Kuban People's Republic
Encyclopedia
The Kuban People's Republic was an anti-Bolshevik
state that comprised the territory of the Kuban
in the modern-day Russian Federation
during the Russian Civil War
.
The republic was proclaimed by the Kuban Rada
on January 28, 1918 and declared its independence on February 16. The Kuban People's Republic would include all territory of the former Kuban Oblast of the Russian Empire
. It was crushed 7 November 1919 and existed for a period of 1 year 9 months.
, the region of the Kuban was a Cossack territory. Like many similar provinces, its demographics constituted several differences from ordinary Russian governorates
(guberniyas). The western regions belonged to the descendants of the Black Sea Cossack Host
from Ukraine in 1792. The southern and eastern regions were made from the Caucasus Line Cossack Host
, descendants of the Don Cossacks
.
Historically, the Kuban Cossacks were formed to guard the Russian borders from the Mountain peoples which caused the Caucasus War that lasted for six decades up until 1860. In addition, during many wars, Cossacks sent large army contingents to fight alongside the Imperial Russian Army
; moreover it was the Kuban Cossacks that made the Tsar's personal bodyguard. In return for such loyalty, they lived free from tax
es in a semi-independent way with various privileges. The military nature of their lifestyle was also mirrored in the administration of the region, where stanitsa
settlements were in place of traditional Russian villages, and had much more autonomy
such as the election of a local Ataman
, or commander.
However, during the reforms of Tsar
Alexander II
, the pacified Kuban Oblast was heavily invested in and extensive peasant migrants from Russian, Armenia
n and Ukrainian
provinces migrated to cultivate the land. The question of land ownership caused extensive friction between the peasants and the Cossacks, and often resulted in the latter's action to ensure its ownership.
in Petrograd, the inefficient Russian Provisional Government
decided to prolong its involvement in the increasingly unpopular First World War
. As a result, the Russian Army began to collapse. The Kuban Cossack units deserted the front lines and returned home to protect their homelands from a threatened Turkish invasion from the South
.
During the Russian Empire, the Kuban was directly administered by an appointed Ataman (Nakaznoy Ataman) directly by the Tsar, usually a skilled non-Cossack general. With the sovereign's abdication, the Kuban governing council, the Kuban Rada
(parliament) in March 1917 proclaimed itself as the sole administration body with intentions to create a military government that would retain control of the Kuban, and on June 17 of that year proclaimed the Kuban People's Republic within the new Democratic Russian Republic
.
From 30 April to 3 May 1917 a meeting took place in Yekaterinodar of Cossacks. It formed a Cossack government—the Kuban Military Council—electing Mykola Riabovil as its head.
With the October Revolution
the people of the Kuban found themselves divided among several groups. The large non-Cossack peasants were infiltrated and influenced by the Bolsheviks and proclaimed a Kuban Soviet Republic
, which dispersed the Council. On February 16, 1918, however, the Kuban Rada
(Council) proclaimed the independence of the Kuban People's Republic from Bolshevik Russia. A few days after the closing of the sessions, the members of the Council voted for a resolution to join the Kuban under a federal structure with Ukraine
under the conservative Skoropadsky
government.
In March 1918, after Lavr Kornilov
's successful offensive, the Kuban Rada was re-established and placed itself under his authority. The Cossacks, formerly loyal to the Russian Empire, supported the White movement
. Yet after the early successes of Kornilov's Volunteer Army
, which rid the Kuban of the Bolsheviks, the front lines moved north into the Don territory
.
This affected the importance of the Rada, and in June 1918 friction began to grow between the head of the leadership and the Cossacks. In particular, the main focal point was between the Chernomortsy and the Lineitsy. The former, disappointed with ineffective attempts of different authorities, pursued a policy of attaining full independence for the Kuban. However, the Lineitsy continued to believe in a re-created Russian state.
grew increasingly dissatisfied with an increasingly isolated Rada. The final sparks came when the Rada first turned towards Ukraine
to enter a federal union
with Hetman
Pavlo Skoropadsky
, and after its downfall, entered into a similar union with the Democratic Republic of Georgia
, whilst its foreign envoys in France
proclaimed independence from Russia. Some Cossacks left the government, and others defected to the Red Army
.
The Kuban National Republic included the Kuban oblast, Stavropol oblast, Terek
, Dagestan
and Chornomoske guberniya). 4 December 1918 at the special session of the Council where the 2nd Constitution was proclaimed, the Kuban National Republic was renamed Kubanskiy krai.
