Joe Boyle’s Adventures in the Russian Revolution

When the Tsar was overthrown by Kerensky in February 1917 and Kerensky was overthrown in turn by Lenin in October in the midst of World War 1, the world was changed utterly.

This fascinating talk will focus on Armagh native, Lieutenant-Colonel Joe Boyle’s experiences as a key player in these events.

Having initially arrived in Russia as a railway specialist, Boyle joined a small group of Allied officers whose mission was to ensure that military action continued on the eastern front.

He personally took command of Romania’s state gold reserve, and ended up flying a biplane backwards and forwards between Russia and Romania as he negotiated the text of the Treaty of Odessa.

Geoffrey Swain is Professor of History at the University of Glasgow. He has written extensively on Russian history and his other books include Trotsky, The Origins of the Russian Civil War and Eastern Europe Since 1945.