"Sailor Napoleon"
When the mutiny of Kerensky and Krasnov broke out, Dybenko found himself in the center of events. That attempt to restore the power of the Provisional Government failed. At two o'clock in the morning, Trotsky, on behalf of the Council of People's Commissars, sent a telegram to Petrograd: “Kerensky's attempt to move counter-revolutionary troops to the capital of the revolution received a decisive rebuff. Kerensky is retreating, we are advancing. The soldiers, sailors and workers of Petrograd have proved that they are able and willing, with arms in hand, to assert the will and power of democracy. The bourgeoisie tried to isolate the army of the revolution, Kerensky tried to crush it by the force of the Cossacks. Both that, and another suffered a miserable collapse … Revolutionary Russia and the Soviet government have the right to be proud of their Pulkovo detachment, operating under the command of Colonel Walden."
Researcher Vasiliev explained the failure of the mutiny as follows: “The Krasnov Cossack campaign, doomed to defeat in advance, clearly showed the whole of Russia the weakness of the army, the colossal split of the nation and the complete demoralization of all healthy forces capable of fighting, but not willing to fight. War weariness, socialist propaganda, problems with railway transport, mistrust, and sometimes hatred for such unpopular AF Kerensky - these are just a few reasons for the defeat of the anti-Bolshevik campaign against Petrograd."
By the way, after the victory, Pavel Efimovich himself often boasted that "he personally arrested the ataman Krasnov."
In general, that time became a kind of "finest hour" for Dybenko. At the end of November 1917, Lenin ordered Dybenko to deal with the problem of the Constituent Assembly. Actually, Pavel Efimovich received an order to disperse the "constituent assembly". For this, Dybenko gathered several thousand sailors. In general, this army would be enough to end not only the Constituent Assembly, but also the party of Vladimir Ilyich. Perhaps such thoughts crept into Paul's head, but he did not dare.
When tens of thousands of demonstrators, consisting of workers, intellectuals and garrison soldiers, poured into the streets of Petrograd in early January 1918, Dybenko found himself in the thick of things. The people demanded democracy and the transfer of power to the Constituent Assembly. Pavel Efimovich personally gave the order to his sailors to open fire with machine guns at the demonstrators at the corner of Nevsky and Liteiny Prospekt. And the deputies of the Constituent Assembly, Shingarev and Kokoshkin, who had previously served as ministers in the Provisional Government, were taken out by the sailors in the hospital. Here they were stabbed with bayonets.
After the elimination of the "constituent", Dybenko received tremendous strength and power. He became so powerful that the top of the party began to seriously fear him. He was called the "sailor Napoleon" and was considered an outsider who had accidentally entered the party elite. And to control the "sailor" Fyodor Raskolnikov was assigned to him, also, by the way, "sailor".
Raskolnikov, to put it mildly, had a negative attitude towards Dybenko. And he was very jealous of him. Like everyone else, he knew perfectly well that Pavel Efimovich made a dizzying career not thanks to his brilliant mind or talent, but using access to Kollontai's bed. Of course, Fedor also dreamed of being there. But it was difficult to shake Dybenko's position. But Raskolnikov did not give up. He constantly wrote denunciations against Dybenko, accusing him of unrestrained drunkenness and soldering sailors. According to Raskolnikov, Dybenko thus tried to "gain cheap popularity."
But it was not the denunciations of the "faithful friend", but the character of Dybenko in 1918 nearly brought him to death. In February, German troops launched an active offensive. Pavel Efimovich at that time commanded a detachment of sailors near Narva.
Despite the fact that in Brest, meanwhile, there were negotiations, the Germans wanted to finish off the tormented enemy. Military failures would have made the Bolsheviks more accommodating, which means that a separate peace could be signed faster and without any demands. It is clear that the Germans were not going to overthrow Lenin. It was enough for them to just press it to the nail.
Pavel Efimovich, barely finding himself near Narva, began to bend his line. First of all, he refused the help of the head of the Parsky defense sector, arrogantly telling him that "we will fight on our own." But arrogance let Dybenko down. In the battle of Yamburg, he was defeated. And he fled, taking with him the rest of the squad. Thus, Narva, which covered the capital, was left without protection. According to Parsky's recollections, “the abandonment of Narva happened mainly because there was no general leadership and communication in the actions, because poorly or even almost unprepared detachments led into battle ineptly and they suffered unnecessary losses (the sailors suffered more than others); finally, the mood of the troops was apparently influenced by the situation created then, as it were, between war and peace, which worried people and contributed to a decrease in their stamina."
Vladimir Ilyich Lenin wrote in the editorial of Pravda on February 25, 1918: "This week is for the Party and the entire Soviet people a bitter, offensive, difficult, but necessary, useful, beneficial lesson." Then he mentioned “the painfully shameful message about the refusal of the regiments to maintain their positions, about the refusal to defend even the Narva line, about the failure to comply with the order to destroy everything and everyone during the retreat; not to mention flight, chaos, myopia, helplessness, slovenliness."
