The Czech Legion 1914–20

Osprey Men at Arms #447

by David Bullock, Ramiro Bujeiro (Illustrator)

The Czech Legion was not just a single military unit, but a volunteer army that fielded up to 100,000 troops on the Allied side on all three main fronts in World War I (1914-1918). Since only the defeat of Austro-Hungary and Germany offered any hope of Czech national independence, they were amongst the most motivated and steadfast of the Allied forces in France, the Italian Alps and Russia. In one of the most colorful and extraordinary episodes of the 20th century they fought their way across Russia in the aftermath of the Bolshevik Revolution, captured the Russian national gold reserves in Kazan, and used this as a bargaining chip to force the Bolsheviks to allow them to return home, in an epic journey closely followed by the Western press. The Legion played a central part in the foundation of the Czechoslovakian nation with the leaders of independent Czechoslovakia - Masaryk, Benes and Stefanik - all emerging from the Legion's ranks. Today the Legion is recognized as the founding fathers of Czech nationhood and are idolized by the US Czech community as a result.

Genres: Military History, Nonfiction, History

48 pages, Paperback

First published June 23, 2009

Reviews

[Christophe Bernier · Rating 2 out of 5]

C'est l'histoire de régiments tchécoslovaque qui se sont battus durant le Première Guerre mondiale avant même que la Tchécoslovaquie existe. Ces minorités souhaitaient une défaite des empire centraux afin d'établir un état tchécoslovaque au cœur des vaincus , mais la signature de paix faite par la Russie sous Lénine a bouleversé leurs plans. S'en est suivis de multiples péripéties qui les ont poussés à s'associer aux anti-révolutionnaire blanc, à mettre la main sur l'or du tsar, à se rendre jusqu'à Vladivostok pour prendre des bateaux à destination de la France afin de continuer leur combat contre l'Allemagne et j'en passe...

[Ruppert Baird · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Czech Legion is a legendary formation nearly forgotten outside Eastern Europe. Troops of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, they found themselves widely dispersed in civil war Russia when their own nation, Czechoslovakia, became independent. There trek across the expanse of Russia and home to the new nation is lightly covered in this volume and is a wonderful intro to a fascinating and amazing story.