Komuch and Allies in August 1918

Taken from List of military units, agencies and institutions of the People's Army by A. A. Karevski in White Guard Almanac #3 (Posev, Moscow 1999/2000) except the Kazan numbers, which are from Kappel' and the Kappelevtsy (Posev, Moscow, 2003).

This is the People's Army of the Members of the Constituent Assembly (Komuch) pretty much at its maximum territorial extent, just as the Red Army started to get its act together. Volkov gives the strength of the People's Army at 15,000 bayonets and sabres by the start of August.

Also listed are those Orenburg District Forces designated as part of this army (there were separate Host units as well). But not listed are the Czech forces which supplied much of the strike force at this time.

Even more than usual, this order of battle is an idealised arrangement: in practice with recruitment on-going each division dispatched parts of its forces to the fronts as they could. These assorted detachments were formed into various ad hoc brigades and groups, mixed in with Czechs, partisans and volunteer units.

I have left out all inspectorate positions and most non-fighting units (medical, sanitation, supply etc).

People's Army

15 August 1918

Commander of the Army – Col. N. A. Talkin
Chief of Staff – Col S. A. Shchepikhin
Commander Volga Front – Lt. S. Chechek (Czech Corps)

1st Rifle Division

Division Commander – Maj-Gen. Potapov
Chief of Staff: – ID Capt. Oinas

This division was based in Samara.

Infantry Brigade – Col. Bezborodov

1st Samara Rifle Regiment – temporarily Col. Fedorov (Col. Shmidt)
2nd Samara Rifle Regiment – Capt. Novikov
3rd Samara Rifle Regiment – Col. Petrov
4th Samara Rifle Regiment – Col. Firfarov
St George Rifle Battalion – Lt-Col. Solodovnikov

1st Rifle Artillery Brigade – Lt-Col. Myachkov

1st Divizion – Lt-Col. Shcherban'
2nd Divizion – Lt-Col. Kop'ev
1st Howitzer Divizion – Lt-Col. Grozdev
1st Heavy Field Artillery Divizion – Col. Morozov

1st Samara Cavalry Regiment – Col. Puzyrevskiy

Separate Training MG battalion – Lt-Col. Ivanov

2nd Rifle Division

Division Commander – Col. Bakich
Chief of Staff: – temporarily Staff-Capt. GS Finitskiy

This division was mostly based in Syzran'. The 7th and 8th RR are noted as being based in Khvalynsk.

Infantry Brigade

5th Syzran' Rifle Regiment – temporarily Capt. Dymsha
6th Syzran' Rifle Regiment – Col. Solov'ev
7th Khvalynsk Rifle Regiment – Col. Rozenbaum
8th Volga Rifle Regiment – Capt. Syslov

2nd Rifle Artillery Brigade – Col. Lenivtsev

1st Divizion – Lt-Col. Runkevich
2nd Divizion – Lt-Col. Minaev
2nd Heavy Field Artillery Divizion – vacant

2nd Syzran' Cavalry Regiment – Lt-Col. Fateev

Divisional and attached units:

Engineer Company – Lt. Meshutovich
Auto Company – Lt. Khamidylin
Aviation Platoon 3rd Division – Ensign Speranskiy
Radio Station – Lt-Col. Aleksandrov
Kuznetsov Volunteer Battalion – Staff-Capt. Popov-Presnov
Detachment for the Protection of the Constituent Assembly – Ensign Kovlevskiy

Units subordinate to the Commander of the Syzran' Rayon

Commander of People's Army forces in the Khvalynsk Rayon – Col. G.S. Makhin
Chief of Staff – Capt. Mamleev

Separate Volga Horse Divizion – Esau Solyanskiy

Artillery – Lt-Col. Minaev

3rd Rifle Division

Division Commander – Lt-Gen Lyupov
Chief of Staff: – Capt. Bodrov

The units of this division are recorded as based in the towns for which they are named, with the command "temporarily" in Samara.

9th Stavropol' Rifle Regiment – Col. Mel'nikov
10th Buguruslan Rifle Regiment – Col. Kononov
11th Buzuluk Rifle Regiment – Col. Evetskiy
12th Bugul'ma Rifle Regiment – Col. Voskresenskiy

4th Rifle Division

Division Commander – Maj-Gen. Timanov
Chief of Staff: – Lt-Col. G.S. Pychkov

This division was based in Ufa, apart from the the 15th RR in Belebey.

