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Red Mutiny: Eleven Fateful Days on the Battleship Potemkin
The true story of the deadliest naval mutiny in history
In 1905, after being served rancid meat, more than seven hundred Russian sailors mutinied against their officers aboard what was then one of the most powerful battleships in the world. Theirs was a life barely worth living -- a life of hard labor and bitter oppression, an existence, in its hopelessness and injustice, not unlike that of most of the working class in Russia at the time. Certainly their rebellion came as no surprise. Still, against any reasonable odds of success, the sailors-turned-revolutionaries, led by the charismatic firebrand Matyushenko, risked their lives to take control of the ship and fly the red flag of revolution. What followed was a violent port-to-port chase that spanned eleven harrowing days and came to symbolize the Russian revolution itself.
A pulse-quickening story that alternates between the opulent court of Nicholas II and the razor's-edge tension aboard the Potemkin, Red Mutiny is a tale threaded with terrific adventure, epic naval battles, heroic sacrifices, treachery, bloodlust, and a rallying cry of freedom that would steer the course of the twentieth century. It is also a fine work of scholarship that draws for the first time on the Soviet archives to shed new light on this seminal event in Russian and naval history.
For readers of Tom Clancy's Hunt for Red October and Nathaniel Philbrick's In the Heart of the Sea, Neal Bascomb's gripping adventure at sea is the story of courage, the power of ideas, and the fragile nature of alliance.
In 1905, after being served rancid meat, more than seven hundred Russian sailors mutinied against their officers aboard what was then one of the most powerful battleships in the world. Theirs was a life barely worth living -- a life of hard labor and bitter oppression, an existence, in its hopelessness and injustice, not unlike that of most of the working class in Russia at the time. Certainly their rebellion came as no surprise. Still, against any reasonable odds of success, the sailors-turned-revolutionaries, led by the charismatic firebrand Matyushenko, risked their lives to take control of the ship and fly the red flag of revolution. What followed was a violent port-to-port chase that spanned eleven harrowing days and came to symbolize the Russian revolution itself.
A pulse-quickening story that alternates between the opulent court of Nicholas II and the razor's-edge tension aboard the Potemkin, Red Mutiny is a tale threaded with terrific adventure, epic naval battles, heroic sacrifices, treachery, bloodlust, and a rallying cry of freedom that would steer the course of the twentieth century. It is also a fine work of scholarship that draws for the first time on the Soviet archives to shed new light on this seminal event in Russian and naval history.
For readers of Tom Clancy's Hunt for Red October and Nathaniel Philbrick's In the Heart of the Sea, Neal Bascomb's gripping adventure at sea is the story of courage, the power of ideas, and the fragile nature of alliance.
386 pages, Hardcover
First published April 12, 2007
About the author
Neal Bascomb
22 books427 followersNeal Bascomb is a national award-winning and New York Times bestselling author of a number of books, all non-fiction narratives, all focused on inspiring stories of adventure or achievement. His work has been translated into over 18 languages, featured in several documentaries, and optioned for major film and television projects.
Born in Colorado and raised in St. Louis, he is the product of public school and lots of time playing hockey. He earned a double degree in Economics and English Literature at Miami University (Ohio), lived in Europe for several years as a journalist (London, Dublin, and Paris), and worked as an editor at St. Martin’s Press (New York). In 2000, he started writing books full time.
His first book HIGHER was selected for the Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writer award and was featured in a History Channel documentary. His second THE PERFECT MILE was a New York Times bestseller and frequently ranks as one of the top books on running. His third RED MUTINY won the United States Maritime Literature Award and critical acclaim around the world. His fourth HUNTING EICHMANN was an international bestseller and led to a young adult edition called NAZI HUNTERS that was the 2014 winner of the YALSA Award, Sydney Taylor Book Award (Gold Medal), among numerous others. His fifth book THE NEW COOL was optioned by major producer Scott Rudin for film. His sixth ONE MORE STEP, focused on the first man with cerebral palsy to climb Kilimanjaro and finish the Kona Ironman, was a New York Times bestseller as well.
An avid hiker, skier, and coffee drinker, he is happily settled in Seattle, Washington with his family.
Born in Colorado and raised in St. Louis, he is the product of public school and lots of time playing hockey. He earned a double degree in Economics and English Literature at Miami University (Ohio), lived in Europe for several years as a journalist (London, Dublin, and Paris), and worked as an editor at St. Martin’s Press (New York). In 2000, he started writing books full time.
