Conditions for signing the Brest Peace Treaty. The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk - betrayal or salvation of the country? From the memoirs of track engineer N.A. Wrangel

The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk is a treaty between Germany and the Soviet government, obliging Russia to withdraw from the First World War. The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was concluded on March 3, 1918 and ended after Germany surrendered in the World War.

Before the start of the war, all countries Western Europe They knew what the position of the Russian Empire was: the country was in a state of economic recovery.

This was evidenced not only by the increase in the standard of living of the population, but also by the rapprochement of the foreign policy of the Russian Empire with the advanced states of that time - Great Britain and France.

Changes in the economy gave impetus to changes in the social sphere, in particular the number of the working class increased, but the majority of the population was still peasants.

It is active foreign policy countries led to the final formation of the Entente - an alliance of Russia, France and England. In turn, Germany and Austria-Hungary and Italy formed the main composition of the Triple Alliance, which opposed the Entente. The colonial contradictions of the great powers of that time led to the beginning

For a long time The Russian Empire was in military decline, which intensified by the beginning of the World War. The reasons for this condition are obvious:

late completion military reform which began after the Russo-Japanese War;
slow implementation of the program for the formation of new armed associations;
lack of ammunition and provisions;
aging military doctrine, including increased numbers of cavalry in Russian forces;
lack of automatic weapons and communications equipment to supply the army;
insufficient qualifications of the command staff.

These factors contributed to the low combat effectiveness of the Russian army and the increase in the number of deaths during military campaigns. In 1914, the Western and Eastern Fronts were formed - the main battle arenas of the First World War. During 1914-1916, Russia took part in three military campaigns on the Eastern Front.

The first campaign (1914) was marked by the successful Battle of Galicia for the Russian state, during which troops occupied Lviv, the capital of Galicia, as well as the defeat of Turkish troops in the Caucasus.

The second campaign (1915) began with the breakthrough of German troops into the territory of Galicia, during which the Russian Empire suffered significant losses, but at the same time remained capable of providing military support to the territories of the Allies. At the same time, the Quadruple Alliance (a coalition of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey and Bulgaria) was formed in the territories of the Western Front.

During the Third Campaign (1916), Russia manages to improve the military position of France, at which time the United States enters the war against Germany on the Western Front.

In July, the offensive on the territory of Galicia intensified under the command of A.A. Brusilov. So-called Brusilovsky breakthrough was able to bring the army of Austria-Hungary to a critical state. Brusilov's troops occupy the territories of Galicia and Bukovina, but due to lack of support from allied countries they are forced to go on the defensive.

During the war, the attitude of soldiers towards military service, discipline is deteriorating and there is complete demoralization of the Russian army. By the beginning of 1917, when a national crisis overtook Russia, the country’s economy was in significant decline: the value of the ruble was falling, the financial system was being disrupted, due to a lack of fuel energy, the work of about 80 enterprises was stopped, and taxes were increasing.

There is an active increase in high prices and the subsequent collapse of the economy. This was the reason for the introduction of forced grain requisitioning and mass indignation among the civilian population. As economic problems develop, a revolutionary movement is brewing, which brings to power the Bolshevik faction, whose primary task was Russia's exit from the world war.

This is interesting! The main force October revolution There was a movement of soldiers, so the Bolsheviks' promise to stop hostilities was obvious.

Negotiations between Germany and Russia about the coming peace began back in 1917. They were dealt with by Trotsky, at that time the People's Commissar for foreign affairs.

At that time there were three main forces in the Bolshevik party:

Lenin. He argued that a peace agreement must be signed on any terms.
Bukharin. He put forward the idea of war at any cost.
Trotsky. It supported uncertainty - an ideal situation for Western European countries.

The idea of signing a peace document was supported most of all by V.I. Lenin. He understood the need to accept Germany’s conditions and demanded that Trotsky sign the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty, but the People’s Commissar for Foreign Affairs was confident in the further development of the revolution in Germany, as well as in the lack of strength in the Triple Alliance for further offensives.

That is why Trotsky, an ardent left communist, delayed the conclusion of a peace treaty. Contemporaries believe that this behavior of the People's Commissar gave impetus to tightening the terms of the peace document. Germany demanded the separation of the Baltic and Polish territories and some Baltic islands from Russia. It was assumed that the Soviet state would lose up to 160 thousand km2 of territory.

The truce was concluded in December 1917 and was in force until January 1918. In January, both sides were supposed to meet for negotiations, which were eventually canceled by Trotsky. A peace agreement is signed between Germany and Ukraine (thus an attempt was made to pit the UPR government against the Soviet government), and the RSFSR decides to announce its withdrawal from the world war without signing a peace treaty.

Germany begins a large-scale offensive on sections of the Eastern Front, which leads to the threat of the seizure of territories by the Bolshevik power. The result of this tactic was the signing of peace in the city of Brest-Litovsk.

