Taman Army

The Taman Army was an armed group within the Red Army, operating in the south of Russia during the Russian Civil War. It existed from August 27, 1918 to February 1919. The name derives from the Taman Peninsula, where the army was formed.

History

Uniforms in the Taman Army

The Taman Army was formed on August 27, 1918 in Gelendzhik on the Taman Peninsula. It counted some 30,000 men, mostly workers from Novorossiisk and sailors of ships of the Black Sea Fleet, who had chosen the Bolsheviks side and sunk their own ships in June 1918.

The Army was formed because the Bolsheviks in the Taman Peninsula found themselves isolated, because the German interventionist forces had taken the Crimea and Rostov-on-Don, and the White Army under Denikin had chased the Red army from their positions in Ekaterinodar on August 16 of that year.

Ivan Matveyev was elected as general commander of the Army, his deputy was Yepifan Kovtyukh, the chief of staff was G. N. Baturin and the commissioner N. K. Kicha.

It was decided to march in three columns from the Taman over Tuapse to the Northern Caucasus, to join the bulk of the Red Army there. The Taman Army was joined by a mass of some 25,000 refugees, which greatly impeded progress and actions. The tactical difficulties were great and the three colums were organized in the following way:
the first column was in the vanguard securing the way against the army of Menshevik Georgia,
the second column repulsed the attacks of the white Cossacks in the gorges and
the third column led the rearguard battles against Denikin's troops.

On August 28 the first column occupied Arkhipo-Osipovka and on September 1 Tuapse, after defeating a Georgian infantry division, capturing armament and supplies. On September 2, the Army reached the main mountain range of the Caucasus near Khadyzhensk, where it repulsed attacks by the troops of the white general Viktor Pokrovsky and again near Pshejskaya.

Commanders

• Ivan Matveyev (27.08.1918 - 08.10.1918)
• Yepifan Kovtyukh (12.10.1918 - 22.10.1918)
• M.V. Smirnov (23.10.1918 - 13.12.1918)