The History of Russian and Nazi Collaboration

by Zoltanous

Dec 19, 2023

Before The Russian Revolution

Following the assassination of Emperor Alexander II in 1881, carried out by the Russian Nihilists in a series of attempts, including basement bombs in the Winter Palace and street shoot-outs, the Russian state underwent a significant shift in its approach. Previously open to liberal social reform, the state now cracked down on the Nihilist movement that had killed the only sympathetic Tsar, Alexander II. Alexander's program of autocratic liberalism, which included the emancipation of serfs, modest property reform, land redistribution, selective civic advancement for Jews, localized self-government, and an independent judiciary, was swiftly reversed through a concerted counterreform effort.

The new emperor, Alexander III, held strong opposition to modernism, even breaking with the long-standing traditions of the Romanov dynasty. He not only sported an imposingly long beard, breaking the ban on beards and accompanying beard tax dating back to Peter the Great's time, but also had himself photographed dressed as a Russian peasant, symbolizing his populist stance. His architectural endeavors embraced an anti-modern visual style, drawing inspiration from Byzantine and Old Muscovite influences, departing from the neo-classical European style that had been prominent for two centuries.

At the forefront of the new traditionalist ideology in Russia was Konstantin Pobedonotsev. Pobedonotsev believed that human nature was inherently sinful, dismissing the ideals of freedom and independence as dangerous illusions of nihilistic youth. In his work Reflections of a Russian Statesman in 1896, he advocated for autocracy while condemning elections, representation, democracy, the jury system, the press, free education, charities, and social reforms. Representative government and the concept of an all-Russian Parliament were subjects of his disdain. He also criticized Social Darwinism as a flawed generalization of Darwin's Theory of Evolution.

During the early years of Alexander II's reign, Pobedonotsev, although not aligning with the Slavophiles, maintained that Western institutions were fundamentally flawed and unsuitable for Russia. He argued that these institutions lacked historical and cultural roots in Russia and were incompatible with the spirit of the Russian people. During this period, he contributed several articles to Alexander Herzen's radical publication, Voices From Russia.

Pobedonotsev denounced democracy as the unbearable dictatorship of the vulgar crowd. He viewed parliaments, trial by jury, freedom of the press, and secular education as undesirable foreign concepts. In his Reflections of a Russian Statesman, he subjected these ideas to a rigorous analysis. He believed that a counterbalance to these perceived dangers lay in the inertia of the populace and their respect for long-established institutions that had naturally developed over centuries of Russian national life. According to his perspective, human society evolves organically, akin to the growth of a tree, and the human mind is incapable of comprehending the logical progression of social development. Therefore, any attempts to reform society are acts of violence and crimes. One of the practical implications drawn from these principles was the necessity of preserving autocratic power and fostering traditional reverence for the rituals of the national Church among the people.

The Black Hundreds, the largest proto-fascist and pro-Tsarist paramilitary group in Russia, operated against communism and anti-monarchist forces. They embraced the ideology of "Chernosotentsy," which emphasized Orthodox Christianity, autocracy, and Russian nationalism, while holding anti-Semitic and anti-Ukrainian views. The group sought to suppress Ukrainian cultural awareness and criticized White Russians for not prioritizing monarchism, attributing it to the influence of Classical Liberals, Freemasons, and Jews against true Russia. The Black Hundreds viewed Ukrainians and Belarusians as part of the Russian identity, gaining support from those opposed to Ukrainian nationalism, especially Russian "Moscowphiles." They suppressed Ukrainian cultural awareness, closed down a local Ukrainian language literacy organization, and criticized White Russians for not prioritizing monarchism.

Photos of Black Hundreds

The Black Hundreds strongly opposed democratic and social reforms, constitutionalism, and the autonomy of non-Russian groups, specifically targeting Jews. They saw Jews as a menace to Imperial Russia's social, economic, and political structure. They believed that anyone opposing the monarchy was influenced by a worldwide Jewish conspiracy. They portrayed Jews as the embodiment of the anti-Christ and enemies of God, coining terms like "Judeo-Communism," similar to the later phrase "Judeo-Bolshevism" used by the Third Reich. Vladimir Lenin himself acknowledged their regressive "peasant democratism," which encompassed a racist and anti-industrial ideology. It is important to note that their adversaries were not limited to Social Democrats and Socialist Revolutionaries; they also opposed liberalism in its entirety, including conservative-minded liberals who sought avenues for reform. The group received support from the police in the form of weaponry, subsidies from governors, and even gained an audience with the last emperor, who accepted their honorary badge. Interestingly, Rasputin, the Tsar's influential figure, had a close relationship with Iliodor, the spokesperson for the Black Hundred and a self-proclaimed miracle-working monk.