Signing and terms of the agreement

The peace document was signed on March 3, 1918. The terms of the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty, as well as the additional agreement concluded in August of the same year, were as follows:

Russia's loss of territory with a total area of about 790 thousand km2.
Withdrawal of troops from the Baltic regions, Finland, Poland, Belarus and Transcaucasia and subsequent abandonment of these territories.
Recognition by the Russian state of the independence of Ukraine, which came under the protectorate of Germany.
Cessions to Turkey of the territories of Eastern Anatolia, Kars and Ardahan.
Germany's indemnity amounted to 6 billion marks (about 3 billion gold rubles).
Entry into force of certain clauses of the 1904 trade agreement.
Cessation of revolutionary propaganda in Austria and Germany.
The Black Sea Fleet came under the command of Austria-Hungary and Germany.

Also in the additional agreement there was a clause that obliged Russia to withdraw Entente troops from its territories and, in the event of the defeat of the Russian army, German-Finnish troops were supposed to eliminate this problem.

Sokolnikov G. Ya., at the head of the delegation and People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs G. V. Chicherin, signed the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty at 17:50 local time, thus trying to correct the mistakes of the one who adhered to the principle of “neither war, nor peace” - L. D. Trotsky.

The Entente states accepted the separate peace with hostility. They openly declared non-recognition of the Brest-Litovsk Treaty and began landing troops in different parts Russia. Thus, the imperialist intervention in the Soviet country began.

Note! Despite the conclusion of a peace treaty, the Bolshevik government feared a repeat offensive German troops and moved the capital from Petrograd to Moscow.

Already in 1918, Germany was on the verge of collapse, under the influence of which an actively hostile policy towards the RSFSR emerged.

Only the bourgeois-democratic revolution prevented Germany from joining the Entente and organizing the fight against Soviet Russia.

The annulment of the peace treaty gave the Soviet authorities the opportunity not to pay indemnity and to begin the liberation of Russian regions captured by the Germans.

Modern historians argue that the significance of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in the history of Russia is difficult to overestimate. Assessments of the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty are diametrically opposed. Many believe that the agreement served as a catalyst for the further development of the Russian state.

According to others, the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty pushed the state to the abyss, and the actions of the Bolsheviks should be perceived as a betrayal of the people. The Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty had unfavorable consequences.

The occupation of Ukraine by Germany created a food problem and disrupted ties between the country and regions of grain and raw materials production. Economic and economic devastation worsened, a split occurred Russian society at the political and social level. The results of the split were not long in coming - the Civil War(1917-1922).

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Conclusion

The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was a forced measure based on the economic and military decline of Russia, as well as the activation of German and Allied troops on the Eastern Front.

The document did not last long - already in November 1918 it was annulled by both sides, but it was it that gave impetus to fundamental changes in the power structures of the RSFSR. Historical assessments of the Brest-Litovsk Peace make it clear: Russian state lost to the losing side, and this is a unique event in the history of mankind.

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In the First World War, which began in the summer of 1914, Russia took the side of the Entente and its allies - the USA, Belgium, Serbia, Italy, Japan and Romania. This coalition was opposed by the Central Powers - a military-political bloc that included Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Bulgarian Empire and the Ottoman Empire.

The protracted war depleted the economy of the Russian Empire. At the beginning of 1917, rumors about an impending famine spread throughout the capital, and bread cards appeared. And on February 21, the robberies of bakeries began. Local pogroms quickly grew into anti-war actions under the slogans “Down with war!”, “Down with autocracy!”, “Bread!” By February 25, at least 300 thousand people took part in the rallies.

Society was further destabilized by data on colossal losses: according to various estimates, from 775 thousand to 1 million 300 thousand Russian soldiers died in the First World War.

In those same February days of 1917, a mutiny began among the troops. By the spring, the orders of the officers were not actually carried out, and the May Declaration of the Rights of the Soldier, which equalized the rights of soldiers and civilians, further undermined discipline. The failure of the summer Riga operation, as a result of which Russia lost Riga and 18 thousand people killed and captured, led to the fact that the army completely lost its fighting spirit.

The Bolsheviks also played a role in this, viewing the army as a threat to their power. They skillfully fueled pacifist sentiments in military circles.

And in the rear she became a catalyst for two revolutions - the February and October. The Bolsheviks inherited an already morally broken army that was incapable of fighting.

Bread line. Petrograd, 1917
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Meanwhile, World War I continued, and Germany had real opportunity take Petrograd. Then the Bolsheviks decided on a truce.

“The conclusion of the Brest Peace Treaty was an inevitable, forced measure. The Bolsheviks themselves, fearing the suppression of their uprising, disintegrated the tsarist army and understood that it was not capable of fully conducting combat operations,” said Valery Korovin, director of the Center for Geopolitical Expertise, in an interview with RT.

Peace Decree

A month after the October Revolution, on November 8, 1917, the new government adopted the Decree on Peace, the main thesis of which was an immediate truce without annexations and indemnities. However, the proposal to begin negotiations with the powers of a “friendly agreement” was ignored, and the Council of People’s Commissars was forced to act independently.

Lenin sent a telegram to the Russian army units that were at the front at that moment.

“Let the regiments in position immediately elect representatives to formally enter into negotiations on a truce with the enemy,” it said.