His first book HIGHER was selected for the Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writer award and was featured in a History Channel documentary. His second THE PERFECT MILE was a New York Times bestseller and frequently ranks as one of the top books on running. His third RED MUTINY won the United States Maritime Literature Award and critical acclaim around the world. His fourth HUNTING EICHMANN was an international bestseller and led to a young adult edition called NAZI HUNTERS that was the 2014 winner of the YALSA Award, Sydney Taylor Book Award (Gold Medal), among numerous others. His fifth book THE NEW COOL was optioned by major producer Scott Rudin for film. His sixth ONE MORE STEP, focused on the first man with cerebral palsy to climb Kilimanjaro and finish the Kona Ironman, was a New York Times bestseller as well.
An avid hiker, skier, and coffee drinker, he is happily settled in Seattle, Washington with his family.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
June 19, 2019
The only Potemkin text an Eisenstein fan will ever need: one to devour.
Footnotes are sacrificed in favour of a mesmerizing "you are there" story which switches from the battleship, to the infuriated Navy Command, back to Constanza, for the Romanian port was just as important as Odessa to the events.
The premeditated nature of the uprising & the timed hunt of the Black Sea Fleet for the ship that outgunned them all stand out as "didn't make it into the movie" elements.
Footnotes are sacrificed in favour of a mesmerizing "you are there" story which switches from the battleship, to the infuriated Navy Command, back to Constanza, for the Romanian port was just as important as Odessa to the events.
The premeditated nature of the uprising & the timed hunt of the Black Sea Fleet for the ship that outgunned them all stand out as "didn't make it into the movie" elements.
August 28, 2024
Perfectly good account of the Potemkin mutiny, probably the book available in English (of recent vintage) on the incident. I must admit that I always have reservations about authors without Russian, or other languages, who also seem to be unaware of the vast literature in the scholarly journals, who write history. The secondary literature the author uses is limited and newspaper archives are not proper original sources for facts.
Neal Bascomb has written a readable but I think superficial account, but it isn't wrong, just limited. When I read it I was not completely taken with its style or superficialities. It left me wanting to know more, whether I ever will is doubtful.
Neal Bascomb has written a readable but I think superficial account, but it isn't wrong, just limited. When I read it I was not completely taken with its style or superficialities. It left me wanting to know more, whether I ever will is doubtful.
February 17, 2016
this was the first battle in which non westerns has beaten western country
this was the battle in which the Indian Author Pankaj Mishra has started his book The ruins of empire for the mesmerizing effect it had on non western people psyche
i wish all readers to read this book and further read how non westerns has seen this battle
especially how Asians masses and the future Nationalist Leaders and Revolutionaries has welcomed the outcome of this battle
this was the also the battle which started the beginning of the end for the Tsar Nicholas II Reign to Russia
also the outcome of this battle was the first sign that Japan has come to the first world
and ushered the its imperial horrors which it unleashed on other Asian nations
am really sorry for not talking about the book but i hope my fellow readers to read after this book what Asian thinkers has said about this battle
this was the battle in which the Indian Author Pankaj Mishra has started his book The ruins of empire for the mesmerizing effect it had on non western people psyche
i wish all readers to read this book and further read how non westerns has seen this battle
especially how Asians masses and the future Nationalist Leaders and Revolutionaries has welcomed the outcome of this battle
this was the also the battle which started the beginning of the end for the Tsar Nicholas II Reign to Russia
also the outcome of this battle was the first sign that Japan has come to the first world
and ushered the its imperial horrors which it unleashed on other Asian nations
am really sorry for not talking about the book but i hope my fellow readers to read after this book what Asian thinkers has said about this battle
October 29, 2016
I did a study-abroad program in Saint Petersburg when I was in college and, much later in life, I flew repeatedly over the Black Sea in an old Soviet UN helicopter; so I understand not only the Russian Navy's place in history, but the beauty of this particular setting. I think Neal Bascomb has been able to convey both these phenomena in "Red Mutiny", bringing an objective perspective (he's a journalist from Saint Louis) and plenty of historical context to the narrative. He tees up the Potemkin story well, describing in his first chapter an increasingly feeble and out-of-touch Tsar standing on the frozen Neva deep in thought and the humiliating defeat the Japanese delivered the Russian navy at Tsushima (although, a map depicting this watershed sea battle would have been most welcome). Russia, says Bascomb, was "an autocratic state coming apart at the seams," and he begins to list all the calamities that faced it in 