Society of Former Political Prisoners and Exiled Settlers

The Society of Former Political Prisoners and Exiled Settlers, commonly abbreviated in Russian as OBPKiS, was a Soviet public organization active from 1921 until its dissolution in 1935. It brought together former political convicts, exiles, and veterans of the revolutionary movement, initially with the aims of preserving historical memory, supporting members materially, and researching the institutions of imprisonment, penal servitude, and exile under the Russian imperial regime. The organization was formally opened in Moscow on March 12, 1921, at the House of Unions. Pavel Maslov, Dmitry Novomirsky, and other former revolutionaries were associated with its foundation. It had approximately 200 members in its first year. The membership included well-known figures from the pre-revolutionary revolutionary movement, among them Vera Figner, Lev Deich, Felix Kon, Mikhail Frolenko, Anna Yakimova-Dikovskaya, Alexander Pribylev, Nikolai Tyutchev, and others. Governance was conducted through a council. From 1924 the society became an all-Union organization, and by 1928 it reportedly had more than 50 branches. OBPKiS combined welfare, educational, archival, and publishing functions. It provided material assistance to former political convicts and exiled settlers, arranged lectures and public reports for workers, students, and Red Army personnel, and collected, preserved, studied, and published documents concerning the imperial prison system, penal servitude, exile, revolutionary organizations, and the lives of former political prisoners. The society held all-Union congresses in 1924, 1925, 1928, and 1931. In 1926 it established a museum with a library and archive, creating an institutional base for historical research and public education. Its publishing program included the periodical Hard Labour and Exile, a bulletin of the central council, and book series such as Historical and Revolutionary Library and Classics of Revolutionary Thought of the Pre-Marxist Period. It also issued biographical and documentary works on figures including Alexander Herzen, Nikolay Chernyshevsky, Nikolay Dobrolyubov, Mikhail Bakunin, Pyotr Tkachev, and Vera Figner. A five-volume biographical and bibliographical directory of participants in the Russian revolutionary movement, together with memoirs and materials on the Decembrists, Narodism, the labor movement, prisons, penal servitude, and exile, formed part of its historical output. The society's development also reflected the tightening political environment of the 1920s and early 1930s. Vera Figner criticized what she viewed as the organization's increasing subordination to Bolshevik political authority, including its positions on the death penalty, political investigations, the State Political Administration, political conformity, and the treatment of non-party citizens. Although she expressed continued solidarity with the revolutionary community, she objected to formally joining under what she considered unacceptable political conditions. Later biographical records nevertheless listed her as a member. OBPKiS was dissolved in 1935. Its former members were subsequently affected severely by the Great Purge: according to the referenced account, 130 former members were executed and another 90 were sent to forced-labor camps. The final chairman was Alexander Andreyev. The society's legacy survives primarily through its publications, biographical directories, archival work, and documentation of the imperial penal system and revolutionary exile.

Founded in Moscow on March 12, 1921, the Society of Former Political Prisoners and Exiled Settlers united people who had experienced political imprisonment, penal servitude, or exile under the Russian imperial regime. Pavel Maslov, Dmitry Novomirsky, and other former revolutionaries were associated with its creation. The organization began with about 200 members and was governed by a council. Its early work combined mutual aid with the preservation of revolutionary and penal history. The society provided material assistance to former political convicts and exiled settlers, organized lectures and reports, and gathered documentary and memoir material. Its audiences included workers, students, and Red Army soldiers. These activities positioned the organization not simply as a veterans' association but also as a public historical and educational institution. In 1924 it was reorganized as an all-Union body. By 1928 it reportedly had more than 50 branches, and it held all-Union congresses in 1924, 1925, 1928, and 1931. A major institutional development came in 1926, when the society established a museum, library, and archive. Its publications included Hard Labour and Exile, a central-council bulletin, and several historical and intellectual series. It published studies and source materials concerning major revolutionary figures, including Alexander Herzen, Nikolay Chernyshevsky, Nikolay Dobrolyubov, Mikhail Bakunin, Pyotr Tkachev, and Vera Figner. It also produced a five-volume biographical and bibliographical directory of participants in the Russian revolutionary movement and issued material relating to the Decembrists, Narodism, the labor movement, prisons, penal servitude, and exile. The organization's relationship with the Soviet political system became increasingly contested. Vera Figner, an important veteran of the revolutionary movement, objected to what she regarded as the society's political incorporation into Bolshevik institutions. Her criticisms addressed the death penalty, political investigations, approval of the State Political Administration, ideological pressure, and the unequal status of party and non-party citizens. Although she declined to join under the conditions she described, a later 1934 membership directory listed her as a member, illustrating the tension between the society's historical identity and its official Soviet institutional form. The Society of Former Political Prisoners and Exiled Settlers was dissolved in 1935. Repression did not end with the organization's closure. The referenced historical account states that during the Great Purge, 130 former members were executed and 90 more were sent to forced-labor camps. Alexander Andreyev is identified as the final chairman. The society is historically significant for the sources it assembled and published, even though its institutional independence was constrained and its members were later targeted by the Soviet repression system.