On December 22, 1917, Soviet Russia began negotiations with the Central Powers. However, Germany and Austria-Hungary were not satisfied with the formula “without annexations and indemnities.” They invited Russia to “take into account statements expressing the will of the peoples inhabiting Poland, Lithuania, Courland and parts of Estonia and Livonia, about their desire for complete state independence and separation from the Russian Federation.”

Of course, the Soviet side could not fulfill such demands. In Petrograd it was decided that it was necessary to gain time to reorganize the army and prepare for the defense of the capital. For this, Trotsky travels to Brest-Litovsk.

"Tightening" mission

“To delay negotiations, you need a “delay,” as Lenin put it,” Trotsky would later write, calling his participation in the negotiations “visits to a torture chamber.”

At the same time, Trotsky conducted “subversive” propaganda activities among the workers and peasants of Germany and Austria-Hungary with an eye to an early uprising.

The negotiations were extremely difficult. On January 4, 1918, they were joined by a delegation from the Ukrainian People's Republic (UNR), which did not recognize Soviet power. In Brest-Litovsk, the UPR acted as a third party, putting forward claims to part of the Polish and Austro-Hungarian territories.

Meanwhile, the wartime economic turmoil reached the Central Powers. In Germany and Austria-Hungary, food cards appeared for the population, and strikes began demanding peace.

On January 18, 1918, the Central Powers presented their armistice terms. According to them, Germany and Austria-Hungary received Poland, Lithuania, some territories of Belarus, Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia, the Moonsund Islands, as well as the Gulf of Riga. The delegation of Soviet Russia, for which the demands of the powers were extremely unfavorable, took a break in the negotiations.

The Russian delegation was also unable to make an informed decision because serious disagreements arose within the country’s leadership.

Thus, Bukharin called for stopping negotiations and declaring “revolutionary war” on the Western imperialists, believing that even Soviet power itself could be sacrificed for the sake of “the interests of the international revolution.” Trotsky adhered to the line of “no war, no peace”: “We are not signing peace, we are stopping the war, and demobilizing the army.”

Leon Trotsky (center) as part of the Russian delegation arrives for negotiations in Brest-Litovsk, 1918
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Berliner Verlag / Archiv

Lenin, in turn, wanted peace at any cost and insisted that Germany's demands should be agreed to.

“A revolutionary war requires an army, but we don’t have an army... Undoubtedly, the peace that we are forced to conclude now is an obscene peace, but if a war breaks out, our government will be swept away and peace will be concluded by another government,” he said.

As a result, they decided to delay the negotiations even more. Trotsky again went to Brest-Litovsk with instructions from Lenin to sign a peace treaty on Germany’s terms if it presented an ultimatum.

Russian "surrender"

During the days of negotiations, a Bolshevik uprising occurred in Kyiv. Soviet power was proclaimed in Left Bank Ukraine, and Trotsky returned to Brest-Litovsk with representatives of Soviet Ukraine at the end of January 1918. At the same time, the Central Powers declared that they recognized the sovereignty of the UPR. Then Trotsky announced that, in turn, he did not recognize separate agreements between the UPR and “partners.”

Despite this, on February 9, the delegations of Germany and Austria-Hungary, with an eye to the difficult economic situation in their countries, signed a peace treaty with the Ukrainian People's Republic. According to the document, in exchange for military assistance against Soviet Russia, the UPR was supposed to supply the “defenders” with food, as well as hemp, manganese ore and a number of other goods.

Having learned about the agreement with the UPR, German Emperor Wilhelm II ordered the German delegation to present an ultimatum to Soviet Russia demanding that it abandon the Baltic regions to the Narva-Pskov-Dvinsk line. The formal reason for tightening the rhetoric was Trotsky’s allegedly intercepted appeal to German military personnel with a call to “kill the emperor and generals and fraternize with the Soviet troops.”

Contrary to Lenin's decision, Trotsky refused to sign peace on German terms and left the negotiations.

As a result, on February 13, Germany resumed fighting, rapidly moving in a northern direction. Minsk, Kyiv, Gomel, Chernigov, Mogilev and Zhitomir were taken.

Demonstrators burn symbols of the old order on the Champs de Mars, 1918
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Lenin, taking into account the low discipline and difficult psychological situation in the Russian army, approved of mass fraternization with the enemy and spontaneous truces.

“Desertion is growing progressively, entire regiments and artillery are moving to the rear, exposing the front over significant distances, the Germans are walking in crowds around the abandoned position. Constant visits by enemy soldiers to our positions, especially artillery ones, and their destruction of our fortifications are undoubtedly of an organized nature,” says a note sent to the Council of People’s Commissars by the Chief of Staff of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, General Mikhail Bonch-Bruevich.

As a result, on March 3, 1918, the delegation of Soviet Russia signed a peace treaty. According to the document, Russia made a number of serious territorial concessions. Baltic Fleet bases in Finland and the Baltic states.

Russia lost the Vistula provinces, in which the predominantly Belarusian population lived, the Estland, Courland and Livonia provinces, as well as the Grand Duchy of Finland.

