Russia

Revolution and Civil War, 1917-1921

By: Antony Beevor

Narrated by: Rob Heaps

“Riveting . . . There is a wealth of new information here that adds considerable texture and nuance to his story and helps to set Russia apart from previous works.”—The Wall Street Journal

An epic new account of the conflict that reshaped Eastern Europe and set the stage for the rest of the twentieth century.

Between 1917 and 1921 a devastating struggle took place in Russia following the collapse of the Tsarist empire. The doomed White alliance of moderate socialists and reactionary monarchists stood little chance against Trotsky’s Red Army and the single-minded Communist dictatorship under Lenin. In the savage civil war that followed, terror begat terror, which in turn led to ever greater cruelty with man’s inhumanity to man, woman and child. The struggle became a world war by proxy as Churchill deployed weaponry and troops from the British empire, while contingents from the United States, France, Italy, Japan, Poland, and Czechoslovakia played rival parts.

Using the most up to date scholarship and archival research, Antony Beevor assembles the complete picture in a gripping narrative that conveys the conflict through the eyes of everyone from the worker on the streets of Petrograd to the cavalry officer on the battlefield and the doctor in an improvised hospital.

The most in depth history of the russian Civil War

Fantastic book that truly captures the brutality of civil war in all of its aspects. it amazes me the lengths that Winston Churchill wanted to involve his exhausted country into a continuation of the European and Asian conflict. democracy was never in the cards for the russian people.

Lacks balance

I was looking for a better balance of information between the political and military campaign struggles. The first section of the book provided much better balance, but as the book went on, it turned almost entirely into a description of battles and battlefield atrocities, with very limited references to the simultaneously unfolding and twisting political situations. After effectively setting up Lenin's power plays and perspectives early on, I felt very disconnected from his situation, which was only reintroduced at the very end in summary of the book.

Sweeping

This reminds me of the current Civil War happening in Ukraine, between Slavic, Russians, and Slavic Ukrainians. Perhaps not as bloodthirsty, at least not yet. But just like in the Russian revolution, today’s Ukrainian war is full of different actors, all with different reasons, and all the Farias as to why they are participating in this Civil War.

A nations inhumanity to themselves.

A thoroughly researched read often somewhat difficult to follow unless one is familiar with the geography of this vast area. The savage brutality of the militants was remarkable although familiar to me was vividly portrayed by the author.

Well-presented, abundant facts and testimonies of the unspeakable brutality of the Russian Civil War

This book is a well-organized, vivid, and easy to follow story of a brutal civil war that took place about 100 years ago in Russia. There are many detailed firsthand accounts quoted, many only available in archives, so this book is probably the only source of some of the information presented. It leaves a lasting impression, and makes me want to learn more about the period and events. I also appreciate the impartiality with which Beevor approached the topic. References are excellent, and are great sources to seek to read more (I have bought a few already).

Finally, the book excels at revealing not only the many squandered opportunities on the part of the Whites, but also the deeply flawed and savage nature of humanity itself. It vividly shows the sweeping power of propaganda, the cardboard strength and illusory nature of the concepts of civility and honor in times of societal collapse, and the astonishing ease with which we can devalue others in the name of ideology or survival. Beevor also illustrates the incredible potential for emergence of political genius in previously obscure figures (e.g. Lenin, Trotsky, Stalin) when the circumstances became vulnerable to the force of “great” personalities (there are plentiful examples in history and in current events). Truly, the book ultimately reinforces my conviction that there is no bottom to human cruelty.

A couple of minor qualms: there are a few decent maps in the book, but I could have appreciated having twice as many to follow the events that were occurring all over Russia. Also, the scope of the book is tightly focused on the events themselves, but it does not expand to much extrapolation on the impact of the Revolution and Civil War on the subsequent events of the 20th century. This is not a criticism really, I just like to read good summarizing tangents on world history for a broader historical context. Overall, it’s a true tour de force.