Military Oath of Allegiance. “Of Loyalty to the Czar and the Homeland.”

The “Jewish” version of the Oath of Allegiance. The Russian Constitution of 1906 specified that Russian citizens must swear loyalty to the Czar each according to their personal faith (chap. 4, art. 53-56). The present text states that new military recruits are to demonstrate their loyalty in the service of Czar Nicholas II, by swearing by “Ado-nai, the God of Israel.” Furthermore states the oath, a commitment is taken to obey military commanders, and to utilize one’s entire intellectual and physical abilities in defense of the Emperor and Homeland “up to the last drop of blood.” The relationship that Nicholas II maintained with the Jews of his realm was far from healthy. Throughout the span of his rule (1894-1917), hundreds of thousands of Russian Jews emigrated. Nicholas II’s reign was marked by violent struggles against revolutionary movements, which culminated in the Bolshevik Revolution and the Czar’s removal from the throne and ultimate execution.