Baltic Defence Review 2/1999 Uprising of December 1, 1924 Hannes Walter international company, among whom the ciples. The Red Army was not just the army Russians formed an insignificant minor- of Soviet Russia but officially the armed 1. General ity, used Russian resources carelessly in vanguard of the world proletarians, i.e. background their own interests. In 1922 Soviet Russia the instrument for conducting the world was renamed to the Soviet Union that revolution. The leadership and structure Starting from November 7, 1917 the officially was defined as the homeland of the Red Army were formed according Russian Communist (Bolshevik) Party of the world proletarians. Among 550 to that principle. In the higher command seized power in Petrograd by overthrow. members of Central Committee of the the Russians were a minority. Until 1925 The communists unhidden final goal was Communist Party there were only 30 the Peoples Commissar of Military Af- the world revolution or in other words, Russians in 1922 (even the Latvians with fairs (Minister) was a Jew Lev Trotski (with - establishing supreme power in the whole 34 representatives outnumbered them). the right name Leib Bronstein) and the world. In spite of the fact that Soviet Until signing the Versailles peace on Supreme Commander of the Red Army a Russia became the base of communism June 28, 1919 the communist leadership Latvian Jukums Vacietis. In the structure and the party ruling the country in dic- attempted to carry out the world revolu- of the Red Army national units were tatorial manner called itself the Russian tion primarily with help of direct mili- formed from communists and their com- Communist Party, the slogans of the tary aggression using the splitting of Eu- miserates originating from different coun- world revolution and internationalism rope. Instead of the former Russian army, tries. At the point of the overthrow in were not at first the cover of Russian ex- the Red Army as a main impact force was November 1917 there were 4 million for- pansion. On the contrary, a variegated formed on the basis of ideological prin- eigners in the area of the Russian empire. 129 Baltic Defence Review 2/1999 Half of them were prisoners of war. The of world revolution. Instead of direct dition a whole group of sub- and phan- other half was made up of migrate work- military aggression it was decided to use tom organisations were established.1 ers mainly from China and Persia (Iran), the way of indirect military aggression The Comintern coordinated its activi- who were brought to Russia during the where propaganda, sabotage and terror ties with almighty Soviet secret service war; and refugees from Poland, Lithua- became main means. At the moment when called Tseka until 1921; and after that (until nia, Latvia etc. Among overall disruption, society in some country was sufficiently 1934) GRU. The chief of that organisa- hunger and misery, the Red Army was in destabilized, an open seizing of power was tion was a Polish nobleman Feliks a privileged state. This fact, together with to take place with the help of an over- Dzerzinski until he died in 1926. The fierce brainwashing brought a total throw or a civil war. The Communist Comintern co-ordinated also with the amount of 300 000 foreigners to the in- International that was established in March military intelligence, predecessor of the ternational units of the Red Army. 1919 in Moscow, known by abbreviation later GRU, that was commanded by a The Red Armys strategic assault to West Comintern, became the main instrument Latvian Janis Berzins (with the right name at the turn of the year 1918-1919 was un- of global subversive activity. The Peteris Kuzis). Although the international successful the Red Army was caught in Comintern was formed as a global com- units of the Red Army were eliminated the defense of border states like Poland, munist party where the parties of differ- in 1922, educational establishments to Estonia, and others. The strategic idea of ent countries formed only sections. The train staff remained intact. the assault was a break-through to Ger- Communist Party of the Soviet Union, many, where the outbreak of communist which was financing all the activities had 2. Subversive centers revolution hung on a thread. When the naturally control over all other parties and victorious countries of the World War I determined the leadership of the directed against and Germany reached an agreement in Comintern at its own discretion. Its first Estonia Versailles, the situation in Germany calmed chairman was Grigori Zinovjev (with the down in the course of time. The hands of right name Hirsch Apfelbaum). By the In 1918 Estonian units were formed Western countries were freed and Soviet IV Congress of the Comintern held in among the Red Army foreign units as well Russia was forced into militarily defence. December 