Russian Sideshow

by Robert L Willett

  During the rest of October and November, patrolling was constant with occasional brushes with Red patrols, but no casualties. By mid-December, the units were spread out from Onega all the way to Kylavenga on the river, still with only limited activity. Platoons were shifted back to Onega from the front-line positions, Chekuevo and south, to give them some relief from conditions at the front. Pvt. Ray Rasmussen was happy in Onega, where a YMCA had set up a canteen: “Here we have a Y and a canteen where we can get most anything we want. On Thanksgiving Day we certainly had a great feast.”11 But they were on constant alert for an attack, all up and down the river. On December 20, a large Allied patrol ran into a Bolo patrol, and the Allies drove them from a village with no casualties. The next day, a patrol led by Lt. Harry Ketcham left on a combat-reconnaissance patrol with twenty men and a British naval section; they met resistance from a Red patrol, which retreated toward Turchesova. On December 23, Lt. Arthur Carlson’s platoon took on a Bolo patrol, killing several and taking five prisoners.

  On Christmas Day, Rasmussen received word that his sister, Fannie, an army nurse, had died from the flu at Fort Sheridan, Illinois. “A bleak Christmas Day for me.”12

  In concert with the anticipated railroad advance, the British commander ordered Lt. Edmund R. Collins to take the second and fourth platoons and flank the Reds entrenched up-river at Turchesova. Collins left at 4:00 A.M. on December 29 in miserable weather with zero and subzero temperatures and waist-deep snow. When Collins found he was unable to get close to Turchesova because of the conditions, he was sent to reinforce some Polish infantry that had just captured the little town of Goglova one mile outside Turchesova. The Polish and the American infantry fired and took fire all day. Early on December 30, the Soviets attacked Goglova, but the reinforced Polish section held its ground. The following day Collins was ordered to take Lieutenant Ketcham and his platoon to attack Zeleyese, a small town in the rear of Allied forces that was considered a threat. The doughboys took the town, but Red reinforcements from Turchesova almost immediately assaulted the town. The defensive position of the Americans was excellent; they inflicted numerous casualties on the Bolsheviks, suffering only three wounded on December 31 and New Years Day 1919.13

  By January 2 the Allied attack on the railroad front had been called off. Colonel Edwards issued orders for all his troops to fall back to the town of Kleshevo, farther down the river. The retreat upset Captain Ballensinger, commander of Company H, who reported:

  Indications pointed toward an inclination on the enemy’s part to evacuate Turchesova. Therefore a message received by Lt. Collins about 5:00 P.M. Jan 1/19 from O.C. Onega River Det. to withdraw all troops to KLESHOVO within two hours, came somewhat as a surprise. Much ammunition, equipment and supplies were lost, during this hurried retreat, considerable confusion arising among the carts, horses and drivers being injured.14

  Fortunately, the Reds chose not to follow.

  During the rest of January and until early February, little happened along the Onega. On February 10, Lieutenant Ketcham took a patrol out from the base at Kleshevo at 7:00 A.M., heading toward Khala, three miles away, where Bolsheviks were reported. Ketcham met heavy machine gun fire as he approached the village, but his brisk rifle fire and accurate Lewis gun enfilade fire drove the Reds from the town, and Ketcham settled in. He eventually returned to Kleshevo with no casualties, reporting Bolo casualties as one killed, two wounded.15

  By the end of February, the Allied force in North Russia consisted of forty-five hundred Americans, five thousand British, seven hundred French, and seven hundred Poles.16 Ironside also had five thousand Russians of whom he was fairly confident, plus twelve hundred he considered unreliable. Opposing these various elements of Ironside’s scattered forces were 16,800 soldiers of the Bolshevik Sixth Army under Gen. Boris Kuzmin, spread over three hundred miles from the Dvina to Turchesova. About 3,200 more were in position on the Pinega front, and another seventeen thousand waited as reserves in Kotlas and Vologda.17 These were not the untrained, disorganized mobs of the fall, but well-led, disciplined troops supported by artillery larger, and with more range, than Allied guns.