The Black Hundreds claimed that equal rights movements, such as the suffragettes, were inherently Jewish. They asserted that non-Jews would overthrow Russia's identity in the event of a revolution, while Jews would only benefit from it. They also accused Jews of creating usury and inflation in Russia to undermine the Tsar by fueling conflicts between the landlord and aristocrat classes and the peasants and workers. The Black Hundreds played a significant role in inciting anti-Jewish pogroms during the Tsarist era as a means to counter communism. Vladimir Lenin criticized the organization and denounced the Tsarist pogroms in his Collected Works and in a speech.

Lenin’s speech against anti-Semitism

The Black Hundreds had their own version of "blackshirts" known as the "yellow shirts," named after their bright yellow shirts symbolizing loyalty to the monarchy. These yellow shirts were deployed to suppress communist uprisings, drawing parallels to the later blackshirts in Italy and brownshirts in Germany, who adopted similar aesthetics and engaged in comparable actions. Some members of the Black Hundreds migrated to Germany and played a role in the formation of the Nazi party.

The Black Hundreds engaged in various non-violent activities to express their loyalty to the Tsar and defend the monarchy. They organized prayer meetings, Church services, and educational lectures aimed at highlighting the significance of the monarchy, the central role of the Church, and the dangers posed by revolutionaries. Additionally, they held marches and demonstrations to counter opposition rallies. While these non-violent activities are often overlooked, they constituted a significant portion of the Black Hundreds' endeavors, focused on praying for the Tsar and the motherland, as well as educating the public about the importance of faith, loyalty, and the Orthodox monarchy.

It should be noted, however, that members of the Black Hundreds did resort to violent actions, assassinating politicians perceived as enemies of the monarchy. While opinions may differ on the morality of such actions, it is crucial to recognize that they were considerably fewer in number compared to the assassinations carried out by the revolutionaries. The motivations behind the violence perpetrated by the revolutionaries aimed at destabilizing the legitimate Russian government, impeding efforts to improve the country, and sowing chaos and turmoil. In contrast, the acts of violence committed by the Black Hundreds aimed at eliminating elements seen as treasonous and protecting the existing Russian Empire, its monarchy, Orthodoxy, and unity. This concept of political direct action would later become a defining characteristic of Fascism.

During political demonstrations, many Black Hundreds members would chant slogans such as, "Sovereign, we will all die for you!" In the book Manual of The Monarchist – Black Hundreds, the group's founder, Vladimir Andreevich Gringmut, defended the name "Black Hundred," considering it a highly honorable designation for the simple Russian people who stood up and defended the autocratic Tsar during the armed revolt of 1905.

“The Black Hundred are a unique phenomenon in the history of twentieth-century politics. Like the Action Française, it was a halfway house between the old-fashioned reactionary movements of the nineteenth century and the right-wing populist (fascist) parties of the twentieth. With their strong ties to monarchy and church they largely belonged to the past, but unlike the earlier conservative groups they were no longer elitist. Having understood the crucial importance of mobilizing the masses, they were the harbingers of political parties of a new type. One of the most influential leaders of the movement wrote years later that in spirit this Russian movement was almost similar to national socialism.”
— Walter Laqueur, Black Hundred: The Rise of The Extreme Right In Russia

After The Russian Revolution

In the aftermath of the Revolution, the Union of the Russian People, the political wing of the Black Hundreds, was dissolved and its leader, Alexander Ivanovich Dubrovin, was arrested. Dubrovin's exact fate remains a subject of debate. While some historians claim he was executed in 1918 for his activities against the October Revolution, other sources indicate that he was alive after this date, and the true date of his death remains unresolved. However, it is known that Dubrovin was arrested by the Cheka in Moscow on October 21, 1920, on charges related to his role as the chairman of the URP and his involvement in pogroms and murders between 1905 and 1917. These charges were classified as "counter-revolutionary activity" under the Criminal Code. There is no evidence of any activities incriminating Dubrovin after the 1917 Revolution.

Dubrovin's files in the archives of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB) indicate two consecutive death sentences, dated December 29, 1920, and April 21, 1921, suggesting that at least once, Dubrovin's appeal for amnesty was granted. However, there are no documents confirming the execution of these sentences. The Soviet Encyclopedia published in 1929 still listed Dubrovin as alive at that time. Following this period, members of the Black Hundreds assimilated into the White movement and other Russian counter-revolutionary organizations. Some even emigrated to other countries, such as Germany and America, such as Boris Brasol.

Brasol, a member of the Black Hundreds who immigrated from Russia to America, formed a friendship with Henry Ford and collaborated on the first English translation of The Protocols of The Elders of Zion. Brasol also assisted in the production of Ford's book, The International Jew. The remaining Black Hundred organizations were officially abolished during the February Revolution of 1917, after a gradual decline that began in 1906. For further information on the Black Hundreds, I would recommend Walter Laqueur's book, Black Hundred: The Rise of The Extreme Right In Russia.

