Conclusion of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Germany

At the end of October 1917, there was a change of power - it passed into the hands of the Bolsheviks, and the main slogan foreign policy They delivered “peace without annexations and indemnities” to Russia. At the first and, ironically, the last convocation Constituent Assembly The Bolsheviks presented their Decree on Peace, which envisaged an end to the crisis that had already become protracted.
The truce, initiated by the Soviet government, was signed on December 2. And from that very moment, the soldiers began to spontaneously leave the front - most of them were pretty tired of the fighting, and they wanted to go home, behind the front line, where most of the country's population was busy dividing up the land. They left in different ways: some left without permission, taking weapons and ammunition with them, others left legally, asking for leave or on business trips.

Signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

A few days later, negotiations on a peace agreement began in Brest-Litovsk, at which the Soviet government invited Germany to conclude a peace in which Russia would not pay indemnities. Never before in its entire history has our country paid such payments, and the Bolsheviks wanted to continue to adhere to this policy. However, this did not suit Germany at all, and at the end of January 1918, Russia was presented with an ultimatum, as a result of which the Russians were deprived of Belarus, Poland and, partially, the Baltic states. This turn of events put the Soviet command in a difficult position: on the one hand, such a shameful peace could not be concluded under any circumstances, and the war should have been continued. On the other hand, there was no longer any strength and means left to continue fighting.
And then Leon Trotsky, who was at the head of the Soviet delegation, made a speech at the negotiations that said that Russia would not sign peace, but also did not intend to continue the war; she will simply disband the army and leave the combat zone. This statement from Russia plunged all participants in the negotiations into confusion: it was difficult to remember that anyone else had tried to end a military conflict in such, to put it mildly, an extraordinary way.
But neither Germany nor Austria-Hungary were completely satisfied with this resolution of the conflict. Therefore, on February 18, they went on the offensive, going far beyond the front line. Nobody resisted them: the cities, one after another, surrendered without a fight. The very next day, the Soviet leadership came to the realization that the most difficult conditions put forward by Germany would have to be accepted and agreed to conclude this peace treaty, which was signed on March 3, 1918.

Terms of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Germany

According to the terms of the Brest-Litovsk Peace:
1) Russia lost Ukraine, the Grand Duchy of Finland, and partially Belarus, Poland and the Baltic states.
2) The Russian army and navy had to be demobilized.
3) The Russian Black Sea Fleet was supposed to withdraw to Germany and Austria-Hungary.
4) Russia lost part of the lands in the Caucasus - Batumi and Kars regions.
5) The Soviet government was obliged to stop revolutionary propaganda in Germany and Austria, as well as in their allied countries.
Among other things, Russia was obliged to pay reparations to Germany and the losses it incurred during the revolutionary events in Russia.
However, even after the conclusion of the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty with Germany, the Soviet government still did not rule out that German troops would continue their advance across the country and occupy Petrograd. As a result of these concerns, it moved to Moscow, thus making it the Russian capital again.

Consequences of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Germany

The humiliating peace agreement with the Germans met with a violent negative reaction both in Russia itself and among former allies according to the Entente. However, the consequences of the conclusion of the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty with Germany were not as serious as initially expected. The reason for this was the defeat of the Germans in the First World War. On November 13, the peace treaty was annulled by the Bolsheviks, and Lenin, their leader, gained a reputation as a political visionary. However, many believe that having concluded Treaty of Brest-Litovsk and having accepted humiliating conditions, the “leader of the world proletariat” comrades simply paid Germany for the protection that they were given during the years of preparation for the struggle for power.

On July 28, 1914, the First world war. On the one hand, the states that were part of the Entente participated in it; on the other hand, they were opposed by the Quadruple Alliance led by Germany. Fighting, accompanied by significant destruction, led to the impoverishment of the masses. A crisis was brewing in many warring countries political system. In Russia, this resulted in the October Revolution, which occurred on October 25, 1917 (old style). The Soviet Republic emerged from the war by signing the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Germany and its allies Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey.

Peace Decree

The war was the reason that the Russian economy was in a deplorable state. The army, exhausted by trench warfare, gradually degenerated . Thousands of losses did not lift the spirits of the Russian people. Tired of trench life, the soldiers of the Russian army threatened to go to the rear and use their own methods to end the war. Russia needed peace.

The Entente countries, on whose side Russia fought, expressed strong protest against the actions of the Bolsheviks. Vice versa , countries of the Quadruple Alliance, interested in the liquidation of the Eastern Front, quickly responded to the proposal of the Council of People's Commissars. On November 21, 1917, armistice negotiations began in Brest-Litovsk. In accordance with the agreements reached, the parties obliged:

• not to conduct hostilities against each other for 28 days;
• leave military formations in their positions;
• do not transfer troops to other sectors of the front.

Peace negotiations

First stage

On December 22, 1917, delegations from Russia and the countries of the Quadruple Alliance began work on developing the provisions of the future peace treaty. The Russian side was led by A.A., a member of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee. Joffe, who immediately proposed a rough plan for the document, based on the provisions of the Decree on Peace. The main points were as follows:

For three days the German side considered the Russian proposals. After this, the head of the German delegation, R. von Kühlmann stated that this plan would be accepted subject to the renunciation of indemnities and annexations by all warring parties. Russian representatives proposed to take a break in work so that countries that have not yet joined the negotiations become familiar with this project.

