Synopses & Reviews
From the Russian revolutions of 1917 to the end of the Civil War in 1920, Woodrow Wilson's administration sought to oppose the Bolsheviks in a variety of covert ways. Drawing on previously unavailable American and Russian archival material, David Foglesong chronicles both sides of this secret war and reveals a new dimension to the first years of the U.S.-Soviet rivalry.
Foglesong explores the evolution of Wilson's ambivalent attitudes toward socialism and revolution before 1917 and analyzes the social and cultural origins of American anti-Bolshevism. Constrained by his espousal of the principle of self-determination, by idealistic public sentiment, and by congressional restrictions, Wilson had to rely on secretive methods to affect the course of the Russian Civil War.
The administration provided covert financial and military aid to anti-Bolshevik forces, established clandestine spy networks, concealed the purposes of limited military expeditions to northern Russia and Siberia, and delivered ostensibly humanitarian assistance to soldiers fighting to overthrow the Soviet government. In turn, the Soviets developed and secretly funded a propaganda campaign in the United States designed to mobilize public opposition to anti-Bolshevik activity, promote American-Soviet economic ties, and win diplomatic recognition from Washington.
Review
"Russian historians have recently begun to reveal the extent to which the Kremlin directed and funded Communist operations around the world, and some Western historians are pursuing the other side of the coin—Western operations inside Russia against the Bolshevik regime established in November 1917. Foglesong, who teaches at Rutgers, has assembled and carefully evaluated a wide variety of evidence, including much from the Russian archives, indicating that the Wilson administration undertook and under-wrote a major campaign to bring Lenin and his people down. There is blame enough to distribute for the campaign's failure, and in this important work Foglesong has performed a considerable service in helping reset the conditions of the investigation." Reviewed by Andrew Witmer, Virginia Quarterly Review (Copyright 2006 Virginia Quarterly Review)
Review
Carefully researched, clearly written, and provocative. (Slavic Review)
Review
A well-researched account of the dilemma faced by Woodrow Wilson in fashioning a policy toward the Bolshevik Revolution. (Choice)
Review
Foglesong's provocative book is among the pioneers in this bold new American scholarship. (Journal of American History)
Synopsis
An exploration of the origins of American anti-Bolshevism and a revealing look at the covert operations undertaken by the Wilson administration in its opposition to Bolshevik activity.