The first communist under surveillance by the Siguranţa: Christian Rakovsky during the First World War (1914-1918)
The first communist under surveillance by the Siguranţa: Christian Rakovsky during the First World War (1914-1918)

Summary/Abstract: Christian Rakovsky still remains one of the most important leaders of the Romanian socialism and also of the global communism established as a consequence of the Bolshevik Revolution of October 1917. The goal of this paper is to add new information to his biography and actions as a socialist militant and to see how and why he took further steps from socialism to communism. This research is based mostly on primary sources, the most important being a special file on him made by the Romanian Directorate of Police and General Security (Siguranţa) which contains unpublished archival documents from the Romanian National Archives, regarding his actions in Romania and towards the Romanian Government in the before and aftermath of the Bolshevik Revolution. Although a Romanian citizen, after the start of World War I, Rakovsky becomes a fierce adversary of his adoptive country, partly due to the actions performed against him by the Romanian Government before and during the war. This project highlights how he managed, through his actions, to gain the trust and sympathy of the Russian Bolsheviks which saw him as an important actor in their battle against the imperialist Romania who claimed Bessarabia.

• Details
• Contents