1905 but was years in the making. The political unrest among the people was only aggravated by this war that had no bearing on their lives as ordinary citizens. In January of 1905, workers from a factory in St. Petersburg which minted many of the military orders awarded to officers fighting the war, went on strike over working conditions. Other workers throughout the city joined the strike until over 80,000 people were not at their jobs which eventually resulted in the capital city going without electricity in the middle of winter. Finally, a peaceful protest march was organized by a Russian Orthodox priest on behalf of the striking workers in St. Petersburg. He had drawn up a petition of fair labor demands and was leading the march of about 300,000 protesters to the Winter Palace to present this petition to the tsar (though ironically he was not in the palace at the time) when the protesters were met by a cordon of armed soldiers lined up in front of the palace. According to most reports of the event, the soldiers first fired a warning volley into the air, then took aim on the protesters. Official estimates by the government at the time state that 96 people were killed and 333 were wounded, but more likely estimates put the number of killed or wounded after the day's events at about 1000. </div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGg9weZLaMEsycWLv1w6as54MjZvpYaxygTSoUdRR3mEBIVIBfJzBqGZ7AKb3v8Mm1fZ7LQDFxZLGgh-RJDYeEvJGPH_AZs-s5110r_OBexZCCnTXhJcDMt6OA2X77BD0xEDhNl-Qk1g/s1600/BloodySunday1905%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGg9weZLaMEsycWLv1w6as54MjZvpYaxygTSoUdRR3mEBIVIBfJzBqGZ7AKb3v8Mm1fZ7LQDFxZLGgh-RJDYeEvJGPH_AZs-s5110r_OBexZCCnTXhJcDMt6OA2X77BD0xEDhNl-Qk1g/s1600/BloodySunday1905%255B1%255D.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Russian Imperial soldiers lined up outside the Winter Palace ready to shoot at protesters on "Bloody Sunday" <br />
From Wikimedia Commons<br />
<br />
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">For more on the events of the "Bloody Sunday" Revolution, see the brief synopsis at: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><a href="http://www.cusd.chico.k12.ca.us/~bsilva/projects/russia/Nick_II/BloodySunday.htm">http://www.cusd.chico.k12.ca.us/~bsilva/projects/russia/Nick_II/BloodySunday.htm</a></span></span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-19182379064835027362010-11-02T00:29:00.003-05:002012-09-02T18:35:07.234-05:00A Brief History of the Soviet State Security Services<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: large;">Part I</span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Shortly after the revolution that spawned the creation of the Soviet Union a state security service was created to maintain power for the new regime and combat its enemies, real and perceived. Since the newly formed Soviet Union had no legitimacy as a governing body based on popular support of the people it purported to lead, the self-declared leadership realized the essential necessity of a powerful, politically based state security system. The entire system of self-preservation of Bolshevik authority included several elements such as a standard internal police force, judicial and prosecutorial bodies and an overall state security structure which included political/secret police as well as a foreign intelligence and external security organizations. The first such state security organization was the Cheka and was initially created by Vladimir Lenin as a temporary necessity which he believed would become obsolete as soon as the Soviet citizenry were fully organized under the new government.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The simple facts were the following: </span></span></div>
<ul>
<li><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Lenin and the other Bolsheviks seized power from the provisional government, and were not elected by a popular vote, or in fact any vote at all;</span></span></div>
</li>
<li><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Because the Bolsheviks had no means of maintaining power in a period of political flux and bitter disgust with the Imperial Russian leadership when many liberal political parties and other groups were competing for leadership of Russia and its many republics and vast territories, staying in power was perhaps more difficult than achieving it; </span></span></div>
</li>
<li><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Despite Lenin's alleged initial hesitation regarding the need for a secret political police, he agreed rather readily to its creation at the behest of advisers and others close to him;</span></span></div>
</li>
<li><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">The Cheka was created as a temporary organization and was touted as an unpleasant necessity by the Bolshevik leadership who announced that the Cheka would be disbanded as soon as the political and social situation had settled down and the "enemies of the state and its people" had been routed from the country;</span></span></div>
</li>
<li><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">The number of these so-called enemies of the people grew as the Russian Civil War drew to a close in 1922 and Lenin's New Economic Policy (NEP) had been in effect for about a year, which in itself created many new groups of "class enemies" for Stalin to "purge" when he had assumed power and abandoned an otherwise successful policy as contrary to communist principles in favor of the disastrous collectivisation;</span></span></div>
