Literary scholars and historians are still trying to figure out what role the Change of Landmarks collection played. His publication became a reason for a split among the first wave of Russian emigration.
Edition of the collection
The famous collection was published in Prague in 1921. Its name is a reference to a similar edition of Vekhi, where prominent figures of the Russian emigration were printed. These people, who fled from the Soviet power or were thrown away by it on the “philosophical steamboat”, were fierce opponents of the Bolsheviks. They tried to set up European public opinion against the communists.
However, at that time the Old World was just beginning to move away from the consequences of the First World War. Although emigrants were warmly received in European capitals, they could not have any particular influence on local politics.
What role did the Change of Landmarks play in connection with this bleak state of the white movement? Its authors went against the prevailing mood of anti-Sovietism and in their philosophical and political science articles came out from pro-Bolshevik positions. This step was a turning point in the history of Russian fugitives in the West.
Pro-Soviet publications
The role played by the Change of Milestones collection can easily be determined by the reaction of Moscow following the publication. They decided to take the opportunity to prove the failure of their opponents - monarchists, republicans, etc. The collection was immediately published in the Soviet Union in thousands of copies. State newspapers emphasized the fact that even in the most white emigration finally recognized not only their defeat, but also ideological wrong.
What role did the “Change of Milestones” collection play for the Russian inhabitants of Europe who took refuge in Paris, Prague, Berlin and the cities of the kingdom of the southern Slavs? The movement was split. Conservative monarchists, dissatisfied with the publication and the propaganda campaign launched by the Soviet government, set about self-organization.
Intransigence
Soon the idea of intransigence arose. This principle was opposed to the emerging shift-work and returning. His supporters opposed any form of cooperation with the Soviet Union. He immediately gained popularity among monarchists, conservatives and other emigres of extreme right-wing views. Among them was the entire surviving elite of the previous tsarist era - ministers, officers, etc.
The main organizations promoting the idea of intransigence were the Russian All-Military Union and the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad. The head of the ROVS was the famous General Peter Wrangel, who until the last fought with the Reds during the Civil War. It was he who kept Crimea, while whites hastily evacuated from it.
Shift shift idea
The idea of shift-work is mainly based on the principle of patriotism. Belonging to the historical homeland, according to the precepts of adherents of this principle, is an exceptional factor that should smooth out all contradictions with the Soviet regime. Many Russians really wanted to return home, and not live out their lives in a foreign Europe. Therefore, shift work, as well as the reverse idea of intransigence, quickly gained a lot of supporters. This process accelerated when the war between Poland and the Soviet state began in 1920 (formally, the Union had not yet been formed).
Several prominent publicists joined forces to create a “Change of Milestones." The collection included materials written by Nikolai Ustryalov, Sergey Chakhotin, Yuri Klyuchnikov, etc. One of the prototypes of this publication was the book “In the Struggle for Russia”, published in 1920. She became the fruit of the works of Nikolai Ustryalov, who at that time lived in Harbin, the main city of Russian emigration in the Far East.
Brusilov's example
The appeared collection of journalistic articles “Change of Milestones” mainly appealed to events in Poland. The war of this country with Russia led to an outbreak of patriotism of emigrants abroad. But at the same time, in the Soviet Republic, the conflict was positioned as the beginning of a world socialist revolution aimed at overthrowing the bourgeoisie. Indeed, Lenin considered Russia only a springboard for the conquest of the whole world. He hoped for the support of the European proletariat and the communist parties spontaneously emerging in the Old World.
The left-wing ideas of the Soviets did not bother the authors of the collection, Change of Milestones. What role did he play for patriotic immigrants? Many of them became supporters of the Soviet Union. Authors of publications urged their readers to forget about their disagreements with the Bolsheviks at a time when the fate of Russia itself was at stake.
The main example in this propaganda campaign was the celebrated General Alexei Brusilov. During World War I, he commanded one of the western fronts. His famous tactical breakthrough in Galicia destroyed the Austrian army and actually made the Habsburgs a helpless appendage of Germany.
After two revolutions, Brusilov (unlike many other tsarist generals) remained at home. He even fought in the Soviet army. This example did a lot to make the idea of shift work popular in Europe. The emergence of a pro-Soviet movement among the emigration split it into two warring camps.