1905. He does this, though, having teed up a good description of Nicholas' decisions; this is, after all, a tragedy initiated by a ruler's unpreparedness to take the scepter and it's hard to argue that its end occurred when the Black Sea Fleet reacquired its battleship at the end of this drama. The Tsar's inability to delegate, the nepotism, the ministries' lack of unity, and his "Jesus Take the Wheel" attitude toward governing the world's largest empire all set the stage for popular rebellion when the crops failed, the border provinces got ornery (i.e., Poland and the Baltics), and the Japanese began to humiliate his forces in battle along the Pacific coast. The author takes us to Odessa, where the cops and cossacks are brought in to seal off the burning and looting in the harbor--and the rebellious ideas that caused it--from the rest of the Empire. The effects of the mutiny on the Potemkin not only inspired unrest in Russia, though; the book points out that the governments in Romania, Turkey, Bulgaria, and Britain--obviously, the Japanese Emperor was also interested--were paying close attention to every development and detail. As Robert K. Massey explained in his excellent "Dreadnought", battleships were the most potent weapons in war at the turn of the Twentieth Century, and a group of disgruntled professional sailors menacing ports along the Black Sea Coast with one comprised a potent threat indeed. It is this narrative, though, and what Bascomb has learned occurred inside the mutinous crew, that makes the book so interesting. The ship was reduced to a floating city without allegiance to any nation when the revolution these angry sailors had hoped to inspire along the Black Sea coast fizzled. Like any floating city, though, it was necessary to replenish the fuel, food, and water stocks, and those same Black Sea ports were turning the Potemkin away. When the crew finally hands the ship off to Romania at Costanza, a boatswain says, "This is where we end up, comrades. We're no longer sailors, but free men deprived of their homeland," and this speaks to the fact that each of them had set out on a one-way voyage that could only lead in exile, prison, or death. The rub, though, may actually occur on page 261, when Lenin puts down a copy of Le Matin that he's reading in Geneva and says "One cannot overstate the lack of organization of the revolution. The revolution gains possession of a battleship, an event unique in history, but it does not know what to do with it." Bascomb proves here that he has not only done the research, but that he can do the intellectual heavy lifting by providing some sound observations in his conclusion on why the mutiny failed; its occurrence at the same time that the Russo-Japanese war was tearing the guts out of the Russian military and that Nicholas was considering reforms, he implies, steered Russia toward the 1917 Revolution. At the end of the day, this book is also about Ukraine, and that's pertinent. We all know how Nicholas II's story ended in the cellar at Ekaterinburg, and how Lenin's people attempted to make the Potemkin story their own in the attempt to shore up support for their regime. But this story is also about Crimean naval bases, the Black Sea Fleet, and revolutionaries whose names ended in "-enko". To sum it up, I think this book is well worth the read--the story is not well-known in the West but I can just about guarantee Vladimir Putin and his buds know it; you can bet the folks trying to hold things together in Kyiv do, too.
December 2, 2009
A disappointing treatment of the 1905 Mutiny. Problems abound but the greatest weakness is the uncritical acceptance of material from the revolutionaries' point of view (as was also the case in the seminal Eisenstein film of 1925.) It is extremely difficult to separate fact from speculation. Not recommended.
November 19, 2017
Runaway battleship!
If the story wasn’t real, it would sound terribly far-fetched.
Russian sailors, antagonized by poor treatment, seize control of their country’s most powerful battleship – the Potemkin -- murdering many of ship’s officers and sparking widespread revolt in Russia’s principle seaport of Odessa. That a navy could lose control of its most powerful warship seems inconceivable – almost as inconceivable as the fact that before this book, I had never even heard of the Potemkin mutiny. Thankfully, Neal Bascomb’s Red Mutiny offers a definitive account of the uprising that is not only wonderful world history, rich with detail and nuance, but a tautly written tale with all the tension and twists of a high-action, military-grade thriller.
For historians, Bascomb offers a compelling account of the ills that provoked the mutiny, the burgeoning socialist movement that helped serve as catalyst for the event, and the consequences of the incident which reverberated across the Russian Empire and presaged the coming Russian Revolution. And while Bascomb never loses sight of the overall historical import of this event, he is hardly a stodgy armchair scholar. The sailors’ takeover of the battleship is pulse-pounding and the Potemkin’s subsequent engagements in Odessa, against the Russian Black Sea fleet, and in Theodosia are just as riveting. And this is one of those rare cases where the less you know about the real-life incident, the better; there are plenty of historical twists and turns – from lurking spies to high seas betrayal – that make for some pretty high, historical drama.
