The collapse and demobilization of the Romanian front in the winter of 1917/1918: between the Reds, the Whites and interventionists

After the October coup of 1917 followed by the Bolsheviks coming to power, Bessarabia, the most remote southwestern outskirt of the country, was at the crossroads of several options for its future. The Romanian government intended to continue the struggle with the Central powers, which meant the refusal to cooperate with the Soviet Russia aimed at getting out of the war, and the claim to the property of the Romanian front as a kind of pledge for Romanian property in Russia and the Romanian gold reserve transferred to Moscow. In addition, the Romanian side was maneuvering between the allies in the Entente and the Germans approaching Russia and planned to annex Bessarabia. As the legal successor to the Union agreements with no real power, the Romanian front headquarters was to demobilize troops, to ensure the safety of Bessarabia as much as possible, and to preserve front-line property for the future Russia. The Commander in Chief of the Romanian front D.G. Shcherbachev managed to fulfill the tasks to the extent that it was appropriate.

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