Dr Gwendal Piégais is a postdoctoral fellow at the Centre for War Studies working with Prof. Robert Gerwarth on the ERC Advanced Grant CivilWars.
His project explores the history of the Russian Civil War, focusing on the Allied intervention in Ukraine and in the Baltic region, on post-war mobilization of Russian Civil War veterans, and on the humanitarian dimension of European civil wars.
Before coming to UCD, he received his B.A. in France, his M.A. in Belgium. His 2022 PhD (Université de Bretagne Occidentale) led him to conduct research in Central and Eastern Europe, mainly in Prague and Moscow.
His thesis was focused on the history of the Russian brigades in the Balkans during the Great War, a military contingent sent to the aid of Serbian and to secure Russian influence in the Balkans. This thesis is part of a wider history of the Balkan theatre of the First World War, as well as a diplomatic and military history of the late Russian Empire and of the White movement.
His work has appeared in a number of journals and edited volumes, including 20&21. Revue d'histoire, and Guerres mondiales et conflits contemporains. He is the president and founding member of the association « Une Plus Grande Guerre - A Greater War », a French network for young researchers working on the First World War ((opens in a new window)https://upgg.hypotheses.org/)