Allies (Entente): France, Great Britain, Russia, Japan, Serbia, USA, Italy (participated in the war on the side of the Entente since 1915).
Friends of the Entente (supported the Entente in the war): Montenegro, Belgium, Greece, Brazil, China, Afghanistan, Cuba, Nicaragua, Siam, Haiti, Liberia, Panama, Honduras, Costa Rica.
Question about the causes of the First World War has been one of the most discussed in world historiography since the outbreak of the war in August 1914.
The beginning of the war was facilitated by the widespread strengthening of nationalist sentiments. France hatched plans for the return of the lost territories of Alsace and Lorraine. Italy, even being in alliance with Austria-Hungary, dreamed of returning her lands to Trentino, Trieste and Fiume. The Poles saw in the war an opportunity to recreate a state destroyed by the divisions of the 18th century. Many peoples who inhabited Austria-Hungary aspired to national independence. Russia was convinced that it could not develop without limiting German competition, protecting the Slavs from Austria-Hungary, and expanding influence in the Balkans. In Berlin, the future was associated with the defeat of France and Great Britain and the unification of the countries of Central Europe under the leadership of Germany. In London, it was believed that the people of Great Britain would live in peace only by crushing the main enemy - Germany.
In addition, international tensions were exacerbated by a series of diplomatic crises - the Franco-German clash in Morocco in 1905-1906; the Austrian annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1908-1909; Balkan wars in 1912-1913.
The immediate cause for the war was the Sarajevo massacre. June 28, 1914 Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand, nineteen-year-old Serbian student Gavrilo Princip, who was a member of the secret organization "Young Bosnia", fighting to unite all South Slavic peoples in one state.
July 23, 1914 Austria-Hungary, enlisting the support of Germany, presented an ultimatum to Serbia and demanded that its military formations be allowed into the territory of Serbia in order to stop hostile actions together with the Serbian forces.
Serbia's response to the ultimatum did not satisfy Austria-Hungary, and July 28, 1914 she declared war on Serbia. Russia, having received assurances of support from France, openly opposed Austria-Hungary and July 30, 1914 announced a general mobilization. Germany, taking advantage of this occasion, announced August 1, 1914 Russian war, and August 3, 1914- France. After the German invasion August 4, 1914 Britain declared war on Germany in Belgium.
The First World War consisted of five campaigns. During first campaign in 1914 Germany invaded Belgium and northern France, but was defeated at the Battle of the Marne. Russia captured part of East Prussia and Galicia (the East Prussian operation and the Battle of Galicia), but then was defeated as a result of the German and Austro-Hungarian counter-offensive.
Campaign of 1915 connected with the entry into the war of Italy, the failure of the German plan to withdraw Russia from the war and the bloody inconclusive battles on the Western Front.
Campaign of 1916 associated with the entry into the war of Romania and the conduct of an exhausting positional war on all fronts.
Campaign of 1917 associated with the US entry into the war, Russia's revolutionary withdrawal from the war, and a number of successive offensive operations on the Western Front (Operation Nivelle, operations in the Messines region, on Ypres, near Verdun, near Cambrai).
Campaign of 1918 characterized by a transition from positional defense to a general offensive of the Entente armed forces. From the second half of 1918, the Allies prepared and launched retaliatory offensive operations (Amiens, Saint-Miyel, Marne), during which they eliminated the results of the German offensive, and in September 1918 they switched to a general offensive. By November 1, 1918, the allies liberated the territory of Serbia, Albania, Montenegro, entered the territory of Bulgaria after the armistice and invaded the territory of Austria-Hungary. Bulgaria signed an armistice with the Allies on September 29, 1918, Turkey on October 30, 1918, Austria-Hungary on November 3, 1918, and Germany on November 11, 1918.
June 28, 1919 signed at the Paris Peace Conference Treaty of Versailles with Germany, officially ending the First World War of 1914-1918.
On September 10, 1919, the Treaty of Saint-Germain was signed with Austria; November 27, 1919 - Treaty of Neuilly with Bulgaria; June 4, 1920 - Treaty of Trianon with Hungary; August 20, 1920 - Treaty of Sevres with Turkey.
In total, the First World War lasted 1568 days. 38 states participated in it, in which 70% of the population lived the globe. The armed struggle was carried out on the fronts with a total length of 2500-4000 km. The total losses of all warring countries amounted to about 9.5 million people killed and 20 million people wounded. At the same time, the losses of the Entente amounted to about 6 million people killed, the losses of the Central Powers were about 4 million people killed.
During the First World War, for the first time in history, tanks, aircraft, submarines, anti-aircraft and anti-tank guns, mortars, grenade launchers, bomb throwers, flamethrowers, super-heavy artillery, hand grenades, chemical and smoke shells, poisonous substances were used. New types of artillery appeared: anti-aircraft, anti-tank, infantry escorts. Aviation became an independent branch of the armed forces, which began to be subdivided into reconnaissance, fighter and bomber. There were tank troops, chemical troops, air defense troops, naval aviation. The role of the engineering troops increased and the role of the cavalry decreased.
The results of the First World War were the liquidation of four empires: German, Russian, Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman, the latter two being divided, and Germany and Russia were cut down territorially. As a result, new independent states appeared on the map of Europe: Austria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Yugoslavia, and Finland.
The material was prepared on the basis of information from open sources
On June 28, 1914, the assassination of the Austro-Hungarian Archduke Ferdinand and his wife was committed in Bosnia, in which Serbia was accused of involvement. And although the British statesman Edward Gray called for a settlement of the conflict, offering the 4 largest powers as mediators, he only managed to aggravate the situation more and draw the whole of Europe, including Russia, into the war.
Nearly a month later, Russia announces troop mobilization and conscription after Serbia turns to it for help. However, what was originally planned as a precautionary measure provoked a backlash from Germany with demands for an end to conscription. As a result, on August 1, 1914, Germany declares war on Russia.
During the 5 years of the war there were many important events and operations, but among them there are several that played a decisive role in the war itself and its history.
Despite the fact that for most of the war, German troops were able to deliver serious blows to the Allied army, by December 1, 1918, the Allies were able to break through to the borders of Germany and begin its occupation.
Later, on June 28, 1919, having no other choice, the German representatives signed a peace treaty in Paris, eventually called the "Peace of Versailles", and put an end to the First World War.
Illustrations can be viewed in a separate window in PDF:
1914- the beginning of the First World War, during which, and largely thanks to it, there was a change in the political system and the collapse of the Empire. The war did not stop with the fall of the monarchy; on the contrary, it spread from the outskirts into the interior of the country and stretched out until 1920. Thus, the war, in total, was six years.
As a result of this war, the political map of Europe ceased to exist THREE EMPIRES at once: Austro-Hungarian, German and Russian (see map). At the same time, a new state was created on the ruins of the Russian Empire - the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
By the time the World War began, Europe had been almost a hundred years old, with the completion Napoleonic Wars, did not know large-scale military conflicts. Everything European wars period 1815 - 1914 were predominantly local. At the turn of the XIX - XX centuries. the illusory thought hovered in the air that war would be irrevocably banished from the life of civilized countries. One of the manifestations of this was the Hague Peace Conference of 1897. It is noteworthy that the opening of the Peace Palace.
On the other hand, at the same time, the contradictions between the European powers grew and deepened. Since the 1870s, military blocs have been forming in Europe, which in 1914 will oppose each other on the battlefields.
In 1879, Germany entered into a military alliance with Austria-Hungary against Russia and France. In 1882, Italy joined this union, and the military-political Central Bloc was formed, also called Trinity Alliance.
In contrast to him in 1891 - 1893. a Russo-French alliance was concluded. Great Britain concluded an agreement with France in 1904, and in 1907 with Russia. The bloc of Great Britain, France and Russia was named Hearty consent, or Entente.
The immediate cause for the start of the war was the assassination by Serbian nationalists June 15 (28), 1914 in Sarajevo, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand. Austria-Hungary, supported by Germany, issued an ultimatum to Serbia. Serbia accepted most of the terms of the ultimatum.
Austria-Hungary was dissatisfied with this, and began military operations against Serbia.
Russia supported Serbia and announced first partial and then general mobilization. Germany presented Russia with an ultimatum demanding to cancel the mobilization. Russia refused.
This day is considered the date of the beginning of the First World War.
The main participants in the war from the side of the Entente were: Russia, France, Great Britain, Serbia, Montenegro, Italy, Romania, USA, Greece.
They were opposed by the countries of the Triple Alliance: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey, Bulgaria.
Military operations were going on in Western and Eastern Europe, in the Balkans and in Thessaloniki, in Italy, in the Caucasus, in the Middle and Far East, in Africa.
The First World War was on a scale never seen before. At its final stage, it involved 33 states (out of 59 existing then independent states) population, accounting for 87% the population of the entire planet. The armies of both coalitions in January 1917 numbered 37 million people. In total, during the war, 27.5 million people were mobilized in the Entente countries, and 23 million people in the countries of the German coalition.
Unlike previous wars, World War I was all-out. Most of the population of the states participating in it was involved in it in one form or another. It forced the enterprises of the main branches of industry to be transferred to military production, and the entire economy of the belligerent countries to serve it. The war, as always, gave a powerful impetus to the development of science and technology. Previously non-existent types of weapons appeared and began to be widely used: aviation, tanks, chemical weapons, etc.
The war lasted 51 months and 2 weeks. The total losses amounted to 9.5 million people killed and died from wounds and 20 million people were wounded.
The First World War was of particular importance in the history of the Russian state. It became a difficult test for the country, which lost several million people on the fronts. Its tragic consequences were revolution, devastation, Civil War and the death of old Russia.
Emperor Nikolai appointed his uncle, Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich Jr., as commander-in-chief on the Western Front. (1856 - 1929). From the very beginning of the war, Russia suffered two major defeats in Poland.
East Prussian operation lasted from August 3 to September 2, 1914. It ended with the encirclement of the Russian army near Tannenberg and the death of General of Infantry A.V. Samsonov. Then there was a defeat on the Masurian lakes.
The first successful operation was the offensive in Galicia September 5-9, 1914, as a result of which Lvov and Przemysl were taken, and the Austro-Hungarian troops were pushed back across the San River. However, already on April 19, 1915, on this sector of the front the retreat began Russian army, after which Lithuania, Galicia and Poland came under the control of the German-Austrian bloc. By mid-August 1915, Lvov, Warsaw, Brest-Litovsk and Vilna were abandoned, and thus the front moved to Russian territory.
August 23, 1915 of the year, Emperor Nicholas II deposed the leader. book. Nikolai Nikolaevich from the post of commander in chief and assumed authority. Many military leaders considered this event fatal for the course of the war.
October 20, 1914 Nicholas II declared war on Turkey, and hostilities began in the Caucasus. General of Infantry N.N. was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Caucasian Front. Yudenich (1862 − 1933, Cannes). Here, in December 1915, the Sarakamysh operation began. On February 18, 1916, the Turkish fortress of Erzurum was taken, and on April 5, Trebizond was taken.
May 22, 1916 year, the offensive of Russian troops began on the South-Western Front under the command of cavalry general A.A. Brusilov. It was the famous "Brusilov breakthrough", but the neighboring commanders of neighboring fronts, Generals Evert and Kuropatkin, did not support Brusilov, and on July 31, 1916, he was forced to stop the offensive, fearing the encirclement of his army from the flanks.
This chapter uses documents and photographs from state archives and from publications (Diary of Nicholas II, Memoirs of A. Brusilov, Verbatim records of meetings of the State Duma, poems by V. Mayakovsky). Based on materials from the home archive (letters, postcards, photographs), one can get an idea of how this war affected the lives of ordinary people. Some fought at the front, those who lived in the rear participated in helping the wounded and refugees in the institutions of such public organizations as the Russian Red Cross Society, the All-Russian Zemstvo Union, the All-Russian Union of Cities.
It's a shame, but just during this most interesting period in our Family Archives, no one's diaries, although, perhaps, at that time no one led them. It's good that grandma saved letters those years that her parents wrote from Chisinau and sister Xenia from Moscow, as well as several postcards by Yu.A. Korobina from the Caucasian front, which he wrote to his daughter Tanya. Unfortunately, the letters written by her herself have not been preserved - from the front in Galicia, from Moscow during the Revolution, from Tambov provinces during the Civil War.
In order to somehow make up for the lack of daily records from my relatives, I decided to look for published diaries of other participants in the events. It turned out that the diaries were regularly kept by Emperor Nicholas II, and they are "posted" on the Internet. It is boring to read his Diaries, because day after day the same small everyday details are repeated in the records (as got up, "walked" received reports, had breakfast, walked again, bathed, played with children, dined and drank tea, and in the evening "dealt with documents" in the evening playing dominoes or dice). The emperor describes in detail the reviews of the troops, ceremonial marches and ceremonial dinners given in his honor, but speaks very sparingly about the situation on the fronts.
I want to remind you that the authors of diaries and letters, unlike memoirists, don't know the future, and for those who read them now, their "future" has become our "past", and we know what awaits them. This knowledge leaves a special imprint on our perception, especially because their "future" turned out to be so tragic. We see that the participants and witnesses of social catastrophes do not think about the consequences and therefore do not know what awaits them. Their children and grandchildren forget about the experience of their ancestors, which is easy to see when reading the diaries and letters of contemporaries of the following wars and "perestroikas". In the world of politics, too, everything repeats itself with amazing monotony: after 100 years, the newspapers again write about Serbia and Albania, someone again bombing Belgrade and fighting in Mesopotamia, again caucasian wars are going on, and in the new Duma, as in the old one, members are engaged in verbiage ... As if you are watching remakes of old movies.
The diary of Nicholas II serves as a background for the publication of letters from the Family Archive. The letters are printed in the places where they coincide chronologically with the entries from his Diary. The text of the entries is given with abbreviations. Italic highlighted daily used verbs and phrases. Subtitles and notes provided by the compiler.
