Shuliavka Republic

The Shuliavska Republic (Ukrainian: Шулявська республіка; Russian: Шулявская республика) was a self-declared entity in Shuliavka neighborhood, Kiev by workers of the factory of Greter, Krivanek, & Co (today Bilshovyk Factory) and students of the Kiev Polytechnic Institute.[1] The uprising lasted a total of four days, from December 12–16 (O.S.; 26–29 in the Gregorian calendar), 1905.

Early 20th-century postcard depicting the Kiev Polytechnic Institute, where the uprising was headquartered.

The Shuliavska Republic came to an end after the uprising was put down by the Imperial Russian Army.

Uprising

On December 11, 1905 (O.S.), in a sign of support for the December Uprising in Moscow,[2] the Council of Workers' Deputies of Kiev decided to stage a mass uprising. On the next day, all major organisations of the city stopped their operation. The majority of the protesting workers were concentrated in the Shuliavska district.

By a couple of hours after the start of the uprising, a "strict revolutionary order" was established.[1][2] Groups of about 150 armed workers were sent to patrol the territory,[1][2] which was headquartered in the first building of the Kiev Polytechnic Institute.

Shuliavka was declared a workers' republic,[3] where the citywide protest headquarters and the Council of Workers' Deputies were housed. Workers in the district proclaimed the republic as the sole authority in Kiev. Among the supporters of the protesting workers were the students and faculty of the Polytechnic Institute.

Manifesto


On the first day of the uprising, the Council of Workers' Deputies published their manifesto, which proclaimed:

Citizens of the Shuliavska republic protest for the abolition of absolute monarchy, for the freedom of speech and assembly, for social services, for amnesty of political prisoners, for a national emancipation of Ukrainians, Poles, and Jews, and other nationalities of the Russian Empire, for the immediate end to the Jewish pogroms, which embarrasses our people.

In addition, the workers demanded a pension, normal working conditions, the removal of unnecessary fines, better medical services, and a system of government protection.[4]

End

The ongoing conflict between the Bolsheviks and the Mensheviks in the Council and Committee of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party slowed the growth of the uprising.[2]

On December 15 (O.S.), the territory of Shuliavska was surrounded by the Imperial Russian Army and local authorities. The police, who, before then usually avoided the area,[5] began mass arrests and confiscated any weapons they found. In all, more than 78 people were arrested.[6] On the next day, the uprising was put down by a 2,000-strong armed force consisting mainly of the Special Corps of Gendarmes and Cossack cavalry.[2][3]

References
  1. Hamm, Michael F. (1993). Kiev: A Portrait, 1800–1917. Princeton University Press. pp. 216–219. ISBN 0-691-02585-1.
  2. Kudrytskyi, A. (1981). Kyiv, Encyclopedic Directory. Kyiv: Ukrainian Soviet Encyclopedia. p. 705.
  3. "Something about Shuliavka". Old Kiev (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2008-04-19.
  4. Manchuk, Andrei (January 19, 2007). "In defence of the "Shuliavska republic"". Gazeta po-Kievski (in Russian). Archived from the original on March 8, 2008. Retrieved 2008-04-19.
  5. Hamm, pg. 217.
  6. Hamm, pg. 219.
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