Infantry Brigade Commander – Col. Pronin

13th Ufa Rifle Regiment – Col. Sakharov
14th Ufa Rifle Regiment – Col. Byrdin
15th Belebey Rifle Regiment – Col. Trampedakh
16th Ufa Tatar Rifle Regiment – ID temporarily Ensign Enikeev
Separate Birsk Rifle Battalion – Capt. Lapionov
Separate Sterlitamak Rifle Battalion – vacan't

Artillery – Col. Kun

Ufa Rifle Artillery Divizion – Lt-Col. Romanovskiy
Separate Ufa Heavy Battery – Lt. Skol'zkov

4th Ufa Cavalry Regiment – vacant

Commander of Engineer Detachment – Capt Kalinovskiy

Engineer Company – Staff-Capt. Popkov
Aeronautical Detachment – Lt. Reyshakh-Rit
Automobile Command – Sub-Lt. Shlyshko
Railway Battalion – Lt. Sukhotin

6th Rifle Division

Commander of Division Formation – Col. Shmidt
Chief of Staff of Formation – Lt-Col. Nikolaev

This regiments were based in the towns whose names they have, with the command in Simbirsk.

21st Simbirsk Rifle Regiment – Col. Kreer
22nd Simbirsk Rifle Regiment – Col. Dunin-Martsinkevich
23rd Sengiley Rifle Regiment – Col. Trampedakh
24th Buinsk Rifle Regiment – ID temporarily Ensign Enikeev

(Kappel') Separate Rifle Brigade

Commander of Brigade – Lt-Col. G.S. Kappel'
Chief of Staff: – temporarily Staff-Capt. Maksimov

See the other KOMUCH page for this unit's make-up.

Other Units

1st Separate Heavy Artillery Divizion – Capt. Sakovich (Samara)

Separate Belebey Squadron – Lt. Gotlung (Belebey)
Simbirsk Horse Detachment – Capt. Ashanin (Simbirsk)

Commander of Engineers – Col. Voinov

All Engineer units were based in Samara, unless noted.

People's Army Engineer Battalion – temporarily Staff-Capt. Sharovskiy
Reserve Engineer Battalion – Capt. Berggrii
1st Telegraph Battalion – temporarily Ensign Morkovskiy
1st Flamethrower-Chemical Battalion – temporarily Lt. Chukaev

1st Air Detachment – Sub-Lt. Yachnik
2nd Air Detachment – Capt. Pestov
3rd Air Detachment – Sub-Lt. Meshcheryakov (St. Lipyagi)
4th Air Detachment – Staff-Capt. Predtechenskiy (Yekaterinburg)
Special Purpose Aerial Brigade – Capt. Nikolaev
People's Army Military Aviation School – Staff-Capt. Ivkov

1st Motor Transport – Ensign Kulev (St. Kinel')
1st Automobile Company – Sub-Lt. Korobov
1st Bicycle Detachment – Lt. Nagurskiy
1st Motorcycle Detachment – Ensign Porokhin

1st Grenade Training Detachment – Staff-Capt. Krylov

5th Mobile Train Workship – Engineer Vostibiynikov (St. Bezynyanka)

Workers' Militia – Col. Krestovskiy

River Defence

Commander River Fleet – Midshipman Ershov
Chief of Staff and Commander of Operational Units – ID Staff-Lt Fomin

All Naval units were based in Samara, except the river defence bases.