Since April 1914, the royal family lived in Livadia. Ambassadors, ministers and Rasputin, whom Nicholas II calls in his diary, came to the tsar there Gregory. It is noticeable that Nicholas II attached special importance to meetings with him. Unlike world events, he certainly noted them in his diary. Here are some typical entries in May 1914.
May 15th.Walked in the morning. had breakfast Georgy Mikhailovich and several lancers, on the occasion of the regimental holiday . Happy played tennis. Was reading[documents] before lunch. Evening spent with Gregory, who yesterday arrived in Yalta.
May 16th. Went for a walk quite late; it was hot. Before breakfast accepted Bulgarian military agent Sirmanov. Had a good game of tennis during the day. We drank tea in the garden. Completed all papers. After dinner there were regular games.
May 18th. In the morning I went with Voeikov and examined the area of the future large carriageway. After lunch was Sunday breakfast. Played during the day. At 6 1/2 took a walk with Alexei on a horizontal path. After lunch ride in the motor in Yalta. seen Gregory.
May 31, 1914 Nicholas II left Livadia, moved to his yacht Shtandart and, accompanied by a convoy of 6 warships, went on a visit to Ferdinand von Hohenzollern(b. in 1866), who became in 1914 Romanian king. Nicholas and the Queen were relatives along the line Saxe-Coburg-Gotha At home, the very one to which she belonged, both the ruling dynasty in the British Empire, and the Russian Empress (Nicholas's wife) on her mother's side.
Therefore he writes: "In the pavilion of the Queen family breakfast». In the morning 2 June Nicholas arrived in Odessa, and in the evening got on the train and went to Chisinau.
June 3rd. We arrived in Chisinau at 9 1/2 on a hot morning. They traveled around the city in carriages. The order was exemplary. From the cathedral procession went to the square, where the solemn consecration of the monument to Emperor Alexander I took place in memory of the centenary of the annexation of Bessarabia to Russia. The sun was hot. accepted right there all the volost foremen of the province. Then let's go to the appointment to the nobility; from the balcony watched the gymnastics of boys and girls. On the way to the station we visited the zemstvo museum. At 20 min. left Chisinau. had breakfast in great spirits. Stopped at 3 o'clock in Tiraspol, where made a review [hereinafter, the listing of parts is omitted]. Received two deputations and got on the train when the refreshing rain started. Until the evening read papers .
Note N.M. Father of Nina Evgenievna, E.A. Belyavsky, a nobleman and a real state councilor, served in the Excise Administration of the Bessarabian province. Together with other officials, he probably participated in "the celebrations of the consecration of the monument and in the reception of the nobility", but my grandmother never told me about this. But at that time she lived with Tanya in Chisinau.
June 15 (28), 1914 in Serbia, and in the city of Sarajevo, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne was killed by a terrorist Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
Note N.M. From 7 (20) to 10 (23) July the visit of the President of the French Republic Poincaré to the Russian Empire took place. The President had to persuade the Emperor to go to war with Germany and its allies, and for this he promised the help of the allies (England and France), to whom the Emperor had been indebted since 1905, when bankers from the USA and Europe gave him a loan of 6 billion rubles under 6% per annum. In his Diary, Nicholas II, of course, does not write about such unpleasant things.
Strange, but Nicholas II did not mention the murder of the Archduke in Serbia in his Diary, therefore, when reading his diary, it is not clear why Austria issued an ultimatum to this country. On the other hand, he describes Poincaré's visit in detail and with obvious pleasure. Writes , how “a French squadron entered the small roadstead of Kronstadt”, with what honor the president was greeted, how a ceremonial dinner with speeches took place, after which he names his guest "kind president." The next day they go with Poincaré "to review the troops."
10 (23) July, Thursday, Nicholas escorts Poincare to Kronstadt, and in the evening of the same day.
1914. DIARY OF NICHOLASII.
July 12th. On Thursday evening Austria issues ultimatum to Serbia with requirements, of which 8 are unacceptable for an independent state. Obviously, we talk everywhere only about this. From 11 am to 12 pm I had a meeting with 6 ministers on the same subject and on the precautions we should take. After talking, I went with my three older daughters to [Mariinsky] theatre.
July 15 (28), 1914. Austria declared war on Serbia
July 15th.accepted representatives of the congress of the naval clergy with his father Shavelsky in charge of. Played tennis. At 5 o'clock. go with daughters to Strelnitsa to Aunt Olga and drank tea with her and Mitya. At 8 1/2 accepted Sazonov, who reported that This afternoon Austria declared war on Serbia.
July 16th. In the morning accepted Goremykina [Chairman of the Council of Ministers]. Happy played tennis. But the day was unusually restless. I was constantly called to the telephone by Sazonov, or Sukhomlinov, or Yanushkevich. In addition, he was in urgent telegraphic correspondence with Wilhelm. In the evening was reading[documents] and more accepted Tatishchev, whom I am sending tomorrow to Berlin.
July 18th. The day stood gray, the same was the inner mood. At 11 o'clock. A meeting of the Council of Ministers was held at the Farm. After breakfast I took the German ambassador. took a walk with daughters. Before lunch and in the evening was doing.
July 19 (Aug. 1), 1914. Germany declared war on Russia.
July 19th. Called after breakfast Nicholas and announced to him his appointment as supreme commander until my arrival in the army. Ride with Alix to the Diveevo monastery. Walked with the children. Upon returning from there learned, what Germany declared war on us. had dinner… arrived in the evening English ambassador Buchanan with a telegram from George. Long made up together with him answer.
Note N.M. Nikolasha - uncle of the king, led. book. Nikolai Nikolaevich. George - Cousin of the Empress, King George of England. Starting a war with a cousin "Willy" caused Nicholas II to "lift the spirit", and, judging by the entries in the diary, he maintained such a mood to the end, despite the constant setbacks at the front. Did he remember what the war he started and lost with Japan led to? After all, after that war, the first Revolution happened.
July 20th. Sunday. A good day, especially in the sense uplifting spirit. At 11 went to dinner. had breakfast alone. Signed a manifesto declaring war. From Malahitovaya we went out to the Nikolaevskaya hall, in the middle of which the manifesto was read and then a prayer service was served. The whole hall sang “Save, Lord” and “Many Years”. Said a few words. On their return, the ladies rushed to kiss their hands and battered Alix and me. Then we went out onto the balcony on Alexander Square and bowed to the huge mass of people. We returned to Peterhof at 7 1/4. The evening was spent quietly.
July 22nd. Yesterday Mom a came to Copenhagen from England via Berlin. 9 1/2 to one continuously took. The first to arrive was Alek [Grand Duke], who returned from Hamburg with great difficulties and barely reached the border. Germany declared war on France and directs the main onslaught on it.
July 23rd. Learned in the morning good[??? – comp.] message: England announced to the warrior of Germany because the latter attacked France and violated the neutrality of Luxembourg and Belgium in the most unceremonious manner. The best way from the outside for us the campaign could not start. Took all morning and after breakfast until 4 o'clock. The last one I had French Ambassador Palaiologos, who came to officially announce the break between France and Germany. Walked with the children. The evening was free[the Department - comp.].
July 24th. Today, Austria finally, declared war on us. Now the situation is completely determined. Since 11 1/2 I have had meeting of the Council of Ministers. Alix went into town in the morning and returned with Victoria and Ella. Walked.
Historic meeting of the State Duma July 26, 1914 With. 227 - 261
Greeting Emperor NicholasII
State Council and State Duma,
Interim's word Chairman of the State Council Golubev:
“Your Imperial Majesty! The Council of State casts before you, Great Sovereign, loyal feelings imbued with boundless love and all-submissive gratitude... The unity of the beloved Sovereign and the population of His Empire aggravates its power... (etc.)”
Word of the Chairman of the State Duma M.V. Rodzianko: "Your Imperial Majesty! With a deep sense of delight and pride, all of Russia listens to the words of the Russian Tsar, calling His people to complete unity .... Without a difference of opinions, views and convictions, the State Duma, on behalf of the Russian land, calmly and firmly says to its Tsar: hold on, my lord the Russian people are with you ... (etc.) "
At 3 hours 37 minutes. the meeting of the State Duma began.
M.V. Rodzianko exclaims: "Long live the Sovereign Emperor!" (Long-lasting clicks: cheers) and invites gentlemen Members of the State Duma standing to listen to the Supreme Manifesto of 20 July 1914(Everybody get up).
Emperor and Autocrat of All Russia,
Tsar of Poland, Grand Duke of Finland and others, and others, and others.
“We declare to all Our faithful subjects:
<…>Austria hurriedly went over to an armed attack, opening the bombardment of defenseless Belgrade... Forced, due to the circumstances, to take the necessary precautions, We ordered to bring army and navy on martial law. <…>Allied to Austria, Germany, contrary to Our hopes for a century of good neighborliness and not heeding Our assurance that the measures taken have no hostile aims, began to seek their immediate cancellation and, meeting with a refusal, suddenly declared war on Russia.<…>In the terrible hour of trial, may internal strife be forgotten. Let it get stronger unity of the king with his people…
Chairman M.V. Rodzianko: Sovereign Emperor hurray! (Long-lasting clicks: Hooray).
Ministerial explanations on the measures taken in connection with the war follow. Speakers: Chairman of the Council of Ministers Goremykin, Foreign Secretary Sazonov, Minister of Finance Barque. Their speeches were often interrupted stormy and prolonged applause, voices and clicks: "bravo!"
After a break, M.V. Rodzianko invites the State Duma to listen standing second manifesto of 26 July 1914
“We declare to all Our faithful subjects:<…>Now Austria-Hungary has declared war on Russia, which saved it more than once. In the coming war of nations, We [that is, Nicholas II] are not alone: together with Us [with Nicholas II], Our [Nicholas II] valiant allies stood up, also forced to resort to force of arms in order to finally eliminate the eternal threat of the German powers to the common world and calmness.
<…>May the Lord Almighty Our [Nicholas II] and our allied weapons, and may all of Russia rise to the feat of arms with iron in hand, with a cross in the heart…»
Chairman M.V. Rodzianko:Long live the Sovereign Emperor!
(Long-lasting clicks: Hooray; voice: Hymn! Members of the State Duma sing national anthem).
[AFTER 100 YEARS MEMBERS OF THE DUMA OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION ALSO GLORIFY THE "SOVER" AND SING THE ANTHEM!!! ]
Discussions on government clarifications begin. The Social Democrats are the first to speak: from the Labor Group A.F. Kerensky(1881, Simbirsk -1970, New York) and on behalf of the RSDLP Khaustov. After them, various “Russians” (Germans, Poles, Little Russians) spoke with assurances of their loyal feelings and intentions to “sacrifice life and property for the unity and greatness of Russia”: Baron Fölkersam and Goldman from Courland province., Yaronsky from Kletskaya, Ichas and Feldman from Kovno, Lutz from Kherson. Speeches were also made: Milyukov from St. Petersburg, Count Musin-Pushkin from the Moscow province., Markov 2nd from the Kursk province., Protopopov from the Simbirsk province. other.
Against the background of loyal verbiage, which gentlemen Members of the State Duma were engaged in that day, the speeches of the socialists look like the exploits of the Gracchi brothers.
A.F. Kerensky (Saratov province): The Labor Group instructed me to issue the following statement:<…>The responsibility of the governments of all European states, in the name of the interests of the ruling classes, who pushed their peoples into a fratricidal war, is inexcusable.<…>Russian citizens! Remember that you have no enemies among the working classes of the warring countries.<…>Defending to the end everything native from attempts to seize the hostile governments of Germany and Austria, remember that this terrible war would not have happened if the great ideals of democracy - freedom, equality and fraternity - guided the activities of governments all countries».
―――――――
Poems:“Already all of you are freezing, / Far from ours.
Sausage cannot be compared // With Russian black porridge.
Notes of a Petrograd man in the street during the Russian-German war. P.V. With. 364 - 384
August 1914.“The Germans are waging this war like the Huns, Vandals and desperate super-villains. They take out their failures on the defenseless population of the areas they occupy. The Germans ruthlessly plunder the population, impose monstrous indemnities, shoot men and women, rape women and children, destroy monuments of art and architecture, and burn precious book depositories. To confirm this, we present a number of excerpts from correspondence and telegrams for this month.
<…>The news from the Western Front is confirmed that the German troops set fire to the town of Badenville, shooting women and children in it. One of the sons of Emperor Wilhelm, arriving in Badenville, delivered a speech to the soldiers in which he said that the French were savages. "Exterminate them as much as you can!" the prince said.
Belgian envoy cites irrefutable evidence that the Germans mutilate and burn alive the villagers, kidnap young girls, and rape children. Near the village of Lencino there was a battle between the Germans and the Belgian infantry. Not a single civilian took part in this battle. Nevertheless, the German units that invaded the village destroyed two farms, six houses, gathered the entire male population, put them in a ditch and shot them.
London newspapers full of details about the terrible atrocities of the German troops in Louvain. The pogrom of the civilian population continued without interruption. Moving from house to house German soldiers indulged in robbery, violence and murder, sparing neither women, nor children, nor the elderly. The surviving members of the city council were herded into the cathedral and stabbed there with bayonets. The famous local library, which contained 70,000 volumes, was burned."
It's done. Rock with a harsh hand
He lifted the veil of time.
Before us are the faces of a new life
They worry like a wild dream.
covering capitals and villages,
Soared, raging, banners.
Through the pastures of ancient Europe
The last war is underway.
And everything about what with a fruitless fervor
Ages have been arguing.
Ready to kick
Her iron hand.
But listen! In the hearts of the oppressed
Summon the tribes of the enslaved
Breaks into a war cry.
Under the clatter of armies, the thunder of guns,
Under the Newports, a buzzing flight,
Everything we talk about is like a miracle
Dreaming, maybe getting up.
So! too long we've languished
And they continued Belshazzar's feast!
Let, let from the fiery font
The world will be transformed!
Let it fall into a bloody hole
The structure is shaky for centuries, -
In the false illumination of glory
The world to come will be new!
Let the old vaults crumble
Let the poles fall with a roar;
The beginning of peace and freedom
Let there be a terrible year of struggle!
