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Naval History and Heritage Command

National Museum of the U.S. Navy

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U.S. Navy in Russia

During World War I, the rise of the Bolshevists in Russia gave the United States concern.   Previously, the Allies sent ammunition for the Czar's army (Nicholas II) by way of Archangel.  Over time, a large quantity had accumulated and could be taken and used by the Bolshevists if not guarded.   In cooperation with the British, USS Olympia (Cruiser #6) anchored at Kola Inlet, Murmansk, Russia, on May 24, 1918 to guard ammunition and protect refugees.  Her sailors later contributed to the Allied expedition of Archangel.   Boatswain's Mate Second Class Emil A. Kernaen, USN, was one of the estimated 54 sailors from Olympia who landed and participated in the Archangel mission with the British from August 1918 to February 1919.    During this time, "he commanded a gun action and did good work under extremely trying weather conditions in advanced positions before defenses were made."   On June 28, 1918, a detachment of Marines from USS Brooklyn (Armored Cruiser #3) landed at Vladivostok, Russia, to protect the U.S. Consulate and to assist forces of other Allied nations in bringing order to the city during the early stages of the Russian Revolution.    On that same day, Rear Admiral Austin M. Knight, Commander in Chief of the Asiatic Fleet, ordered a detachment of American Marines to guard the American Consulate and to act as part of an Allied force, which was composed of British, Japanese, Chinese, and Czech-Slovacs to guard the city. 

Image:   G7064.V56.1918. V6:   Vladivostok, Russia, plan of the city, 1918.   Courtesy of the Geography and Maps Division, Library of Congress.