I love books about ships at sea, storms and naval engagements. Red Mutiny is one of the best of these tales … a larger-than-life real story … a page-turner from start to finish … delivered by an author who can expertly mix equal parts history with drama to craft a first-rate book. Highly recommended!
December 3, 2023
I had a high level comprehension of the Russian Revolution before reading Red Mutiny. I had heard whispers of the Battleship Potemkin in the different books and documentaries, but didn't really know much beyond there was a mutiny.
This book presents the events around the mutiny on the battleship Potemkin in a manner that is easy to follow and understand for an average reader. I appreciated the author setting up what was happening in Russia and its navy at this time (see the Battle of Tshushima) that led to this situation. However, the writing style in this book started to blur the lines between a popular history book and a novel.
Historians will never truly know what was said in a conversation unless it is recorded or transcribed. Interviews after an event can provide insights into what was said, but the human memory is fallible. Dialogue in this book is folded perfectly into the narrative, which is good for the reader. However, this makes it seems that the conversation presented on the page was fact, not a summary. While this style does bring the story to life and make it memorable for a general reader, it degrades the book's authenticity in my eyes.
A few people in the comment section of the book point out that this is from the Revolutionary's perspective with themes of good guys versus bad guys. For me, a popular history book should provide an overview of a situation from different perspectives while a novel tends to focus on one person's experience. I am not against learning about one side's perspective in a historical event. However, because of literary choices made by the author, I find this book to be informative and taken lightly, versus an authoritative work.
If someone is unfamiliar with the Russian Revolution and wants to learn more, I would suggest this book. However, if someone is just looking for another popular history book to read, this wouldn't be on my list to recommend.
This book presents the events around the mutiny on the battleship Potemkin in a manner that is easy to follow and understand for an average reader. I appreciated the author setting up what was happening in Russia and its navy at this time (see the Battle of Tshushima) that led to this situation. However, the writing style in this book started to blur the lines between a popular history book and a novel.
Historians will never truly know what was said in a conversation unless it is recorded or transcribed. Interviews after an event can provide insights into what was said, but the human memory is fallible. Dialogue in this book is folded perfectly into the narrative, which is good for the reader. However, this makes it seems that the conversation presented on the page was fact, not a summary. While this style does bring the story to life and make it memorable for a general reader, it degrades the book's authenticity in my eyes.
A few people in the comment section of the book point out that this is from the Revolutionary's perspective with themes of good guys versus bad guys. For me, a popular history book should provide an overview of a situation from different perspectives while a novel tends to focus on one person's experience. I am not against learning about one side's perspective in a historical event. However, because of literary choices made by the author, I find this book to be informative and taken lightly, versus an authoritative work.
If someone is unfamiliar with the Russian Revolution and wants to learn more, I would suggest this book. However, if someone is just looking for another popular history book to read, this wouldn't be on my list to recommend.
September 6, 2021
I wholeheartedly enjoyed reading this, having no prior background of Russian life at the end of the 1800s/start of the 1900. Neal Bascomb describes the background of peasantry life so clearly which helps you genuinely empathise with the sailors (eg Matyushenko and his family sleeping on the kitchen stove in a tiny space with all of their animals).
From swapping narratives from peasant life to the Tsar’s privileged existence from chapter to chapter really highlights the unfairness of how they lived. Initially you see Tsar Nicholas as a bit of a hapless and silly person who can’t help it as that’s just him, but you then compare this floundering to his commanding the fleet dead at all costs, even considering ending the feud with Japan.
You can’t help but resonating with the sailors when hearing the horrors of their day-to-day life, but reading this book knowing that the Russian Revolution is not for about another decade (?) away. As much as you will everyone to survive there is a somber feeling when reading as you know likely anyone you build a connection with will sadly pass away. Although as it was literally in 1905 they would literally all be dead now, you still strive for their survival as though they are people you know of.
From swapping narratives from peasant life to the Tsar’s privileged existence from chapter to chapter really highlights the unfairness of how they lived. Initially you see Tsar Nicholas as a bit of a hapless and silly person who can’t help it as that’s just him, but you then compare this floundering to his commanding the fleet dead at all costs, even considering ending the feud with Japan.
You can’t help but resonating with the sailors when hearing the horrors of their day-to-day life, but reading this book knowing that the Russian Revolution is not for about another decade (?) away. As much as you will everyone to survive there is a somber feeling when reading as you know likely anyone you build a connection with will sadly pass away. Although as it was literally in 1905 they would literally all be dead now, you still strive for their survival as though they are people you know of.
