SNOR

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Part of the Politics series on SNOR

Russie-snor.PNG

Former SNORist Entities: Russia · Latvia ·

Principles

SNOR

Organizations

White Council
White Regency
American Snorist Party
Cossack Force
CMAEC
Riga Pact

Famous SNORists
Anti-SNOR Movements

SNOR (СНОР = Союз Народного Обновления России, Sojuz Narodnogo Obnovlenija Rossii, "Union for the National Renewal of Russia") is the name of the Russian political party (annex mass movement) founded in 1923 by the White generals Aleksandr Kolchak, Anton Denikin, Pyotr Vrangel, and Nikolai Yudenich in an attempt to gain popular support for their regime.

The highest body of the SNOR was the so-called "White Council". It took care of all day-to-day decisions taken by the party, and was responsible for most appointments within and without the party. The White Council enjoyed much more power than the government, and the chairman of the White Council was de facto head of the Russian state; after the death of Czar Aleksei the throne remained vacant and the chairman of the White Council always acted as regent.

Russie-snor.PNG

The program of the SNOR was ardently nationalist. The generals portrayed Russia as the poor victim of the rich West and announced a huge pay-back to those who had brought misery to Russia. Russia's broken national pride had to be restored by the violent reacquisition of every lost territory and severe punishment of those who were considered guilty. Ultimately, they wanted the Third Rome to become the ruler of a huge territory between the Pacific, the Atlantic, and the Indian Oceans. In their messianic propaganda, the Russian nation had been appointed by God as the saviour of the world. Non-Slavic national minorities on the other hand were considered a serious threat to Russia's national awakening and therefore severely oppressed.

Another important factor in the SNOR's ideology was Russian Orthodoxy. Even more than the language, it was considered a vital constituent of the Russian national spirit, and as such heavily promoted. The Russian Orthodox Church could highly benefit from this situation and became an ardent supporter of the regime, even though a patriarch had to be killed first to achieve that purpose.

Other elements that played a role in the SNOR ideology, were anti-communism and pan-Slavism. With the decades, this type of Russian or Slavic nationalism became commonly known as "SNORism".

Early Snorist propaganda poster

Under this program, the SNOR ruled Russia with an iron fist until its ultimate fall in the early 1990s. During the decades of its existence, ideological terror had reached its peak under the rule of SNOR leader Iosif Vissarionov. After that, ideology had grown less important. From the late sixties onwards, the SNOR became more and more populated with people who completely did not believe in the party's original ideas and used them only as a façade to hide their blind pursuit for their own personal interests. Corruption grew to inconceivable proportions. The government was guided mostly by opportunism and used its own ideology merely as a legimation of its actions.

Despite the fact that the SNOR was dismantled and banned in 1991, former members of it still play an important role in the army, in business, and in national and (particularly) regional politics. Especially in Muscovy, the Uralic republics, and Siberia, nostalgia after the "glorious days" of the SNOR period is a considerable political factor. In the political vacuum that exists today, several post-snorist parties exist, the largest of which is led by a certain Vladimir Zhirinovsky.

The Second Great War

Countries that had SNORist governments.

Following the examples of Ladoga (pro-White, later pro-SNOR extremistic party in Nassland 1920-1940) and Sovebodena Ladoga (Free Ladoga, SNOR-like party installed by SNOR to "rule" Ladogian Republic 1924-1940), during the Second Great War and especially in the decades after, parties similar to the SNOR emerged in many Central and East European countries. Most of them, like the Slov'jans'ke Bratstvo (Slavic Brotherhood, SLOB) in Ukraine, the Solveneska Iznovorodena Setarna (Slavic Renaissance Party, SIS) in Nassland, and the Front Nacunale pru Liberacune Slvanje (National Front for the Liberation of Slevania, FNLS) in Slevania, had been founded in 1930s or the early 1940s as small, pro-Russian satellite parties that adhered to the SNORist ideology. However, when after the war Russia successfully maintained its dominant position in the countries it had liberated from German and Hungarian occupation, many of these parties became the nucleus of new single-party regimes, transforming their countries into Russian puppet states. These SNORist parties were completely obedient and even servile to Russia, although some of them allowed themselves significantly more liberties than others. It should be noted that not every country within the Russian sphere of influence was provided with a SNORist party; some countries, like Latvia and Turkestan, were ruled by military juntas instead, while for other snorist regimes, like the Estonian RUR regime, were founded after Russia took over.

SNORism also had its impact on the arts, in the form of National Realism.

Origin of the Snorist Emblem

The "White Eagles" unit banner

No one is certain of the identity of its original designer nor when the SNORist Emblem made its first appearance. A similar though more heraldic looking emblem had been used by one of Kornilov's Shock Troops units (the so called "White Eagles" battalion) during the Russian Civil War. Historians believe that as an elite unit (and one which served on more then one front), this would have given their emblem a high level of recognition and could have incited Kolchak to choose the eagle-and-cross as a symbol both of Russians but also of past martial merits.

