Georgians in China in the first half of the 20th century

Abstract

For centuries, citizens who left Georgia voluntarily or by force have played an important role in various states in Eurasia, both militarily, politically, and economically. The Far East was no exception, where Georgians were involved in political and economic processes at various times and enjoyed influence.

it is unclear  when and under what conditions the first Georgians arrived in distant China, although the emergence of the first community dates back to the second half of the nineteenth century and the city of Harbin. Due to political and economic factors, various ethnic groups, including Georgians, have gathered in the Far East from various parts of the Russian Empire. Information and archival materials about the Georgian community existed more or less before, but the study found many new facts that provide a broader picture of what and how the Georgian community operated in the East. According to Georgian, Chinese and Russian sources, the Georgian residents of Harbin were involved in both economic and entrepreneurial activities, they were actively involved in local political processes, as well as in connection with the Democratic Republic of Georgia.

Besarion Lominadze, a member of the Comintern, is another Georgian who has left an interesting mark on Chinese politics. Three-year national consensus between the Communist and Nationalist parties finished in 1927, and the antagonism between them increased even more. It was during this period that the Kremlin sent a new Comintern delegation led by Besarion Lominadze and Heinz Neumann for instruction.  Comintern Delegation forced Chen Duxiu to resign  as party chairman. They also planned to elect the new politbureu of CCP. Moreover, with the involvement of Lominadze and Neumann, young Mao Zedong became a temporary member of the Politburo, thus significantly increasing his influence. The activities of the Comintern were not limited to this, they recommended the launch of armed resistance and local uprisings, the failure of Guangzhou uprising became Damocle’s sworld on him.

Another Georgian Bolshevik who was the Kremlin's direct representative in the Chinese civil war was Alexander (Aliosha) Svanidze. Svanidze was the brother of Stalin's first wife, who held influential positions at various times. In 1934, as a representative and ambassador of the State Bank, Svanidze arrived in Xinjiang and gave instructions to the military ruler there on the economic, financial, and military modernization of the Sheng Shiqai region. Svanidze stays in the region for some time and oversees organizational matters, for which he has received numerous verbal or written thanks from local authorities.

The above-mentioned episodes have not been studied in the Georgian Academy, Georgian community in Harbin and Soviet individuals had an interesting role and missions in the Republic of China. The study is the first attempt to gather the involvement of Georgians in the political and economic processes of China in the first half of the twentieth century, to describe their personal and professional role in the civil role of China. The research is based on Georgian, English, Russian and Chinese sources, which gives a broad picture in unity and makes it possible to verify the facts.