March 16, 2023
I'm usually quite apprehensive about non-fiction history books because they're usually brimming with technical vocabulary that you have to Google every 10 mins, to get the gist of the plot, which interrupts the flow of reading.
But this recommendation came from my history teacher, who's opinion I highly trust, and it did not disappoint. It exceeded all expectations as it read like fictional thriller. It is slickly and inticingly written whilst still mainting historical accuracy (as far as I'm aware from my knowledge). At times I had to remind myself that what I was reading was NOT fiction and the events really did take place.
The cast of this book is very broad so I'm very glad there was a Dramatis Persone list at the back of the book. (that I didn't find until a good quarter of the way through, but that's my bad for not reading the contents page, oops)
I also loved the tsars perspective showing how he lived blissful ignorance. It was also interesting learning about the details and the inner working of a battleship, I had no idea how vast and complicated it was- it's basically a mini city.
But this recommendation came from my history teacher, who's opinion I highly trust, and it did not disappoint. It exceeded all expectations as it read like fictional thriller. It is slickly and inticingly written whilst still mainting historical accuracy (as far as I'm aware from my knowledge). At times I had to remind myself that what I was reading was NOT fiction and the events really did take place.
The cast of this book is very broad so I'm very glad there was a Dramatis Persone list at the back of the book. (that I didn't find until a good quarter of the way through, but that's my bad for not reading the contents page, oops)
I also loved the tsars perspective showing how he lived blissful ignorance. It was also interesting learning about the details and the inner working of a battleship, I had no idea how vast and complicated it was- it's basically a mini city.
February 5, 2019
Neal Bascomb is my favorite writer of narrative nonfiction and he did not disappoint in this book that had me cheering for the mutineers.
It's a hard task to start a revolution and you see in this account that the hardest thing is keeping people motivated especially in the face of difficulties. I found myself comparing Matyushenko to Moses, whose followers were always yearning to return to Egypt and sometimes ready to kill him and choose another leader to lead them back home. The obstacle to revolution wasn't so much the tsar and the government as it was the very people Matyushenko wanted so badly to help.
Matyushenko comes off very noble in this account and I hope it is a reputation he deserves. If it is, though, it makes it all the sadder that Lenin was able to capture this momentum and use it to usher in a government as repressive as the one Matyushenko gave everything he had to topple.
It's a hard task to start a revolution and you see in this account that the hardest thing is keeping people motivated especially in the face of difficulties. I found myself comparing Matyushenko to Moses, whose followers were always yearning to return to Egypt and sometimes ready to kill him and choose another leader to lead them back home. The obstacle to revolution wasn't so much the tsar and the government as it was the very people Matyushenko wanted so badly to help.
Matyushenko comes off very noble in this account and I hope it is a reputation he deserves. If it is, though, it makes it all the sadder that Lenin was able to capture this momentum and use it to usher in a government as repressive as the one Matyushenko gave everything he had to topple.
May 26, 2018
There is a difficulty in writing about events that happened so long ago, but at the same time there aren't going to be eyewitnesses to contest the account. This is a well-written account that holds the interest throughout. My problem was that I wanted to "root for" the poorly-treated mutineers, but at the same time I felt their cause was somewhat morally ambiguous, especially considering the oppression that followed the Russian Revolution of 1917. The author deals with that at the end, stating that some of the mutineers "died in a revolutionary struggle that resulted in a Russia they would have despised as much as the one they fought against."
February 10, 2018
A real good look at a very interesting time in World History. Why they took the ship and what became of the Sailors is an interesting side note that you do not hear about to often. I was very surprised to learn about what else was going on in Russia at the time. How all this is tied into rotten meat and a mutiny is just amazing. Men can only be pushed so far before they respond. I had a small difficult time of keeping the names of the major players straight at times. Other than that this was an outstanding book on a major event at the turn of the last century.
June 2, 2023
An interesting read. Talks to the period of time right before the Russian revolution. A group of sailors on the newest most powerful ship in the Czar's navy got fed up with the horrible conditions in the military and in the country in general....took things into their own hands for 11 days. Brave men standing up to bad government. If you like Russian history and unusual events this is for you. At times challenging for me to follow all the characters...although the author has a list that you can refer to.
April 26, 2024
I have read several Neal Bascomb books and have always enjoyed his work. This one was interesting and full of really interesting Russian revolution history. He traces some events as the country heads to a revolution. The life of a Russian peasant and soldier was extremely rough. It is understandable how life like it could lead to a revolution.