The first official apperance of the Snorist emblem is in annex B of the 1923 Russian Constitution which described the new national hymn and symbols. Unofficially however, the symbol had been in use by White Army troops for some time.

A different SNORist symbol that is a popular alternative to the Eagle-and-Cross emblem is the sword-and-thorns emblem also worn by Kornilov's troops. It was originally a medal worn by White Army units who were veterans of the Caucasus campaign against the Bolsheviks circa 1920.

Ideology

The SNORist ideology was said to be idiosyncratic, and is a descendant of the Black Hundreds. On one hand, it promoted extreme nationalism, but on the other, it also promoted a form of non-communist socialism and is also virulently anti-capitalist. The main ideologues of SNORism are not Kolchak himself. For example, Andrey Vonsyatsky, minister of Education who was a moderate in SNORist parlance, did not want to persecute the minorities, including Jews, and insisted that they be given autonomy in exchange of loyalty to SNORist Russia. Konstantin Rodzaevsky, who is the interior minister, was more radical and aligned with Vissarionov and pushed for more Russification policies, but the SNORist White Council eventually kept Vonsyatsky's recommendations for ethnic autonomy. Ivan Ilyin and Vasily Shulgin were also known SNORist ideologues, though Ilyin will later fall out of favor with Iosif Vissarionov and proposed a "third way" between democracy and totalitarianism.

Life under SNORism

Please see Life under SNORism.

Neo-Snorism

Recent years have seen the emergence of a new breed of SNORist enthusiast. Driven by a nostalgia for days they have barely known, groups of young adults in their 20s or 30s have made their presence known in Russian cities during demonstrations in favour of conservative politicians. Sporting large moustaches that bring to mind former Supreme Leader Vissarionov (hence their nickname of Usatets, "that has a moustache"), they have taken to intimidating political opponents and have been linked to some violent incidents. Prominent Neo-Snorist leaders like Aleksandr Dugin, a former military officer who also interpreted SNORism as "National Integralism" were also popular within Neo-Snorist circles. NeoSNORist parties have also arisen in other countries where they have gained significant support from rightists who tend to be unemployed and worried about their countries' economic futures.

List of SNOR leaders

The leader of the SNOR was usually referred to as "Supreme Leader of the Russian People". The following people have worn that title:

List of SNORist states

The states that existed:

The states that were planned but never established, or proved to be abortive:

SNORist Legacy

Not only did SNOR leave a mark on the face of Europe and Russia, but it was also evidenced "Far From The S.N.O.R." by the English group, NoMoreEagleZ.

Flew in to Virginia Beach, BOAC
Didn't get to bed last night
Oh, the way the paper bag was on my knee
Man, I had a dreadful flight
I'm far from the S.N.O.R.
You don't know how lucky you are, boy
Far from S.N.O.R., yeah


Been away so long I hardly knew this place
Gee, it's good to be back home
Leave it till tomorrow to unpack my case
Honey reconnect the phone
I'm far from the S.N.O.R.
You don't know how lucky you are, boy
Far from the S.N.
Far from the S.N.
Far from the S.N.O.R.


Well the Petrograd girls really knock me out
They make me leave the west behind
And Moscow girls make me scream and shout
And Vozgia's always on my my my my my my my my my mind
Oh, come on
Hu Hey Hu, hey, ah, yeah
yeah, yeah, yeah
I'm far from the S.N.O.R.
You don't know how lucky you are, boys
Far from the S.N.O.R.


Well the Petrograd girls really knock me out
They make me leave the west behind
And Moscow girls make me scream and shout
And Vozgia's always on my my my my my my my my my mind


Oh, show me round your snow peaked
mountain way down south
Take me to you daddy's farm
Let me hear you balalaika's ringing out
Come and keep your comrade warm
I'm far from the S.N.O.R.
Hey, You don't know how lucky you are, boy
Far from the S.N.O.R.
Oh, let me tell you honey ...

The SNOR also became the focal point of a mass youth protest movement, especially in the 1970s and 80s in the North American League and elsewhere. The Anti-Snorist Movement was a rebellion against the "old zones of thought" including hereditary monarchies and realpolitik. Its anthem in many ways was the aforementioned "Far From the S.N.O.R." by the group NoMoreEagleZ.

SNORism in Popular Culture

"SNORist" has entered the popular vernacular as a buzzword to describe uptight, overly controlling figures who insist that things be done in their way and there way only, e.g. "grammar SNORist", "fashion SNORist", and from a popular American sitcom, "Chowder SNORist".

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