During the Russian Civil War, several groups emerged with proto-fascist tendencies. One such group was the Shock Troopers of Kornilov's black brigades, which some historians compare to the Waffen SS due to their anti-Semitic pogroms and distinctive Totenkopf symbols. Kornilov himself, a fiercely nationalist and pro-Russian figure, supported a national dictatorship under a vaguely corporatist model. He collaborated with anti-Bolshevik socialists like Boris Savinkov and prioritized the well-being of Russia above any specific political system. To Kornilov, the Bolsheviks were dangerous traitors who threatened Russia's unity and needed to be stopped.

Former members of the Black Hundreds and other White émigrés played a role in the financial, political, and ideological influences that contributed to the rise of German National Socialism. Michael Kellogg's book, The Russian Roots of Nazism, argues that Nazism did not develop solely as a uniquely German phenomenon but within an "international radical right milieu." Additionally, the German occupation of Russian territories during World War I exposed Germans to The Protocols of The Elders of Zion.

The Munich-based Aufbau Vereinigung (Reconstruction Organization) received financial support from exiled Russian royal Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich, although he was not directly involved in the civil war. By the first half of 1921, the Aufbau Russians had formed an alliance with a faction of the German Völkisch movement. This group of Russian and German nationalists provided support for the nationalist coup attempt against the Weimar Republic in March 1920, led by Wolfgang Kapp, and played a significant role in the Beer Hall Putsch, an attempted coup in November 1923 by Adolf Hitler and Erich Ludendorff.

Pavel Bermondt-Avalov, a Baltic German and former member of the Black Hundreds, played a leadership role in the West Russian Volunteer Army established by the German General Staff. After the war, Pavel joined Aufbau and became one of the prominent Russians supporting Kapp's putsch. Fyodor Vinberg, another Black Hundred activist, rose through the military ranks and led an infantry unit during World War I. Colonel Vinberg was a member of the Union of the Russian People, whose Archangel branch was led by Vladimir Purishkevich, a monarchist member of the Duma. Purishkevich's speech criticizing Grigori Rasputin's influence at Court in November 1916 played a role in the conspiracy to murder Rasputin the following month, in which Purishkevich was invited to participate. Another member of the Union was Pyotr Shabelsky-Bork, who became closely associated with Sergey Taboritsky, a comrade from the Caucasian Native Cavalry Division. Vinberg and Purishkevich worked together to form an underground monarchist organization and produced anti-communist propaganda during the Provisional Government period.

After the Bolshevik coup, Shabelsky-Bork became convinced that Britain, Jews, and France were behind the upheavals of 1917 and that the only way to restore Russia was through an alliance with Germany, a position that starkly contrasted with that of the Whites. Within weeks of the Bolshevik takeover, Purishkevich, Vinberg, and Shabelsky-Bork were imprisoned, with the latter two sharing the same cell and forming a close friendship. After Purishkevich's release, he moved to the White Army-controlled Southern Russia, where he published the monarchist journal Blagovest and advocated for a unified Russian opposition against Jews. In some occupied towns, Purishkevich held lectures denouncing British policies towards Russia. In 1918, he formed a new political party, the People's State party, which called for an "open fight against Jewry." The party collapsed after his death, with many members being executed, but some fled to Germany and became collaborators with the Nazis.

The short-lived Ukrainian state, under German control after the Brest Litovsk Treaty, saw the rise of various individuals within the puppet regime. Ivan Poltavets-Ostranitsa, a powerful Cossack figure, played a significant role behind the scenes of Pavlo Skoropadskyi's regime, which came to power after overthrowing the Rada. General Biskupsky, from a Ukrainian noble family, also gained influence within Skoropadskyi's regime. Boris Pelikan, Konstantin Scheglovitov, and Fyodor Evaldt, who served in the German-controlled Ukrainian dependency, later became members of Aufbau in Munich.

After his release in May 1918, Shabelsky-Bork attempted to locate and liberate the Tsar in Ekaterinburg before going to Ukraine, where he met Vinberg and was joined by Taboritsky. The three, along with Bermondt-Avalov, were briefly imprisoned by Simon Petlyura, a pro-Entente Ukrainian nationalist leader who eventually aligned with the Polish Army and fought against both the Bolsheviks and the Whites, showing no support for Ukrainian independence. In December 1918, the Germans negotiated their release from Petlyura's forces and brought them back to Germany, along with Ukrainian military proxies like Poltavets-Ostranitsa.

It was primarily these evacuees from Ukraine who later formed the Russian contingent supporting the Kapp putsch. Biskupsky and Bermondt-Avalov were the most enthusiastic, followed by Scheubner-Richter, who lost his job in the Weimar government for openly supporting Kapp. Shabelsky-Bork, Vinberg, and Taboritsky were also involved. While they did not have prominent direct roles in the putsch, they provided propaganda support, attempting but failing to mobilize popular participation.

