The Black Hundreds were a violent, ultra-nationalist movement defending the Russian Tsar's absolute power.

History · Published 29 September 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Emerging in the early 20th century, the Black Hundreds were a loose collective of monarchist groups dedicated to preserving autocracy. Known for their xenophobic doctrines and brutal pogroms, they operated as a paramilitary force, often with tacit government support, to suppress revolutionary threats against the House of Romanov.

The movement took its name from the medieval concept of 'black' or common people organized into militias. Guided by the slogan 'Orthodoxy, Autocracy, and Nationality,' they sought to protect the Russian Empire from perceived internal enemies, including Jews, Poles, and those advocating for Ukrainian secession. While they lacked a single central structure, they operated through various organizations like the Union of the Russian People, which drew members from all social strata, including clergy, landowners, and workers.

Violence was a defining feature of the Black Hundreds. They were notorious for inciting antisemitic pogroms and targeting political opponents, including the assassination of Duma delegates Grigori Iollos and Mikhail Herzenstein in 1906. In response, radical socialist parties engaged in their own campaigns of terror, bombing headquarters and killing local union chairmen. The movement reached its peak during and after the 1905 Russian Revolution, though it began to decline after 1907 and was officially abolished following the 1917 February Revolution.

The movement's relationship with Ukrainian identity was complex and contradictory. While many Black Hundreds campaigned against Ukrainian separatism, those active in Ukrainian lands often maintained a distinct 'Little Russian' identity, sometimes even promoting the use of the Ukrainian language in schools and churches to gain local influence. Interestingly, the region of Western Volhynia, which showed the highest support for the Black Hundreds before 1917, later became a cradle for the Ukrainian Insurgent Army in the 1940s. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the movement saw a resurgence, with new groups emerging in 1992 to carry on its nationalist and monarchist legacy.

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