Vestnik MGIMO-Universiteta (Jul 2019)
French Documents on the Beginning of the World War II
Abstract
The Federal archival agency, the Russian Ministry of foreign affairs and the Russian Historical Society organized in 2018 a large-scale historical documentary project (an exhibition and online publication) on the background and consequences of the Munich Agreement (November 1937 – March 1938)11 This year marked by the 80th anniversary of the beginning of Second World War the project is to be continued in the form of an exhibition and an online publication of archival documents. We offer our readers some French documents. They are stored at the Russian State Military Archive in the fund «The Ministry of War of France. Military districts, fortified areas, army, corps, divisions, regiments, brigades, military educational institutions and other military organizations» (RGVA. F. 198k).) The fund contains materials on the activities of the French highest military bodies and their units, as well as documents on the headquarters and garrisons of the French military fortresses. These documents were moved from Germany to Moscow after the end of World War II and subsequently were incorporated into the foreign funds of RGVA. In 1993–1994 on the basis of bilateral intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in the field of state archives, identification and return of archival documents and on the basis of the Federal Law of April 15, 1998 No. 64-ФЗ «On Cultural Values Moved to the USSR as a Result of the Second World War and Located on the territory of the Russian Federation» the documents of the 198k fund were transferred to France. The most valuable of the them were microfilmed; their copies are kept in the RGVA on the rights of originals. The two documents being published in this issue of MGIMO Review of International Relations are part of the 198k fund (second inventory), containing documents from French military attachés in European countries, which focus on their political and economic situation, armed forces, countries occupied by Germany, foreign and domestic USSR policy, the state of the Red Army, as well as intelligence reports of the 2nd bureau of the General Staff of the French army. Both documents: Note by the French military attaché in the USSR O.-A. Palace to the Minister of National Defense and the Minister of War of France E. Daladier about the strategic situation in Eastern Europe and its influence on the position of the USSR government on the conclusion of the Anglo-Franco-Soviet agreement on mutual assistance of July 13, 1939 (RGVA. F. 198. Op. 2. D. 466. L. 43–50) and the Report of the French Military Attaché in Poland F. Musse to the Minister of National Defense and the Minister of War of France E. Daladier on the influence of Poland on the course and results of the Anglo-French-Soviet negotiations of August 24, 1939 (RGVA. F. 198k. Op.2. D. 292. L. 148–166) are published in Russian translation for the first time.
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