THE BLACK HUNDRED in ODESSA (1905-1907) by Ostap Didenko Submitted to Central European University History Department in Partial
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THE BLACK HUNDRED IN ODESSA (1905-1907) By Ostap Didenko Submitted to Central European University History Department In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Supervisor: Professor Alexei Miller Second Reader: Professor Alfred Rieber CEU eTD Collection Budapest, Hungary 2014 Copyright Notice Copyright in the text of this thesis rests with the Author. Copies by any process, either in full or part, may be made only in accordance with the instructions given by the Author and lodged in the Central European Library. Details may be obtained from the librarian. This page must form a part of any such copies made. Further copies made in accordance with such instructions may not be made without the written permission of the Author. CEU eTD Collection i Abstract The thesis deals with history of the Russian right-wing monarchist parties in Odessa (the Russian empire) during 1905-1907. It presents their activities not as a haphazard collection of acts, but as a coherent system rooted into the ways they perceived a situation around. Thus, the thesis offers an analysis of Russian right-wing monarchist ideologists’ in Odessa ideas on a general situation in which the Russian Empire found itself at the early 20th century. That situation, they thought, brought into life the Russian right-wing monarchist parties themselves thereby determining their strategy. I understand by the latter a set of general basic principles to guide oneself in order to achieve broader goals. The thesis also provides an analysis of the Russian right-wing monarchist parties’ activities in Odessa through the prism of their understanding of the immediate circumstances in which they had to act. One of the most important characteristics of the latter was activities of the monarchists’ rivals, who appeared on the political scene of the city much earlier. The thesis shows that a considerable part of the monarchists’ actions was a reaction towards the revolutionaries’ activities and that the monarchists drew upon their rivals’ successful experience of working among the masses. Under the auspices of the local authorities’ they managed to achieve unprecedented successes in that field by using the same methods as the revolutionaries. CEU eTD Collection ii Acknowledgments I am very thankful to Professor Alexei Miller who kindly guided my during the last two years, greatly shaped my thinking and advanced my understanding of a number of historical issues. I am grateful to Professor Miklos Lojko whose academic writing consultation proved to be very helpful for advancing of my critical writing skills. I am very much obliged to Professor Ostap Sereda. He helped me to discover an interesting cultural history prospective upon my research topic. I am very much obliged to Professor Balazs Trencsenyi whose seminars showed me possible points of comparison between the Black Hundred and other European conservative, reactionary and anti-modernist political forces. I am thankful to Professor Constantin Iordachi, who provided me with a perspective of comparison between the Black Hundred and Eastern European fascism in interwar period. I am very grateful to Professor Szabolcs Pogonyi whose seminars significantly advanced my understanding of state of art in contemporary nationalism theories. I am deeply indebted to my parents who never ceased to believe in me. I would like to express an especial gratitude to my dear friend Olga, whose love and warmth helped me to stay positive and optimistic besides many hardships. CEU eTD Collection iii Table of Contents Chapter 1. Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 1 General historical background .............................................................................................................. 2 Problems of Historiography of the Black Hundred and My Research Goals ........................................ 5 Odessa in early 20th century ................................................................................................................. 10 Economy........................................................................................................................................... 10 Population......................................................................................................................................... 12 Ethnicity ........................................................................................................................................... 13 Jews .............................................................................................................................................. 14 Ethnic segregation and animosity................................................................................................. 16 Chapter 2. Russkaya Rech’s monarchist worldview ........................................................................... 22 Russkaya Rech’ .................................................................................................................................... 22 The Present Historical Moment ........................................................................................................... 23 The Revolution of 1905-1907 ............................................................................................................... 25 Odessa .................................................................................................................................................. 30 Chapter 3. The Black Hundred activities ............................................................................................. 33 Rivals of the Black Hundred ................................................................................................................. 33 The Socialist Organizations.............................................................................................................. 33 The Kadets........................................................................................................................................ 37 The Black Hundred in the city .............................................................................................................. 39 The Russian Assembly (RA) ............................................................................................................ 39 The Party of the Legal Order (PLO) ................................................................................................ 41 The Union of Russian People (URP) ............................................................................................... 47 The Odessa Union of Russian Men (OURM) .................................................................................. 53 The Elections .................................................................................................................................... 60 The First State Duma Elections .................................................................................................... 60 The Second State Duma Elections ............................................................................................... 63 The City Duma Elections ............................................................................................................. 67 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................................ 70 Chapter 4. Conclusions .......................................................................................................................... 73 CEU eTD Collection List of abbreviations............................................................................................................................... 79 Appendix ................................................................................................................................................. 80 Bibliography ........................................................................................................................................... 84 iv Chapter 1. Introduction The thesis deals with history of the Russian right-wing monarchist parties in Odessa (the Russian empire) during 1905-1907. It presents their activities not as a haphazard collection of acts, but as a coherent system rooted into the ways they perceived a situation around. Thus, the thesis offers an analysis of Russian right-wing monarchist ideologists’ in Odessa ideas on a general situation in which the Russian Empire found itself at the early 20th century. That situation, they thought, brought into life the Russian right-wing monarchist parties themselves thereby determining their strategy. I understand by the latter a set of general basic principles to guide oneself in order to achieve broader goals. The thesis also provides an analysis of the Russian right-wing monarchist parties’ activities in Odessa through the prism of their understanding of the immediate circumstances in which they had to act. One of the most important characteristics of the latter was activities of the monarchists’ rivals, who appeared on the political scene of the city much earlier. The thesis shows that a considerable part of the monarchists’ actions was a reaction towards the revolutionaries’ activities and that the monarchists drew upon their rivals’ successful experience of working among the masses. Under the auspices of the local authorities’ they managed to achieve unprecedented successes in