</li>
<li><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">In the years few years before his death at 53 on 21 January 1924, Lenin used the power of the Cheka more than a few times to crush rebellions, particularly among groups of farmers and communities opposed to the NEP, writing out a number of orders by hand calling for the execution of these rebels;</span></span></div>
</li>
<li><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Shortly after Lenin's death, Joseph Stalin used (abused) the Cheka's offspring, the NKVD as his personal tool to forcibly relocate, imprison, torture and execute tens of millions of Soviet citizens (an exact number has never been objectively determined) mostly for imagined charges dreamed up by Stalin's deranged imagination and reinforced by his paranoid delusions;</span></span></div>
</li>
<li><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Though tempered by future Soviet leaders and finally divided up under new names beginning in 1991, the "temporary" Cheka exists to this day.</span></span></div>
</div>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0QS2g8LVMKP1ChoX5mUQ8jnYaCdlJZtAb7E4whw4qygpebMvTleieP2pFrlMK-mjY8MtNPGTqMxPA63t-7Bti8HHHPb_II-yUmav8cImlhvU71_aJlHdh3DvmXpZ4PSixHWO2ELzbOg/s1600/Felix_Dzerzhinsky_1919%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0QS2g8LVMKP1ChoX5mUQ8jnYaCdlJZtAb7E4whw4qygpebMvTleieP2pFrlMK-mjY8MtNPGTqMxPA63t-7Bti8HHHPb_II-yUmav8cImlhvU71_aJlHdh3DvmXpZ4PSixHWO2ELzbOg/s320/Felix_Dzerzhinsky_1919%5B1%5D.jpg" width="233" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Felix Dzerzhinsky in 1919</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">On December 20, 1917, barely two months after the first days of the October Revolution, the Cheka – an acronym for “the All-Russian Extraordinary Commission for Combating Counter-Revolution and Sabotage” – was established by Lenin and the rest of the new leadership under the rule of the intractable Polish Bolshevik Felix Edmundovich Dzerzhinsky. Born to Polish nobility, Dzerzhinsky was a highly educated individual who became a devout, if not fanatical, Marxist in his youth and joined the Bolsheviks in their earliest endeavors to overthrow the increasingly unpopular Russian Tsarist Imperial regime. With the newly nicknamed “Iron Felix” at its head, the Cheka became the most feared institution in the whole course of the Russian Civil War which continued from 1917 to 1922, and in some respects long after that. In fact, the Cheka (and its subsequent incarnations including the NKVD) became so widely revered throughout Europe for its effectiveness that it eventually had its imitators, the most infamous of which was the Nazi’s Gestapo. Though, as with all imitations, the Gestapo fell far short of the original in terms of achievable goals and success in reaching them.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">P</span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">olitical police in Russia has a long history dating back to Tsar Ivan IV, more commonly known as “Ivan the Terrible,” and his creation of the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Oprichnika</i> in 1565. Ivan’s 6000 member political police got their name because they were formed to enforce Ivan’s will on a portion of Russian territory ruled by the Tsar at the time known as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Oprichnina </i>from the now archaic Russian word meaning “exempt” or “except.” Though the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Oprichnika</i> are historically responsible for the torture and murder of thousands of Russians that included peasants and other nobles alike who opposed Ivan’s will, they were disbanded after only eight years because they were ineffective in achieving political success for Ivan. However, the same name was used by later tsars when they had need of a secret political police. The origin of the name <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Oprichnika </i>is significant because of the foreboding coincidence that the security/political police of the Soviet Union was “exempt” or operated separately from the rest of the government and to some degree outside of the socio-political structure itself. Although the tsarist political police was ruthless and unscrupulous, the Cheka greatly surpassed its predecessors in terms of terror and violence. At the same time, however, it also succeeded where the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Oprichnika</i> failed. The Bolsheviks allowed the Cheka almost unrestricted powers to persecute those who were perceived as “class enemies” or “enemies of the revolution.” As the powers of the Cheka grew and expanded unchecked, for the most part, seemingly more with each new name change, it is relatively easy to see how such a powerful organization could and would eventually be abused under the brutal Stalinist police state. Millions of people were executed or exiled under the purges of the “Great Terror” of the 1930s and 40s by another leader who sought to impose his personal will upon the people he ruled. </span></span></span><br />
<br />
<div style="border: currentColor;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In 1922, the Cheka was reorganized under the title of the State Political Directorate - <em>Gosudarstvennoye Politicheskoye Upravlenie </em>- or GPU. The name was soon changed again to the OGPU - or All-Union State Political Directorate, emphasizing its significant role as the security service for the entire Soviet Union. </span></span></span></div>
