Communism -- Soviet Union; Soviet Union -- History -- Revolution, 1917-1921
The Cossack advance-guards, practically unopposed, occupied Pavlovsk,
Alexandrovsk and other stations, and reached the outskirts of Tsarskoye
Selo next morning—November 10th. At once the garrison divided into
three groups—the officers, loyal to Kerenskly; part of the soldiers and
non-commissioned officers, who declared themselves “neutral”; and most
of the rank and file, who were for the Bolsheviki. The Bolshevik
soldiers, who were without leaders or organisation, fell back toward
the capital. The local Soviet also withdrew to the village of Pulkovo.
From Pulkovo six members of the Tsarskoye Selo Soviet went with an
automobile-load of proclamations to Gatchina, to propagandise the
Cossacks. They spent most of the day going around Gatchina from one
Cossack barracks to another, pleading, arguing and explaining. Toward
evening some officers discovered their presence and they were arrested
and brought before General Krasnov, who said, “You fought against
Kornilov; now you are opposing Kerensky. I’ll have you all shot!”
After reading aloud to them the order appointing him commander-in-chief
of the Petrograd District, Krasnov asked if they were Bolsheviki. They
replied in the affirmative—upon which Krasnov went away; a short time
later an officer came and set them free, saying that it was by order of
General Krasnov….
In the meanwhile delegations continued to arrive from Petrograd; from
the Duma, the Committee for Salvation, and, last of all, from the
_Vikzhel._ The Union of Railway Workers insisted that some agreement be
reached to halt the civil war, and demanded that Kerensky treat with
the Bolsheviki, and that he stop the advance on Petrograd. In case of
refusal, the _Vikzhel_ threatened a general strike at midnight of
November 11th.
Kerensky asked to be allowed to discuss the matter with the Socialist
Ministers and with the Committee for Salvation. He was plainly
undecided.
On the 11th Cossack outposts reached Krasnoye Selo, from which the
local Soviet and the heterogeneous forces of the Military Revolutionary
Committee precipitately retired, some of them surrendering…. That night
they also touched Pulkovo, where the first real resistance was
encountered….
Cossacks deserters began to dribble into Petrograd, declaring that
Kerensky had lied to them, that he had spread broadcast over the front
proclamations which said that Petrograd was burning, that the
Bolsheviki had invited the Germans to come in, and that they were
murdering women and children and looting indiscriminately….
The Military Revolutionary Committee immediately sent out some dozens
of “agitators,” with thousands of printed appeals, to inform the
Cossacks of the real situation….
2.
PROCLAMATIONS OF THE MILITARY REVOLUTIONARY COMMITTEE
“To All Soviets of Workers’, Soldiers’ and Peasants’ Deputies.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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