Partially, these regions became protectorates of Germany or were part of it. Russia also lost territories in the Caucasus - Kars and Batumi regions. In addition, Ukraine was rejected: the Soviet government was obliged to recognize the independence of the UPR and end the war with it.

Also, Soviet Russia had to pay reparations in the amount of 6 billion marks. In addition, Germany demanded compensation for 500 million gold rubles for losses it allegedly suffered as a result of the Russian Revolution.

“The fall of Petrograd was, in general, a matter of, if not a few days, then a few weeks. And under these conditions, speculating about whether it was possible or impossible to sign this peace makes no sense. If we had not signed it, we would have faced the onset of one of the most powerful armies Europe on untrained, unarmed workers,” says Vladimir Kornilov, director of the Center for Eurasian Studies.

Bolshevik plan

Historians' assessments of the consequences of the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty vary.

“We have ceased to be actors in European politics. However, there were no catastrophic consequences. Subsequently, all the territories lost as a result of the Brest Peace were returned first by Lenin, then by Stalin,” Korovin emphasized.

Kornilov shares a similar point of view. The expert draws attention to the fact that the political forces that considered the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty to be a betrayal subsequently themselves collaborated with the enemy.

“Lenin, who was accused of treason, later proved that he was right by returning the territories. At the same time, the right Socialist Revolutionaries and Mensheviks, who shouted the loudest, did not offer resistance, and calmly collaborated with the German occupation forces in southern Russia. And the Bolsheviks organized the return of these territories and returned them in the end,” Kornilov said.

At the same time, some analysts believe that in Brest-Litovsk the Bolsheviks acted solely to serve their own interests.

“They were saving their power and consciously paying for it with territories,” Rostislav Ishchenko, president of the Center for System Analysis and Forecasting, said in an interview with RT.

Vladimir Lenin, 1918
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According to the American historian Richard Pipes, the Brest-Litovsk Treaty helped Lenin gain additional authority.

“By shrewdly accepting a humiliating peace that allowed him to gain the necessary time and then collapsed under the influence of its own gravity, Lenin earned the widespread trust of the Bolsheviks. When they tore up the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk on November 13, 1918, following which Germany capitulated to the Western allies, Lenin's authority was elevated to unprecedented heights in the Bolshevik movement. Nothing better served his reputation as a man who made no political mistakes,” writes Pipes in his study “The Bolsheviks in the Struggle for Power.”

“Largely thanks to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, or more precisely, the German occupation, the future northern and eastern borders of Ukraine were formed,” Kornilov clarifies.

In addition, it was the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk that became one of the reasons for the appearance of “time bombs”—national republics—in the Soviet and then in the Russian Constitution.

“The one-time loss of large territories led to the facilitation and acceleration of the process of self-determination of the population of some of them as sovereign political nations. Subsequently, during the formation of the USSR, this influenced Lenin’s choice of this particular model - a national-administrative division into so-called republics with sovereignty and the right to secede from the USSR already included in their very first constitution,” Korovin noted.

At the same time, the events of 1918 largely influenced the Bolsheviks’ idea of the role of the state.

“The loss of large territories forced the Bolsheviks as a whole to rethink their attitude towards the state. If until some point the state was not a value in the light of the coming world revolution, then the one-time loss of a large space sobered up even the most rabid, forcing them to value the territories that make up the state, with their resources, population and industrial potential,” concluded Korovin .

Contrary to the promises of the Bolsheviks, the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty was concluded on the terms of Germany and its allies, which were extremely difficult for Russia. Most of Ukraine, the Estonia, Livonia and Courland provinces, as well as the Grand Duchy of Finland became German protectorates or became part of Germany. The Baltic Fleet left its bases in Finland and the Baltic states. Russia paid 6 billion marks in reparations.

Peace treaty
between Germany, Austria-Hungary,
Bulgaria and Turkey on the one hand
and Russia on the other

Since Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey on the one hand and Russia on the other agreed to end the state of war and complete peace negotiations as soon as possible, they were appointed plenipotentiary representatives:

from the Imperial German Government:
State Secretary of the Foreign Office, Imperial Privy Councillor, Mr. Richard von Kühlmann,
Imperial Envoy and Minister Plenipotentiary, Mr. Dr. Von Rosenberg,
Royal Prussian Major General Hoffmann,
Chief of the General Staff of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief on the Eastern Front, Captain 1st Rank Gorn,

from the Imperial and Royal General Austro-Hungarian Government:
Minister of the Imperial and Royal Household and Foreign Affairs, His Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty Privy Councilor Ottokar Count Czernin von zu Hudenitz,
emergency and ambassador plenipotentiary, His Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty Privy Councilor, Cajetan Mere von Kapos Mere,
General of the Infantry, His Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty Privy Councilor, Mr. Maximilian Chicherich von Bachani,

from the Royal Bulgarian Government:
Royal Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary in Vienna, Andrey Toshev,
Colonel of the General Staff, Royal Bulgarian Military Plenipotentiary to His Majesty the German Emperor and Aide-de-Camp to His Majesty the King of the Bulgarians, Petr Ganchev,
Royal Bulgarian First Secretary of the Mission, Dr. Teodor Anastasov,

