Free Territory (Ukraine)
Encyclopedia
The Free Territory , svobodnaya territoriya; or Makhnovia (January 1918 – 1921) was a territory of operation by free soviets and libertarian communes under the protection of the Revolutionary Insurrectionary Army of Nestor Makhno
where an attempt was made to form a stateless anarchist society
in part of the territory of modern Ukraine
during the Ukrainian Revolution
. The area of the Free Territory was inhabited by roughly seven million people. After the fall of the Hetman regime in the Ukrainian State the territory was occupied by the Russian forces of Anton Denikin, forming a temporary government of Southern Russia. By 1920 Denikin's forces were eliminated from the territory by the Red Army
in cooperation with forces of Nestor Makhno whose units were conducting a guerrilla warfare
behind the enemy lines.
As the Free Territory was organised along anarchist lines, references to "control" and "government" are highly contentious. For example, the Makhnovists, often cited as a form of government (with Nestor Makhno being their leader), played a purely military role, with Makhno himself being little more than a well-respected military strategist and advisor.
("The Alarm Drum"), issued five main points: suspension of all political parties
, rejection of all dictatorships (mainly those organizing over people), negation of any State concept, rejection of any "transitory period" or "proletarian dictatorship", and advocated the self-management of all workers through free workers' council
s (soviets). These were in clear contrast to Bolshevik views.
The color that this anarchist group used to distinguish itself was black (the traditional color of anarchism), as that was what its military was considered - as opposed to Tsarist "Whites" and Bolshevik "Reds."
, Alexandrovsk
(now known as Zaporizhia), and Yekaterinoslav (Sicheslav, now Dnipropetrovsk). According to Makhno, "The agricultural majority of these villages was composed of peasants, one would understand at the same both time peasants and workers. They were founded first of all on equality and solidarity of its members. Everyone, men and women, worked together with a perfect conscience that they should work on fields or that they should be used in housework... The work program was established in meetings in which everyone participated. Then they knew exactly what they had to do." (Makhno, Russian Revolution in Ukraine).
According to the leaders of the RIAU, society was reorganized according to anarchist values, which lead Makhnovists to formalize the policy of free communities as the highest form of social justice
. Education was organised on Francesc Ferrer's
principles, and the economy was based on free exchange between rural and urban communities, from crop and cattle to manufactured products, according to the theories of Peter Kropotkin
.
The Makhnovists said they supported "free worker-peasant soviets" and opposed the central government. Makhno called the Bolsheviks dictators and opposed the "Cheka [secret police]... and similar compulsory authoritative and disciplinary institutions" and called for "[f]reedom of speech, press, assembly, unions and the like".
A declaration stated that Makhnovist revolutionaries were forbidden to participate in the Cheka
, and all formal militias and police forces including Cheka-like secret police organizations were to be outlawed in Makhnovist territory. Historian Heather-Noël Schwartz comments that "Makhno would not countenance organizations that sought to impose political authority, and he accordingly dissolved the Bolshevik revolutionary committees". However, the Bolsheviks accused him of having two secret police forces operating under him.
regime, and eventually broke with it by launching surprise attacks on Makhnovist militias despite the pre-existing alliance between the factions. The Bolshevik press alleged that leaders in the "Free Territory", rather than being elected democratically, were appointed by Makhno's military clique. They claimed that Makhno himself had refused to provide food for Soviet railwaymen and telegraph operators, that the "special section" of the Makhnovist constitution provided for secret executions and torture, that Makhno's forces had raided Red Army convoys for supplies, stolen an armored car from Bryansk
when asked to repair it, and that the Nabat
group was responsible for deadly acts of terrorism
in Russian cities. Such allegations were generally unsubstantiated.