V. MAYAKOVSKY. 1917.TO ANSWER!
The war drum rumbles and rumbles.
He calls for iron to be stuck alive.
From every country for a slave to a slave
they throw a bayonet on the steel.
For what? The earth is trembling, hungry, undressed.
Evaporated humanity in a bloodbath
just to someone somewhere
got hold of Albania.
The anger of human packs grappled,
falls on the world for blow blow
only in order to free the Bosphorus
there were some trials.
Soon the world won't have an unbroken rib.
And take out the soul. And trample on a m of it
just for that so that someone
took over Mesopotamia.
In the name of what does the boot trample the earth, creaking and rude?
Who is above the sky of fighting - freedom? God? Ruble!
When you stand up to your full height,
you who give your life Yu them?
When you throw a question in their face:
what are we fighting for?
Turning to international relations in the first decades of the 20th century, historians most often try to find an answer to the question: why did the world war begin? Consider events and phenomena that will help to find out the causes of its occurrence.
The rapid industrial development of the countries of Europe and North America at that time pushed them to enter the broad world market, spreading their economic and political influence in different parts of the world.
The powers that already had colonial possessions sought to expand them in every possible way. So, France in the last third of the XIX - early XX century. increased the territory of its colonies by more than 10 times. The clash of interests of individual European powers led to armed confrontation, as, for example, in Central Africa, where the British and French colonialists competed. Great Britain also tried to strengthen its position in South Africa - in the Transvaal and the Orange Republic. The determined resistance of the descendants of European settlers who lived there - the Boers - led to Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902).
The guerrilla struggle of the Boers and the cruelest methods of warfare by the British troops (up to the burning of peaceful settlements and the creation of concentration camps, where thousands of prisoners died) showed the whole world the terrible face of war in the coming 20th century. Great Britain defeated the two Boer republics. But this inherently imperialist war was then condemned by the majority European countries, as well as democratic forces in Britain itself.
Completed by the beginning of the 20th century. the colonial division of the world did not bring peace to international relations. Countries that have made significant progress in their industrial development (USA, Germany, Italy, Japan) are actively involved in the struggle for economic and political influence in the world. In some cases, they tore away the colonial territories from their owners by military means. This is what the United States did by unleashing a war against Spain in 1898. In other cases, the colonies "bargained". This was done, for example, by Germany in 1911. Having declared its intention to seize part of Morocco, it sent a warship to its shores. France, which had previously penetrated into Morocco, in exchange for the recognition of its priority, ceded to Germany part of its possessions in the Congo. The following document testifies to the decisiveness of Germany's colonial intentions.
From the parting words of Kaiser Wilhelm II to the German troops heading to China in July 1900 to suppress the Yihetuan uprising:
“There are great tasks ahead of the newly emerged German Empire across the sea ... And you ... must teach the enemy a good lesson. Converging with the enemy, you must beat him! Give no mercy! Take no prisoners! With those who fall into your hands, do not stand on ceremony. Just as a thousand years ago, under their king Attila, the Huns glorified their name, which is still preserved in fairy tales and legends, so the name of the Germans should evoke such feelings in China in a thousand years, so that no Chinese would ever again dare to look askance to the German!
The increased conflicts between the great powers in different parts of the world caused concern not only in public opinion, but also among the politicians themselves. In 1899, at the initiative of Russia, a peace conference was held in The Hague with the participation of representatives of 26 states. The second conference in The Hague (1907) already involved 44 countries. At these meetings, conventions (agreements) were adopted that contained recommendations on the peaceful settlement of international disputes, limiting cruel forms of warfare (prohibiting the use of explosive bullets, poisonous substances, etc.), reducing military spending and armed forces, humane treatment of prisoners, and also determined the rights and obligations of neutral states.
The discussion of general problems of maintaining peace did not prevent the leading European powers from dealing with completely different issues: how to ensure the achievement of their own, not always peaceful, foreign policy goals. It was increasingly difficult to do this alone, so each country was looking for allies. From the end of the 19th century two international blocs began to take shape - the Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy) and the Franco-Russian alliance, which outgrew at the beginning of the 20th century. in the Triple Entente of France, Russia, Great Britain.
Dates, documents, events
Triple Alliance
1879 - secret treaty between Germany and Austria-Hungary on joint defense against Russian attack.
1882 - Triple alliance of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy.
Franco-Russian alliance
1891-1892 - Consultative pact and military convention between Russia and France.
Entente
1904 - agreement between Great Britain and France on the division of spheres of influence in Africa.
1906 - negotiations between Belgium, Great Britain and France on military cooperation.
1907 - agreement between Great Britain and Russia on the division of spheres of influence in Iran, Afghanistan and Tibet.
International conflicts of the early XX century. were not limited to disputes over overseas territories. They also appeared in Europe itself. In 1908-1909. the so-called Bosnian crisis. Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina, which were formally part of the Ottoman Empire. Serbia and Russia protested, as they were in favor of granting independence to these territories. Austria-Hungary announced mobilization and began to concentrate troops on the border with Serbia. The actions of Austria-Hungary received the support of Germany, which forced Russia and Serbia to come to terms with the capture.
Other states also sought to take advantage of the weakening of the Ottoman Empire. Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece and Montenegro formed the Balkan Union and in October 1912 attacked the empire in order to liberate the territories inhabited by Slavs and Greeks from Turkish rule. In a short time, the Turkish army was defeated. But the peace negotiations turned out to be difficult, since the great powers joined in: the Entente countries supported the states of the Balkan Union, and Austria-Hungary and Germany supported the Turks. Under the peace treaty signed in May 1913, the Ottoman Empire lost almost all of its European territories. But less than a month later, a second Balkan war broke out - this time between the victors. Bulgaria attacked Serbia and Greece, trying to get its part of Macedonia liberated from Turkish rule. The war ended in August 1913 with the defeat of Bulgaria. She left behind unresolved interethnic and interstate contradictions. These were not only mutual territorial disputes between Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece, Romania. The dissatisfaction of Austria-Hungary with the strengthening of Serbia as a possible center for the unification of the South Slavic peoples, some of which were in the possession of the Habsburg Empire, also grew.
On June 28, 1914, in the capital of Bosnia, the city of Sarajevo, a member of the Serbian terrorist organization Gavrilo Princip killed the heir to the Austrian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and his wife.
June 28, 1914 Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sofia in Sarajevo Five minutes before the assassination attempt
Austria-Hungary accused Serbia of instigation, to which an ultimatum note was sent. The fulfillment of the requirements contained in it meant for Serbia the loss of its state dignity, consent to Austrian interference in its affairs. Serbia was ready to fulfill all the conditions, except for one, the most humiliating for it (about the investigation by the Austrian services on the territory of Serbia of the reasons for the Sarajevo assassination attempt). However, on July 28, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. Two weeks later, 8 states of Europe were involved in the war.
Dates and events
August 1 - Germany declares war on Russia.
August 2 - German troops occupied Luxembourg.
August 3 - Germany declared war on France, its troops moved to France through Belgium.
August 4 - Britain enters the war against Germany.
August 6 - Austria-Hungary declares war on Russia.
August 11 - France enters the war against Austria-Hungary.
August 12 - Great Britain declares war on Austria-Hungary.
On August 23, 1914, Japan declared war on Germany and began seizing German possessions in China and the Pacific. In the autumn of the same year, the Ottoman Empire entered the struggle on the side of the Triple Alliance. The war went beyond the borders of Europe and turned into a world war.
The states that entered the war, as a rule, explained their decision by “higher interests” - the desire to protect themselves and other countries from aggression, allied duty, etc. But the true goals of most of the participants in the conflict were to expand their territories or colonial possessions, to increase the influence in Europe and other continents.
Austria-Hungary wanted to subjugate the growing Serbia, to weaken Russia's position in the Balkans. Germany sought to annex the border territories of France and Belgium, the Baltic states and other lands in Europe, and also to expand its colonial possessions at the expense of English, French, and Belgian colonies. France resisted the onslaught of Germany and at least wanted to return Alsace and Lorraine captured from her in 1871. Britain fought to preserve its colonial empire and wished to weaken Germany, which had gained strength. Russia defended its interests in the Balkans and the Black Sea, and at the same time was not averse to annexing Galicia, which was part of Austria-Hungary.
Some exceptions were Serbia, which became the first victim of the attack, and Belgium, occupied by the Germans: they fought the war primarily for the restoration of their independence, although they also had other interests.
So, in the summer of 1914, the wheel of war rolled out of the hands of politicians and diplomats and invaded the lives of millions of people in dozens of countries in Europe and the world. How did people feel when they learned about the war? In what mood did the men go to the mobilization points? What were those who were not supposed to go to the front preparing for?
Official announcements about the beginning of hostilities were accompanied by patriotic appeals and assurances of an imminent victory.
French President R. Poincaré noted in his notes:
“The German declaration of war aroused in the nation a magnificent outburst of patriotism. Never in all its history has France been so beautiful as in these hours which we have been given to witness. The mobilization, which began on August 2, ended today, was carried out with such discipline, in such order, with such calmness, with such enthusiasm, that the government and military authorities admire ... In England, the same enthusiasm as in France; the royal family was the subject of repeated standing ovations; patriotic demonstrations everywhere. The Central Powers aroused the unanimous indignation of the French, English and Belgian peoples.
A significant part of the population of the countries that entered the war was seized by nationalist sentiments. The attempts of pacifists and some socialists to raise their voice against the war were drowned out by a wave of jingoistic patriotism. The leaders of the workers' and socialist movement in Germany, Austria-Hungary, France put forward the slogans of "civil peace" in their countries and voted for war loans. The leaders of the Austrian Social Democracy called on their supporters "to fight against tsarism," while the British socialists decided above all to "fight against German imperialism." The ideas of the class struggle and the international solidarity of the workers were relegated to the background. This led to the collapse of the Second International. Only separate groups of social democrats (including the Russian Bolsheviks) condemned the outbreak of the war as imperialist and called on the working people to refuse to support their governments. But their voices were not heard. Thousands of armies went to fight, hoping for victory.
Although the leadership in declaring war belonged to Austria-Hungary, the most decisive action was immediately launched by Germany. She sought to avoid a war on two fronts - against Russia in the east and France in the west. The plan of General A. von Schlieffen, developed even before the war, provided first for the rapid defeat of France (in 40 days), and then for an active struggle against Russia. The German strike group, which invaded Belgian territory at the beginning of the war, approached the French border in a little over two weeks (later than planned, because the fierce resistance of the Belgians prevented it). By September 1914, the German armies crossed the Marne River and approached the fortress of Verdun. It was not possible to fulfill the plan of "blitzkrieg" (blitzkrieg). But France was in a very difficult position. Paris was in danger of being invaded. The government left the capital and turned to Russia for help.
Despite the fact that the deployment and equipping of the Russian troops had not been completed by that time (this is exactly what Schlieffen was counting on in his plan), two Russian armies under the command of Generals P.K. Rennenkampf and A.V. Samsonov were abandoned on the offensive in August in East Prussia (here they soon failed), and the troops under the command of General N.I. Ivanov in September - in Galicia (where they dealt a serious blow to the Austrian army). The offensive cost the Russian troops heavy losses. But to stop him, Germany transferred several corps from France to the Eastern Front. This allowed the French command to gather forces and repel the onslaught of the Germans in a difficult battle on the Marne River in September 1914 (more than 1.5 million people participated in the battle, losses on both sides amounted to almost 600 thousand killed and wounded).
The plan to quickly defeat France failed. Unable to get the better of each other, the opponents “sat down in trenches” along a huge front line (600 km long) that crossed Europe from the North Sea coast to Switzerland. A protracted positional war broke out on the Western Front. By the end of 1914, a similar situation had developed on the Austro-Serbian front, where the Serbian army managed to liberate the country's territory, previously captured (in August - November) by the Austrian troops.
During a period of relative calm on the fronts, diplomats became more active. Each of the warring groups sought to attract new allies into their ranks. Both sides negotiated with Italy, which at the beginning of the war declared its neutrality. Seeing the failure of the German and Austrian troops in conducting a blitzkrieg, Italy in the spring of 1915 joined the Entente.
Since the spring of 1915, the center of hostilities in Europe has moved to the Eastern Front. The combined forces of Germany and Austria-Hungary carried out a successful offensive in Galicia, driving out Russian troops from there, and the army under the command of General P. von Hindenburg captured the Polish and Lithuanian territories that were part of the Russian Empire (including Warsaw) by autumn.
Despite the difficult situation of the Russian army, the French and British command was in no hurry to advance on their front. Military reports of the time included the proverbial phrase: "All Quiet on the Western Front." True, positional warfare was also an ordeal. The fight intensified, the number of victims steadily increased. In April 1915, on the Western Front near the Ypres River, the German army carried out its first gas attack. About 15 thousand people were poisoned, of which 5 thousand died, the rest remained disabled. In the same year, war at sea between Germany and Great Britain intensified. To block the British Isles, German submarines began to attack all ships going there. During the year, over 700 ships were sunk, including many civilian ships. Protests from the United States and other neutral countries forced the German command to abandon attacks on passenger ships for some time.
After the successes of the Austro-German forces on the Eastern Front in the fall of 1915, Bulgaria entered the war on their side. Soon, as a result of a joint offensive, the Allies occupied the territory of Serbia.
In 1916, believing that Russia was sufficiently weakened, the German command decided to deliver a new blow to France. The goal of the German offensive, undertaken in February, was the French fortress of Verdun, the capture of which would open the way for the Germans to Paris. However, it was not possible to take the fortress.
This was explained by the fact that during the previous break in active operations on the Western Front, the British-French troops secured a superiority over the Germans by several dozen divisions. In addition, at the request of the French command in March 1916, an offensive was launched by Russian troops near Lake Naroch and the city of Dvinsk, which diverted significant German forces.
Finally, in July 1916, a massive offensive by the British-French army began on the Western Front. Particularly heavy fighting took place on the Somme. Here the French concentrated powerful artillery, which created a continuous shaft of fire. The British, for the first time, used tanks, which caused a real panic among the German soldiers, although they had not yet been able to turn the tide of battles.
