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They Kill Horses, Don't They? Peasant Resistance and the Decline of the Horse Population in Soviet Russia

Demers, Alanna
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2060-9804
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1459521486

Abstract Details

2016, Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, History.
Russia held the largest population of horses in the world at the beginning of the 1900s. This large horse population would soon be decimated by World War I, the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, the Russian Civil War, collectivization, and World War II. This thesis will examine the changing relationship between the Russian people and the Russian horse from the end of the nineteenth century to the end of the Soviet period, closely examining the 1930s collectivization period in which Russian peasants slaughtered their horses in resistance to the state-funded collectivization drive. As a result, horses became active participants in the resistance against collectivization. Beginning in the 1950s, the relationship between the Russian horse and Russian people began to change. Russian horses and riders became cultural diplomats for the Soviet Union by competing in international competitions and by breeders exporting Russian horses to countries abroad. The success of the Russian horse abroad became commemorated in the Soviet Union in forms of postage stamps, which allowed the horse to become a commodity and gave everyone in the Soviet Union a chance to interact with horses. While the demise of the Russian horse population due to the horrific events of the early twentieth century, it allowed the Russian horse industry a unique opportunity to start over and make their breeding programs stronger by reviving Russian horse breeds with careful scrutiny.
Michael Brooks, Dr. (Advisor)
Beth Griech-Polelle, Dr. (Committee Member)
Marjorie Hilton, Dr. (Committee Member)
Don Rowney, Dr. (Committee Member)
100 p.
Animals; History
horses; Soviet Union; human-animal studies; history; culture; animals; resistance; peasant studies; images; twentieth century; modern history; European history; Russia

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Demers, A. (2016). They Kill Horses, Don't They? Peasant Resistance and the Decline of the Horse Population in Soviet Russia [Master's thesis, Bowling Green State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1459521486

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Demers, Alanna. They Kill Horses, Don't They? Peasant Resistance and the Decline of the Horse Population in Soviet Russia. 2016. Bowling Green State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1459521486.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Demers, Alanna. "They Kill Horses, Don't They? Peasant Resistance and the Decline of the Horse Population in Soviet Russia." Master's thesis, Bowling Green State University, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1459521486

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

bgsu1459521486
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This open access ETD is published by Bowling Green State University and OhioLINK.