The Russian Civil War, which took place between 1918 and 1921, represented the victory of Bolshevik forces over their opponents and the beginning of Soviet state-building. But the military actions did not only occur among the forces of the Red Army, led by the Bolsheviks, against the group of generals and other tsarist officers, organized around the army White. There was also a third force in Ukraine, mainly composed of the military forces led by the anarchist. Nestor Makhno, which became known as the black army because of the color of its flags.
Nestor Makhno had organized these military forces after the formation of the soviets in the village of Guliai-Pole, where he lived before being arrested by the tsar's police as a result of his actions against the regime tsarist. The adhesion of the peasants was carried out voluntarily and took place around the Revolutionary Committee of Guliai-Pole and also the city of Ekatarinoslav. These groups later became known as the Makhnovist army, under the leadership of Nestor Makhno.
The history of the Makhnovist army was also linked to its joint action in the Red Army, commanded by the Bolshevik Party. This joint action was necessary to face a common enemy of the revolution, represented by the white army. But it was also riddled with disagreements. One of them concerned the way to encourage participation in armies. For the Bolsheviks, entry into the Red Army was supposed to be through compulsory conscription, which for Makhno was seen as an authoritarian form of military training. Membership in the Makhnovist army should be voluntary, which would encourage greater dedication to the revolutionary cause.
But Makhno did not intend to form a decentralized army. He advocated the formation of a General Staff with the aim of unifying the various groups formed locally in a federated manner. However, the principle of electiveness was adopted internally to occupy hierarchical positions. This form of organization represented an antagonism with the Red Army, which did not foresee the election of its officers. This divergence also pointed to differences in the way of understanding the participation of peasants and workers in the revolutionary process.
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Despite the differences, there was unity of action at times. In 1919, the two armies fought together against the troops commanded by General Denikin, one of the main leaders of the counterrevolution on the western side. Even during the battles against Denikin's troops, the Bolshevik government outlawed the Makhnovist army and proceeded to pursue it with the Red Army. The reason would have been the invitation made by Makhno's troops directly to Red Army soldiers to participate in a Peasant Congress in Guliai-Pole. This action would have disturbed the hierarchical command of the Red Army, leading the Bolshevik government to decree the illegality of the anarchist army. Under Trotsky's command, the black army's withdrawal from the Ukraine was ordered, an order that was not obeyed.
This situation lasted for a few months until a new onslaught of white army troops, now commanded by Baron Wrangel, in 1920. The need to face the common enemy led Bolsheviks and Makhnovists to unite again. The action of the Makhnovist army was extremely important to prevent General Wrangel's troops from reaching Moscow. In the spring of 1920, the white army was defeated in the south of the former Russian Empire.
The outcome of the relationship between troops with the black and red flags would occur soon after the victory, when under the pretext of jointly debating military actions, a congress was convened at the Crimea. When the meeting took place, Makhno's troops were attacked and the vast majority of their members were shot. Nestor Makhno managed to resist for another nine months, after which he had to flee to Romania, in order not to be caught by the Red Army.
By Tales Pinto
Graduated in History
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
PINTO, Tales of the Saints. "Makhno and the Civil War in Ukraine"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/guerras/makhno-guerra-civil-na-ucrania.htm. Accessed on June 28, 2021.
