The Polar Bear Expedition: The Heroes of America's Forgotten Invasion of Russia, 1918-1919

James Carl Nelson

ISBN 10: 198260946X ISBN 13: 9781982609467

Publisher: HarperCollins B and Blackstone Audio, 2019

Synopsis

An extraordinary lost chapter in the history of World War I: the story of America's year-long invasion of Russia, in which a contingency of brave soldiers fought the Red Army and brutal conditions during the fall and winter of 1918-1919.

In August 1918, the 339th regiment of the U.S. Army--roughly 5,000 soldiers, most hailing from Michigan--sailed for Europe to fight in World War I. But instead of the Western Front, these troops were headed to Archangel, Russia, a vital port city 1,000 miles northeast of Moscow. There, in the frozen subarctic, amid the chaos of the Russian Civil War, one of the most extraordinary episodes of American history unfolded.

The American North Russia Expeditionary Force--self-dubbed ""The Polar Bear Expedition""--was sent to fight the Red Army and aid anti-Bolshevik forces in hopes of re-opening the Eastern Front against Germany. On the 100th anniversary of the campaign, award-winning historian James Carl Nelson recreates this harrowing, dramatic military operation in which Americans and Bolsheviks fought a series of pitched battles throughout a punishing fall and winter.

As the Great War officially ended in November 1918, American troops continued to battle the Red Army and an equally formidable enemy, ""General Winter."" Subzero temperatures made machine guns and light artillery inoperable. In the blinding ice and snow, sentries suffered from frostbite while guarding against nearly invisible Bolos camouflaged by their white uniforms. Before the Polar Bears' withdrawal in July 1919, more than 200 perished from battle, accidents, and the Spanish flu.

But the Polar Bears' story does not end there. Ten years later, a contingent of veterans returned to Russia to recover the remains of more than 100 of their fallen comrades and lay them to rest in Michigan, where a monument honoring their service still stands: a massive marble polar bear guarding a cross that marks the grave of a fallen soldier.

The Polar Bear Expedition includes 25 black-and-white images throughout.

About this title

About the Author:

James Carl Nelson is a journalist who has worked as a staff writer for the Miami Herald. He is a member of the Western Front Association, which is devoted to the study of the Great War. He lives in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.

Review:

The Polar Bear Expedition is exhaustively researched and rich in detail. A very fine book.

-- "Mitchell Yockelson, author of Forty-Seven Days"

A crisp character-driven approach...Nelson's engrossing narrative will engage military historians, political buffs, and general readers alike.

-- "Publishers Weekly"

A vivid, well-researched history of one of America's many misguided military expeditions.

-- "Kirkus Reviews"

Nelson adeptly integrates the individual experiences of the regiment with the wider events of the expedition...This largely overlooked event will interest readers of military history.

-- "Library Journal"

A work of narrative history with particular focus on the soldiers' long-neglected first-hand accounts. This is a wild ride through an American military campaign few know much about and a good addition to the history of Russian-American relations, a complex, often urgent subject.

-- "Booklist"

About this edition

• Publisher: HarperCollins B and Blackstone Audio
• Publication date: 2019
• ISBN 10: 198260946X
• ISBN 13: 9781982609467
• Binding: Audio CD
• Number of pages: 1