Warsaw 1920: Lenin’s Failed Conquest of Europe: Lenins Failed Conquest of Europe
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Few realise that Lenin wished to conquer Poland to create a revolution in Germany; even fewer realise that he wrote to Stalin, the chief political commissar attached to the Red Army in Ukraine, suggesting a simultaneous attack through Romania, Czechoslovakia and Hungary, to provoke revolution in Italy. Stalin responded that "it would be a sin" not to try. Carving up Europe as they pass round the mistresses.
Pilsudski, the Polish head of state and commander-in-chief, though in his early fifties, was no expert in military strategy.
The dramatic and little-known story of how, in the summer of , Lenin came within a hair's breadth of shattering the painstakingly constructed Versailles. Warsaw Lenin's Failed Conquest of Europe and millions of other books are available for Amazon Kindle. Warsaw Lenin’s Failed Conquest of Europe Hardcover – February 4, White Eagle, Red Star: The Polish-Soviet War and The Miracle on.
He was racked by self-doubt, yet proved himself a master of circumstances. His counterpart, Tukhachevsky, was only 27, a nobleman who imagined himself a Napoleon in the making, and a nihilist who hated Jews, Christians, capitalists and socialists. He was later shot in Stalin's purges, as were all the senior Red Army commanders who failed to take Warsaw in apart from Stalin's cronies in the South. The Polish Army was hastily assembled from soldiers who had been serving in foreign armies.
One observer describing the six regiments of the 1st Cavalry, said that they were "like so many children born of the same mother, but conceived by different fathers". Even so, the Polish cavalry was well trained and equipped. The Red Army's cavalry was variously equipped and often eccentrically attired - one cavalryman was glimpsed wearing a bowler hat - but initially performed with the ruthlessness of a Mongol horde.
In contrast to the disciplined Polish infantry, the Red Army's infantry often went barefoot, and sustained its morale by a policy of rape and pillage. The Polish-Soviet War was nasty, brutish and short. The problem here is that the author, as far as I can tell, confuses what the Russians wanted to do with what they eventually would do.
Warsaw 1920: Lenin’s Failed Conquest of Europe
Just because some wanted to spread the revolution doesn't mean that's what would have happened. This can be seen by the fact that at least two of the leading Bolsheviks were against the war, Trotsky and Chicherin. Would Lenin still have attacked if the Poles didn't attack first? And then while peace negotiations were going on attack again and take the city of Dunaberg from the Russians and give it over to the anti-Bolshevik government of Lativa? A historian would not be able to give a concrete answer, but the author, apparently, can. Taking an extreme and making it seem as the only viable route is not the job of a historian.
My real problem with this book is not the idea that if successful the Bolsheviks might have taken their revolution abroad, or that some wanted this from the start, but that the author is asserting this as a fact and that nothing could change it from happening, aside from, apparently, what did happen, makes sense? Bolshevik rhetoric is just that, one has to be cautious in assuming that everything Lenin or anyone else said is what would have happened, especially during such a chaotic and turbulent time. Bottom line is that the Red Army responded to a Polish threat.
Hitler also claimed he was preempting a Soviet invasion, the Polish claim is taken seriously today while the German is known, by most, to be a complete fabrication. One can only wonder why that is. A statement I vehemently disagree with is on pg. This can only be valid if seen in the context of the Polish invasion of Russia rather than any undertaking the Russians did before hand.
With the Polish invasion many officers who had left the armed forces or never joined the Red Army in the first place came to it in droves and offered their support, such as the famous Brusilov. So, it might be argued that the Polish invasion helped increase support for the Bolshevik cause, but this is when the country is on the defensive, not the offensive, which is the author's original claim here. This can also be seen as the Poles rushed to support their troops when Warsaw was threatened, in both cases it was 'defensive' and 'counteroffensive' actions that rallied support, not outright offensive intentions.
This book provides a concise history of a seminal battle between a newly independent Poland and Bolshevik Russia.
Lenin sought to take advantage of the chaos that had taken hold in Central and Eastern Europe in the immediate aftermath of the First World War by overrunning Poland and thereby invading Germany and using it as a springboard for European domination and worldwide revolution. Had the Poles been defeated in August , the course of European history would have been very different. It i This book provides a concise history of a seminal battle between a newly independent Poland and Bolshevik Russia.
It is precisely because of the Poles' success in preventing a Bolshevik victory and Europe's preoccupation with postwar recovery that the Battle of Warsaw was overlooked and quickly forgotten.
When Lenin invaded Poland
Jan 24, Edward Lengel rated it really liked it Shelves: Short but consistently fascinating account of this critical campaign, which changed the course of twentieth century European history. Ragtag armies equipped with hodgepodge weaponry fighting ad hoc battles under a remarkable cast of military characters! View all 4 comments. A decent overview of an important, but little known event in World history.
In , Lenin's army marches westward intent on spreading the socialist revolution to western and southern Europe. The path to communist paradise is blocked by the restored Polish nation, the rebirth of which was assured by the Treaty of Versailles following World War I to create a buffer between the west and the revolutionary east.