The bloody battle, which lasted almost half a year, in which both sides lost about 1 million 300 thousand people killed, wounded and captured, ended with a relatively small advance of the British and French troops. Contemporaries called the battles of Verdun and the Somme "meat grinders".
Even the inveterate politician R. Poincare, who at the beginning of the war admired the patriotic upsurge of the French, now saw a different, terrible face of the war. He wrote:
“How much energy does this life of troops require daily, half underground, in trenches, in rain and snow, in trenches destroyed by grenades and mines, in shelters without clean air and light, in parallel ditches, always subject to the destructive action of shells, in side passages , which can suddenly be cut off by enemy artillery, at posts advanced forward, where a patrol can be caught every minute by an impending attack! How can we still know moments of deceptive calm in the rear, if there, at the front, people like us are doomed to this hell?
Significant events unfolded in 1916 on the Eastern Front. In June, Russian troops under the command of General A. A. Brusilov broke through the Austrian front to a depth of 70-120 km. The Austrian and German command hastily transferred 17 divisions from Italy and France to this front. Despite this, Russian troops occupied part of Galicia, Bukovina, entered the Carpathians. Their further advance was suspended due to lack of ammunition, isolation of the rear.
In August 1916, Romania entered the war on the side of the Entente. But by the end of the year, her army was defeated, the territory was occupied. As a result, the front line for the Russian army increased by another 500 km.
The war required the belligerent countries to mobilize all human and material resources. The life of people in the rear was built according to the laws of wartime. The working hours were extended at the enterprises. Restrictions were imposed on holding meetings, rallies, strikes. The newspapers were censored. The state strengthened not only political control over society. During the war years, its regulatory role in the economy grew noticeably. State bodies distributed military orders and raw materials, disposed of the produced military products. They formed an alliance with the largest industrial and financial monopolies.
The daily life of people has also changed. The work of the departed to fight the young, strong men fell on the shoulders of the elderly, women and teenagers. They worked in military factories, cultivated the land in immeasurably more difficult conditions than before.
From the book by S. Pankhurst "The Home Front" (the author is one of the leaders of the women's movement in England):
“In July (1916) I was approached by women who worked in aviation enterprises in London. They covered airplane wings with camouflage paint for 15 shillings a week, working from 8 o'clock in the morning until half past six in the evening. They were often asked to work until 8 p.m., and were paid for this overtime work as usual... According to them, constantly six or more of the thirty women who worked on painting were forced to leave the workshop and lie down on the stones for half an hour or more before they could return to their workplace.
In most of the warring countries, a system of strictly rationed distribution of food and essential goods on cards was introduced. At the same time, the norms, compared with the pre-war level of consumption, were cut two to three times. It was possible to buy products in excess of the norm only on the "black market" for fabulous money. Only industrialists and speculators who got rich on military supplies could afford it. Most of the population was starving. In Germany, the winter of 1916/17 was called "rutabaga", because due to a poor potato harvest, rutabaga became the main food product. People also suffered from lack of fuel. In Paris, during the said winter, there were cases of people dying from the cold. The prolongation of the war led to an ever greater deterioration in the situation in the rear.
The war brought ever-increasing losses and suffering to the peoples. By the end of 1916, about 6 million people died on the fronts, about 10 million were injured. The cities and villages of Europe became battlefields. In the occupied territories, the civilian population was subjected to robbery and violence. In the rear, both people and machines worked for wear and tear. The material and spiritual forces of the peoples were depleted. This was already understood by both politicians and the military. In December 1916, Germany and its allies proposed that the Entente countries begin peace negotiations, and representatives of several neutral states spoke in favor of the same. But each of the warring parties did not want to recognize itself as a loser and sought to dictate its own terms. The negotiations did not take place.
Meanwhile, in the warring countries themselves, dissatisfaction with the war and those who continued to wage it was growing. "Civil Peace" was falling apart. Since 1915, the strike struggle of the workers has intensified. At first, they demanded mainly higher wages, which were depreciated all the time due to rising prices. Then, anti-war slogans began to sound more and more often. The ideas of struggle against the imperialist war were put forward by the revolutionary Social Democrats in Russia and Germany. On May 1, 1916, during a demonstration in Berlin, the leader of the leftist Social Democrats, Karl Liebknecht, issued calls: "Down with the war!", "Down with the government!" (for this he was arrested and sentenced to four years in prison).
In England, the strike movement of workers in 1915 was led by the so-called guild elders. They presented the demands of the workers to the administration and steadily achieved their fulfillment. Active anti-war propaganda was launched by pacifist organizations. The national question has also become aggravated. In April 1916 there was an uprising in Ireland. Rebel detachments led by socialist J. Connolly seized government buildings in Dublin and proclaimed Ireland an independent republic. The uprising was mercilessly crushed, 15 of its leaders were executed.
An explosive situation has developed in Russia. Here the matter was not limited to the growth of strikes. The February Revolution of 1917 overthrew the autocracy. The provisional government intended to continue the war "to the bitter end." But it did not retain power over either the army or the country. In October 1917, the Soviet authority. As for their international consequences, the most tangible at that moment was Russia's withdrawal from the war. At first, unrest in the army led to the collapse of the Eastern Front. And in March 1918, the Soviet government concluded the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Germany and its allies, under whose control vast territories in the Baltic States, Belarus, Ukraine and the Caucasus remained. The impact of the Russian revolution on events in Europe and the world was not limited to this, it, as it became clear later, also touched the internal life of many countries.
Meanwhile, the war continued. In April 1917, the United States of America declared war on Germany, and then on its allies. They were followed by several states of Latin America, China and other countries. The Americans sent their troops to Europe. In 1918, after the conclusion of peace with Russia, the German command made several attempts to attack France, but to no avail. Having lost about 800 thousand people in battles, the German troops withdrew to their original lines. By the autumn of 1918, the initiative in the conduct of hostilities passed to the Entente countries.
The question of ending the war was decided not only on the fronts. Anti-war protests and discontent grew in the warring countries. At demonstrations and rallies, the slogans put forward by the Russian Bolsheviks were increasingly heard: “Down with the war!”, “A world without annexations and indemnities!” Workers' and soldiers' councils began to appear in different countries. The French workers adopted resolutions stating: "From the spark ignited in Petrograd, light will light up over the rest of the world enslaved by militarism." In the army, battalions and regiments refused to go to the front lines.
Germany and her allies, weakened by defeats on the fronts and internal difficulties, were forced to ask for peace.
On September 29, 1918, Bulgaria ceased hostilities. On October 5, the German government made a request for a truce. On October 30, the Ottoman Empire signed a truce with the Entente. On November 3, Austria-Hungary surrendered, seized by the liberation movements of the peoples living in it.
On November 3, 1918, an uprising of sailors broke out in Germany in the city of Kiel, which marked the beginning of the revolution. On November 9, the abdication of Kaiser Wilhelm II was announced. On November 10, a Social Democratic government came to power.
On November 11, 1918, the commander-in-chief of the allied forces in France, Marshal F. Foch, in his staff car in the Compiègne forest, dictated the terms of the armistice to the German delegation. Finally, the war ended, in which more than 30 states participated (by the number of inhabitants they accounted for more than half of the world's population), 10 million were killed and 20 million were injured. The road to peace lay ahead.
References:
Aleksashkina L. N. / General History. XX - the beginning of the XXI century.
"Gone are the days when other peoples divided land and water among themselves, and we Germans were content with only blue skies ... We also demand a place under the sun for ourselves," said Chancellor von Bülow. As in the days of the crusaders or Frederick II, the emphasis on military force is becoming one of the leading guidelines for Berlin politics. Such aspirations were based on a solid material base. The unification allowed Germany to significantly increase its potential, and rapid economic growth turned it into a powerful industrial power. At the beginning of the XX century. it came second in the world in terms of industrial production.
The reasons for the brewing world conflict were rooted in the intensification of the struggle between rapidly developing Germany and other powers for sources of raw materials and markets. To achieve world domination, Germany sought to defeat its three most powerful opponents in Europe - England, France and Russia, who united in front of the emerging threat. Germany's goal was to seize the resources and "living space" of these countries - the colonies from England and France and the western lands from Russia (Poland, the Baltic States, Ukraine, Belarus). Thus, the most important direction of the aggressive strategy of Berlin remained the "onslaught to the East", to the Slavic lands, where the German sword was to win a place for the German plow. In this, Germany was supported by its ally Austria-Hungary. The reason for the outbreak of the First World War was the aggravation of the situation in the Balkans, where the Austro-German diplomacy managed to split the alliance of the Balkan countries on the basis of the division of Ottoman possessions and cause a second Balkan war between Bulgaria and the rest of the region. In June 1914, in the Bosnian city of Sarajevo, the Serbian student G. Princip killed the heir to the Austrian throne, Prince Ferdinand. This gave the Viennese authorities a reason to blame Serbia for what they had done and start a war against it, which had the goal of establishing the dominance of Austria-Hungary in the Balkans. Aggression destroyed the system of independent Orthodox states, created by the centuries-old struggle between Russia and the Ottoman Empire. Russia, as the guarantor of Serbian independence, tried to influence the position of the Habsburgs by starting mobilization. This prompted the intervention of William II. He demanded that Nicholas II stop mobilization, and then, breaking off negotiations, declared war on Russia on July 19, 1914.
Two days later, William declared war on France, which was defended by England. Turkey became an ally of Austria-Hungary. She attacked Russia, forcing her to fight on two land fronts (Western and Caucasian). After Turkey entered the war, which closed the straits, the Russian Empire found itself virtually isolated from its allies. Thus began the First World War. Unlike other main participants in the global conflict, Russia did not have aggressive plans to fight for resources. Russian state by the end of the 18th century. achieved its main territorial objectives in Europe. It did not need additional lands and resources, and therefore was not interested in war. On the contrary, it was its resources and sales markets that attracted the aggressors. In this global confrontation, Russia, first of all, acted as a force holding back German-Austrian expansionism and Turkish revanchism, which were aimed at seizing its territories. At the same time, the tsarist government tried to use this war to solve its strategic problems. First of all, they were associated with the seizure of control over the straits and the provision of free access to the Mediterranean. The annexation of Galicia, where there were Uniate centers hostile to the Russian Orthodox Church, was not ruled out.
The German attack found Russia in the process of rearmament, which was scheduled to be completed by 1917. This partly explains the insistence of Wilhelm II in unleashing aggression, the delay with which deprived the Germans of the chance of success. In addition to military-technical weakness, Russia's "Achilles' heel" has become the insufficient moral preparation of the population. The leadership of Russia was poorly aware of the total nature of the future war, in which all types of struggle were used, including ideological ones. This was of great importance for Russia, since its soldiers could not compensate for the lack of shells and cartridges with a firm and clear belief in the justice of their struggle. For example, the French people lost part of their territories and national wealth in the war with Prussia. Humiliated by defeat, he knew what he was fighting for. For the Russian population, which had not fought the Germans for a century and a half, the conflict with them was largely unexpected. And in the highest circles, not everyone saw the German Empire as a cruel enemy. This was facilitated by: kindred dynastic ties, similar political systems long and close relationship between the two countries. Germany, for example, was Russia's main foreign trade partner. Contemporaries also drew attention to the weakening of the feeling of patriotism in the educated strata of Russian society, who were sometimes brought up in thoughtless nihilism towards their homeland. So, in 1912, the philosopher V.V. Rozanov wrote: "The French have "che" re France", the British have "Old England". The Germans have "our old Fritz". Only the last Russian gymnasium and university - "damned Russia". A serious strategic miscalculation of the government of Nicholas II was the inability to ensure the unity and cohesion of the nation on the eve of a formidable military clash. As for Russian society, as a rule, it did not feel the prospect of a long and exhausting struggle with a strong, energetic enemy. Few foresaw the onset of the "terrible years of Russia." Most hoped for the end of the campaign by December 1914.
The German plan for a war on two fronts (against Russia and France) was drawn up in 1905 by the Chief of the General Staff, A. von Schlieffen. It envisaged the containment of the slowly mobilizing Russians by small forces and the main attack in the west against France. After its defeat and surrender, it was supposed to quickly transfer forces to the east and deal with Russia. The Russian plan had two options - offensive and defensive. The first was drawn up under the influence of the allies. Even before the completion of the mobilization, he envisaged an offensive on the flanks (against East Prussia and Austrian Galicia) to ensure a central attack on Berlin. Another plan, drawn up in 1910-1912, proceeded from the fact that the Germans would strike the main blow in the east. In this case, Russian troops were withdrawn from Poland to the defensive line of Vilna-Bialystok-Brest-Rovno. In the end, events began to develop according to the first option. Starting the war, Germany brought down all its power on France. Despite the lack of reserves due to the slow mobilization in the vast expanses of Russia, the Russian army, true to its allied obligations, went on the offensive in East Prussia on August 4, 1914. The haste was also explained by the persistent requests for help from the allied France, which was suffering a strong onslaught of the Germans.
East Prussian operation (1914). From the Russian side, this operation was attended by: 1st (General Rennenkampf) and 2nd (General Samsonov) armies. The front of their offensive was divided by the Masurian Lakes. The 1st Army advanced north of the Masurian Lakes, the 2nd - to the south. In East Prussia, the Russians were opposed by the German 8th Army (Generals Prittwitz, then Hindenburg). Already on August 4, the first battle took place near the city of Stallupenen, in which the 3rd Corps of the 1st Russian Army (General Yepanchin) fought with the 1st Corps of the 8th German Army (General Francois). The fate of this stubborn battle was decided by the 29th Russian Infantry Division (General Rosenshield-Paulin), which struck the Germans in the flank and forced them to retreat. Meanwhile, the 25th division of General Bulgakov captured Stallupenen. The losses of the Russians amounted to 6.7 thousand people, the Germans - 2 thousand. On August 7, the German troops gave a new, larger battle to the 1st Army. Using the division of its forces, advancing from two directions to Goldap and Gumbinnen, the Germans tried to break the 1st Army in parts. On the morning of August 7, the German shock group fiercely attacked 5 Russian divisions in the Gumbinnen area, trying to pincer them. The Germans pressed the right Russian flank. But in the center they suffered significant damage from artillery fire and were forced to begin a retreat. The German onslaught at Goldap also ended in failure. The total losses of the Germans amounted to about 15 thousand people. The Russians lost 16.5 thousand people. Failures in the battles with the 1st Army, as well as the offensive from the southeast of the 2nd Army, which threatened to cut off the path to the west of Pritvitz, forced the German commander to initially order a retreat beyond the Vistula (this was provided for by the first version of the Schlieffen plan). But this order was never carried out, largely due to the inaction of Rennenkampf. He did not pursue the Germans and stood still for two days. This allowed the 8th Army to get out of the attack and regroup forces. Not having accurate information about the location of Prittwitz's forces, the commander of the 1st Army then moved it to Koenigsberg. Meanwhile, the German 8th Army withdrew in a different direction (to the south of Koenigsberg).