Second stage

Negotiations resumed only on January 9, 1918. Now the Bolshevik delegation was headed by L.D. Trotsky, main goal of which there was every possible delay in negotiations. In his opinion, in the near future Central Europe there must be a revolution that will change the balance of political forces, so the war should be stopped without signing peace. Arriving in Brest-Litovsk, he organizes propaganda activities among the military personnel of the German garrison. Here he is actively helped by K.B. Radek, who organized the publication of the Fakel newspaper on German.

When the negotiators met, von Kühlmann announced that Germany did not accept the Russian version of the treaty, since none of the participants in the war expressed a desire to join the negotiations. Having rejected Russian initiatives, the German delegation puts forward its own conditions. Refusing to free the lands, occupied by the armies of the Quadruple Alliance, Germany demanded large territorial concessions from Russia. General Hoffman presented a map with new state borders. According to this map, more than 150 thousand square kilometers were torn away from the territory of the former Russian Empire. Soviet representatives demanded a break to analyze the current situation and consult with the government.

A division is taking place in the ranks of the Bolshevik leadership. A group of “left communists” proposed to wage the war to a victorious end, rejecting German proposals. The “revolutionary war” should, as Bukharin believed, provoke a world revolution, without which Soviet power there is no chance of lasting long. Few people believed that Lenin was right, who considered the treaty a peaceful respite and proposed agreeing to German conditions.

While the issue of signing a peace treaty was being discussed in Moscow, Germany and Austria-Hungary concluded a separate agreement with the Ukrainian People's Republic. Central states recognized Ukraine sovereign state, and she, in turn, pledged to supply food and raw materials much needed by the countries of the military bloc.

Growing discontent of the masses , famine in the country, strikes at enterprises force Kaiser Wilhelm to demand that the generals begin military action. On February 9, Russia is presented with an ultimatum. The next day, Trotsky makes a statement in which he announces that the Soviet Republic is withdrawing from the war, disbanding the army, and will not sign the treaty. The Bolsheviks demonstratively left the meeting.

Having announced their withdrawal from the truce, German troops began an offensive along the entire eastern front on February 18. Without encountering any resistance, Wehrmacht units quickly advance into the interior of the country. February 23, when the storm hung over Petrograd real threat capture, Germany presents an even tougher ultimatum, the acceptance of which is given two days. The city constantly hosts meetings of the Central Committee of the Bolshevik Party, whose members cannot come to a consensus. Only Lenin's threat to resign, which could lead to the collapse of the party, forces a decision in favor of signing a peace treaty.

Third stage

On March 1, the work of the negotiating group resumed. The Soviet delegation was led by G. Ya. Sokolnikov, who replaced Trotsky in this position. In fact, no negotiations were held anymore. On March 3, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was concluded without any reservations. On behalf of the Soviet Republic, the document was signed by Sokolnikov . On behalf of Germany signed by Richard von Kühlmann. Foreign Minister Hudenitz signed for Austria-Hungary. The agreement also bears the signatures of the Bulgarian Envoy Extraordinary A. Toshev and the Turkish Ambassador Ibrahim Hakki.

Terms of the peace treaty

14 articles defined the specific terms of the peace treaty.

According to a secret agreement, Russia had to pay 6 billion marks in indemnity and 500 million rubles in gold for damage caused to Germany as a result of October Revolution. Extremely unfavorable customs tariffs were also restored 1904. Russia lost a territory of 780 thousand square meters. km. The country's population decreased by a third. Under the terms of the Brest Peace Treaty, 27% of cultivated land, almost all coal and steel production, and numerous industrial enterprises were lost. The number of workers decreased by 40%.

Consequences of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

After signing peace with Russia, the German army continued to advance east, leaving behind the demarcation line determined by the treaty. Odessa, Nikolaev, Kherson, Rostov-on-Don were occupied, which contributed to the formation of puppet regimes in Crimea and southern Russia . Germany's actions provoked the formation of Socialist Revolutionary and Menshevik governments in the Volga region and the Urals. In response to the Brest-Litovsk Treaty, the Entente states landed troops in Murmansk, Arkhangelsk and Vladivostok.

There was no one to resist foreign intervention. In the fall of 1917, even before negotiations began in Brest-Litovsk, the Council of People's Commissars issued a decree on the gradual reduction of the army. After the promulgation of the “Decree on Land,” the soldiers, the backbone of the army being peasants, began to leave their units without permission. Massive desertion and removal of officers from command and control leads to complete demoralization of the Russian army. In March 1918, by resolutions of the Soviet government, the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command and the position of Supreme Commander-in-Chief were abolished, headquarters at all levels and all military departments were disbanded. Russian army ceased to exist.

