Reply #12: The original goal was to secure weapons [View All]

[Xithras]

The allies had given the czar a huge amount of weaponry to use against the Germans. In 1918, Russia was still very much in the middle of a civil war, with several different groups using their armies to try and take over the country. When it was realized that the Bolsheviks had control over the donated weaponry, and that the Bolsheviks had signed a treaty with the Germans, panic ensued and a mission was launched to drive the Bolsheviks from the city and retrieve the weapons. There was also the issue of the 40,000 man Czech Army that had been invited into Russia by the czar to help their fight against the Germans, but which was now trapped by the Bolsheviks.

The mission plan was simple...invade at Archangel, secure the supplies, aid the White Army when possible, and get the Czechs out.

Like all military plans though, it didn't survive first contact with the enemy (or the Russian winter).