Penza Agreement
펜자 협정
An agreement signed in Penza on March 25, 1918 between the Czechoslovak National Council and the Bolshevik government, setting terms for the Czechoslovak Legion's evacuation: the Legion would surrender most of its weapons in exchange for safe rail passage to Vladivostok. Each echelon retained only a 168-man armed company and one machine gun for self-defense, while artillery was turned over to the Red forces. The agreement collapsed within two months after the Chelyabinsk station incident and Trotsky's subsequent disarmament order, triggering the Legion's revolt and opening the Siberian front of the Russian Civil War.
Related historical events
Sources
- Wikipedia (EN) covers the Penza Agreement of 25 March 1918: Legion surrenders all but personal guard weapons for rail passage to Vladivostok; breakdown after Chelyabinsk incident
- Wikipedia (RU) details the 26 March 1918 Penza Agreement text (Сталин present), the precise arms limits per echelon (168 men, one machine gun, 300 rounds per rifle), and Trotsky's 25 May disarmament telegram
- storymaps.arcgis.com non-Wikipedia source describing the Penza Agreement as ensuring safe passage to Vladivostok in exchange for surrendering most weapons, and the Chelyabinsk dispute that led to its collapse