American Expeditionary Force Siberia

The American Expeditionary Force Siberia (AEF Siberia) was a United States Army force that was involved in the Russian Civil War in Vladivostok, Russia, during the tail end of World War I after the October Revolution, from 1918 to 1920.

President Woodrow Wilson's objectives for sending troops to Siberia were as much diplomatic as they were military. One major reason was to rescue the 40,000 men of the Czechoslovak Legions, who were being held up by Bolshevik forces as they attempted to make their way along the Trans-Siberian Railroad to Vladivostok, and it was hoped, eventually to the Western Front. Another major reason was to protect the large quantities of military supplies and railroad rolling stock that the United States had sent to the Russian Far East in support of the prior Russian government's war efforts on the Eastern Front. Equally stressed by President Wilson was the need to "steady any efforts at self-government or self defense in which the Russians themselves may be willing to accept assistance." At the time, Bolshevik forces controlled only small pockets in Siberia and Wilson wanted to make sure that neither Cossack marauders nor the Japanese military would take advantage of the unstable political environment along the strategic railroad line and in the resource-rich Siberian regions that straddled it.ref|Willett1

Concurrently and for similar reasons, about 5,000 American soldiers were sent to Arkhangelsk (Archangel), Russia by President Wilson as part of the separate Polar Bear Expedition.

American Expeditionary Force Siberia

The American Expeditionary Force Siberia was commanded by Major General William S. Graves and eventually totaled 7,950 officers and enlisted men. The AEF Siberia included the U.S. Army's 27th and 31st Infantry Regiments, plus large numbers of volunteers from the 13th and 62nd Infantry Regiments along with a few from the 12th Infantry Regiment.ref|Willett2

The U.S. troops were equipped with the M1903 Springfield rifle, M1918 Browning Automatic Rifles (BAR), and M1911 .45 caliber pistols, depending on their duties.

Although General Graves did not arrive in Siberia until September 4, 1918, the first 3,000 American troops disembarked in Vladivostok between August 15 and August 21, 1918. They were quickly assigned guard duty along segments of the railway between Vladivostok and Nikolsk-Ussuriski in the north.ref|nara

Unlike his Allied counterparts, General Graves believed their mission in Siberia was to provide protection for American-supplied property and to help the Czechoslovak Legions evacuate Russia, and that it did not include fighting against the Bolsheviks. Repeatedly calling for restraint, Graves often clashed with commanders of British, French and Japanese forces, who also had troops in the region and who wanted him to take a more active part in the military intervention in Siberia.

Logistic problems and casualties

The experience in Siberia for the soldiers was miserable. Problems with fuel, ammunition, supplies and food were widespread. Horses accustomed to temperate climates were unable to function in sub-zero Russia. Water-cooled machine guns froze and became useless.

The last American soldiers left Siberia on April 1, 1920. During their 19 months in Siberia, 189 soldiers of the American Expeditionary Force Siberia died from all causes. As a comparison, the smaller American North Russia Expeditionary Force experienced 235 deaths from all causes during their 9 months of fighting near Arkhangelsk. ref|Willett3

ee also

* Polar Bear Expedition
* North Russia Campaign
* Siberian Intervention

Notes

# Robert L. Willett, "Russian Sideshow" (Washington, D.C., Brassey's Inc., 2003), page 166
# Robert L. Willett, "Russian Sideshow" (Washington, D.C., Brassey's Inc., 2003), pages 166-167, 170
# [http://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2002/winter/us-army-in-russia-1.html Guarding the Railroad, Taming the Cossacks The U.S. Army in Russia, 1918–1920] , Smith, Gibson Bell
# Robert L. Willett, "Russian Sideshow" (Washington, D.C., Brassey's Inc., 2003), page 267

External links

* [http://www.nortvoods.net/rrs/japan/index.html The Russian Railway Service Corp in Japan and Siberia]
* [http://www.worldwar1.com/dbc/siberia.htm The Story of the American Expeditionary Forces]
* [http://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2002/winter/us-army-in-russia-1.html Guarding the Railroad, Taming the Cossacks The U.S. Army in Russia, 1918–1920] at [http://www.archives.gov/ The National Archives]
* [http://secretwar.hhsweb.com/ America's Secret War] Hundreds of photos.
* [http://web.mac.com/czechlegion/iWeb/TheCzechLegion/Introduction.html The Czech Legion] Web site of the Czech Legion Project, contains historical information and many photos.
* [http://polarbears.si.umich.edu Polar Bear Expedition Digital Collections] An interactive site featuring the digitized Polar Bear collections of various soldiers and organizations housed at the Bentley Historical Library. The materials consist of more than 50 individual collections of primary source material, including diaries, maps, correspondence, photographs, ephemera, printed materials, and a motion picture.
* [http://pages.prodigy.net/mvgrobbel/photos/polarbear.htm "Detroit's Own" Polar Bear Memorial Association]

Further Reading on the invasion of Russia

*gutenberg|no=10972|name=With the "Die-Hards" in Siberia (1920; Reprint 2004 Reprint ISBN 1-4191-9446-1)
*cite book | author=Foglesong, David S | title=America's Secret War Against Bolshevism: U.S. Intervention in the Russian Civil War, 1917–1920 | location=Chapel Hill | publisher=University of North Carolina Press | year=1995 | id=ISBN 0-8078-2228-0 [http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.cgi?path=10083848781326|Book review] on Humanties and Social Sciences Online. Article retrieved March 10, 2006.
*cite book | author=Goldhurst, Richard | title=The Midnight War | publisher=McGraw-Hill | year=1978 | id=ISBN 0-07-023663-1
*cite book | author=Guins, George Constantine | title=The Siberian intervention, 1918–1919 | publisher=Russian Review Inc | year=1969 | id=ASIN B0007FQDTU
*cite book | author=Hendrick, Michael | title=An Investigation of American Siberian intervention (1918–1920) | publisher=Texas Southern University | year=1972 | id=ASIN: B0006W99ZE
*cite book | author=Hudson, Miles | title=Intervention in Russia 1918–1920: A Cautionary Tale | publisher=Pen and Sword | year=2004 | id=ISBN 1-84415-033-X
*cite book | author=Kindall, Sylvian G. | title=American Soldiers in Siberia | publisher=Richard R. Smith | year=1945 | id=ASIN B000BFHTSU
*cite book | author=Willett Jr., Robert L | title=Russian Sideshow: America's Undeclared War, 1918–1920 | publisher=Potomac Books | year=2005 | id=ISBN 1-57488-706-8
*cite book | author=White, John Albert| title=The Siberian Intervention | publisher=Princeton University Press | year=1950 | id=ASIN: B0007EGUTO

Further Reading specifically on the AEF Siberia

*cite book | author=Graves, William S. | title=America's Siberian Adventure, 1918–1920 | publisher=Ayer Co Pub | year=1940 | id=ISBN 0-405-03083-5
*cite book | author=Gordon, Dennis | title=Quartered in Hell: The Story of the American North Russia Expeditionary Force 1918–1919 | publisher=G O S | year=1982 | id=ISBN 0-942258-00-2
*cite book | author=Maddox, Robert James | title=The Unknown War with Russia: Wilson's Siberian intervention | publisher=Presidio Press | year=1977 | id=ISBN 0-89141-013-9
*cite book | author=Unterberger, Betty Miller | title=America's Siberian Expedition 1918–1920: A Study of National Policy | publisher=Greenwood Press Reprint | year=1969 | id=ISBN 0-8371-0726-1