Socialist revolutionary faction of the Finnish Civil War (1918)
The
Finnish Socialist Workers' Republic
(
FSWR
), more commonly referred to as
Red Finland
, was a self-proclaimed
socialist state
in
Finland
during the
Finnish Civil War
from January to May 1918.
The FSWR was established by the
Finnish People's Delegation
, a government formed by members of the
Social Democratic Party
to rival the existing
Government of Finland
, with support of the
Red Guards
. The FSWR controlled the capital
Helsinki
, most of southern Finland, and the city of
Oulu
until March.
Kullervo Manner
served as its sole leader as Chairman of the
Central Committee
of the Finnish People's Delegation.
[1]
The FSWR collapsed when the Red Guards were defeated by the
White Finns
and
Germany
, with Manner and most of the Finnish People's Delegation fleeing to
Soviet Russia
.
The name "Finnish Socialist Workers' Republic" (
Finnish
:
Suomen sosialistinen tyovaentasavalta
) appeared only in the Treaty between
Finnish People's Delegation
and Russian
Council of People's Commissars
, signed on 1 March 1918. The People's Delegation had earlier used the name Republic of Finland (
Suomen tasavalta
), but Soviet leader
Vladimir Lenin
proposed adding "Socialist Workers' Republic" into the name during negotiations. The People's Delegation later blamed its delegates for succumbing to Lenin's demand, since the official name of the state should have been decided by the Finns themselves.
Aims
[
edit
]
Red Finland/FSWR was an attempt to establish a socialist state, based on the legacy of Scandinavian-Finnish culture, socialist ideas originating from
Central Europe
, including plans to expand the Finnish territory. Their political visions included principles of democracy, but as Red Finland was primarily the formation of revolution and civil war, the acts of violence and warfare were emphasized in the policy. The Red Guards included a minor faction of Finnish Bolsheviks who supported association of FSWR to Soviet Russia. FSWR/Red Finland never gained a true status and form of state and republic as the Reds lost the Civil War on 5 May 1918.
[2]
Geographical area
[
edit
]
The
geographical
area of Red Finland as well as the
front line
between White and Red Finland took shape approximately between 28 January and 3 February 1918, and it remained largely unchanged until the general offensive of the Whites in March 1918.
[3]
Draft constitution
[
edit
]
The
Finnish People's Delegation
, mainly
Otto Ville Kuusinen
[
citation needed
]
, formulated and set forth, on 23 February 1918, a draft for a
constitution
of Red Finland/FSWR, on the basis of the Finnish Social Democratic principles and mentality. The
Marxist
concept of
dictatorship of the proletariat
was absent from the program. Instead, it represented an idea of
democratic socialism
and it was influenced by the constitutions of
Switzerland
and
United States
, and
French Revolution
. The constitution model included most of democratic
civil rights
for the Finnish
citizens
, including an extensive use of
referendum
in political decision making, but
private property rights
were excluded and given to state and local administration. The draft was never finally formulated and approved in Red Finland, before the defeat of FSWR in the 1918 war.
[4]
The political situation after the
January Revolution
in Finland raised a major question in terms of the constitution draft, among the Finnish (moderate)
socialists
. The question arose if the power gained via
revolution
would allow
democracy
a true chance in Finnish
society
. The relation between democracy and revolution was contradictory for the socialists, as the
February Revolution
empowered the lamed Finnish Parliament, until July 1917; restoration of the socialists' power in the Parliament was among the main goals of the January Revolution 1918. The Finnish Red-White conflict of 1918 has been described as
Class War
,
Rebellion
,
(Red) Revolt
and
Abortive (Red) Revolution
by the Finnish Red
veterans
.
[5]
Relations with Lenin
[
edit
]
Although the Finnish Socialist Worker's Republic was supported by the
Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
(RSFSR), led by
Vladimir Lenin
, and the 1 March 1918 Red Treaty was signed between these two unstable
socialist states
, an ideal level of co-operation and co-ordination was never achieved, due to both states being preoccupied with their own respective civil wars. The goal of the Finnish Reds' majority was a neutral and independent Finland, and some of them demanded annexation of
Aunus
,
Viena Karelia
and
Petsamo
areas of Russian Karelia to Finland. The Russian-Finnish Red treaty had only minor importance for the Bolsheviks as they carried out peace negotiations with the
German Empire
. In the end, the fate of the Finnish Reds and FSWR was determined through the power political decisions made between
Russia
and
Germany
.
Edvard Gylling
was the prime mover at the start of the Finnish-Russian talks for the Red Treaty; among other things he aimed to work for peace talks between the Finnish Whites and Reds, by diminishing the Russian influence in Finland. The Finnish Bolsheviks, few in number, but influential and active in the Finnish Red Guards supported Lenin's Russian federalism. The Finns got Petsamo, but the question of Aunus and Viena remained open.
