The Idea of the Don-Caucasian Union and the South-Russian Union in 1918
During the acute social upheavals in the early twentieth century, the territories of Southern Russia designated tendencies towards autonomy and even tried to influence the national policy. In October-November 1917, there was an attempt to create the South-Eastern Union consolidating the Cossack regions and territories inhabited by the peoples of the North Caucasus. The purpose of the Union was to resist the Bolsheviks, who came to power in the center of the country. This Union ceased to exist without considerable resistance to the Bolsheviks. However, the idea of such a Union has survived. It turned to the top of the Don Cossacks to stop the German expansion to the Don and the North Caucasus. They put forward the idea of creating a Don-Caucasian Union as opposed to the Kuban-Ukrainian contacts, which were initiated by Ukrainian nationalists and Kuban separatists. The leaders of the Don Cossacks promised the German command the neutrality of the Dono-Caucasian Union in case of military clashes between German troops and the Entente supporters, in particular with the rebelled Czechoslovak corps. Then the idea of such an Alliance was expressed by the Kuban separatists, who wanted to limit power in the Kuban and Southern Russia command of the Volunteer army. They put forward the idea of the South-Russian Union, which would later become part of Russia as a federal member. Such an Association could be created neither in 1918 nor in general during the civil war. The idea of such an Association gradually turned into an instrument of blackmail, the Donets frightened the German command with such an Alliance, the Kubans - “voluntary” command.