АССР немцев Поволжья

The article examines the history of the German Communist University named after I. V. Stalin (from 1932 – the German Higher Communist Agricultural School), the only national managerial higher educational institution in the Lower Volga region, which existed between 1931 and 1939. The stages of its establishment, organizational structure, goals, and objectives in training party, Soviet, and agricultural personnel for the German autonomous region and other national districts of the USSR are investigated.

The article examines the constitutional policy of the Soviet state in relation to the autonomous republic of Volga Germans that existed in 1924–1941 as part of the RSFSR, shows this policy as an integral part of the general national-state policy towards national minorities, to whom the Bolshevik government was granted a certain form of statehood. The characteristic of the two constitutions of the Non–Republic of 1926 and 1937 is given – as octroated, i.e. granted from above and therefore contained as much independence as allowed by the center.

The author explores the political and ideological campaign "The fight against German nationalism" which was a consequence of the partial withdrawal of the Stalinist leadership of the country from the concept of world revolution, the approval of the course to build and possibly the continued existence of socialism in one country.