The 1st Congress of the CP(b)U (Communist Party of Ukraine (Soviet Union)) was held in Moscow in July 5–12, 1918. It was a constituent congress which led to creation of the political party by way of uniting existing Russian Bolsheviks in Ukraine and left faction of the Ukrainian Social-Democrats. The congress took place at address ulica Rozhdestvenka, 11 (later ulica Zhdanova). Today in the building is located MArchI (Moscow Architectural Institute).
The 65 plenipotentiary and 147 consultative delegates represented 45 Party organizations that were accounted for over 4,000 Party members. The congress also attended about 60 guests.
On 6 July 1918 delegates of the Congress with arms in hands participated in liquidation of the Left SR uprising in Moscow.
Preceding events and preparation
An instruction on creation of a single Bolshevik organization in Ukraine the Central Committee of the Russian Communist Party (b) has adopted in December 1917. It was realized at a regional congress of the RSDRP (b) in Kyiv on 16–18 December 1917 when the Ukrainian organization was named as the RSDRP (b) – Social-Democracy of Ukraine.
Couple of weeks after signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, on 19 March 1918 in Yekaterinoslav (Dnipro) had convened the Second All-Ukrainian Congress of Soviets where the congress discussed and approved the treaty and also announced that Ukraine only formally loosening its federative ties with the Soviet Russia and workers of Ukraine will carry on a fight against the restored bourgeoisie regime. Recognition of Ukrainian independence was forced onto the Soviet Russia by the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. A cordial greeting about the declaration of independence of the "Ukrainian Federative Soviet Republic" was published in the Russian newspaper Pravda on 22 March 1918. Upon conclusion of the 2nd Congress of Soviets many members of the congress emigrated to Taganrog where at that time dominated Ukrainian population.
At that time, before 1918, in Ukraine existed two separate regional associations of the RSDLP(b): Donets-Krivoi Rog basin (Yekaterinoslav) and Southwestern Krai (Kiev). The Kyiv Bolsheviks were the first to realize the need to unify party organizations, moreover, a large part of them argued for the need to form a party of Social Democrats of Ukraine separated from the RSDLP(b), which would remain part of the RSDLP(b).
It is known that in the process of uniting the Bolshevik organizations of Ukraine, two points of view arose regarding the creation of the party. One was advocated by Nikolay Skripnik (Mykola Skrypnyk), who proposed at the Taganrog meeting (April 1918) a draft resolution that provided for the creation of a separate, organizationally independent Communist Party of Ukraine, with its Central Committee, congresses and connected with the Russian Communist Party through the future international commission (Third International).
Another point of view, which reflected the centralizing tendencies of a part of the party workers of Yekaterinoslav region and Donbas, was advocated by Emanuel Kwiring. He proposed a draft resolution that provided for the creation of an autonomous party in Ukraine with its own Central Committee and congresses but subordinated to the general Central Committee and congresses of the Russian Communist Party.
In the roll-call vote, Skripnik's resolution, aimed at the creation of the CP(b)U, organizationally separated from the RKP(b), won the majority of votes. To prepare and convene a congress of Bolshevik organizations of Ukraine the Taganrog meeting elected the Organizational Bureau in the composition of Nikolay Skripnik (secretary), Andrei Bubnov, Yan Gamarnik, Vladimir Zatonsky, Stanisław Kosior, Isaak Kreisberg, Georgy Pyatakov.
The decision of the meeting caused great concern in Moscow and personally in V.I. Lenin, since the only factor that allowed to influence the situation in Ukraine, to keep it under control, were the party organizations of the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks). The weakening of this lever could lead to unforeseen consequences in the future, the loss of Ukraine as a constituent part of the RSFSR. In addition, the formation of a separate Communist Party of Ukraine objectively destroyed not only the tactical tasks, but also the strategic goals of the RCP(b).