Following Wrangel's defeat in Crimea, the end of the Bavarian Soviet Republic, and the failure of the Kapp putsch, a group of Russian émigrés and German officers established the Aufbau organization. Their aim was to build a bridge between Russian nationalists and their counterparts in Germany. Lieutenant Colonel Alexei von Lampe, with no notable roles during World War I, played a pivotal role in the White movement. Starting in 1918, Lampe successfully organized a secret volunteer army center in Kharkov, connecting different factions within the divided White movement and representing leaders such as Denikin and Wrangel. In the 1920s and 1930s, Lampe became a leading officer of the Russian All Military Union (ROVS) and headed its Berlin section. He acted as a link between the old White guard and the Nazi regime, as well as with the collaborationist Russian Liberation Army led by General Vlasov.

Ivan Ilyin, a Russian monarchist, worked with the pro-German Lampe and even spoke favorably of Mussolini as a means to combat Bolshevism. Ilyin refused to be labeled as a restorationist or reactionary, despite being a monarchist, which shared similarities with Italian Fascism. The influence of the fascism debate on Russian émigrés in the 1920s is evident, with Ilyin attempting to find a synthesis between Fascist motives, Orthodox Christianity, and Russian nationalism. The notion of elevating the nation as a religious dogma, as pointed out by Dr. Rafael Johnson, can be seen in Ilyin's writings, where the homeland becomes a genuine religious shrine. The motto "all for the motherland" holds deep religious significance and reflects the pursuit of perfection, strength, and freedom for the Russian spirit, requiring both territory and state power.

Ilyin perceived the Russian nation as something transcendent, embodying the spirit of national unity. In 1933, he wrote an influential article for the émigré journal Vozrozhdenie, drawing parallels between the values of the Hitler movement and the Russian White movement. He argued that both movements shared patriotism, belief in the strength and uniqueness of their respective nations, a sense of honor, readiness for sacrificial service, discipline, social justice, and a sense of nationwide unity. Ilyin believed that unjust denigration and slander against the Nazi movement hindered the correct understanding of its spirit and harmed humanity.

“Fascism emerged as a reaction to Bolshevism, as a concentration of state-protective forces on the right. During the onset of leftist chaos and leftist totalitarianism, this was a healthy, necessary and inevitable phenomenon. This concentration will continue, even in the most democratic states: in the hour of national danger, the healthy forces of the people will always concentrate in the direction of security and dictatorship. So it was in ancient Rome, so it was in new Europe, and so it will continue to be.”
— Ivan Ilyin quoted in The Victory Day In The Great Patriotic War: What The Biography of The Philosopher I.A. Ilyin Hides by Sergey I. Zakhartsev

Ilyin also expressed hope for a future Russian leader who would reconcile and unite the nation, bringing justice, legality, and prosperity to all. He believed that the Russian people needed to revive their ancient ability to have a Tsar, and they should accept the will and law of a patriotic leader who would lead Russia to salvation. This idea of a Russian Duce was also exemplified by Wrangel. Despite the Beloe delo project's claim to be open to all political tendencies within the emigration, Wrangel was ultimately crushed by the Bolsheviks. Both Ilyin and Lampe were fascinated by Fascism and Nazism, not necessarily for ideological reasons, but as a pragmatic means to combat Bolshevism. The rise of Nazism in Germany presented new opportunities for a faction of the White movement.

Lampe's first arrest in Berlin in the summer of 1933, only months after Hitler's rise to power, accused him of being a Soviet spy. Although he was eventually freed, this experience did not deter Lampe from seeking support from the Nazi government for the White cause. In his correspondence with ROVS head Evgenii Miller, Lampe emphasized the Nazis as strategic allies and proposed the formation of Russian brigades to assist the Nazis in their fight against communism. By the end of October 1933, Lampe had established ties with Nazi officials and discussed plans for action.

As Hitler's regime solidified, a pro-Nazi orientation emerged within ROVS, supported by Ilyin and General Pavel Shatilov, the new head of the ROVS First Department. OGPU operations against ROVS leadership, including the assassination of General Alexander Kupetov in 1930 and the kidnapping of Evgenii Miller in 1937, reinforced the organization's pro-Nazi stance. These acts created the perception that the ROVS was surrounded by the "Red menace." In the Spanish Civil War, considered the first international theater of war against communism by Nazi Germany, the ROVS sided with Francisco Franco and attempted to mobilize the small Russian émigré community in Spain to support Franco. ROVS representatives reached out to the Italian and German ministries of Foreign Affairs, and General Pavel Shatilov even visited Franco in early 1937 to negotiate the dispatch of Russian volunteers.