1922, sections were established (the so-called Estonian Red Rifle Division). In a new strategic situation the com- in 58 different countries - communist sub- There were approximately 3000 men com- munist leadership reevaluated the strategy versive network had become global. In ad- munists who had escaped from Estonia 130 Baltic Defence Review 2/1999 in February 1918 and the Russian Estoni- telligence-sabotage bias. The 3rd Interna- underground activities combined with ans. The share of Estonians in the group- tional Military School operated in legal activities through phantom organi- ing of the Red Army by the end of the Petrograd (Leningrad) during the years zations. Through latter, the communists War of Independence had grown to 160 1921-1928 to provide military training for reached the hundred-seat Parliament get- 000 men in the Estonian front line. Mas- the Estonian and Finnish communists. The ting 5 seats in the elections of 1920 and sive deserting of men who were forcibly chief of the school was an Estonian divi- 10 seats in the elections of 1923. mobilized from the areas of temporarily sion commander Aleksan-der Inno. Mili- The political cadre both for subver- occupied Estonia and particularly large tary leadership of the December 1 uprising sive activities and for future leadership coming over in May 1919, headed by di- came predominantly from that school. in the annexed neighboring countries was vision commander Leonid Ritt made Es- The main force in the subversive ac- prepared in special educational establish- tonian Red Army soldiers highly unreli- tivities against the Estonian Republic was ments in the Soviet Union. The commu- able in the eyes of supreme command and the Estonian Communist Party. During nist refugees of Finland, Estonia, Latvia, they were removed from the Estonian the War of Independence Estonian com- Lithuania, Poland and Romania were front to the Ukraine. Division was dis- munists belonged to the Russian Com- trained in the Western Communist Uni- embodied according to the conditions of munist Party since the goal of the war versity of Minorities. Its center was in the Tartu Peace Treaty in February 1920. was to annex Estonia to the Soviet Rus- Moscow but the department for the Finns But a considerably large number of Esto- sia. After the defeat transition to hidden and the Estonians was in Petrograd (Len- nians went on serving in the Red Army tactics was required and on November 5, ingrad). The establishment operated be- amongst whom some reached very high 1920 the Estonian Communist Party was tween the years 1921-1936. positions (August Kork became the Chief formally established. The Estonian Com- of Moscow Military District). munist Party joined the Comintern and In order to train national military its ruling organizations were the under- cadre for operating against the neigh-bor- ground in the Soviet Union and in Esto- 3.Global assault of ing countries, international military nia. According to the information of the the Comintern schools were established in the Soviet Communist Party itself the number of Union. Those were the educational estab- members grew from 700 to 2000 during On the basis of the Russian Revolu- lishments for infantry officers with an in- 1920-1924. The party conducted wide tion and the Civil War scientific strategy 131 Baltic Defence Review 2/1999 and tactics of overthrows and civil wars communist agency started uprisal on Feb- March 1920 the communists organized a was developed in the Soviet Union. It was ruary 12, military-revolutionary commit- wave of terror in Ruhr and Vogtland, in published in an elaborate form in 1930 tee was established on February 16 that 1921 in Central Germany, Ruhr and Ham- as a book in Russian called The Armed requested help from Moscow and on Feb- burg. On October 23, 1923 the commu- Uprising. The author of the book is said ruary 25 the Red Army occupied capital nists made another attempt in Hamburg, to be A. Neuberg. Actually the book was city Tbilisi. 40 people were killed and 150 were in- put together by a working group that In the countries that were out of reach jured. By the way, the Hamburg uprising included the Chief of Staff of the Red of the Red Army, guerilla war of a local was headed by the officials of the Soviet Army Tuhhatsevski, 2IC of GRU communist agency in rural areas or ter- Commerce Mission Karl Radek (with the Unschlicht, party official Pjatnitski and rorism in towns was planned that would right name Sobelsohn) and Otto the professional revolutionaries (an Ital- wear out the strength of legal government Marquart. Massive and provocatively open ian Togliatti and a Vietnamese Ho Chi and lead to overall chaos. Uprising in misuse of diplomatic status by the Soviet Minh). Generally, it may be said that in Bulgaria in September 1923 is a typical representatives was typical in those years.