| Revision as of 11:07, 16 October 2007 edit132.77.4.129 (talk) gathered the soviet agent theory and added some information on early life← Previous edit | Revision as of 14:00, 24 October 2007 edit undoMona23653 (talk | contribs)130 editsNo edit summaryNext edit → | ||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| '''Sholom Schwartzbard''' (], ], ], ], now ] ], ], ], ]) was a Bessarabian-born ] ], ], and ], known primarily for the assassination of the Ukrainian politician ]. He was known in Russia as '''Samuil Isaakovich Shvartsburd''', or '''Shulem Shmil Shvartsburd'''. He wrote in ] under the pen name of ''Bal-Chaloimas'' (]: The Dreamer). | '''Sholom Schwartzbard''' (], ], ], ], now ] ], ], ], ]) was a Bessarabian-born ] ], ], twice- convicted crminal, bank robber and ], known primarily for the assassination of the Ukrainian politician ]. He was known in Russia as '''Samuil Isaakovich Shvartsburd''', or '''Shulem Shmil Shvartsburd'''. He wrote in ] under the pen name of ''Bal-Chaloimas'' (]: The Dreamer). | ||
| ==Early life== | ==Early life== | ||
Revision as of 14:00, 24 October 2007
Sholom Schwartzbard (August 18, 1886, Izmail, Bessarabia, now Ukraine March 3, 1938, Cape Town, South Africa) was a Bessarabian-born Jewish anarchist, poet, twice- convicted crminal, bank robber and publicist, known primarily for the assassination of the Ukrainian politician Symon Petliura. He was known in Russia as Samuil Isaakovich Shvartsburd, or Shulem Shmil Shvartsburd. He wrote in Yiddish under the pen name of Bal-Chaloimas (English: The Dreamer).
Early life
Schwarzbard was born in the town of Izmail, Bessarabia, (then part of the Russian Empire, now currently in Southern Ukraine) to a Jewish family of Isaak Schwartzbard and Khai Vainberg. After the proclamation by the Russian tsarist government for all Jews to move out of border areas, his family moved to the town of Balta, Ukraine where he grew up. At an early age he became an apprentice to a watchmaker.
During the pogroms of 1905 Schwartzbrad participated in the Jewish self defense of Balta. After the tsarist regime restored its control, Schwartzbard, fearing arrest, moved away to Volochysk. There he participated in a revolutionary group and avoiding arrest he escaped to Austria-Hungary. In 1909 he took part in the anarchist "expropriation" (armed robbery) of a bank in Vienna, for which he was arrested and sentenced to time in hard-labor prison. After serving 4 months of his sentence, he escaped to Budapest where he took part in an armed robbery of a restaurant. He was arrested and expelled from Hungary.
In 1910, at age 24, he settled in Paris and found work in a watch factory, repairing clocks and watches, while associating with anarchists. During World War I he served in the French Foreign Legion (1914 - 1917) (363e régiment d’infanterie) and was wounded in the foot at the Battle of the Somme. To acknowledge his courage he was awarded the Croix de guerre.
In August 1917 he was demobilized and returned with his wife from France to Russia, where he joined and served in the Bolshevik Red Guards in Ukraine (1918 - 1920). He served in the cavalry brigade under the command of Grigory Kotovsky, a Red Army commander. During the anarchy that transpired in the period of the Russian Civil War fifteen members of Schwartzbard's family perished in anti-semitic pogroms.
During this time Sholom Schwartzbard's brother was expelled from France in 1919 for actively distributing communist propaganda and agitation.
Sholom moved back to Paris in 1920, where he opened a clock-and-watch repairshop. There he joined again an anarchist group and became acquainted with prominent anarchists activists who had emigrated from Russia and Ukraine, including such figures as Volin, Alexander Berkman, Emma Goldman, as well as Nestor Makhno and his follower Peter Arshinov.
