August 09, 2015

Caught in the Crossfire: The Annexation of Estonia


Caught in the Crossfire: The Annexation of Estonia

Seventy-five years ago today, on August 9, 1940, the newly formed Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic joined the USSR. Not willingly, mind you. Brought into being by the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, shaken by Stalinist deportations and guerilla warfare, Soviet-occupied Estonia met its first birthday in a literal trial by fire: the invasion by Nazi Germany. One Estonian writer recalls the fall of independent Estonia.

The Republic of Estonia, which had declared its independence on February 24, 1918, and fought for it in the War of Independence (1918-1920), was doomed by the German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact (August 23, 1939). In a secret addendum to the pact, the two powers divided up Eastern Europe, and the neutral Baltic states were placed in the Soviet sphere of influence. Immediately after the German occupation of Poland, the Soviets issued an ultimatum to the Estonian government, demanding that Estonia form a military alliance (thereby abandoning neutrality), provide bases for the Soviet navy and air force, and allow 25,000 Soviet troops onto their territory (the Estonian reserve army counted just 17,000 people). It was an offer Estonia was unable to refuse.

A mutual aid treaty was signed on September 28, 1939, which stressed that the Tartu Peace Treaty (1920) and the Soviet-Estonian Nonaggression Pact (1932) remained in force, and that the Soviet Union would not in any way attempt to change the political or economic order in Estonia. These promises lasted nine months. For Stalin, June 1940 – just as Hitler was finishing off France – felt like an appropriate time to take the next step. On June 15, an ultimatum was issued to Lithuania, and on June 16 Latvia and Estonia received theirs. On June 16 and 17, overwhelming Soviet armies invaded the Baltic states without declaring war. A series of political decrees followed, resulting in three new republics joining the USSR by early August.

In Estonia, this “revolution” (here led by Andrei Zhdanov) failed to maintain even the pretense of legality: there were blatant violations of the Constitution, and of all the key laws on transfer of power, elections, parliamentary authority, and so on. The year that followed this prelude also introduced Estonians to the other “wonders” of Stalinism, including a mass deportation on the night of June 13, 1941, when nearly 10,000 people were arrested (men were sent to the camps, women and children – into exile).

Given these circumstances, it comes as no surprise that once the war began many Estonians expected the Germans to arrive as liberators. They hoped that Germany would restore the Baltic states’ sovereignty as its allies. For them, war had started before the arrival of German troops. Many cities (including much of Tartu), towns, and villages were freed of Soviet invaders by the so-called “Forest Brothers” – guerilla groups that had formed spontaneously as early as June 1940. Many of the soldiers and officers of the 22nd Territorial Rifle Corps (the former Estonian army), which had been withdrawn from Estonia at the start of the war, defected near Pskov (July 1941) and were ready to continue their ongoing war against the USSR on the German side.

But their hopes were soon dashed. Hitler’s Germany was not establishing alliances on equal terms: it sought “ancient German lands,” ideally with no natives. Estonia was incorporated into the German colony of Ostland (December 1941) and administered by a pro-German puppet government led by Hjalmar Mäe. There was no way a legitimate government could be restored.

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

Translated by Eugenia Sokolskaya.

Source: http://www.sakharov-center.ru/asfcd/auth/?t=page&num=5744

Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices
May 01, 2013

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka
November 01, 2012

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas
October 01, 2013

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.

 
Moscow and Muscovites
November 26, 2013

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 

Russian Rules
November 16, 2011

Russian Rules

From the shores of the White Sea to Moscow and the Northern Caucasus, Russian Rules is a high-speed thriller based on actual events, terrifying possibilities, and some really stupid decisions.

Fearful Majesty
July 01, 2014

Fearful Majesty

This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.

Fish
February 01, 2010

Fish

This mesmerizing novel from one of Russia’s most important modern authors traces the life journey of a selfless Russian everywoman. In the wake of the Soviet breakup, inexorable forces drag Vera across the breadth of the Russian empire. Facing a relentless onslaught of human and social trials, she swims against the current of life, countering adversity and pain with compassion and hope, in many ways personifying Mother Russia’s torment and resilience amid the Soviet disintegration.

Marooned in Moscow
May 01, 2011

Marooned in Moscow

This gripping autobiography plays out against the backdrop of Russia's bloody Civil War, and was one of the first Western eyewitness accounts of life in post-revolutionary Russia. Marooned in Moscow provides a fascinating account of one woman's entry into war-torn Russia in early 1920, first-person impressions of many in the top Soviet leadership, and accounts of the author's increasingly dangerous work as a journalist and spy, to say nothing of her work on behalf of prisoners, her two arrests, and her eventual ten-month-long imprisonment, including in the infamous Lubyanka prison. It is a veritable encyclopedia of life in Russia in the early 1920s.

A Taste of Chekhov
December 24, 2022

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955