Violent Men between Great War, Revolution and Second World War (1905–1945): Cossack Military Violence under Different Regimes

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Jan C. Behrends
• Subject Area: Modern and Contemporary History
• Term: since 2021
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 407133841

From early modern times onwards, the Cossacks were a distinct military as well as social formation in the borderlands of the Russian Empire. In the nineteenth century, they represented a separate estate as well as an important part of the Russian Army. Like other army units, Cossacks were used both for internal repression and foreign wars. They enjoyed a reputation as loyal yet ruthless warriors. By analysing their conduct in the Russian Revolution of 1905, the First World War, the revolution and (civil) wars of 1918–1921 as well as the Second World War, where Cossack formations fought on both sides, this project aims to contribute to the discussion about mass violence and military cultures of violence in Eastern Europe during the first half of the twentieth century. By studying the Cossacks, this project will broaden our knowledge about the transformation of military violence in times of total war and revolution. While so far the victims of mass violence have mostly been at the centre of attention, this project will seize the opportunity to study a distinct group that acted both as perpetrators (1905, 1914–1917, 1941–1945) and fell victim to violent campaigns (1919, 1928–1933, after 1945). By including both World Wars and opposing armies, the project aims to discuss the relationship between violence in war and revolution (1914–1922) and the genocidal campaigns and wars of the totalitarian age (1929–1933, 1941–1945), thereby raising the question of continuities as well as change in the patterns of violent acts the European ‘bloodlands’. The project will consist of case studies during three consecutive periods (1905–1916, 1917–1922, 1941–1945). The tension between nation and empire as well as the heterogeneity of the Cossacks are reflected in this transnational approach, which will include archival material from several countries. In addition to the in-depth study of Cossacks in the years 1905–1945 as a PhD thesis, the principal investigator will examine the role of Russian and Ukrainian Cossacks and their violent acts after the revival of the Cossack tradition in the post-Soviet era.

• DFG Programme: Research Units
• Subproject of: FOR 2898: Military Cultures of Violence - Illegitimate Military Violence from the Early Modern Period to the Second World War
• International Connection: Russia
• Cooperation Partner: Professorin Dr. Ludmilla Novikova