SUMMARY
The Donetsk Peoples Republic (DPR) originates in a series of pro-Russian and "anti-Maidan" rallies organized throughout Donetsk and neighbouring provinces throughout March-April 2014. These rallies condemned the removal of the Eastern-Ukraine, pro-Russian backed Yanukovich cabinet as a coup, labeling the new authorities as fascist.
These rallies, spurred by the weakness of the Ukrainian military, in turn spurred the formation of armed militias with separatist goals. Members of such militias included dismissed security police (Berkut), local Russian-speakers (constituting a majority in Donetsk), ethnic Cossacks (claiming an allegiance to Russia) as well as Russian nationals joining the action from across the border.
These rebel militias had, in the beginning, a variety of claims, from the restoration of Yanukovich to the creation of an independent state to joining Russia on the same model Crimea did. Most such militias were organized on military structures and labelled as "brigades", "divisions" and "battalions" (with names such as Kalmius, Vostok or Sparta), had relatively strong internal cohesion (being grouped around strong, charismatic leaders such as "Motorola" (Arsen Pavlov), Edvard Basurin or Igor Strelkov, leading to near immediate territorial gains against a weak, disorganized and not-eager to engage Ukrainian military.
With such territorial gains, the Donetsk Peoples Republic was declared on 7 April as a centralized rebel administration for Donetsk Oblast, grouping various pro-Russian forces into a centralized administration. Its initial goal was independence from Ukraine, with a immediate objective of establishing territorial control over the region in order to hold a referendum for the regions independence. While DPR was not the only such group declared in April, it was the most successful. Over 10 such "republics" were proclaimed throughout Eastern Ukraine, though only two survived for more than a few weeks or gained any territorial ground. The other one, the Lugansk Peoples Republic (LPR) in Luhansk Oblast, became DPR's strongest ally and partner, practically constituting a single front beginning around May-June 2014.
Substantial help was received from Russia. Accusations of Russia supplying rebels with firepower, machinery and even troops came from multiple sources, including NATO (who released images proving this fact), Ukraine (who captured a detachment of Russian paratroopers), Russian NGOs and even parts of the Russian government (the Russian Presidential Committee for Human Rights). Most of the government of Russia, however, while admitting to providing "humanitarian aid", including monetary support for DPR, and supporting its cause politically, refused to acknowledge any troops were sent under official qualities to Ukraine. Russia, however, admitted that volunteer detachments, including numerous members of the armed forces officially "on leave" were fighting in Ukraine; those Russian servicemen killed in Ukraine were given state funerals on return. Lesser help was provided by various pro-Russian individuals and entities in other parts of the world (such as Serbia or Bulgaria).
This help increased significantly during the summer of 2014, when a resurgent Ukrainian military made significant inroads towards crushing the rebels. At this point increases in availability of heavy equipment, better organization and training and an increase in manpower were reported for the rebels. This in turn led to a turn in tides with a rebel victory at the critical battle of Ilovaisk in August 2014, leading to negotiations between DPR, LPR and Ukraine in the so-called Minsk format in September.
As a way to better coordinate their negotiations as well as better work out military cooperation, DPR and LPR created a unified military command, the United Armed Forces of Novorossiya, on 16 September 2014. The new group had a new incompatibility, claiming to fight for the independence of a new territory called Novorossiya (New Russia), which included both Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts as constituent republics. For a description of fighting past 16 September 2014 see the Ukraine: Novorossiya entry. Worth noting is that both LPR and DPR exist as independent actors again from 2016 onward, but then sharing the new incompatibility for the Novorossiya territory. For further information on the groups active in the post-2015 Ukraine: Novorossiya conflict see Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) and Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR).