ROVS was prepared to align itself with the Axis forces. In two articles published in 1937 in the journal Chasovoi, Sergei Wojciechowski, a White journalist and former aide to ROVS head General Aleksandr Kutepov in Poland, highlighted Adolf Hitler's characterization of Communism as a global "disease" and called for a united front against this "world plague." While Mein Kampf may have been questionable, Wojciechowski argued that the Nazis were actively fighting against Bolshevism, and Russian nationalists should view them as potential allies rather than fearing the German threat. Wojciechowski proclaimed that entering a war would provide Russian nationalists with the opportunity for more direct cooperation. This sentiment laid the foundation for the formation of the Russian Liberation Army.

Biskupskii played a prominent role within the Aufbau organization. His group devised plans to assassinate Alexander Kerensky and Pavel Miliukov, but they mistakenly targeted Vladimir Nabokov, another significant figure in Russian politics in exile, in the latter case. The Aufbau organization was also implicated in the assassination of Walther Rathenau, a German Foreign Minister of Jewish descent. Rathenau was targeted by the Organization Consul due to his political stance of collaboration with the Soviet Union and his commitment to upholding the Versailles Treaty. The shared anti-Semitic sentiment between Aufbau and Nazi groups solidified their alliance.

A surviving piece of evidence revealing Hitler's secret contacts with Russians is a photograph from September 1923. It captures Hitler engaged in friendly conversation with none other than Grand Duchess Victoria Feodorovna of Russia. Just a few weeks later, during Hitler's failed coup d'état, Victoria, the wife of Grand Duke Kirill Romanov, one of the claimants to the Russian throne, sought refuge at the home of Max Erwin von Scheubner-Richter, Hitler's chief foreign policy adviser.

Earlier that year, Hitler had a meeting with Nikolai Snessarev, an aide to Kirill Romanov and a former member of the Saint Petersburg City Duma. In his 1923 Snessarev expressed his belief in fascism:

“Fascism offers the first realistic possibility for European civilization to save itself from its imminent downfall.”
— Nikolai Snessarev, Die Zwangsjacke

Grand Duke Kirill, in secret, provided substantial financial support to Hitler. One of Kirill's aides expressed the belief that only a Germany-Russia alliance could save Europe, stating:

"Unified Germany, and unified Russia. Is this not the beginning of a realization of the greatest and most humane dream of our time, the unification of the two youngest, but also the most vital peoples of the old world?"
— Grand Duke Kirill quoted in Becoming Hitler: The Making of a Nazi by Thomas Weber

Since Hitler's sudden shift towards politics and radicalization in 1919, he had been searching for a way to elevate Germany to an equal standing with the Anglo-American world. The ratification of the Versailles Treaty, a punitive peace agreement that ended World War I, served as a turning point for Hitler's political awakening. It was at this moment that he fully grasped Germany's defeat in the war.

In this moment of realization, Hitler posed two questions to himself: How did Germany lose the war? And, more importantly, how must Germany transform itself to survive in a world dominated by a small number of superpowers? Initially, Hitler did not believe that Germany could overcome its vulnerabilities on its own, which made Snessarev's ideas so appealing to him. Hitler concluded that Germany could only survive and compete with the Anglo-American world if it formed a permanent and comprehensive alliance with a restored Tsarist Russia. This realization led him to align himself with Tsarist exiles living in Bavaria who, like Hitler, believed that they could not rise from the ashes independently.

According to historian Oleg Budnitskii, in the 1930s, the Third Reich had around 50,000 Russians, with 10,000 of them residing in Berlin. In an effort to expand their supporter base, officials of the NSDAP decided to introduce Russian youth to the ideas of National Socialism. They enlisted the help of monarchist Vasily Biskupcova, who at that time led The Management of The Affairs of The Russian Emigration and had been a supporter of Adolf Hitler since the 1920s. Biskupski even provided Hitler with his apartment in Munich as shelter during the Beer Hall Putsch. The result was the establishment of the National Organisation of Russian Youth (NORMS).

The headquarters of NORMS was located on Elsholz-straße in Berlin, and its activities were initially overseen by the SS. NORMS brought together various existing youth organizations of Russian immigrants in Germany. The boys and girls involved in NORMS attended political lectures, participated in physical exercises, marched, and spent time in summer camps. NORMS had a distinct "Russian flavor," but its uniforms differed from those of Orthodox youth organizations.

A NORMS youth in uniform

This served as the blueprint for the development of Nazi party's national youth organizations, which had been established in smaller form since the party's inception in the early 1920s. Initially, membership was voluntary, but in 1936, a law was enacted that made it mandatory for all boys and girls in Germany to join a Nazi youth group. Interestingly, this experiment in youth indoctrination involved collaboration with White Russians, challenging the common perception that Nazi ideology was solely opposed to Russia. Many teenagers from the children of immigrants even pledged to hold various leadership positions in the new Russia.