Burdened with mixed and incompatible infrastructure and military technology inherited fr A decent overview of an important, but little known event in World history. Burdened with mixed and incompatible infrastructure and military technology inherited from the three empires that had partitioned Poland over a hundred years prior to recovering the nation's independence, the fledgling Polish army performs a miraculous rout of the Red Army at the gates of Warsaw, thus forestalling communist expansion, and affording Europe additional time to heal from the crippling damage inflicted during the first Great War.
By author's own admission, this book was not intended to provide and in-depth analysis of the events that transpired, but rather the focus was on military maneuvering of that war. Zamoyski shares just enough of the geopolitical situation of the region to gain a basic understanding of the motivations behind the conflict and stakes at play, devoting a much more significant part of the book to military operations.
As such, be prepared to pull up a map in order to visualize and track shifting positions of armies and divisions, if such is your fancy. If not, look elsewhere. Presumably, White Eagle, Red Star written by Norman Davies provides more depth and insight into this critical moment in history. Sep 03, Daniel Kukwa rated it really liked it Shelves: A very concise presentation. You do need to come to it with a bit of pre-knowledge of the post-WWI situation for this book to be an ultimately satisfying experience, but it's worth it for the clear, straightforward presentation.
But it was economically and militarily weak and its misguided offensive to liberate the Ukraine in the spring of laid it open to attack. Taking an extreme and making it seem as the only viable route is not the job of a historian. One anachronism would be the idea of a champion swordsman challenging the other side to single-handed combat before the bivouacking belligerents: Published February 4th by HarperPress first published January 1st Between Russia and Germany lay Poland, a nation that had only just recovered its independence after more than a c In the new Soviet state was a mess, following a brutal civil war, and the best way of ensuring its survival appeared to be to export the revolution to Germany, itself economically ruined by defeat in World War I and racked by internal political dissension. It i This book provides a concise history of a seminal battle between a newly independent Poland and Bolshevik Russia.
Mind you, like most military histories, your head can start spinning trying to keep the geography of all the battle tactics coherent. Sometimes I think these books should come with a tabletop model, with toy soldiers to move around as you read about the battles. Dec 25, Ray rated it really liked it Shelves: I have always been interested in the history of this part of the world. This little book sheds light on a little known war which turned Bolshevik armies away from Western Europe - plucky Poland beats the red hordes. It does so with a light touch, effortlessly explaining the cut and thrust of what were the last major cavalry engagements in modern history.
Sep 12, Jonathan rated it really liked it. Jun 03, Brian Beatty rated it liked it Shelves: An efficient and detailed account of a pivotal battle, one that set the stage for Stalin and a number of attitudes of Polish and Russian leaders generally. It wasn't the most compelling read, but still among the best for this topic as far as I know. Mar 24, Joe Collins rated it really liked it Shelves: It does get down to a lower level of military operations then Norman Davies', "White Eagle, Red Star", but about half of it or more is covered in that book too.
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Since I read Davies' book just before this one, I felt that I was re-reading a lot of the same material. But had it been a couple of years in between my readings, I would not have felt that way. Interessant boek over een voor mij onbekende fase na de Eerste Wereldoorlog en na de Oktoberrevolutie in Rusland. Veel militaire details, maar beknopt genoeg om te blijven boeien. May 12, Derek Weese rated it liked it. Contrary to popular Western academic myth, the young USSR, under the leadership of Lenin, was a predatory, murderous, imperialist power.
Lenin dreamed of restoring the old borders of the Russian Empire his revolution was in the process of dismantling, and he also planned to export the Bolshevik ideals to the rest of Europe, by force.
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Germany was on the verge of revolution itself, and Lenin hoped to ensure that Germany would become a springboard for the Soviet conquest of the rest of Europe. Ther Contrary to popular Western academic myth, the young USSR, under the leadership of Lenin, was a predatory, murderous, imperialist power. There were only a couple of problems. First the German veterans of WWI were, the vast majority of them, willing to wage a bloody civil war to ensure that the nation did not become a communist one, the forming of veteran 'Freikorps' would see action not only in Germany, but also in the Baltic states.
There they would shatter Soviet dreams of revolution by counter force.
The other thing standing in Lenin's way was the newly independent country of Poland. Created by the Versailles Treaty, for the first time since the eighteenth century, Poland was now a free and sovereign state. And they had not only little interest in Russian exported Communism, and they also refused to be under the thumb of Russian imperial authority once again. Electronic book text Quantity: Specialty Booksellers Interest-specific online venues will often provide a book buying opportunity.
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About Product Details Praise The dramatic and little-known story of how, in the summer of , Lenin came within a hair's breadth of shattering the painstakingly constructed Versailles peace settlement and spreading Bolshevism to western Europe. The Call of the Road: Dictators Collins Gem by Sean Callery. Moscow by Adam Zamoyski. Year Year X Tell us more about what you like to read so we can send you the best offers and opportunities.
Warsaw Lenin’s Failed Conquest of Europe by Adam Zamoyski
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