6. Returning to the Revolutionary Fray

Abstract

This chapter examines Volkhovskii’s career during the first five years of the twentieth century. Volkhovskii had to spend a good deal of time during these years fighting to keep Free Russia in business, given that sales had for many years been low, while periodic outbursts of anarchist violence across Europe threatened to tar the reputation of all revolutionaries. Volkhovskii nevertheless devoted an increasing amount of time to supporting the development of the revolutionary movement itself. He was one of the founder members of Agrarian-Socialist League, formed following the death of Petr Lavrov in 1900, which in turn merged with the Socialist-Revolutionary Party in 1902. During the first few years of the twentieth century, he contributed extensively to revolutionary publications including Narodnoe delo, as well as writing a number of fables that were designed to articulate radical ideas in a form that could easily be understood by a peasant audience. Volkhovskii worked closely with the Finnish nationalist Konni Zilliacus to bring together socialist groups in Russia with nationalist groups from areas like Finland to form a united opposition to tsarism. He also worked with Zilliacus to procure weapons for revolutionary groups to support uprisings at a time when the attention of the government was focused on the war with Japan. Volkhovskii was also active in the Socialist Revolutionary Party, following its merger with the Agrarian-Socialist League, regularly visiting Switzerland to take part in its efforts to support revolutionary groups in Russia. Volkhovskii was from the start of the century increasingly optimistic about the prospects for revolution in Russia. He was living in Switzerland for most of 1905, when disorder erupted across Russia, and while ill-health prevented his return to Russia, he was convinced that the revolutionary events of that year showed that the tsarist government was close to collapse.