The 1906 Bolshevik raid on the ''Tsarevich Giorgi'' took place on September 20, 1906 (

Julian calendar The Julian calendar, proposed by Roman consul Julius Caesar in 46 BC, was a reform of the Roman calendar. It took effect on , by edict. It was designed with the aid of Greek mathematicians and astronomers such as Sosigenes of Alexandr ...

) when ''Tsarevich Giorgi'', 2,200 ton steamship 285 feet long, commanded by captain Sinkevich, was travelling from Odessa to

Batum Batumi (; ka, ბათუმი ) is the second largest city of Georgia and the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, located on the coast of the Black Sea in Georgia's southwest. It is situated in a subtropical zone at the foot of t ...

carrying vast amounts of money. The ship stopped off at Novorossiysk,

Sukhum Sukhumi (russian: Суху́м(и), ) or Sokhumi ( ka, სოხუმი, ), also known by its Abkhaz name Aqwa ( ab, Аҟәа, ''Aqwa''), is a city in a wide bay on the Black Sea's eastern coast. It is both the capital and largest city of ...

and

New Athos New Athos or Akhali Atoni ( ka, ახალი ათონი, ''Akhali Atoni''; ab, Афон Ҿыц, ''Afon Ch'yts''; russian: Новый Афон; ''Novy Afon'', gr, Νέος Άθως, ''Neos Athos'') is a town in the Gudauta ''raion'' of ...

for wage deliveries. Twenty-five

Bolshevik The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...

gunmen led by

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...

slipped aboard armed with Mauser firearms and grenades; at 1:15 am they and four renegade sailors took over the ship. Stalin said: "We're revolutionaries through and through, not criminals. We need cash for the Revolution and we'll take only Treasury funds. Obey my commands and there'll be no bloodshed. But if you're thinking of resisting, we'll kill you all and blow up the ship." They stole at least 16,000 roubles. Stalin left each sailor a 10 rouble tip for not resisting. The officers were held hostage in a lifeboat till all the cash was delivered, the sailors then rowed the Bolsheviks ashore. The alarm was not raised for seven hours; none of the raiders were caught.Simon Sebag Montefiore, ''Young Stalin'' (Toronto: McArthur & Company, 2007), 168-9.

References

Joseph Stalin Bolshevik finance 1906 crimes in the Russian Empire Robberies in Russia Crime in Russia {{DISPLAYTITLE:1906 Bolshevik raid on the ''Tsarevich Giorgi''