from the Imperial Ottoman Government:
His Highness Ibrahim Hakki Pasha, former Grand Vizier, Member of the Ottoman Senate, Plenipotentiary Ambassador of His Majesty the Sultan in Berlin,
His Excellency, General of the Cavalry, Adjutant General of His Majesty the Sultan and Military Plenipotentiary of His Majesty the Sultan to His Majesty the German Emperor, Zeki Pasha,

from the Russian Federative Soviet Republic:
Grigory Yakovlevich Sokolnikov, member of the Central Executive Committee of the Councils of Workers', Soldiers' and Peasants' Deputies,
Lev Mikhailovich Karaxan, member of the Central Executive Committee of the Councils of Workers', Soldiers' and Peasants' Deputies,
Georgy Vasilyevich Chicherin; Assistant People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs and
Grigory Ivanovich Petrovsky, People's Commissar for internal affairs.

The plenipotentiaries met at Brest-Litovsk for peace negotiations and, after presenting their powers, which were found to be in correct and proper form, came to an agreement regarding the following resolutions.

Article I

Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey on the one hand and Russia on the other declare that the state of war between them has ended. They decided to henceforth live among themselves in peace and friendship.

Article II

The contracting parties will refrain from any agitation or propaganda against the government or state and military institutions of the other party. Since this obligation concerns Russia, it also applies to the areas occupied by the powers of the Quadruple Alliance.

Article III

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 authority: the established line is indicated on the attached map (Appendix 1), which is essential integral part this peace treaty. The exact definition of this line will be worked out by a German-Russian commission.

For the designated regions, no obligations towards Russia will arise from their former affiliation with Russia.

Russia refuses any interference in the internal affairs of these regions. Germany and Austria-Hungary intend to determine future destiny these areas after demolition with their population.

Article IV

Germany is ready, as soon as general peace is concluded and Russian demobilization is completely carried out, to clear the territory lying east of the line indicated in paragraph 1 of Article III, since Article VI does not stipulate otherwise.

Russia will do everything in its power to ensure 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. Russia will not interfere in new organization state-legal and international-legal relations of these districts, and will allow the population of these districts to establish a new system in agreement with neighboring states, especially Turkey.

Article V

Russia will immediately carry out the complete demobilization of its army, including the military units newly formed by the current government.

In addition, Russia will either transfer its military vessels to Russian ports and leave them there until imprisonment universal peace, or immediately disarm. Military vessels of states that continue to be at war with the powers of the Quadruple Alliance, since these vessels are within the sphere of Russian power, are equated to Russian military courts.

The exclusion zone in the Arctic Ocean remains in force until global peace is concluded. In the Baltic Sea and in Russian-controlled parts of the Black Sea, the removal of minefields must begin immediately. Merchant shipping in these maritime areas is free and immediately resumed. Mixed commissions will be created to develop more precise regulations, especially for publishing safe routes for merchant ships. Navigation routes must be kept free of floating mines at all times.

Article VI

Russia undertakes to immediately conclude peace with the Ukrainian People's Republic and recognize the peace treaty between this state and the powers of the Quadruple Alliance. The territory of Ukraine is immediately cleared of Russian troops and Russian Red Guards. Russia ceases all agitation or propaganda against the government or public institutions of the Ukrainian People's Republic.

Estland and Livonia are also immediately cleared of Russian troops and Russian Red Guards. The eastern border of Estonia generally runs along the Narva River. The eastern border of Livonia runs generally through Lake Peipus and Lake Pskov to its southwestern corner, then through Lake Lyubanskoe in the direction of Livenhof on the Western Dvina. Estland and Livonia will be occupied by the German police power until public safety is ensured there by the country's own institutions and until public order is established there. Russia will immediately release all arrested and deported residents of Estonia and Livonia and ensure the safe return of all deported Estonians and Livonia residents.

Finland and the Åland Islands will also be immediately cleared of Russian troops and Russian Red Guards, and Finnish ports will be cleared of Russian fleet and Russian naval forces. While ice makes it impossible to transfer military ships to Russian ports, only minor crews should be left on them. Russia ceases all agitation or propaganda against the government or public institutions of Finland.

The fortifications erected on the Åland Islands must be demolished as soon as possible. As for the prohibition to henceforth erect fortifications on these islands, as well as their general position in relation to military and navigation technology, a special agreement must be concluded regarding them between Germany, Finland, Russia and Sweden; The parties agree that other states adjacent to the Baltic Sea can be involved in this agreement at Germany's request.

Article VII

Based on the fact that Persia and Afghanistan are free and independent states, the contracting parties undertake to respect the political and economic independence and territorial integrity of Persia and Afghanistan.

Article VIII

Prisoners of war from both sides will be released to their homeland. The settlement of related issues will be the subject of special treaties provided for in Article XII.

Article IX

The contracting parties mutually refuse compensation for their military expenses, i.e., government costs of waging war, as well as compensation for military losses, i.e., those losses that were caused to them and their citizens in the war zone by military measures, in including all requisitions made in the enemy country.

