Russian Czechs on the eve and during the revolution 1917

This paper considers the position of Russian Czechs on the eve of the revolutions of 1917 and their reaction to new regimes. While the February Revolution fully corresponded to the ideas of the majority of Russian Czechs on democratic arrangement of society and equality of nations, the Bolshevik October Revolution posed a threat to their material interests and freedom of expression. During the 1st World War the Union of Czech societies in Russia was established. Its 1st board was held in 1915. Since 1916, it was located in Kiev. Even before 1917 the Union began setting up contacts with Prof. T. G. Masaryk, Chairman of Czechoslovak National Committee. After the February Revolution the Union recognized Masaryk as the only national leader for all Russian Czechs. Masaryk visited Kiev in July 1917 in order to start forming Czechoslovak armed forces in Russia. The Union’s Chairman Dr. Vaclav Girsa took part in the State conference (Moscow, August 1917), proclaiming that Czechs and Russians had a common general objective - defeating Germany and Austria-Hungary. But instability of the Provisional Government’s power in Russia did not allow them to reach these purposes. The Russian Czechs welcomed the February Revolution both as a victory of democratic principles and as a positive response to their own national interests. They had no doubt that Russian democracy would support the just demands of the Czech nation. In Russia, rather than the small number of groups of pre-war Czech settlers and their mutual disputes, the decisive factor was the prisoners from the Austro-Hungarian Army who were encouraged by the events of the Revolution to engage in political activity. Following the Bolshevik Revolution, the social make-up of the Czech minority in Russia was not favourable to the agitation of the Czechoslovak Communists who were primarily recruited from prisoners from the Austro-Hungarian Army. The majority of the members of the Czech colonies in Russia and the Ukraine rejected the Communist Government.