Capture of Kazan by the White Army
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The city of
Kazan Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering an ...
was captured by the
White Army The White Army (russian: Белая армия, Belaya armiya) or White Guard (russian: Бѣлая гвардія/Белая гвардия, Belaya gvardiya, label=none), also referred to as the Whites or White Guardsmen (russian: Бѣлогв ...
in August 1918 during the
Russian Civil War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Russian Civil War , partof = the Russian Revolution and the aftermath of World War I , image = , caption = Clockwise from top left: {{flatlist, *Soldiers ...
.


Background

At July, 22,
People Army of Komuch The People's Army of Komuch (russian: Народная армия КОМУЧа) was an Anti-Leninism, anti-Bolshevik army during the Russian Civil War that fought in the Volga Region from June to September in 1918. Organization In May 1918 th ...
together with
Czechoslovak Legion The Czechoslovak Legion (Czech language, Czech: ''Československé legie''; Slovak language, Slovak: ''Československé légie'') were volunteer armed forces composed predominantly of Czechs and Slovaks fighting on the side of the Allies of World ...
(about 3300 men with 4 cannons in common) captured
Simbirsk Ulyanovsk, known until 1924 as Simbirsk, is a city and the administrative center of Ulyanovsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Volga River east of Moscow. Population: The city, founded as Simbirsk (), was the birthplace of Vladimir Lenin (born ...
and on August 1, began to move north in
Kazan Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering an ...
direction. After crushing the detachment of
Reds Reds may refer to: General * Red (political adjective), supporters of Communism or socialism * Reds (January Uprising), a faction of the Polish insurrectionists during the January Uprising in 1863 * USSR (or, to a lesser extent, China) during th ...
(about 2500 men with 10 cannons) began quick advance. Going along the
Volga River The Volga (; russian: Во́лга, a=Ru-Волга.ogg, p=ˈvoɫɡə) is the longest river in Europe. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Caspian Sea. The Volga has a length of , and a catchme ...
, on August, 4 they reached the mouth of the
Kama River The Kama (russian: Ка́ма, ; tt-Cyrl, Чулман, ''Çulman''; udm, Кам) is a long«Река ...
. Reds tried to stop
Whites White is a racialized classification of people and a skin color specifier, generally used for people of European origin, although the definition can vary depending on context, nationality, and point of view. Description of populations as ...
again, but lost and retreated to Kazan. During that battle it became obvious that Red troops were ill-prepared and badly organized. At that time Kazan had 146.000 inhabitants. For the defence of Kazan Reds concentrated about 10 thousand men from all the region. The most effective of the defending troops were "international" detachments: Latvian Riflemen (two regiments), Karl Marx's International Battalion (made from Austrians and Hungarians prisoners, captured by Russians during
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
), the
First Moslem Communist Battalion First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
,
First Tatar-Bashkir Battalion First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
etc.


The battle

The Whites reached Kazan on the evening of 5 August. River ships then went up-stream on the Volga, and the detachment of
Vladimir Kappel Vladimir Oskarovich Kappel (russian: Влади́мир О́скарович Ка́ппель, – January 26, 1920) was a White Russian military leader. Early life Kappel was born into a Swedish-Russian family. He graduated from the Saint ...
landed on the right bank, thereby blocking the river. At the same time two Czechoslovak Battalions landed 5 km down-stream of Kazan and began to advance, but this was stopped by the Latvian Riflemen. Latvians were close to winning, but suddenly a Serbian battalion of Reds, defending the
Kazan Kremlin The Kazan Kremlin (russian: Казанский кремль, Kazanskiy kreml; tt-Cyrl, Казан кирмәне) is the chief historic citadel of Russia, situated in the city of Kazan. It was built at the behest of Ivan the Terrible on the ruin ...
, changed sides and attacked the Latvians from the flank. The Reds retreated to the city through a rainstorm, while the Whites stayed on the battlefield. In the morning of August, 6, Kappel crossed the river and attacked Kazan from the north. The Reds moved their best troops (international brigades) to the north of the city, and the Czechoslovaks used this moment to attack the ill-prepared
Red Guards Red Guards () were a mass student-led paramilitary social movement mobilized and guided by Chairman Mao Zedong in 1966 through 1967, during the first phase of the Cultural Revolution, which he had instituted.Teiwes According to a Red Guard lead ...
from another direction. Using this opportunity, an underground officer organization began a rebellion within the city. By evening the city was encircled by Whites from three sides, and there was fighting inside the city. During the night part of red troops began to breakthrough to the east, in
Sviyazhsk Sviyazhsk (russian: Свия́жск; tt-Cyrl, Зөя, ''Zöya'') is a rural locality (a '' selo'') in the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia, located at the confluence of the Volga and Sviyaga Rivers. It is often referred to as an island since the 19 ...
direction, with another group escaping to the north, to the
Arsk Arsk ( rus, Арск, p=ˈarsk; tt-Cyrl, Арча, ''Arça'') is a town and the administrative center of Arsky District in the Tatarstan, Russia, located on the Kazanka River, from the republic's capital of Kazan. As of the 2010 Census, its ...
. However, most of the red troops were captured by Whites.


Aftermath

After the capture of Kazan the entire General Staff Academy changed sides and joined the White Movement. Reds' retreat from Kazan made possible the Izhevsk-Votkinsk Uprising. But one of the most sensational results was the capture of the Gold Reserves of the Russian Empire, moved to Kazan during the First World War for safety. After capturing Kazan Kappel sent a telegram to
Stanislav Čeček Stanislav Čeček (13 November 1886 in Líšno – 29 May 1930 in České Budějovice) was a Czechoslovak general. Biography Stanislav Čeček was born in Líšno (today part of Bystřice near Benešov), Austria-Hungary. His father, Karel, was ...
(commander of 1st Legionnaire Division):
After two-days fighting, at August, 7, Kazan is captured by the joint forces of Samara Detachment of People Army and Czechoslovaks, together with River Fleet. Trophies are uncountable, we captured the Gold Reserves of Russia - 650 million. Losses of my detachment - 25 men, troops fought fine.
According to
William Henry Chamberlin William Henry Chamberlin (February 17, 1897 – September 12, 1969) was an American historian and journalist. He was the author of several books about the Cold War, communism, and foreign policy, including ''The Russian Revolution 1917-1921'' (19 ...
, "Later this gold came into the possession of the Siberian dictator,
Kolchak Kolchak, Kolçak or Kolčák is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Iliash Kolchak ("Kolchak-Pasha") ( fl. before 1710–1743), Moldavian mercenary and military commander * Alexander Kolchak (1873–1920), Russian naval commande ...
; part of it was spent in buying munitions and other supplies abroad; part of it leaked out of the country in various ways when Kolchak fell; some of the gold was recovered by the Red troops."


Sources

* Н.Е.Какурин, И.И.Вацетис "Гражданская война. 1918-1921" (N.E.Kakurin, I.I.Vacietis "Civil War. 1918-1921") - Sankt-Peterburg, "Polygon" Publishing House, 2002. {{coord missing, Tatarstan
Kazan Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering an ...
Czechoslovak Legion
Kazan Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering an ...
August 1918 events
Kazan Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering an ...
History of Kazan White movement
Kazan Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering an ...