Peter Andreevich Arshinov, History of Makhnovist Movement 1918-1921, Nestor Makhno, 1st Edition 1923, Russian Anarchists, Berlin

This book is in Russian language

"History of Makhnovist Movement 1918-1921", by Peter Arshinov, First Edition in original Russian, published by the Group of Russian Anarchists in Germany, Berlin 1923.

The author, Peter Andreevich Arshinov, son of an Ekaterinoslav factory worker, himself a metalworker by trade, educated himself through strenuous personal effort. In 1904, when he was 17, he joined the revolutionary movement.
In 1911, he first met the young anarchist Nestor Makhno, who had received a life sentence to hard labor for terrorist acts, and who was already familiar with Arshinov's name and his earlier work in the south. They were close friends during their entire prison term, and both left prison during the first days of the revolution, in March, 1917.
As soon as Makhno was free, he left Moscow to take up revolutionary activity in the Ukraine, at his birthplace, Gulyai-Polye. Arshinov remained in Moscow and energetically took part in the work of the Moscow Federation of Anarchist Groups.
When, after the occupation of the Ukraine by the Austro-Germans in the summer of 1918, Makhno spent some time in Moscow in order to acquaint himself and his comrades with the state of affairs, he stayed with Arshinov. Here they got to know each other more intimately, and they ardently discussed the problems of the revolution and of anarchism.
In April, 1919, at the very beginning of the development of the Makhnovist movement, Arshinov went to Gulyai-Polye and from that time on hardly left the region of the Makhnovshchina until its defeat in 1921.

He concerned himself mainly with cultural and educational matters and with organizational work; for some time he directed the cultural and educational section and was editor of the insurgents' newspaper 'Put'k Svobode' ('The Road to Freedom'). He left the region only in the summer of 1920 after a defeat of the movement. During this time, he lost a manuscript on the history of the movement which was almost ready for publication. After this absence, it was only with great difficulty that he was able to return to this region which was hemmed in on all sides (by Whites and Reds); he remained there until the beginning of 1921.

At the beginning of 1921, after the third disastrous defeat inflicted on the movement by the Soviet power, Arshinov left the region with a formal assignment; to finish work on the history of the Makhnovist movement. This time, he carried the work through to completion in extremely difficult personal circumstances, partly in the Ukraine and partly in Moscow. This book was finally published in Berlin in 1923.

US: Priority (c 2-4 days) ------ $18.50
Canada: Express (c 5-7 days) -- $57.50
World: Express (c 5-10 days) -- $77.50

Hard boards [some damage to the bottom side of the front board and spine: see picture]; 5" x 7.1/2"; 258 pages, slightly damaged and stained bottom edge of the pages, otherwise very good, the portrait of Nestor Makhno and the fold-out map are present, the map has a few scotch repaired creases [see picture]; good+ condition. [ohkb]