The War with Poland

Order No.230

By the Chairman of the Revolutionary War Council of the Republic,
June 30, 1920, No. 230, Moscow


Transcribed and HTML markup for the Trotsky Internet Archive by David Walters

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In No.13 of Voyennoye Dyelo, an article appeared, entitled Marshal Pilsudski’s First Steps in War, which was riddled through and through with a spirit of crude chauvinism. It is enough to mention that the article speaks of the ‘innate jesuitry of the Polacks’, which is contrasted with the honest and straightforward spirit of the Great-Russian race. There is no need to explain how greatly this sort of crude and false generalisation contradicts the spirit of fraternity which inspires the attitude of the Russian working class towards the working masses of Poland. This article testifies to the utter incapacity of the present editors of Voyennoye Dyelo to perform their responsible duties.

With a view to preventing any possible further dissemination of chavinist poison by the military-science journal of the Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army, I hereby order:

  1. That publication of Voyennoye Dyelo be suspended pending radical changes in the composition of the editorial board.
  2. That those directly responsible for publishing the chauvinist article in question be identified, so that they may be removed once and for all from involvement in the work of bringing enlightenment and education to the Red Army.

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Last updated on: 26.12.2006