Status of Germans in Russian Empire during First World War (1914-1917)

Abstract

This article focuses on characterizing the everyday life, moods, and situation of Germans residing in the territory of the Russian state from 1914 to 1917. The author analyzed letters written by representatives of different social groups, nationalities, and ages during this period, as well as materials from periodical publications. Special attention is given to significant events for the German population, such as the renaming of settlements from German to Russian names, the development and application of “liquidation legislation” towards them in 1914-1915, and the interactions in the army between German and Russian military personnel. Based on the materials studied, it is concluded that Germans had mixed perceptions of the socio-political events in the country. Some sought to blend in with the crowd and not emphasize their national identity, while others tried to draw the attention of State Duma deputies to their issues. They did not understand how to prove their loyalty to the authorities and why they were labeled as “internal enemies”, despite being Russian subjects. The most dissatisfaction was expressed by soldiers who fought as well as Russians, received deserved military awards, but were subjected to humiliations by their superiors.

Keywords

• secret viewing of personal correspondence
• military censorship
• world war i
• petrograd
• military correspondence
• russian germans
• german colonists