Furthermore, we have Pavel Bermondt-Avalov, who commanded the West Russian Volunteer Army during World War I. He was later appointed to lead the German-established Western Russian army, which aimed to combat the Bolsheviks in the Russian Civil War. However, Bermondt-Avalov, believing that the communists would be defeated without his assistance, decided to divert his efforts and launch attacks against the newly independent nations of Lithuania and Latvia, as he considered these territories to be rightfully Russian. This diversion enabled the Bolsheviks to gain the upper hand and ultimately overpower the other White forces, including Bermondt-Avalov.

By the end of the year, the West Russian army was compelled to retreat and withdraw to German territory. General Bermondt-Avalov relocated to western Europe, eventually settling in Germany in 1921. In 1925, he published a memoir titled In The Fight Against Bolshevism in Hamburg, and became involved in Fascist and Monarchist movements. He held strong support for National Socialism and established his own movement known as the Russian National Social Movement. Notably, he was one of the few anti-communist Generals who openly advocated for monarchist ideals.

However, his activities eventually drew the attention of the German government, resulting in suppression of his efforts. During this time, he formed connections with individuals of questionable reputation, including Ludwig Link. When Link made disparaging remarks about Adolf Hitler, it caused trouble for Bermondt-Avalov as well. In 1939, he was arrested by the Gestapo. After spending a year and a half in prison, he was released thanks to a personal request made by Benito Mussolini. Bermondt-Avalov was then deported to the Kingdom of Italy. He later relocated to Belgrade following the 1943 coup. Eventually, he bid farewell to Europe and immigrated to the United States, where he passed away.

Born on September 14, 1901, in Lomakino, Russia, Andrei Andreyevich Vlasov hailed from a humble peasant family. He embarked on a military path during the Russian Civil War in 1919, swiftly ascending the ranks and showcasing his leadership prowess in various battles against the White Army, the Bolsheviks' adversaries. Vlasov's military journey continued to flourish during the interwar period. He honed his skills through rigorous training at the Frunze Military Academy and the General Staff Academy, earning the esteemed rank of general in the Red Army.

When World War II erupted, Vlasov assumed command of the 99th Rifle Division and later the 20th Army, further solidifying his reputation. However, it was his experiences on the Eastern Front that began to shape his convictions. Witnessing the devastating consequences of Stalin's policies on the Soviet populace, Vlasov grew disillusioned with the Soviet leadership and emerged as a fervent anti-Bolshevik. In a pivotal turn of events, Vlasov's trajectory shifted dramatically when he was captured by the German Army during the Battle of Moscow in January 1942. This captivity would set the stage for his subsequent collaboration with the Nazis.

Russian historian Kirill Alexandrov conducted an analysis of the experiences of 180 Soviet generals and officers who joined the Vlasov army. His research revealed that a significant number of them had been witnesses to the atrocities committed by the NKVD during the Great Purge and previous purges within the Red Army. These firsthand experiences led to their disillusionment with Stalin's leadership and subsequently motivated their decision to defect to the Nazis.

Upon his capture and imprisonment, General Vlasov was approached by Strik-Strikfeldt, an individual who had been involved in the White movement during the Russian Civil War. Strik-Strikfeldt successfully persuaded Vlasov to support the German advance against Stalin and Bolshevism. Together with Lieutenant Colonel Vladimir Boyarsky, Vlasov penned a memorandum addressed to German military leaders, proposing a collaboration between anti-Stalinist Russians and the German Army.

Following his capture, Vlasov was transported to Berlin under the protection of the Wehrmacht's propaganda department. It was during his time there that he, along with other Soviet officers, initiated the planning process for a Russian provisional government and the establishment of a Russian army of liberation, under the command of Russian officers. These efforts culminated in the formation of the Russian Liberation Committee and the subsequent creation of the Russian Liberation Army (ROA). After reading Vlasov's public letter, von Lampe, although initially cautious, opted to meet with him. During their meetings, von Lampe expressed reservations regarding the newly formed Russian Liberation Army, expressing concerns that they may pose a greater threat than the Red Army. However, Vlasov managed to alleviate von Lampe's doubts, and their subsequent correspondence reflected a positive impression of Vlasov's vision and plans.

Between 1943 and 1944, von Lampe engaged in multiple meetings with Vlasov, hoping to exert influence over the ideology of the Vlasovite movement and infuse it with the principles of the White movement. However, this endeavor proved challenging, as many Vlasovites harbored anti-Soviet sentiments without necessarily holding nostalgic sentiments towards Tsarist Russia. Instead, their inclinations leaned towards fascism.

Despite the ideological disparities, von Lampe maintained a fascination with Vlasov and continued to hope for his alignment with the White cause. In a letter dated July 1943, von Lampe announced that a group from the Association had joined the Russian Liberation Army on the Eastern front. However, Vlasov never publicly acknowledged the White cause as the primary ideological force driving the fight against communism. Tensions between the Whites and the Vlasovites were further intensified by statements made by ROA leaders, such as General Vasilii Malyshkin, who asserted that the Russian Liberation Army's objective did not involve the restoration of the Tsarist regime.

