The Bear's Cultural Renaissance
The great literary master of Russia… * * * Come to think of it, escaped Bolsheviks might stir up trouble with their agitation, but Germany had already succeeded in its communist revolution. What if the German Communist Party members urged Austria to do the same? If anywhere was vulnerable, it was Austria. After the war, public sentiment toward the imperial family had already soured, hadn’t it? The monarchy survived only thanks to Britain, and now that Britain had withdrawn, General Gajda had stepped in to shoulder part of Austria’s national defense. The real problem was this: a royal house abandoned by the people, propped up only by military force. It was the perfect breeding ground for a communist revolution. Dropping Adolf Hitler there might help a little. Or rather… wasn’t the current stability thanks to Adolf Hitler? Because he was working so hard on anti-communist propaganda.
“Yes. For now… how are things in Austria?”
When Adolf Hitler returned, some members of the Ohrana had gone with him. Since people from the Volga German community had followed him as well, they needed to be sent safely. That was the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ business, so I only heard about it later. As for what happened afterward, I only knew that Adolf was working diligently.
“Adolf Hitler of the National Liberal Workers’ Party of Austria is conducting vigorous anti-communist propaganda, Your Majesty.”
So Hitler really was throwing himself into it. Even if the man wasn’t destined to become the axis of evil, he must be becoming quite the nuisance for the communist nations.
But then—
“Has he become well-known enough to warrant the Ohrana’s involvement?”
I asked, genuinely surprised. Hitler had already grown that influential? He seemed unexpectedly competent as an anti-communist activist. It didn’t look like he’d need to write anything like My Struggle.
“Indeed. That region no longer requires our anti-communist propagandists.”
“That effective? And yet they managed to found a party so quickly.”
They really had moved fast. It was a relief that our dog was the one doing it. If he had been the enemy’s dog, things could have gone terribly wrong. Imagine if he had been seduced by the German Revolution and started spreading communist propaganda in Austria instead. That would have been catastrophic. The country was already in shambles from losing the war; a communist revolution would have succeeded easily.
“German Junkers and capitalists who joined Austria are providing enthusiastic support, which explains the rapid progress.”
“Then there’s no need to send additional anti-communist propagandists to Austria.”
“Correct. The Ohrana agents who accompanied Hitler are already cooperating with General Gajda to identify communist elements within Austria.”
The Ohrana was surprisingly competent, it seemed.
“In that case, we should send anti-communist propagandists to the other Anti-Comintern Pact nations with their cooperation. What about Turkey?”
Bulgaria, Romania, Austria, and Hungary were already covered.
“Atatürk has agreed to visit Moscow in person.”
“That’s fortunate.”
Still, it would be better if Russians handled the anti-communist messaging directly. So we would dispatch propagandists to Romania, Turkey, and Bulgaria.
“How do you plan to recruit these anti-communist propagandists?”
Were they thinking of hiring them like part-time workers? Modern Russia had become a nation that loathed communism, but—
“We intend to utilize the Ohrana.”
“The Ohrana really is involved in everything these days.”
Just how many people were in the Ohrana? It was supposed to be the agency for protecting public order and security, but wasn’t the number getting excessive? Had their ranks swelled dramatically during the Red-White Civil War? Their role had shifted from their original duties into something more like a secret organization safeguarding the imperial family. But… no. Asking about that would be admitting defeat.
“Yes, Your Majesty. On that note, what do you think of sending some to the communist nations?”
Communist nations. No, that seemed risky.
“Dispatching agents to communist countries requires careful consideration. Wouldn’t it be problematic if they became enchanted by communist propaganda instead?”
It would be like sending them to a labor re-education camp.
“Hmm. Honestly, the vast majority of the current Ohrana would not be susceptible. They are men who lived through the civil war firsthand.”