It is an excellent book if you like this time period. There are times that I thought he was adding facts that did not need to be added but overall an interesting book. But again, only if you are into this time period and this geography.
It is an excellent book if you like this time period. There are times that I thought he was adding facts that did not need to be added but overall an interesting book. But again, only if you are into this time period and this geography.
June 29, 2019
Neal Bascomb jak zwykle zaskakuje swoją przenikliwością znajomością tematu i sposobem odmalowania tamtych dni.
Rewolucja na Potiomkinie i nie tylko zachwiała caratem. Marynarze sprzeciwiali się upodleniu i wyzyskowi ich i ich rodzin. Najtragiczniejsze w dziejach narodu Rosyjskiego jest to że spod jarzma i terroru, biedy dostali się pod jeszcze gorsze bolszewickie. Czyli dokładnie takie przeciw jakiemu zbuntowani marynarze walczyli a część oddała swoje życie.
Rewolucja na Potiomkinie i nie tylko zachwiała caratem. Marynarze sprzeciwiali się upodleniu i wyzyskowi ich i ich rodzin. Najtragiczniejsze w dziejach narodu Rosyjskiego jest to że spod jarzma i terroru, biedy dostali się pod jeszcze gorsze bolszewickie. Czyli dokładnie takie przeciw jakiemu zbuntowani marynarze walczyli a część oddała swoje życie.
March 29, 2021
The Red Mutiny is an account of the mutiny of the battleship Potemkin. The book offers a point of view through the mutineers and their plight for the people. At the same time, Bascomb also gives us a glimpse of the Tsar Nicholas's point of view. I also liked how the author briefly details how the Americans and the rest of the world reported the mutiny in their eyes. Overall, this book was a great read and informs us of the plight of the people to regain a brighter future.
August 26, 2023
I know little of Russian history so I have nothing to compare to this look at a mutiny in the early part of the 20th century. Some of the horrid treatment of commoners/peasants/military men illustrates what happens where despots control government. The bravery of the mutineers is amazing even though they have nothing to lose.
July 13, 2017
Thoroughly enjoyed this account of the courageous sailors who seized the battleship Potemkin in protest at the treatment of the Russian civilian population by the Tsar Nicholas II. Ominous forerunner of the Revolution 12 years later.
September 7, 2020
Reasonably good history, but the descriptions of inner thoughts and emotions of participants can sometimes wax rather melodramatic, and it sometimes feels like that's more of the author coming through than the source material. Still, a good history nonetheless.
October 24, 2017
This is a great book to make history come alive.
You feel as if you are seeing it right before your eyes.
You feel as if you are seeing it right before your eyes.
October 21, 2019
I enjoyed the historical aspects of the story. The story of some of the action wasn’t overly compelling. Overall the book was good and worth the read.
August 7, 2020
Very interesting look into Russian history.
October 15, 2020
Straightforward narrative of an important event. Nothing on par with Eisenstein.
December 28, 2020
Good history of the unrest leading to the Russian revolution as told from the perspective of the mutineers on the battleship potemkin. Poignant often and well written.
June 22, 2021
The subject matter is a lot more daunting than in “The Perfect Mile” but Neal Bascomb makes a good story out of it and clears up my misconceptions about a very historical event.
October 14, 2023
It was too detailed at parts, the author used too many pages to describe insignificant parts.
November 22, 2023
Interesting incident at the beginning of the Russian revolution. Lots of background on what was happening in Russia at the time. Quick read
February 19, 2014
A riveting account of the Potempkin uprising. Also featured is a nice quick character study of Nicholas II, and the policies and traits that lead almost directly to the 1905 revolution, and of course eventually the 1917 revolution, and the later Bolshevik coup.
I was interested to not that, comparing this book to the famous silent film "Броненосец Потемкин", the film was fairly accurate. The only difference was that the film ended with the Potemkin steaming through the rest of the Black Sea Fleet, and the presumed success of the revolt (and not showing the eventual betrayals and surrender of the crew, and the partial scuttling of the ship).
