Why the Reds WON the Russian Civil War against the Whites

The Russian Civil War occured after the Russian Revolution (February Revolution and the October Revolution). In this conflict the Reds fought against the Whites. Also many nationalist factions as well as armed peasants were involved. The Reds were led by Vladimir Lenin and Leon Trotsky, the latter founded the Red Army. The White leaders acted largely independently from each other: Admiral Alexander Kolchak in the east; General Nikolay Yudenich and Colonel Pavel Bermondt-Avalov in the north-west; General Anton Denikin in the North Caucasus and the Don region; General Pyotr Wrangel in the Crimea; warlords or ‘Atamans’ like Grigory Semenov or Roman von Ungern-Sternberg in Siberia and southern Russia.
This video answer the question: Why the Reds WON the Russian Civil War against the Whites.

SOURCES
– Russia in Flames. War, Revolution, Civil War, 1914 – 1921 (Laura Engelstein).
– A People's Tragedy. A History of the Russian Revolution (Orlando Figes).
– The Vanquished. Why the First World War Failed to End, 1917-1923 (Robert Gerwarth).

IMAGES

MUSIC
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License

SOUNDS

E-MAIL

[HistoryHustle]

Check out the PLAYLIST of Revolutionary Russia:

[nicomendoza]

There aren't many videos that actually describe the warfare of the Russian civil war! Largely only about the revolution itself, skipping from 1918 to 1922. Thanks for making it, very informative. Excited to see future episodes about this topic, it was so complex because alongside the Russian civil war there was the allied interventions, the various wars of independence, the Finnish civil war to the north, conquest of the territories like the Caucasus/Ukraine, and interstate wars like the polish-soviet war. Can't wait to see what you choose to focus on next.

[stephenwood]

von Ungern Steinberg is one of those people who you'd think was a fictional character if there wasn't good historical evidence claiming otherwise. He was kicked out of the Cossack cavalry for being too violent, spent most of WW1 doing brave-but-rash cavalry charges against the Germans, and, during the Civil War, tried to recreate the empire of Ghengis Khan. The Dalai Lama called him the incarnation of the god of war.

[j.leonardo]

Makhno's role is often understated. The Whites were supposed to get reinforcements from the French in Odessa. The Black Army cut them off from reaching the port at the battle of Peregonovka. After that battle, the seige of Moscow was lifted, and the White army's hope for victory was over.

[charlieclark]

A very good 18.49 minutes worth Stefan ! You put these facts better than some books I've read. The Reds, we promise land, bread and peace. The Whites we promise a return to how things were in 1914, that and a fragmented leadership and aims meant it was hardly surprising the Reds won. There are some strong parallels there with the modern Afghanistan tragedy too. I look forward to your next offering.

[toriidawdy]

Eagerly awaiting the story the Czech battalion ! This answered questions I have had for years, i.e ... Effect of allied forces, Trotsky's effectiveness and popular support . Awesome vid ! Thanks for this community and your attention to my favorite avocation.

[daveanderson]

Your students are very lucky to be able to learn more about subjects such as the revolution and the civil war. At my school, admittedly many moons ago, history was centered on British history and somewhat sketchy.

[jonathangat]

This is a history with a lot of moving parts. Good job Stefan!

[cannabislife]

It’s been rather hard for me to find good videos on the Russian civil war, this is by far the most informative. Thank you

[TravisTaylor-dnui]

The Reds had a coherent ideology that offered more than a return to a failed autocracy. They also could offer minorities their own republics in which they could have their own limited cultural, political and linguistic independence, something the tsarist state never had. This is why the Latvian Rifles were a thing.

[CARL_]

Thanks bro this topic is highlighted so people can undetstand things with facts

[peterhughes]

Excellent summary Stefan - thanks for posting :)

[helloicanseeu]

ty for this good look at another obscure but important history of an important country.

[stephanottawa]

Yes, Stefan, it is certainly complicated. You or rather I need a chart to distinguis who is who and where are they and where are they going. It is particularly confusing for me to understand the presence of White Russian forces on the territories of the newly revived nations such as Lithuania, Latvia or Estonia. I would be very interested in learning more about the interplay between theses forces. Also, I would be interested in the interplay (that might sound like an all too kind word) between the White forces and the various Ukrainian government or attempts at government that arose at the same time as the civil war. Even the word civil war sounds a bit stange as it was anything but civil, but I cannot offer a better suggestion at this time. Thanks again....Stephan

[SpicyTake]

I know battle reviews are interesting to some, but a more interesting video for me would be an in depth look at what types of people supported each faction and why.

[arailway]

Great work, Stefan. Your delivery is a little fast for some of us.
I did not think that your coverage of the bread riots early on,
which sparked the revolution was quite adequate.
Bread riots can do that. With great respect,

[ab]

One reason the reds won is because they made "PM M1910" machine guns mobile by putting them on carriages. In Russian its called "Tachanka". They could be used easily by anyone. The reds would drive these carriages to battle sites and machine gunned there enemies when they made charges. Todays version are the Toyota pickups which are mounted with heavy machine guns/anti-air guns used in certain nations in war and which is said to be highly effective.

[daviddunkelheit]

Wow this was a great presentation. Good flow and continuity. I have a theory about the Bolsheviks and Germany. Germany’s great influence operation or regime change was the release of Bolsheviks on Russia after their development in Germany. Germany couldn’t sustain or win a two front war. The Revolution took place and the Russian Army collapsed. They shifted their resources to the West and nearly defeated the English and French.

[icecoffee]

A war within a war within a war started by a war 👊🏻 another
Excellent episode Stefan 💙

[ernstvandijk]

Uitstekende video, Stefan! Ga zo door!