Article X

Diplomatic and consular relations between the contracting parties are resumed immediately after the ratification of the peace treaty. Regarding the admission of consuls, both parties reserve the right to enter into special agreements.

Article XI

Economic relations between the powers of the Quadruple Alliance and Russia are determined by the regulations contained in Annexes 2−5, with Appendix 2 defining the relations between Germany and Russia, Appendix 3 between Austria-Hungary and Russia, Appendix 4 between Bulgaria and Russia, Appendix 5 - between Turkey and Russia.

Article XII

The restoration of public law and private law relations, the exchange of prisoners of war and civilian prisoners, the issue of amnesty, as well as the issue of treatment of merchant ships that have fallen into the power of the enemy, is the subject of separate agreements with Russia, which form an essential part of this peace treaty, and, so far as possible, come into force simultaneously with it.

Article XIII

When interpreting this treaty, the authentic texts for relations between Germany and Russia are German and Russian, between Austria-Hungary and Russia are German, Hungarian and Russian, between Bulgaria and Russia are Bulgarian and Russian, between Turkey and Russia are Turkish and Russian.

Article XIV

This peace treaty will be ratified. The exchange of instruments of ratification should take place in Berlin as soon as possible. The Russian government undertakes to exchange instruments of ratification at the request of one of the powers of the Quadruple Alliance within two weeks. A peace treaty comes into force from the moment of its ratification, unless otherwise follows from its articles, appendices or additional treaties.

In witness of this, the authorized persons have personally signed this agreement.

Treaty of Brest-Litovsk*

Since Russia, on the one hand, and Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey, on the other, agreed to end the state of war and complete peace negotiations as soon as possible, they were appointed plenipotentiary representatives:

From the Russian Federative Soviet Republic:

Grigory Yakovlevich Sokolnikov, member of the Center. Exec. Committee of Soviets Workers, Soldiers. and Cross. Deputies,

Lev Mikhailovich Karakhan, member of the Center. Exec. Committee of Soviets Workers, Soldiers. and Cross. Deputies,

Georgy Vasilyevich Chicherin, Assistant to the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs and

Grigory Ivanovich Petrovsky, People's Commissar for Internal Affairs.

From the Imperial German Government: State Secretary of the Foreign Office, Imperial Privy Councillor, Richard von Kühlmann,

Imperial Envoy and Minister Plenipotentiary, Dr. von Rosenberg,

Royal Prussian Major General Hoffmann, Chief of the General Staff of the Supreme Commander on the Eastern Front and

captain 1st rank Gorn.

From the Imperial and Royal General Austro-Hungarian Government:

Minister of the Imperial and Royal Household and Foreign Affairs, His Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty Privy Councilor Ottokar Count Czernin von and zu-Chudenitz, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, His Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty Privy Councilor Cajetan Merey von-Kapos Mere, General from Infantry, His Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty Privy Councilor Maximilian Chicherich von Bachani.

From the Royal Bulgarian Government:

Royal Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary in Vienna, Andrey Toshev, Colonel of the General Staff, Royal Bulgarian Military Plenipotentiary to His Majesty the German Emperor and Aide-de-Camp to His Majesty the King of Bulgaria, Peter Ganchev, Royal Bulgarian First Secretary of the Mission, Dr. Theodor Anastasov.

From the Imperial Ottoman Government:

His Highness Ibrahim Hakki Pasha, former Grand Vizier, Member of the Ottoman Senate, Plenipotentiary Ambassador of His Majesty the Sultan in Berlin, His Excellency General of the Cavalry, Adjutant General of His Majesty the Sultan and Military Plenipotentiary of His Majesty the Sultan to His Majesty the German Emperor, Zeki- Pasha.

The Commissioners met at Brest-Litovsk for peace negotiations and, after presenting their powers, which were found to be in correct and proper form, came to an agreement regarding the following resolutions:

Russia, on the one hand, and Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey, on the other, declare that the state of war between them has ended; They decided to henceforth live among themselves in peace and friendship.

The contracting parties will refrain from any agitation or propaganda against the government or state or military institutions of the other party. So far as this obligation concerns Russia, it extends also to the areas occupied by the powers of the Quadruple Alliance.

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 authority; the established line is indicated on the attached map (Appendix 1)**, which is an essential part of this peace treaty. The exact definition of this line will be worked out by a Russian-German commission.

For the designated regions, no obligations towards Russia will arise from their former affiliation with Russia.

Russia refuses any interference in the internal affairs of these regions. Germany and Austria-Hungary intend to determine the future fate of these areas upon demolition of their population.

Germany is ready, as soon as general peace is concluded and Russian demobilization is completely carried out, to clear the territory lying east of that indicated in paragraph 1 of Art. 3 lines, since Article 6 does not provide otherwise. Russia will do everything in its power to ensure 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. Russia will not interfere in the new organization of state-legal and international legal relations of these districts, but will allow the population of these districts to establish a new system in agreement with neighboring states, especially Turkey.

Russia will immediately carry out the complete demobilization of its army, including military units newly formed by the current government.

