A Nasty Little War: The Western Intervention into the Russian Civil War

In this meticulous and searing account of British, French, and American involvement in the Russian Civil War, journalist Reid (Borderland) lambasts the West for poorly coordinated military operations and a dismal understanding of the conflict at large. Noting that a “roller-coaster of events” led to the 1918 intervention during WWI—including British refusal to grant Czar Nicholas II and his family asylum just before the Bolsheviks executed them—Reid explains that initially, the Allies feared that Germany would take advantage of Russian infighting to get control of northern ports. After the armistice, the goal of the intervention became stopping the revolutionary Bolsheviks, or Red Army, and supporting the czarists, or White Army. The U.S. limited its involvement to ferrying aid and refugees, and France exited in spring 1919 after its navy, out of sympathy for the revolution, refused to fire on advancing Bolsheviks in Crimea. The British, however, continued until 1920, when the White Army finally collapsed. Throughout, Reid accuses the British government of “willed blindness” toward war crimes committed by White Army leaders (though she notes the Red Army also committed atrocities). By comparing diary entries with official reports, she reveals how British commanders hid or shifted blame for their failures, and how the government’s anti-Bolshevism would disrupt relations for decades. The result is a vivid critical assessment of Western meddling in foreign affairs. (Feb.)