The two delegates
from the Kronstadt Soviet to the Congress of Soviets arrive at Smolny during
the afternoon of the 6th (October24, old style). There they came
across Chudnovsky, just returned from the front. The three of them began to
argue about whether the time for insurrection was ripe. Chudnovsky was in doubt;
he thought the mood at the front was not favorable.
Trotsky came in.
He asked Flerovsky, one of the Kronstadt delegates, to return there. “Events
are maturing so fast that everyone must be at his post,” Trotsky said. Hearing
this, Chudnovsky shed his doubts and threw himself into plans for the
operations.
Messages ordering
mobilization went out by telephonegram and telegraph. Kronstadt’s forces were
to set forth at dawn. Sverdlov wired Smilga in Finland “Send regulations.” This
was the code for embarking 1,500 heavily armed marines on ships bound for
Petrograd.
The original plan
of operations, as we’ve seen, called for the marines to debark and join the
Vyborg Red Guards; they would enter the capital together. Now, to take
advantage of the initiative the insurrection had gained, the Guards
would go in first, with the marines coming in to protect their flank or rear as
needed. The new plan started off very well indeed, but the arrival of the
marines became problematic, as we’ll see.
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