While Rennenkampf was marching on Koenigsberg, the 8th Army, led by General Hindenburg, concentrated all its forces against the army of Samsonov, who did not know about such a maneuver. The Germans, thanks to the interception of radio messages, were aware of all the plans of the Russians. On August 13, Hindenburg attacked the 2nd Army with an unexpected blow from almost all of its East Prussian divisions and in 4 days of fighting inflicted a severe defeat on it. Samsonov, having lost command of the troops, shot himself. According to German data, the damage of the 2nd Army amounted to 120 thousand people (including over 90 thousand prisoners). The Germans lost 15 thousand people. They then attacked the 1st Army, which had withdrawn behind the Neman by 2 September. The East Prussian operation had severe tactical and especially moral consequences for the Russians. This was their first such major defeat in history in battles with the Germans, who gained a sense of superiority over the enemy. However, tactically won by the Germans, this operation strategically meant for them the failure of the blitzkrieg plan. To save East Prussia, they had to transfer considerable forces from the western theater of operations, where the fate of the entire war was then decided. This saved France from defeat and forced Germany to be drawn into a disastrous struggle for her on two fronts. The Russians, having replenished their forces with fresh reserves, soon again went on the offensive in East Prussia.
Battle of Galicia (1914). The most grandiose and significant operation for the Russians at the beginning of the war was the battle for Austrian Galicia (August 5 - September 8). It involved 4 armies of the Russian Southwestern Front (under the command of General Ivanov) and 3 Austro-Hungarian armies (under the command of Archduke Friedrich), as well as the German group of Woyrsch. The parties had an approximately equal number of fighters. In total, it reached 2 million people. The battle began with the Lublin-Kholm and Galich-Lvov operations. Each of them surpassed the scale of the East Prussian operation. The Lublin-Kholm operation began with an attack by the Austro-Hungarian troops on the right flank of the Southwestern Front in the region of Lublin and Kholm. There were: 4th (General Zankl, then Evert) and 5th (General Plehve) Russian armies. After fierce oncoming battles at Krasnik (August 10-12), the Russians were defeated and were pressed against Lublin and Kholm. At the same time, the Galich-Lvov operation was taking place on the left flank of the Southwestern Front. In it, the left-flank Russian armies - the 3rd (General Ruzsky) and the 8th (General Brusilov), repelling the onslaught, went on the offensive. Having won the battle near the Rotten Lipa River (August 16-19), the 3rd Army broke into Lvov, and the 8th Army captured Galich. This created a threat to the rear of the Austro-Hungarian group advancing in the Kholmsko-Lublin direction. However, the general situation at the front was threatening for the Russians. The defeat of Samsonov's 2nd Army in East Prussia created a favorable opportunity for the Germans to advance in a southerly direction, towards the Austro-Hungarian armies attacking Kholm and Lublin. Poland.
But despite the persistent appeals of the Austrian command, General Hindenburg did not advance on Sedlec. First of all, he took up the cleansing of East Prussia from the 1st Army and left his allies to the mercy of fate. By that time, the Russian troops defending Kholm and Lublin received reinforcements (the 9th Army of General Lechitsky) and on August 22 went on the counteroffensive. However, it developed slowly. Restraining the onslaught from the north, the Austrians at the end of August tried to seize the initiative in the Galich-Lvov direction. They attacked Russian troops there, trying to recapture Lvov. In fierce battles near Rava-Russkaya (August 25-26), Austro-Hungarian troops broke through the Russian front. But the 8th army of General Brusilov still managed to close the breakthrough with the last of his strength and hold positions west of Lvov. Meanwhile, the onslaught of Russians from the north (from the Lublin-Kholmsky region) intensified. They broke through the front at Tomashov, threatening to encircle the Austro-Hungarian troops at Rava-Russkaya. Fearing the collapse of their front, the Austro-Hungarian armies began a general withdrawal on August 29. Pursuing them, the Russians advanced 200 km. They occupied Galicia and blocked the Przemysl fortress. Austro-Hungarian troops lost 325 thousand people in the Battle of Galicia. (including 100 thousand prisoners), Russians - 230 thousand people. This battle undermined the strength of Austria-Hungary, giving the Russians a sense of superiority over the enemy. In the future, Austria-Hungary, if it achieved success on the Russian front, then only with the strong support of the Germans.
Warsaw-Ivangorod operation (1914). The victory in Galicia opened the way for Russian troops to Upper Silesia (the most important industrial region of Germany). This forced the Germans to help their allies. To prevent a Russian offensive to the west, Hindenburg transferred four corps of the 8th Army to the area of the Warta River (including those that had arrived from the western front). Of these, the 9th German Army was formed, which, together with the 1st Austro-Hungarian Army (General Dankl), on September 15, 1914, went on the offensive against Warsaw and Ivangorod. In late September - early October, the Austro-German troops (their total number was 310 thousand people) reached the nearest approaches to Warsaw and Ivangorod. Fierce battles broke out here, in which the attackers suffered heavy losses (up to 50% of the personnel). Meanwhile, the Russian command deployed additional forces to Warsaw and Ivangorod, increasing the number of its troops in this sector to 520 thousand people. Fearing the Russian reserves brought into battle, the Austro-German units began a hasty retreat. The autumn thaw, the destruction of the lines of communication by the retreating, the poor supply of the Russian units did not allow active pursuit. By the beginning of November 1914, the Austro-German troops retreated to their original positions. Failures in Galicia and near Warsaw did not allow the Austro-German bloc to win over the Balkan states in 1914.
First August operation (1914). Two weeks after the defeat in East Prussia, the Russian command again tried to seize the strategic initiative in this area. Having created superiority in forces over the 8th (Generals Schubert, then Eichhorn) German army, it launched the 1st (General Rennenkampf) and 10th (Generals Flug, then Sievers) armies on the offensive. The main blow was dealt in the Augustow forests (near the Polish city of Augustow), as the fighting in the forest area did not allow the Germans to use the advantages in heavy artillery. By the beginning of October, the 10th Russian Army entered East Prussia, occupied Stallupenen and reached the Gumbinnen-Masurian Lakes line. Fierce battles flared up at this turn, as a result of which the Russian offensive was stopped. Soon the 1st Army was transferred to Poland and the 10th Army had to hold the front in East Prussia alone.
Autumn offensive of the Austro-Hungarian troops in Galicia (1914). The siege and capture of Przemysl by the Russians (1914-1915). Meanwhile, on the southern flank, in Galicia, Russian troops in September 1914 laid siege to Przemysl. This powerful Austrian fortress was defended by a garrison under the command of General Kusmanek (up to 150 thousand people). For the blockade of Przemysl, a special Siege Army was created, led by General Shcherbachev. On September 24, its units stormed the fortress, but were repulsed. At the end of September, the Austro-Hungarian troops, taking advantage of the transfer of part of the forces of the Southwestern Front to Warsaw and Ivangorod, went on the offensive in Galicia and managed to unblock Przemysl. However, in the fierce October battles near Khyrov and Sana, Russian troops in Galicia under the command of General Brusilov stopped the advance of the numerically superior Austro-Hungarian armies, and then threw them back to their original lines. This made it possible at the end of October 1914 to block Przemysl for the second time. The blockade of the fortress was carried out by the Siege Army of General Selivanov. In the winter of 1915, Austria-Hungary made another powerful, but unsuccessful attempt to recapture Przemysl. Then, after a 4-month siege, the garrison tried to break through to its own. But his sortie on March 5, 1915, ended in failure. Four days later, on March 9, 1915, commandant Kusmanek, having exhausted all means of defense, capitulated. 125 thousand people were captured. and more than 1 thousand guns. This was the biggest success of the Russians in the 1915 campaign. However, 2.5 months later, on May 21, they left Przemysl due to a general retreat from Galicia.
Lodz operation (1914). After the completion of the Warsaw-Ivangorod operation, the North-Western Front under the command of General Ruzsky (367 thousand people) formed the so-called. Lodz ledge. From here, the Russian command planned to launch an invasion of Germany. The German command from the intercepted radiograms knew about the upcoming offensive. In an effort to prevent him, the Germans launched a powerful preemptive strike on October 29 in order to surround and destroy the 5th (General Plehve) and 2nd (General Scheidemann) Russian armies in the Lodz region. The core of the advancing German grouping with a total number of 280 thousand people. were parts of the 9th Army (General Mackensen). Its main blow fell on the 2nd Army, which, under the onslaught of superior German forces, retreated, putting up stubborn resistance. The most heated battles broke out in early November north of Lodz, where the Germans tried to cover the right flank of the 2nd Army. The culmination of this battle was the breakthrough on November 5-6 of the German corps of General Schaeffer in the region of eastern Lodz, which threatened the 2nd Army with complete encirclement. But units of the 5th Army, which approached from the south in a timely manner, managed to stop the further advance of the German corps. The Russian command did not begin the withdrawal of troops from Lodz. On the contrary, it strengthened the Lodz Piglet, and the German frontal attacks against it did not bring the desired results. At this time, units of the 1st Army (General Rennenkampf) launched a counterattack from the north and connected with units of the right flank of the 2nd Army. The gap at the site of the breakthrough of Schaeffer's corps was closed, and he himself was surrounded. Although the German corps managed to break out of the bag, the plan of the German command to defeat the armies of the North-Western Front failed. However, the Russian command had to say goodbye to the plan of attack on Berlin. On November 11, 1914, the Lodz operation ended without giving a decisive success to either side. Nevertheless, the Russian side still lost strategically. Having repelled the German onslaught with heavy losses (110 thousand people), the Russian troops were no longer able to really threaten German territory. The damage of the Germans amounted to 50 thousand people.
"Battle on Four Rivers" (1914). Having not achieved success in the Lodz operation, the German command a week later again tried to defeat the Russians in Poland and push them back beyond the Vistula. Having received 6 fresh divisions from France, the German troops, with the forces of the 9th Army (General Mackensen) and the Woyrsh group, on November 19 again went on the offensive in the Lodz direction. After heavy fighting in the area of the Bzura River, the Germans pushed the Russians back beyond Lodz, to the Ravka River. After that, the 1st Austro-Hungarian Army (General Dankl) to the south went on the offensive, and from December 5, a fierce "battle on four rivers" (Bzura, Ravka, Pilica and Nida) unfolded along the entire Russian front line in Poland. Russian troops, alternating defense and counterattacks, repelled the onslaught of the Germans on Ravka and drove the Austrians back beyond Nida. The "Battle of the Four Rivers" was distinguished by extreme stubbornness and significant losses on both sides. The damage of the Russian army amounted to 200 thousand people. Its personnel suffered especially, which directly affected the sad outcome of the 1915 campaign for the Russians. The losses of the 9th German Army exceeded 100 thousand people.
The Young Turk government in Istanbul (which came to power in Turkey in 1908) did not wait for the gradual weakening of Russia in the confrontation with Germany and already in 1914 entered the war. Turkish troops, without serious preparation, immediately launched a decisive offensive in the Caucasian direction in order to recapture the lands lost during the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878. The Minister of War Enver Pasha led the 90,000th Turkish army. These troops were opposed by units of the 63,000-strong Caucasian army under the general command of the governor in the Caucasus, General Vorontsov-Dashkov (general A.Z. Myshlaevsky actually commanded the troops). The Sarykamysh operation became the central event of the 1914 campaign in this theater of operations.
Sarykamysh operation (1914-1915). It took place from December 9, 1914 to January 5, 1915. The Turkish command planned to encircle and destroy the Sarykamysh detachment of the Caucasian army (General Berkhman), and then capture Kars. Having thrown back the advanced units of the Russians (Oltinsky detachment), the Turks on December 12, in a severe frost, reached the approaches to Sarykamysh. There were only a few units (up to 1 battalion) here. Led by Colonel of the General Staff Bukretov, who was passing through there, they heroically repelled the first onslaught of an entire Turkish corps. On December 14, reinforcements arrived in time for the defenders of Sarykamysh, and General Przhevalsky led his defense. Having failed to take Sarykamysh, the Turkish corps in the snowy mountains lost only 10 thousand frostbitten people. On December 17, the Russians launched a counteroffensive and drove the Turks back from Sarykamysh. Then Enver Pasha transferred the main blow to Karaudan, which was defended by parts of General Berkhman. But here, too, the furious onslaught of the Turks was repelled. Meanwhile, the Russian troops advancing near Sarykamysh on December 22 completely surrounded the 9th Turkish Corps. On December 25, General Yudenich became commander of the Caucasian army, who gave the order to launch a counteroffensive near Karaudan. Having thrown back the remnants of the 3rd Army by 30-40 km by January 5, 1915, the Russians stopped the pursuit, which was carried out in a 20-degree cold. Enver Pasha's troops lost 78 thousand people killed, frozen, wounded and captured. (over 80% of the composition). Russian losses amounted to 26 thousand people. (killed, wounded, frostbitten). The victory near Sarykamysh stopped the Turkish aggression in Transcaucasia and strengthened the positions of the Caucasian army.
