Australia in the Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War (1917–1921) began after the provisional government collapsed and the Bolshevik party assumed power in October 1917.
Despite some pressure from Britain, the Australian Prime Minister, William Hughes, had refused to commit forces to Russia following the end of World War I in 1918.
Under intense pressure Tsar Nicholas II abdicated in March and a provisional government formed under Alexander Kerensky, pledging to continue fighting the Germans on the Eastern Front.
The Western allies had been shipping supplies to Russia since the beginning of the war, through the ports of Archangel Arkhangelsk, Murmansk and Vladivostok.
During the July Offensive, the Russian Army was soundly defeated by the German and Austro-Hungarians, leading to the collapse of the Eastern Front.
With the end of allied support, the Red Army soon defeated the remaining White government forces, leading to their eventual collapse.
[11] Recruiting for the relief force began immediately in England on a voluntary basis and would ultimately include men from every regiment of the British Army, and all the dominions.
[12] Due to the high regard held for dominion troops as a result of their exploits in France during the war they were specifically targeted for recruitment.
Indeed, some 400 to 500 men of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF)—who were in England awaiting repatriation to Australia following the end of the war—initially indicated a willingness to join, but nowhere near as many actually enlisted.
Some had arrived in Britain as reinforcements too late to see any fighting during the war, and wanted to experience active service before returning to Australia.
Others were decorated veterans and may have been motivated by a desire to see Russia, whilst some may have been unable to settle down after their wartime experiences, and could have viewed service as a means of postponing their return to civilian life.
A secondary aim was to leave the White Russian forces in a better military position, in the optimistic hope they could subsequently hold their own.
[17] Activity during this period also included small-scale patrol and ambush operations around Troitska to the south in an attempt to keep the Bolsheviks off balance, as well as to provide the White Russian forces with the motivation to fight.
[16] In early August, Major General Ironside launched his offensive against the 6th Red Army, the British force subsequently inflicting heavy casualties and taking many prisoners for relatively little loss to themselves.
[11] The offensive was mainly fought through thick pine forest and swamp which provided little terrain for manoeuvre and although hugely successful, may have been unnecessary.
Due to the terrain the Fusiliers had been unable to manoeuvre their mountain guns through the swamp, whilst Sadlier-Jackson had to use an observation balloon for situational awareness.
[20] During this battle an Australian, Corporal Arthur Sullivan, won the Victoria Cross (VC) for saving a group of drowning men while under fire.
During the ensuing fighting an Australian, Sergeant Samuel Pearse, cut his way through the barbed wire entanglements under heavy enemy fire, clearing a way for others to enter.
[23] Following the August offensive minor patrol activity continued throughout September to provide a screen whilst forward positions were evacuated and stores either removed or destroyed.
By the night of 26–27 September the Allies had subsequently withdrawn from Archangel, and Murmansk was evacuated on 12 October aboard a flotilla of troopships and escorts which sailed for Britain.
Vessels of the Royal Australian Navy briefly operated in the Black Sea in late 1918, and individuals served in Mesopotamia as part of Dunsterforce and the Malleson Mission.
[2] Some Australians also served as advisers with the British Military Mission to Admiral Aleksandr Kolchak in Siberia and others in South Russia supporting the White Russian General Anton Denikin.
[1] Ultimately the British Military Mission remained in South Russia and was only evacuated in March 1920 after Denikin's forces were routed by a Red Army offensive, and the collapse of the White cause seemed imminent.
[24] Dunsterforce fought in Mesopotamia in an attempt to keep the Turks and the Bolsheviks out of Persia and Transcaucasia by rearming and leading those elements of the old Russian imperial army that were still prepared to fight following its collapse.
[1] The mission was set up by Major General Lionel Dunsterville in 1918 with the purpose of organising the forces of the Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic comprising—Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia—to enable them to withstand a Turkish attack.
[25] Malleson's aim was to block possible German-Turkish thrusts towards India and Afghanistan, but instead his soldiers became involved in fighting the Bolsheviks around Merv.
Ultimately it made no difference to the outcome of the Russian Civil War, perhaps other than to help confirm the Bolshevik's mistrust of the Western powers.