In December 1918, the Rada sent a delegation headed by First Chairman Luka Bych to the 1919 Paris Peace Conference
. By April the delegation put forward its requests for international help for the Kuban as an independent state to be defended from Bolshevism and announced its break from Denikin and refusal to further cooperate in the White Movement
. None of this satisfied the Triple Entente
. The Kuban People's Republic was, however, de jure
recognized by the Ukrainian People's Republic
, German Empire
, Ottoman Empire
, Democratic Republic of Georgia
, and the Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus
.
Denikin, learning of this "back-stabbing" on November 6, 1919, ordered the Rada building to be surrounded, and with the help of Ataman Alexander Filimonov arrested ten of its members, including its premier P. Kurgansky, who was publicly hanged for treason
. Most Cossacks joined Denikin and fought in the ranks of the Volunteer Army. In December 1919, after Denikin's defeat, it became clear that the Bolsheviks would overrun the Kuban, and some of the separatist-minded groups attempted to restore the Rada and to break away from the Volunteer Army and to fight the Bolsheviks in alliance with other independence-striving governments such as the Ukrainian People's Republic
and the Democratic Republic of Georgia
. However, by early 1920 the Red Army
took most of the Kuban, and both the Rada and Denikin were evicted.
as a deceitful "back-stabbing" step at a critical moment during the Russian Civil War
. The act is perceived as one of the important contributions to the ultimate Bolshevik
victory.
Some Ukrainian historians argue that the Kuban People's Republic was an attempt by the Kuban Cossacks
to unite with Ukraine, citing the shifting alliances of the Rada. The last premier of the Republic, Vasil Ivanis, argued that had Pavlo Skoropadsky
acted more decisively, and sent a UNR division led by General Natiev to the Kuban, Ukraine would have become the main nexus of the Anti-Bolshevik movement. Ivanis states that with the aid of the Central Powers they could have easily reclaimed all of Russia, given that Aleksandr Kolchak
would have acted in the same time frame in the East.
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
state that comprised the territory of the Kuban
Kuban
Kuban is a geographic region of Southern Russia surrounding the Kuban River, on the Black Sea between the Don Steppe, Volga Delta and the Caucasus...
in the modern-day Russian Federation
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
during the Russian Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
.
The republic was proclaimed by the Kuban Rada
Kuban Rada
The Kuban Rada was the supreme organisation of the Kuban Cossacks, that represented all the heads of the districts. Its head however, Nakazny Ataman, was appointed by the Tsar directly. After the February Revolution, in April 1917 the Rada proclaimed itself as the supreme administration of the...
on January 28, 1918 and declared its independence on February 16. The Kuban People's Republic would include all territory of the former Kuban Oblast of the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
. It was crushed 7 November 1919 and existed for a period of 1 year 9 months.
Background
During the Russian EmpireRussian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
, the region of the Kuban was a Cossack territory. Like many similar provinces, its demographics constituted several differences from ordinary Russian governorates
Guberniya
A guberniya was a major administrative subdivision of the Russian Empire usually translated as government, governorate, or province. Such administrative division was preserved for sometime upon the collapse of the empire in 1917. A guberniya was ruled by a governor , a word borrowed from Latin ,...
(guberniyas). The western regions belonged to the descendants of the Black Sea Cossack Host
Black Sea Cossack Host
Black Sea Cossack Host , also known as Chernomoriya , was a Cossack host of the Russian Empire created in 1787 in the southern Ukraine from former Zaporozhian Cossacks. In the 1790s, the host was re-settled to the Kuban River...
from Ukraine in 1792. The southern and eastern regions were made from the Caucasus Line Cossack Host
Caucasus Line Cossack Host
Caucasus Line Cossack Host was a Cossack host created in 1832 in the Northern Caucasus. Together with the Black Sea Cossack Host it defended the Caucasus Fortified Defense Line from the inlet of Terek River to the inlet of Kuban River.In 1860 it was split into the Kuban Cossack Host and Terek...
, descendants of the Don Cossacks
Don Cossacks
Don Cossacks were Cossacks who settled along the middle and lower Don.- Etymology and origins :The Don Cossack Host was a frontier military organization from the end of the 16th until the early 20th century....
.
Historically, the Kuban Cossacks were formed to guard the Russian borders from the Mountain peoples which caused the Caucasus War that lasted for six decades up until 1860. In addition, during many wars, Cossacks sent large army contingents to fight alongside the Imperial Russian Army
Imperial Russian Army
The Imperial Russian Army was the land armed force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian army consisted of around 938,731 regular soldiers and 245,850 irregulars . Until the time of military reform of Dmitry Milyutin in...
