Chapter 14: The Russian Civil War - Battle on Ice (Part 2)
"Commander-in-Chief, our losses are unsustainable. Even though we're inflicting greater casualties on the enemy, at this rate, we'll be annihilated before we can reach Yekaterinodar. It would be better to retreat to Stavropol and regroup for a future offensive..."
"Damn it... Damn it! But you know as well as I do that if we don't reach Yekaterinodar, we're all dead! We must secure a foothold there, reorganize our forces, and throw those Reds out!"
February 1, 1918, somewhere in Southern Russia.
The abandoned barn being used as a field command post echoed with raised voices.
Commander-in-Chief Lavr Kornilov insisted that the Volunteer Army of Southern Russia would never survive if they failed to capture Yekaterinodar, even if it meant making sacrifices. However, Chief of Staff Anton Denikin held a different view.
"But Commander-in-Chief, we can reclaim the city later, but lost troops can never be recovered. It would be better to preserve our elite forces now and wait for the Cossacks to rise against the Bolsheviks."
"We can't wait that long. Haven't you seen how vast the Bolshevik forces are? If we keep running like this, we'll just be rabbits waiting to be caught by the hunters. Why can't we use Yekaterinodar as a base to build our strength and properly confront them?"
Kornilov's fierce gaze locked onto Denikin. "We can't afford to wait. The Bolsheviks' numbers are overwhelming. If we keep fleeing, we'll be nothing but prey for the hunters. Why can't we seize Yekaterinodar and use it as a base to build our strength and properly confront them?"
Kornilov's argument was equally forceful. Denikin, realizing his superior's stance was correct, quietly nodded. In the end, it all came down to luck—a fifty-fifty chance of survival or death.
"...If it is your will, Commander-in-Chief, I will follow. But if the attack on Yekaterinodar fails, please allow me to lead the surviving troops to escape."
"That's what I should be asking you. If we fail to capture Yekaterinodar, I'll have to die gloriously. You'll have no choice but to take over my duties."
Kornilov spoke bitterly, and Denikin had no choice but to quietly accept the Commander-in-Chief's order.
Even though victory or defeat in battle is the fate of every soldier, it is the duty of a defeated commander to resign.
At that moment, the thunder of artillery fire and the shrill blast of a charge trumpet echoed from across the battlefield. Kornilov and Denikin bolted from the command post, shouting simultaneously:
"Enemy attack! All troops, prepare for battle!"
"Rostov Volunteer Regiment! Engage the enemy and delay their advance! Withdraw with the Georgi Regiment when they retreat! General Borovsky!"
Damn it, damn it, damn it!
Denikin gritted his teeth as he watched the enemy army, their red banners fluttering in the distance.
"You Red bastards! I'll avenge this humiliation someday!"
The earth shook with a deafening explosion as the forward command post they had occupied moments earlier was split in two by artillery fire.
***
"The Special Detachment's deception operation is proceeding flawlessly. Of course, our casualties are steadily mounting, but since the enemy force is only about a quarter of our size, we're forcing them into a desperate position by inflicting heavy losses."
"Where are the enemy forces heading now?"
"It's still unclear. But we'll know soon enough. They'll soon reach a fork in their path, and their choice will determine their entire route."
Trotsky clapped his hands, smiling.
"Excellent. Everything is progressing perfectly so far. We'll soon discover their destination, and for now, all we need to do is lie in wait with our jaws wide open."
Disguised, we headed to Yekaterinodar on the very day Rostov fell, while the remaining 20,000 soldiers arrived in the city in small groups over time. This was to prevent locals from leaking information.
"Furthermore, Yekaterinodar was developed as a fortress city, so while the local Cossacks are fiercely warlike, they generally remain loyal to the Empire. Yekaterinodar is quiet now, but if the Rebel Army were to approach, the risk of an uprising would greatly increase. If the Rebel Army reaches us, we'll crush both them and any Cossack rebellion."
Before our arrival, the situation in Southern Russia was utter chaos.
The Cossacks were divided between pro-Soviet factions, who were enamored with Lenin's doctrine of national self-determination, and Royalists who remained loyal to the Empire and the Tsar.
It goes without saying that Yekaterinodar, the largest city in Southern Russia, became a battleground for these competing ideologies.
By the time our troops arrived, the Soviet regime had already seized power in Yekaterinodar. Yet the local assembly remains hostile to us.
"Public opinion here isn't much to worry about. If we win a few battles, it'll naturally shift in our favor. We just need to avoid conscription and other unnecessary measures. If we don't make any mistakes, victory will be ours without incident."
Yes, it would have been fine if we hadn't made such a mess.
But the news that 20,000 soldiers were stationed in Yekaterinodar couldn't be contained.
The 20,000 young soldiers immediately caused food prices in the city to skyrocket, leading to protests by the residents.
"The Red Army should withdraw from Yekaterinodar immediately! We can't live with these prices!"
"But we promised to leave as soon as we suppress the rebel army. Please be patient for a little longer."
"Patient? It's already been ten days! The enemy army should withdraw immediately, stop making excuses!"
Behind this sudden surge in protests was the Yekaterinodar Regional Council, which was suspected of colluding with the rebel army.
These groups had voluntarily dissolved after the declaration of the Soviet Republic, but there was ample evidence that they continued to operate underground.
"But now, purging the parliament and rounding up reactionaries would only fuel Cossack resentment. That would make it difficult to keep the city under our control until the rebel army arrives. For now, we must restrain ourselves. All we can do is wait for the rebel army to reach the city as quickly as possible."
As Trotsky said, there was no other course of action. All they could do was wait for Kornilov's rebel army to arrive.
That time came sooner than expected.
On January 28, 1918, the Volunteer Army led by Kornilov began the siege of Yekaterinodar.
***
"The resistance was weaker than I expected. The Bolsheviks were just a mob with numbers on their side, it seems. And that army chasing us from behind, of course."
Kornilov scoffed as he triumphantly entered Yekaterinodar. He likely assumed the intelligence about the city being swarming with enemy troops had been disinformation.
The Volunteer Army captured Yekaterinodar two weeks after their retreat from Rostov. This alone was an undeniable achievement.
Of course, the path to Yekaterinodar was littered with the bodies of soldiers and civilians, but Kornilov paid them little heed.
These were people who would have died under the oppression and brutality of Soviet Russia anyway. Surely such sacrifices were acceptable for the reconstruction of Holy Russia.
Now the White Army could gather Cossack Volunteer Armies and counter-revolutionaries around this city and launch a massive counter-revolutionary war across all of Russia.
And at its center would be he, Lavr Kornilov. Just thinking about it made me feel good.
The motley Red Army retreated from the natural fortress of Yekaterinodar without properly defending it. The city overflowed with food and weapons left behind by the Bolsheviks.
This would undoubtedly be a great stepping stone in our counter-revolutionary war against the Red Army.
"Hey, Chief of Staff Denikin. Why the sour face? It's a beautiful day—let's enjoy it."
"Commander-in-Chief, no matter how I think about it, this is a trap. We need to prepare for battle quickly..."
"What are you talking about? Is this because my operation succeeded? Honestly, how can narrow-minded people ever grasp the greater good? And now..."
At that moment, the sound of distant artillery fire reached their ears.
A blind shell, hurtling from afar, struck down the commander of the Russian Volunteer Army, who had been standing right in front of Denikin moments before.
"Commander-in-Chief!!!"
Denikin scanned his surroundings. The bombardment had already begun. He quickly pinpointed the direction of the shells and their origin. The attack was coming from the north.
"All troops, prepare for battle! Immediate withdrawal from the city! Pack only essential food and weapons! Southward, we head southward!"
"But Chief of Staff! Defending the city is better than retreating..."
"Bullshit! If we stay here, we'll all die! We don't even have as many men as them..."
Just then, a distant sound of something shattering echoed, and the faint shouts and footsteps that had been barely audible moments before suddenly grew louder and closer.
"Damn it. Has the defensive line already been breached?"
Denikin fired his pistol twice into the air, then shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Retreat! We're retreating immediately! Head south, the way we came in! We're going to Novorossiysk! There we'll regroup and reorganize!"
As he personally carried Kornilov's body, Denikin bellowed the order, his voice tearing itself from his throat.
"As expected. The Rebel Army is advancing in our direction," I remarked, observing Yekaterinodar through my telescope as it fell into the hands of the rebels. Trotsky looked pleased.
"Good, good. Our strategy is working. Now this place will be their grave." Trotsky grinned maliciously.
The southern outskirts of Yekaterinodar were blocked by two lakes. The Special Detachment had performed its role perfectly, luring the Rebel Army into this trap, and now the fruits of their labor were about to be reaped by us.
"Prepare for battle! Not a single one shall be spared! Every soldier we let live today will return tenfold to haunt us later!"
Trotsky's voice echoed across the units as he toured them, delivering his exhortations. I tightened my grip on the pistol nestled in my coat. Even as a Political Officer, I had to be ready for battle.
"They're coming! Don't hesitate—fire!"
I saw the cavalry crossing the river ahead. Just the sight of them was overwhelming for infantry like us.
Beads of sweat formed on my hands as I gripped my pistol. The cavalrymen who had crossed the river charged toward us, their horses' hooves pounding the ground with enough force to make the earth tremble.
"Fire!"
The attack began with the commander's order. Machine guns barked, spitting fire, followed by infantry guns firing shells that slammed into the legs of the charging horses.
It was nothing short of a massacre.
The cavalrymen charging from the frontier fell to the ground, struck down by multiple bullets, while the infantry behind them desperately charged forward, trying to break through the hail of fire.
Cavalrymen falling from their horses with broken necks.
Infantrymen repeatedly charging in vain, stumbling over their fallen comrades' bodies.
Young men, who looked no older than me, transformed into lifeless, bloody masses in the span of mere seconds.
I couldn't bear to witness this scene.
To see so many people throwing themselves into death's embrace, desperate to survive.
"Comrade Siyoung, are you afraid?"
Trotsky approached me, placing his hand on my shoulder.
"But to achieve more than you desire, you must repeat this kind of death hundreds, even thousands of times. The revolution cannot be achieved with white gloves."
I heard a scream of "MAMA!" beside me.
"You must get your hands dirty. That's the revolution, and that's the state."
Trotsky spoke indifferently, a shadow I'd never seen before darkening his face.
The ear-splitting gunfire ceased, and the earth-shattering artillery bombardment stopped. Only then did the smoke dissipate, revealing Yekaterinodar.
All that remained below was a pool of blood, littered with the bodies of horses and humans.
It was the Bolsheviks' perfect victory.
But I couldn't enjoy that victory.
Before me, only the flickering shadows of dead White Army soldiers remained.