The Karelian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic is a socialist republic-autonomy of peasants and workers, which existed in the 20th century within the borders of the USSR. The region acquired this status twice, due to a series of military events, political and socio-economic transformations.
Socio-economic characteristics and geographical location
Karelian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic - The area of the northwestern territory of the European part of the USSR. In the west it borders with Finland, in the east it is washed by the White Sea, in the south - by Ladoga and Onega lakes. The relief is hilly with pronounced traces of the effects of the glacier. Of the minerals, building materials (marble, granites, dolomites, etc.), iron ore, and mica were widely distributed. By the standards of the USSR, the region was considered rather backward in economic development, since there were no large industrial facilities on its territory. In addition, the titular nations of the republic, the Finno-Ugric peoples (Vepsians, Karelians, Finns) actually constituted a smaller part of the population (about 30%).
Republic in peacetime
There may be some confusion in the sources and historiography: Karelian SSR or ASSR? To determine which option is correct, you should understand a series of transformations. During the Civil War in Russia, the Karelian Labor Commune was organized. For the first time as an administrative-territorial unit of the USSR, it was transformed into the Autonomous Karelian Soviet Socialist Republic. The basis for this was the decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee, signed on July 25, 1923. After the adoption of the new Constitution of the USSR, on December 5, 1936, the name was changed to the Karelian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic.
On June 17, 1937 the first coat of arms of the republic was introduced; it had inscriptions in three languages at once: Russian, Karelian and Finnish. However, already on December 29, 1937, its modified version was adopted without the last slogan. This was due to the repressions that began in the region against the Finnish population.
Governing bodies of the republic
An integral step was the creation of party and state authorities as a territory that became part of the RSFSR. The Karelian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was assigned the status of an independent administrative-territorial unit, therefore the Council of People's Commissars was at the head of the executive branch, and the party apparatus was concentrated in the republican central party organ of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks (for a certain period - the Central Committee of the Communist Party (b)).
In the post-war period, the apparatus of the Council of People's Commissars was replaced by ministries, including in the field. Transformations affected every republic and autonomy that was part of the USSR. The central departments of the study area were headed by the ministers of the Karelian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic.
Military operations in the republic
The location of the subject has repeatedly become a stumbling block in achieving the interests of neighboring states. So, from the autumn of 1939, when the Second World War began, the security issue of the city of Leningrad and the adjacent territories became much more acute. At a distance of about 25 km from the Soviet city was the state border with Finland. With a direct invasion of the territory of this European country, the forces of the army of one of the belligerent powers in Europe became quite real artillery shelling direct fire. He could create a barrier to the Soviet Navy, located in Kronstadt, shots of guns stationed on the border line could well strike a blow at the industrial areas of Leningrad. To prevent the development of such a scenario, the Soviet leadership in October 1939 put forward a number of proposals to Finland, including an exchange of territories. Specifically, the neighboring state was required to give half of the Karelian Isthmus and several islands located in the Gulf of Finland. In turn, the Soviet Union guaranteed to cede Karelia, whose territory was twice as large. Finland did not accept these conditions, and negotiations between the two countries reached an impasse.
Territorial changes
November 30, 1939, fully aware of the hopelessness of the situation, the USSR begins the Soviet-Finnish War, which also became known as the Winter War. On December 1, the first "Treaty of Friendship and Mutual Assistance between the USSR and the Finnish Democratic Republic" was signed. It was planned to build border fortifications at new borders. Therefore, the condition of the agreement was the recognition of half of Karelia as Finnish territory. The end of the Winter War took place in March 1940, when in Soviet Moscow the warring parties signed a peace treaty. The Soviet Union received a military base on the Hanko Peninsula and a sizable southwestern territory of the peninsula, which included Kexholm, Sortavala, Vyborg, Suoyarvi, the eastern part of the polar volost along with the villages of Alakurtti and Kuolajärvi.
Twelfth republic
Since April 1940, the Karelian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was transformed into the Karelian-Finnish SSR. Pursuant to the terms of the Moscow Peace Treaty, a considerable territory of Finland was included in its composition.
Administrative-territorial transformations raised the state legal status of the republic and expanded rights in state, socio-economic and cultural development. After the transformation of Karelian autonomy into the Karelian-Finnish SSR on July 8, 1940, a new emblem was established.
The Karelian-Finnish SSR became the territory of fierce battles in the war of the USSR and fascist Germany. In 1941, a significant part of the republic was occupied and liberated only in the summer of 1944.
City points of the Karelian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic
The territory of small size was the Karelian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. Cities and towns were small in number and had Finnish, Karelian names. The administrative center of the republic was Petrozavodsk. He was already a big city at that time. The status of the administrative center has Petrozavodsk now. The second city of republican subordination was Sortavala. The Karelian ASSR had about a dozen cities of regional subordination. These are Belomorsk, Kem, Kondopoga, Lahdenpohja, Medvezhyegorsk, Olonets, Pitkäranta, Pudozh, Segezha, Suoyarvi.
According to republican legislation, there was an accounting norm for cities. The Karelian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic from a backward region gradually turned into a more developed territory, therefore, concern for citizens who wanted to improve their living conditions was not in last place.
Restoration of status
The death of I.V. Stalin in 1953 and subsequent events of a political, socio-economic, cultural and ideological nature directly affected the fates of ordinary citizens and entire territories. The position of the Karelian-Finnish Republic within the USSR was again revised. By decree of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, autonomy was returned to her on June 16, 1956. She again became part of the RSFSR, but the name lost the word “Finnish”.
When this subject was reorganized, a joke appeared: "... the republic was abolished because two Finns were found in it - the financial inspector and Finkelstein."
The symbol of the revived autonomous territory was the state flag of the RSFSR, which was additionally inscribed in Russian and Finnish.
In connection with the transformation of the Karelian-Finnish SSR into autonomy, on August 20, 1956, with the slightest changes, the former emblem of the republic was restored. Some researchers are inclined to believe that it was this event that predetermined the fate of the territory for decades to come. Karelian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic existed until 1991. Hypothetically, the region could become an independent separate state, however, just being in the RSFSR is the reason that it is an administrative-territorial unit, the subject of modern Russia, having the status of a republic called Karelia. Its capital is still the city of Petrozavodsk.