  A major Allied concern was the mutinies of the French, British, and Russians; by February, there was general discontent among almost all forces. Americans sometimes proved reluctant to go back to the line, and Ironside himself said, “We were drawing terribly near to the end of our tether as an efficient fighting force.”18 As the buildup of Soviets continued, the British general “waited for the offensive that would make him draw the entire force into Archangel, there to be smashed to pieces against the ice.”19 With the White Sea frozen, there was no escape by sea. Had the Russians driven a threatening wedge between the Allied positions on the Onega and their positions on the railroad front, disaster could have followed. Joel Moore later wrote, “Success at this point would probably have resulted in the [Bolshevik] capture of Archangel itself and the possible annihilation of the entire North Russian Expedition.”20

  On March 16, Captain Ballensinger relocated Company H headquarters from Onega to Chekuevo in order to keep in close touch with the Railroad Force at Obozerskaya. To do this, Ballensinger sent regular patrols from Chekuevo east to Bolshe-Ozerkiye, only sixteen miles from the railroad headquarters at Obozerskaya. This little village would prove to be the site of the final battle of the North Russian campaign.

  General Ironside had no firm knowledge of a plan by Siberian Allied forces to link with the North Russian forces; however, the Soviets feared that Kolchak forces under Czech General Gaida were moving toward Viatka on the Trans-Siberian Railroad for a possible linkup with the North Russian Allies. While this was far-fetched in hindsight, it was a possible reason for a Bolo offensive in Bolshe-Ozerkiye.

  While a diversionary assault took place by the Soviets against Vistafka on the Vaga River, the offensive which Ironside had feared started when the Bolos moved in force out of Plesetskaya, moving between Onega and the Vologda Railroad, headed for Bolshe-Ozerkiye. Some twelve hundred Reds on skis moved silently toward the few French who were on outpost duty there, taking them by surprise on March 17, 1919. The French were quickly and quietly wiped out; the Bolos had driven a large wedge between the Onega Force and the Railroad Force in Obozerskaya. With the Reds in Bolshe-Ozerkiye unopposed, Soviet general Kuzmin could then move on Obozerskaya and cut off the units below, then move straight on to Archangel. It was the most vulnerable position for the Allies during the North Russian campaign.

  The Onega force in Chekuevo had no knowledge that the Soviets had captured Bolshe-Ozerkiye when they sent a routine patrol east toward the village, a two-day trek. The six-man patrol disappeared; after they failed to report back, searchers were sent out.21

  The ill-fated American patrol arrived at Bolshe-Ozerkiye just after the Reds occupied the town. One of those subsequently captured, Pvt. Earl Fulcher, reported that he had joined the French detachment in the village as the Bolsheviks attacked on March 16, then fought with the Allied group of French, Russians, and Americans who were surrendered by the French commander. “The engagement continued all day Tuesday, and until about Wednesday noon, when the enemy artillery reached our position, and the French officer in command went out with a white flag and surrendered the entire detachment, consisting of about 50 French, Americans and Russians.”22

  By a stroke of luck, Colonel Lucas, the commander of the Railroad Force, just missed being taken with the French defenders, having passed through the area a few hours before the Red attack. He was with the Onega Force in Chenova several miles west of Bolshe-Ozerkiye, still unaware that a large Soviet force was between him and his Railroad Force command. Lucas had seldom left the comfort of his railroad car in Obozerskaya; this visit was largely due to the pressure put on him by Ironside to visit his two flanking forces, Onega and Seletskoye.

  As word sifted back to Chekuevo that the Reds were in force and had cut the Allies off by their occupation of Bolshe-Ozerkiye on March 17, British lieutenant colonel N. A. Law
rie dispatched a patrol of thirty Americans led by Lieutenant Collins. Traveling by sleigh east out of Chekuevo, they had orders to report enemy strength in the village. The patrol reached the outskirts of Bolshe-Ozerkiye, accompanied by Colonel Lucas, who was hoping to find a way back to Obozerskaya. Still unaware of the large number of Bolos in the town, they came under heavy machine gun fire one verst west of town. The patrol lost one man killed, Cpl. Nathan Redmund; they were able to escape only by crawling through waist-deep snow to stay out of sight.23 They saw that the town was occupied in force. Lucas eventually returned to Obozerskaya under mysterious circumstances and was relieved of his command by General Ironside, who came immediately to Obozerskaya to take personal command of the railroad front and the Bolshe-Ozerkiye situation.24

  The actual battle at Bolshe-Ozerkiye was the only time when the Onega Force and the Railroad Force combined forces in the same battle. Company H prepared to attack Bolshe-Ozerkiye from the west, while Company E, recently arrived from Archangel, attacked with other Allied troops from the east.