Ah, that made sense. If they were the type to fall for communism easily, they would have joined the Cheka. Of course, communism had its factions, but that was just semantics. At its root, it was nothing more than an idealistic ideology spoken from the mouth. But the same logic applied in reverse. To hide their own vicious and ugly nature, the communists would kill any Ohrana agents we sent. That was absolutely unacceptable.
“Even setting that aside, there are many problems. If the communists discover our agents, won’t they try to eliminate them?”
Ohrana personnel were valuable. We couldn’t send them to red countries just to die.
“Ah, I see.”
“The only good red is a dead red. We should only send anti-communist propagandists to nations where the Communist Party is operating in the shadows.”
Sending people to directly confront the reds felt wrong. Gathering intelligence from inside would be useful, but while Mussolini in Italy was one thing, we could handle Germany by preparing thoroughly on our end. Just looking at how the German reds were running wild in the shadows made it clear we needed to focus on countering that.
Germany’s frantic desire to create more cockroach states like itself was simple: to survive, isolated Germany needed to transform its neighboring countries into communist states by any means necessary.
“Understood, Your Majesty.”
I thought the anti-communist propaganda project was genuinely excellent. By using it to prevent people who might fall into communism from doing so, we could stop the spread at the source.
“As I always say, communism is dangerous. It is a failed ideology destined to disappear, yet like a demon it slips into the gaps between people.”
“How could we not know that? Thanks to the current State Duma and Your Majesty, communism is now nearly impossible to find in Russia.”
Yes. That was a relief.
“If what Your Majesty said before is true, won’t the Great Depression become the real problem?”
Correct. Before and after the Great Depression, the narrative that communism was right might emerge. In actual history, the Soviet Union had avoided damage during the Depression thanks to its communist system. Would Germany escape unscathed as well? If so, France—already irritated by its internal communes—would almost certainly turn toward communism. France had suffered greatly in the Great War, so the economic damage from the Depression might not be catastrophic, but still… the idea that “communism is correct” could take root.
“To prepare for that, the anti-communist propagandist project the Minister of Internal Affairs mentioned earlier seems ideal.”
Communism was something that needed to be eradicated. Anyone could see that my Modified Capitalism was superior. Communism was merely an ideology for stable dictatorship—nothing more, nothing less. Anyone who claimed “communism is great” or defended reds while saying “if used well, it can be truly ideal” deserved to be torn apart. Unless there existed an artificial intelligence with zero desire for power and zero self-interest that could govern everything equally for the sake of communism, it could never be realized in human society. In the end, someone would become a dictator, rot, and turn into stagnant water.
Therefore, German communism must never be allowed to exist. Using anti-communist propagandists was the right approach.
“Then we must send them to the Anti-Comintern Pact nations… Hmm.”
Britain would probably be fine. Wasn’t Churchill an anti-communist? Even if he wasn’t, he would want to eliminate any nation that threatened Britain. That man would surely despise a Germany that had turned communist. So there was no worry there. If we sent propagandists, they would probably say something like, “We already have plenty of people who fought communists in a civil war not long ago.”
“Your Majesty. While sending anti-communist propagandists is good, we should also actively support individuals who have fled from communist nations.”
This time it was Sergei Dmitrievich Tverskoy, the Minister of the Executive Branch. Weren’t we already doing that? I hadn’t expected the suggestion to come from the executive side.
“Aren’t we already doing so?”
“Ah, I misspoke. To be precise, I mean individuals who are being persecuted.”
Persecuted individuals. That was interesting. In communist Germany, wouldn’t that refer to the Junkers? If those Junkers hadn’t died, they would have fled to East Prussia or Austria by now. So the persecuted people he mentioned were probably not the Junkers. Then who?
“Persecuted individuals?”
“Many artists have fled from Germany and Italy, it seems.”
“This is the first I’ve heard of it.”
Ah, artists. Why were they being persecuted?
“The Bolsheviks who surrendered previously implemented the policies Lenin had planned, causing public sentiment toward them to plummet.”
“So similarly, Russia should accept and support those fleeing persecution in Germany and Italy.”
