Votkinsk division. Ural workers in Kolchak's army. Between white and red

Uniform of the 15th Votkinsk and Izhevsk rifle divisions (1919); Izhevsk-Votkinsk brigade of the Far Eastern army (1920-1922).

A. Karevsky. On the issue of Izhevsk-Votkinsk uniforms.

The first sign of distinction between Izhevsk and Votkinsk residents was an armband worn on the left sleeve. In relation to the Votkinsk People's Army, the description of which was announced signed by the Chief of Staff Zebziev and senior adjutant Kotsyuba in the newspaper "Izhevsk Defender" dated September 3, 1918 (No. 3), which said: "The People's Army of Votkinsk has a distinctive sign on the left on the sleeve - a red armband, on which two black stripes are depicted (in the form of an St. Andrew's cross, a drawing in the newspaper is attached - A.K.), at the top of a revolver, from the sides the letters "NA", which means "People's Army". Printed at the bottom: "Mr. Votkinsk. The present is made in contrast to the Red Army soldiers, who do not have any distinctive signs. Comrade soldiers, we ask you to remember this in order to avoid misunderstandings and mistakes. As for the Izhevsk people, it is more difficult to say anything definite here: in the Izhevsk People's Army, in general, less attention was paid to strict organizational forms. Although, in the article by I. Kobzev a description of the armbands is given - with crossed revolvers from Votkinsk and crossed rifles from Izhevsk. Officer ranks in both armies were not formally abolished, but they were not used either, so it can be said with certainty that shoulder straps were not worn in them. Those who used uniform headdresses wore St. on this account did not exist.

With a retreat for the river. Kama, the former armed forces of the Kama Territory, reorganized into the Votkinsk division and the Izhevsk brigade, became part of the Kama army group (General S.N. Lupov), and thus fell under the relevant regulations made for the Russian army of the Ufa directory. According to the order of the Commander-in-Chief, General D.V. Boldyrev dated October 2, 1918 No. 7, for the armed forces, the marching uniform of the former army was established with the appropriate insignia and a cockade intertwined with a white-blue-red ribbon ("until the development of a new cockade"). Whether it was worn in rebel units is hard to say. Probably, instead of a cockade, most of them wore only ribbons sewn obliquely on the band of their caps. In the form of continuity with armbands, a red triangular chevron with two crossed revolvers appeared in the Consolidated Votkinsk Infantry Division. This was done in order to externally distinguish the ranks of the division against the background of the rest of the army, as well as to emphasize the commonality of the Votkinsk military personnel in the absence of uniform uniforms (suffice it to recall the review made by the units by General Timanov and described by A.G. Efimov).

Most likely, it was in the army of the Supreme Ruler of Russia, Admiral A.V. Kolchak, Izhevsk and Votkinsk residents received their famous blue shoulder straps and buttonholes with white piping and gaps. According to unverified data, they also had colored caps - with a blue band, a dark green crown and three white piping. There are still disputes about appearance ciphers "Izh" and "Vtk". Not a single intelligible image has been preserved, so there are two opinions about the regiment. Either they were capital, or - straight, Slavic style. The image of this encryption on the St. George banner of the Izhevsk division (substitute banner) speaks in favor of the first option. Color also raises questions: in all known photographs on the shoulder straps of Izhevsk and Votkinsk residents, something darker than White color; on the banner of the Izhevsk people mentioned, the letters were yellow. However, the instrumental metal of these parts was considered silver (white). Finally, according to the manufacturing technique, they were most likely stenciled for the lower ranks and sewn for officers (sewing with satin stitch, colored silk) - everyone’s shoulder straps were soft, anything metallic and laid on in the photographs would immediately catch the eye. At the exhibition held in the Istra Regional Museum of Local Lore, the Russian Army allegedly exhibited the authentic uniform of Colonel A.G. Efimov - the last commander of the Izhevsk-Votkinsk brigade. These are dark blue diagonal riding breeches with white cloth piping, a light green semi-woolen tunic with two patch pockets (without colored piping) and smooth brass buttons; on the shoulders - sewn-on shoulder straps of dark blue cloth with white fabric piping and gaps and a yellow capital cipher "Izh". The belt is French, without shoulder straps. The cap was missing. True, the origin of this uniform is more than doubtful for me: the collector who provided it refused. explain where this uniform came from and how it got to him.

Another controversial issue became the existence of part numbers on shoulder straps. In the available photographs, the officers have neither letters nor numbers; on the other hand, the numbers on the shoulder straps of other regiments in the army of the Supreme Ruler were an obligatory component: an exception was hardly made for Izhevtsy or Votkintsy. On our reconstructions, we present possible options for shoulder straps with numbers and letters.

An interesting fact: in Transbaikalia, the ranks of the Votkinsk artillery battalion, in commemoration of their feat, were granted St. George buttonholes (A.G. Efimov writes about this), and S.N. Lotkov adds that the ranks of the division had the St. George cord on shoulder straps as a distinction. It seems that the artillerymen had buttonholes from the St. George ribbon on their overcoats (on the model of the Reserve St. George regiments of 1917), blue epaulettes with a white edging and a twisted black-orange cord around the perimeter, yellow encryption "Vtk." under crossed gun barrels.

Uniforms of the ranks of the Izhevsk and Votkinsk rifle divisions: captain of the 1st Izhevsk rifle regiment, private of the Izhevsk rifle battalion, colonel of the 57th Votkinsk rifle regiment named after August 17, private of the Votkinsk rifle regiment. Reconstruction by A. Karevsky.

I. 15th Votkinsk and Izhevsk rifle divisions.

Izhevtsy and Votkintsy considered the blue color to be a symbol of the inextricable connection with their factories - iron and steel - the color of their shoulder straps, piping, buttonholes. The letters "Izh" were on the shoulder straps of the Izhevsk people, the letters "Vtk" were worn by the Votkinsk people. Officers and ensigns of the Izhevsk-Votkinsk units never wore galloon shoulder straps: the same blue shoulder straps had white gaps, zigzags, and edges.

