Between October 30 and November 1, 1919, Jekaterinoslav fell from Denekin's into Machno's hands. As Denekin's main army, on account of Machno's exploits, was then compelled to retreat, it came from Central Russia down into Ukraine. What formerly had happened to Machno, now happened to Denekin: he had no ammunition. Machno held Jekaterinoslav for a month. During this whole month, parts of the Denekin army stood only 10 versts from Jekaterinoslav on the other side of the Dnieper. Machno could not get over, but neither could Denekin. He bombarded the city but could not take it. Both of them, Machno and Denekin, bombarded the bridge across Dnieper, in order to prevent the other from coming over. In December Denekin's North army, driven back by the Red Army, advanced upon Jekaterinoslav from the North side.
Machno was thus forced to turn back and retreat to Alexandrovsk. In the meantime Denekin retreated still further, and the Red Army followed upon his heels. On January 10 and 11 the Red Army also arrived at Alexandrovsk. Trotzky now demanded that the peasants under Machno disarm. This they refused to do. It came again to conflicts, and Machno was once more outlawed. Part of his people were disarmed. He himself drew back his troops in the night and fled. From that time his power weakened. At the time the agricultural work had to be performed, in the spring and the summer of 1920, he did not have more than a few thousand men. The bolsheviks became more powerful in Ukraine and pursued him. He retreated to the woods and kept himself between Poltava, Berdiansk and Alexandrovsk.
The entente, particularly France, saw itself deceived in the hopes it had placed on the Denekin undertaking. But France did not yet surrender its hopes of \making Ukraine the starting point for its attack upon the bolsheviks. It looked around for other hirelings and found one in Baron Wrangel, "the white baron," as he is called in Ukraine and in Russia.
Through French support Wrangel became stronger. Especially after the war that broke out between Russia and Poland, Russia was compelled to concentrate its power against Poland and could not occupy itself very much with Ukraine. The defeats of the Red Army on the Polish front weakened the position of the bolsheviks in the Ukraine also. About the end of September the danger of the advance of the Polish army was so great that the bolsheviks again evacuated Kiev. Wrangel threatened the Don basin. Ukraine was not unlike a boiling kettle. Everywhere the peasants congregated and formed bands. These bands fought against the Poles, against the bolsheviks, and also againstt Wrangel. Machno also became stronger again. As a few months before, the bolsheviks had liberated West Ukraine from the Poles, who had taken Kiev and penetrated into the gouvernement of Poltava, the peasants looked upon the bolsheviks as their liberators. To begin with, they got along quite well with the Soviet government. But as the bolsheviks later, through the protraction of the war, were forced to requisition provisions for the Red Army which fought against Poland, the harmony came to an end. The peasants began to fight also against the bolsheviks, as before against the Poles. They became dissatisfied and rebelled, and, naturally, Machno was again their man.