Yakov Peters
Encyclopedia
Jēkabs Peterss or Yakov Khristoforovich Peters ( — 25 April 1938) was a Latvian Communist revolutionary
, Soviet politician, chekist, and terrorist. Together with Feliks Dzerzhinsky, he was one of the founders and chiefs of the VChK
. He was the Deputy Chairman of the VChK
from 1918 and briefly the Chairman of the VChK
from 7 July to 22 August 1918.
of Hasenpoth
uyezd
(Courland Governorate
), in a poor farmer's family on December 3, 1886. He became a member of the Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party
in 1904. In the aftermath of the Russian Revolution of 1905
he was arrested in 1907 for the attempted murder of a factory director in Libau
, but was later acquitted by the Riga military court in 1908. Peters emigrated to England
and lived in London
where he was a member of the London Group of the Social Democracy of Latvia
and of the British Socialist Party
. In 1911, he achieved notoriety in Britain
when he and four others were arrested and put on trial in the aftermath of the Sidney Street Siege, which followed a failed jeweler's shop robbery at Houndsditch
in which three police officers were killed. Despite some incriminating evidence, Peters and his companions were acquitted to the dismay of the Home Secretary
Winston Churchill
.
He married Maisie Freeman, the daughter of a London banker, and together they had a daughter, May (born 1914). His wife divorced him after he returned to Russia
in May 1917, following the February Revolution
. In Riga
, Peters became one of the leaders of the Social Democracy of Latvia
working at the front-lines of the Northern Front. During the German advance he moved to Valmiera
where he was an editor of the party newspaper Cīņa. Peters was a peasant representative of the Governorate of Livonia to the Democratic discussion initiated by Kerensky.
being a member of the Military-Revolutionary Committee in Petrograd. At that time he was preparing military units for the October Revolution. Afterward, he was a member of Cheka
Collegiate, the Deputy Chairman of the Commission
, and the chairman of the Revolutionary Tribunal
. He participated in the disclosure of the alleged Lockhart plot as well as leading the liquidation of the Left SR mutiny of 1918. Following Dzerzhinsky
's resignation in the aftermath of the Left SR Uprising
, Peters briefly served as the chief of the Cheka
until Dzerzhinsky
resumed his duties. As one of the Cheka's leaders, Peters was responsible for the first major Cheka operations involving killings. These were against alleged anarchists in Petrograd and later in May 1918 against anarchists in Petrograd and Moscow. He also was involved in the investigation of the SR attempt on Lenin's life in August 1918 (Fanni Kaplan case), for the indiscriminate Red Terror
campaigns and reprisals that followed. He called it a "Hysterical Terror" in the newspaper "Utro Moskvy" (#21) of November 4, 1918. During these times appeared a term "room of souls" in numerous prisons such as Butyrka.
In March 1919 he was appointed as the Chief of internal defense in Petrograd, and then the Commandant of the reinforced raion. Following the retreat of the Yudenich forces he was appointed as the Commandant of the reinforced raion in Kiev
in August 1919. Upon the sack of Kiev he was a member of the Military Council in Tula
. In winter 1919-1920 Peters became the deputy chairman of the Special Committee of the STO
in providing military preparations on railways.
in the Northern Caucasus and served there as the Commissar of the Northern Caucasus Railways. In 1920-1922 was the Cheka
plenipotentiary in Turkestan ASSR
, where he also was the local party bureau member. There he led numerous operations against the anti-Bolshevik
formations of Dutov, Annenkov, and Enver-Pasha. He returned to Moscow
in 1922 and worked as a high-ranking official in the OGPU
, Rabkrin
, and as the chief of the Eastern department of the GPU (created on June 2, 1922).
Peters was arrested and executed during the Great Purge
, on April 25, 1938. His conviction was overturned posthumously in 1956.
Revolutionary
A revolutionary is a person who either actively participates in, or advocates revolution. Also, when used as an adjective, the term revolutionary refers to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor.-Definition:...
, Soviet politician, chekist, and terrorist. Together with Feliks Dzerzhinsky, he was one of the founders and chiefs of the VChK
Cheka
Cheka was the first of a succession of Soviet state security organizations. It was created by a decree issued on December 20, 1917, by Vladimir Lenin and subsequently led by aristocrat-turned-communist Felix Dzerzhinsky...
. He was the Deputy Chairman of the VChK
Cheka
Cheka was the first of a succession of Soviet state security organizations. It was created by a decree issued on December 20, 1917, by Vladimir Lenin and subsequently led by aristocrat-turned-communist Felix Dzerzhinsky...
from 1918 and briefly the Chairman of the VChK
Cheka
Cheka was the first of a succession of Soviet state security organizations. It was created by a decree issued on December 20, 1917, by Vladimir Lenin and subsequently led by aristocrat-turned-communist Felix Dzerzhinsky...
from 7 July to 22 August 1918.