During this period, the main actions unfolded on the Black Sea, where Turkey began the war by shelling Russian ports (Odessa, Sevastopol, Feodosia). However, soon the activity of the Turkish fleet (which was based on the German battlecruiser Goeben) was suppressed by the Russian fleet.
Battle at Cape Sarych. November 5, 1914 The German battlecruiser Goeben, under the command of Rear Admiral Souchon, attacked a Russian squadron of five battleships off Cape Sarych. In fact, the entire battle was reduced to an artillery duel between the "Goeben" and the Russian lead battleship "Evstafiy". Thanks to the well-aimed fire of Russian artillerymen, "Goeben" received 14 accurate hits. A fire broke out on the German cruiser, and Souchon, without waiting for the rest of the Russian ships to enter the battle, gave the order to retreat to Constantinople (the Goeben was being repaired there until December, and then, having gone out to sea, hit a mine and again stood up for repairs). "Evstafiy" received only 4 accurate hits and left the battle without serious damage. The battle at Cape Sarych became a turning point in the struggle for dominance in the Black Sea. Having checked the fortress of the Black Sea borders of Russia in this battle, the Turkish fleet stopped active operations near the Russian coast. The Russian fleet, on the contrary, gradually seized the initiative in sea lanes.
By the beginning of 1915, Russian troops held the front not far from the German border and in Austrian Galicia. The 1914 campaign did not bring decisive results. Its main result was the collapse of the German Schlieffen plan. “If there had been no casualties from Russia in 1914,” said the English Prime Minister Lloyd George a quarter of a century later (in 1939), “the German troops would not only have captured Paris, but their garrisons would still be in Belgium and France. In 1915, the Russian command planned to continue offensive operations on the flanks. This meant the occupation of East Prussia and the invasion of the Hungarian plain through the Carpathians. However, the Russians did not have sufficient forces and means for a simultaneous offensive. During the active military operations of 1914 on the fields of Poland, Galicia and East Prussia, the Russian cadre army was killed. Its loss had to be made up for by a reserve, insufficiently trained contingent. “From that time on,” recalled General A.A. Brusilov, “the regular nature of the troops was lost, and our army began to look more and more like a poorly trained militia army.” Another major problem was the arms crisis, one way or another characteristic of all warring countries. It turned out that the consumption of ammunition is ten times higher than the calculated ones. Russia, with its underdeveloped industry, was particularly affected by this problem. Domestic factories could only meet the needs of the army by 15-30%. With all the obviousness, the task of urgently restructuring the entire industry on a war footing arose. In Russia, this process dragged on until the end of the summer of 1915. The lack of weapons was aggravated by poor supplies. Thus, the Russian armed forces entered the New Year with a shortage of weapons and military personnel. This had a fatal effect on the 1915 campaign. The results of the fighting in the east forced the Germans to radically revise the Schlieffen plan.
The main rival of the German leadership now considered Russia. Her troops were 1.5 times closer to Berlin than the French army. At the same time, they threatened to enter the Hungarian plain and defeat Austria-Hungary. Fearing a protracted war on two fronts, the Germans decided to send their main forces to the east in order to finish off Russia. In addition to the personnel and material weakening of the Russian army, this task was facilitated by the possibility of waging a maneuver war in the east (in the west, by that time, a solid positional front had already emerged with a powerful system of fortifications, the breakthrough of which cost huge victims). In addition, the capture of the Polish industrial region gave Germany additional source resources. After an unsuccessful frontal attack in Poland, the German command switched to a plan of flank attacks. It consisted in a deep coverage from the north (from East Prussia) of the right flank of the Russian troops in Poland. At the same time, Austro-Hungarian troops attacked from the south (from the Carpathian region). The ultimate goal of these "strategic Cannes" was to be the encirclement of the Russian armies in the "Polish bag".
Carpathian battle (1915). It was the first attempt by both sides to implement their strategic plans. The troops of the Southwestern Front (General Ivanov) tried to break through the Carpathian passes to the Hungarian plain and defeat Austria-Hungary. In turn, the Austro-German command also had offensive plans in the Carpathians. It set the task of breaking through from here to Przemysl and driving the Russians out of Galicia. In a strategic sense, the breakthrough of the Austro-German troops in the Carpathians, together with the onslaught of the Germans from East Prussia, was aimed at encircling the Russian troops in Poland. The battle in the Carpathians began on January 7 with the almost simultaneous offensive of the Austro-German armies and the Russian 8th Army (General Brusilov). There was an oncoming battle, called the "rubber war". Both sides that put pressure on each other had to either go deeper into the Carpathians or retreat. The battles in the snow-capped mountains were distinguished by great tenacity. The Austro-German troops managed to push the left flank of the 8th Army, but they could not break through to Przemysl. Having received reinforcements, Brusilov repulsed their offensive. "While driving around the troops in mountainous positions," he recalled, "I bowed to these heroes, who steadfastly endured the horrendous burden of a winter mountain war with insufficient weapons, having three times the strongest enemy against them." Partial success was achieved only by the 7th Austrian Army (General Pflanzer-Baltin), which took Chernivtsi. In early March 1915, the Southwestern Front launched a general offensive in the conditions of spring thaw. Climbing the Carpathian steeps and overcoming the fierce resistance of the enemy, the Russian troops advanced 20-25 km and captured part of the passes. To repel their onslaught, the German command deployed new forces to this area. The Russian Headquarters, due to heavy battles in the East Prussian direction, could not provide the Southwestern Front with the necessary reserves. Bloody frontal battles in the Carpathians continued until April. They cost enormous sacrifices, but did not bring decisive success to either side. The Russians lost about 1 million people in the Carpathian battle, the Austrians and Germans - 800 thousand people.
Second August operation (1915). Soon after the start of the Carpathian battle, fierce battles broke out on the northern flank of the Russian-German front. On January 25, 1915, the 8th (General von Belov) and 10th (General Eichhorn) German armies went on the offensive from East Prussia. Their main blow fell on the area of the Polish city of Augustow, where the 10th Russian Army (General Sivere) was located. Having created a numerical superiority in this direction, the Germans attacked the flanks of the Sievers army and tried to surround it. At the second stage, a breakthrough of the entire North-Western Front was envisaged. But due to the resilience of the soldiers of the 10th Army, the Germans failed to completely take it into pincers. Only the 20th Corps of General Bulgakov was surrounded. For 10 days, he valiantly repulsed the attacks of the German units in the snowy Augustow forests, preventing them from conducting a further offensive. Having used up all the ammunition, the remnants of the corps in a desperate impulse attacked the German positions in the hope of breaking through to their own. Having overturned the German infantry in hand-to-hand combat, the Russian soldiers died heroically under the fire of German guns. "The attempt to break through was sheer madness. But this holy madness is the heroism that showed the Russian warrior in his full light, which we know from the time of Skobelev, the time of the assault on Plevna, the battle in the Caucasus and the assault on Warsaw! The Russian soldier knows how to fight very well, he endures all sorts of hardships and is able to be persistent, even if certain death is inevitable at the same time! ”Wrote in those days the German war correspondent R. Brandt. Thanks to this courageous resistance, the 10th Army was able to withdraw most of its forces from under attack by mid-February and took up defensive positions on the Kovno-Osovets line. The North-Western Front held out, and then managed to partially restore the lost positions.
Prasnysh operation (1915). Almost simultaneously, fighting broke out in another section of the East Prussian border, where the 12th Russian Army (General Plehve) stood. On February 7, in the Prasnysh area (Poland), it was attacked by units of the 8th German Army (General von Belov). The city was defended by a detachment under the command of Colonel Barybin, who for several days heroically repulsed the attacks of superior German forces. February 11, 1915 Prasnysh fell. But its staunch defense gave the Russians time to bring up the necessary reserves, which were being prepared in accordance with the Russian plan for the winter offensive in East Prussia. On February 12, the 1st Siberian Corps of General Pleshkov approached Prasnysh, who attacked the Germans on the move. In a two-day winter battle, the Siberians utterly defeated the German formations and drove them out of the city. Soon, the entire 12th Army, replenished with reserves, went on the general offensive, which, after stubborn battles, threw the Germans back to the borders of East Prussia. In the meantime, the 10th Army also went on the offensive, which cleared the Augustow forests of the Germans. The front was restored, but the Russian troops could not achieve more. The Germans lost about 40 thousand people in this battle, the Russians - about 100 thousand people. Meeting battles near the borders of East Prussia and in the Carpathians exhausted the reserves of the Russian army on the eve of the formidable blow that the Austro-German command was already preparing for it.
Gorlitsky breakthrough (1915). Beginning of the Great Retreat. Having failed to push the Russian troops near the borders of East Prussia and in the Carpathians, the German command decided to implement the third option for a breakthrough. It was supposed to be carried out between the Vistula and the Carpathians, in the Gorlice region. By that time, more than half of the armed forces of the Austro-German bloc were concentrated against Russia. On the 35-kilometer breakthrough section near Gorlice, an attack group was created under the command of General Mackensen. It outnumbered the 3rd Russian Army (General Radko-Dmitriev) standing in this area: in manpower - 2 times, in light artillery - 3 times, in heavy artillery - 40 times, in machine guns - 2.5 times. On April 19, 1915, the Mackensen group (126 thousand people) went on the offensive. The Russian command, knowing about the buildup of forces in this area, did not provide a timely counterattack. Large reinforcements were sent here belatedly, introduced into battle in parts and quickly perished in battles with superior enemy forces. The Gorlitsky breakthrough clearly revealed the problem of lack of ammunition, especially shells. The overwhelming superiority in heavy artillery was one of the main reasons for this greatest success of the Germans on the Russian front. “Eleven days of the terrible rumble of German heavy artillery, literally tearing down entire rows of trenches along with their defenders,” recalled General A.I. Denikin, a participant in those events. the other - with bayonets or point-blank shooting, blood flowed, the ranks thinned, grave mounds grew ... Two regiments were almost destroyed by one fire.
The Gorlitsky breakthrough created a threat of encirclement of Russian troops in the Carpathians, the troops of the Southwestern Front began a widespread withdrawal. By June 22, having lost 500 thousand people, they left the whole of Galicia. Thanks to the courageous resistance of Russian soldiers and officers, the Mackensen group was unable to rapidly enter the operational space. In general, its offensive was reduced to "pushing through" the Russian front. He was seriously pushed back to the east, but not defeated. Nevertheless, the Gorlitsky breakthrough and the advance of the Germans from East Prussia created a threat of encirclement of the Russian armies in Poland. The so-called. The great retreat, during which the Russian troops in the spring - summer of 1915 left Galicia, Lithuania, Poland. Meanwhile, Russia's allies were engaged in strengthening their defenses and did almost nothing to seriously distract the Germans from the offensive in the East. The allied leadership used the respite allotted to it to mobilize the economy for the needs of the war. "We," Lloyd George later admitted, "left Russia to its fate."
Prasnysh and Narew battles (1915). After the successful completion of the Gorlitsky breakthrough, the German command began the second act of its "strategic Cannes" and struck from the north, from East Prussia, at the positions of the North-Western Front (General Alekseev). On June 30, 1915, the 12th German Army (General Galwitz) went on the offensive in the Prasnysh area. She was opposed here by the 1st (General Litvinov) and the 12th (General Churin) Russian armies. The German troops had superiority in the number of personnel (177 thousand against 141 thousand people) and weapons. Especially significant was the superiority in artillery (1256 against 377 guns). After the hurricane and powerful onslaught German units captured the main line of defense. But they failed to achieve the expected breakthrough of the front line, and even more so the defeat of the 1st and 12th armies. The Russians stubbornly defended themselves everywhere, going over to counterattacks in threatened areas. For 6 days of continuous fighting, the soldiers of Galwitz were able to advance 30-35 km. Not even reaching the Narew River, the Germans stopped their offensive. The German command began a regrouping of forces and pulled up reserves for a new strike. In the battle of Prasnysh, the Russians lost about 40 thousand people, the Germans - about 10 thousand people. The steadfastness of the soldiers of the 1st and 12th armies thwarted the German plan to encircle Russian troops in Poland. But the danger looming from the north over the Warsaw region forced the Russian command to begin the withdrawal of its armies beyond the Vistula.
Pulling up the reserves, the Germans on July 10 again went on the offensive. The 12th (General Galwitz) and 8th (General Scholz) German armies participated in the operation. The German onslaught on the 140-kilometer Narew front was held back by the same 1st and 12th armies. With an almost double superiority in manpower and a fivefold superiority in artillery, the Germans persistently tried to break through the Narew line. They succeeded in forcing the river in several places, but the Russians with furious counterattacks until the beginning of August did not give the German units the opportunity to expand their bridgeheads. A particularly important role was played by the defense of the Osovets fortress, which covered the right flank of the Russian troops in these battles. The steadfastness of its defenders did not allow the Germans to reach the rear of the Russian armies defending Warsaw. Meanwhile, Russian troops were able to evacuate without hindrance from the Warsaw area. The Russians lost 150 thousand people in the Battle of Narew. The Germans also suffered considerable damage. After the July battles, they were unable to continue an active offensive. The heroic resistance of the Russian armies in the Prasnysh and Narew battles saved the Russian troops in Poland from encirclement and, to a certain extent, decided the outcome of the 1915 campaign.