A photo of the ROA

General Vlasov during Russian volunteers' training

While the Whites were ultimately unsuccessful in promoting their monarchist agenda among the Vlasovites, the National Alliance of Russian Solidarists (NTS) played a pivotal role in shaping the ideological framework of the movement from its inception. Advocating for Solidarism, which drew influence from the corporatist doctrine of Fascism, the NTS contributed to the formation of the Vlasovite movement's ideological principles. The National Alliance of Russian Solidarists emerged as the political arm of the ROA, addressing the perceived stagnation of older Russian emigres who had resigned themselves to their defeat in the Russian Civil War. The youth within the NTS took an active stance against communism, meticulously studying the emerging Soviet culture and the psychology of individuals living in the Soviet Union.

The NTS firmly believed that force was the sole means to dismantle the Soviet regime, favoring an internal revolution as the most effective strategy. To this end, the organization made numerous attempts at clandestinely infiltrating the USSR before, during, and after World War II, aiming to establish an underground revolutionary force within Soviet Russia. Despite receiving support from foreign intelligence agencies, the NTS struggled to rival the extensive network of the OGPU and NKVD. Pre- and post-war endeavors proved least successful, often culminating in violent clashes with Soviet authorities or capture. The war period yielded greater success, albeit with a high casualty rate resulting from encounters with the German Gestapo and the exposure of sleeper cells by Soviet secret police. Eventually, the NTS became integrated into the ROA.

While the Whites failed to promote their monarchist agenda among the Vlasovites, the NTS played a pivotal role in shaping the ideological framework of the movement from its inception, drawing upon the tenets of proclaimed solidarism inspired by the corporatist doctrine of fascism. The majority of personnel at the ROA Dabendorf school, which constituted the core of the Vlasov movement from spring 1943 to February 1945, consisted of NTS members. Von Lampe, however, struggled to comprehend the NTS's influence on Vlasov's perspectives. The ideological materials disseminated by the NTS aligned more closely with the prevailing spirit of fascism at the time, rather than nostalgic yearnings for the Tsarist regime.

In November 1942, a church in Prague bestowed its blessing upon General Vlasov and his army of liberators. The officiating priest was Alexander Kiselev, who initially served as a clergyman in the Estonian Orthodox Church. Later, during his time in exile, he transitioned to the American Orthodox Church. Upon his return to Russia in 1991, he became a Russian Orthodox priest.

Vlasov and his men being blessed by Kiselev

In spring 1943, Vlasov authored the Smolensk Proclamation, a pamphlet denouncing Bolshevism. Millions of copies were air-dropped onto Soviet forces and territories under Soviet control. In March of the same year, Vlasov published an open letter titled Why Have I Taken Up The Struggle Against Bolshevism.

In Varlam Shalamov's account, The Last Battle of Major Pugachov, Vlasov emissaries delivered lectures to Russian prisoners of war, conveying the message that their own government had branded them as traitors and that attempting to escape was futile. According to Vlasov, even if the Soviets were to prevail, Stalin would sentence them to exile in Siberia. The official establishment of the ROA did not occur until the autumn of 1944, after Heinrich Himmler managed to persuade a hesitant Adolf Hitler to authorize the formation of ten divisions within the ROA. Over time, the ranks of the ROA, composed of Russian and other Slavic volunteers, would swell to approximately 50,000 under the leadership of Vlasov. Although several hundred thousand former Soviet citizens served in the German army donning the ROA patch, they did so without being under Vlasov's direct command.

An AMV video of the ROA with historical footage

In October 1944, von Lampe found himself at a crossroads when he was approached by the Vlasovite Committee for the Freedom of Russia's Peoples (KONR). This committee was established under the influence of Heinrich Himmler. While von Lampe was tempted by the proposition, he ultimately declined the invitation to join the KONR.

General Vlasov giving a speech

As a result of his refusal, von Lampe was summoned to a meeting with General Andrei Vlasov himself, the leader of the ROA. During this meeting, von Lampe reaffirmed his loyalty to the activities of the ROA. However, he made it clear that his involvement with the KONR would only be possible if Vlasov acknowledged the legitimacy of the White cause, which represented the anti-communist forces opposed to the Soviet regime. This matter continued to be a point of discussion in a letter von Lampe wrote to Gegelashvili on December 24, 1944.

In response to the situation, Vlasov made a strategic decision. He ordered the first division of the ROA to march south, with the aim of uniting all Russian anti-communist forces under his leadership. Vlasov believed that by presenting themselves as a unified army, they could surrender to the Allied forces on more favorable terms, thus avoiding repatriation to the Soviet Union. Additionally, Vlasov dispatched several secret delegations to the Allies in an attempt to negotiate their surrender. He hoped that the Allies would understand the goals of the ROA and potentially employ them in a future conflict with the USSR. It was during this period that Vlasov also contemplated turning against the Germans, realizing their eventual defeat was imminent.