Nestor Makhno
Nestor Ivanovych Makhno or simply Daddy Makhno was a Ukrainian anarcho-communist guerrilla leader turned army commander who led an independent anarchist army in Ukraine during the Russian Civil War....
where an attempt was made to form a stateless anarchist society
Society
A society, or a human society, is a group of people related to each other through persistent relations, or a large social grouping sharing the same geographical or virtual territory, subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations...
in part of the territory of modern Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
during the Ukrainian Revolution
Ukrainian War of Independence
The Ukrainian War of Independence was a series of military conflicts between Ukrainian, Anarchist, Bolshevik, the Central Powers forces of Germany and Austria-Hungary, the White Russian Volunteer Army, and Second Polish Republic forces for control of the territory of modern Ukraine after the...
. The area of the Free Territory was inhabited by roughly seven million people. After the fall of the Hetman regime in the Ukrainian State the territory was occupied by the Russian forces of Anton Denikin, forming a temporary government of Southern Russia. By 1920 Denikin's forces were eliminated from the territory by the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
in cooperation with forces of Nestor Makhno whose units were conducting a guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
behind the enemy lines.
As the Free Territory was organised along anarchist lines, references to "control" and "government" are highly contentious. For example, the Makhnovists, often cited as a form of government (with Nestor Makhno being their leader), played a purely military role, with Makhno himself being little more than a well-respected military strategist and advisor.
Establishment
The military role Makhno had adopted in his early years shifted to an organizing one. The first congress of the Confederation of Anarchists Groups, under the name of NabatNabat
The Nabat Confederation of Anarchist Organizations, better known simply as Nabat , was an anarchist organization that came to prominence in Ukraine during the years 1918 to 1920. The area where it held the most influence is sometimes referred to as the Free Territory, though Nabat had branches in...
("The Alarm Drum"), issued five main points: suspension of all political parties
Political Parties
Political Parties: A Sociological Study of the Oligarchical Tendencies of Modern Democracy is a book by sociologist Robert Michels, published in 1911 , and first introducing the concept of iron law of oligarchy...
, rejection of all dictatorships (mainly those organizing over people), negation of any State concept, rejection of any "transitory period" or "proletarian dictatorship", and advocated the self-management of all workers through free workers' council
Workers' council
A workers' council, or revolutionary councils, is the phenomenon where a single place of work or enterprise, such as a factory, school, or farm, is controlled collectively by the workers of that workplace, through the core principle of temporary and instantly revocable delegates.In a system with...
s (soviets). These were in clear contrast to Bolshevik views.
The color that this anarchist group used to distinguish itself was black (the traditional color of anarchism), as that was what its military was considered - as opposed to Tsarist "Whites" and Bolshevik "Reds."
Development and characteristics
From November 1918 to June 1919, the Makhnovists established an anarchist society run by the peasants and workers in Ukraine. The territory that was under their control was approximately between Berdyansk, DonetskDonetsk
Donetsk , is a large city in eastern Ukraine on the Kalmius river. Administratively, it is a center of Donetsk Oblast, while historically, it is the unofficial capital and largest city of the economic and cultural Donets Basin region...
, Alexandrovsk
Zaporizhia
Zaporizhia or Zaporozhye [formerly Alexandrovsk ] is a city in southeastern Ukraine, situated on the banks of the Dnieper River. It is the administrative center of the Zaporizhia Oblast...
(now known as Zaporizhia), and Yekaterinoslav (Sicheslav, now Dnipropetrovsk). According to Makhno, "The agricultural majority of these villages was composed of peasants, one would understand at the same both time peasants and workers. They were founded first of all on equality and solidarity of its members. Everyone, men and women, worked together with a perfect conscience that they should work on fields or that they should be used in housework... The work program was established in meetings in which everyone participated. Then they knew exactly what they had to do." (Makhno, Russian Revolution in Ukraine).
According to the leaders of the RIAU, society was reorganized according to anarchist values, which lead Makhnovists to formalize the policy of free communities as the highest form of social justice
Social justice
Social justice generally refers to the idea of creating a society or institution that is based on the principles of equality and solidarity, that understands and values human rights, and that recognizes the dignity of every human being. The term and modern concept of "social justice" was coined by...