</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWWl3u7MzWSMd5_NdZYl-PjzggHKsY-6-iB8rz-WoUsDNL093KCOCCo8Byf5rRoVw6jhU2FBkTLdSkV-2CzrPXq7netvw1PE2ol2acjDsQsXmQMl3sMW6imeQSXI874R3nhSoTqxmNvw/s1600/NKVD1936%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="270" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWWl3u7MzWSMd5_NdZYl-PjzggHKsY-6-iB8rz-WoUsDNL093KCOCCo8Byf5rRoVw6jhU2FBkTLdSkV-2CzrPXq7netvw1PE2ol2acjDsQsXmQMl3sMW6imeQSXI874R3nhSoTqxmNvw/s400/NKVD1936%5B1%5D.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Dzerzhinsky and Chekist Shield in 1938 Moscow parade</span>*<br />
CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING LINK FOR YouTube VIDEO FOOTAGE OF<br />
DZERZHINSKY'S FUNERAL IN MOSCOW:<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aAxgrFz6r8">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aAxgrFz6r8</a> OR CLICK ON<br />
YouTube link: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QtILBeOMYI">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QtILBeOMYI</a><br />
for footage of the full "Blooming Youth Sports Parade"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Dzerzhinsky died in 1926 officially of natural causes, though some historians have questioned this conclusion. Though admired by many and feared by many more while living, Dzerzhinsky achieved a cult-hero status among a significant number of Soviet citizens after his death. This was due in large part to propaganda disseminated by the Soviet state security bodies that continued to evolve and change names until the most renown, the KGB, was officially formed on 1 January 1954 – though this was not the last name change. His statue was a common sight in Red Square until 1991 and even after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Dzerzhinsky is still a symbol of current security organizations in the Russian Federation from the MVD (Ministry of Internal Affairs) to the SVR (Foreign Intelligence Service) and the FSB (Federal Security Service). The last two agencies were originally united under the KGB. The SVR is essentially the former First Chief Directorate (FCD) of the KGB whereas the FSB encompasses the remaining directorates responsible for state security on Russian soil. The FCD is perhaps the most well known aspect of the KGB by anyone who lived outside of the Soviet Union during the Cold War because this is the department under which Soviet spies operated across the rest of the world with a special emphasis on the “Main Adversary” – the code name given to the United States by the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union (the uppermost body of government and the one to which the KGB answered) even before the US had a non-military foreign intelligence service of its own. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This is of course a simplified version of an extremely complex series of dismantling and reassembling of various structures within the KGB after the organization was officially dissolved in 1991 by then Russian President Boris Yeltsin. It is possible that the KGB would still exist basically in its original form had not some of its highest ranking members participated in the attempted coup in August 19-21, 1991. </span></span></div>
Note: The link to the SVR official Russian Federation website is under the list of "Links" in the margin.<br />
* Photo of Felix Edmundovich Dzerzhinsky from Wikimedia Commons public domain images.<br />
<div class="separator" style="border: currentColor; clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5100913278815330751.post-76608030748403887712010-10-25T02:40:00.000-05:002012-07-04T19:07:56.602-05:00The Confusion of 1917 and the "Breadless" Revolution<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">1917 was a tumultuous year for not only Russia, but for much of the rest of what we call the "modern world" as well. World War I was still being fought and would not be officially over until 1918. Since the Germans were the enemy that Russia and its allies were pitted against, the country's capital at the time, St. Petersburg, was given a less Germanic name - Petrograd, roughly its Slavic equivalent - shortly after the war started in 1914 and did not change again until 1924 after Vladimir Lenin died and the city was renamed again in his honor - Leningrad.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">This city is essential to the beginnings of the Soviet Union as the capital of Imperial Russia. Perhaps in 1918 when Lenin, now thoroughly entrenched as the leader of the country, decided to move the capital to Moscow on the premise that Petrograd was in danger of being overrun by German forces, he had other motives as well. As the centuries old political, religious and economic center of Imperial Russia, the city itself stood as a very conspicuous reminder and symbol of the previous government.