Dybenko with his sailors retreated to Gatchina. And here they were disarmed at the beginning of March. After a short time, he was expelled from the RCP (b) and deprived of all posts. This decision was made at the IV Congress of Soviets. Then he was arrested altogether. The list of accusations was impressive: the surrender of Narva, flight from positions, insubordination to the command of the combat area, drunkenness, violation of discipline, and so on. The worst thing for Dybenko in this situation was that Kollontai did not stand up for him for the first time. But Alexandra Mikhailovna did this not of her own free will, she was simply at that moment powerless to help her "eagle". The fact is that she opposed the conclusion of the Brest Peace. I went, so to speak, at odds with the decision of the party. This was not forgiven even for the closest. Therefore, she was removed from all posts, including from the Party Central Committee. It is clear that Alexandra Mikhailovna could not be forever in political disgrace, but it took a sufficient amount of time for the situation to calm down.
True, it was not enough for a long time. When the threat of execution of the "sailor" became obvious, Kollontai nevertheless rushed to save him. She personally addressed Trotsky, Krylenko, Krupskaya and even Lenin. But everyone had a negative attitude towards Dybenko. Some even asked with undisguised cynicism and malice: "And who are you going to be under investigation?"
Alexandra Mikhailovna was depressed. In her diary, she even left a note that she was ready, together with Dybenko, to "climb the scaffold." But she quickly dismissed this thought, replacing it with a desire to organize a sailor uprising. But it didn’t come to that, although they agreed to open fire on the Kremlin. Someone advised her to legalize the relationship with Dybenko, they say, the lawful wife still has more chances to save him than the banal mistress. To create a legitimate family for Kollontai was a real betrayal of his own principles and beliefs. And she gave up everything she believed in for the sake of the "sailor". Notes about the marriage of Kollontai and Dybenko appeared in the newspapers. True, nowhere was it said that this Soviet unit of society was fictitious, and Pavel Efimovich hardly knew at all that he suddenly became a husband.
Having become a legal wife, Alexandra Mikhailovna was able to bail Dybenko pending trial. She personally promised that her husband would not leave the capital. According to eyewitnesses, when the sailors learned about the release of their leader, they walked for two days. Of course, together with Dybenko. Moreover, he did not invite his wife to the holiday. And then he completely disappeared from the capital. When Kollontai learned about Dybenko's betrayal, she fled to Petrograd, fearing arrest. The newspapers, as if competing with each other in wit, described in colors the details of the "sailor's" escape. Some attributed to him the theft of huge money, others - numerous murders.
The government, to his credit, tried to peacefully resolve the situation. But Dybenko reacted aggressively. Nikolai Krylenko, who was leading the case against Pavel Efimovich, nevertheless managed to contact him once and announced his arrest. And in response I heard: "It is not yet known who and whom will be arrested."
Hiding in Samara, Dybenko launched a powerful campaign in defense of his beloved. And, feeling support, he behaved insolently even with Lenin, reminding him of "German gold". During the trial, he delivered a speech written by Kollontai: “I am not afraid of the verdict on me, I am afraid of the verdict on the October Revolution, on those gains that were obtained at the dear price of proletarian blood. Remember, the Robespierre terror did not save the revolution in France and did not protect Robespierre himself, it is impossible to allow the settlement of personal scores and the removal of an official who does not agree with the policy of the majority in the government … The People's Commissar must be spared from settling scores with him by means of denunciations and slander … no established norms. We all violated something … The sailors went to die when panic and confusion reigned in Smolny … ". Dybenko won the trial, the execution was canceled. After the end of the meeting, the sailors carried their hero in their arms. Pavel Efimovich, having won one of the most important victories in his life, plunged into drunkenness. And what about Alexandra Mikhailovna? She suffered and worried, knowing full well that her "eagle", having fun in the most vile dens of Moscow.
Their marriage lasted only a few years. Pavel Efimovich diligently avoided his wife, preferring not to see her at all. And when he fled to Oryol, Kollontai gave her word to Lenin to break with the "unworthy subject."
Faithful dog of the revolution
Vladimir Ilyich had many reasons to shoot Dybenko. He did not even hide his negative attitude towards the "sailor", but considered him a necessary and faithful dog. Therefore, in the fall, Pavel Efimovich was sent to the border between the RSFSR and at that time independent Ukraine. He was entrusted with an important and responsible task - to gather enough forces to annex the Ukrainian lands. But Dybenko was not given a high position, he became “only” a battalion commander. Then for a short time he took the place of commissar, but his career growth was hampered by the fact that he was expelled from the party. There was one more reason - constant conflicts with superiors and drunken fights.
Pavel Efimovich, shaking the air with stories about the heroic past, tried to prove to everyone his "peculiarity". By this he meant complete freedom of action without obeying anyone. This behavior, of course, angered and annoyed. Kollantai wrote in her diary: "Sverdlov does not hide his antipathy to such a" type "as Pavel, and Lenin, in my opinion, too."