. Education was organised on Francesc Ferrer's
Francesc Ferrer i Guàrdia
Francesc Ferrer i Guàrdia was a Spanish Catalan free-thinker and anarchist....
principles, and the economy was based on free exchange between rural and urban communities, from crop and cattle to manufactured products, according to the theories of Peter Kropotkin
Peter Kropotkin
Prince Pyotr Alexeyevich Kropotkin was a Russian zoologist, evolutionary theorist, philosopher, economist, geographer, author and one of the world's foremost anarcho-communists. Kropotkin advocated a communist society free from central government and based on voluntary associations between...
.
The Makhnovists said they supported "free worker-peasant soviets" and opposed the central government. Makhno called the Bolsheviks dictators and opposed the "Cheka [secret police]... and similar compulsory authoritative and disciplinary institutions" and called for "[f]reedom of speech, press, assembly, unions and the like".
A declaration stated that Makhnovist revolutionaries were forbidden to participate in the Cheka
Cheka
Cheka was the first of a succession of Soviet state security organizations. It was created by a decree issued on December 20, 1917, by Vladimir Lenin and subsequently led by aristocrat-turned-communist Felix Dzerzhinsky...
, and all formal militias and police forces including Cheka-like secret police organizations were to be outlawed in Makhnovist territory. Historian Heather-Noël Schwartz comments that "Makhno would not countenance organizations that sought to impose political authority, and he accordingly dissolved the Bolshevik revolutionary committees". However, the Bolsheviks accused him of having two secret police forces operating under him.
Defeat
The Bolshevik government in Petrograd initially allied with Makhno and considered allowing an independent area for Makhno's libertarian experiment. With all political parties banned in the Free Territory, the Bolsheviks increasingly saw the Makhnovists as a threat to their power, and restarted a propaganda campaign declaring the Free Territory to be a warlordWarlord
A warlord is a person with power who has both military and civil control over a subnational area due to armed forces loyal to the warlord and not to a central authority. The term can also mean one who espouses the ideal that war is necessary, and has the means and authority to engage in war...
regime, and eventually broke with it by launching surprise attacks on Makhnovist militias despite the pre-existing alliance between the factions. The Bolshevik press alleged that leaders in the "Free Territory", rather than being elected democratically, were appointed by Makhno's military clique. They claimed that Makhno himself had refused to provide food for Soviet railwaymen and telegraph operators, that the "special section" of the Makhnovist constitution provided for secret executions and torture, that Makhno's forces had raided Red Army convoys for supplies, stolen an armored car from Bryansk
Bryansk
Bryansk is a city and the administrative center of Bryansk Oblast, Russia, located southwest of Moscow. Population: -History:The first written mention of Bryansk was in 1146, in the Hypatian Codex, as Debryansk...
when asked to repair it, and that the Nabat
Nabat
The Nabat Confederation of Anarchist Organizations, better known simply as Nabat , was an anarchist organization that came to prominence in Ukraine during the years 1918 to 1920. The area where it held the most influence is sometimes referred to as the Free Territory, though Nabat had branches in...
group was responsible for deadly acts of terrorism
Left-wing uprisings against the Bolsheviks
Left-wing uprisings against the Bolsheviks were a series of rebellions and uprisings against the Bolsheviks led or supported by left wing groups including Socialist Revolutionaries, Left Socialist Revolutionaries, Mensheviks, and anarchists. Some were in support of the White Movement while some...
in Russian cities. Such allegations were generally unsubstantiated.
See also
- Revolutionary Insurrectionary Army of UkraineRevolutionary Insurrectionary Army of UkraineThe Revolutionary Insurrectionary Army of Ukraine , popularly called Makhnovshchina, less correctly Makhnovchina, and also known as the Black Army, was an anarchist army formed largely of Ukrainian and Crimean peasants and workers under the command of the famous anarchist Nestor Makhno during the...
- Armed Forces of South RussiaArmed Forces of South RussiaThe Armed Forces of South Russia was formed on the 8th of January 1919, it incorporated many of the smaller formations of the White army in that area under them, including the Volunteer Army ....