Hero of the Week 75

 Welcome back viewers

This week will honor a team of heroes

They are...

Company A of the 31st Infantry Regiment (AKA: the Polar Bears)

 

Intro

The 31st Infantry Regiment was founded in the year 1916 at Fort William McKinley. Less than a year later, the United States entered World War I. Unfortunately the 31st would be one of the very few American infantry regiments that did not see combat in the First World War. However, although their baptism by fire would not be in the trenches of France it would come at one of the most unlikeliest of places. It would be on the frozen tundra of Siberia.

Part 1

In the wake of the Russian Revolution, the country had plunged into a highly destructive civil war. On one side were the communist Red Army. On the other side were the pro-republic White Army. The western countries threw their support behind the latter. In the waning days of World War I, the US sent at least 13,000 American soldiers to Russia. Their objective was to seize and hold key ports in North Russia and Siberia. The nickname for these soldiers was, "the Polar Bears".

The men of the 31st Infantry were among those sent to fight in Siberia. By June of 1919, 72 men from Company A were garrisoned at the Siberian town of Romanovka, under the command of 2nd Lt. Lawrence Butler. Many of the Polar Bears camped at Romanovka were fresh and inexperienced. For the first three weeks of June, they mingled with the town's villagers and enjoyed camping under the stars. Little did they know, a large enemy force was moving on their position.

On the night of June 24, more than 200 Red Army soldiers and partisans massed along a bluff that overlooked the Americans' positions outside of Romanovka. They were led by an ardent communist named, Yakov Tryapitsyn. And he was determined to wipe out this small group of foreign invaders who dared to interfere in Russia's future. While the Polar Bears were sleeping in their tents, the Reds slowly began to surround them and set up machine guns on the hills around the town. At 5 AM on the morning of June 25, the lone Polar Bear sentry left his post unrelieved to get breakfast. Seconds later, the Reds opened fire.

Part II

Before the Polar Bears could react, a lethal wave of rifle and machine gun fire began to rake their tents. Within a matter of seconds, at least 19 of them were literally killed in their own beds. Lt Butler was awakened to the sound and quickly grabbed his weapons. As he was leaving his tent a bullet shattered his jaw. Although he was bleeding badly and unable to speak, Butler was able to pull his men into a fighting withdrawal using hand signals. 

In order to prevent more of them being killed in the open, the polar bears quickly fell back to a trio of log houses. Three of them stayed behind to cover the retreat. Privates Roy Jones and Emmet Lunsford used their BARs (Browning Automatic Rifle) to lay down suppressing fire, while Pvt. George Strakey sniped at the Reds with his M1903 Springfield Rifle. Despite being severely wounded themselves, all three held their positions until their comrades reached the log houses. 

After the Polar Bears had successfully fallen back to a secure position, they were able to effectively hold their own against the attacking Bolsheviks. Using grenades, machine guns, and rifles, they were able to beat back numerous assaults. However they were still in danger since more than half of their number had been killed or wounded in just the first few minutes. Lt Butler asked for two volunteers to make a run to the railroad tracks and follow them to the nearest town (Novonzhino) where Company E was stationed. Corporals Leo Heinzman and Valeryan Brodnicki were the first to volunteer. With covering fire being provided by their comrades, Heinzman and Brodnicki made a mad dash for the railroad.

Part III

Despite the enemy training all their fire on Brodnicki and Heinzman, both men successfully made it to the tracks. They then successfully flagged down a passing train and alerted those aboard to the situation at Romanovka. However there were only 17 men from Company K on the train under the command of Sgt. Sylvester Moore. Knowing that more soldiers were needed in order to relieve the besieged men at Romanovka, Sergeant Moore ordered the engineer to back the train to Novonzhino. Once there, they quickly picked up 58 more soldiers from Company E and headed back to Romanovka to save Company A.

As soon as the Polar Bears from E and K arrived they immediately launched a flank attack on the Reds. This combined with their own heavy losses, forced the latter to pull back. Eventually they retreated and the battle of Romanovka was over. Despite the battle lasting just over an hour the carnage was horrific. The Polar Bears had suffered 24 KIAs and another 25 were wounded (more than 60% of Company A's force). Since the medics were among the dead, many of the wounded did not receive adequate medical care and either died in the days following the battle or were left permanently disabled.

Despite their severe losses, the Polar Bears had inflicted far more casualties on the attackers. The Reds suffered between 40 to 60 KIAs and an unknown number of wounded and were forced into a disorganized retreat from the area. As a result the Polar Bears considered the Battle of Romanovka a victory.

Epilogue

However, the American victory at Romanovka was short-lived. Although the Allied Intervention in Russia had won many battles it was ultimately a failure. All soldiers of the West (Americans included) were withdrawn by July of 1920. The Russian Civil War itself went on for another 3 years before victory was finally achieved by the Bolsheviks (Reds). Russia then became known as, "the Soviet Union" (or USSR).

Even though the overall operation was a failure, the men of the 31st Infantry Regiment returned to America with their heads held high. At least 15 men (including Butler, Brodnicki, Lunsford, Strakey, and Jones) received the Distinguished Service Cross for valor. The Polar Bear Regiment went on to serve in many more conflicts through the 20th Century. It remains active in the US Army today.

For most Americans today, the Allied Intervention in the Russian Civil War has been largely forgotten. However, I believe that these brave men deserve the same remembrance and regard as all the others who have answered the call to duty. Even if the operation failed, they still fought with the same courage and valor that soldiers continue to show to this day. Their story is definitely one that deserves to be told.

https://www.historynet.com/red-dawn-in-romanovka-russia.htm

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-03-10-mn-5916-story.html

https://armyhistory.org/31st-infantry-regiment/