Kazan Operation

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Kazan Operation
Part of Russian Civil War
The Red Army marching in Kazan after the victory
Date 5 September 1918 – 10 September 1918 Location Kazan, Soviet Russia Result Decisive Red Army victory
Combatants
Red Army *Red Latvian Riflemen	White Army *KomUch People's Army *Czech Legion population of Kazan[1]
Commanders
Peter Slaven Fyodor Raskolnikov Woldemar Azin Nikolay Markin	P. A. Stepanov Jozef Švec
Casualties
unknown	unknown

Kazan Operation was a Red Army's offensive against Czech Legion and KomUch People's Army during Russian Civil War on 5-10 September, 1918.

In August, 1918, Czech Legion occupied Kazan. Bolshevik forces were defeated and dispersed in Kazan's neighborhood. Whites shot the rest of Bolsheviks in the city.

At the beginning of the operation Reds' disposition was such: to the west to Kazan 5th Army of the Eastern Front under Peter Slaven, Volga flotilla under Fyodor Raskolnikov, to the east of Kazan Arsk group of the 2nd Army under Woldemar Azin were placed. They opposed Czech legion and KomUch People's Army under A. P. Stepanov.

On September 7, the Right Bank Group of the 5th Army with the flotilla's backing reached the bank of Volga and shelled Kazan from the commanding eminence Oslan Hill. The Left Bank Group reached Kazanka's mouth. That day Arsk Group took Kinderle and Klyki villages to the east of Kazan. On September 9, sailors and landed marksmen under Nikolay Markin took the beachhead at the western part of Kazan. At that day the Left Bank Group and Arsk Group joined and took Kazan into the partly siege. September 10, after the storm from three directions Kazan was finally took under the Red control.^[2]

The majority of Whites were managed to swim away by Volga.

[edit] Russian Gold Reserves

Before the Czech offensive Bolsheviks tried to evacuate the gold reserves, that were kept in Kazan Bank, but due the fast offensive of Czechs they hadn't time to do it. However, Whites drove away the gold reserves and they disappeared. The route of the gold is a matter of many researches and speculations.

[edit] References and notes