Tatar Union of the Godless
Encyclopedia
The Tatar Union of the Godless was an atheist political group in the Soviet Union
, specifically in the territory nowadays known as Tataristan, consisting mainly of Muslim
socialists and intellectual
s. It was part of the Society of the Godless, an organisation which existed from 1925 to 1947. Its demands for greater Tatar autonomy within the USSR came into conflict with the advocates of a federal system grouped around Joseph Stalin
. In 1928, the leaders of the Tatar Union of the Godless were arrested, stripped of Bolshevik Party
membership, and some sentenced to death, although the sentences were dropped or commuted in 1930. The Tatar Union was renamed the "Tatar Union of the Militant Godless" along with the rest of the Society of the Godless following Stalin's ban on religion
in 1929. The disgraced leaders of the Tatar Union continued to live as Soviet citizens, albeit in enforced political obscurity, until the purges of 1937
, when Mirza Sultan-Galiev
and other Tatar Bolsheviks and intellectuals were swept up and subsequently executed. In 1947 the Tatar Union of the Militant Godless, which had long ceased to independently represent the Central Asia
n socialist intelligentsia, was subsumed along with the Society of which it was a part into "Znaniye" (Knowledge), a general bureau of state propaganda
.
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, specifically in the territory nowadays known as Tataristan, consisting mainly of Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
socialists and intellectual
Intellectual
An intellectual is a person who uses intelligence and critical or analytical reasoning in either a professional or a personal capacity.- Terminology and endeavours :"Intellectual" can denote four types of persons:...
s. It was part of the Society of the Godless, an organisation which existed from 1925 to 1947. Its demands for greater Tatar autonomy within the USSR came into conflict with the advocates of a federal system grouped around Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
. In 1928, the leaders of the Tatar Union of the Godless were arrested, stripped of Bolshevik Party
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....
membership, and some sentenced to death, although the sentences were dropped or commuted in 1930. The Tatar Union was renamed the "Tatar Union of the Militant Godless" along with the rest of the Society of the Godless following Stalin's ban on religion
State atheism
State atheism is the official "promotion of atheism" by a government, sometimes combined with active suppression of religious freedom and practice...
in 1929. The disgraced leaders of the Tatar Union continued to live as Soviet citizens, albeit in enforced political obscurity, until the purges of 1937
Great Purge
The Great Purge was a series of campaigns of political repression and persecution in the Soviet Union orchestrated by Joseph Stalin from 1936 to 1938...
, when Mirza Sultan-Galiev
Mirsäyet Soltangäliev
Sultan Galiev , usually known in English as Mirza Sultan-Galiev, was a Tatar Bolshevik who rose to prominence in the Russian Communist Party in the early 1920s...
and other Tatar Bolsheviks and intellectuals were swept up and subsequently executed. In 1947 the Tatar Union of the Militant Godless, which had long ceased to independently represent the Central Asia
Central Asia
Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...
n socialist intelligentsia, was subsumed along with the Society of which it was a part into "Znaniye" (Knowledge), a general bureau of state propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
.