Rumcherod () was a short-lived organ of

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

power in the South-Western part of

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

that functioned during May 1917–May 1918. The name stands as the Russian language abbreviation for its full name Central Executive Committee of the Soviets of the

Romanian Front The Romanian Front (, FR) was a moderate fascist party created in Romania in 1935. Led by former Prime Minister of Romania, Prime Minister Alexandru Vaida-Voevod, it originated as a right-wing splinter group from the mainstream National Peasants' ...

Black Sea Fleet The Black Sea Fleet () is the Naval fleet, fleet of the Russian Navy in the Black Sea, the Sea of Azov and the Mediterranean Sea. The Black Sea Fleet, along with other Russian ground and air forces on the Crimea, Crimean Peninsula, are subordin ...

, and Odessa Oblast (). Odessa Oblast in that instance meant the territory of the

Odessa Military District The Odessa Military District (; , abbreviated ) was a military administrative division of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. This district consisted of Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic, Moldavia and five Oblasts of Ukraine, Ukrainian oblasts of Odesa ...

of the Russian Empire. During that period of time the Russian Odessa Military District (Odessa MD) before being overrun by Soviets included the following guberniyas: Kherson Governorate,

Bessarabia Bessarabia () is a historical region in Eastern Europe, bounded by the Dniester river on the east and the Prut river on the west. About two thirds of Bessarabia lies within modern-day Moldova, with the Budjak region covering the southern coa ...

guberniya,

Taurida Governorate Taurida Governorate was an administrative-territorial unit ('' guberniya'') of the Russian Empire. It included the territory of the Crimean Peninsula and the mainland between the lower Dnieper River with the coasts of the Black Sea and Sea o ...

, and parts of Podolia Governorate and Volyn Governorate.

Overview

Rumcherod was created at the 1st Congress of Front and Oblast Soviets in Odessa (May 23–June 9, 1917). The majority in that first meeting consisted of Mensheviks and Esers, who supported the

Russian Provisional Government The Russian Provisional Government was a provisional government of the Russian Empire and Russian Republic, announced two days before and established immediately after the abdication of Nicholas II on 2 March, O.S. New_Style.html" ;"title="5 ...

and the continuation of the war to the very end. Their position was against

Bolshevik The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...

s and their

October Revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Historiography in the Soviet Union, Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of Russian Revolution, two r ...

. On the order of

Nikolai Krylenko Nikolai Vasilyevich Krylenko (, ; 2 May 1885 – 29 July 1938) was an Old Bolshevik and Soviet politician, military commander, and jurist. Krylenko served in a variety of posts in the Soviet law, Soviet legal system, rising to become Minis ...

who performed functions of the Chief Commander of Sovnarkom Rumcherod was forced to be dissolved. On 23 December 1917 through 5 January 1918 in Odessa the Soviets organized congress of Soviets that elected the new Rumcherod consisting of 180 people. The composition of the second Rumcherod was 70 Bolsheviks, 55 left Esers, 23 representatives of peasant organizations, and 32 from other parties. The committee recognized the Soviet government and approved its policy. V.Volodarsky attended the congress as the representative of the Soviet government and the Central Committee of

Russian Social Democratic Labour Party The Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP), also known as the Russian Social Democratic Workers' Party (RSDWP) or the Russian Social Democratic Party (RSDP), was a socialist political party founded in 1898 in Minsk, Russian Empire. The ...

(

Bolsheviks The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...

) (RSDLP(b)). The former member of the Petrograd committee of RSDLP(b) Vladimir Yudovsky was elected the Chairman of Rumcherod which served as the highest authority for the Odessa Soviet Republic. From January to March 1918 the Rumcherod militarily supported the pro-Soviet forces in the

Moldavian Democratic Republic The Moldavian Democratic Republic (MDR; , ), also known as the Moldavian Republic or Moldavian People's Republic, was a state proclaimed on by the ''Sfatul Țării'' (National Council) of Bessarabia, elected in October–November 1917 foll ...

, and later opposed the troops sent into the region by

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

. Later the Soviet republic was forced to comply with the conditions of the

Treaty of Brest-Litovsk The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was a separate peace treaty signed on 3 March 1918 between Soviet Russia and the Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria), by which Russia withdrew from World War I. The treaty, whi ...

and withdraw due to the advance German-Austrian military first to Nikolayev, then to

Rostov-on-Don Rostov-on-Don is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East European Plain on the Don River, from the Sea of Azov, directly north of t ...

and Yeysk. In May 1918 it was dissolved while its chairman Yudovsky relocated to Moscow.

References

External links

Short overview
{{Moldavian Democratic Republic Organizations of the Russian Revolution 1917 in Ukraine 1918 in Ukraine