In addition, Russia will either transfer its military ships to Russian ports and leave them there until a general peace is concluded, or immediately disarm them. Military vessels of states that continue to be at war with the powers of the Quadruple Alliance, since these vessels are within the sphere of Russian power, are equated to Russian military courts.

Russia undertakes to immediately make peace with the Ukrainian People's Republic and recognize the peace treaty between this state and the powers of the Quadruple Alliance. The territory of Ukraine is immediately cleared of Russian troops and the Russian Red Guard. Russia ceases all agitation or propaganda against the government or public institutions of the Ukrainian People's Republic.

Estland and Livonia are also immediately cleared of Russian troops and Russian Red Guards. The eastern border of Estonia runs, in general, along the river. Narov. The eastern border of Livonia runs, in general, through Lake Peipus and Lake Pskov to its southwestern corner, then through Lake Lyubanskoye in the direction of Livenhof on the Western Dvina. Estland and Livonia will be occupied by the German police power until public safety is ensured there by the country's own institutions and until public order is established there. Russia will immediately release all arrested or deported residents of Estonia and Livonia and ensure the safe return of all deported Estonians and Livonia residents.

Finland and the Åland Islands will also be immediately cleared of Russian troops and the Russian Red Guard, and Finnish ports will be cleared of the Russian fleet and Russian naval forces. While ice makes it impossible to transfer military ships to Russian ports, only minor crews should be left on them. Russia ceases all agitation or propaganda against the government or public institutions of Finland.

Prisoners of war from both sides will be released to their homeland. The settlement of related issues will be the subject of special agreements provided for in Art. 12.

The contracting parties mutually refuse to reimburse their military expenses, i.e. government costs of waging war, as well as from compensation for military losses, i.e. from those losses that were caused to them and their citizens in the war zone by military measures, including all requisitions carried out in the enemy country.

Article 10

Diplomatic and consular relations between the contracting parties will resume immediately after the ratification of the peace treaty. Regarding the admission of consuls, both parties reserve the right to enter into special agreements.

Article 11

Economic relations between Russia and the powers of the Quadruple Alliance are determined by the regulations contained in Annexes 2 - 5, with Appendix 2 defining the relationship between Russia and Germany, Appendix 3 between Russia and Austria-Hungary, Appendix 4 between Russia and Bulgaria, Appendix 5 - between Russia and Turkey.

Article 12

The restoration of public law and private law relations, the exchange of prisoners of war and civilian prisoners, the issue of amnesty, as well as the issue of treatment of merchant ships that have fallen into the power of the enemy, is the subject of separate agreements with Russia, which form an essential part of this peace treaty and , so far as possible, come into force simultaneously with it.

Article 13

When interpreting this treaty, the authentic texts for relations between Russia and Germany are Russian and German, between Russia and Austria-Hungary - Russian, German and Hungarian, between Russia and Bulgaria - Russian and Bulgarian, between Russia and Turkey - Russian and Turkish.

Article 14

A peace treaty comes into force from the moment of its ratification, unless otherwise follows from its articles, appendices or additional treaties.

In witness of this, the authorized persons have personally signed this agreement.

Original in five copies.

Appendix 2

Peace terms proposed by Germany on February 21, 1918 in response to the Soviet government's message of agreement to sign peace

“Germany is ready to resume negotiations and make peace with Russia on the following terms:

1. Germany and Russia declare an end to the state of war. Both peoples are ready to henceforth live in peace and friendship.

2. Regions lying west of the line communicated by the Russian commissioner in Brest-Litovsk and previously included in Russian Empire, are no longer subject to the territorial sovereignty of Russia. In the Dvinsk region this line extends to the eastern border of Courland. The fact that these regions formerly belonged to the Russian Empire does not result in any obligations for them towards Russia. Russia refuses any interference in the internal life of these regions. Germany and Austria-Hungary intend to determine the future fate of these areas in accordance with their populations. Germany is ready immediately, upon the conclusion of a general peace and the complete completion of Russian demobilization, to clear the area lying east of the indicated line, since from Art. 3 does not imply anything else.

3. Livonia and Estland are immediately cleared of Russian troops and the Red Guard and are occupied by German police forces until the local authorities are able to guarantee calm and order is restored. All political arrested local citizens are immediately released.

4. Russia immediately makes peace with the Ukrainian People's Republic. Ukraine and Finland are promptly cleared of Russian troops and Red Guards.

5. Russia, by all means at its disposal, will promote the speediest and systematic return of Turkey to its Anatolian provinces and recognize the abolition of Turkish capitulations.

6a). Complete demobilization Russian armies, including those newly formed by the current government, must be carried out immediately.

6b). Russian military vessels in the Black Sea, the Baltic Sea and the Arctic Ocean must either be transferred to Russian ports, where they must be interned until a general peace is concluded, or must be immediately disarmed. Entente military vessels located in Russia's sphere of influence are considered Russian.

6c). Merchant shipping in the Black and Baltic Seas is immediately restored, as provided for in the armistice agreement. The necessary mine clearance begins immediately. The blockade in the Arctic Ocean remains until universal peace is concluded.

