Overview

The Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War from 1918-1920 forms the backdrop to this extraordinary story of the fate of 15 British soldiers abandoned in Bolshevik Russia. Churchill's Abandoned Prisoners tells the previously suppressed story of fifteen British prisoners captured during the Russian Civil War. The Bolshevik Revolution in 1917 has seriously compromised the Allied war effort, a threat of failure that drove the Allies to form a military force to support the anti-Bolsheviks, or 'White Russians' in their fight for survival. Comprised of men from Britain, America, France, Czechoslovakia, Italy, Greece and Japan, the force was tasked with the daunting mission of preventing the spread of Lenin's Marxist ideology. With war-weariness setting in, the Allies deployed a sufficient number of troops to maintain a show of interest in Russia's fate, but not enough to give the 'Whites' a real chance for victory. Caught up in these events is Emmerson MacMillan, an American who served with the task force, who along with the British group was ordered to 'remain to the last' and organise the evacuation of Omsk. Captured, imprisoned and with no communication with their country, the group are forced to endure a fearful detention in the jails of Russia. Seen as an embarrassment by the then War Secretary, Winston Churchill, after he fails to secure their release, these men endure the harshness of Russia, abandoned and alone. This book explores how this secret mission to stop the tide of Bolshevism in Russia had a profound effect on Russian-West politics, as the seeds of distrust continue to dominate modern relations. This is a story of courage and adventure, and one that reveals the truth behind the event that defined events in WWII and today. AUTHOR: Rupert Wieloch is an author who was formally trained on Russian history and Soviet studies. He served as Director of Defence Studies for the British Army and completed a Fellowship in International Relations at Pembroke College, Cambridge. During the Cold War, he patrolled the Soviet frontier with Norway. Currently, he lectures to university courses about Foreign Policy options and the military relationship between Putin and the West. In 2016 he published a book on the changing face of British military operations. 16 b/w photographs

Full Product Details

9781612007533

Table of Contents

Reviews

It is a very informative account of a lesser-known conflict. * Soldier Magazine 07/03/2019 * Based on an impressive array of published and unpublished sources, this is a gripping account of the adventures and misadventures in Siberia in 1919 of a group of British and American servicemen who were involved in the disorderly Allied intervention in the chaos of Russia's post-revolutionary civil wars and who were captured by the Reds. * Queen Mary University of London, author of The `Russian' Civil Wars, 1916--1926: Ten Years that Shook the World 11/12/2018 * ...a rousing account of resilience and courage [...] this book also provides detailed informance about the experience of British prisoners of war during the Russian Civil War, making it an invaluable source for... anyone researching events of the Russian Civil War. * University of Middle East Technical University, founder and editor of IJORS 30/07/2019 * This is a fascinating account of a relatively unknown conflict which has drifted out of public consciousness following the overwhelming tragedy of WW1. * Army Rumour Service 26/02/2019 * Rupert Wieloch has written a genuinely interesting history that provides a useful entry point into the confusion of the Russian Civil War. * War History Online 28/02/2019 *

Based on an impressive array of published and unpublished sources, this is a gripping account of the adventures and misadventures in Siberia in 1919 of a group of British and American servicemen who were involved in the disorderly Allied intervention in the chaos of Russia's post-revolutionary civil wars and who were captured by the Reds. * Queen Mary University of London, author of The `Russian' Civil Wars, 1916--1926: Ten Years that Shook the World 11/12/2018 * It is a very informative account of a lesser-known conflict. * Soldier Magazine 07/03/2019 * This is a fascinating account of a relatively unknown conflict which has drifted out of public consciousness following the overwhelming tragedy of WW1. * Army Rumour Service 26/02/2019 * Rupert Wieloch has written a genuinely interesting history that provides a useful entry point into the confusion of the Russian Civil War. * War History Online 28/02/2019 *

Based on an impressive array of published and unpublished sources, this is a gripping account of the adventures and misadventures in Siberia in 1919 of a group of British and American servicemen who were involved in the disorderly Allied intervention in the chaos of Russia's post-revolutionary civil wars and who were captured by the Reds. * Queen Mary University of London, author of The `Russian' Civil Wars, 1916--1926: Ten Years that Shook the World 11/12/2018 *

...a rousing account of resilience and courage [...] this book also provides detailed informance about the experience of British prisoners of war during the Russian Civil War, making it an invaluable source for... anyone researching events of the Russian Civil War. * University of Middle East Technical University, founder and editor of IJORS 30/07/2019 * Rupert Wieloch has written a genuinely interesting history that provides a useful entry point into the confusion of the Russian Civil War. * War History Online 28/02/2019 * It is a very informative account of a lesser-known conflict. * Soldier Magazine 07/03/2019 * This is a fascinating account of a relatively unknown conflict which has drifted out of public consciousness following the overwhelming tragedy of WW1. * Army Rumour Service 26/02/2019 * Based on an impressive array of published and unpublished sources, this is a gripping account of the adventures and misadventures in Siberia in 1919 of a group of British and American servicemen who were involved in the disorderly Allied intervention in the chaos of Russia's post-revolutionary civil wars and who were captured by the Reds. * Queen Mary University of London, author of The `Russian' Civil Wars, 1916--1926: Ten Years that Shook the World 11/12/2018 *

Author Information

Rupert Wieloch was appointed as the Senior British Military Commander before Gadaffi was captured and killed, he had privileged access to the new Libyan government and drafted the first Defence White Paper forthe Libyan Chief of Defence in 2012. He was the first foreign representative to visit Tobruk after the revolution, establishing the basis for a multi-million pound international contract to refurbish the airport and military base at El Adem. He led the immediate response after the Islamic attack on the British war graves in Benghazi and was present at the Battle of Bani Walid, known as the start of the second civil war His previous books are Belfast to Benghazi and Churchill’s Abandoned Prisoners (Casemate), which was long-listed for the 2020 Wolfson History Prize.

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available