The following is part of a continued effort to provide interested historians
and others who enjoy historical minutia;
an alternative understanding of matters regarding
Pavel Dybenko.
Pavel Dybenko's legacy, bestowed upon the public by the likes of Lenin and Trotsky, prohibits him from taking his place among histories lot of fighters for freedom. In the year 1917, the sailors decades long experience of torment had come to an end. The roguish actions of the officers of the Imperial Russian Navy had formulated a combustible setting. Sailors of the Imperial Fleet were treated no better than the convict serving a sentence of hard labor. Conditions of the Russian sailors were first shared with the Petrograd elite in B. Roustam Bek's writing "Panama de la Marine Russe" published in 1908. Having fashioned great scandal...the books circulation was unquestionably prohibited. The writing not only shared the maltreatment of the sailors by the officers but it had also eerily prophesied the inevitability that these sailors would accomplish the most important part in the struggle for liberty. That the sailors would be uncompromising revolutionists because they had endured real slavery and knew very well what the rule of the current elite meant.
It was held in many a Russian heart and must never be forgotten that the revolutionary victories in the year 1917... was due chiefly to the activity, firmness and self sacrifice of the members/sailors of the Tsar's Baltic Fleet.
The following Decree authored by Dybenko was first published in No. 6 of the Gazette of the Temporary Workers and Peasants Government on January 12, 1918.
Dybenko demonstrates, in writing, his intentions and views calling for dignity and freedoms.
Quite conflicting with the plans Lenin has for Russia and her citizens. Additionally, Dybenko in paragraph 51 declares the fleets continued independence from the political vanguard. Lenin reacts, demanding paragraph 51 be rewritten. Lenin threatens to take off the table the Naval Boards request for its Ministry and education for its servicemen.
An excerpt:
Decree on the Democritization of the Navy of the Russian Republic
On the Democritization of the Navy
Part 1-General regulation on the personnel of the Fleet
1) The personnel of the Fleet of the Russian Republic consists of free citizens, enjoying equal civic rights.
2) The designation by title, which has existed until now, and which expressed class distinction, are abolished, and all sailors of the Navy are to be called:
"Sailors of the Naval Fleet of the Russian Republic"
3) From the sailors of the Fleet of the Russian Republic there will be apportioned the commanding personnel, superintending the tactical and technical sections, working in conjunction with the committees for the management of the administrative section of the Navy.
4) The political section is entirely in the administration of elected committees.
5) The commanding personnel is formed of persons, who are accepted into the service and performing this service in accordance with special rules expounded in Part 5.
6) From persons not of the commanding personnel, on accordance with rules in Part 5, they are nominated according to their specialties foremen who are responsible aids of the specialists of the commanding personnel.
7) All sailors have designations, answering to their specialties and position occupied:
For example, Commander, Mechanic, Artilleryman, Electrician, etc.
8) All titles are revoked and persons occupying positions of command, are designated by their duties, for example,--Citizen Commander, Citizen Mechanics, etc.
9) A new style of clothing, general for all naval sailors, is to be designed by a separate, special commission.
10) All sailors of the Navy are granted the right to wear civilian clothing off duty.
11) All sailors of the Navy have the right to be members of any political, national, religious, economic or professional organization, society or union. They have the right, freely and openly, to express and profess by word of mouth, in writing or in print, their political, religious and other views.
12) All sailors of the Navy are subject to the laws, general for all citizens, without any exceptions. Correspondence must be delivered to the addressee without exception.
13) All sailors, not on duty, have the right to absent themselves from their vessels and sections in accordance with orders and rules, established by corresponding organizations, but on the condition that a sufficient number of persons must remain to serve the vessel or section.
14) The commanding personnel have separate accommodations for living and for work, on board ship and at shore-stations.
15) The commanding personnel are allowed servants who hire out at their own free will, at the expense of the person desiring to have same, or in time of war, by the appointment of orderlies, on a mutual (with the crew) agreement, and with a definite salary.
Paragraph 51
51) Instructions to vessels, detachments, and the fleet on operative and technical questions are issued by corresponding persons of the commanding personnel, on economic and administrative questions by the commanding personnel, together with the committee and on political questions by the committees: semaphore messages received and sent.
Note--All orders of the central organs of the naval administration as well as the general state, and also ordinances of any committees published for general information are subject to execution in the fleet and flotillas of the Navy only in the event of their confirmation by the Central Committee of the Sea through instructions published in accordance with No. 20 and the foot note.
Without hesitation Lenin authors a draft
Draft Decision for the Council of People's Commissars on...
The Order of Subordination of the Baltic and Black Sea Fleets(1)
Considering the wording of the note #51. to be inexact or based on a misunderstanding, since the text, if taken literally, implies a refusal to recognize the supremacy of the Soviet state authority(2), the C.P.C asks the Navy's legislative organ to revise the wording of this note.
The C.P.C. takes into consideration the statement by representatives of the Navy that the note in question in no way signifies any repudiation of the central Soviet authorities, and instructs comrades Proshian and Lunacharsky to draw up on behalf of the Council of People's Commissars a well reasoned memorandum to the legislative organ of the Navy clarifying the point of view of the Council of People's Commissars.
Notes
1) This draft, written by Lenin, was endorsed at a meeting of the C.P.C. on January 15(28), 1918.
2) This refers to paragraph 51 of the "Regulations for the Democritization of the Navy" endorsed by an order of the Supreme Naval Board on January 8 (21), 1918. It stated that "all orders of the central bodies, both those of the naval department and the state authorities, as well as the orders of any committees whatsoever...shall be fulfilled in the fleet or sea flotillas only if confirmed by the Central Committee of the Navy..."
Central Party Achives of the Institute of Marxism-Leninism of the C.C. of the C.P.S.U.
Lenin also requests that People's Commissar Dybenko send his deputy for the meeting of the Smaller Soviet of the People's Commissars that will take place at Smolny Palace at the Red Hall on January 18th at 6PM or in case he fails to do so paragraph 8920 can be taken off the meetings agenda.
Agenda
Of the meeting of the Smaller Soviet for January 1918.
H. About granting a special credit of 250,000 rubles for the sailors' educational needs (Dybenko)
I. Solicitation of the Supreme Naval Board to allow the credits for the Naval Ministry
(Dybenko)
Dybenko holding on to the fruits of October...Lenin moving to destroy them.
