 | Young Pioneer organization of the Soviet Union: Encyclopedia II - Young Pioneer organization of the Soviet Union - History
Young Pioneer organization of the Soviet Union - History
After the October Revolution of 1917, some Scouts took the Bolsheviks' side, which would later lead to the establishment of ideologically-altered Scoutlike organizations, such as “ЮК” (Юные Коммунисты, or young communists; pronounced as yuk) and others.
During the Russian Civil War from 1918 to 1920, most of the Scoutmasters and many Scouts fought in the ranks of the White Army and interventionists against the Red Army.
Those Scouts who did not wish to accept the new Soviet system either left Russia for good (like Pantyukhov and others) or went underground.
However, clandestine Scouting did not last long. Komsomol persistently fought with the remnants of the Scout movement. Between 1918 and 1920, the second, third, and fourth All-Russian Congresses of the Russian Union of the Communist Youth (Российский коммунистический союз молодёжи, or Rossiyski kommunisticheskiy soyuz molodyozhi) decided to eradicate the Scout movement and create an organization of the communist type, that would take Soviet youth under its umbrella.
Nadezhda Krupskaya (Vladimir Lenin's wife) was one of the chief contributors to the cause of the Pioneer movement. In 1922, she wrote an essay called “Russian Union of the Communist Youth and boy-Scoutism”, which fully renounced the values of the original Scout movement and advertised a communist approach to teenagers. Despite the ideological coloring, sports, games, tourism, and surviving skills played a significant role in the upbringing of the Pioneers.
On May 19, 1922 the second All-Russian Komsomol Conference decided to create pioneer units all over the country. This day is considered the birthday of the All-Soviet Pioneer Organization (Всесоюзная пионерская организация, or Vsesoyuznaya pionerskaya organizatsiya), named after Vladimir Lenin. By the middle of 1923 it had 75 thousand members. Among other activities, Young Pioneer units, helped by Komsomol, played a great role in the abolition of illiteracy (Likbez policy) since 1923. Membership was at 161 thousand in the beginning of 1924, 2 million in 1926, 13.9 million in 1940, and 25 million in 1974.
Other related archives1917, 1918, 1920, 1922, 1923, Bolsheviks, Bulat Okudzhava, Dmitry Kabalevsky, East German, Ernst Thälmann Pioneer Organisation, Heroes of the Soviet Union, Komsomol, Likbez, Little Octobrist, May 19, May There Always Be Sunshine, Nadezhda Krupskaya, Nazi Germany, October Revolution, Pioneer movement, Pioneers, Pionerskaya Pravda, Red Army, Russian, Russian Civil War, Scouting, Scoutmasters, Scouts, Solemn Promise, Motto and Rules of Young Pioneers, Soviet, USSR, Vladimir Lenin, White Army, World War II, Young Pioneer camp, Young Pioneer camps, bugle, clandestine, drum, interventionists, partisan, youth organization
 Adapted from the Wikipedia article "History", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki |
