The Young Communist International ("YCI" in English, "KIM" in Russian) had its roots in an April 1915 Conference in Berne, Switzerland, that was attended by 16 delegates from 10 countries, including Bulgaria, Denmark, Germany, Holland, Italy, Norway, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and Switzerland. This conference took an anti-war position and established itself on an organizational basis with Willi Münzenberg as its Secretary.
By the fall of 1915, the International Federation had gained additional affilates through the socialist youth movements of Canada, Greech, Romania, Spain, and the United States.
An International Youth Conference was held in Vienna, Austria, on Aug. 26, 1919. This was attended by 16 delegates representing 6 countries, including Austria, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Poland, and Russia. The conference formed a provisional committee to act as an International Secretariat.
The Founding Congress of the Young Communist International met in Berlin under conditions of illegality. It was attended by 19 delegates representing 14 countries, including Austria, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Norway, Poland, Romania, Russia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.
The loose International Federation was replaced by a Centralized International, directed by a five memberr permanent Executive Committee. The EC of the YCI was based in Berlin.
Immediately after the founding of the YCI, existing youth organizations in 6 countries affiliated with the new organization (Bulgaria, Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Lithuanian, Yugoslavia). New organizations were established in other countries, including Bokhara, China, East Galicia, Great Britain, Iceland, Khiva, Korea, Luxemburg, Persia, Slovakia, South Africa, Turkestan, andTurkey.
The YCI published two periodical organs: Youth International and International Youth Correspondence.
This was a meeting of representatives of Youth Sections from Southern and Eastern Europe.
This was a meeting of representatives of Youth Sections from Western Europe.
An Interenational Conference of the YCI was held in Moscow in conjunction with the 2nd Congress of the Comintern. This Conference established the relationship between the youth organizations and the various Communist Parties affiliated with the Comintern.
This was a meeting of representatives of Youth Sections from Western Europe.
This was a meeting of representatives of Youth Sections from Southern and Eastern Europe.
In February 1921 a special delegation of the EC of the YCI was sent to Moscow to resolve a debate over the degree of independence of the youth organizations from the various Communist Parties of the Comintern.
This was a meeting of representatives of Youth Sections from Southern and Eastern Europe.
The Jena "2nd Congress of the YCI" was opened in Jena after a proposal of the Russian, Latvian, Lithuanian, and Bulgarian sections of the YCI to move the gathering to Moscow was rejected. About 100 delgates were present, representing all European and American sections of the YCI except for those of Spain and Portugal.
Proceedings were moved to Berlin on April 10. The gathering broke up on April 11 after it was learned that ECCI had determined to postpone the Congress until the 3rd Congress of the Comintern.
The April Jena Congress was continued in Moscow in June of 1921. The youth delegates to the YCI also participated as delegates to the 3rd Congress of the Comintern. The Moscow sessions were attended by 120 delegates, represetning 36 sections of the YCI, as well as 15 delegates from 6 youth leagues not formally affiliated with the international.
The 3rd Congress of the YCI was attended by 91 delegates, representing 38 organizations.
The 3rd Congress declared that the territorial form of group organization was the main reason for the failure of the Young Communist groups to establish themselves as mass organizations, and a restructuring on the basis of factory nuclei was decided.
The 4th Congress was attended by representatives of 60 member leagues.
In addition to members of the EC of the YCI, delegates were in attendance representing the YCLs of Austria, the Balkan Federation, Czechoslovakia, France, Germany, Great Britain, Holland, Poland, Scandanavia, Switzerland, and the USSR.
The Congress of Young Friends of the Soviet Union was attended by 80 delegates, representing 20 countries.
The 5th Congress of the YCI was attended by 140 delegates with decisive and 121 delegates with consultative vote. At the time of the Congress, the YCI had 43 sections.
