Subculture of sailors of the Russian and Soviet navy in the second half of the 19th – first third of the 20th centuries: historical aspect

Annotation

This study addresses the significance of analyzing subcultures within Russian society in the context of broader socio-political transformations. The aim of the research is to explore the sailor subculture and how its development correlates with societal transformations in Russia. The study draws upon unpublished archival materials, published documents, periodical press sources, and memoirs of contemporaries. It adopts an interdisciplinary approach, utilizing comparative-historical and historical-genetic research methods, along with tools from social and political philosophy. Key elements of the sailor subculture are analyzed, including clothing and overall appearance, behavioral patterns, and tattoos. The study also examines the measures taken by the command of the Imperial Russian Navy and the Soviet Navy to combat the negative aspects of sailor subculture. The research concludes that the sailor subculture, which took shape in the second half of the 19th and early 20th centuries, underwent significant changes during the 1917 Revolution and the Civil War. These changes were influenced by shifts in the domestic political climate and the temporary loosening of societal regulations. A connection is established between the sailor subculture of the 1920s and the criminal subculture of the early Soviet Union. It is shown that the Soviet transition to strict norms of appearance and behavior in the late 1920s–1930s also affected the sailor subculture, forcing its more distinctive manifestations underground. Thus, the study demonstrates that the sailor subculture evolved under the influence of socio-political processes in the country. While the consolidation of Soviet power suppressed many aspects of sailor subculture, it could not completely eliminate them.

Keywords

• Russian Navy
• Soviet Navy
• society
• subculture
• sailors
• “kleshniki”
• criminal subculture
• tattoos
• sailor songs
• sailor dances
* click on a keyword to go to the search

Contribution of the authors

Bocharov A. A. – work in archives, scientific management, research concept, justification of the purpose of the article, writing the draft, the consolidation of data, final conclusions; Kolomeitsev I. V. – work in archives, processing and presentation of statistical data, source materials, follow-on revision of the text; final conclusions.

References

1.   A. B. Ot Revelya do Madagaskara [From Revel to Madagascar]. More i ego zhizn [The Sea and Its Life]. 1905, no. 19–20, pp. 352–356.

2.   Blagodarev, S. Distsiplina i sluzhba na korable [Discipline and Service on a Ship]. Morskoy sbornik [Naval Collection]. 1925, no. 9, pp. 34–39.

3.   Bonch-Bruevich, M. D. Vsya vlast Sovetam: Vospominaniya [All Power to the Soviets: Memoirs]. Moscow: Voenizdat; 1957, 358 p.

4.   Bocharov, A. A. Kleshniki: K izucheniyu subkultury matrosov voenno-morskogo flota perioda revolyutsii 1917 goda i Grazhdanskoy voyny v Rossii [The “Kleshniki”: A Study of the Sailor Subculture During the 1917 Revolution and the Civil War in Russia]. Revolyutsiya 1917 goda v Rossii: sobytiya i kontseptsii, posledstviya i pamyat [The 1917 Revolution in Russia: Events and Concepts, Consequences and Memory]. Saint Petersburg: Dmitriy Bulanin; 2017, pp. 424–432.

5.   Bugrid. Podnachka [The Trick]. Krasnoarmeets i Krasnoflotets [Red Army Soldier and Red Navy Sailor]. 1930, no. 2, pp. 2–3.

6.   Buldakov, V. P. Utopiya, agressiya, vlast: psikhosotsialnaya dinamika postrevolyutsionnogo vremeni. Rossiya, 1920–1930 gg. [Utopia, Aggression, Power: The Psychosocial Dynamics of Post-Revolutionary Time. Russia, 1920–1930]. Moscow: ROSSPEN, 2012, 756 p.

7.   Bunin, I. Okayannye dni [Cursed Days]. Bunin I. Okayannye dni; Gorkiy M. Nesvoevremennye mysli [Bunin I. Cursed Days; Gorky M. Untimely Thoughts]. Moscow: Airis-press, 2004, 400 p.

8.   Veselyy, А. Reki ognennye [Rivers of Fire]. Veselyy А. Izbrannaya proza [Veselyi А. Selected Prose]. Leningrad: Lenizdat; 1983, pp. 454–488.

9.   Veselyy, А. Rossiya, krovyu umytaya [Russia Washed in Blood]. Moscow: Khudozhestvennaya literatura; 1990, 575 p.

10. “Zhorzhik” v kartinkakh [“Georgie” in Pictures]. Krasnyy flot [Red Fleet]. 1923, no. 9, p. 110.

11. Kaverin, V. A. Konets khazy [The End of the Khaza]. Kaverin V. A. Sobranie sochineniy: v vosmi tomakh [Kaverin V.A. Collected Works: in 8 vols]. Moscow: Khudozhestvennaya literatura; 1980, vol. 1, pp. 234–327.

12. Korrespondentsiya iz portov [Port Correspondence]. Morskoy sbornik [Naval Collection]. 1866, no. 3, p. 2.

13. Krasnyy flot i komsomolskaya pechat (Obzor komsomolskoy pechati na mestakh) [The Red Fleet and Komsomol Press (Review of Local Komsomol Press)]. Krasnyi flot [Red Fleet]. 1923, no. 8, p. 43.

