The Russian Prisoners of War in World War I as a Humanitarian Issue

Abstract

The tragedy occurred to the prisoners of war in World War I had the scale of a humanitarian disaster. Millions of people belonged to different nationalities lived under the hardest physical and psychological living conditions. The study devoted to this page of world history methodologically comprises an
 intersection of disciplines: it is necessary to study and comprehend mental, legal, economic, cultural aspects of the humanitarian crisis which had significant effect on the course of political processes in Europe. The article studies activities
 of government and public organizations involved in humanitarian assistance to the Russian prisoners of war who were in the European camps. In this case a special role was played by a spiritual and cultural support of the compatriots in captivity. Acute «cultural hunger» in the prisoners of war
 camps was intended to be filled by the Russian book, which became a significant factor that impeded the prisoners’ marginalization and denationalization.
 The growth of nationalism in a public discourse of different countries around the world which were involved in isolation and marginalization of ethnic minorities and diasporas, their loss of national and cultural identity, customs
 and language make the study of the historical analogies connected with the fate of prisoners of war in World War I appropriate and of current interest. The history
 of preservation by the Russian people in captivity and exile their own cultural identity allows the author to predict the course of these processes at the present stage, as well as to develop state policy of support provided to compatriots
 abroad.