Early years
He was born in Brinken volostVolost
Volost was a traditional administrative subdivision in Eastern Europe.In earlier East Slavic history, volost was a name for the territory ruled by the knyaz, a principality; either as an absolute ruler or with varying degree of autonomy from the Velikiy Knyaz...
of Hasenpoth
Aizpute
Aizpute is a town in western Latvia's Aizpute municipality in the valley of Tebra River, northeast of Liepāja.-History:It was founded as the castle of Hasenpoth of a German Crusaders order in 1248 and was granted the Magdeburg rights in 1378....
uyezd
Uyezd
Uyezd or uezd was an administrative subdivision of Rus', Muscovy, Russian Empire, and the early Russian SFSR which was in use from the 13th century. Uyezds for most of the history in Russia were a secondary-level of administrative division...
(Courland Governorate
Courland Governorate
Courland Governorate, also known as the Province of Courland, Governorate of Kurland , and Government of Courland , was one of the Baltic governorates of the Russian Empire, that is now part of the Republic of Latvia....
), in a poor farmer's family on December 3, 1886. He became a member of the Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party
Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party
The Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party is a centre-left, social democratic party in Latvia. It has a long history but is not represented in the current parliament of Latvia.-History:...
in 1904. In the aftermath of the Russian Revolution of 1905
Russian Revolution of 1905
The 1905 Russian Revolution was a wave of mass political and social unrest that spread through vast areas of the Russian Empire. Some of it was directed against the government, while some was undirected. It included worker strikes, peasant unrest, and military mutinies...
he was arrested in 1907 for the attempted murder of a factory director in Libau
Liepaja
Liepāja ; ), is a republican city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea directly at 21°E. It is the largest city in the Kurzeme Region of Latvia, the third largest city in Latvia after Riga and Daugavpils and an important ice-free port...
, but was later acquitted by the Riga military court in 1908. Peters emigrated to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and lived in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
where he was a member of the London Group of the Social Democracy of Latvia
Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party
The Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party is a centre-left, social democratic party in Latvia. It has a long history but is not represented in the current parliament of Latvia.-History:...
and of the British Socialist Party
British Socialist Party
The British Socialist Party was a Marxist political organisation established in Great Britain in 1911. Following a protracted period of factional struggle, in 1916 the party's anti-war forces gained decisive control of the party and saw the defection of its pro-war Right Wing...
. In 1911, he achieved notoriety in Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
when he and four others were arrested and put on trial in the aftermath of the Sidney Street Siege, which followed a failed jeweler's shop robbery at Houndsditch
Houndsditch
Houndsditch is a street in the City of London that connects Bishopsgate in the north west to Aldgate in the south east. The modern street runs through a part of the Portsoken Ward and Bishopsgate Ward Without...
in which three police officers were killed. Despite some incriminating evidence, Peters and his companions were acquitted to the dismay of the Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
.
He married Maisie Freeman, the daughter of a London banker, and together they had a daughter, May (born 1914). His wife divorced him after he returned to Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
in May 1917, following the February Revolution
February Revolution
The February Revolution of 1917 was the first of two revolutions in Russia in 1917. Centered around the then capital Petrograd in March . Its immediate result was the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II, the end of the Romanov dynasty, and the end of the Russian Empire...
. In Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
, Peters became one of the leaders of the Social Democracy of Latvia
Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party
The Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party is a centre-left, social democratic party in Latvia. It has a long history but is not represented in the current parliament of Latvia.-History:...
working at the front-lines of the Northern Front. During the German advance he moved to Valmiera
Valmiera
Valmiera is the largest city of the historical Vidzeme region, Latvia, with a total area of 18.1 km². It is the center of the Valmiera District. As of 2002, Valmiera had a population of 27,323, and in 2008 – 27,569....
where he was an editor of the party newspaper Cīņa. Peters was a peasant representative of the Governorate of Livonia to the Democratic discussion initiated by Kerensky.
The Revolution
Moving to Petrograd, he actively participated in the Bolshevik revolution of October 1917October Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
being a member of the Military-Revolutionary Committee in Petrograd. At that time he was preparing military units for the October Revolution. Afterward, he was a member of Cheka
Cheka
Cheka was the first of a succession of Soviet state security organizations. It was created by a decree issued on December 20, 1917, by Vladimir Lenin and subsequently led by aristocrat-turned-communist Felix Dzerzhinsky...
Collegiate, the Deputy Chairman of the Commission
Cheka
Cheka was the first of a succession of Soviet state security organizations. It was created by a decree issued on December 20, 1917, by Vladimir Lenin and subsequently led by aristocrat-turned-communist Felix Dzerzhinsky...
, and the chairman of the Revolutionary Tribunal
Revolutionary Tribunal
The Revolutionary Tribunal was a court which was instituted in Paris by the Convention during the French Revolution for the trial of political offenders, and eventually became one of the most powerful engines of the Reign of Terror....
