1st Congress of the RSDLP
Encyclopedia
The 1st Congress of the RSDLP (Russian
: Российская социал-демократическая рабочая партия, РСДРП) was held between March 13–March 15 (March 1–March 3, O.S.) 1898 in Minsk
, Russian Empire
(now Belarus
) in secrecy. It was in a house belonging to Rumyantsev, a railway worker on the outskirts of Minsk (now in the town centre). The cover story was that they were celebrating the nameday of Rumyantsev's wife. A stove was kept burning in the next room in case secret papers had to be burnt. Lenin smuggled a draft program for the party written in milk between the lines of a book.
The Congress was convened by three major social democratic groups from different areas of the Russian Empire. The first one was the Saint Petersburg
-based League of Struggle for the Emancipation of the Working Class
, which had been active since 1895. The future founder of Menshevism Julius Martov
and the future founder of Bolshevism Vladimir Lenin
were among its leaders in 1895-1896. The group, one of the oldest in the Empire, could not play a significant role since it had been recently weakened by arrests. The second group was the General Jewish Labour Bund, which had united Yiddish speaking social democrats in the Pale of Settlement
in September 1897. At the time, the Bund was the largest socialist group in the Empire and sponsored the Congress. The third group was the social democratic organization formed in 1897 around the Kiev
-based Rabochaya Gazeta ('Workers' Newspaper'). There were 9 delegates to the Congress representing these three groups as well as social democrats from Moscow
and Yekaterinoslav. The Kharkov
socialists refused to come thinking the move premature.
There were 6 sessions, with no minutes taken because of the need for secrecy; only resolutions were recorded. The major issues discussed by the delegates were merging all social democratic groups into one party and selecting the party's name. The Congress also elected a Central Committee
of three: Stepan Radchenko, one of the oldest Russian social democrats and a leader of the Saint Petersburg League, Boris Eidelman of Rabochaya Gazeta and Alexander Kremer, a Jewish Bund leader. The Manifesto of the new party was written by Peter Struve at Radchenko's request.
The Central Committee elected by Congress printed the Manifesto and the resolutions of the Congress, but five of the nine delegates were arrested by the Okhrana within a month.
The first Congress failed to unite the Russian Social Democracy, neither it proposed the Statute nor the Programme. A wave of police repression followed, which prevented the party from functioning as a cohesive body for several years and ushered in a period of internal schisms and dissension. Three of the delegates weren't arrested, but only because Zubatov thought they would lead him to other members. It was not until 1903 that the 2nd Congress of the RSDLP
was held abroad and adopted the party's Charter and Programme.
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
: Российская социал-демократическая рабочая партия, РСДРП) was held between March 13–March 15 (March 1–March 3, O.S.) 1898 in Minsk
Minsk
- Ecological situation :The ecological situation is monitored by Republican Center of Radioactive and Environmental Control .During 2003–2008 the overall weight of contaminants increased from 186,000 to 247,400 tons. The change of gas as industrial fuel to mazut for financial reasons has worsened...
, Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
(now Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
) in secrecy. It was in a house belonging to Rumyantsev, a railway worker on the outskirts of Minsk (now in the town centre). The cover story was that they were celebrating the nameday of Rumyantsev's wife. A stove was kept burning in the next room in case secret papers had to be burnt. Lenin smuggled a draft program for the party written in milk between the lines of a book.
The Congress was convened by three major social democratic groups from different areas of the Russian Empire. The first one was the Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
-based League of Struggle for the Emancipation of the Working Class
League of Struggle for the Emancipation of the Working Class
St. Petersburg League of Struggle for the Emancipation of the Working Class was a Marxist group in St. Petersburg, Russia. It was founded by Lenin, Julius Martov, Gleb Krzhizhanovsky, Alexander Malchenko, P. Zaporozhets, A. Vaneye, V. Starkov and others in the autumn of 1895. It united 20 Marxist...
, which had been active since 1895. The future founder of Menshevism Julius Martov
Julius Martov
Julius Martov or L. Martov was born in Constantinople in 1873...
and the future founder of Bolshevism Vladimir Lenin
Vladimir Lenin
Vladimir Ilyich Lenin was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and communist politician who led the October Revolution of 1917. As leader of the Bolsheviks, he headed the Soviet state during its initial years , as it fought to establish control of Russia in the Russian Civil War and worked to create a...
were among its leaders in 1895-1896. The group, one of the oldest in the Empire, could not play a significant role since it had been recently weakened by arrests. The second group was the General Jewish Labour Bund, which had united Yiddish speaking social democrats in the Pale of Settlement
Pale of Settlement
The Pale of Settlement was the term given to a region of Imperial Russia, in which permanent residency by Jews was allowed, and beyond which Jewish permanent residency was generally prohibited...
in September 1897. At the time, the Bund was the largest socialist group in the Empire and sponsored the Congress. The third group was the social democratic organization formed in 1897 around the Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
-based Rabochaya Gazeta ('Workers' Newspaper'). There were 9 delegates to the Congress representing these three groups as well as social democrats from Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
and Yekaterinoslav. The Kharkov
Kharkiv
Kharkiv or Kharkov is the second-largest city in Ukraine.The city was founded in 1654 and was a major centre of Ukrainian culture in the Russian Empire. Kharkiv became the first city in Ukraine where the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic was proclaimed in December 1917 and Soviet government was...
socialists refused to come thinking the move premature.
There were 6 sessions, with no minutes taken because of the need for secrecy; only resolutions were recorded. The major issues discussed by the delegates were merging all social democratic groups into one party and selecting the party's name. The Congress also elected a Central Committee
Central Committee
Central Committee was the common designation of a standing administrative body of communist parties, analogous to a board of directors, whether ruling or non-ruling in the twentieth century and of the surviving, mostly Trotskyist, states in the early twenty first. In such party organizations the...
of three: Stepan Radchenko, one of the oldest Russian social democrats and a leader of the Saint Petersburg League, Boris Eidelman of Rabochaya Gazeta and Alexander Kremer, a Jewish Bund leader. The Manifesto of the new party was written by Peter Struve at Radchenko's request.
The Central Committee elected by Congress printed the Manifesto and the resolutions of the Congress, but five of the nine delegates were arrested by the Okhrana within a month.
The first Congress failed to unite the Russian Social Democracy, neither it proposed the Statute nor the Programme. A wave of police repression followed, which prevented the party from functioning as a cohesive body for several years and ushered in a period of internal schisms and dissension. Three of the delegates weren't arrested, but only because Zubatov thought they would lead him to other members. It was not until 1903 that the 2nd Congress of the RSDLP
2nd Congress of the RSDLP
The 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party was held during July 30–August 23 1903, starting in Brussels, Belgium and ending in London, because Belgian police forced the delegates to leave the country...
was held abroad and adopted the party's Charter and Programme.