ABSTRACT
The Battle of Warsaw of 1920 is one of the few phenomena of modern history which has been traditionally explained by reference to the supernatural. Unlike the Battle of the Marne, to which it is often compared, the "Miracle of the Vistula" never produced volumes of scholarly analysis in the West. It has been commonly believed that Lenin and the majority of Soviet leaders decided to disregard the British warning, and the possibility of negotiating an end to the war as well. The possibility of "going to Warsaw" was discussed by S. S. Kamenev in his July 15 report to Trotsky. He pointed out that in a week or two the Red Army would be "standing before the question of whether to violate or to respect" the line delineated by Curzon. Some authors have maintained that, during the war with Poland, Party leaders were fanatically pushing reluctant Red Army leaders into an adventurous "gamble".