Filimonov B.B. White rebels. Khabarovsk campaign. Winter 1921-1922 Shanghai: Word, 1932. Book 1. P.32.

Shoulder straps of the Izhevsk separate rifle division (as of August 1919): major general, division commander (V.M. Molchanov); captain (1st Izhevsk Rifle Regiment); ensign (4th Izhevsk Rifle Regiment R11; version of shoulder straps sent by the Supreme Ruler in September 1919); ensign (Izhevsk artillery division) - reconstruction by A. Karevsky.

Shoulder straps of the Izhevsk separate rifle division (as of August 1919): corporal (1st Izhevsk rifle regiment); junior non-commissioned officer (2nd Izhevsk Rifle Regiment); senior non-commissioned officer (3rd Izhevsk rifle regiment; sergeant major (4th Izhevsk rifle regiment). - reconstruction of A. Karevsky.

Shoulder straps of the Izhevsk separate rifle division (as of August 1919): Corporal (Izhevsk engineering division (later R11; company); junior non-commissioned officer (Izhevsk artillery division); private (Izhevsk reserve battalion); Private (Izhevsk cavalry regiment and Izhevsk Jaeger Battalion) - reconstruction by A. Karevsky.

Officer of rifle units (here R11; wearing a colored cap, which was rare); shooter of the 2nd Izhevsk rifle regiment; officer of the Izhevsk Cavalry Regiment (formerly R11; Izhevsk Cavalry Division). Artist - A. Lebedeva.

(December 1918, Prikamye). Units of the People's Army reduced to a division began to be called Consolidated Votkinskaya infantry division. A distinctive sign was a red triangular chevron on the left arm with two painted crossed revolvers.

Prostnev S.K. The 15th Votkinsk Rifle Division in the armies of Admiral Kolchak and the governments of the Far East // Votkinsk Mosaic. Votkinsk, 2003. Part 1. S. 119.

(Patch "Votkinsk" signs and epaulettes - reconstructions of A. Karevsky, K. Kulagin).

(September 1919 Tobolsk operation). Back in September, during the offensive to Tobol, Admiral Kolchak, foreseeing the possibility of complications in the rear, was going to send a tested, reliable unit with an energetic commander to Irkutsk to maintain order and tranquility at this important point. His choice fell on the Izhevsk division under the command of Gen. Molchanov. For preliminary preparations for the movement of the division, Admiral Kolchak sent to Gen. Molchanov one staff officer from his headquarters. The envoy arrived at the division, brought to the entire composition of the division, as a gift from Admiral Kolchak, khaki shoulder straps ...

Efimov A.G. Izhevtsy and Votkintsy // Bulletin of the pioneer. Los Angeles, 1970. No. 92. P.41.

The uniforms of the Izhevsk-Votkinsk and Volga Rifle Brigades were insufficient. Parts performed in overcoats of the old Russian model, in boots or boots. Hats - who had hats, but the vast majority - cloth hats with ears, adopted in the Siberian army under Admiral Kolchak. Warm knitted shirts were issued for part of the squad. For hands - shooting gloves on goat fur.

In this form, the units went to the front. Already there, for the units of the first line (Izhevsk-Votkinsk, Volga, 1st Rifle and 2nd Rifle Brigades), a significant number of American high rubber galoshes were issued in Iman. Such shoes were unsuitable for hiking: dressed on boots, they became an extra burden. Without boots, in the conditions of Russian Siberian campaigns, it was inapplicable, because: 1) in a warm room, rubber gives moisture, footcloths get wet, quickly freeze when they enter the cold, and frostbite becomes more possible, 2) for infantry wandering through bushes, bumps and stones, rubber breaks very quickly. Light and comfortable in a peaceful environment, galoshes were absolutely unsuitable in a campaign. Rumors said that the galoshes were supplied by the Merkulov brothers themselves.

The equipment of the fighters consisted of leather artillery satchels or various types of duffel bags up to and including English bread bags. The cartridges were placed in pouches (of the old Russian model), a pair per fighter, and bandoliers sewn from a drill. These bandoliers were no good, as the clips fell out easily.

Filimonov B.B. White rebels. Khabarovsk campaign. Winter 1921/22// The last battles in the Far East. M., 2005. S.85-87.

The mention of shoulder straps of the Votkinsk division is found in the book of V.M. Naumov “My Memoirs” (San Francisco, 1975), where a reconnaissance skier of the 1st Votkinsk Regiment recalled on page 19: “There were terrible frosts. And then came the wagons with shoulder straps. And they were ordered to wear epaulettes. We said so: "They sent a wagon full of shoulder straps." Before that, we wore armbands with the sign of the People's Army and to us, to the people's militia, whole companies with officers and volunteers came from the villages. With the advent of shoulder straps, this stopped ... "

The “Memo about the struggle of Izhevtsev and Votkintsev with the Bolsheviks” (page 12) mentions the following episode: “Before reaching the station of Yegorshino, the Votkintsy had to again engage in battle with the pressing Reds. Here, in the 60th Chistopolsky Regiment, a battalion was cut off under the command of Lieutenant Bulygin. He gathered a battalion and ordered everyone to take off (do not cut off! - S.P.) shoulder straps, and then led the shooters through the forests, trying not to go out on the roads and to settlements, and went to the city of Kamyshlov ”(Kamyshlov was taken on July 25 - S.P.).

In the article “Votkintsy”, published in the newspaper “Nasha Zarya” (Omsk, August 15, 1919), the following was said: “They say about this division that it is far from the same as it was before; they still don’t wear shoulder straps; people are not disciplined, do not salute, etc. All this is noted as follows. The Votkinsk people really did not wear shoulder straps, because they often carried out intelligence service, what to do with shoulder straps is completely impossible. when shoulder straps and honor were not required. Officers and soldiers treat each other simply, often in a familiar way, which is always observed in troops living for a long time at the front in a purely combat situation.

The materials were kindly provided by the Votkinsk researcher S.K. Prostnev

(January 1919 Izhevsk brigade)

In the 2nd regiment, the soldiers were mainly from the villages around the Izhevsk plant. This regiment was drawn up to welcome me, with a band of sixty men. They had virtually no form. For example, one of the musicians was in civilian clothes, someone was wearing ordinary boots, someone was wearing felt boots. God knows how they were dressed, but they played excellently ... The 1st regiment was less disciplined during the review than the rest, but they certainly knew how to handle rifles. I walked slowly around and inspected their formation. Their orchestra was the same as the one I had already heard. I told them: "I will not take any of you into battle if you are not properly dressed." The 7th company of the 1st regiment consisted exclusively of former artisans of the Izhevsk plant. These were educated people, and they were said about them like this: "They do not like discipline, but they are always the first in battle." I didn't give of great importance discipline during the review, but I realized that the first thing I had to do was to bring them into a “Christian look”, as far as clothes and uniforms were concerned. I then called them "ragamuffins" ... In the cavalry battalion, the uniform was terrible, in the 2nd squadron, most were sitting not in saddles, but on pillows.

Molchanov V.M. Interview recorded by B. Raymond (Bancroft Library, University of California at Berkeley, USA) in 1970// Molchanov V.M. The last white general. M., 2009. S. 113, 115, 117.

Shortly after the review, I received an order to move my brigade to the front lines by March 6, 1919, and prepare for a general offensive. I was included in the 3rd Army Corps, commanded by General Golitsyn. Once he came to us to review the brigade. He didn't say anything after that, but I could see from the expression on his face that he thought we were complete ragamuffins. This was due to the fact that some of his other regiments, for example, in the 7th Ural division, were trained according to pre-war Prussian standards.

Molchanov V.M. Interview recorded by B. Raymond (Bancroft Library, University of California at Berkeley, USA) in 1970// Molchanov V.M. The last white general. M., 2009. P.117.

(April 1919)

Then I learned that Admiral Kolchak, as the Supreme Ruler, promoted me to the rank of major general. The soldiers heard about this and handed me the general's pants with stripes, they were the only ones I had.

Molchanov V.M. Interview recorded by B. Raymond (Bancroft Library, University of California at Berkeley, USA) in 1970// Molchanov V.M. The last white general. M., 2009. P.125.

(September 1919)

When I was still with the division on the Tobol River, an officer came to me General Staff, colonel from Kolchak, and brought shoulder straps "Izh" to the entire division (2nd "Izh", 3rd, 4th, and so on). And I have shoulder straps. I tell him:

We can keep these shoulder straps, but when we go into battle, we don’t have officers, we don’t have any ranks, we all have privates. And if he was captured, no one will ever extradite an officer. This is our first condition.

R.: So that the Reds do not shoot?

Yes, because we are all the same ... I say:

I can also wear these distinctions only when I am in the rear, but when I go into battle, I don’t have any distinctions.

Molchanov V.M. Interview recorded by B. Raymond (Bancroft Library, University of California at Berkeley, USA) in 1970// Molchanov V.M. The last white general. M., 2009. P.141.

Shoulder straps of the 15th Votkinsk rifle division (as of May 1919): colonel (57th Votkinsk rifle regiment named after August 17); second lieutenant (15th Votkinsk Light Artillery Battalion); ensign (15th Votkinsk sapper battalion). Reconstruction by A. Karevsky.

Shoulder straps of the 15th Votkinsk Rifle Division (as of May 1919): Corporal (57th Votkinsk Rifle Regiment named after August 17); junior non-commissioned officer (58th Saygatsky named after Czechoslovakian rifle regiment); senior non-commissioned officer (59th Osinsky named after Minin and Pozharsky rifle regiment); sergeant major (60th rifle regiment named after the Allied Powers) Reconstruction by A. Karevsky.

Shoulder straps of the 15th Votkinsk Rifle Division (as of May 1919): Private (15th Votkinsk Engineer Battalion); Corporal (15th Votkinsk Light Artillery Battalion); private (15th Votkinsk reserve regiment). Reconstruction by A. Karevsky.

Sergeant Major of the Votkinsk Artillery Division (Transbaikalia-Primorye); shooter and officer of the Votkinsk rifle units. (artist A. Lebedeva).

II. Izhevsk-Votkinsk brigade of the Far Eastern Army (1920-1922)

(Transbaikalia, 1920) The dashing Votkinsk artillerymen had a special distinction - the St. George cord on shoulder straps; they are led by their regiment commander. Almazov made up an extremely close-knit artillery family. To everyone’s surprise, they were the only ones in the entire Siberian army who took all their guns with them from the Ice Campaign ...

Lotkov S.N. Kamsko-Votkinsky plant and its workers // Ural and Kama region. November 1918 - January 1919: Popular resistance to communism in Russia. Paris: YMCA-press, 1982. P. 439.

Shoulder straps of the Izhevsk-Votkinsk rifle brigade (as of 1920-1922): Lieutenant (Votkinsk artillery division); private (Izhevsk Rifle Regiment); private (Votkinsky rifle regiment). Reconstruction by A. Karevsky.

(Transbaikalia, 1920) The Votkinsk people retained their artillery during the entire Siberian campaign and came with it to Transbaikalia. For this, the composition of the division was awarded the St. George buttonholes.

Efimov A.G. Izhevtsy and Votkintsy // Bulletin of the pioneer. Los Angeles, 1967. No. 71-72. P.22.

Molchanov V.M. Interview recorded by B. Raymond (Bancroft Library, University of California at Berkeley, USA) in 1970// Molchanov V.M. The last white general. M., 2009. P.162.

Buttonholes: Votkinsk units, Izhevsk units, St. George award buttonholes of the Votkinsk artillery division. (Reconstruction - A. Karevsky).

Fragment of an overcoat and epaulette of an ensign of the 1st Votkinsk artillery battalion (Reconstruction by K. Kulagin).

(Khabarovsk campaign, winter 1921-1922) The uniforms of the Izhevsk-Votkinsk and Volga region rifle brigades were insufficient. Parts performed in overcoats of the old Russian model, in boots or boots. Hats - who had hats, but the vast majority - cloth hats with ears, adopted in the Siberian army under Admiral Kolchak. Warm knitted shirts were issued for part of the squad. For hands - shooting gloves on goat fur.

