White émigré is a political term mostly used in
France, the
USA, and the
UK to describe a
Russian who emigrated from
Russia in the wake of the
Russian Revolution and
Russian Civil War and who was in opposition to the then current Russian political climate. Less politically oriented term used in the same countries by the immigrants themselves and by the native population is
First wave émigré (
Эмигрант первой волны). In the
USSR the term
White emigre (
Белоэмигрант) in 1920s - 1980s was used mostly with the negative connotation. Since the end of 1980s there is a tradition in Russia to call those, who emigrated from Russia in 1917 - 1922 the
First wave émigrés.
Many white émigrés were participants in the
White movement or supported it, although the term is often broadly applied to anyone who may have left the country due to the change in regimes (some of them, like
Mensheviks and
Socialist-Revolutionaries, were opposed to the
Bolsheviks but had not supported the White movement, some were just apolitical), as well as to the descendants of those who left and still retain a Russian
Orthodox Christian identity while living abroad. It should be noted that the term "white émigrés" (белоэмигранты, белая эмиграция) was much more often used in the
Soviet Union where it had a strong negative connotation, than by the émigrés themselves, who preferred to call themselves simply "Russian émigrés" (русская эмиграция) or "Russian military émigrés"(русская военная эмиграция) if they participated in the White movement.
Most white émigrés left Russia from 1917 to 1920 (estimates vary between 900,000 and 2 million), although some managed to leave during the twenties and thirties or were exiled by the Soviet Government (such as, for example, philosopher
Ivan Ilyin). They spanned all classes and included military soldiers and officers,
Cossacks, intellectuals of various professions, dispossessed businessmen and landowners, as well as officials of the Russian Imperial Government and various anti-Bolshevik governments of the Russian Civil War period. They were not only ethnic Russians but belonged to other ethnic groups as well.
Distribution
Most émigrés initially fled from Southern
Russia and
Ukraine to
Turkey and then moved to eastern European
Slavic countries, such as the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia,
Bulgaria,
Czechoslovakia, and
Poland. A large number also fled to
Estonia,
Latvia,
Lithuania,
Finland,
Germany and
France.
Berlin and
Paris developed thriving émigré communities.
Many civilians and military officers living or stationed in
Siberia and the
Russian Far East moved to
Harbin,
Shanghai and other cities of
China, Central Asia, and Eastern
Turkestan, as well as
Japan.
During and after
World War II many Russian émigrés moved to the
United Kingdom, the
United States,
Canada,
Peru,
Brazil,
Argentina, and
Australia.
Ideological inclinations
White émigrés were generally speaking
anticommunist and did not consider the
Soviet Union and its legacy to be Russian at its core. They consider the period of 1917 to 1991 to have been a period of occupation by the Soviet regime which was
internationalist and anti-Christian.
A significant percentage of white émigrés may be described as monarchists, although many adopted a position of being "unpredetermined" ("nepredreshentsi"), believing that Russia's political structure should be determined by popular
plebiscite.
Many white émigrés believed that their mission was to preserve the pre-revolutionary Russian culture and way of life while living abroad, in order to return this influence to Russian culture after the fall of the
USSR.
A religious mission to the outside world was another concept promoted by people such as Bishop
John of Shanghai and San Francisco (canonized as a saint of the
Russian Orthodox Church Abroad) who said at the 1938 All-Diaspora Council:
"To the Russians abroad it has been granted to shine in the whole world with the light of Orthodoxy, so that other peoples, seeing their good deeds, might glorify our Father Who is in Heaven, and thus obtain salvation for themselves."
Many white émigrés also believed it was their duty to remain active in combat against the Soviet dictatorship, with the hopes of liberating Russia. This ideology was largely inspired by General
Pyotr Wrangel, who said upon the White army's defeat "The battle for Russia has not ceased, it has merely taken on new forms".
White army veteran Captain Vasili Orekhov, publisher of the "Sentry" journal, encapsulated this idea of responsibility with the following words:
"There will be an hour - believe it - there will be, when the liberated Russia will ask each of us: "What have you done to accelerate my rebirth." Let us earn the right not to blush, but be proud of our existence abroad. As being temporarily deprived of our Motherland let us save in our ranks not only faith in her, but an unbending desire towards feats, sacrifice, and the establishment of a united friendly family of those who did not let down their hands in the fight for her liberation"
Organizations and activities
The émigrés formed various organizations for the purpose of combatting the Soviet regime such as the
Russian All-Military Union, the
Brotherhood of Russian Truth, and the
NTS. This made the white émigrés a target for infiltration by the Soviet secret police (e.g. operation
TREST and the
Inner Line). Seventy-five White army veterans served as volunteers supporting
Francisco Franco during the
Spanish civil war.
Some white émigrés adopted pro-Soviet sympathies, for which they were labelled "Soviet patriots". These people formed organizations such as the
Mladorossi, the
Evraziitsi, and the
Smenovekhovtsi.
During
World War II, many white émigrés took part in the
Russian Liberation Movement. On the other hand, a significant number participated in anti-Nazi movements such as the
French resistance. During the war, the white émigrés came into contact with former Soviet citizens from German-occupied territories who used the German retreat as an opportunity to flee from the Soviet Union or were in Germany and Austria as
POWs and
forced labourers and preferred to stay in the West, often referred to as the
second wave of emigres (often also called DPs - displaced persons, see
Displaced persons camp). This smaller second wave fairly quickly began to
assimilate into the white emigre community.
After the war, active anti-Soviet combat was almost exclusively continued by NTS: other organizations either dissolved, or began concentrating exclusively on self-preservation and/or educating the youth. Various youth organizations, such as the
Russian scouts in exile became functional in raising children with a background in pre-Soviet Russian culture and heritage.
The white émigrés, acting to preserve their church from Soviet influence, formed the
Russian Orthodox Church Abroad in 1924. The church continues its existence to this day, acting as both the spiritual and cultural center of the Russian Orthodox community abroad. On May 17th 2007, the
Act of Canonical Communion with the Moscow Patriarchate reestablished canonical ties between the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad and the
Russian Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, after more than eighty years of separation.
Notable "First Wave" Émigrés
Political and military figures:
Religious figures:
Historians and philosophers:
Creative artists, i.e. actors, authors, composers, musicians:
Scientists and inventors:
Other figures:
White Emigre organizations and entities
Orthodox Church Jurisdictions:
- Orthodox Church in America (АПЦ, Митрополия) - was not entirely founded by White Emigres but includes a significant percentage of White emigre parishes.
Military and semi-Military Organizations:
- The Association of Cadets (Объединение Кадет Российских Корпусов за Рубежом)
Political organizations:
- The Congress of Russian Americans
- The High Monarchist Union (Высший Монархический Совет)
Youth organizations:
- National Organization of Rangers (or "Knights") (НОВ, Витязи)
- Russian Christian Students Movement (РСХД)
- Orthodox Organization of Russian Pathfinders (ПОРР)
- Russian Sokol (Русский Сокол)
Charitable organizations:
See also
