Nestor Makhno, whose biography is still of interest historians - the legend of the Civil War. This man went down in history as Old Man Makhno, that is how he signed many important documents. You will learn interesting facts from the life of the leader of the anarchist movement from this article.
Nestor Makhno: biography, family
To understand exactly what events were decisive in the fate of the legend of the Civil War, it is worth paying attention to the first years of the life of the leader of the anarchists.
Makhno Nestor Ivanovich, a brief biography of which will be presented in this article, was born in a village called Gulyaypole, which is now located in the Zaporizhzhya region, and previously it was the Ekaterinoslav province.
The future leader of the peasant rebels was born on November 7, 1888 in the family of cattleman Ivan Rodionovich and housewife Evdokia Matreevna. According to one version, the real name of the hero of our agenda is Mikhnenko.
The parents of the boy, raising 5 children, were still able to give their offspring an education. Nestor, having graduated from a church and parochial educational institution, from the age of seven had already labored for fellow villagers who were richer. A few years later, he worked as a worker at a cast iron foundry.
The beginning of the revolution
Nestor Makhno, whose biography began to change dramatically with the beginning of the revolution, in 1905 was enrolled in the group of anarchists, which was repeatedly seen in gang warfare and terrorist operations.
In one of the clashes with the police, Nestor killed a law enforcement officer. The offender was caught, and sentenced to death for committing such a daring crime. Nestor was saved only by the fact that at the time of the trial he was still a minor guy. The death penalty was replaced by 10 years of hard labor.
The young criminal ended up in Butyrka prison.
Time not wasted
It should be noted that Nestor Makhno, whose biography received a new round, did not lose time in prison. He actively began to engage in self-education. This was facilitated not only by communication with wise experience cellmates, but also by the rich library at the correctional facility.
When he was sent to prison, the young criminal demanded that he be sent to prisoners serving sentences for political reasons. Anarchists, included in the circle of cellmates, finally shaped his attitude to the vision of the future life of the country.
After release
The February Revolution of 1917 helped Nestor go free ahead of schedule. Inspired by the knowledge gained, Makhno goes to his homeland, where he soon heads the Committee to Save the Revolution.
According to the callings of the Committee members, the peasants were to completely ignore all the orders of the Provisional Government. They also initiated a decree on the division of land between peasants.
Despite the above actions, Makhno accepted the October Revolution with conflicting feelings, because he considered the Bolshevik power anti-peasant.
Military showdown: who whom?
When the Germans occupied Ukraine in 1918, the head of the anarchists led his own insurgent detachment, which fought against the German invaders and against the Ukrainian government, headed by the hetman Skoropadsky.
Having become the leader of the rebel movement, Nestor Makhno, whose biography began to acquire new interesting facts, was very popular among the peasants.
After the fall of Skoropadsky’s power, which was replaced by the Petlyura government, Makhno concludes a new agreement with the Red Army, where he undertakes to fight against the Directory.
Feeling himself the sovereign master of Gulyaypol, Nestor Makhno often initiated the opening of hospitals, workshops, schools and even the theater. The idyll was violated by Denikin, who captured Gulyaipole, with his troops. The hero of our story was forced to start a guerrilla war.
By his military operations, Makhno helped the Red Army to prevent Denikin’s troops from entering Moscow. When the latter were completely eliminated, the Bolsheviks declared the army of Old Man Makhno illegal. He has already played his part.
General Wrangel wanted to take advantage of this. He offered cooperation to the chief of the anarchists, but Makhno refused. When the Red Army, trying to defeat Wrangel, felt the need for Makhno's help, the Bolsheviks again offered him another agreement. Nestor Makhno agreed to this.
During the above military events, Makhno, having considered one of the orders of the Red Command as a trap, ceased to obey. This caused the Bolsheviks to begin the liquidation of his partisan detachments.
Fleeing from the pursuers, in 1921 Nestor Makhno, whose brief biography again underwent changes, crossed the Romanian border with a small detachment of like-minded people.
last years of life
Makhno fled abroad with his martial wife Agafia Kuzmenko. The Romanians, without thinking twice, handed over the fugitives to the Polish authorities, who eventually deported them to France.
The last years of his life Makhno was in poverty, working as a laborer. Living in Paris, Nestor issued several propaganda brochures. His family life was also unhappy, with his wife they lived separately for a long time.
The head of anarchists at the age of 45 from tuberculosis died. He was buried in the Pere Lachaise cemetery.