Filimonov B.B. White rebels. Khabarovsk campaign. Winter 1921/22// The last battles in the Far East. M., 2005. P.85.

(Izhevsk-Votkinsk brigade, January 1922) ... Colonel Efimov decided in orders to call the regiments by numbers: 1st, 2nd and kondiv, but so that there would be no misunderstandings when meeting with his ... he added "Blue" to the numbers - shoulder strap color...

Filimonov B.B. White rebels. Khabarovsk campaign. Winter 1921/22// The last battles in the Far East. M., 2005. P.346.

III. Shoulder straps and overcoat of Lieutenant General V.M. Molchanov (camp in Girin, 1923).

(General V.M. Molchanov, 1921) ... in a gray soldier's overcoat with blue buttonholes, piping and shoulder straps with white cloth, and not a silver general zigzag and the letters "Izh" on them ...

Filimonov B.B. White rebels // White Army of Admiral Kolchak. M.: Reitar, 1997. P. 126.

Reconstruction from photographs in the book: Efimov A.G. Izhevtsy and Votkintsy. The fight against the Bolsheviks 1918-1920. M., 2008. P.321.

Izhevsk division of Kolchak

created by order of Kolchak on August 14. 1919 from the Izhevsk brigade, replenished with volunteers and mobilization. residents of Udmurtia and the Urals, in the main. from the participants of the Izhevsk-Votkinsk anti-Bolshevik uprising. She fought against the advancing Red troops of the 5th Army of M.N. Tukhachevsky. Izhevsk were part of the shock gr. gen.-leit. S.N. Voitsekhovsky. As a result of the defeat in the Chelyabinsk operation in div. a little over 500 bayonets remained. Aug 14 1919 bred in arm. Reserve allocated for the Tobol River. To con. Aug. Izhevsk created 14 recruiters. points from Omsk to Novonikolaevsk for the recruitment of soldiers from among the refugees In Tomsk, a special was opened. a bureau for the arrangement of Izhevsk residents, a collection of donations. In con. Aug. led a fierce fighting near the city of Petropavlovsk, was surrounded, but thanks to the efforts of the commander of the gene. V. M. Molchanova managed to escape. Transferred to the Volga gr. 3rd army. Aug 30 received reinforcements - the 4th Orenburg Cossack Regiment and launched an offensive against the Reds, broke through the front. K ser. sept. div. retired and reformed. In the beginning. Jan. 1920 Izhevsk approached Krasnoyarsk, where the army of V.O. S.N. Voitsekhovsky and moved to Irkutsk. Feb 6 on the outskirts of Irkutsk, she was defeated and, bypassing the city, went to Transbaikalia. 3rd and 4th regiments I.D.K. were almost completely destroyed. The rest of the div. located in the district of Chita. Gene. Molchanov became a com. 3rd sec. shooter corps, the backbone of which was the Izhevsk and Votkinsk div. Oct 19 1920 in the area of the station Borzya, where the Germans held the defense, fierce battles unfolded. For a month of fighting, Izhevsk lost approx. 400 people The rest of the div. retreated to Manchuria, then moved to Primorye. By the spring of 1921, there were 1506 people from Izhevsk and Votkinsk, incl. 231 officers. Soon all whites. parts were united under the command of Gen. Molchanov in Belopovstanch. army, in a swarm of Izhevsk and Votkinsk people made up a department. Izhevsk-Votkinsk brigade (975 bayonets, 245 sabers, 2 guns). Com. brigades of the regiment A.G. Efimov. From 22 Nov. 1921 she drove the Reds out of Spassk, from 21 to 22 December. from Khabarovsk, in Dec. - Feb. fought on st. Volochaevka. Feb 27-28 The Izhevsk-Votkinsk brigade took the last battle at the Bikin station, then went to Primorye under the protection of the Japanese units. The remnants of the Izhevsk and Votkinsk people remained in Primorye until the middle. oct. 1922. Having suffered the end. defeated at Spassk, they crossed the Chinese border and were interned places. the authorities. Some of them returned to Soviet Russia, some went to California (USA), some remained in China and participated in the Okhotsk campaign of Gen. A.N. Pepelyaeva (1923). She was awarded the St. George Banner and the St. George Cross IV Art.

Lit.: Kulikov K.I. In the battles for Soviet Udmurtia. Izhevsk, 1982; Dmitriev P.N., Kulikov K.I. Rebellion in the Izhevsk-Votkinsk region. Izhevsk, 1992.

K.I.Kulikov

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II. Kolchak's offensive

From the book The Soviet Republic and the Capitalist World. Part II. Civil War author Trotsky Lev Davidovich

II. Kolchak's offensive

The chains of bloody oppression are thrown off,

Together the enemy destroyed the people,

And dashing work began to boil:

The worker came to life and the factory came to life.

Hammer abandoned, bayonets and grenades

Set in motion by a valiant hand,

What are not heroes and what are not soldiers

People going into battle with songs.

People in love with bright distances

People of perseverance, courage, labor,

People from ingots of iron and steel,

People whose name is "ore".

Who has not heard how he fought with enemies

Izhevsk regiment under bloody Ufa,

As with an accordionist he rushed to the attack,

Izhevets is a simple Russian worker.

The years will pass. In a free homeland

There will be many beautiful ballads,

But will not be forgotten in the folk song

Izhevets is a Russian worker-soldier.

The Izhevsk division was formed from the workers of the factory of the same name, who rebelled against the Bolsheviks in August 1918. In addition to the Izhevsk workers, the workers of the neighboring Votkinsk plant also rebelled against the Bolsheviks, who formed a separate Votkinsk division.

Later, the workers of both factories were brought together in a special Izhevsk-Votkinsk brigade.

The uniform colors of the Izhevsk and Votkinsk residents were blue (a symbol of connection with their factories - iron and steel) and white (the color of the White Movement).