14. Kronshtadtskaya tragediya 1921 goda. Dokumenty: v dvukh knigakh [The Kronstadt Tragedy of 1921. Documents: in 2 books]. Moscow: ROSSPEN; 1999, book 1, 686 p.

15. Kuraev, M. N. Kapitan Dikshteyn [Captain Dickstein]. Kuraev M. N. Piterskaya Atlantida: Povesti i rasskazy [Kuraev M. N. The Petersburg Atlantis: Stories and Tales]. Saint Petersburg: Lenizdat; 1999, pp. 141–268.

16. Lebina, N. B. Povsednevnaya zhizn sovetskogo goroda: normy i anomalii. 1920–1930 gody [Everyday Life of a Soviet City: Norms and Anomalies. 1920–1930]. Saint Petersburg: Zhurnal “Neva”; Letnii sad; 1999, 316 p.

17. Lepko, V. O rasporyadke vnutrennei zhizni korablya [On the Routine of Shipboard Life]. Morskoy sbornik [Naval Collection]. 1907, no. 7, pp. 1–65.

18. Nikolskiy, I. O sostoyanii distsipliny i merakh dlya ee ukrepleniya [On Discipline and Measures to Strengthen It]. Morskoy sbornik [Naval Collection]. 1925, no. 9, pp. 27–33.

19. O plavanii vintovogo korveta “Krechet” v Chernom more (raport komandira, kapitana 2 ranga Dobrovolskogo) [On the Sailing of the Screw Corvette “Krechet” in the Black Sea (Report of the Commander, Captain 2nd Rank Dobrovolsky)]. Morskoy sbornik [Naval Collection]. 1862, no. 8, pp. 139–157.

20. Paustovskiy, K .G. Povest o zhizni [Story of Life]. Paustovskiy K. G. Sobranie sochineniy: v shesti tomakh [Paustovskii K. G. Collected Works: in 6 vols]. Moscow: Khudozhestvennaya literatura; 1957, vol. 3, 791 p.

21. P-v., V. “Andreevskii flag”... v 1927 godu (o krasnoflotskikh pesnyakh) [The “St. Andrew’s Flag”... in 1927 (On Red Navy Songs)]. Krasnyy flot [Red Fleet]. 1927, no. 8, pp. 47–51.

22. Pimenov, Yu., Savchenko, I., Lesov, V., Skilyagin, A. T. Dela i lyudi Leningradskoy militsii: Ocherki istorii [Deeds and People of the Leningrad Police: Historical Essays]. Leningrad: Lenizdat; 1967, 376 p.

23. Raport komandira fregata “Dmitrii Donskoi” kapitan-leytenanta Bekleshova. 11 fevralya 1863 g. [Report of the Commander of the Frigate “Dmitry Donskoy”, Captain-Lieutenant Bekleshova. February 11, 1863]. Morskoy sbornik [Naval Collection]. 1863, no. 5, pp. 231–234.

24. Raport komandira fregata “Dmitrii Donskoi” kapitan-leytenanta Bekleshova. 31 dekabrya 1862 g. [Report of the Commander of the Frigate “Dmitry Donskoy”, Captain-Lieutenant Bekleshova. December 31, 1862]. Morskoy sbornik [Naval Collection]. 1863, no. 3, pp. 46–47.

25. Raport komandira klipera “Razboinik” kapitan-leytenanta Ratkova [Report of the Commander of the Clipper “Razboinik”, Captain-Lieutenant Ratkov]. Morskoy sbornik [Naval Collection]. 1860, no. 9, pp. 127–140.

26. The Russian State Naval Archive. Fund 417, inventory 4, case 6649.

27. The Russian State Naval Archive. Fund 479, inventory 2, case 194.

28. The Russian State Naval Archive. Fund r-748, inventory 1, case 166.

29. Samoylov, K. Cherez ustav – k obraztsovomu korablyu [Through the Charter – to an Exemplary Ship]. Krasnyy flot [Red Fleet]. 1926, book 1, pp. 15–17.

30. Tolstoy, A. N. Khozhdenie po mukam [Road to Calvary]. Tolstoy A. N. Sobranie sochineniy: v desyaty tomakh [Tolstoi A.N. Collected Works: in 10 vols]. Moscow: Khudozhestvennaya literatura; 1959, vol. 5, 639 p.

31. Ulyanova, S. B., Sidorchuk, I. V. Pagubnye strasti naseleniya Petrograda – Leningrada v 1920-e gody. Oboianie poroka [The Pernicious Passions of Petrograd – Leningrad in the 1920s. The Allure of Vice]. Moscow: Tsentrpoligraf; 2020, 318 p.

32. Tsyvinskiy, G. F. 50 let v imperatorskom flote [50 Years in the Imperial Navy]. Riga: Orient; n.d., 364 p.

33. “Chuvstvuyut sebya svoeobraznymi geroyami” [“They Feel Like Peculiar Heroes”]. Istochnik: Dokumenty russkoi istorii [Source: Documents of Russian History]. 1997, no. 5 (30), pp. 66–67.

Popular articles