; moreover it was the Kuban Cossacks that made the Tsar's personal bodyguard. In return for such loyalty, they lived free from tax
Tax
To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...
es in a semi-independent way with various privileges. The military nature of their lifestyle was also mirrored in the administration of the region, where stanitsa
Stanitsa
Stanitsa is a village inside a Cossack host . Stanitsas were the primary unit of Cossack hosts.Historically, the stanitsa was a unit of economic and political organisation of the Cossack peoples primarily in the southern regions of the Russian Empire.Much of the land was held in common by the...
settlements were in place of traditional Russian villages, and had much more autonomy
Autonomy
Autonomy is a concept found in moral, political and bioethical philosophy. Within these contexts, it is the capacity of a rational individual to make an informed, un-coerced decision...
such as the election of a local Ataman
Ataman
Ataman was a commander title of the Ukrainian People's Army, Cossack, and haidamak leaders, who were in essence the Cossacks...
, or commander.
However, during the reforms of Tsar
Tsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
Alexander II
Alexander II of Russia
Alexander II , also known as Alexander the Liberator was the Emperor of the Russian Empire from 3 March 1855 until his assassination in 1881...
, the pacified Kuban Oblast was heavily invested in and extensive peasant migrants from Russian, Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
n and Ukrainian
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...
provinces migrated to cultivate the land. The question of land ownership caused extensive friction between the peasants and the Cossacks, and often resulted in the latter's action to ensure its ownership.
February Revolution
After the February RevolutionFebruary Revolution
The February Revolution of 1917 was the first of two revolutions in Russia in 1917. Centered around the then capital Petrograd in March . Its immediate result was the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II, the end of the Romanov dynasty, and the end of the Russian Empire...
in Petrograd, the inefficient Russian Provisional Government
Russian Provisional Government
The Russian Provisional Government was the short-lived administrative body which sought to govern Russia immediately following the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II . On September 14, the State Duma of the Russian Empire was officially dissolved by the newly created Directorate, and the country was...
decided to prolong its involvement in the increasingly unpopular First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. As a result, the Russian Army began to collapse. The Kuban Cossack units deserted the front lines and returned home to protect their homelands from a threatened Turkish invasion from the South
Middle Eastern theatre of World War I
The Middle Eastern theatre of World War I was the scene of action between 29 October 1914, and 30 October 1918. The combatants were the Ottoman Empire, with some assistance from the other Central Powers, and primarily the British and the Russians among the Allies of World War I...
.
During the Russian Empire, the Kuban was directly administered by an appointed Ataman (Nakaznoy Ataman) directly by the Tsar, usually a skilled non-Cossack general. With the sovereign's abdication, the Kuban governing council, the Kuban Rada
Kuban Rada
The Kuban Rada was the supreme organisation of the Kuban Cossacks, that represented all the heads of the districts. Its head however, Nakazny Ataman, was appointed by the Tsar directly. After the February Revolution, in April 1917 the Rada proclaimed itself as the supreme administration of the...
(parliament) in March 1917 proclaimed itself as the sole administration body with intentions to create a military government that would retain control of the Kuban, and on June 17 of that year proclaimed the Kuban People's Republic within the new Democratic Russian Republic
Russian Republic
The Russian Republic was a short-lived political entity occupying the territory of the former Russian Empire during the 1917 struggle for power that ended with the October Revolution and the establishment the Soviet regime...
.
Independent Kuban National Republic
With the October Revolution
October Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
the people of the Kuban found themselves divided among several groups. The large non-Cossack peasants were infiltrated and influenced by the Bolsheviks and proclaimed a Kuban Soviet Republic
Kuban Soviet Republic
The Kuban Soviet Republic was part of the Russian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic within the general territory of the Kuban. Its capital was Yekaterinodar.It was merged into the Kuban-Black Sea Soviet Republic on May 30, 1918....
, which dispersed the Council. On February 16, 1918, however, the Kuban Rada
Kuban Rada
The Kuban Rada was the supreme organisation of the Kuban Cossacks, that represented all the heads of the districts. Its head however, Nakazny Ataman, was appointed by the Tsar directly. After the February Revolution, in April 1917 the Rada proclaimed itself as the supreme administration of the...
