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Title: Constantin W. Boldyreff papers
Date (bulk): 1910-1995
Collection Number: 96012
Contributing Institution: Hoover Institution Library and Archives
Language of Material: In English and Russian
Physical Description:
28 manuscript boxes, 2 oversize boxes
(13.0 Linear Feet)
Abstract: The collection consists of speeches and writings, correspondence, radio scripts, identification documents, biographical data,
printed matter, sound recordings, and photographs relating to the settlement of displaced persons at the end of World War
II, Russian émigré affairs, communism and conditions in the Soviet Union, and activities of the Narodno-Trudovoi Soiuz and
other anti-communist organizations.
Creator:
Boldyreff, Constantin W., 1909-1995
Physical Location: Hoover Institution Library & Archives
The collection is open for research; materials must be requested in advance via our reservation system. If there are audiovisual
or digital media material in the collection, they must be reformatted before providing access.
For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
Acquired by the Hoover Institution Library & Archives in 1996.
[Identification of item], Constantin W. Boldyreff papers, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
Constantin Boldyreff (1910-1995) was born in Gatchina, not far from St. Petersburg. After the Russian revolution in 1917,
he emigrated with his mother to China and then Yugoslavia, where he studied at the Russian Cadet School in Sarajevo. In 1935,
he graduated from the University of Belgrade with a degree in engineering and worked for British and American mining companies
in Yugoslavia.
As a university student, Boldyreff joined the newly formed émigré anticommunist party, the Narodno-Trudovoi Soiuz (NTS) or
National Alliance of Russian Solidarists. Its activities were directed against the communist regime in the Soviet Union.
At the beginning of World War II, Boldyreff joined the Yugoslav army. During the German occupation, which followed the Yugoslav
army's capitulation, he was arrested twice by the Gestapo and taken as a slave laborer to Germany. He was able to escape from
the labor camp. In 1944, he and other members of the NTS began underground anticommunist activity in the German-occupied territories
of the Soviet Union.
After the leadership of the NTS was almost annihilated by the Gestapo, Boldyreff escaped to Austria and organized a work brigade
composed of Russian refugees, including prisoners of war that had been brought to Germany as slave laborers.
The end of the war found the Boldyreff family and their fellow refugees escaping west from the approaching Soviet armies.
The greatest threat these displaced persons faced was forcible repatriation, a fate suffered by more than two million Russian
refugees, who were returned to the Soviet Union by the Allies. Boldyreff was able to save not only his group but also thousands
of others threatened with repatriation and subsequent death or imprisonment in Soviet concentration camps. They found refuge
in the American-occupied zone in the Mönchehof displaced persons (or DP) camp. Boldyreff was instrumental in making the camp
economically self-sufficient, providing housing and schools and organizing religious and cultural activities. Fear of repatriation
forced displaced people to emigrate as soon as possible from Europe. In 1947, after carefully researching the economic opportunities
for educated professionals, Boldyreff arranged for the Mönchehof group of DPs to emigrate to Morocco.
In 1947, the Boldyreff family emigrated to the United States, and Constatin Boldyreff was appointed as a professor at Georgetown
University, where he established the Institute of Languages and Linguistics in the School of Foreign Service. Boldyreff continued
his anticommunist activities on behalf of NTS, testifying before the Senate and House about conditions in the Soviet Union
and advising the government on foreign policy. He made use of the American media to publicize his anticommunist campaign,
publishing articles on political subjects in the American periodical press, addressing interested groups, and appearing on
television.
He died in 1995.
Scope and Content of Collection
The papers of Constantin Boldyreff, founder and organizer of the Russian underground Natsional'no Trudovoi Soiuz (NTS), American
professor, and former head of the Russian Department at Georgetown University School of Languages and Linguistics, consist
of documents relating to the settlement of displaced persons at the end of World War II, Russian émigré affairs, communism
and conditions in the Soviet Union, and activities of the Narodno-Trudovoi Soiuz and other anti-communist organizations.
The materials describing the history of Russian refugees in the post-World War II period can be found in ten series of the
collection. The
Biographical File and
Family Files include identification documents, photographs, and memoirs.
Correspondence and
Speeches and Writings consist of Boldyreff's papers spanning the course of his career. A
Subject File is arranged topically and contains materials documenting Boldyreff's work in specific capacites.
Writings by Others include other Russian refugees' memoirs. The
Oversize File consists of material that is distinctive because of its physical format. The
Sound Recordings file includes sound tape reels documenting the activities of the organizations in which Boldyreff was involved.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
World War, 1939-1945 -- Refugees
Soviet Union -- Emigration and immigration
Refugees
International relief
Anti-communist movements
Soviet Union
Narodno-trudovoĭ soi͡uz