Samara base – vacant
Simbirsk base – Midshipman Fokht
Stavropol' base – Lt. Lebedev
Sengiley base – Lt. Barsukov
Syzran' base – Capt Ankudinov
Khalynsk base – Ensign. Kuznetsov

1st River Combat Divizion – Midshipman Meyrer
2nd River Combat Divizion – Midshipman Dmitriev

1st Naval Infantry Company – Staff-Capt. Klement'ev
2nd Naval Infantry Company – Sub-Lt. Avdeychik
1st MG Detachment – Ensign Shpringer
2nd MG Detachment – Sub-Lt. Shemyakin
Commander's Company – Lt. Bochkarev

Military Commanders

Samara – Staff-Capt Venediktov
Syrzan' – Col. Petukhov
Ufa – Col. Rodeus
Buzuluk – Staff-Capt. Malygin
Bugul'ma – Capt. Sbitnev
Buguruslan – Col. Gulyakov
Belebey – Capt. Shlyupikov
Stavropol' – Capt. Zachaynov
Simbirsk – vacant
Khvalynsk – Col. Ushakov
Sterlitmak – Goncharov
Sengiley – Lt-Col. Prokov

Separate Kazan Corps

27 August 1918

Entered the People's Army on 25 August 1918, on the basis of previous formations.

Commander Kazan District Formations – Lt-Gen. Rychkov
Chief of Staff: – Maj-Gen. Vikhirev

1st Kazan Officer Battalion
2nd Kazan Officer Battalion
3rd Kazan Officer Battalion
4th Kazan Officer Battalion – Lt-Col. Banchuk
1st Kazan Volunteer Regiment – Col. Imshenetskiy – 27 officers, 429 men
1st Kazan Rifle (Regular) Regiment – Maj-Gen. Shul'kevich – 57 officers, 1,398 men (9 Companies)
MG Detachment – 2 officers, 80 men

Mounted and Foot Reconnaissance Detachment – 4 officers, 40 men

Sapper Detachment

1st Kazan Cavalry (Volunteer) Regiment – Col. Nechaev

1st Kazan Light Artillery Divizion – 6 guns (3 batteries)

1st Battery, 2nd Kazan Light Artillery Divizion –
1st Kazan Howitzer Divizion – 8 guns (2 batteries)
1st Kazan Heavy Artillery Divizion – 5 guns (two batteries)
Reserve Light Battery – 8 guns
Horse Battery – 2 guns
AA Battery

1st Kazan Separate Engineer Company – temp Capt. Mel'nikov (Col. Brazhnikov) – 50 officers, 260 men

Armoured Train – 20 officers, 8 men
Railroad Detachment – 8 officers, 221 men

1st Kazan Armoured Divizion – 30 officers, 15 men

1st Kazan Telegraph Battalion – ID Lt. Alekseev – 26 officers, 291 men
1st Searchlight Detachment – Lt. Pavel'ev
2nd Searchlight Detachment – Lt. Bannikov

Bicycle Detachment – 8 men

Orenburg Military District

as at the start of September 1918

Forces from Orenburg. This list seems to include only those forces attached to the People's Army. There are separate Orenburg Host Cossack forces as well, but they were on their own front.

Commander – Lt-Gen. A.I. Dutov

5th Rifle Division

Division Commander – Col. Neyzel'
Chief of Staff: – temporarily Lt-Col. Shaposhnikov

Infantry Brigade Commander – Col. Tsyumanenko

17th Orenburg Rifle Regiment – Col. Zhadanovskiy
18th Orenburg Rifle Regiment – temporarily Capt. Korshunov (Col Zhelnin)
19th Orenburg Rifle Regiment – Col. Troyan
20th Orenburg Rifle Regiment – Lt-Col. Tomilov
"Ataman Dutov" Orenburg Volunteer Rifle Regiment – temp. Lt-Col. Razhev (Col. Tomashevskiy)

5th Rifle Artillery Brigade – Col. Bybnov

1st Light Field Artillery Divizion – Col. Laushkin
2nd Heavy Field Artillery Divizion

Divisional and Attached Units

Orenburg Officer Battalion – temporarily Col. Malinovskiy (Col. Gusarskiy)
Orenburg Volunteer Militia
Regular Sapper Company
Regular Railway Company
Regular Defence Company

Separate People's Army Detachment

Detachment Commander – Col. G.S. Makhin

From 21 October, from the Orenburg district, at the Samara front. Note: these units are already listed in the People's Army list, above, as the 2nd ID.

5th Syzran' Rifle Regiment
6th Syzran' Rifle Regiment
7th Khvalynsk Rifle Regiment
8th Volga Rifle Regiment
11th Buzuluk Rifle Regiment

2nd Syzran' Cavalry Regiment

2nd Rifle Artillery Divizion