The peace treaty with Germany caused violent reaction all political forces in Russia itself. In the Bolshevik camp there is a division into separate groups. “Left communists” consider the agreement a betrayal of the ideas of the international revolutionary movement. leave the Council of People's Commissars. N.V. Krylenko, N.I. Podvoisky and K.I. Shutko, who considered the treaty illegal, left their military posts. Bourgeois specialists in the field international law assessed the work of Bolshevik diplomats as mediocre and barbaric. Patriarch Tikhon sharply condemned the agreement, which placed millions of Orthodox Christians under the yoke of infidels. Consequences of the Brest-Litovsk Peace affected all areas of life Russian society.

Significance of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

It is difficult to overestimate the significance of the Brest Peace. Having carried out the October coup, the Bolsheviks found chaos in the ruins of the Russian Empire. To overcome the crisis and stay in power, they needed the support of the population, which could only be secured by ending the war. By signing the treaty, Russia was leaving the war. In fact, it was capitulation. According to the terms of the agreement the country suffered colossal territorial and economic losses.

The Bolsheviks sought the defeat of Russia in the imperialist war, and they achieved it. They also achieved a Civil War, which was the result of a split in society into two hostile camps. According to modern historians, Lenin showed foresight, considering this agreement short-lived. The Entente countries have defeated the Quadruple Alliance, and now Germany must sign capitulation. On November 13, 1918, the resolution of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee annuls the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.

The conclusion of the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty led to a split in the Bolshevik Party and the Soviet government and to the formation of a leftist opposition, and for the first and last time this opposition acted openly and officially within the Bolshevik Party as autonomous organization and even had its own press organ.

After the signing of the peace agreement, hostilities did not stop for a day in most of the territory of the former Russian Empire. Germany presented more and more ultimatums, occupied entire regions and cities located east of the border established by the treaty. The Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty turned out to be paper precisely because the Soviet and German governments did not look at the treaty seriously, did not consider it final, and signed the agreement not for the sake of a desire to obtain peace, but only in order to continue the war, but in more favorable conditions for themselves.

Subsequently, until the termination of the Brest-Litovsk Treaty, first by the German government on October 5, and then by the All-Russian Central Executive Committee on November 13, 1918 (2 days after surrender of Germany), the opponents were in a state of “neither war nor peace” (Trotsky).

This situation, according to Trotsky, was nothing more than a “respite” preparing the Bolshevik party for its next stage: the revolutionary war (only for Trotsky’s respite, unlike Lenin, the Bolsheviks did not pay for an agreement with the “imperialists”). This revolutionary war began on November 13, 1918.

Already in the first days of the Bolshevik revolution, Lenin disagreed with the majority of his party on the issue of concluding peace: contrary to the expectations of the socialists, he agreed in principle to sign a separate, rather than a general, peace with the “imperialist” German government. The simplest explanation for Lenin’s step was the obligations he had assumed before returning to Russia to the German government.

The relationship between the Bolshevik Party and the Kaiser's government during the First World War has long remained a mystery to historians. Information spread around the world as a sensation that the German government, interested in the speedy weakening of the Russian Empire and the latter’s exit from the war, found it profitable to finance the social parties (including the Leninist group), which stood for the defeat of Russia in the war and conducted intensive defeatist propaganda . German Social Democrat Eduard Bernstein in 1921 wrote that Lenin and his comrades received huge sums of money from Kaiser Germany, probably exceeding 50 million German gold marks. After many years, documents were placed at the disposal of historians that allowed them to deeply and carefully study the now legendary issue of German money and the sealed carriage in which Lenin traveled through Germany to Russia in April 1917.

The German government supported the Russian revolutionaries, since, not without reason, it believed that the revolution would lead to the collapse of the Russian Empire, its withdrawal from the war and the conclusion of a separate peace, which the revolutionaries promised to give after coming to power. Germany needed this peace already because in 1917. it did not have the necessary forces to wage a war on 2 fronts. Having relied on the revolution in Russia, Germany supported the Leninist group in critical weeks for the provisional government, helped it and other “defeatists” pass through Germany to Sweden, and received the consent of the Swedes for the passage of emigrants to the Finnish border. From there it was very close to Petrograd. Occurred in October 1917. the coup was not a surprise to her; fair or not, the German government looked at what happened as the work of its own hands.

But Germany would never have been able to achieve its goals so easily if its interests had not coincided in a number of points with the program of another interested party: the Russian defeatist revolutionaries, the most influential wing of which was Lenin’s (the Bolsheviks). How did the interests of Germany and the revolutionaries coincide in this matter?

Like the German government, the Leninist group was interested in the defeat of Russia. The Bolsheviks wanted the collapse of the Russian Empire. The Germans wanted this for the sake of the general weakening of post-war Russia. The revolutionaries, many of whom demanded the separation of the border regions from the Russian Empire also for national reasons, looked at the growth of national separatist tendencies (nationalism of small nations) as a phenomenon that was in direct connection with the revolutionary movement.

While agreeing on some points, the goals of Germany and the revolutionaries in the war diverged on others. Germany looked at the latter as a subversive element and hoped to use them to bring Russia out of the war. Keeping the socialists in power was not part of the plans of the German government. They also looked at the help offered by the German government as a means to organize a revolution in Russia and Europe, especially in Germany. But the revolutionaries knew about the German “imperialist” plans. At the same time, each side hoped to outplay the other. Ultimately, the Leninist group won this game.

