Home – Home – Jornals – Humanitarian sciences in Siberia 2018 number

The article considers the organization structure, strength, specifics of recruitment and military activities of the 12th Siberian rifle division formed in March 1919 in Tomsk as a part of the strategic reserve of Admiral Kolchak armed forces. Military draft of the new recruits born in 1900-1901 was implemented to staff the newly formed divisions in the rear. Calls-up were timed by delivering uniforms and weapons from England and the United States, that were absent at the military authorities’ disposal. A successful offensive of Kolchak armed forces in March-April 1919 caused complacent confidence in speedy victory over the Bolsheviks in high command, which eased tension on the issue of reserves preparation for the current army. However, in May the situation at the front changed dramatically in favor of the Red Army. In order to regain the strategic initiative, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief became actively moving to the war theatre military units, which were in the rear. At the time of sending to the front the majority of the 12th Siberian rifle division soldiers - 18-year-old recruits - had been in formations for no more than three- four weeks. They had not had time to get a training course of a “young soldier”, had not worked out the interaction of units within a squadron, a battalion, a regiment, as well as a division. It was the disorganized community of village guys, non-adapted to the military service conditions. As a consequence, the division was unfit for military actions and disbanded. The failure of the military high command plans to form the front reserves in the rear was due to the lack of coordination in organizational arrangement of the Supreme Commander Headquarters and the Military Ministry of the Russian Government, the absence of adequate material-technical resources to form the battle worthy army.