This book had an interesting tone. The author certainly seemed sympathetic towards the revolutionaries; Afanasiy Matyushenko was definitely the "hero." (I will note here that Matyushenko, and most of the sailor revolutionaries, were absolutely not Bolsheviks, but rather Social Democrats, and similar. Matyushenko specifically scorned Lenin and the Bolsheviks, which led to him being vilified by the early Soviet government, even while they praised the Potemkin mutiny as a whole) But at the same time, Bascomb lays out exactly why so many populist revolutions fail. The revolutionaries are constantly confronted by the fact that the will of most people is rather flexible. It required a great deal of effort to keep the crew resolute (or at least mostly resolute) and the disorder among the civilian revolutionaries ended up being disastrous to the mutiny. The idealism of the revolutionaries led them to expect more out of their fellow sailors than was warranted. Only two other ships successfully mutinied, and both were quickly stifled, one by internal treachery, and one by capture, due to being a training ship without ammunition. The fleet did not rise up together and destroy the Tsarist regime, nor did the army rally to them. It's happened time and time again, throughout history. The Jacobite rebellion, the Irish Rising of 1798, the Irish Easter Rising, even the American Civil War to a certain extent (the failure of Maryland to rally to the South after being invaded, for instance). The people generally want to be left alone. People are scared of the consequences to themselves, and are rarely committed enough to a cause to risk their own lives for an abstract. It takes absolutely outrageous conditions, as in revolutionary France, or the Russian 1917 revolution, to bring about a true popular uprising.
The 1905 revolution is still very important. It offered another chance for Nicholas II to help his people, and he spat in their faces again. It's not hard to see the path to the later revolution. And Lenin himself took a lesson from 1905: if a people's revolt were to succeed, he was convinced he would need to be absolutely brutal. And we saw where that led...
Quick sidenote: the reader was NOT good. Sounded like he was reading a children's story book rather than a historical account.
I was interested to not that, comparing this book to the famous silent film "Броненосец Потемкин", the film was fairly accurate. The only difference was that the film ended with the Potemkin steaming through the rest of the Black Sea Fleet, and the presumed success of the revolt (and not showing the eventual betrayals and surrender of the crew, and the partial scuttling of the ship).
This book had an interesting tone. The author certainly seemed sympathetic towards the revolutionaries; Afanasiy Matyushenko was definitely the "hero." (I will note here that Matyushenko, and most of the sailor revolutionaries, were absolutely not Bolsheviks, but rather Social Democrats, and similar. Matyushenko specifically scorned Lenin and the Bolsheviks, which led to him being vilified by the early Soviet government, even while they praised the Potemkin mutiny as a whole) But at the same time, Bascomb lays out exactly why so many populist revolutions fail. The revolutionaries are constantly confronted by the fact that the will of most people is rather flexible. It required a great deal of effort to keep the crew resolute (or at least mostly resolute) and the disorder among the civilian revolutionaries ended up being disastrous to the mutiny. The idealism of the revolutionaries led them to expect more out of their fellow sailors than was warranted. Only two other ships successfully mutinied, and both were quickly stifled, one by internal treachery, and one by capture, due to being a training ship without ammunition. The fleet did not rise up together and destroy the Tsarist regime, nor did the army rally to them. It's happened time and time again, throughout history. The Jacobite rebellion, the Irish Rising of 1798, the Irish Easter Rising, even the American Civil War to a certain extent (the failure of Maryland to rally to the South after being invaded, for instance). The people generally want to be left alone. People are scared of the consequences to themselves, and are rarely committed enough to a cause to risk their own lives for an abstract. It takes absolutely outrageous conditions, as in revolutionary France, or the Russian 1917 revolution, to bring about a true popular uprising.
The 1905 revolution is still very important. It offered another chance for Nicholas II to help his people, and he spat in their faces again. It's not hard to see the path to the later revolution. And Lenin himself took a lesson from 1905: if a people's revolt were to succeed, he was convinced he would need to be absolutely brutal. And we saw where that led...
Quick sidenote: the reader was NOT good. Sounded like he was reading a children's story book rather than a historical account.
November 17, 2015
[I listened to the audio book]
'Red Mutiny' recounts the tale of Russian sailors who, in 1905, mutinied against the officers and petty officers aboard the battleship Potemkin. The mutiny stunned the Russian Tsar and led to other mutinies aboard other Black Sea naval ships. Although the mutiny eventually ran its course, history came to see the revolt as a dress rehearsal for the subsequent Russian Revolution in 1917.
I have been learning a lot about this turn-of-the-century period of Russian history and how the Russian Revolution unfolded. The mutiny aboard the Potemkin serves as a microcosm for the travails of the common Russian people. The class strife aboard the Potemkin could have easily been witnessed aboard any Black Sea ship, or nearly any Russian town for that matter. I'm not sure if the mutineers of the Potemkin were the heroes or the victims in this account. I am compelled to choose the latter, however.