“Yes. Since artists are being suppressed in both Germany and Italy, now would be the perfect time, wouldn’t it?”
Ah, yes. I recalled that under Nazi Germany, quite a few figures in the arts had been targeted—degenerate art, they called it. Were those people now being suppressed in communist Germany?
“Why are they being persecuted?”
“Isn’t it simply because it’s a communist system?”
“Even so, I wouldn’t have thought Germany would crack down so harshly.”
“Who usually sponsors artists and appreciates their work? And right now, the only ones who can promote those isolated people are artists themselves.”
Ah, I see. Wealthy patrons were the ones who sponsored them, appreciated their work, and looked after them. Was this the calculation? If Germany’s artists refused to obey the Communist Party’s orders and engaged in reactionary behavior, it made sense. My thinking had been a bit shallow. There had also been Russian artists who fled the Soviet Union to other countries. To maintain the regime, they could purge anyone with anti-communist potential. If we embraced those people, we could elevate Russia’s culture and arts far beyond what the Soviet Union had achieved in real history.
“Hmm. That makes sense. It would also raise the level of Russian artistic culture. But is it feasible?”
“They are already making their way to East Prussia and Russia.”
I hadn’t even considered that. For the Minister of the Executive Branch to propose it, he must have a favorite novelist or painter in mind. That would explain his enthusiasm.
“Please continue.”
“We could also promote Russia abroad more actively. On this occasion, how about creating a dedicated department for culture? One that can contribute to the development of painting, novels, poetry, and Russian arts and literature. It could also promote Russian culture to other countries.”
In other words, he was suggesting the creation of a ministry. Korea had a Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, didn’t it?
“Hmm. You mean establishing an official ministry?”
“Yes. Many artists were scattered during the civil war. To gather them again, wouldn’t it be best if the United States of Russia’s State Duma directly created a department? We could establish a Ministry of Culture and Arts.”
Ministry of Culture and Arts. Yes. That didn’t sound bad. A department dedicated to reviving Russian culture and arts. Fine. But then came the next problem. Once you created a ministry, you needed a minister and a vice minister. Was there anyone suitable to appoint? The Minister of the Executive Branch surely wasn’t planning to take the position himself.
“Who should we appoint as minister?”
I’m sorry, but I really don’t know anyone for this one. Shouldn’t we appoint someone with relevant connections? Especially for something related to Russian culture and arts.
“Wouldn’t an artist by background be ideal? Since most ministers of the United States come from civil war backgrounds, appointing a well-known figure to the ministerial post would be appropriate.”
“Do you have a recommendation?”
“Ivan Bunin of the Writers’ Association of the Russian United States.”
The Writers’ Association of the Russian United States. So such an organization had already been formed.
“Ivan Bunin?”
“He is called the successor to Tolstoy and Chekhov—a novelist of that caliber.”
If that was true, he must be an extraordinary person. I had never read Tolstoy, but I at least knew he was a world-renowned literary master. To be called his successor… that was promising.
“I have also heard of Ivan Bunin of the Russian United States. He is regarded as a remarkably talented novelist and is highly praised abroad as well.”
The other ministers agreed. If both the Minister of the Executive Branch and the others knew of him, he truly must be a literary giant. A man of that stature would be suitable.
“Hmm. If he is already leading the Writers’ Association, he must be quite famous within Russia as well.”
I thought for a moment. But was it acceptable to appoint a novelist as Minister of Culture? Then again, since we had already appointed people who had been in South Russia to ministerial positions, perhaps it didn’t matter? No, most of them had held high positions in the Duma or elsewhere before the revolution or before the Bolsheviks took power. Hmm. Well, the Tsarina could personally invite him and appoint him. And yet no one seemed to find it suspicious that such a figure was being elevated to minister.
“Do the other ministers share the same opinion?”
“In the end, doesn’t it depend on Your Majesty’s decision?”
No, that’s why I’m asking why you’re all leaving it to me. Don’t shove your own work onto me. This isn’t a group project.