The Red Fighters
Phoebus Athanassiou, Armies in North Russia and Siberia 1918-20 (Osprey, 2026)
If you thought the Great War ended in November 1918, you would be right. But, for some of those involved in that conflict, the fighting did not end so neatly. Men from many countries were packed off to a new war, this time helping in the war against the Bolsheviks in Russia. Phoebus Athanassiou describes the context of that war, when a polyglot force of Allied nations, including British, American, French, Italian, and Czech contingents, waged an ideological war in northern Russia, while the Japanese grasped their geo-political opportunity to seize territory from Russia in the Far East. Athanassiou surveys the actions of the heavily outnumbered and under-resourced allies during their two year foray and describes their organisation, weaponry, and uniforms. He is assisted by Osprey’s typically excellent illustrations and photographs of the soldiers. The Allies withdrew in 1920, dooming the cause of the White Russian armies they were there to support, argues Athanassiou, and defining the attitude of Soviet Russia to the West for decades to follow. This is an interesting survey that readers of World War I will enjoy and will be very useful for modellers and wargamers.