In March 1945, von Lampe eventually joined the ranks of the KONR. However, this decision came just before the collapse of the Third Reich and Vlasov's army. The anti-Bolshevik movement, which had aligned itself with Hitler's Germany, was ultimately crushed by the joint efforts of the Soviet and Anglo-American allied forces.

“Vlasov’s Liberation Army, for all its aspirations, ended tragically. Akin to Napoleon’s ill-fated retreat from Moscow, as depicted by Tolstoy, Vlasov’s forces faced grim consequences after betraying the Germans they had once allied with and being hunted by the Soviets they opposed.”
— Constantine von Hoffmeister, General Vlasov and His Army: A Tolstoyan Perspective

While Vlasov aspired to surrender to the Western Allies, the Soviet government considered all ROA soldiers as traitors and demanded their repatriation. Those captured were either subjected to trials and sentenced to internment in prison camps or executed. Vlasov and several other ROA leaders faced trial and were hanged in Moscow on August 1, 1946. In contrast, von Lampe managed to escape capture and ultimately passed away from natural causes in Paris.

The Legacy of Russian Collaborators

Following the fall of Germany, nearly every collaborator went into exile, either aligning with the anti-Bolshevik block of Nations or pre-existing White emigre organizations. The anti-Bolshevik block of Nations served as a refuge for Eastern European collaborators, consisting of Banderaites. However, many moderated their political views, opting for standard conservatism rather than National Socialism. The organization's primary accomplishments included erecting monuments and preserving emigre cultures.

As the Soviet Union collapsed, the remaining émigrés were able to return to their homeland. During the 1990s until Putin's rise, the emerging nationalist movement in Russia mainly sought either strict National Socialism without prominent collaborator symbols or endeavored to establish a unique identity, as seen with Russian National Unity. The annual tradition of the "Russian March" for Russian nationalists, which included a broad spectrum of ideologues from white power skinheads to Eurasian youth and even monarchists, incorporated collaborator symbols. Even music from RAC bands like Kolovrat, My Darling Truth, and Russian Banner featured songs about collaborators. When Putin assumed power, he enforced the banning of Article 5 symbolism of the Russian Liberation Army, and any Russian who actively fought on the Eastern Front was prohibited, a ban that still persists today. Despite pushback, these efforts did not succeed.

As Putin gradually cracked down on and harassed many nationalists, many fled to Ukraine. With escalating tensions and separatist movements in Ukraine, Russian nationalists living in exile felt compelled to fight back, with many volunteering using ROA symbolism, often joining the Azov Battalion or Right Sector.

A member of the Right Sector displaying a ROA patch

Amid Russia's full-scale war and annexation of the southeast of Ukraine, nationalistic Russians in exile inside Ukraine faced limited options. They could either join predominantly liberal groups like the Freedom of Russia Legion or Ukrainian-centric nationalist organizations. However, a German Russian hooligan named Denis Kapustin known as “White Rex” chose to form his own unit within the Foreign Legion of Ukraine, called the Russian Volunteer Corps (RVC). Not only do its members use collaborationist symbols, but the unit's original flag is based on the ROA. Victor Larionov, recognized as an influential figure within the unit, belonged to the White movement. While in exile during the 1930s, he established the "White Idea" organization. In December 1937, he became a member of the Russian Fascist Party and subsequently offered his services to the ROA in Germany.

Members of the Russian Volunteer Corps on 24 May 2023. Kapustin is in the middle foreground

Kapustin previously worked alongside the Azov Battalion, until its combat division, the Reconquista Club, concluded its activities in 2019. Starting in January 2021, he had been co-hosting the Active Club podcast with Robert Rundo, the leader of the American Rise Above Movement. As confirmed by Denis Sokolov of the Civic Council, his fighters regularly received compensation from the Ukrainian defense ministry in Kyiv.

As per Ilya Ponomarev, RVC reportedly took part in a joint declaration signing alongside the Freedom of Russia Legion and the National Republican Army during a press conference on August 31, 2022. It was alleged that the RVC agreed to be part of this accord. Moreover, in October 2022, the RVC issued its manifesto, asserting its alignment with Ukraine's Armed Forces, although Ukrainian officials did not immediately address this assertion. Subsequently, in March 2023, Ukrainian military officials stated that the RVC was functioning independently. Ilya Ponomarev, the political representative of the Freedom of Russia Legion, indicated that the RVC maintains connections with the Ukrainian military but operates within a "gray area".

In 2023, the RVC spearheaded an incursion into Russia's Bryansk Oblast. Consequently, Kapustin was branded a terrorist by the Russian Federation. On May 22, 2023, in his capacity as head of the RVC, he was implicated in the cross-border raid into the Russian region of Belgorod Oblast, famously known as the Belgorod Oblast attack.