Donbass Operation (1919)

The Donbass Operation of 1919 was a military campaign of the Russian Civil War between December 18-31, 1919, in which the Southern Front of the Red Army conquered the Donbass region from the Volunteer Army and part of the Don Army.

Prelude
After the successful Khopyor–Don Operation (November 20-December 8, 1919), the troops of the Red Army on December 16, 1919, entered the Kupyansk-Svatove-Bilolutsk area. In order to prevent the Red Army to cross the Donets River, the White Guard command began to concentrate a strong force in the area where the crossing was thought to take place. The force consisted of
 * the 4th Don Division (General Pavlov),
 * the 2nd Kuban Division (General Segei Ulagay)
 * the 3rd Kuban Division
 * the Cavalry Corps of General Andrei Shkuro,
 * the 3rd Cavalry Division of General Chesnokov.

The operation
The Red Army plan of attack was as follows. The main attack to this group was to be conducted by the 1st Cavalry Army under command of Semen Budyonniy, from the direction of Popasna Station, Debaltsevo and Ilovaisk. An other part of the Red Army forces was to advance on Taganrog, thus not only to defeat the Volunteer Army, but also to prevent its withdrawal to the Don Region. Secondary strikes were to be executed by the 13th Army (commander A.Gekker) in the direction of the cities of Lyov and Yuzovka (now Donetsk) and by the 8th Army (commander G.Sokolnikov) towards Lugansk.

On December 18, the Red Army launched its offensive: 1st Cavalry Army cross the Donets River in the night of December 23. The White Guard command concentrated a new group in area of Bakhmut - Popasna, with the task of pushing the 1st Cavalry Army back over the Donets River and then going on the defensive. However, on December 25, the 1st Cavalry army again attacked. On December 27, the Red Army troops captured Lugansk, Bakhmut on the 28th, Debaltsevo on the 29th, and Gorlovka, where the White Guards tried in vain to hold their ground, on the 30th.

Consequences
On January 1, 1920, the White Guards were also chased out of Ilovaisk, Amvrosiivka, Rovenky and Diakovo. Having suffered serious losses (3,000 killed and 5,000 prisoners), the White Guard troops gradually retreated to the Crimea and, partly, to Rostov-on-Don.