'Red Mutiny' is an excellent case study on the Russian Revolution and the author does an excellent job of recounting the thoughts and emotions at play. As a reader, you begin to ask yourself what you would do in a given situation. For example, the sailors are subjected to the famous rotting meat which they were served; serving as a 'final straw'. How would you feel if your superior officer threatened to shoot those who refused to eat the meat and had the petty officers pull out a tarp to catch the brains and blood of those that refused to eat and would be executed? How would you feel if you took over a naval vessel and had the entire Black Sea fleet looking for you to sink your ship? These are just a few of the thought-provoking events that take place in 'Red Mutiny'.
If you enjoy Russian history, 'Red Mutiny' is an enjoyable account. It ties together many aspects of the 1905 era such as Russia's war with Japan, increased civil discord among the peasants, revolutionary undercurrents, the loss of confidence among lower ranks of the military, and the Tsar's strategic blunders in answering (or ignoring) all of these topics.
'Red Mutiny' recounts the tale of Russian sailors who, in 1905, mutinied against the officers and petty officers aboard the battleship Potemkin. The mutiny stunned the Russian Tsar and led to other mutinies aboard other Black Sea naval ships. Although the mutiny eventually ran its course, history came to see the revolt as a dress rehearsal for the subsequent Russian Revolution in 1917.
I have been learning a lot about this turn-of-the-century period of Russian history and how the Russian Revolution unfolded. The mutiny aboard the Potemkin serves as a microcosm for the travails of the common Russian people. The class strife aboard the Potemkin could have easily been witnessed aboard any Black Sea ship, or nearly any Russian town for that matter. I'm not sure if the mutineers of the Potemkin were the heroes or the victims in this account. I am compelled to choose the latter, however.
'Red Mutiny' is an excellent case study on the Russian Revolution and the author does an excellent job of recounting the thoughts and emotions at play. As a reader, you begin to ask yourself what you would do in a given situation. For example, the sailors are subjected to the famous rotting meat which they were served; serving as a 'final straw'. How would you feel if your superior officer threatened to shoot those who refused to eat the meat and had the petty officers pull out a tarp to catch the brains and blood of those that refused to eat and would be executed? How would you feel if you took over a naval vessel and had the entire Black Sea fleet looking for you to sink your ship? These are just a few of the thought-provoking events that take place in 'Red Mutiny'.
If you enjoy Russian history, 'Red Mutiny' is an enjoyable account. It ties together many aspects of the 1905 era such as Russia's war with Japan, increased civil discord among the peasants, revolutionary undercurrents, the loss of confidence among lower ranks of the military, and the Tsar's strategic blunders in answering (or ignoring) all of these topics.
December 11, 2011
This book details the events aboard the battleship Potemkin, which was seized by revolutionary members of her crew in June 1905. Although they hoped to instigate a country-wide revolution and put an end to the oppression under the tsarist regime, they only managed to be a part of what Lenin supposedly called a "dress rehearsal" of the 1917 revolution.
It is typical of Bascomb to lay out an overall picture of the situation with names, personal backgrounds, national and international implications and other abundant details. 'Red Mutiny' is no exception to this rule. As the story is told from the mutineers' perspective, it is by no means objective. There are "the bad guys", who serve the regime, and "the good guys", who oppose it and fight for freedom of the people. Nevertheless, it reads really well. Historical events are skilfully woven into the net of fictitious details that sound true because they are connecting facts to create a compelling narrative. There is one scene in particular that I found exceptionally vivid. It is when the Potemkin sails through the Black Sea Squadron. I could almost hear the tense silence, broken only by mechanical creaking of the giant ships.
Apart from large-scale historical events, the book also depicts the personal drama of the mutineers, facing isolation and never-ending doubts as to the success of their cause. Had they had the communication means of today, it all might have ended completely different...
It is typical of Bascomb to lay out an overall picture of the situation with names, personal backgrounds, national and international implications and other abundant details. 'Red Mutiny' is no exception to this rule. As the story is told from the mutineers' perspective, it is by no means objective. There are "the bad guys", who serve the regime, and "the good guys", who oppose it and fight for freedom of the people. Nevertheless, it reads really well. Historical events are skilfully woven into the net of fictitious details that sound true because they are connecting facts to create a compelling narrative. There is one scene in particular that I found exceptionally vivid. It is when the Potemkin sails through the Black Sea Squadron. I could almost hear the tense silence, broken only by mechanical creaking of the giant ships.
Apart from large-scale historical events, the book also depicts the personal drama of the mutineers, facing isolation and never-ending doubts as to the success of their cause. Had they had the communication means of today, it all might have ended completely different...
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