Shuliavka Republic

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Early 20th century postcard depicting the Kiev Polytechnic Institute, where the uprising was headquartered.
Early 20th century postcard depicting the Kiev Polytechnic Institute, where the uprising was headquartered.

The Shuliavka Republic (Ukrainian: Шулявська республіка; Russian: Шулявская республика) was an early 20th century worker based quasi-government organization in the city of Kiev, now the capital of Ukraine, whose main task was self-defense.[1] The uprising lasted a total of four days, from December 12–16, 1905 and encompassed the territory of the Shuliavka factory district of Kiev. The Shuliavka Republic came to an end after the protest was put down by the Imperial Russian Army.

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[edit] Uprising

On December 11, 1905, in a sign of support for the December Uprising in Moscow,[2] the Council of Workers' Deputies of Kiev decided to stage a mass uprising. On the next day, all major organizations of the city stopped their operation. The majority of the protesting workers were concentrated in the Shuliavka district of Kiev.

In a couple of hours after the start of the uprising, a "strict revolutionary order" was established.[1][2] Groups of about 150 armed workers were sent to patrol the territory,[2] which was headquartered in the first building of the Kiev Polytechnic Institute.

Shuliavka was declared a workers' republic,[3] where the city-wide protest headquarters and the Council of Workers' Deputies were housed. Workers in the district proclaimed the republic as the sole local authority of Kiev. Among the supporters of the protesting workers were the students and faculty of the Polytechnic Institute.

[edit] Manifest

Monument to the workers of the Shuliavka Republic in Kiev.
Monument to the workers of the Shuliavka Republic in Kiev.

On the first day of the uprising, the Council of Workers' Deputies published their manifest, which proclaimed:

“ Citizens of the Shuliavka republic protest for the abolition of absolute monarchy, for the freedom of speech and assembly, for social services, for amnesty of political prisoners, for a national emancipation of Ukrainians, Poles, and Jews, and other nationalities of the Russian Empire, for the immediate end to the Jewish pogroms, which embarrasses our people. ”

In addition, the workers demanded a pension, normal working conditions, the removal of unnecessary fines, a better medical service, and a system of government protection.[4]

[edit] End

The ongoing conflict between the Bolsheviks and the Mensheviks in the Council and Committee of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party slowed the growth of the uprising.[2]

On December 15, the territory of Shuliavka was surrounded by the Russian Army and local authorities. The police, who, before then usually avoided the area,[5] began mass arrests and confiscated any weapons they found. In all, more than 78 people were arrested.[6] On the next day, the uprising was put down by a 2,000-strong armed force (consisting mainly of gendarmes and Cossack cavalry).[2][3]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Hamm, Michael F. (1993). Kiev: A Portrait, 1800-1917. Princeton University Press, pgs. 216–219. ISBN 0691025851. 
  2. ^ a b c d e Kudrytskyi, A. (1981). Kyiv, Encyclopedic Directory. Kyiv: Ukrainian Soviet Encyclopedia, 705. 
  3. ^ a b Something about Shuliavka (Ukrainian). Old Kiev. Retrieved on 2008-04-19.
  4. ^ Manchuk, Andrei. "In defence of the "Shuliavka republic"", Gazeta po-Kievski, January 19, 2007. Retrieved on 2008-04-19. (Russian) 
  5. ^ Hamm, pg. 217.
  6. ^ Hamm, pg. 219.