Colloquia Theologica Ottoniana

This article examines one of the darkest chapters of Russian history, known as the ‘Philosophers’ Ships’, which saw the deportation of a large group of the most eminent representatives of the Russian intelligentsia by the Bolshevik authorities between 1922 and 1923. The passengers on these elegant steamers represented the elite of Russian intellectual life: writers, poets, journalists, scientists, and philosophers. They did not belong to any political party or adhere to any specific faith, ideology, or creed. Over a third of them were involved in developing a spiritual philosophy of art and culture in Russia; some taught university courses, while many others were well-known writers. Another third were leaders of local cooperative assemblies, doctors, agronomists, and economists, or members of small sects or associations. The one thing they all shared was that Lenin personally chose them for arrest and deportation, considering them dangerous opponents of the Bolshevik party, but too risky to kill, so much so that he justified their expulsion. The expatriation of dissident intellectuals in 1922 was a foreseeable step in the country’s internal political development. Its primary aim was to establish close ideological control by removing the country’s intellectual elite – those who, through critical and independent thought, could analyze the situation and express ideas critical of the regime. This event marked a critical moment for Russian culture, greatly accelerating the removal of important non-communist thinkers from influential and prestigious positions in society. The dramatic forced exile of the intelligentsia was a milestone on Russia’s path towards totalitarianism, with the extremist turn of Leninism and Bolshevism: from then on, the intellectually and spiritually free members of civil society would no longer be tolerated.