• 1935

  Dissolution

  [1]Society of Former Political Prisoners and Exiled Settlersen.wikipedia.org

  The Soviet authorities disbanded the society; Alexander Andreyev was its final chairman.

• 1928

  Expansion to more than 50 branches

  [1]Society of Former Political Prisoners and Exiled Settlersen.wikipedia.org

  The society reportedly had over 50 branches across the Soviet Union.

• 1926

  Museum, library, and archive founded

  [1]Society of Former Political Prisoners and Exiled Settlersen.wikipedia.org

  OBPKiS established a museum and supporting library and archive for research into political imprisonment and exile.

• 1924

  All-Union reorganization

  [1]Society of Former Political Prisoners and Exiled Settlersen.wikipedia.org

  The society expanded into an all-Union organization and held its first listed all-Union congress.

• 1922

  Participation in the creation of International Red Aid

  [1]Society of Former Political Prisoners and Exiled Settlersen.wikipedia.org

  Together with the Society of Old Bolsheviks, the organization helped create International Red Aid.

• 1921

  Foundation and opening in Moscow

  [1]Society of Former Political Prisoners and Exiled Settlersen.wikipedia.org

  The society opened at the House of Unions in Moscow on March 12, with approximately 200 members during its first year.

A historical, mutual-aid, archival, and educational organization for former political prisoners and exiled settlers, focused on the memory of revolutionary imprisonment and exile under the Russian Empire.

• Historical periodical

  Hard Labour and Exile

  A periodical devoted to political imprisonment, penal servitude, exile, revolutionary history, memoirs, and related documentary material. It was part of the society's effort to create a published record of experiences under the imperial penal system.

• Organizational bulletin

  Bulletin of the Central Council of the All-Union Society of Former Political Prisoners and Exiled Settlers

  A bulletin associated with the society's central council, providing an institutional channel for organizational information and historical or documentary content.

• Publication series

  Historical and Revolutionary Library

  A publication series presenting historical and revolutionary subjects connected with the society's research and educational mission.

• Publication series

  Classics of Revolutionary Thought of the Pre-Marxist Period

  A series devoted to texts and intellectual figures from pre-Marxist revolutionary thought, reflecting the society's broad interest in the history of Russian radicalism.

• Cultural and archival institution · 1926

  Museum, library, and archive

  Established in 1926, this institutional complex collected and preserved materials on imperial prisons, penal servitude, exile, and the revolutionary movement. It served research, memory, and public education rather than commercial production.

• 1935

  Dissolution and subsequent persecution of members

  The society was dissolved in 1935, and the referenced historical account states that 130 former members were executed and 90 were sent to forced-labor camps during the Great Purge.

  Source

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• 1926

  Creation of a museum and archival centerStrategy

  Background

  The society's historical and educational mission required a permanent institution for preserving documentary evidence and memorabilia.

  Action taken

  It founded a museum with a library and archive.

  Aftermath

  The institution supported the society's research, publishing, and public-history activities until the organization's dissolution.

  Source

• 1924

  Conversion into an all-Union organizationStrategy

  Background

  The society sought to operate beyond its original Moscow base and organize former political prisoners and exiled settlers across the Soviet Union.

  Action taken

  It was transformed into an all-Union organization and subsequently developed a broad branch network.

  Aftermath

  By 1928 it reportedly had more than 50 branches and continued holding all-Union congresses.

  Source

1. 1Society of Former Political Prisoners and Exiled Settlersen.wikipedia.org