These units were distinguished by a very high combat capability. Contemporaries described the crushing attacks of the Izhevsk workers as follows: “They did not recognize the bayonet, and when the moment of hand-to-hand combat came, they threw their rifle on a belt behind their back and took out their long working knives. According to numerous eyewitnesses of these decisive moments of the attack, the Reds could not withstand one kind of this manipulation and took to flight in order to avoid hand-to-hand combat with such a determined enemy. It is interesting to note here that the Izhevsk and Votkinsk divisions remained invincible throughout the Civil War.(see Vorobyov A. Rebellion at the Izhevsk and Votkinsk plants in August 1919. - Sentry (Brussels), 1987, No. 663, p. 10).

We add that in the fall of 1919, the Supreme Ruler of Russia, Admiral Alexander Vasilyevich Kolchak, granted the Izhevsk Division the honorary St. George banner - the highest collective award for military prowess. Currently, this banner is stored in the Irkutsk Museum of Local Lore.

Who opposed the Russian workers who rose up for their country against a handful of criminals who imagined themselves to be in power?

“In mid-August, in the Urals, in the factory towns of Votkinsk and Izhevsk, none other than the workers themselves, the workers of state arms factories, rose up against the “workers’ and peasants’” authorities. /.../ On the morning of August 7, armed with rifles captured at the factory, the Izhevsk people raised an uprising and entered into battle with the Red Army battalion and a detachment of Austrian internationalists. By evening, the Austrian internationalists were destroyed, and the remnants of the Red Army battalion fled the city.

The organizer of the uprising, non-commissioned officer Oskolkov, turned to the regiment located at that time in Izhevsk. D. I. Fedichkin to accept the Izhevsk Workers' Regiment under his command. August 15 Col. Fedichkin, having defeated the Red Army garrison in a short battle, captured the Galiany wharf and took control of the Kama, along which the Soviet flotilla cruised. The commander of the 2nd Soviet Army, Reinhold Berzin, sent a group of Soviet troops to the Galyan region, led by the Ufa Latvian battalion, numbering 500 riflemen and 30 cavalrymen with 26 machine guns. /…/ With a swift attack, the Latvians drove the Izhevsk out of Galyan on August 18 and, together with other red units, went on the offensive against Izhevsk. But before the commander of the Latvian battalion J. Reinfeld had time to throw his shooters to storm Izhevsk, a new enemy appeared in the rear of his group of troops. Workers in the nearby town of Sarapul, having arrested the entire Sarapul Soviet and local Chekists, formed an anti-Soviet detachment.

At the same time, workers in the neighboring town of Votkinsk also rebelled, who, under the command of Captain Yuryev, hit the Ufa Latvian battalion on the flank and forced it, along with other Red Army units, to retreat to the west.

On September 24, the 7th Bausky lat was sent from Petrograd to liquidate the rebellion of the Izhevsk and Votkinsk workers. strl. regiment, Latvian artillery battalion and cavalry detachment. On September 29, Latvian riflemen landed 100 km north of Votkinsk, at the Cheptsa station, from where, uniting with units of the Special Vyatka Division, they launched an offensive against Votkinsk.

At the news that the Latvian riflemen had arrived, the peasants left the villages and fled to the forest, because the rumor about their reprisals against the Yaroslavl rebels, about their adamant loyalty to Lenin, etc. reached these remote places/…/. This was repeated in every village /…/. Of course, the arrows did not kill all the inhabitants and did not burn all the villages, but it was enough that they shot the relatives of the peasants who had joined the rebellious workers. Otherwise, the peasants would not be hiding in the forests. The names of the commander of the 7th Bauska Lat. strl. the regiment of Manguls and the Latvian commander V. Azin, who perpetrated a bloody massacre in Votkinsk and Izhevsk, after being captured by the Reds, were pronounced here only with a curse.

October 7, 35 km from Votkinsk, 7th Bauska Lat. the rifle regiment and the Special Vyatka Division met with the Votkinsk detachments, commanded by Captain Yuryev. The battles were fierce and long, at first with varying success. But over time, well trained and having combat experience in the 1st World War, the Latvian riflemen, using detours from the flanks and attacking with concentrated forces, began to win victories. The overwhelming number of Votkinsk workers never served in the army, because, as employed in arms factories, they were exempted from military service; they did not have officers either - sergeants and non-commissioned officers commanded companies and platoons. But in courage and stamina they were not inferior to the arrows. The battle went on for more than a month, only sometimes dying down for a day or two.

At the same time, the 2nd Soviet consolidated division under the command of the old Latvian communist Valdemar Azin was advancing on Izhevsk. In the 247th regiment, which was part of this division, there were two Latvian companies. The regiment was commanded by J. Reinfeld, the former commander of the Ufa Latvian battalion defeated by the Izhevsk people. The regimental commissar was Reinberg; a detachment of mounted scouts was commanded by T. Kalnyn; 3rd battalion - his brother Zh. Kalnyn; machine gun team - Osis; the economic part is a communist since 1905. Kondrate. So although there were only two Latvian companies in the 247th regiment, command posts were mainly occupied by red Latvians. In the 2nd Soviet consolidated division there were also parts of the Hungarian internationalists.

On November 7, Divisional Commander V. Azin threw his division into the assault on Izhevsk. The alarm sounded in the city. On defense hometown the whole population rose. Izhevsk workers rushed to the counterattack, but in the first battle they lost over 800 killed. The battle lasted three days, but the Izhevsk people could not repulse the red regiments, abundantly supplied with machine guns and artillery. On November 9, Azin himself, on an armored train, rushed to break through the defense, mowing down the defenders of the city with machine guns. On November 10, under the cover of night, the workers' detachments, together with part of the population, left the city.

In the morning, divisional commander V. Azin proceeded to massacre the population remaining in Izhevsk. Relatives of recalcitrant workers, including old men and women, were shot on the very first day by order of V. Azin. The bloody Yaroslavl bath was repeated. For the capture of Izhevsk, V. Azin was awarded the Order of the Red Banner.

These two provisions decisive role Latvian riflemen in the suppression of the Izhevsk uprising and their subsequent direct participation in the Red Terror remain a common place even in recent works by the Rebellion. So, in particular, A.A. Sheptalin claims that “The most loyal and combat-ready forces of the Red Army were thrown into the suppression of the uprising, half of which were “internationalists” distinguished by their cruelty - parts of the Latvian and Chinese shooters, as well as mercenaries from former prisoners of war of the Hungarians, Austrians, Germans and Turks.” He is echoed by A.A. Petrov: “/…/ The Izhevsk workers had no choice but to launch a massive unarmed bayonet attack on the factory whistle on the morning of November 7th. /…/ Azin was saved from a completely unexpected and crushing defeat only by the steadfastness of the Latvian regiment of Cheverev.

Anatoly Gutman-Gan, a former journalist of the rebel publications Izhevsk Defender, People's Power, and others, writes: “/…/ Bolshevik terror fell upon Sarapul with all its might. Sailor Vorozhtsov and Commissar Sedelnikov personally came to the prison at night and shot the victims planned according to pre-compiled lists. Everyone who got into prison knew that he, in all likelihood, would never get out of there. After a night of bloody orgies, the remaining arrested were forced to wash the floors and walls of the prison, spattered with blood. In June 1918, at the denunciation of his own workers, the Sarapul tannery David Usherenko was arrested with his two sons, students of the local real school. He was charged with possession of weapons. For several days, he and the arrested boys were mercilessly tortured and tortured. Finally, sailors arrived at the prison at night, brutally killed them, and their corpses, completely disfigured, were thrown into Kama.

Bloody terror, continues Gutman-Gan, also dominated the Izhevsk plant, located 70 miles from Sarapul. There was no Cheka here, but her duties were performed by the local executive committee. Here they killed not only the intelligentsia, but also peasants and workers suspected of counter-revolution. In villages and villages, Latvian commissars, sent from the centers, carried out executions, requisitions of bread, honey, butter, eggs and livestock /…/

In the book of memoirs of the legendary commander of the Izhevsk people, General V.M. Molchanov, when describing the events of the spring of 1919, it is attested: “When I arrived at the front line of the Second Regiment (we are talking about the Izhevsk division and the famous Izhevsk attack - to the accordion, with the nurse Lida Popova dancing in front), I found that we were opposed by a regiment of first-class Red fighters, the Third International Regiment. It was a particularly trusted fighting unit of the Red Army, which consisted of Chinese, Latvians, Hungarians, Communists, and I think a number of Germans.

In the same tone as both of his commanders - Fedichkin and Molchanov, considers the Latvian theme in his memoirs, which were published in 1975 in San Francisco, and an ordinary participant in those events, V.M. Naumov.
“Our detachment began to carry out reconnaissance. /…/ Not far from the village, we noticed a cavalry detachment approaching us, much larger than ours. Approaching, they shouted - "Who is going?". We answered - “Own” and, approaching close, put their Latvian commissar down. The detachment immediately turned back /…/. The commissar we had taken prisoner during our first skirmish was sentenced to death by firing squad. How did it happen - did the guards let him go, or did he manage to escape when they led him through the forest, in any case, he was after in our village, when we had already left for Kama, he was at the head of the red detachments ".

«/…/ At this time, Izhevsk and Votkinsk,- continues Naumov, - kept in touch and acted in full contact. Echelons were sent from Petrograd to our front, mainly detachments of Letts and Magyars were sent, but there were also several companies consisting exclusively of Chinese. Now, looking into that distant past, it becomes clear why such detachments were sent to Izhevsk and Votkinsk from red Petrograd; sending Russian detachments against the insurgent Russian workers was dangerous, and the Magyars, Letts and Chinese - all this was a hired "army" ready to go against anyone. The Latvians and Magyars held on very steadfastly, while the Chinese were literally no good in battles, many of them died during the battles sunk in Kama..

A participant in the Izhevsk-Votkinsk uprising, in September-October 1918, the commander of the Izhevsk rifle regiment, later the commander of the Izhevsk-Votkinsk brigade A.G. Efimov recalled: “From the side of Galiana on this day, an offensive of large Red forces began. This time they mustered everything they could from their 2nd Army and sent about 6,000 men to Izhevsk with eight 3-inch guns, two field howitzers and 32 machine guns. There were a significant number of communists and Latvians and Magyars loyal to the Reds in the detachment..

“/…/ Intensified preparations were underway in the red camp to suppress the uprising of the Izhevsk and Votkinsk people. The defeat, flight and complete collapse of the 2nd Red Army and the obvious sympathy and assistance of the peasants to the insurgent workers made the uprising extremely dangerous for the red government. The unreliability of those mobilized from the local population made it necessary to send troops from the center of the country. Perseverance in combat clashes required the dispatch of especially persistent units made up of communists, from detachments of “extraordinary forces”, from Latvians and Chinese/…/. Detachments of hired foreigners in their cruelty did not differ from home-grown communists, and the struggle took on a ferocious, bloody character with heavy losses on both sides.

Izhevsk, who were on the "Northern" front, recalled how they had to deal with some kind of international regiment, in which all the soldiers were dressed in red shirts. Very intoxicated, they, with the singing of the “International”, which turned into a wild roar when approaching, rushed at their enemy, suffered heavy losses, but repeated the attacks several times /…/”.

«/…/ The stubbornly fighting detachment of the Reds consisted of Latvians. The main forces of Lieutenant Vershinin's group and the left bypass company did not have time to take part in the battle. But on the column of the main forces, following the road, the Reds opened fire from the direction of the village of Yakshur-Badya.