Battle of Vilna (1915). End of the Great Retreat. In August, the commander of the Northwestern Front, General Mikhail Alekseev, planned to launch a flank counterattack against the advancing German armies from the Kovno (now Kaunas) region. But the Germans preempted this maneuver and at the end of July they themselves attacked the Kovno positions with the forces of the 10th German Army (General von Eichhorn). After several days of assault, the commandant of Kovno Grigoriev showed cowardice and surrendered the fortress to the Germans on August 5 (for this he was subsequently sentenced to 15 years in prison). The fall of Kovno worsened the strategic situation in Lithuania for the Russians and led to the withdrawal of the right wing of the troops of the North-Western Front beyond the Lower Neman. Having captured Kovno, the Germans tried to encircle the 10th Russian Army (General Radkevich). But in the stubborn oncoming August battles near Vilna, the German offensive bogged down. Then the Germans concentrated a powerful grouping in the Sventsyan region (north of Vilna) and on August 27 attacked Molodechno from there, trying to reach the rear of the 10th Army from the north and capture Minsk. Because of the threat of encirclement, the Russians had to leave Vilna. However, the Germans failed to capitalize on the success. Their path was blocked by the 2nd Army (General Smirnov), which approached in time, which had the honor of finally stopping the German offensive. Resolutely attacking the Germans at Molodechno, she defeated them and forced them to retreat back to the Sventsians. By September 19, the Sventsyansky breakthrough was eliminated, and the front in this sector stabilized. The battle of Vilna ends, in general, the Great Retreat of the Russian army. Having exhausted their offensive forces, the Germans are moving in the east to positional defense. The German plan to defeat the Russian armed forces and withdraw from the war failed. Thanks to the courage of their soldiers and the skillful withdrawal of troops, the Russian army escaped encirclement. "The Russians escaped from the pincers and achieved a frontal withdrawal in a direction favorable to them," Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg, chief of the German General Staff, was forced to state. The front has stabilized on the Riga-Baranovichi-Ternopil line. Three fronts were created here: Northern, Western and Southwestern. From here, the Russians did not retreat until the fall of the monarchy. During the Great Retreat, Russia suffered the biggest losses of the war - 2.5 million people. (killed, wounded and captured). The damage to Germany and Austria-Hungary exceeded 1 million people. The retreat intensified the political crisis in Russia.
The beginning of the Great Retreat seriously influenced the development of events on the Russian-Turkish front. Partly for this reason, the grandiose Russian landing operation on the Bosphorus, which was planned to support the allied forces that landed in Gallipoli, fell through. Under the influence of the successes of the Germans, Turkish troops became more active on the Caucasian front.
Alashkert operation (1915). On June 26, 1915, in the region of Alashkert (Eastern Turkey), the 3rd Turkish Army (Mahmud Kiamil Pasha) went on the offensive. Under the onslaught of superior Turkish forces, the 4th Caucasian Corps (General Oganovsky), who defended this sector, began a retreat to the Russian border. This created a threat of a breakthrough of the entire Russian front. Then the energetic commander of the Caucasian Army, General Nikolai Nikolaevich Yudenich, brought into battle a detachment under the command of General Nikolai Baratov, who delivered a decisive blow to the flank and rear of the advancing Turkish grouping. Fearing encirclement, units of Mahmud Kiamil began to retreat to Lake Van, near which the front stabilized on July 21. The Alashkert operation destroyed Turkey's hopes to seize the strategic initiative in the Caucasian theater of operations.
Hamadan operation (1915). On October 17 - December 3, 1915, Russian troops launched offensive operations in Northern Iran to prevent a possible intervention of this state on the side of Turkey and Germany. This was facilitated by the German-Turkish residency, which became more active in Tehran after the failures of the British and French in the Dardanelles operation, as well as the Great Retreat of the Russian army. The introduction of Russian troops into Iran was also sought by the British allies, who thereby sought to strengthen the security of their possessions in Hindustan. In October 1915, the corps of General Nikolai Baratov (8 thousand people) was sent to Iran, which occupied Tehran. Having advanced to Hamadan, the Russians defeated the Turkish-Persian detachments (8 thousand people) and liquidated the German-Turkish agents in the country . Thus, a reliable barrier was created against German-Turkish influence in Iran and Afghanistan, and a possible threat to the left flank of the Caucasian army was also eliminated.
Military operations at sea in 1915 were, on the whole, successful for the Russian fleet. Of the largest battles of the 1915 campaign, one can single out the campaign of the Russian squadron to the Bosporus (Black Sea). Gotlan battle and Irben operation (Baltic Sea).
Campaign to the Bosphorus (1915). In the campaign to the Bosphorus, which took place on May 1-6, 1915, a squadron of the Black Sea Fleet participated, consisting of 5 battleships, 3 cruisers, 9 destroyers, 1 air transport with 5 seaplanes. On May 2-3, the battleships "Three Saints" and "Panteleimon", having entered the area of the Bosporus, fired at its coastal fortifications. On May 4, the battleship "Rostislav" opened fire on the fortified area of Iniady (northwest of the Bosporus), which was attacked from the air by seaplanes. The apotheosis of the campaign to the Bosporus was the battle on May 5 at the entrance to the strait between the flagship of the German-Turkish fleet on the Black Sea - the battlecruiser "Goeben" and four Russian battleships. In this skirmish, as in the battle at Cape Sarych (1914), the battleship "Evstafiy" distinguished himself, which put the "Goeben" out of action with two accurate hits. The German-Turkish flagship ceased fire and withdrew from the battle. This campaign to the Bosporus strengthened the superiority of the Russian fleet in the Black Sea communications. In the future, German submarines posed the greatest danger to the Black Sea Fleet. Their activity did not allow Russian ships to appear off the Turkish coast until the end of September. With Bulgaria's entry into the war, the zone of operations of the Black Sea Fleet expanded, covering a large new area in the western part of the sea.
Gotland Fight (1915). This naval battle took place on June 19, 1915 in the Baltic Sea near the Swedish island of Gotland between the 1st brigade of Russian cruisers (5 cruisers, 9 destroyers) under the command of Rear Admiral Bakhirev and a detachment of German ships (3 cruisers, 7 destroyers and 1 minelayer ). The battle was in the nature of an artillery duel. During the skirmish, the Germans lost the Albatross minelayer. He was severely injured and thrown onto the Swedish coast, engulfed in flames. There his team was interned. Then there was a cruising battle. It was attended by: from the German side the cruisers "Roon" and "Lübeck", from the Russian side - the cruisers "Bayan", "Oleg" and "Rurik". Having received damage, the German ships ceased fire and withdrew from the battle. The Gotlad battle is significant in that for the first time in the Russian fleet, radio intelligence data were used for firing.
Irben operation (1915). During the offensive of the German ground forces in the Riga direction, the German squadron under the command of Vice Admiral Schmidt (7 battleships, 6 cruisers and 62 other ships) tried to break through the Irben Strait to the Gulf of Riga at the end of July to destroy Russian ships in the area and blockade Riga . Here the Germans were opposed by the ships of the Baltic Fleet, led by Rear Admiral Bakhirev (1 battleship and 40 other ships). Despite the significant superiority in forces, the German fleet was unable to complete the task due to minefields and the successful actions of Russian ships. During the operation (July 26 - August 8), he lost 5 ships (2 destroyers, 3 minesweepers) in fierce battles and was forced to retreat. The Russians lost two old gunboats ("Sivuch"> and "Korean"). Having failed in the Battle of Gotland and the Irben operation, the Germans failed to achieve superiority in the eastern part of the Baltic and switched to defensive actions. In the future, the serious activity of the German fleet became possible only here thanks to the victories of the ground forces.
Military failures forced the government and society to mobilize resources to repel the enemy. Thus, in 1915, the contribution to the defense of private industry was expanding, the activities of which were coordinated by the military-industrial committees (MIC). Thanks to the mobilization of industry, the provision of the front improved by 1916. So, from January 1915 to January 1916, the production of rifles in Russia increased 3 times, various types of guns - 4-8 times, various types of ammunition - 2.5-5 times. Despite the losses, the Russian armed forces in 1915 grew by 1.4 million people due to additional mobilizations. The plan of the German command for 1916 provided for a transition to positional defense in the East, where the Germans created a powerful system of defensive structures. The Germans planned to inflict the main blow on the French army in the Verdun area. In February 1916, the famous "Verdun meat grinder" began to spin, forcing France to once again turn to its eastern ally for help.
Naroch operation (1916). In response to persistent requests for help from France, on March 5-17, 1916, the Russian command launched an offensive by the forces of the troops of the Western (General Evert) and Northern (General Kuropatkin) fronts in the area of Lake Naroch (Belarus) and Jakobstadt (Latvia). Here they were opposed by units of the 8th and 10th German armies. The Russian command set the goal of driving the Germans out of Lithuania, Belarus and pushing them back to the borders of East Prussia, but the preparation time for the offensive had to be sharply reduced due to requests from the Allies to speed it up due to their difficult situation near Verdun. As a result, the operation was carried out without proper preparation. The main blow in the Naroch region was delivered by the 2nd Army (General Ragoza). For 10 days, she unsuccessfully tried to break through the powerful German fortifications. The lack of heavy artillery and the spring thaw contributed to the failure. The Naroch massacre cost the Russians 20,000 dead and 65,000 wounded. The offensive of the 5th Army (General Gurko) from the Jacobstadt area on March 8-12 also ended in failure. Here, Russian losses amounted to 60 thousand people. The total damage of the Germans amounted to 20 thousand people. The Naroch operation benefited, first of all, the allies of Russia, since the Germans could not transfer a single division from the east near Verdun. “The Russian offensive,” wrote the French General Joffre, “forced the Germans, who had only insignificant reserves, to put all these reserves into action and, in addition, to attract stage troops and transfer entire divisions taken from other sectors.” On the other hand, the defeat near Naroch and Yakobstadt had a demoralizing effect on the troops of the Northern and Western fronts. They were never able, unlike the troops of the Southwestern Front, to carry out successful offensive operations in 1916.
Brusilovsky breakthrough and offensive at Baranovichi (1916). On May 22, 1916, the offensive of the troops of the Southwestern Front (573 thousand people) began, which was led by General Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov. The Austro-German armies opposing him at that moment numbered 448 thousand people. The breakthrough was carried out by all the armies of the front, which made it difficult for the enemy to transfer reserves. At the same time, Brusilov applied a new tactic of parallel strikes. It consisted in alternating active and passive sections of the breakthrough. This disorganized the Austro-German troops and did not allow them to concentrate their forces in the threatened areas. The Brusilovsky breakthrough was distinguished by thorough preparation (up to training on exact models of enemy positions) and an increased supply of weapons to the Russian army. So, there was even a special inscription on the charging boxes: "Do not spare the shells!". Artillery preparation in various sectors lasted from 6 to 45 hours. According to the figurative expression of the historian N.N. Yakovlev, on the day the breakthrough began, "the Austrian troops did not see the sunrise. Instead of serene sun rays from the east, death came - thousands of shells turned the inhabited, heavily fortified positions into hell." It was in this famous breakthrough that the Russian troops succeeded to the greatest extent in achieving coordinated actions of infantry and artillery.
Under the cover of artillery fire, the Russian infantry marched in waves (3-4 chains in each). The first wave, without stopping, passed the front line and immediately attacked the second line of defense. The third and fourth waves rolled over the first two and attacked the third and fourth lines of defense. This Brusilovsky method of "rolling attack" was then used by the Allies in breaking through the German fortifications in France. According to the original plan, the Southwestern Front was supposed to deliver only an auxiliary strike. The main offensive was planned in the summer on the Western Front (General Evert), to which the main reserves were intended. But the entire offensive of the Western Front was reduced to a week-long battle (June 19-25) in one sector near Baranovichi, which was defended by the Austro-German group of Woyrsch. Going on the attack after many hours of artillery preparation, the Russians managed to move forward somewhat. But they failed to completely break through the powerful, defense in depth (only at the forefront there were up to 50 rows of electrified wire). After the bloody battles that cost the Russian troops 80 thousand people. losses, Evert stopped the offensive. The damage of the Woirsh group amounted to 13 thousand people. Brusilov did not have sufficient reserves to successfully continue the offensive.
The Stavka was unable to timely shift the task of delivering the main blow to the Southwestern Front, and it began to receive reinforcements only in the second half of June. The Austro-German command took advantage of this. On June 17, the Germans launched a counterattack against the 8th Army (General Kaledin) of the Southwestern Front in the Kovel region, using the forces of the created group of General Lizingen. But she repulsed the onslaught and on June 22, together with the 3rd Army, finally received as reinforcements, launched a new offensive against Kovel. In July, the main battles unfolded in the Kovel direction. Brusilov's attempts to take Kovel (the most important transport hub) were unsuccessful. During this period, other fronts (Western and Northern) froze in place and did not provide virtually any support to Brusilov. The Germans and Austrians brought reinforcements here from other European fronts (over 30 divisions) and managed to close the gaps that had formed. By the end of July, the forward movement of the Southwestern Front was stopped.
During the Brusilov breakthrough, Russian troops broke into the Austro-German defense along its entire length from the Pripyat marshes to the Romanian border and advanced 60-150 km. The losses of the Austro-German troops during this period amounted to 1.5 million people. (killed, wounded and captured). The Russians lost 0.5 million people. To hold the front in the East, the Germans and Austrians were forced to ease the pressure on France and Italy. Under the influence of the successes of the Russian army, Romania entered the war on the side of the Entente countries. In August - September, having received new reinforcements, Brusilov continued the onslaught. But he did not have the same success. On the left flank of the Southwestern Front, the Russians managed to somewhat push back the Austro-German units in the Carpathian region. But stubborn attacks on the Kovel direction, which lasted until the beginning of October, ended in vain. Reinforced by that time, the Austro-German units repelled the Russian onslaught. On the whole, despite tactical success, the offensive operations of the Southwestern Front (from May to October) did not change the course of the war. They cost Russia huge sacrifices (about 1 million people), which became more and more difficult to restore.
At the end of 1915, clouds began to gather over the Caucasian front. After the victory in the Dardanelles operation, the Turkish command planned to transfer the most combat-ready units from Gallipoli to the Caucasian front. But Yudenich got ahead of this maneuver by carrying out the Erzrum and Trebizond operations. In them, Russian troops achieved the biggest success in the Caucasian theater of operations.