(Council) proclaimed the independence of the Kuban People's Republic from Bolshevik Russia. A few days after the closing of the sessions, the members of the Council voted for a resolution to join the Kuban under a federal structure with 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...
under the conservative Skoropadsky
Pavlo Skoropadsky
Pavlo Petrovych Skoropadskyi 3 May 1873, Wiesbaden, Germany – 26 April 1945, Metten monastery clinic, Bavaria, Germany) was a Ukrainian politician, earlier an aristocrat and decorated Imperial Russian Army general...
government.
In March 1918, after Lavr Kornilov
Lavr Kornilov
Lavr Georgiyevich Kornilov was a military intelligence officer, explorer, and general in the Imperial Russian Army during World War I and the ensuing Russian Civil War...
's successful offensive, the Kuban Rada was re-established and placed itself under his authority. The Cossacks, formerly loyal to the Russian Empire, supported the White movement
White movement
The White movement and its military arm the White Army - known as the White Guard or the Whites - was a loose confederation of Anti-Communist forces.The movement comprised one of the politico-military Russian forces who fought...
. Yet after the early successes of Kornilov's Volunteer Army
Volunteer Army
The Volunteer Army was an anti-Bolshevik army in South Russia during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1920....
, which rid the Kuban of the Bolsheviks, the front lines moved north into the Don territory
Don Cossacks
Don Cossacks were Cossacks who settled along the middle and lower Don.- Etymology and origins :The Don Cossack Host was a frontier military organization from the end of the 16th until the early 20th century....
.
This affected the importance of the Rada, and in June 1918 friction began to grow between the head of the leadership and the Cossacks. In particular, the main focal point was between the Chernomortsy and the Lineitsy. The former, disappointed with ineffective attempts of different authorities, pursued a policy of attaining full independence for the Kuban. However, the Lineitsy continued to believe in a re-created Russian state.
Russian Civil War
As the populace was already discontent with past struggles over land, the idea of a future Cossack state was unsuitable to many. Anton Ivanovich DenikinAnton Ivanovich Denikin
Anton Ivanovich Denikin was Lieutenant General of the Imperial Russian Army and one of the foremost generals of the White movement in the Russian Civil War.- Childhood :...
grew increasingly dissatisfied with an increasingly isolated Rada. The final sparks came when the Rada first turned towards 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...
to enter a federal union
Federal union
In politics, a federal union is any organization of states or other entities that unite under a federalist system. Usually a federal union will action jointly in matters of defense and foreign relations, with individual states having independence in local matters. Examples of federal unions include...
with Hetman
Hetman
Hetman was the title of the second-highest military commander in 15th- to 18th-century Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which together, from 1569 to 1795, comprised the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, or Rzeczpospolita....
Pavlo Skoropadsky
Pavlo Skoropadsky
Pavlo Petrovych Skoropadskyi 3 May 1873, Wiesbaden, Germany – 26 April 1945, Metten monastery clinic, Bavaria, Germany) was a Ukrainian politician, earlier an aristocrat and decorated Imperial Russian Army general...
, and after its downfall, entered into a similar union with the Democratic Republic of Georgia
Democratic Republic of Georgia
The Democratic Republic of Georgia , 1918–1921, was the first modern establishment of a Republic of Georgia.The DRG was created after the collapse of the Russian Empire that began with the Russian Revolution of 1917...
, whilst its foreign envoys in France
French Third Republic
The French Third Republic was the republican government of France from 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed due to the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, to 1940, when France was overrun by Nazi Germany during World War II, resulting in the German and Italian occupations of France...
proclaimed independence from Russia. Some Cossacks left the government, and others defected to 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...
.
The Kuban National Republic included the Kuban oblast, Stavropol oblast, Terek
Terek
The Terek River is a major river in the Northern Caucasus, flowing through Georgia and Russia into the Caspian Sea. It rises in Georgia near the juncture of the The Greater Caucasus Mountain Range and the Khokh Range, to the southwest of Mount Kazbek, then flows north through North Ossetia and...
, Dagestan
Dagestan
The Republic of Dagestan is a federal subject of Russia, located in the North Caucasus region. Its capital and the largest city is Makhachkala, located at the center of Dagestan on the Caspian Sea...
and Chornomoske guberniya). 4 December 1918 at the special session of the Council where the 2nd Constitution was proclaimed, the Kuban National Republic was renamed Kubanskiy krai.
In December 1918, the Rada sent a delegation headed by First Chairman Luka Bych to the 1919 Paris Peace Conference
Paris Peace Conference, 1919
The Paris Peace Conference was the meeting of the Allied victors following the end of World War I to set the peace terms for the defeated Central Powers following the armistices of 1918. It took place in Paris in 1919 and involved diplomats from more than 32 countries and nationalities...