/…/ Around this time (according to other sources, it was earlier), Lieutenant Drobinin, near the village of Mishkino, dealt a crushing blow to the 4th Latvian Regiment, capturing several guns, machine guns and many prisoners, and turning the Red Latvians into a hasty flight. /…/

After holding out for more than a month, Kazan was captured by the Reds. They did not undertake an energetic pursuit of the retreating Kazan garrison, and he quite calmly crossed the Kama River near the village of Epanchino near Laishev. The Red troops, liberated near Kazan, directed against the Izhevsk and Votkinsk people, in a hurry to put an end to the uprising. First of all, they were transferred: Azin's detachment, which formed the 2nd Consolidated Division (then the 28th), and the Latvian regiments. The 4th Latvian regiment, as noted earlier, was defeated by the Votkinites, and the 5th Latvian regiment, which was badly damaged during the capture of Kazan by Colonel Kappel, apparently acted from the side of the city of Glazov.

“The fact of the Izhevsk uprising created confusion in the Soviet ranks. It was a terrible blow to the heart. Soviet power. After all, it was not the officers and generals of the old army that revolted in Izhevsk, not the capitalists or the urban bourgeoisie. The workers and peasants revolted against the "workers' and peasants' power".

The Izhevsk uprising in the rear of the Kazan group of red detachments was a mortal blow, threatened to cut off from the Kazan base Soviet army who operated on Vyatka, Kama, Belaya. Therefore, in Moscow, the news of the Izhevsk uprising caused a panic. Trotsky's hysterical orders "to raze the perfidious Izhevsk and Votkinsk to the ground", "to ruthlessly destroy the Izhevsk and Votkinsk residents with their families" rained down. From Moscow, Petersburg, Kazan, communist and Latvian units were moved, given the task of clearing the Izhevsk-Votkinsk region of whites at all costs.

There was a strong armed flotilla of the Reds in Sarapule, there were also many Latvian units. Throughout August, the Reds repeatedly made attempts to land troops on the piers of Golyana and Galevo, intending to attack Izhevsk and Votkinsk from there, but all these operations ended in failure: the Reds were not able to resist the inspired and brave Izhevsk and Votkinsk residents. /…/ Under such unfavorable conditions, the rebel army had to endure continuous battles with the Reds. It was especially difficult for the Votkinsk people, who were attacked from both sides by the Sino-Latvian detachments. The forcibly mobilized peasants were driven on the offensive by the Latvians, placing machine guns in the rear. /…/ At that moment, the Reds surrounded Izhevsk and launched a decisive attack on the city from two sides. The headquarters and part of the detachments barely managed to escape on the road to Votkinsk, and thousands of residents and workers did not have time to escape and fell under the power of the Reds.

Eyewitnesses of the capture of Izhevsk by the Reds convey the following details of the massacre of civilians. On November 7, the Reds quickly broke into Izhevsk. Part of the army did not have time to escape; the soldiers dropped their rifles and ran to the factory. The Reds surrounded the plant and checked the workers. Whoever had a work ticket was released, and the rest were taken out, gathered on the church square, all were shot from machine guns. In total, about 800 people were killed on the day of the capture of the city. The bodies of the dead were transported in carts for several days and buried in huge pits in the forest near the factory lake. The next day, the Extraordinary Commission began to operate. They caught everyone who was pointed out by local communists. A few days later, the prisons and all the detention facilities were overcrowded. The arrested were lying in cellars and sheds.

The main contingent of those arrested: workers and employees of the plant. The shootings continued for more than a month. The main part in the executions was taken by the Chinese, Magyars and Latvians. The apartments of working-class families whose members served in the People's Army were completely looted. The families of the departed workers were killed.”

Moltchanoff V.M. The last white general.// An Interview conducted by Boris Raymond. 1972 by The University of California at Berkeley. P. 39-40.

Naumov V.M. My memories // Izhevsk-Votkinsk uprising. S. 83.

UK. op. S. 86.

Efimov A.G. Izhevtsy and Votkintsy. The struggle against the Bolsheviks 1918-1920. M., 2008. S. 56.

Decree. op. pp. 66-67.

Decree. op. pp. 72-73.

Decree. op. pp. 80, 82, 87-88.

Who has not heard how he fought with enemies
Izhevsk regiment under bloody Ufa,
As with an accordionist he rushed to the attack,
Izhevets is a simple Russian worker.

Izhevsk soldiers in the Russian army of Kolchak

IN Soviet time we enthusiastically sang a song about "storm nights of Spassk, Volochaev days." And no one asked the question: why did the Red heroes get those Far Eastern hills so hard? The reality turned out to be not entirely heroic, rather tragic. In fact, in the winter of 1922, a division of Ural workers who fought for the Whites offered fierce resistance to the Reds in the winter of 1922 at the Volochaev line.

In August 1918, the Izhevsk-Votkinsk anti-Bolshevik mutiny took place - an armed uprising led by the Union of Front-line Soldiers organization under the slogan "For Soviets without Bolsheviks." The workers rebelled, outraged by the Russophobic lawlessness of the Red Terror, by numerous cruel and extrajudicial reprisals against their countrymen. The uprising was centered on two cities where large state defense factories were located. At the moment of its highest rise, the rebellion covered a territory with a population of more than a million people (most of modern Udmurtia), and the number of the rebel army reached 25 thousand bayonets. The most active participants in the uprising were the workers of Izhevsk and Votkinsk. It was from them that two divisions were formed. The workers went into battle against the Bolsheviks, first under a red banner on which was written "In the struggle you will find your right."

Strategically, the Izhevsk-Votkinsk uprising had a significant impact on the position of the Red Army, mainly on the actions of the 2nd and 3rd armies. The 2nd Army was actually defeated by the rebels, after which it had to be created again and until the very end of the uprising, it was chained to the Izhevsk-Votkinsk region, unable to contribute to the front. In turn, the 3rd Army was forced to allocate part of its forces for operations against the insurgent Votkinsk, in addition, significant forces were diverted to protect railway Vyatka-Perm, which was in danger of being cut by the rebels. All this became an important factor that allowed the Russian army to concentrate its forces in the Perm direction and subsequently capture Perm on December 25, 1918. The defeat, flight and complete collapse of the 2nd Army of the Red Army, the obvious sympathy and help of the peasants to the insurgent workers made the uprising extremely dangerous for the red government. The unreliability of those mobilized from the local population made it necessary to send troops from the center of the country. Perseverance in combat clashes required the dispatch of especially steadfast units made up of communists, Latvians and Chinese. Detachments of hired foreigners in their cruelty did not differ from home-grown communists, and the struggle took on a ferocious, bloody character with heavy losses on both sides. As a result of the defeat of the uprising, the White movement lost the opportunity to use the potential of the Izhevsk arms factories in the Civil War, which produced up to one third of all small arms produced in Russia. These factories passed into the hands of the Reds. In connection with the departure of a significant part of the workers to the Whites, the production of rifles at the Izhevsk plant was sharply reduced. Only by January 1919 was it possible to bring it up to 1000 pieces a day, which, nevertheless, was twice as low as the volume of production before the uprising. Together with the rebels, their families also left their homes, not counting on the mercy of the Bolsheviks.

