Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (RKKA)

The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (RKKA) is the official name of the armed forces of Russia from 1918 to 1943. Decree "On the Workers 'and Peasants' Red Army", established on a voluntary basis, was signed on January 15 (28), 1918. It was formed from the Red Guards who participated in the seizure of power by the Bolsheviks. An active appeal to the ranks of the Red Army was sounded on February 22 in the decree "The Socialist Fatherland is in Danger!" The Day of the Defender of the Fatherland was traditionally associated in Soviet literature with the battles of the Red Army against the Germans near Pskov and Narva on February 23, 1918, but today the accuracy of these data is disputed. On May 8, the All-Russian Main Staff was established, and on May 29, 1918, a decree was passed "On Forced Recruitment into the Workers 'and Peasants' Red Army", which established compulsory mobilization in the army, as well as draft age. Management of the army was concentrated in the People's Commissariat for Military and Naval Affairs, since 1923 - the Council of Labor and Defenсe. The Red Army was created in the conditions of the Civil War, when military experts - officers of the tsarist army were involved in its creation, an institute of military commissars was established to monitor their activities. During the Civil War, a system of naming "commanders" (introduced instead of the word "officer"). In the 1920-1930s a system of titles will be finally formed. In 1919, Red Army insignia were introduced in the Red Army instead of the Tsar's shoulder straps, as well as a uniform dress code. Also during the Civil War, various kinds of troops are being formed, including cavalry. From 1925 to 1937 the army was formed on the territorial principle. Also, the army is being rearmed, armored units are being formed, and aviation is developing. In 1943, in the conditions of the Great Patriotic War, the Red Army was renamed the Soviet Army.

The collection includes decrees, military regulations, studies on the history of the creation of the Red Army and its participation in hostilities, the works of creators, materials on educational and cultural and educational activities. A special attention is paid to materials on the celebration of the jubilees of the army.