7. The German-Russian trade treaty of 1904 comes into force again, as provided for in Article 7 (clause 2) of the peace treaty with Ukraine, and the special favored treatment provided for in Article 11 (clause 3, paragraph 1) of the trade treaty is excluded in a relationship eastern countries; further, the entire first part of the final protocol is restored. Added to this are: guarantees of free export and the right to duty-free export of ore; early start of negotiations on concluding a new trade agreement; a guarantee of most favored nation status at least until the end of 1925, even in the event of a declaration of termination of the temporary treaty, and, finally, conditions corresponding to Article 7, paragraphs 3 and 4 (paragraph 1) and paragraph 5 of the peace treaty with Ukraine.

8. Issues of a legal nature are regulated in accordance with the decisions of the Russian-German legal commission adopted in the first reading; since no decisions were made, the proposals from the German side regarding compensation for losses of private individuals come into force, and the Russian proposal regarding compensation for the maintenance of prisoners of war comes into force. Russia will allow and will, to the best of its ability, support the activities of German commissions in the sense of caring for German prisoners of war, civilian prisoners and settlers.

9. Russia undertakes to cease all official or official-sponsored agitation or propaganda against the Allied governments and their state and military institutions, also in areas occupied by the Central Powers.

10. The above conditions must be accepted within 48 hours. The Russian plenipotentiaries must immediately go to Brest-Litovsk and there sign a peace treaty within three days, which is subject to ratification no later than two weeks.

The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk is one of the most humiliating episodes in Russian history. It became a resounding diplomatic failure for the Bolsheviks and was accompanied by an acute political crisis within the country.

Peace Decree

The “Decree on Peace” was adopted on October 26, 1917 - the day after the armed coup - and spoke of the need to conclude a just democratic peace without annexations and indemnities between all warring peoples. It served as the legal basis for concluding a separate agreement with Germany and the other Central Powers.

Publicly Lenin spoke about the transformation of the imperialist war into a civil war; he considered the revolution in Russia only initial stage world socialist revolution. In fact, there were other reasons. The warring peoples did not act according to Ilyich’s plans - they did not want to turn their bayonets against the governments, and the allied governments ignored the peace proposal of the Bolsheviks. Only the countries of the enemy bloc that were losing the war agreed to rapprochement.

Conditions

Germany stated that it was ready to accept a condition of peace without annexations and indemnities, but only if this peace was signed by all the warring countries. But none of the Entente countries joined the peace negotiations, so Germany abandoned the Bolshevik formula, and their hopes for a just peace were finally buried. The talk in the second round of negotiations was exclusively about a separate peace, the terms of which were dictated by Germany.

Betrayal and necessity

Not all Bolsheviks agreed to sign a separate peace. The left was categorically against any agreements with imperialism. They defended the idea of exporting the revolution, believing that without socialism in Europe, Russian socialism is doomed to death (and subsequent transformations of the Bolshevik regime proved them right). The leaders of the left Bolsheviks were Bukharin, Uritsky, Radek, Dzerzhinsky and others. They called for a guerrilla war against German imperialism, and in the future hoped to conduct regular military operations with the forces of the newly created Red Army.

Lenin was, first of all, in favor of the immediate conclusion of a separate peace. He was afraid of the German offensive and the complete loss of his own power, which even after the coup relied heavily on German money. It is unlikely that the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was directly bought by Berlin. The main factor was precisely the fear of losing power. If we consider that a year after the conclusion of peace with Germany, Lenin was even ready to divide Russia in exchange for international recognition, then the conditions of the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty will not seem so humiliating.

Trotsky occupied an intermediate position in the internal party struggle. He defended the thesis “No peace, no war.” That is, he proposed to stop hostilities, but not to sign any agreements with Germany. As a result of the struggle within the party, it was decided to delay the negotiations in every possible way, expecting a revolution in Germany, but if the Germans presented an ultimatum, then agree to all the conditions. However, Trotsky, who led the Soviet delegation in the second round of negotiations, refused to accept the German ultimatum. Negotiations broke down and Germany continued to advance. When peace was signed, the Germans were 170 km from Petrograd.

Annexations and indemnities

Peace conditions were very difficult for Russia. She lost Ukraine and Polish lands, renounced claims to Finland, gave up the Batumi and Kars regions, had to demobilize all her troops, abandon the Black Sea Fleet and pay huge indemnities. The country was losing almost 800 thousand square meters. km and 56 million people. In Russia, Germans received the exclusive right to freely engage in business. In addition, the Bolsheviks pledged to pay off the tsarist debts to Germany and its allies.

At the same time, the Germans did not comply with their own obligations. After signing the treaty, they continued the occupation of Ukraine, overthrew Soviet rule on the Don and helped the White movement in every possible way.

Rise of the Left

The Brest-Litovsk Treaty almost led to a split in the Bolshevik Party and the loss of power by the Bolsheviks. Lenin hardly pushed the final decision on peace through a vote in the Central Committee, threatening to resign. The party split did not happen only thanks to Trotsky, who agreed to abstain from voting, ensuring victory for Lenin. But this did not help avoid a political crisis.