  In reality the battle of Bolshe-Ozerkiye was two separate battles. Phase one was two-pronged: First, the Onega Force attacked the Reds in the village from the west while Americans from the railroad front struck the same target from the east. Second, the Soviets attempted to drive the Americans from their defensive positions, especially the Railroad Force at Verst 18.

  The battle began March 23, 1919. Colonel Lawrie, directing the western attack, sent Lt. Clifford Phillips with two platoons of Company H to rendezvous with three companies of the Sixth Battalion Royal Yorkshires, commanded by Major Monday.25 The British, en route from Murmansk to Obozerskaya, arrived in Chenova just in time to join the assault forces.26 Phillips and Lieutenant Collins then had seventy Americans and three hundred British for the assault on the roughly twelve hundred Soviets in town.27 There was also a four-man American medical team under Lt. Ralph Springer, who would be called on for yeoman’s service.28

  The start time for the western attack was set for 2 A.M. on March 23, and the team moved out of Chenova on schedule. The snow was deep, and the weather was cold; advancing was not only dangerous, but extremely exhausting. The Yorkshires were assigned both left and right flanks, while the Americans went down the middle. The popular Lieutenant Collins was one of the first casualties, shot by a sniper. As the day progressed, the Allied troops made some progress, but never came close to the town. The heavy enemy fire, lack of ammunition and reinforcements, and the bitter cold played key roles in making the decision to retire back to Chenova. The Americans had lost two men killed, Pvt. Edward McConville and Lieutenant Collins, who died on the way back. Eight others were wounded. The Yorkshires lost two officers and two men, with eight wounded.29 American captain Ballensinger withdrew Company H to Usolia and Chenova to heal frostbitten hands and feet and wait for replacements from Onega.

  At the same time, an Allied force from Obozerskaya under British colonel Card was trying to attack Bolshe-Ozerkiye from the east side of town. This force included Company E and one platoon of Company L, a company from the Russian Archangel Regiment, and one half a company of the French-led, Russian-manned French Foreign Legion. The Russians advanced into machine gun fire, took heavy casualties, and withdrew, so British commander Colonel Card called off any other efforts to move forward.30

  Company E was not in the mood for combat; the night before the scheduled attack, all the corporals of the company held a meeting. Pvt. Donald Carey wrote, “Every corporal attended. It bordered on mutiny. The men—privates and corporals—were satiated with fighting and did not relish a similar experience. The feasibility of refusing to leave for the front was thoroughly discussed. . . . As no one would accept responsibility for leading the mutiny it came to naught.”31 Company E’s performance was less than enthusiastic as they were ordered to attack through the deep snow, bitter cold, and gloom of the Arctic winter. Carey complained about his Shackleton boots, the cold, and the scanty British rations and derided his officers. On March 23, he wrote, “About 0400—a propitious moment for zero hour, as our spirits were equally low—we were ordered to ‘Push off,’ as Lt. Baker casually phrased it. With two of our lieutenants stupefied with liquor, we started toward the Bolo stronghold.”32

  Progress was slow through waist-deep snow; Carey noted that no one was in a real hurry to find the Reds. “A repetition of the Kodish fiasco and hours of fighting in the snow and cold appealed to no one.”33 Company E was happy to receive Colonel Card’s orders to return to their prepared defenses at Verst 18 on the Onega-Obozerskaya line and break off any attempt to advance, so they did no fighting that morning. Company H’s Lieutenant Pellegrom, in Archangel on assignment, had been assigned recently to Company E, which was very short of officers. He reported, “The company arrived back in camp at about 11:30 A.M. in a very exhausted condition. Outposts were immediately established and tents pitched.”34 Pellegrom returned to Archangel and shortly after rejoined Company H.

  Both Allied forces remained on opposite sides of the town, shelling the area steadily, guided by airplanes from the nearby Allied airbase at Obozerskaya. On March 28, Company E was relieved by Company M, which would take the main part in the next series of battles on the east side of Bolshe-Ozerkiye. The men of Company M had recently arrived from the Pinega front with little rest. As they moved into the barricades and protection at Verst 18, the engineers from the 310th continued to strengthen and improve the defenses. It turned out well that they did such good work.

