Back Černá armáda Czech Guardias Negras Spanish Must Kaardivägi Estonian Musta armeija Finnish Gardes noirs French Guardie Nere Italian 흑위대 Korean Zwarte Garde Dutch Czarna Gwardia Polish Guardas Negros Portuguese
| Black Guards | |
|---|---|
| Чёрная гвардия, Chjornaya gvardiya | |
 Black flags were used by guards in several modifications and variations | |
| Leaders | Various militia leaders, including Maria Nikiforova, Lev Chernyi, Mikhail Uralov, Fedir Shchus and Nestor Makhno |
| Dates of operation | Summer 1917–Spring 1919 (became core units of the Revolutionary Insurgent Army of Ukraine by mid 1919) |
| Active regions |  Russia,  Russian SFSR and  Ukraine |
| Ideology | Anarchism (primarily anarcho-communism) |
| Allies |  Various anarchist organizations |
| Opponents | Russian SFSR Russian Provisional Government White Movement Entente Pro-independence movements in Russian Civil War |
| Battles and wars | October Revolution Russian Civil War |
Black Guards (Russian: Чёрная гвардия, romanized: Chjornaya gvardiya) were armed groups of workers formed after the February Revolution and before the final Bolshevik suppression of other left-wing groups. They were the main strike force of the anarchists. They were created in the Summer of 1917 in Ukraine by Maria Nikiforova, and expanded in January 1918 to Moscow, under the control of anarchists at industrial enterprises by Factory and Plant Committees and by Moscow Federation of Anarchist Groups cells.[1][2]