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Cocaine in 1917

The role that cocaine played in the events of 1917 is subject to much speculation often focusing on the Baltic Fleet sailors, who were allegedly cocaine addicts. Some theories suggest that it was due to excessive drug use that the sailors were so ready to support the troublemakers – the Bolsheviks.

Like many other urban legends, the story about cocaine is partially based on facts. The only question is how to interpret them. Admittedly, taking cocaine was common practice in certain parts of Russian society, especially in large cities. From the late 19th century cocaine was sold at pharmacies and considered a type of medicine – a local anesthetic and a stimulant. In the 1910s cocaine gained popularity as a recreational drug among the bohemians, but it was also popular among the youth in the cities, particularly college students.

A demonstration on a square during the February Revolution. Sputnik

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In this respect Russia was no different from other European countries, where people also experimented with cocaine. Over time, it became evident that addiction was a problem, so the authorities cracked down on its availability, making it a prescription drug. This did not prove to be an insurmountable obstacle, however, and a black market for cocaine sprang up; buying and selling the drug turned into a semi-legal operation.

At the start of WWI Russian authorities introduced an alcohol prohibition law, making it difficult to legally obtain high-quality liquor, especially in the capital. Apparently, that was one of the factors contributing to cocaine’s popularity. However, it was a fairly expensive drug, so in the cities it was only the well-off and liberal-minded who took it. In the criminal world it was quite popular among prostitutes, though some professional criminals also used it.

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It’s hard to judge the scale of drug consumption in the army and navy around 1917. However, with the war going on, there was a sharp increase in the demand for anesthetics and stimulants. Certain narcotic drugs were used to treat the wounded, which facilitated their proliferation. The same goes for alcohol – under the prohibition law rubbing alcohol was used to produce the drinkable version.

It’s worth noting that when WWI began, Russia’s pharmaceutical industry was underdeveloped, so a lot of high-quality drugs, including narcotic drugs, were imported from Germany, which had the best chemical industry at the time. (As a side note, it was the German pharmaceutical giant Bayer that synthesized heroin and commercialized it.) In his memoirs, singer Alexander Vertinsky notes that the cocaine manufactured by the German pharmaceutical company Merck was considered to be of highest quality.

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Soon after the war started the import of pharmaceuticals from Germany stopped and Russia began to experience a shortage of anesthetics. In the light of this many field surgeries had to be performed without anesthetics. The fact that cocaine was traditionally imported from Germany fueled the rumors that the Germans intentionally supplied Russia with cocaine to corrode the Russian Army and society. It’s impossible to verify these claims, but cocaine was indeed smuggled into Russia, including through neutral states; it could have been of German origin. The trafficking routes could explain why cocaine was widely distributed in coastal cities and among the navy. The fact that some of the navy of the Baltic Fleet suffered from cocaine addiction is impossible to deny. Among the sailors who supported the Bolsheviks there were quite a few cocaine addicts, but there was hardly a connection between cocaine addiction among the Baltic Fleet and Black Sea Fleet personnel and their political preferences.

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There were many officers who were addicted to cocaine and had no love for the Bolsheviks. The larger scale of drug addiction after February 1917 likely had more to do with the disintegration of army structure against the backdrop of revolutionary changes and lack of control and discipline.