“There Are Many of Them Right Now, and They Will All Be Put on Trial...” General Nosovich: An Attempt to Be Rehabilitated by the Whites in 1918

Abstract

The article discusses an episode from the biography of a famous White agent in the Red army, Major General A.L. Nosovich (1878–1968), after his escape from Soviet Russia to the Whites. Nosovich served in the Red Army as chief of staff of the North Caucasus Military District in Tsaritsyn and later as assistant commander of the Southern Front. In August 1918, he was briefly arrested, but managed to prove his innocence to the Soviet command. In October 1918, having exhausted all the possibilities for continued underground activity, he crossed the front lines to join the Don Cossacks. Nosovich hoped to get recognition for his underground work, but faced mistrust and repression from the Don command. He was initially arrested, but later released and joined the Volunteer Army, where he was met with suspicion as well. In order to prove his loyalty to the Whites, Nosovich collected evidence of his service. Correspondence on these issues has survived and is presented in the article. These documents not only shed light on the specific episode in Nosovich’s life, but also in general characterize the policy of the Whites towards their supporters in the Red Army, defectors and prisoners from among former officers of the old army. This policy, lacking pragmatism, was one of the reasons behind the defeat of the White movement. In addition, the materials on the rehabilitation of General Nosovich by the Whites provide new details on the work of anti-Bolshevik underground organizations in Soviet Russia in 1918. This research complements the previously published collection of Nosovich’s documents, which include his memoirs and journalistic writings.