PROCUREMENT ACTIVITIES OF GERMAN TROOPS IN UKRAINE (FEBRUARY – APRIL 1918)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24919/2519-058X.36.339338Abstract
The purpose of the study is to find out, based on the testimony of contemporaries, what methods of procuring food and other resources were used by the German troops in the Ukrainian People's Republic (February – April of 1918). The research methodology is based on the principles of historicism, systematicity, objectivity and integrity, on general scientific and special scientific methods (functional, problem-chronological historical systemic methods, as well as methods of criticism of historical sources). The scientific novelty of the research consists in the fact that for the first time, within the framework of a special study, the issue of procurement activities of the German armed units in the Ukrainian People's Republic (UNR) has been considered. Conclusions. Since February of 1918, the German military group had been stationed on the territory of the Ukrainian People's Republic – military assistance forces invited by the Ukrainian government to protect against aggression of Soviet Russia. In Ukraine the German troops had to take care of their own supplies, as well as carry out orders from the command to purchase raw materials and other goods (primarily food) for export to their homeland, and therefore, in addition to performing actual combat missions, they also carried out procurement activities. The main way to obtain what was needed was to buy at market prices (under free trade conditions), but at the same time, the army widely used requisitioning – forced paid withdrawal. When carrying out requisitions, the German military sometimes committed abuses – they paid an incomplete price or did not pay at all, resorted to fraud with receipts, and took away property that was vital to the owners. Disputes between the German military and the Ukrainian population regarding the seizure of property in a number of cases led to armed clashes. Cases of abuse, having become widely publicized, had an extremely negative impact on the attitude of the Ukrainian society towards the German troops. At the same time, the scale of abuse should not be exaggerated. Judging by the testimonies of the then contemporaries, this was not a general practice, but individual incidents.
Key words: Ukrainian People's Republic, German Empire, Austro-Hungarian and German troops in Ukraine (1918), export, requisition, procurement system.
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