  On the morning of March 31, 1919, at 9:00 A.M. the Bolsheviks attacked the rear of the Obozerskaya forces in strength. Machine gun crews drove off the Bolos. The infantry was in the rear protecting the Russian artillery, which wheeled its 75mm guns 180 degrees, firing point blank into the densely packed Red infantry. The cannons broke the back of that Red attack.

  Then, at 10:00 A.M. Company M was hit by three Red battalions in a frontal charge as the Allied forces dug in on the Obozerskaya-Bolshe-Ozerkiye Road. According to Company M’s commanding officer, the Reds used the Second Moscow Regiment, the Ninety-seventh Saratov Regiment, and the Second Kazan Regiment in their two attacks.35 The Soviets killed Company M’s Pvt. Charles Dial and took Sgt. Glenn Leitzel, Pvt. Freeman Hogan, and mechanic Jens Laursen prisoner.36 A non-combatant, YMCA worker, Mr. Ryal, was taken as well, one of several Y men captured during the campaign.37 Finally, Russian artillery caught the Bolos in the open, and the Soviet assault was broken.

  On April 1, Company H, west of Bolshe-Ozerkiye, was ordered to attack the town, relieving some of the pressure felt by Company M and the others on the east side. But most of the work that day fell on the Obozerskaya Force, which received its attack at daybreak, 3:30 A.M. Three waves of Bolsheviks came in and were beaten off, leaving Soviet dead and dying on the frozen white surface in front of the American lines. The American fortifications, most of them constructed by Company C, 310th Engineers, were mainly responsible for the successful defense. Another Red attack in the rear, similar to that of the previous day, was smashed, causing more Bolo casualties. Company M lost Pvt. Alva Crook and Cpl. Frank Sapp, both killed that day.

  On the following day, the Allies rushed the Bolsheviks from the west as Captain Ballensinger sent Company H with British support. Company A of the Yorkshires was to draw first fire from the northernmost Reds. As they approached the Bolo lines through the woods, dogs tied to trees gave away the Allied approach with a chorus of yelps, barks, and howls. British captain Bailey, leading his men toward the enemy lines, was killed by machine gun fire; a second officer was severely wounded, and the Allied attack was stopped dead in its tracks.

  Shortly afterward, the enemy counterattacked, and early in the morning, British commander Lund ordered Phillips’s platoon to support Company A. One company of Polish soldiers came up, but they were hit so heavily, they quit after twenty minutes. Company C of the Yorkshires was to attack the other flank, but inept guides had lost them in the woods, so they failed to arrive on time. The Yorkshires Company A ha
d withdrawn, its Company C was lost, the Poles were decimated, and Lieutenant Phillips was left with twelve men and one officer of Company B Yorkshires to stop the Red counterattack. Ballensinger wrote in his report:

  Lt. Phillips through his superior control over his men and personal conspicuous conduct, kept every one of his men in their places, keeping his two Lewis guns constantly in action, and his rifle men kept up a steady fire. Altho’ the enemy’s counter attack was extremely heavy, and all of his fire swept the road continuously, this officer gave ground only very slowly, in spite of heavy casualties, until he was himself very seriously wounded.38

  When the lost Yorkshire Company C finally arrived about 9:00 A.M., and Lieutenant Pellegrom arrived with his platoon, the exhausted troops had the support needed to drive off the attackers. The skittish Polish gunners, however, were content to fire their weapons over the heads of the American-British front line, instead of joining them up front. Company H lost two men: Pvt. Floyd Auslander, killed, and Pvt. Mattios Koslousky, who died later of his wounds. Lieutenant Phillips was hospitalized and seemed to be recovering, but infection set in, and under the primitive medical conditions existing on the expedition, Phillips died on May 10, 1919, just before some of the first troops were boarding ships to return home.39

  On April 2, the Reds made their last attempt to break the Allies at Bolshe-Ozerkiye. Company M took several half-hearted enemy charges and beat them off handily. In his book M Company, Captain Moore describes the Red attack: “The third days fight was soon over. The enemy was repulsed. His artillery put over gas shells among the rest of the ‘pineapples’ he sent.”40