But the top of the party power tolerated him, since it was Dybenko who was to become their main trump card in the struggle for the annexation of Ukraine. Therefore, at the beginning of 1919, Pavel Efimovich suddenly became the commander of a group of forces in the Yekaterinoslav direction. By that time, Soviet soldiers were already on the territory of the Ukrainian People's Republic and fought with the Petliurists. Lenin hoped that the Ukrainian surname of Pavel Efimovich (as, in fact, his origin) would help a faster seizure of territory. After all, Dybenko was positioned as "his" commander, who brought the soldiers of the Russian Republic. Soon, the brigades of Makhno and Grigoriev were under the command of Pavel Efimovich.
When the power was again in the hands of Dybenko, he revealed himself to everyone. His soldiers staged pogroms, robberies and drunken brawls. The State Archives of the Russian Federation contains a message from the Bolsheviks from Nikolaev, addressed to the government of Soviet Ukraine. In it, they asked to take action against Pavel Efimovich and bring him to justice for the “Kupyansk events” and “brawl in Lugansk”. Dybenko was also accused of numerous executions "without trial or investigation" and the liquidation of the Bolshevik Revolutionary Committee.
But Dybenko and his fighters got away with it. Under the guise of fighting the enemies, he arrested more than fifty left Socialist-Revolutionaries and anarchists from Yekaterinoslav, ordered the closure of the Left Socialist-Revolutionary newspaper "Borba". The propaganda lectures of the anarchists were also banned. Pavel Efimovich played the main role in the arrest of participants in the Aleksandrovsky district congress of Soviets.
When the party elite, located in Moscow, once again received information about Dybenko's antics, they nevertheless decided to create an investigative commission. This, of course, was facilitated by the inspection conducted by Lev Kamenev. In his report, he pointed out that "Dybenko's army feeds itself." Simply put, Pavel Efimovich and his soldiers robbed the peasants, seized trains with fodder, grain, coal and other things. Moreover, these echelons were sent just to Russia. This is what the special commission was supposed to do. Pavel Efimovich understood that he would be severely punished for plundering state property. But … he was lucky again. May 1919 turned out to be difficult for the Bolsheviks, so they simply gave up on the "pampering" of their true dog. And then they completely forgot with them.
As soon as Pavel Yefimovich realized that the reckoning for sins "voluntary or involuntary" was once again postponed, as the terrible realization of the inevitable loss of Crimea burst out. The White Guards managed to capture Melitopol. This meant that they could now cut off the peninsula from Soviet territory. In addition, the soldiers of Yakov Slashchev won a victory on the Kerch Isthmus and thus opened the way for Denikin to both Sevastopol and Simferopol.
At the end of June, the Red Top and the army began a mass flight from the Crimea in the direction of Perekop-Kherson. Together with all the positions, Dybenko also surrendered. Of course, he did not change his principles. His behavior - cowardly aggression - affected his own soldiers. The detachment of Pavel Efimovich was struck by a rapidly developing tumor of desertion. In the end, when the remnants of his detachment faced a small Cossack detachment, they simply fled. Kherson, in fact, was given to the whites. It is not difficult to imagine what Dybenko felt then. In a short time he lost everything: the peninsula and the army.
The situation was heating up. The detachments of Batka Makhno (they had already begun to fight against everyone), to which, in fact, Dybenko's deserters fled, restrained the offensive of the whites. Makhno even turned to Pavel Efimovich for help, offering to open a common "red" front and forget old grievances, but … the "sailor" was not up to it. Alternating drunkenness with bouts of depression, he, with the remnants of his army, managed to take positions in Nikolaev. And here, instead of showing foresight and political flexibility, Dybenko began to "work" according to the old scenario. Simply put, he again decided to "build" everyone. Pavel Efimovich began to openly clash with the local authorities and townspeople, whom his soldiers openly robbed and beat.
This could not go on for long. Dybenko was nevertheless arrested. For several days he was under arrest, once again awaiting capital punishment. While he was in prison, many of his subordinates in fear went over to Makhno's side. And they began to fight with both the white and the red. Without a doubt, the authorities of Nikolaev wanted to put an end to Dybenko once and for all, but … First, he was sent from Moscow. Secondly, although he was disgraced, he was still a hero of the revolution. Therefore, they could not just shoot him, especially on the orders of the provincial mayors. When the capital learned about Dybenko's arrest, they sent an order to Nikolayev to release him. Pavel Efimovich was at large, however, removed from all positions held. But he was unlikely to be upset. The realization that retribution was again postponed definitely became for him a cure for all "sores".
Already in the fall of 1919, Pavel Efimovich, by order from above, was in Moscow. Soon he was enrolled as a student of the Academy of the General Staff of the Red Army. But after a short time, Dybenko unexpectedly received the post of chief of the 37th rifle division. Fate again turned out to be favorable to the "sailor". He managed to distinguish himself during the liberation of Tsaritsin, took part in the victory of the Reds over the army of Denikin in the North Caucasus, fought with Wrangel and the Makhnovists. After which he became a student of the junior course of the Military Academy of the Red Army.
The spring of 1921 was approaching - the time of the next "finest hour" of Dybenko.
