Civil War in South Russia, 1918: The First Year of the Volunteer Army

The Soviet Union was created by the Civil War and the revolutions of 1917, which are inseparable. South Russia is of special interest due to its many different issues and the difficulty in reducing the problems of the Civil War to simple formulae. Kenez contends that the events of 1918 contained the seeds of ultimate disaster for the Whites, as they failed politically and failed to bring unity to the anti-Bolshevik camp.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 366 pages
Publication date: 29 April 2022
Publisher: University of California Press

The Soviet Union was formed as much by the Civil War as by the 1917 revolutions; indeed, the revolutions and the struggle that followed them are inseparable. Perhaps communism in Russia would have evolved differently had the bitter necessities of the Civil War not forced the regime to develop features that had nothing to do with the Marxist ideology. Aside from the obvious historical significance of the Civil War, it is also a subject with great intrinsic interest: modern European history provides no better example of anarchy and its effects on social institutions and on human beings. The approach that is followed here is that of a case study. Extrapolating from one part of Russia to the entire country is perhaps the best way to become aware of the many different issues that were at stake and of the difficulty in reducing the problems of the Civil War to simple formulae. South Russia is of special interest because it is a microcosm in which one can see most of the ills of Russia and because the events there were of great importance: it was in South Russia that foreign intervention assumed greatest magnitude; there the Whites put in their field their most substantial and persistent armies; and perhaps nowhere else did the anti-Bolshevik movement suffer more from dissension and from competing claims of national minorities. Kenez contends that the events of 1918 contained the seeds of ultimate disaster for the Whites. While the soldiers of the Volunteer Army showed exceptional valor and the generals proved themselves able military leaders, they failed politically. Because Denikin and his fellow leaders wrongly believed that politics could simply be avoided, they did not develop a positive program. They also failed to bring unity to the anti-Bolshevik camp. It would.

Weight: 544g
Dimension: 229 x 152 x 20 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780520307469