. By April the delegation put forward its requests for international help for the Kuban as an independent state to be defended from Bolshevism and announced its break from Denikin and refusal to further cooperate in the White Movement
White movement
The White movement and its military arm the White Army - known as the White Guard or the Whites - was a loose confederation of Anti-Communist forces.The movement comprised one of the politico-military Russian forces who fought...
. None of this satisfied the Triple Entente
Triple Entente
The Triple Entente was the name given to the alliance among Britain, France and Russia after the signing of the Anglo-Russian Entente in 1907....
. The Kuban People's Republic was, however, de jure
De jure
De jure is an expression that means "concerning law", as contrasted with de facto, which means "concerning fact".De jure = 'Legally', De facto = 'In fact'....
recognized by the Ukrainian People's Republic
Ukrainian People's Republic
The Ukrainian People's Republic or Ukrainian National Republic was a republic that was declared in part of the territory of modern Ukraine after the Russian Revolution, eventually headed by Symon Petliura.-Revolutionary Wave:...
, German Empire
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
, Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, Democratic Republic of Georgia
Democratic Republic of Georgia
The Democratic Republic of Georgia , 1918–1921, was the first modern establishment of a Republic of Georgia.The DRG was created after the collapse of the Russian Empire that began with the Russian Revolution of 1917...
, and the Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus
Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus
The Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus was a short-lived state situated in the Northern Caucasus...
.
Denikin, learning of this "back-stabbing" on November 6, 1919, ordered the Rada building to be surrounded, and with the help of Ataman Alexander Filimonov arrested ten of its members, including its premier P. Kurgansky, who was publicly hanged for treason
Treason
In law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason and treason against a...
. Most Cossacks joined Denikin and fought in the ranks of the Volunteer Army. In December 1919, after Denikin's defeat, it became clear that the Bolsheviks would overrun the Kuban, and some of the separatist-minded groups attempted to restore the Rada and to break away from the Volunteer Army and to fight the Bolsheviks in alliance with other independence-striving governments such as the Ukrainian People's Republic
Ukrainian People's Republic
The Ukrainian People's Republic or Ukrainian National Republic was a republic that was declared in part of the territory of modern Ukraine after the Russian Revolution, eventually headed by Symon Petliura.-Revolutionary Wave:...
and the Democratic Republic of Georgia
Democratic Republic of Georgia
The Democratic Republic of Georgia , 1918–1921, was the first modern establishment of a Republic of Georgia.The DRG was created after the collapse of the Russian Empire that began with the Russian Revolution of 1917...
. However, by early 1920 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...
took most of the Kuban, and both the Rada and Denikin were evicted.
Legacy
Both Soviet and later contemporary Russian historians viewed the decision of the Kuban People's Republic to break with the White MovementWhite movement
The White movement and its military arm the White Army - known as the White Guard or the Whites - was a loose confederation of Anti-Communist forces.The movement comprised one of the politico-military Russian forces who fought...
as a deceitful "back-stabbing" step at a critical moment during the Russian Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
. The act is perceived as one of the important contributions to the ultimate Bolshevik
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
victory.
Some Ukrainian historians argue that the Kuban People's Republic was an attempt by the Kuban Cossacks
Kuban Cossacks
Kuban Cossacks or Kubanians are Cossacks who live in the Kuban region of Russia. Most of the Kuban Cossacks are of descendants of two major groups who were re-settled in the Western Northern Caucasus during the Caucasus War in the late 18th century...
to unite with Ukraine, citing the shifting alliances of the Rada. The last premier of the Republic, Vasil Ivanis, argued that had Pavlo Skoropadsky
Pavlo Skoropadsky
Pavlo Petrovych Skoropadskyi 3 May 1873, Wiesbaden, Germany – 26 April 1945, Metten monastery clinic, Bavaria, Germany) was a Ukrainian politician, earlier an aristocrat and decorated Imperial Russian Army general...
acted more decisively, and sent a UNR division led by General Natiev to the Kuban, Ukraine would have become the main nexus of the Anti-Bolshevik movement. Ivanis states that with the aid of the Central Powers they could have easily reclaimed all of Russia, given that Aleksandr Kolchak
Aleksandr Kolchak
Aleksandr Vasiliyevich Kolchak was a Russian naval commander, polar explorer and later - Supreme ruler . Supreme ruler of Russia , was recognized in this position by all the heads of the White movement, "De jure" - Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, "De facto" - Entente States...
would have acted in the same time frame in the East.