On issue of political and legal rehabilitation of A. V. Kolchak: a historical and geopolitical aspect
The article analyses the problem of political and legal rehabilitation of A. V. Kolchak, one of the leaders of the white movement in the years of the Civil War. In terms of the historical and geopolitical approach, it investigates and evaluates his activity. The article analyses Kolchak’s activities in lobbying the shipbuilding program for the Navy and consequences of its implementation, assesses his role in demolition of the Black Sea Fleet, close cooperation with foreign lands, participation in foreign armed formations on the territory of Siberia and the Far East. It focuses attention on the fact that before the beginning of the Civil War Kolchak officially switched over to the British Government service and as «the Supreme Governor of Russia», appointed by them, expressed the interests of the invaders, while having neither his own political platform, no allies, nor merits in struggle against the Bolsheviks. The main recourse for the value judgement and conclusions are confessionary statements made by Kolchak that are fixed in the protocols of the extraordinary commission of inquiry for his case. It is assumed that the tendency of rehabilitating persons like Kolchak, which is distinctly makes itself manifest in modern Russia, sets a precedent for rehabilitation of such figures in the period the Great Patriotic War. The article notes the significance of the historical and geopolitical context in issuing legal verdicts to political persons.