The program of the Soviet socialists was abstract: revolution. Lenin's program was specific: revolution in Russia and his own rise to power. Like a man subservient to his own purpose, he accepted everything that contributed to his program and discarded everything that hindered him. If the Quadruple Alliance offered assistance, then insofar as this assistance contributed to Lenin's rise to power, it should be accepted. If this assistance could be provided on the terms of Lenin’s proclamation of a certain political platform, then insofar as this platform contributed to the achievement of the main goal: Lenin’s coming to power, it should be accepted and announced. The Germans were interested in a separate peace with Russia - Lenin made the slogan of immediately signing peace and ending the war the main point of his program. The Germans wanted the collapse of the Russian Empire - Lenin supported the revolutionary slogan of self-determination of peoples, which allowed for the actual collapse of the Russian Empire.

We must give credit to Lenin. He fulfilled his promise to the government in the first hours of coming to power: on October 26, at the Congress of Soviets, he read out the famous decree on peace. For the Entente, therefore, Germany’s role in the October coup was obvious. Already on October 27 (November 9), London newspapers, and the Germans themselves, could not remain silent for long, declaring that the Russian revolution was not an accident, but a natural result of German policy. On November 9 (22), fulfilling another point of the agreement between the Bolsheviks and Germany, Trotsky, as People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs, announced the intentions of the Soviet government to publish secret diplomatic documents. In theory, the publication of secret treaties was detrimental to both the Central Powers and the Entente. But since the secret treaties related to the First World War were concluded by Russia with its allies France and England, and not with the Central Powers, the latter remained the winner. On November 14 (27), the German High Command gave its consent to conduct official peace negotiations with representatives of the Soviet government. The start of negotiations was scheduled for November 19 (December 2), and in a statement dated November 15 (28), the Soviet government indicated that if France, Great Britain, Italy, the USA, Belgium, Serbia, Romania, Japan and China refused to join the negotiations, “ we will negotiate with the Germans alone,” that is, it announced the signing of a separate peace with the countries of the Fourth Bloc. On November 20 (December 3), a Russian delegation consisting of 28 people arrived in Brest-Litovsk, where the headquarters of the commander-in-chief of the German Eastern Front was located. Brest-Litovsk was chosen by Germany as a place for negotiations. Negotiations in German-occupied territory suited the German and Austrian governments, since moving the negotiations to a neutral city, for example Stockholm, would result in an inter-socialist conference that could appeal to the people “over the heads of the governments” and call, for example, for a general strike or civil war. In this case, the initiative would pass from the hands of German and Austro-Hungarian diplomats to Russian and European socialists.

From the Soviet side, the delegation was headed by three Bolsheviks (A.A. Ioffe, L.B. Kamenev, and G.Ya. Sokolnikov) and two left Socialist-Revolutionaries (A.A. Bitsenko and S.D. Maslovsky-Mstislavsky). On the German side, negotiations were to be conducted by a group of military men led by General Hoffmann. The Russian delegation insisted on concluding peace without annexations and indemnities. Hoffmann did not seem to mind, but only on the condition that the Entente also agreed to these demands. Since, as was clear to everyone, the Soviet delegation was not authorized by England, France and the United States to negotiate with the Quadruple Alliance, the question of a universal democratic peace hung in the air. In addition, the delegation of the Central Powers insisted that it was authorized to sign only a military truce, and not a political agreement. And despite the outward politeness of both sides, a common language was not found.

According to the treaty signed on March 3, 1918, the territory occupied by Germany and Austria-Hungary included Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and 75% of Belarus. Germany and Austria-Hungary intended to determine the fate of these areas themselves in accordance with their populations. Soviet Russia pledged to conclude an agreement with the Ukrainian Rada and resolve border disputes with it. All lands captured from Turkey were returned, along with the previously occupied districts of Kars, Ardahan and Batum. Thus, Russia was losing about 1 million square meters. km of territory. The Russian army was demobilized. All Russian military ships were subject to transfer to Russian ports or disarmament. Russia also freed Finland and the Åland Islands from its presence and pledged to stop propaganda against the authorities of Ukraine and Finland. The prisoners of war were released to their homeland.

According to the text of the Brest-Litovsk Treaty, the contracting parties refused mutual reimbursement of expenses. However, on August 27, an additional financial agreement was signed in Berlin, according to which Russia had to pay Germany in various forms 6 billion marks and supply food to Germany. The rights of German and Austrian subjects to their property in Russia were restored. The customs tariffs of 1904, which were unfavorable for Russia, were renewed.

The ratification of these unusually difficult peace conditions caused a new political crisis in Russia. The Emergency Congress of the RCP(b) and the IV Extraordinary Congress of Soviets in March 1918 voted with a majority of votes in favor of ratifying the peace, while the Council of People's Commissars was given the right to break it at any time. The “left communists” and the left Socialist Revolutionaries sharply opposed peace. As a sign of protest, the people's commissars - members of the Left Socialist Revolutionary Party - left the Council of People's Commissars, but remained in the Soviets and in the administrative apparatus, including the Cheka.

PARTICIPANTS AND CONTEMPORARIES

From official message Soviet government on the progress of negotiations in Brest-Litovsk with the aim of concluding an armistice on November 22, 1917.

Our delegates began with a declaration of the goals of peace, in the interests of which a truce is proposed. The delegates of the opposing side replied that this was a matter for politicians, while they, military people, were authorized to speak only about the military conditions of the truce...

Our representatives submitted a draft truce on all fronts, developed by our military experts. The main points of this proposal were, firstly, the prohibition of the transfer of troops from our front to the front of our allies and, secondly, the clearing of the Moonsund Islands by the Germans... Our demands... the opponents’ delegates declared unacceptable for themselves and expressed themselves in the sense that that such demands could only be made against a broken country. In response to the categorical instructions of our representatives that for us it is a question of a truce on all fronts in order to establish a general democratic peace on the well-known principles formulated by the All-Russian Congress of Soviets, the delegates of the other side again evasively declared that such a formulation of the question was inadmissible for them, because they At the moment, we are authorized to negotiate a truce only with the Russian delegation, since there is no delegation of Russia’s allies at the conference...

Thus, representatives of all states hostile to us took part in the negotiations. Of the allied states, not a single one was represented at the negotiations, except Russia. The Allied peoples must know that negotiations have begun and that they will continue regardless of the conduct of the current Allied diplomacy. In these negotiations, where the Russian delegation defends the conditions for a universal democratic peace, the issue is about the fate of all peoples, including those warring peoples whose diplomacy now remains on the sidelines of the negotiations.

From the statement of L. Trotsky

We are withdrawing our army and our people from the war. Our soldier-plowman must return to his arable land in order to peacefully cultivate the land this spring, which the revolution transferred from the hands of the landowners to the hands of the peasant. We are leaving the war. We refuse to sanction the conditions that German and Austro-Hungarian imperialism writes with a sword on the body of living peoples. We cannot put the signature of the Russian Revolution on conditions that bring with them oppression, grief and misfortune to millions of human beings. The governments of Germany and Austria-Hungary want to own lands and peoples by right of military conquest. Let them do their work openly. We cannot sanctify violence. We are leaving the war, but we are forced to refuse to sign a peace treaty...

From the statement of the head of the Soviet delegation at the negotiations in Brest-Litovsk G. Sokolnikov:

Under the current conditions, Russia has no choice. By the fact of the demobilization of its troops, the Russian revolution, as it were, transferred its fate into the hands of the German people. We do not doubt for a minute that this is the triumph of imperialism and militarism over international proletarian revolution will turn out to be only temporary and temporary... We are ready to immediately sign a peace treaty, refusing any discussion of it as completely useless under the current conditions...

From the memoirs of track engineer N.A. Wrangel:

Before moving to Bati-Liman, I had to go through a tragicomic episode. As you know, the treacherous Brest-Litovsk Treaty provided for the immediate surrender of the ships of our Black Sea Fleet. Even the Bolshevik sailors, yesterday’s killers of officers, could not bear this betrayal. They began to shout about the need to defend Crimea from the Germans, rushed around the city (Sevastopol) to look for officers, asking them to take command of the ships again. On the ships, instead of the red flag, St. Andrew's flag fluttered again. Admiral Sablin took command of the Fleet. The Military Revolutionary Committee decided to defend Crimea and build a strategic railway Dzhankoy-Perekop. They rushed to look for engineers and found engineer Davydov in Balaklava, the head of the construction site for the Sevastopol-Yalta line (construction began in 1913 and was suspended). Despite Davydov's assurances that construction would take several months, he was appointed chief engineer and demanded that he indicate the engineers who would be mobilized to help him. Two days before, I met Davydov on the embankment in Balaklava, and so he told me his name, he wanted to save me from working in the trenches, which was the threat to all the bourgeoisie. The next day I was already mobilized and we were taken to Dzhankoy, and from there on horseback to Perekop. We spend the night in Perekop and go back. From Sevastopol I hide in Bati-Liman and after 2-3 days I think that the Germans have already arrived. As a reward for the labor and excitement I have endured, I bring home 1/4 pound of candles given to me in Dzhankoy.

Truce

The seizure of power by the Bolsheviks on October 25 (November 7), 1917, took place, among other things, under the slogan of Russia’s immediate withdrawal from the war. Since it was this slogan that attracted most of the army and population to the side of the Bolsheviks, the very next day - October 26 (November 8) - at the proposal of the Bolsheviks, the Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets, held in Petrograd, adopted a Decree on Peace, which announced that the new government “offers All warring peoples and their governments should immediately begin negotiations on a just and democratic peace” (Decrees of the Soviet Power. T. 1. M., 1957. P. 12).

November 8 (21), simultaneously with the radiogram from the acting. Supreme Commander-in-Chief General N.N. Dukhonin with an order to cease hostilities and begin peace negotiations with the enemy, People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs L.D. Trotsky sent a note to the Allied powers with a similar proposal. Dukhonin refused to comply with the order of the Council of People's Commissars and was removed from office. Reporting this part active army, Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars V.I. Lenin also ordered in a radiogram: “Let the regiments in positions immediately elect representatives to formally enter into negotiations on a truce with the enemy.”