Erzrum and Trebizond operations (1916). The purpose of these operations was to capture the fortress of Erzrum and the port of Trebizond - the main bases of the Turks for operations against the Russian Transcaucasus. In this direction, the 3rd Turkish army of Mahmud-Kiamil Pasha (about 60 thousand people) operated against the Caucasian army of General Yudenich (103 thousand people). On December 28, 1915, the 2nd Turkestan (General Przhevalsky) and 1st Caucasian (General Kalitin) corps went on the offensive against Erzurum. The offensive took place in the snowy mountains with strong wind and frost. But despite the difficult natural and climatic conditions, the Russians broke through the Turkish front and on January 8 reached the approaches to Erzrum. The assault on this heavily fortified Turkish fortress in the conditions of severe cold and snow drifts, in the absence of siege artillery, was fraught with great risk, but Yudenich nevertheless decided to continue the operation, taking full responsibility for its conduct. On the evening of January 29, an unprecedented assault on the Erzurum positions began. After five days of fierce fighting, the Russians broke into Erzrum and then began to pursue the Turkish troops. It lasted until February 18 and ended 70-100 km west of Erzrum. During the operation, Russian troops advanced more than 150 km from their borders deep into Turkish territory. In addition to the courage of the troops, the success of the operation was also ensured by reliable material preparation. The warriors had warm clothes, winter shoes and even dark glasses to protect their eyes from the blinding glare of mountain snows. Each soldier also had firewood for heating.
Russian losses amounted to 17 thousand people. (including 6 thousand frostbite). The damage of the Turks exceeded 65 thousand people. (including 13 thousand prisoners). On January 23, the Trebizond operation began, which was carried out by the forces of the Primorsky detachment (General Lyakhov) and the Batumi detachment of ships of the Black Sea Fleet (captain 1st rank Rimsky-Korsakov). The sailors supported the ground forces with artillery fire, landings and reinforcements. After stubborn fighting, the Primorsky Detachment (15,000 men) reached the fortified Turkish position on the Kara-Dere River on April 1, which covered the approaches to Trebizond. Here the attackers received reinforcements by sea (two plastun brigades numbering 18 thousand people), after which they began the assault on Trebizond. On April 2, the soldiers of the 19th Turkestan Regiment under the command of Colonel Litvinov were the first to cross the stormy cold river. Supported by the fire of the fleet, they swam to the left bank and drove the Turks out of the trenches. On April 5, Russian troops entered Trebizond, abandoned by the Turkish army, and then advanced west to Polatkhane. With the capture of Trebizond, the basing of the Black Sea Fleet improved, and the right flank of the Caucasian army was able to freely receive reinforcements by sea. The capture of Eastern Turkey by the Russians was of great political importance. He seriously strengthened Russia's position in future negotiations with the allies regarding the future fate of Constantinople and the straits.
Kerind-Kasreshirinskaya operation (1916). Following the capture of Trebizond, the 1st Caucasian Separate Corps of General Baratov (20 thousand people) carried out a campaign from Iran to Mesopotamia. He was supposed to assist the English detachment, surrounded by the Turks in Kut-el-Amar (Iraq). The campaign took place from April 5 to May 9, 1916. The Baratov Corps occupied Kerind, Kasre-Shirin, Khanekin and entered Mesopotamia. However, this difficult and dangerous campaign through the desert lost its meaning, since on April 13 the English garrison at Kut-el-Amar capitulated. After the capture of Kut-el-Amara, the command of the 6th Turkish army (Khalil Pasha) sent its main forces to Mesopotamia against the Russian corps, which had been greatly thinned (from heat and disease). At Khaneken (150 km northeast of Baghdad) Baratov had an unsuccessful battle with the Turks, after which the Russian corps left the occupied cities and retreated to Hamadan. East of this Iranian city, the Turkish offensive was stopped.
Erzrindzhan and Ognot operations (1916). In the summer of 1916, the Turkish command, having transferred up to 10 divisions from Gallipoli to the Caucasian front, decided to take revenge for Erzrum and Trebizond. On June 13, the 3rd Turkish army under the command of Vehib Pasha (150 thousand people) went on the offensive from the Erzincan region. The most heated battles broke out in the Trebizond direction, where the 19th Turkestan regiment was stationed. With his fortitude, he managed to hold back the first Turkish onslaught and gave Yudenich the opportunity to regroup his forces. On June 23, Yudenich launched a counterattack in the Mamakhatun area (west of Erzrum) with the forces of the 1st Caucasian Corps (General Kalitin). In four days of fighting, the Russians captured Mamakhatun, and then launched a general counteroffensive. It ended on July 10 with the capture of the Erzincan station. After this battle, the 3rd Turkish army suffered huge losses (over 100 thousand people) and stopped active operations against the Russians. Having suffered a defeat near Erzincan, the Turkish command assigned the task of returning Erzurum to the newly formed 2nd Army under the command of Ahmet Izet Pasha (120 thousand people). On July 21, 1916, she went on the offensive in the Erzurum direction and pushed back the 4th Caucasian Corps (General de Witt). Thus, a threat was created to the left flank of the Caucasian army. In response, Yudenich delivered a counterattack to the Turks at Ognot by the forces of General Vorobyov's group. In stubborn oncoming battles in the Ognot direction, which continued throughout August, the Russian troops thwarted the offensive of the Turkish army and forced it to go on the defensive. The losses of the Turks amounted to 56 thousand people. The Russians lost 20 thousand people. So, the attempt of the Turkish command to seize the strategic initiative on the Caucasian front failed. In the course of two operations, the 2nd and 3rd Turkish armies suffered irreparable losses and stopped active operations against the Russians. The Ognot operation was the last major battle of the Russian Caucasian army in the First World War.
In the Baltic Sea, the Russian fleet supported the right flank of the 12th Army, which was defending Riga, with fire, and also sank German merchant ships and their convoys. Russian submarines were also quite successful in this. Of the response actions of the German fleet, one can name the shelling of the Baltic port (Estonia). This raid, based on insufficient ideas about Russian defense, ended in disaster for the Germans. During the operation on Russian minefields, 7 out of 11 German destroyers participating in the campaign blew up and sank. None of the fleets during the entire war knew such a case. On the Black Sea, the Russian fleet actively contributed to the offensive of the coastal flank of the Caucasian Front, participating in the transport of troops, landings and fire support of the advancing units. In addition, the Black Sea Fleet continued to block the Bosphorus and other strategically important places on the Turkish coast (in particular, the Zonguldak coal region), and also attacked the enemy's sea lanes. As before, German submarines were active in the Black Sea, causing significant damage to Russian transport ships. To combat them, new weapons were invented: diving shells, hydrostatic depth charges, anti-submarine mines.
By the end of 1916, Russia's strategic position, despite the occupation of part of its territories, remained fairly stable. Its army firmly held its positions and carried out a number of offensive operations. For example, France had a higher percentage of occupied lands than Russia. If the Germans were more than 500 km from St. Petersburg, then only 120 km from Paris. However, the internal situation in the country has seriously deteriorated. Grain harvest decreased by 1.5 times, prices rose, transport went wrong. An unprecedented number of men were drafted into the army - 15 million people, and National economy lost a huge number of workers. The scale of human losses has also changed. On average, every month the country lost as many soldiers at the front as in the whole years of past wars. All this demanded from the people an unprecedented exertion of strength. However, not all of society bore the burden of the war. For certain strata, military difficulties became a source of enrichment. For example, placing military orders at private factories brought huge profits. The source of income growth was the deficit, which allowed to inflate prices. It was widely practiced to evade the front with the help of a device in the rear organizations. In general, the problems of the rear, its correct and comprehensive organization, turned out to be one of the most vulnerable places in Russia in the First World War. All this created an increase in social tension. After the failure of the German plan to end the war with lightning speed, World War I became a war of attrition. In this struggle, the Entente countries had a total advantage in terms of the number of armed forces and economic potential. But the use of these advantages to a large extent depended on the mood of the nation, firm and skillful leadership.
In this regard, Russia was the most vulnerable. Nowhere was there such an irresponsible split at the top of society. Representatives of the State Duma, the aristocracy, the generals, the left parties, the liberal intelligentsia and the circles of the bourgeoisie associated with it expressed the opinion that Tsar Nicholas II was unable to bring the matter to a victorious end. The growth of opposition sentiments was partly determined by the connivance of the authorities themselves, who failed to bring war time proper order in the rear. Ultimately, all this led to the February Revolution and the overthrow of the monarchy. After the abdication of Nicholas II (March 2, 1917), the Provisional Government came to power. But its representatives, powerful in criticizing the tsarist regime, were helpless in governing the country. A dual power arose in the country between the Provisional Government and the Petrograd Soviet of Workers', Peasants' and Soldiers' Deputies. This led to further destabilization. There was a struggle for power at the top. The army, which had become a hostage of this struggle, began to fall apart. The first impetus to the collapse was given by the famous Order No. 1 issued by the Petrograd Soviet, which deprived the officers of disciplinary power over the soldiers. As a result, discipline fell in the units and desertion increased. Anti-war propaganda intensified in the trenches. The officer corps, which became the first victim of the soldiers' discontent, suffered greatly. The purge of the senior command staff was carried out by the Provisional Government itself, which did not trust the military. Under these conditions, the army increasingly lost its combat effectiveness. But the Provisional Government, under pressure from the allies, continued the war, hoping to strengthen its position by successes at the front. Such an attempt was the June Offensive, organized by Minister of War Alexander Kerensky.
June Offensive (1917). The main blow was delivered by the troops of the Southwestern Front (General Gutor) in Galicia. The attack was poorly prepared. To a large extent, it was propagandistic in nature and aimed to raise the prestige of the new government. At first, the Russians were successful, which was especially noticeable in the sector of the 8th Army (General Kornilov). She broke through the front and moved forward 50 km, taking the cities of Galich and Kalush. But the larger troops of the Southwestern Front could not be reached. Their pressure quickly subsided under the influence of anti-war propaganda and the increased resistance of the Austro-German troops. In early July 1917, the Austro-German command transferred 16 new divisions to Galicia and launched a powerful counterattack. As a result, the troops of the South-Western Front were defeated and were driven back far to the east of their original lines, to the state border. The offensive operations in July 1917 of the Romanian (General Shcherbachev) and Northern (General Klembovsky) Russian fronts were also associated with the June offensive. The offensive in Romania, near Mareshtami, developed successfully, but was stopped by order of Kerensky under the influence of defeats in Galicia. The offensive of the Northern Front at Jakobstadt completely failed. The total loss of the Russians during this period amounted to 150 thousand people. played a significant role in their failure political events which had a disintegrating effect on the troops. "These were no longer the former Russians," German General Ludendorff recalled those battles. The defeats of the summer of 1917 intensified the crisis of power and aggravated the internal political situation in the country.
Riga operation (1917). After the defeat of the Russians in June - July, the Germans on August 19-24, 1917, carried out an offensive operation with the forces of the 8th Army (General Gutierre) in order to capture Riga. The Riga direction was defended by the 12th Russian Army (General Parsky). On August 19, the German troops went on the offensive. By noon, they crossed the Dvina, threatening to go to the rear of the units defending Riga. Under these conditions, Parsky ordered the evacuation of Riga. On August 21, the Germans entered the city, where, on the occasion of this celebration, the German Kaiser Wilhelm II arrived. After the capture of Riga, German troops soon stopped the offensive. Russian losses in the Riga operation amounted to 18 thousand people. (of which 8 thousand prisoners). German damage - 4 thousand people. The defeat at Riga caused an aggravation of the internal political crisis in the country.
Moonsund operation (1917). After the capture of Riga, the German command decided to take control of the Gulf of Riga and destroy the Russian naval forces there. To do this, on September 29 - October 6, 1917, the Germans carried out the Moonsund operation. For its implementation, they allocated the Naval Special Purpose Detachment, consisting of 300 ships of various classes (including 10 battleships) under the command of Vice Admiral Schmidt. For the landing on the Moonsund Islands, which closed the entrance to the Gulf of Riga, the 23rd reserve corps of General von Caten (25 thousand people) was intended. The Russian garrison of the islands numbered 12 thousand people. In addition, the Gulf of Riga was protected by 116 ships and auxiliary vessels (including 2 battleships) under the command of Rear Admiral Bakhirev. The Germans occupied the islands without much difficulty. But in the battle at sea, the German fleet met stubborn resistance from Russian sailors and suffered heavy losses (16 ships were sunk, 16 ships were damaged, including 3 battleships). The Russians lost the heroically fought battleship Slava and the destroyer Grom. Despite the great superiority in forces, the Germans were unable to destroy the ships of the Baltic Fleet, which retreated in an organized manner to the Gulf of Finland, blocking the German squadron's path to Petrograd. The battle for the Moonsund Archipelago was the last major military operation on the Russian front. In it, the Russian fleet defended the honor of the Russian armed forces and adequately completed their participation in the First World War.
In October 1917, the Provisional Government was overthrown by the Bolsheviks, who were in favor of an early conclusion of peace. On November 20, in Brest-Litovsk (Brest), they began separate peace negotiations with Germany. On December 2, an armistice was concluded between the Bolshevik government and the German representatives. On March 3, 1918, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was concluded between Soviet Russia and Germany. Significant territories were torn away from Russia (the Baltic states and part of Belarus). Russian troops were withdrawn from the territories of Finland and Ukraine that gained independence, as well as from the districts of Ardagan, Kars and Batum, which were transferred to Turkey. In total, Russia lost 1 million square meters. km of land (including Ukraine). The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk pushed it back in the west to the borders of the 16th century. (during the reign of Ivan the Terrible). In addition, Soviet Russia was obliged to demobilize the army and navy, establish favorable customs duties for Germany, and also pay the German side a significant indemnity (its total amount was 6 billion gold marks).
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk meant a severe defeat for Russia. The Bolsheviks assumed historical responsibility for it. But in many ways, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk only fixed the situation in which the country found itself, brought to collapse by the war, the helplessness of the authorities and the irresponsibility of society. The victory over Russia made it possible for Germany and its allies to temporarily occupy the Baltic States, Ukraine, Belarus and Transcaucasia. In World War I, the number of deaths in the Russian army amounted to 1.7 million people. (killed, died from wounds, gases, in captivity, etc.). The war cost Russia 25 billion dollars. A deep moral trauma was also inflicted on the nation, which for the first time in many centuries suffered such a heavy defeat.
Shefov N.A. The most famous wars and battles of Russia M. "Veche", 2000.
"From Ancient Russia to the Russian Empire". Shishkin Sergey Petrovich, Ufa.
