Falsifications as a source of myth-making in the historiography of Baron R.F. Ungern

Abstract

The article discusses different kinds of falsifications of documents, memoirs and artifacts as one of the sources of making mythologized narratives on the life and activity of Baron R.F. von Ungern-Sternberg (1886–1921), one of well-known warlords during the Civil War in Russia, who restored the independence of Outer Mongolia in the year 1921. Falsifications and hyperbolizations of events became important factors influencing the development of the historiography of Ungern. The most important cause of these falsifications and hyperbolizations was ideologization. Ideological and propagandistic clichés were broadly used by both sides, “red” and “white”, of the confrontation during the Civil War in Russia and the Bolsheviks-aided revolution of 1921 in Mongolia. Studies of documents, memoirs, mass media, scientific and popular publications revealed that these more or less similar labels were introduced into historical discourse mainly as a result of multiyear repetitions of the same ideological clichés. Examples of different kinds of falsifications are given. A number of items of phaleristics connected with the Asiatic Cavalry Division, commanded by R.F. Ungern, are the objects made after this division ceased to exist. Some texts claimed to be documents, related and/or written by R.F. Ungern, which were published in scientific journals, were demonstrated to be fakes. Some of these materials, indicated as documents from Russian state archives, were found to be really absent from these archives. It is concluded that the fact of publication of a document does not mean its authenticity. In some cases a document's published version may also contain falsifications