During the Civil War, the Izhevsk and Votkinsk divisions suffered losses and merged into one division. It was headed by Colonel Viktorin Molchanov. This unit became part of the troops of Admiral Kolchak. The civil war for Molchanov began with the fact that he led a detachment of peasant self-defense, which resisted the Bolshevik food detachments in the Kama region. Then Molchanov led an uprising in the Yelabuga district. At the same time, having broken through the front, a unit of Izhevsk workers retreated from the encirclement near Yelabuga, which became part of the 2nd White Guard Ufa Army Corps.

The division of the Ural workers was the most combat-ready unit of the Kolchak troops. She retreated last, holding back the onslaught of the Reds. She especially got it in Krasnoyarsk, where the Reds raised an uprising, cutting off the escape routes. Then the Izhevsk/Votkintsy broke into Krasnoyarsk with a fight, defeated the rebels and moved to Irkutsk.

Battle flag of the division of the Ural workers

As we know, in the Baikal region, Kolchak's army ended its existence, and the Supreme Ruler himself was shot. Only a division of the Urals and a regiment of Kappel officers were able to cross the ice of Lake Baikal in full force. In Chita, General Molchanov received the post of deputy commander of the Far Eastern (White) Army and headed the Siberian Corps, created on the basis of the remaining troops of Kappel and Kolchak. In Primorye, Molchanov rearmed his fighters, replenished the regiments with volunteers from the local population, after which the corps became known as the Insurgent White Army. From Ussuriysk, Molchanov's army launched an offensive to the north, inflicting a number of significant defeats on the Red Far Eastern Army. On December 22, 1921, the Whites captured Khabarovsk and liberated almost all of the central Amur region and northern Primorye. The Molchonovists suffered their first defeat on February 12, 1922 from the superior forces of the Red Army near Volochaevka.

During the years of Soviet power, a museum was created on the June-Koran hill on the left bank of the Amur, near Khabarovsk. One of the most interesting expositions recreates the events of February 1922: the army of the red hero of the Civil War Vasily Blucher, having numerous superiority in manpower, with the support of artillery, tanks and armored trains, breaks through the defenses of the Whites. Sopka June-Koran and adjacent territories were occupied by the Izhevsk-Votkinsk division. She gave a chance to the rest of the White Guards, burdened with carts and families, to retreat beyond the Amur, in order to emigrate from Russia further, from Primorye, by sea or by land.

The division itself lost many fighters in those battles, but also put a lot of enemy manpower on the approaches to Volochaevka. Suffice it to say that the first regiment of Red Army soldiers who stormed the hill was completely destroyed. Commander Blucher had to urgently throw reserves into battle so that the Whites would not have time to bring ammunition from Khabarovsk. Since there were not enough cartridges, the Izhevsk people poured water on the slopes of the hill, creating an ice crust, and entangled everything with barbed wire. From the trenches they rose only in furious bayonet attacks. When Blucher's cavalry began to surround Volochaevka and the hill, Molchanov gave the order to retreat to Khabarovsk. From there, to the south, its units made their way with heavy fighting. The most violent clashes took place near the stations Rozengartovka and Bikin. By the way, all the Blucher regiments participating in them were awarded the Orders of the Red Banner.

In October 1922 fierce fighting began in Spassk. And again, the evacuation of the remnants of the White Army was covered by the Izhevsk-Votkinsk division under the command of General Molchanov. Of course, the Ural workers also protected their families, who were in a hurry to get out of Russia to China. On the morning of October 9, the Red troops went on the offensive along the entire front. After a short artillery preparation, they occupied the northern part of the city. By noon, four more forts were captured and the Whites withdrew to the last fortified line in the cement factory area. However, then, being under the threat of capture from the flanks, they were forced to leave Spassk ...

So the division of the Ural workers practically ceased to exist. She took only one more battle - on the border with China. In order for the convoy with women and children to have time to cross the border, the Urals rose in a bayonet attack against the Red Army commanded by Uborevich. Only a small number of surviving soldiers and officers, having retained the St. Andrew's banner, left Russia ...

Viktorin Mikhailovich Molchanov

Permanent commander of the Izhevsk-Votkinsk division. He graduated from the Elabuga real and Moscow infantry cadet (later - Alekseevsky military) schools. He served in the Siberian sapper battalions in the Baikal region and in the village of Razdolny near Vladivostok. He did a lot of geodetic work in Primorye and Baikal. Member of the First World War. The end of the war found him on the Riga front in the position of an engineer of the army corps with the rank of lieutenant colonel. He was wounded in both legs and was taken prisoner by the Germans. Ran. Returning to Yelabuga, he joined the White movement. At the end of the Civil War, together with several officers and the commander of the Zemstvo army, General Diterikhs, he left Vladivostok to the Korean border in Posyet. Here they were picked up by a squadron of ships of the Siberian Flotilla of Rear Admiral Georgy Stark. Victorin Molchanov emigrated to Korea, from there he moved to Manchuria. Some time later he left for the USA and settled near San Francisco. There he set up a chicken farm. During the Great Patriotic War, Molchanov supported fundraising in the United States to help the Red Army and the Soviet people who fought against fascism. Victorin Mikhailovich died in 1975.

Sources:

"The white commander walked under the red banner"