“ALLIED IN CHARACTER”: U.S. AND BRITISH RELATIONS DURING THE RUSSIAN INTERVENTION, 1918 - 1919

Author

• Zachary J. Rubino, Central Washington UniversityFollow

Document Type

Thesis

Date of Degree Completion

Summer 2026

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

History

Committee Chair

Dr. Roxanne Easley

Second Committee Member

Dr. Jason Knirck

Third Committee Member

Dr. Josue Estrada

Abstract

In 1918, the newly proclaimed Soviet Union signed a separate peace with Germany to remove itself from World War I and attend to a brewing civil war. Great Britain, France, the United States, and other Allied nations, in the thick of fighting in the West, sent a coalition force into Russia. The Allied forces would be led by the British, who hoped to force the new Soviet government to reopen the Eastern Front. The United States joined the coalition reluctantly. Consistent with his policy of national self-determination, President Wilson restricted the 339^th US Infantry Regiment to non-combat roles. However, for the next ten months the 339^th actively fought the Bolsheviks. The difference in mission, the complex Russian political situation, British mistreatment, vicious weather conditions, inadequate supplies, and an unexpectedly effective Red Army caused morale to collapse, particularly after World War I itself ended. The American troops left Russia in June 1919, having failed to accomplish any of the mission’s objectives. Using the Papers of Woodrow Wilson, military reports and communications, and soldiers’ memoirs, this research explores the factors that led the American soldiers to question their purpose in Russia and ultimately the failure of the mission.

Recommended Citation

Rubino, Zachary J., "“ALLIED IN CHARACTER”: U.S. AND BRITISH RELATIONS DURING THE RUSSIAN INTERVENTION, 1918 - 1919" (2026). All Master's Theses. 2375.
https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/etd/2375