The German leadership only announced on November 14 (27) its agreement to begin peace on December 1; Lenin formally warned the governments of the Allied powers about this and offered to send their representatives, stipulating that in the opposite case the RSFSR would still begin negotiations. Armistice negotiations took place in Brest-Litovsk from November 20 (December 3), 1917; the Soviet delegation was headed by A.A. Ioffe. 2(15) on the Eastern Front was concluded for a period of 28 days with automatic extension (one of the parties undertook to notify about the termination 7 days in advance). The truce began to operate at 14:00 on December 4 (17).

Negotiations in Brest-Litovsk began on December 9 (22), 1917. The Soviet delegation consisted of 5 authorized members of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee, three of whom represented the Bolshevik Party - Adolf Joffe, Lev Kamenev, Grigory Sokolnikov, two (Anastasia Bitsenko and Sergei Mstislavsky). In addition, the delegation included 5 members (sailor, soldier, peasant, worker, ensign of the fleet), who did not play any role, and 8 military specialists (one of them, Major General Vladimir Skalon, shot himself before the start of negotiations, on November 29), before the opening of the conference, during a private meeting of the Soviet delegation, a representative of the Headquarters in a group of military consultants shot himself); The secretary of the delegation was the Bolshevik Lev Karakhan.

The German delegation at the negotiations was headed by State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Richard von Kühlmann, the Austro-Hungarian delegation by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Imperial Court, Count Ottokar Cherin von und zu Hudenitz, the Bulgarian delegation by Justice Minister Hristo Popov, and the Turkish delegation by Grand Vizier Talaat Pasha.

The Soviet delegation, which initially relied on delaying the negotiations, put forward a program that was obviously unacceptable to the Central Powers, which included, among other things, the renunciation of annexations and indemnities, the liberation of occupied territories, etc. In response, von Kühlmann stated on December 12 (25) that the Central Powers agreed to these conditions, but on the condition that the Soviet delegation guarantees that the Entente countries will also fulfill them. The Soviet delegation requested a 10-day break, ostensibly in order to negotiate with the Entente countries. Then, referring to the principle put forward by the Soviet delegation about the right of nations “to freely decide the question of belonging to any state or of their state independence,” the German and Austro-Hungarian delegations stated that the people of Poland, Lithuania, Courland and part of Estonia and Livonia had already declared their “desire for complete state independence” (which was a hidden form of annexation of these lands) and suggested that the Soviet government withdraw its troops from here. On December 15 (28), the Soviet delegation left for Petrograd; in fulfillment of its obligations, the NKID formally appealed to the governments of the Entente countries with an invitation to join the negotiations (as expected, there was no response).

The Council of People's Commissars and the Central Committee of the RSDLP (b) confirmed their position: not to interrupt the negotiations, since the RSFSR does not have the strength to resist the Central Powers, but to delay the negotiations as much as possible, since a revolution is expected in Europe from day to day. Use the gained time, on the one hand, to launch anti-war agitation and disintegrate the enemy troops, and, on the other, to form military units.

On December 20, 1917 (January 2, 1918), the Council of People's Commissars put forward a proposal to transfer negotiations to neutral Stockholm (Sweden), which was regarded by the Central Powers as an attempt to delay negotiations and was rejected. These days, during the absence of Soviet representatives in Brest-Litovsk, a delegation of the Central Rada of Ukraine arrived here. Without accepting final decision on recognition of the Central Rada as legal representatives Ukrainian people, the German delegation decided to begin negotiations with the Ukrainian delegation (chaired by the Secretary of Trade and Industry of the General Secretariat of Ukraine Vsevolod Goubovich) in order to be able to put pressure on both the Soviet and Austro-Hungarian sides (since Ukraine laid claim to a number of regions populated by Ukrainians, were part of Austria-Hungary).

The composition of the Soviet delegation before the new round of negotiations was changed: “representatives of the people” were excluded from it; the political part was significantly expanded - up to 12 people: People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs Leon Trotsky (chairman), Adolf Joffe, Lev Karakhan, head of the department of external relations of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee Karl Radek, Chairman of the Moscow Council Mikhail Pokrovsky, Anastasia Bitsenko, People's Commissar of Property and member of the Central Committee of the Left Socialist Revolutionary Party Vladimir Karelin, Chairman of the Presidium of the Central Executive Committee of the Soviets of Ukraine Efim Medvedev, Chairman of the Soviet Government of Ukraine Vasily Shakhrai, Chairman of the Social Democracy of the Kingdom of Poland and Lithuania Stanislav Bobinsky, Commissioner for Lithuanian Affairs under the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR Vincas Mickevichyus-Kapsukas, member of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee Vahan Teryan. The military part of the delegation was reduced to 3 people (Rear Admiral Vasily Altvater, Major General Alexander Samoilo, Captain Vladimir Lipsky).

In parallel with the negotiations, the Soviet delegation (responsible Karl Radek) began to take steps to develop anti-war propaganda (the Council of People's Commissars allocated 2 million rubles for it), and the newspaper “Die Fackel” began to be published in German.

