Dreams of a Great Small Nation

The Mutinous Army that Threatened a Revolution, Destroyed an Empire, Founded a Republic, and Remade the Map of Europe

Nonfiction, History, Austria & Hungary, Asian, Russia, Military, World War I
Cover of the book Dreams of a Great Small Nation by Kevin J McNamara, PublicAffairs
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Kevin J McNamara ISBN: 9781610394857
Publisher: PublicAffairs Publication: March 29, 2016
Imprint: PublicAffairs Language: English
Author: Kevin J McNamara
ISBN: 9781610394857
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Publication: March 29, 2016
Imprint: PublicAffairs
Language: English

“The pages of history recall scarcely any parallel episode at once so romantic in character and so extensive in scale.” -Winston S. Churchill

In 1917, two empires that had dominated much of Europe and Asia teetered on the edge of the abyss, exhausted by the ruinous cost in blood and treasure of the First World War. As Imperial Russia and Habsburg-ruled Austria-Hungary began to succumb, a small group of Czech and Slovak combat veterans stranded in Siberia saw an opportunity to realize their long-held dream of independence.

While their plan was audacious and complex, and involved moving their 50,000-strong army by land and sea across three-quarters of the earth's expanse, their commitment to fight for the Allies on the Western Front riveted the attention of Allied London, Paris, and Washington.

On their journey across Siberia, a brawl erupted at a remote Trans-Siberian rail station that sparked a wholesale rebellion. The marauding Czecho-Slovak Legion seized control of the Trans-Siberian Railroad, and with it Siberia. In the end, this small band of POWs and deserters, whose strength was seen by Leon Trotsky as the chief threat to Soviet rule, helped destroy the Austro-Hungarian Empire and found Czecho-Slovakia.

British prime minister David Lloyd George called their adventure “one of the greatest epics of history,” and former US president Teddy Roosevelt declared that their accomplishments were “unparalleled, so far as I know, in ancient or modern warfare.”

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

“The pages of history recall scarcely any parallel episode at once so romantic in character and so extensive in scale.” -Winston S. Churchill

In 1917, two empires that had dominated much of Europe and Asia teetered on the edge of the abyss, exhausted by the ruinous cost in blood and treasure of the First World War. As Imperial Russia and Habsburg-ruled Austria-Hungary began to succumb, a small group of Czech and Slovak combat veterans stranded in Siberia saw an opportunity to realize their long-held dream of independence.

While their plan was audacious and complex, and involved moving their 50,000-strong army by land and sea across three-quarters of the earth's expanse, their commitment to fight for the Allies on the Western Front riveted the attention of Allied London, Paris, and Washington.

On their journey across Siberia, a brawl erupted at a remote Trans-Siberian rail station that sparked a wholesale rebellion. The marauding Czecho-Slovak Legion seized control of the Trans-Siberian Railroad, and with it Siberia. In the end, this small band of POWs and deserters, whose strength was seen by Leon Trotsky as the chief threat to Soviet rule, helped destroy the Austro-Hungarian Empire and found Czecho-Slovakia.

British prime minister David Lloyd George called their adventure “one of the greatest epics of history,” and former US president Teddy Roosevelt declared that their accomplishments were “unparalleled, so far as I know, in ancient or modern warfare.”

More books from PublicAffairs

Cover of the book The H-Spot by Kevin J McNamara
Cover of the book The Case for Goliath by Kevin J McNamara
Cover of the book Michelle Obama in her Own Words by Kevin J McNamara
Cover of the book Dirty Wars by Kevin J McNamara
Cover of the book The Levelling by Kevin J McNamara
Cover of the book The Honored Society by Kevin J McNamara
Cover of the book What Stays in Vegas by Kevin J McNamara
Cover of the book Imperial America by Kevin J McNamara
Cover of the book The Crash of 2008 and What it Means by Kevin J McNamara
Cover of the book The Moment You Can't Ignore by Kevin J McNamara
Cover of the book Talk on the Wild Side by Kevin J McNamara
Cover of the book The Global Deal by Kevin J McNamara
Cover of the book Lipstick Jihad by Kevin J McNamara
Cover of the book Not to be Missed by Kevin J McNamara
Cover of the book The Fall of the House of FIFA by Kevin J McNamara
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy