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Eye-witness Accounts

One can certainly criticise the following accounts for their partiality, but still, they were there and we were not.

All are pdf format.

Caucasian Grenadier

This is the Russian Civil War section of the memoirs of Captain Constantine Popov. He served on the Tsaritsyn front for a while, and the book has some interesting and quite detailed accounts of the fighting there.

Memoirs of a Caucasian Grenadier 1914-1920

Broniewski report

This is a report written soon after the war by a Polish officer who had served for most of it. As an internal report it is as impartial as he could make it, and stays focussed on tactics, rather than propaganda. It is very good on the methods used by Polish infantry.

Captain Wladyslaw Broniewski on his combat experience

Epizody kawaleryjskie

The orignial is a collection of 36 short episodes written by men who served in Polish cavalry units. I have translated some that usefully relate to actions at a wargames level Despite the title, some of the articles are by machine-gunners attached to cavalry units. Not all are glorious victories either.

The original was from 1939, but a cheap 2012 reprint from Napoleon V is available, which is how I got my copy.

In each I have left the place names in the original Polish, but put the modern version in [square brackets] to aid location. I have also left the original editor's notes.

Captain S. Alexandrovicz: My First Victory, How I Got My Brother a Promotion, and Fire Attack and Surprise, Byelorussia, early 1919

Captain F. Bolechowski: Surprise. Ukraine, July 1920

Captain E. Capala: Combat at Suszki and Bielka. Ukraine, October 1920

Major B. Cendrowski; Charge at Piniaziewicze, Ukraine, April 1920

Captain. J. Chludzinski: An episode from the raid on Korosten. Ukraine, October 1920

Major A. Czudowski: Fights of the 12th Lancer Regiment Forcing the Bug River. Bug, 12 September 1920

Colonel K. Drucki-Lubecki: Reconnaissance. Bielorussia, 1919

Captain J. Dworakowski: Charge At Bialozierka, Ukraine, September 1920

Warrant Officer K. Geier: Actions of the 8th Lancer Regiment near Borowo and Sielce,Ukraine, August 1920

Corporal W. Jarosinski: Night Liaison Patrol. Brok, August 1920

Warrant Officer Jaworski: Platoon fight with an armoured car at Cholojow. Ukraine, August 1920

Warrant Officer Jaworski: Charge of the 1st Squadron of the 11th Lancer Regiment at Wiazowiec. Ukraine, September 1920

Colonel J. Karcz: Charge at Worotniów. Ukraine, July 1920

**Warrant Officer T. Mory: Battle at Chaimgrodok. Ukraine, June 1920

Colonel Z. Podhorski: Charge of the 203rd Lancer Regiment near Ciechanów. Above Warsaw, 8 August 1920

Colonel A. Radwan Praglowski: Liaison patrol. Galicia, 1919

Major A. Soltan: Two Sides of the Coin. Ukraine, May 1919

Major M. Stempkowski: Charge at Korzec. Ukraine, September 1920

Colonel A. Szuszkiewicz: Reconnaissance and Attack at Bialycerkiew. Ukraine, May 1920.

Lt-Colonel E. Wania: The Battle of the 9th Lancer Regiment near Soroki. Podolia, 11 June 1919

Major Wieczorkiewicz: The fight for the bridge near Szczolno. Podolia, June 1920

Colonel A. Zakrzewski: Charge at Milewo. Above Warsaw, August 1920

The Lost Legion

This book is quite brilliant in its coverage of the sort of fighting undertaken by the Czech Legion, right from the early days. Becvar writes of his personal experiences, not a history of the Legion as such, but those experiences were quite typical. The book includes 5 maps, which makes it quite a large file.

Many thanks to Steve Turn, who located and photocopied this book for me.

The Lost Legion

Memoirs of Alexander Albov

Dictated in old age by a former member of the Volunteer Army, who served on an armoured train and as an infantryman.

The RCW section of Recollections of Pre-revolutionary Russia, the Russian Revolution and Civil War, the Balkans in the 1930s and service in the Vlasov Army in World War Two

The full document can be found (as a large .pdf file) at the Internet Archive.

Memoirs of Ivan Stenbock-Fermor

Dictated in old age by a former member of the Imperial Army and then the White forces in South Russia, it includes quite a long piece on his time in the Volunteer Army. He served in the regular cavalry.

RCW section of Memoirs of Life in Old Russia, World War I, Revolution, and in Emigration

The full document can be found (as a large .pdf file) at the Internet Archive.

Arms of Valor

The memoirs of a Ukrainian nationalist officer Pavlo Shandruk. It would pay to be a bit familiar with the events in the Ukraine before you read this, as it is otherwise a confusing blur of names, places and events.

Shandruk Account (First part only)

British Documents on Foreign Policy

The following are various reports on the military situation in Poland from 1920 made by British diplomats or officers. They relate to:

1 - Operations against Grodno, September 1920
2 - Operations around Lida, September 1920
3 - A report on Bolshevik Prisoners
4 - "War as waged in Poland"
5 - Excerpts from a report on the state of Poland for the middle of 1920
6 - Excerpts from a report on the state of Poland for the end of 1920

BDFP reports on Poland

Artillery on the Polish-Bolshevik Front, 1919-1920

An account by a US officer of his time during the Polish-Soviet war. Includes both technical artillery details and general observations about the war.

Published in the July and September issues of the Field Artillery Journal for 1923.

The main text
The attached photos

The Anti-Bolshevik movement in South Russia

This article was written by Lieutenant J. N. Kennedy, a British army officer, and originally appeared in the Journal of the Royal United Services Institute.

Much of it is quite commonplace: I have included it only for the personal accounts of the front line.

Kennedy Article
Map A ,   Map B ,   Map C

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