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The American Intervention in the Russian Revolution

The History of the American Expedition Fighting the Bolshevik Campaigning in NorthRussia: 1918-1919


The Russian Revolution of 1917 had far reaching consequences, and its effects are being felt even to this day. The immediate effect was that the Russian Empire ceased to exist and Russia signed a separate peace with Germany and Austria. This gave the Germans and Austrians their last opportunity to win the war, for it allowed them to shift large amounts of their forces away from the Russian front and use them in a series of last ditch offensives against the allies on the Western and Italian fronts. Had the Germans succeeded in breaking through the allied lines and capturing Paris, or if the Austrians had been able to force Italy out of the war, the outcome of the First World War would likely have been different.

American Soldiers in Russia - Members of the Expeditionary Force that Fought the Communists During World War 1

American Soldiers in Russia - Members of the Expeditionary Force that Fought the Communists During World War 1

As it was the Germans and Austrians were not able to capitalize on the opportunity handed to them by the Russian Revolution, a revolution which their secret services had aided and abetted.

The Russian Revolution was opposed by elements of the armed forces loyal to the old regime and especially those classes of society which recognized the Bolshevik Revolution as an existential threat. The armed struggle between the communists and reactionary forces would go on for many years and attracted interest from the Americans and British, both of whom sent expeditionary forces to aid the White Russians against the communists. French and Canadian forces also joined the expedition.

The Americans and British both feared that the communist revolution would be exported and saw intervention as a way to nip the socialist experiment in the bud. Ultimately these interventions failed and both Britain and America were forced to withdraw their troops. It is interesting to speculate what could have happened if the United States and Britain had committed enough forces to depose the communists; the Cold War would have been averted, but would the Nazi's have crushed an enfeebled Russian Empire in World War 2. In any event the armed intervention by the allies in the Russian Revolution set a tone of mistrust and confrontation between the Communist regime and the West.

The allied expeditionary forces faced brutal arctic confitions as it campaigned near the northern port of Arkangel. Winters were extremely harsh and the enemy was resourceful and numerous. In the end, the allies conceded defeat and pulled out of Russia. Below are pictires from the allied intervention in the Russian revolution.

American Block House

American Blockhouse



Fortified Blockhouse

Fortified Blockhouse



American Troops in the Snow (Russian Revolution, World War 1)

American Troops in the Snow



American Soldiers in Winter Camouflage

American Soldiers in Winter Camouflage



Burying An American Casualty - World War 1

Burying An American Casualty - World War 1



American Soldiers Huddling Near a Fire - World War 1

American Soldiers Huddling Near a Fire - World War 1



French Soldiers Receiving the Croix de Guerre Medal

French Soldiers Receiving the Croix de Guerre Medal



American Soldiers Posing With Their Machine Gune - World War 1

American Soldiers Posing With Their Machine Gune - World War 1



This online book recounts the experiences of the American expeditionary force in Russia from its beginning to its withdrawal.

American Soldiers Enduring a Russian Winter - World War 1

American Soldiers Enduring a Russian Winter - World War 1



Soviet Soldiers Approaching Under a Flag of Truce - World War 1

Soviet Soldiers Approaching Under a Flag of Truce - World War 1



American Officers and Soviet Soldiers Negotiating a Prisoner Exchange - World War 1

American Officers and Soviet Soldiers Negotiating a Prisoner Exchange - World War 1



Wounded American Soldiers Enjoying RR With the Nurses - World War 1

Wounded American Soldiers Enjoying RR With the Nurses - World War 1



Table of Contents

Table of Contents





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