Battle of Romanovka
Battle of Romanovka
The Battle of Romanovka happened in June 1919 in Siberia during the Russian Civil War. American troops at a camp near Vladivostok were attacked at dawn by Bolshevik forces led by Yakov Tryapitsyn. The American garrison was about 72 soldiers, with a platoon of reinforcements totaling around 400 Bolsheviks.
The attack began around 4:00 a.m. after a sentry left his post, letting the Bolsheviks surprise the camp. Most Americans were asleep when bullets hit their tents. Lieutenant Lawrence Butler, who commanded the garrison, was wounded early, and part of his jaw was shot away. Butler helped his men form a fighting line and defend the camp as Bolsheviks tried to surround them. The Americans retreated to a wood pile and then behind a cabin while under heavy fire.
Butler sent a messenger to seek help. The messenger was shot but managed to flag down a passing American supply train guarded by Lieutenant James Lorimar. Lorimar arrived with reinforcements and found Butler unconscious near ammunition crates. The two sides fought on for a short time more, then the Bolsheviks withdrew.
On the same day, American troops fought partisans at Kraefski and Shmakovka, wounding six more Americans and causing another Bolshevik retreat.
The Battle of Romanovka, and the Suchan Valley actions that followed, were the last major engagements of the Russian Civil War involving the United States.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 07:42 (CET).