Dmitrieva O. Czech and Slovak prisoners of War in Russia: The Humanitarian Aspect (1914-1918)

The object of the research – the humanitarian aspect of stay of Czech and Slovak prisoners in Russia in 1914-1918. The purpose of research consists in the complex and system analysis of humanitarian aspect (historical-legal, socio-economic and other features) of contents of Czech and Slovak prisoners on a background of the general provisions of German and Austria-Hungarian armies prisoners in 1914-1918. The methods: analytical, problem-chronological, historical-typological, comparative-historical, statistical, method of social psychology. Scientific novelty: the extent of research work done on this topic and the methodological framework have been defined, and a classification of sources proposed; on the basis of a wide range of scientific literature and archival sources the historical experience of the Russian state policy in relation to prisoners of war has been summarized, and characteristic features of this policy towards Czech and Slovak prisoners revealed. Introduced for the first time into scientific circulation, the new materials allowed for a new understanding of Russian captivity for Czechs and Slovaks; the humanitarian aspect of the state policy has been highlighted; the measures that made it possible to create the necessary conditions for prisoners of war have been shown; it has been proved that the attitude of the government bodies to the prisoners was influenced by Russian policy objectives and plans of Czech and Slovak national movement leaders; the synthesis of various methods of interdisciplinary research allowed a complex exploration of the humanitarian aspect of Czech and Slovak prisoners’ stay in the Russian state in 1914-1918 as well as to get deeper insights into the processes under study; new facts and findings of the study allow to reconsider a number of long established in historiography assessments of captivity conditions and restore an objective picture of the past. Practical value of research: the materials of the dissertation can be used in teaching courses of a history of Ukraine, Russia, Czechia and Slovakia, special courses on the world history, history of the international relations, history of wars and local conflicts etc.; by preparation methodical and manuals, popular scientific publications, works at study of the local-lore; for creation of museum expositions. Sphere of use: higher educational institutions, museums.