Negotiations resumed on December 27, 1917 (January 9, 1918), and von Kühlmann stated that since the Soviet side did not ensure that the Entente countries joined the declaration of peace “without annexations and indemnities,” the parties no longer adhere to this principle. A consequence of the lack of response from the Entente countries to the Council of People's Commissars' proposal to join the negotiations was also a change in the status of the future world: now it could not be considered as universal, but was only separate, with all the ensuing consequences. On December 28, 1917 (January 10, 1918), Trotsky was forced to admit that his delegation did not represent Ukraine and, thus, the independence of the Ukrainian delegation; On December 30, 1917 (January 12, 1918), Chernin, on behalf of the Central Powers, stated that they recognized the Ukrainian delegation as a representative of Ukraine, after which negotiations with Golubovich were officially begun.

Attempts by the Soviet delegation to obtain from Germany and Austria-Hungary a commitment not to lay claim to any territories of the former Russian Empire ended on December 30, 1917 (January 12, 1918) with a statement by a member of the German delegation and chief of staff of the Commander-in-Chief in the East, Major General Max Hoffmann that German troops are not going to leave Courland, Lithuania, Riga and the islands of the Gulf of Riga. Finally, on January 5 (18), Hoffman finally formulated (and presented the corresponding map to the Political Commission) the claims of Germany and Austria-Hungary, which extended to Poland, Lithuania, Courland, part of Livonia and Estland (including the Moonsund Islands and the Gulf of Riga) , while he stated that “regarding the border south of Brest-Litovsk, we are negotiating with representatives of the Ukrainian Rada.” To gain time, the Soviet delegation insisted on declaring a new 10-day break to familiarize the government with the new requirements and conduct consultations.

Discussion of peace terms

There were serious disagreements among the leadership of the RSDLP(b) and Soviet Russia regarding further policy in the negotiations. If V.I. Lenin, who published “Theses on Peace” on January 7 (20), categorically insisted on the speedy signing of peace, even if any demands of the Central Powers were accepted, then a group of “left communists” (whose ideological leader was Nikolai Bukharin) opposed this position. The essence of their position was that no agreements with the imperialists were possible, and it was necessary to start a “revolutionary war”, which, in turn, should cause an immediate revolution in the remaining warring countries. Leon Trotsky put forward an “intermediate” slogan: “no war, no peace”; he implied that the Soviet government refused to conclude a shameful peace with the imperialists, but announced its withdrawal from the war and the demobilization of the army, thereby shifting responsibility for further steps to the Central Powers; At the same time, he believed that there was only “25% in favor of the fact that the Germans would be able to advance,” and the continuation of the war, on the contrary, would provoke the start of a revolution in Germany.

At an extended meeting of the Central Committee on January 8 (21), A.I. Lenin was supported by 15 people, Trotsky - 16, “left communists” - 32. The most consistently in favor of concluding peace were, besides Lenin, Joseph Stalin, Sergeev (Artyom) and Sokolnikov. Somewhat later, Lenin, as a compromise, managed to pass through the Central Committee a decision to continue the course of delaying negotiations. Then, upon Trotsky’s departure back to Brest-Litovsk, Lenin, as chairman of the Council of People’s Commissars, instructed him to sign any peace terms if the Central Powers presented an ultimatum.

When negotiations resumed in Brest-Litovsk on January 17 (30), it became known that the Central Powers were actively negotiating with the Ukrainian delegation. Since by this time almost all of Ukraine was controlled by the Bolsheviks, the Soviet delegation announced that it did not recognize any agreements between the Rada and the Central Powers. After this, a time-out was taken by the German and Austro-Hungarian delegations, whose heads departed on January 21 (February 3) for consultations on the Ukrainian issue.

The decision was not made in favor of Soviet Russia and on January 27 (February 9) peace was signed in Brest-Litovsk between Ukraine (which was represented by the delegation of the Central Rada) and the Central Powers. At the request of the Rada, Germany and Austria-Hungary sent their troops to the territory of Ukraine, and the Central Rada undertook to supply 1 million tons of bread, 50 thousand tons of meat, 400 million eggs, etc. within six months. On the same day, von Kühlmann stated that “peace negotiations cannot be delayed indefinitely” and that Soviet Russia’s acceptance of German demands is “absolutely a necessary condition to make peace." At the same time, in an official statement by Kaiser Wilhelm II, the Bolshevik government was accused of “directly addressing ... the troops with an open radio message calling for rebellion and disobedience to their senior commanders.” The Kaiser announced that “Trotsky must by tomorrow evening... sign a peace with the return of the Baltic states up to and including the Narva-Pleskau-Dünaburg line.”

On January 28 (February 10), Trotsky, rejecting von Kühlmann’s offer to discuss the situation, announced: “We are leaving the war. We inform all peoples and their governments of this. We give the order for the complete demobilization of our armies” - all without an official peace agreement. In response, von Kühlmann informed the Soviet delegation that “if a peace treaty is not concluded, then, obviously, the armistice agreement loses its meaning, and, after the expiration of the period provided for in it, the war is resumed.” At 19:30 on February 16, Max Hoffmann, as a representative of the German command, informed General Samoilo that the truce would end at 12:00 on February 18. On February 17, Lenin again called on the meeting of the Central Committee of the RSDLP (b) to immediately resume negotiations, but he found himself in the minority (5 versus 6), although he managed to achieve agreement to conclude peace if “there is no revolutionary upsurge in Germany and Austria.”

On February 18, German troops launched an offensive, encountering virtually no organized resistance; the demoralized remnants of the Russian army could not stop the enemy. On the night of February 19, Lenin got the Central Committee to accept the peace terms (7 votes for, 5 against, 1 abstained), after which a radio telegram was sent to Berlin, which reported that the Council of People's Commissars “sees itself forced to sign the peace terms proposed in Brest-Litovsk delegations of the Quadruple Alliance... declares that a response to the exact conditions set by the German Government will be given immediately.”

The response of the German government was dated February 21, and received (by courier) in Petrograd on the morning of February 23. At this time, German and Austro-Hungarian troops continued the offensive, occupying Minsk (February 19), Polotsk (February 20), Rechitsa and Orsha (February 21), Pskov (February 24), Borisov and Revel (February 25), Gomel, Chernigov , Mogilev (March 1). This time, the German government put forward more difficult peace conditions: in addition to all the previously set conditions, the red troops were asked to clear the territories of Livonia and Estland that they still occupied, which were immediately occupied by the German “police forces.” The 4th point provided for the withdrawal of Red troops from Ukraine and Finland and the conclusion of peace with the Central Rada. Russia also had to withdraw from Eastern Anatolia, withdraw its fleet to ports and disarm it, and cease all revolutionary agitation in the Central Powers.

In the conditions of the inevitable collapse of Soviet Russia, Lenin, at a meeting of the Central Committee on February 23, managed to achieve acceptance of the terms of the ultimatum (7 people voted for, 4 against, 4 abstained), which, however, caused a crisis in the Central Committee and the Council of People's Commissars, which left a number of “left communists” " At 4:30 on February 24, the same decision was made by the All-Russian Central Executive Committee (126 votes for, 85 against, 26 abstained). At 7:00 a message about acceptance of the ultimatum was transmitted to Berlin, where it was received at 7:32.

To sign peace, a new Soviet delegation was sent to Brest-Litovsk. After several people, incl. Adolf Ioffe and Grigory Zinoviev refused the post of chairman, Grigory Sokolnikov agreed to head it. In addition to Sokolnikov, the delegation included 3 more authorized members of the People's Commissar of Internal Affairs Grigory Petrovsky, Deputy People's Commissar of Foreign Affairs Georgy Chicherin and Lev Karakhan, as well as 8 consultants.

Formally, it is believed that negotiations resumed on March 1 - the day the Soviet delegation arrived in Brest-Litovsk. However, Soviet representatives refused to enter into any negotiations, emphasizing that the terms of the Central Powers were accepted under pressure, and the treaty was signed without any discussion.

The signing ceremony took place on March 3 in the White Palace of the Brest-Litovsk Fortress ca. 17:00. The peace treaty consisted of 14 articles, a number of annexes, 2 protocols and 4 additional treaties (between Soviet Russia and each of the states of the Quadruple Alliance), and was drawn up in five languages ​​(German, Hungarian, Bulgarian, Ottoman and Russian).

Soviet Russia had to pay an extremely high price to end the war. The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk provided for:

- “The areas lying to the west of the line established by the contracting parties and previously belonging to Russia will no longer be under its supreme power", and "Russia refuses any interference in the internal affairs of these regions. Germany and Austria-Hungary intend to determine future destiny these regions upon demolition with their population” (Art. 3);

Russia ensures “the speedy cleansing of the provinces of Eastern Anatolia and their orderly return to Turkey,” “the districts of Ardahan, Kars and Batum are also immediately cleared of Russian troops” (Article 4);

- “Russia will immediately carry out the complete demobilization of its army” (Article 5);

Russia undertakes to immediately make peace with the Ukrainian People's Republic and withdraw its troops and the Red Guard from Ukraine, Estonia and Livonia, as well as Finland and the Åland Islands (Article 6).

Thus, Soviet Russia lost approx. 780 thousand sq. km. with a population of 56 million people, which accounted for 1/3 of the population of the Russian Empire. In addition, under additional agreements, Russia pledged to pay 6 billion marks of reparations (including 1.5 billion marks in gold and loan obligations, 1 billion in goods), as well as 500 million gold rubles for losses incurred by Germany due to revolutionary events in Russia. Also, the property of the subjects of the Central Powers was removed from the scope of the nationalization decrees, and those who had already been affected by them were restored to their rights.

At the VII Congress of the RSDLP (b) (March 6-8, 1918), urgently assembled specifically to discuss this issue, V.I. Lenin to convince the delegates of the expediency of the actions of the Council of People's Commissars and to support the conclusion of peace (30 votes for, 12 against, 4 abstained). The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was ratified on March 15 by the decision of the IV Extraordinary All-Russian Congress of Soviets (784 votes for, 261 against, 115 abstained). On March 26, it was also ratified by German Emperor Wilhelm II.

Cancellation of the contract

The Entente powers reacted negatively to the signing of the separate Treaty of Brest-Litovsk and on March 15, its non-recognition was officially announced. Therefore, when the armistice was signed in Compiegne on November 11, 1918, the victorious countries included a 15th clause in it, which read: “renunciation of the Bucharest and Brest-Litovsk treaties and additional treaties.”