The assassination of Petlura
Symon Petlura, who was head of the Directorate of the Ukrainian National Republic in 1919, has moved to Paris in 1924 and was the head of the government-in-exile of the Ukrainian People's Republic. Sholom Schwartzbard, who has lost his family in the 1919 pogroms, held Symon Petlura as responsible for them (see the discussion on Petlura' role in the pogroms). According to his autobiography, after hearing the news that Petlura has relocated to Paris Schwartzbard became distraught and started plotting Petlura's assassination. A picture of Petlura with Józef Piłsudski published in the Ukrainian newspaper Tryzub (Trident) allowed Schwartzbard to recognize him.
On 25 May, 1926, he approached Petlura, who was who was walking on rue Racine not far from boulevard Saint-Michel, and asked him in Ukrainian, "Are you Mr. Petlura?" Petlura raised his cane and Schwartzbard pulled out a gun, shooting him five times. When police rushed to him to make their arrest, he reportedly calmly handed over his weapon, saying, "I have killed a great assassin."
Schwartzbard was arrested and his trial began on October 18, 1927. His defense was led by Henri Torres, a renowned French jurist who has previously defended anarchists such as Buenaventura Durruti and Ernesto Bonomini and who also represented the Soviet consulate in France. The core of Schwartzbard's defense was to attempt to show that he was avenging the deaths of victims of the pogrom, whereas the prosecution (both criminal and civil) tried to show that (i) Petlura was not responsible for the pogroms and (ii) Schwartzbard was a Soviet agent. Both sides brought on many witnesses, including several historians. A notable witness for the defense was Haia Greenberg who survived the Proskurov pogroms and testified about the carnage. Several former Ukrainian officers testified for the prosecution, one of them describing the Proskurov pogrom as "divinely inspired". After a trial lasting eight days the jury acquitted Schwarztbard and ordered the family of Petlura to compensate him for his expenses.
Ukrainian outlets (emigrants at the time and nowadays the Ukrainian government) tend to portray Schwartzbard as a Soviet agent. According to Ukrainian historian Michael Palij, a GPU agent named Mikhail Volodin came to Paris in August 1925 and met Schwartzbard, who began stalking Petlura. He had previously planned to assassinate Petlura at a gathering of Ukrainian emigres marking Petlurа's birthday but the attempt was foiled by anarchist Nestor Makhno who was also at the function.
After the trial
After his acquital in 1928 Sholom Schwartzbard decided to immigrate to Israel, then under British Mandate. However, the British authorities refused him a visa. In 1937 Schwartzbard traveled to South Africa to raise money for a Yiddish Encyclopedia. He died in Cape Town on March 3 1938. 29 years later, in accordance with his will, his remains were transported to Israel and buried in Moshav Avihayil. Several cities in Israel have streets named after him, including Jerusalem and Beersheba.
Writings
Schwartzbard is the author of numerous books in Yiddish published under the pseudonym Bal Haloymes: "Troymen un virklekhkeyt" (Dreams and Reality, Paris, 1920), "In krig mit zikh aleyn" (At War with Myself, Chicago, 1933), "Inem loyf fun yor" (Over the Year, Chicago, 1934).
Sholom Schwarzbard papers are archived at YIVO Institute for Jewish Research in New York. They were rescued during World War II and smuggled from France by the historian Zosa Szajkowski.
References
- http://www.time.com/time/magazine/printout/0,8816,731176,00.html
- Saul S. Friedman, Pogromchik: The Assassination of Simon Petlura. New York : Hart Pub, 1976.
- http://www.time.com/time/magazine/printout/0,8816,731176,00.html
- Guide to the Papers of Shalom Schwarzbard
External links
- SHOLOM SCHWARTZBARD z"l Page with history and pictures
- PETLURA'S ASSASSIN IN HOLLYWOOD "Ukrainian Weekly" article from October 6, 1933
- Samuel (Shalom) Schwartzbard page from the Daily Bleed's Anarchist Encyclopedia