Bookvica

[A SOVIET UKRAINIAN ARMY PROCLAMATION BANNED BY CENSORS] Nashi zbroini syly [Our Armed Forces]. Part of “Viiskova biblioteka” series

Strade, P[etr]. H[eorhyevych]

Item #2627

Kharkiv: Ukrpolihrafobiednannia Tretia Druk. Im. Frunze for Derzhavne vydavnytstvo “Na Varti”, 1931. 47 pp. 16,5 x 11 cm. Printed publisher’s pictorial cover. One of 15 000 copies. In Ukrainian. Overall good to very good condition. Top edge demonstrates minor defects due to inaccurate opening. Untrimmed. The author is likely Russian Latvian Pēteris Stradiņš (1902-?). Although the book was banned, Stradiņš himself continued the service until 1954, reaching a modest rank of colonel-engineer within the railway corps.

Thу brochure presents an eight-chapter essay on the Soviet military intended for the general readership. Its tone is overtly anti-imperialist and anti-capitalist, mentioning “enemies of the Soviet country” all around the world. While not explicitly directive, it appeals to the “honorary duty” of the military service. The army structure is explained in brief, with the author touching on the fleet, aviation and infantry. The brochure concludes with a mention of the Bolshevik party as the leading force, an ideology and leadership role that grants unbending, uncrushable strength to the army, crowned by Lenin's promises of the future.
The book is indicative of the shifting state policies towards homogenisation and increased social control. Though written in Ukrainian, the text conspicuously avoids nationalistic sentiment. Instead, Ukraine is portrayed as ideologically unified with its people united not by the social cohesion, rather by a shared fear in face of the international danger and external adversaries. It is plausible that exactly the same (or similar) texts were distributed in other national republics, devoid from any regional and rational specificity.
One of the army management chapters lists high rank officials: both at the state and local Ukrainian levels. Bilokin (2018, p. 261) mentions that this edition was a subject of withdrawal from the libraries with all found copies ordered for liquidation. The cause for such strict censorship ironically are the quotations of Red Army commanders, ones who were labelled as “enemies of the state” 6 years after the publication of this book. Most of them were killed promptly in 1937 in the wake of the fabricated Case of the Trotskyist Anti-Soviet Military Organization, one which in reality was a covert aim to “clean” the perceived disloyalty within the Soviet military leadership. The publisher, Na varti [On guard!], active from 1930, issued both Ukrainian and non-Ukrainian authors translated to Ukrainian. Na varti managed a range of publications touching on the army, military service and physical training. The publisher was also responsible for some literary works by V. Sosiura, P. Kononenko and the likes. With such names, Na vartimoved in perilously close to the unwelcomed nationally-minded topics: later most of such editions were all also banned. In 1938 the publisher was restructured, the inventory was purged. Eventually it was transformed into a part of the local GosVoenIzdat branch.

Not in the National Bibliography of Ukraine.

Price: $950.00