[6]
Lenin aimed to halt a complete collapse of
Russia
after the revolutionary year 1917. While in political opposition prior to the
October Revolution
, Lenin emphasized the policy of nations' right to self-determination for the former parts of the
Russian Empire
. After the successful seizure of power in October 1917 and in January 1918, the Bolsheviks' power political strategy shifted gradually toward
federalism
. As for
Finland
, Lenin plotted its annexation by Russia, but the
Russian Civil War
, German-Russian
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
, Finland-operation of the
German Army
, the victory of the White Guards in the Finnish civil war and the marked
nationalism
among the Finnish socialists stalled his plan. Lenin's "socialist" power policy followed that of the former
Romanov
empire; the
geopolitical
position of a country determined the way it was treated by the Russian leadership (e.g.
Poland
-
Ukraine
vs.
Finland
).
[7]
Civil war
[
edit
]
After the start of the Finnish Civil War, on January 28, 1918,
Kullervo Manner
was appointed chairman of the
People's Delegation
, the Red Government. On April 10 of the same year, the Reds reformed their entire administration and Manner was appointed leader of the Red Finland and the Supreme Commander of the Red Guard under the authority of the
dictator
.
[8]
The warfare between the Reds and
Whites
took major attention and energy of the Red leadership, and the situation was not alleviated by the loss of many strategically important sites, such as
Tampere
, to the Whites.
[8]
Therefore, the formation of the local Red civil administration remained unfinished and waited for the result of the Civil War. The top and middle-rank civil servants of the pre-civil war administration refused to co-operate with the Reds, and new leadership had to be chosen and trained from the lower rank servants.
[9]
Defeat of the FSWR
[
edit
]
The German
Baltic Sea Division
in parade after 1918
Battle of Helsinki
The Finnish Civil War ended with the German invasion of Finland and the consequent defeat of the Finnish
Red Guards
and FSWR on 5 May 1918. After the war, the initially powerful and well-organized Finnish Social Democrats, born and bred in the relatively free and nationalistic social atmosphere, within the
Scandinavian
and Russian culture, and affected primarily by socialist ideas of
Germany
,
Austria
and
Czechoslovakia
(pre-World War I
Austria-Hungary
), were split in two. The moderate socialists continued their pre-1918 political culture, adhered to the society and political system of
Finland
, while the far-left faction formed the
Communist Party of Finland
in August 1918 in
Moscow
, with the main leaders living in exile in
Russia
and a marked part of the common supporters living in Finland.
[10]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
Hodgson, John H. (March 1970).
"The Finnish Communist Party"
.
Slavic Review
.
29
(1).
Cambridge University Press
: 70?85.
doi
:
10.2307/2493091
.
JSTOR
2493091
.
- ^
Rinta-Tassi 1986
, pp. 73?113, 417?429;
Klemettila 1989
, pp. 163?203;
Keranen et al. 1992
, pp. 88, 106;
Pietiainen 1992
, pp. 252?403;
Manninen 1995
, pp. 21?32;
Jussila 2007
, pp. 287?288;
Jyranki 2014
, pp. 10?16
- ^
Keranen et al. 1992
, pp. 88?90
- ^
Upton 1973
, pp. 105?142;
Rinta-Tassi 1986
, pp. 19?24, 30?33, 497?504;
Alapuro 1988
, pp. 167?176;
Keranen et al. 1992
, pp. 88, 102;
Piilonen 1993
, pp. 486?627;
Jussila 2007
, pp. 287?288;
Suodenjoki 2009
, pp. 249?269;
Payne 2011
, pp. 25?32
- ^
Kettunen 1986
, pp. 9?89;
Rinta-Tassi 1986
, pp. 497?504;
Piilonen 1993
, pp. 486?627;
Kalela 2008
, pp. 31?44
- ^
Upton 1981
, pp. 262?265;
Rinta-Tassi 1986
, pp. 417?429;
Klemettila 1989
, pp. 163?203;
Keranen et al. 1992
, pp. 106;
Pietiainen 1992
, pp. 252?403;
Piilonen 1993
, pp. 486?627;
Manninen 1995
, pp. 21?32;
Jussila 2007
, pp. 287?288;
Jyranki 2014
, pp. 83?96
- ^
Rinta-Tassi 1986
, pp. 24?28;
Klemettila 1989
, pp. 163?203;
Pipes 1996
, pp. 382?406;
Jussila 2007
, pp. 282?288
- ^
a
b
"Tampere antautui, Suomi 80"
[Tampere surrendered, Finland 80] (in Finnish).
- ^
Piilonen 1993
, pp. 486?627;
Suodenjoki 2009
, pp. 249?269
- ^
Rinta-Tassi 1986
, pp. 19?22, 497?504;
Jussila 2007
, pp. 287?288;
Haapala 2014
, pp. 21?50
Bibliography
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State and Revolution in Finland
.
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ISBN
0-520-05813-5
.
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.
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Suomen historian suuret myytit
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The great myths of Finnish history
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Kansa kahtia, henki halpaa. Oikeus sisallissodan Suomessa?
[
A nation divided, spirit cheap. Justice in the civil war in Finland?
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The political history of Finnish society
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.
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[
Political movement and social collectivity: a study of social democracy and the trade union movement in Finland 1918-1930
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951-9254-86-2
.
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.
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Civil War in Europe, 1905-1949
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951-37-0729-6
.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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] (in Finnish). Gummerus Oy.
ISBN
951-26-2022-7
.
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]
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