South Russia or South of Russia (), also known as White South () was a short-lived military

quasi-state A quasi-state (sometimes referred to as a state-like entity or formatively a proto-state) is a political entity that does not represent a fully autonomous sovereign state with its own institutions. The precise definition of ''quasi-state'' in po ...

that existed in

Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural and socio-economic connotations. Its eastern boundary is marked by the Ural Mountain ...

during the Southern Front of the

Russian Civil War The Russian Civil War () was a multi-party civil war in the former Russian Empire sparked by the 1917 overthrowing of the Russian Provisional Government in the October Revolution, as many factions vied to determine Russia's political future. I ...

from 1919 to 1920. South Russia was established on 8 January 1919 by the

White movement The White movement,. The old spelling was retained by the Whites to differentiate from the Reds. also known as the Whites, was one of the main factions of the Russian Civil War of 1917–1922. It was led mainly by the Right-wing politics, right- ...

after reorganization of their armed forces in the Southern Front, consisting of territory under their control in

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

Crimea Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrain ...

Kuban Kuban ( Russian and Ukrainian: Кубань; ) is a historical and geographical region in the North Caucasus region of southern Russia surrounding the Kuban River, on the Black Sea between the Don Steppe, the Volga Delta and separated fr ...

, the

North Caucasus The North Caucasus, or Ciscaucasia, is a subregion in Eastern Europe governed by Russia. It constitutes the northern part of the wider Caucasus region, which separates Europe and Asia. The North Caucasus is bordered by the Sea of Azov and the B ...

, Black Earth region, Lower Volga, and the Don region. South Russia was an anti-

Bolshevik The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...

military state under the

Armed Forces of South Russia The Armed Forces of South Russia (AFSR or SRAF) () were the unified military forces of the White movement in southern Russia between 1919 and 1920. On 8 January 1919, the Armed Forces of South Russia were formed, incorporating the Volunteer Ar ...

led by General

Anton Denikin Anton Ivanovich Denikin (, ; – 7 August 1947) was a Russian military leader who served as the Supreme Ruler of Russia, acting supreme ruler of the Russian State and the commander-in-chief of the White movement–aligned armed forces of Sout ...

, and its borders were undefined, changing based on victories or defeats against the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

.Ушаков А. И., Федюк В. П. Белый Юг. Ноябрь 1919 — ноябрь 1920. — Москва: АИРО-XX, 1997. — . In March 1920, Denikin established the South Russian Government in

Novorossiysk Novorossiysk (, ; ) is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. It is one of the largest ports on the Black Sea. It is one of the few cities designated by the Soviet Union as a Hero City. The population was History In antiquity, the shores of the ...

, an attempt at a

civil government In Portugal, the Civil Governments (, singular ') are the bodies of public administration that represent the Government of Portugal, central government at the Districts of Portugal, district level. Each Civil Government is headed by an ''administ ...

with the General Command of the Armed Forces of South Russia serving as the legislative body. Less than a month later, the Whites were forced to evacuate from Novorossiysk, the Armed Forces of South Russia and the South Russian Government were dissolved. Denikin resigned and delegated power to General Pyotr Wrangel, who established the new

Government of South Russia The Government of South Russia () was a White movement government established in Sevastopol, Crimea in April 1920. It was the successor to General Anton Denikin's South Russian Government (Южнорусское Правительство ''Yu ...

Sevastopol Sevastopol ( ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea and a major port on the Black Sea. Due to its strategic location and the navigability of the city's harbours, Sevastopol has been an important port and naval base th ...

and the new Russian Army, commonly known as the Army of Wrangel in April. During mid-1920, South Russia's territory had receded to the White stronghold on Crimea, a highly defensible location that had repelled several Red offensives. The Whites were defeated at the Siege of Perekop in November 1920, losing the highly strategic

Perekop Isthmus The Isthmus of Perekop, literally Isthmus of the Trench (; transliteration: ''Perekops'kyi pereshyiok''; ; transliteration: ''Perekopskiy peresheek,'' , ; ; transliteration: ''Taphros''), is the narrow, wide strip of land that connects the Cr ...

and leaving Crimea vulnerable to Red invasion. Wrangel ordered the evacuation of Crimea, effectively ending his government and the Southern Front in Red Victory. South Russia ceased to exist after the Red conquest of Crimea, and its territory was divided between

Soviet Russia The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...

, the

Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as the Ukrainian SSR, UkrSSR, and also known as Soviet Ukraine or just Ukraine, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Union from 1922 until 1991. ...

, and the territory controlled by the

Revolutionary Insurgent Army of Ukraine The Revolutionary Insurgent Army of Ukraine (; RIAU), also known as ''Makhnovtsi'' (), named after their founder Nestor Makhno, was an Anarchism, anarchist army formed largely of Ukrainians, Ukrainian peasants and workers during the Russian C ...

Nestor Makhno Nestor Ivanovych Makhno (, ; 7 November 1888 – 25 July 1934), also known as Bat'ko Makhno ( , ), was a Ukrainians, Ukrainian anarchist revolutionary and the commander of the Revolutionary Insurgent Army of Ukraine during the Ukrainian War o ...

. In

Soviet historiography Soviet historiography is the methodology of history studies by historians in the Soviet Union (USSR). In the USSR, the study of history was marked by restrictions imposed by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU). Soviet historiography i ...

, South Russia was called the White South or White South of Russia, in reference to the concept of the

White Army The White Army, also known as the White Guard, the White Guardsmen, or simply the Whites, was a common collective name for the armed formations of the White movement and Anti-Sovietism, anti-Bolshevik governments during the Russian Civil War. T ...

References

1919 establishments in Russia 1920 disestablishments in Russia 1920 disestablishments in Ukraine Historical regions in Russia Post–Russian Empire states Russian rebels Russian anti-communists Rebellions in Ukraine States and territories established in 1919 States and territories disestablished in 1920 White movement {{Russia-hist-stub