. He participated in the disclosure of the alleged Lockhart plot as well as leading the liquidation of the Left SR mutiny of 1918. Following Dzerzhinsky
Dzerzhinsky
Dzerzhinsky , Dzerzhinskaya , or Dzerzhinskoye may refer to:*Felix Dzerzhinsky , Communist revolutionary, founder of the Cheka*Ivan Dzerzhinsky , Russian composer...
's resignation in the aftermath of the Left SR Uprising
Third Russian Revolution
The Left SR uprising or Left SR revolt was an uprising against the Bolsheviks by the Left Socialist Revolutionary Party in July 1918. The uprising started on 6 July 1918 and was claimed to be intended to restart the war with Germany...
, Peters briefly served as the chief of the Cheka
Cheka
Cheka was the first of a succession of Soviet state security organizations. It was created by a decree issued on December 20, 1917, by Vladimir Lenin and subsequently led by aristocrat-turned-communist Felix Dzerzhinsky...
until Dzerzhinsky
Dzerzhinsky
Dzerzhinsky , Dzerzhinskaya , or Dzerzhinskoye may refer to:*Felix Dzerzhinsky , Communist revolutionary, founder of the Cheka*Ivan Dzerzhinsky , Russian composer...
resumed his duties. As one of the Cheka's leaders, Peters was responsible for the first major Cheka operations involving killings. These were against alleged anarchists in Petrograd and later in May 1918 against anarchists in Petrograd and Moscow. He also was involved in the investigation of the SR attempt on Lenin's life in August 1918 (Fanni Kaplan case), for the indiscriminate Red Terror
Red Terror
The Red Terror in Soviet Russia was the campaign of mass arrests and executions conducted by the Bolshevik government. In Soviet historiography, the Red Terror is described as having been officially announced on September 2, 1918 by Yakov Sverdlov and ended about October 1918...
campaigns and reprisals that followed. He called it a "Hysterical Terror" in the newspaper "Utro Moskvy" (#21) of November 4, 1918. During these times appeared a term "room of souls" in numerous prisons such as Butyrka.
In March 1919 he was appointed as the Chief of internal defense in Petrograd, and then the Commandant of the reinforced raion. Following the retreat of the Yudenich forces he was appointed as the Commandant of the reinforced raion in 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....
in August 1919. Upon the sack of Kiev he was a member of the Military Council in Tula
Tula, Russia
Tula is an industrial city and the administrative center of Tula Oblast, Russia. It is located south of Moscow, on the Upa River. Population: -History:...
. In winter 1919-1920 Peters became the deputy chairman of the Special Committee of the STO
Council of Labour and Defence
From 1920-22 and 1923-27 respectively, the Council of Labor and Defense of the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR and the Council of Labor and Defense of the Council of People's Commissars of the Soviet Union were agencies responsible for the management of the economies and defense...
in providing military preparations on railways.
Post Revolution
In 1920 he represented the ChekaCheka
Cheka was the first of a succession of Soviet state security organizations. It was created by a decree issued on December 20, 1917, by Vladimir Lenin and subsequently led by aristocrat-turned-communist Felix Dzerzhinsky...
in the Northern Caucasus and served there as the Commissar of the Northern Caucasus Railways. In 1920-1922 was the Cheka
Cheka
Cheka was the first of a succession of Soviet state security organizations. It was created by a decree issued on December 20, 1917, by Vladimir Lenin and subsequently led by aristocrat-turned-communist Felix Dzerzhinsky...
plenipotentiary in Turkestan ASSR
Turkestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic
Turkestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was created from the Turkestan Krai of Imperial Russia...
, where he also was the local party bureau member. There he led numerous operations against the anti-Bolshevik
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
formations of Dutov, Annenkov, and Enver-Pasha. He returned to 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...
in 1922 and worked as a high-ranking official in the OGPU
Cheka
Cheka was the first of a succession of Soviet state security organizations. It was created by a decree issued on December 20, 1917, by Vladimir Lenin and subsequently led by aristocrat-turned-communist Felix Dzerzhinsky...
, Rabkrin
Rabkrin
Rabkrin, RKI or Workers' and Peasants' Inspectorate was a governmental establishment in Soviet Russia and the early Soviet Union responsible for scrutinizing the state, local and enterprise administrations during 1920-1934. It was established on February 7, 1920 to replace the People's...
, and as the chief of the Eastern department of the GPU (created on June 2, 1922).
Peters was arrested and executed during the Great Purge
Great Purge
The Great Purge was a series of campaigns of political repression and persecution in the Soviet Union orchestrated by Joseph Stalin from 1936 to 1938...
, on April 25, 1938. His conviction was overturned posthumously in 1956.