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">However, it was also the location of the origin of the February Revolution which began on February 23 (Old Style date according to the Julian calendar still in use in Russia at the time - March 8 according to the New Style or Gregorian calendar currently in use), when women celebrating International Women's Day in Petrograd headed protests against food shortages and the comparatively high price of bread. Spurred on by socialist and other revolutionaries waiting for such a chance, the protests grew as mostly working-class women and men swelled the ranks daily, resorting to looting city shops for bread and other food until on March 2 (O.S.), Tsar Nicholas II found it necessary to abdicate his position as leader of Russia. More than 300 years of Romanov rule came to an end and the Provisional Committee of the State Duma took over the political reigns of power. The next day, the Committee issued a proclamation establishing, among other things, the amnesty of all political and religious activists, either imprisoned or wanted by the police. It also abolished the police as it was and created a national militia, but that is another topic for later discussion. Even though the tsar was no longer in power, neither were the Bolsheviks or any single other revolutionary political party - a fact which is often overlooked in Western history classes dealing with this period of time.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">The wretched state of the economy in Russia was heavily blamed by many on World War I and the constant strain the the war put on workers who were forced to supply the military and its numerous soldiers in the field with food, weapons, ammunition and able-bodied young men. The lack of bread for the civilian population was a symbolic part of the revolt against the tsarist regime. In fact, bread prices are still a source of dark humor for many Russians and during the early 1990s were used by the population as a measurement of the rate of runaway inflation throughout the Former Soviet Union (FSU).</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">In the days immediately following the initial February 23 protests, regiment after regiment of the Russian Imperial Army became members of the Red Guard - later the Red Army - as news spread through the ranks that Nicholas and his family had been arrested and imprisoned, but that it was necessary to remain steadfast in their battle against the Germans to maintain the honor of the Russian Army and the people it represented and defended. However, not all of the ranks of the army supported the new provisional government and many were simply loyal to the tsar and the imperial leadership's aristocracy. Therefore, though the fighting of World War I ended in late 1918, Russia and the countries loyal to her remained at war within itself until 1923. Historically, the Russian Civil War started with the abdication of Nicholas II in 1917. However, some sources establish the dates of the Civil War as 1918 through 1921, depending on their definition of who was at war with whom and when exactly one side (the Bolsheviks) had entirely defeated their opposition.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><br /><span style="font-size: large;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Understandably, when there is a war within a war, a certain amount of confusion as to what was occurring both politically as well as socially is expected. But 1917 saw yet another revolution in Russia. This time, it was the one which the Soviet Union proclaimed as its birth on October 25 (O.S. - November 7, N.S.) when the battle cruiser <em>Aurora </em>fired a blank canon round while at dock only a few hundred meters from the Winter Palace which signaled the waiting armed mob made up mostly of workers and peasants to storm the palace where they arrested nearly all of the ministers and other members of the heretofore largely ineffective democratic Provisional Government. The October Revolution was the one celebrated throughout the 73 years of the existence of the Soviet Union, because this was the date Lenin became the new, single leader of the people</span>.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">What is often not known or even taught in many Western countries (including the United States) is that Lenin and the Bolsheviks were not unanimously approved of as the country's new leaders, and in order to maintain his own and his party's position, Lenin agreed to the formation of what was originally intended to be a temporary secret political police - at least that is how historians continue to explain the origin of what would become the most powerful, feared and effective state security agency in the world that has yet to be surpassed. Barely more than a month after the October Revolution began, the "All-Russian Extraordinary Commission for Combating Counter-Revolution and Sabotage," commonly known as the <em>Cheka</em> after the initial letters of its abbreviated Russian title, was established by a decree of Sovnarkom on December 7, 1917, effectively assuming the responsibilities that the Military Revolutionary Committee of the Petrograd Soviet had performed up to that point. The Cheka was the precursor of a succession of formidable Soviet secret police organizations that included the GPU (1922-23), the OGPU (1923-34), the NKVD (1934-43), the MGB (1943-54), and the KGB" (Seigelbaum, Lewis. "1917: State Security," </span><a href="http://www.soviethistory.org/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">http://www.soviethistory.org/</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><br /><span style="font-size: large;"></span></span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">More will keep coming as I have the time...</div>Phillip de Valcourthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04030062674081457283noreply@blogger.com1