Battle of Lutsk

Last updated
Battle of Lutsk
Part of the Brusilov Offensive on the Eastern Front of World War I
EasternFront1916b.jpg
The Eastern Front before and during the Brusilov Offensive
Date4–6 June 1916
Location
Result Russian victory
Belligerents
Flag of Austria-Hungary (1867-1918).svg  Austria-Hungary Flag of Russian Empire (1914-1917).svg Russian Empire
Commanders and leaders
Flag of Austria-Hungary (1867-1918).svg Joseph Ferdinand Flag of Russian Empire (1914-1917).svg Aleksei Kaledin
Strength
Fourth Army Eighth Army
Casualties and losses
130,000 killed, wounded or captured [1] Light

The Battle of Lutsk took place on the Eastern Front during World War I, from June 4 to June 6, 1916. This was the opening attack of the Brusilov Offensive under the overall command of Alexei Brusilov. The Russian 8th Army made a decisive breakthrough in the defenses of the Austro-Hungarian Fourth Army in the area of the city of Lutsk in Ukraine.

Battle

On the night of June 4, General Alexei Kaledin opened an artillery barrage against Archduke Joseph Ferdinand's Austro-Hungarian defenses. Lasting through the night and into the morning, the Russian artillery broke gaps through the barbed wire trenches. This allowed the infantry to commence a surprise attack in the vicinity of Olyka. [2]

The complete surprise of the Russian attack caused many of the Austrians to be taken prisoner. [1] Some entire units surrendered without resistance while others fled in panic. A counter-attack briefly secured the first line of trenches, but overwhelming numbers of Russian infantry pressed the attack and took the second and third line of defenses. [2]

Within days, 130,000 Austro-Hungarian soldiers were lost. The influential German high-command requested the dismissal of Archduke Joseph, which was subsequently granted. The success of the Russian breakthrough caused Austria to halt its attacks in Italy and convinced Romania to enter the war. [1] The Brusilov Offensive would continue with success until running out of steam in late September 1916.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brusilov offensive</span> 1916 Russian offensive during World War I

The Brusilov offensive, also known as the "June advance", of June to September 1916 was the Russian Empire's greatest feat of arms during World War I, and among the most lethal offensives in world history. The historian Graydon Tunstall called the Brusilov offensive the worst crisis of World War I for Austria-Hungary and the Triple Entente's greatest victory, but it came at a tremendous loss of life. The heavy casualties eliminated the offensive power of the Imperial Russian Army and contributed to Russia's revolution the next year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Infiltration tactics</span> Infantry bypassing strongpoints

In warfare, infiltration tactics involve small independent light infantry forces advancing into enemy rear areas, bypassing enemy frontline strongpoints, possibly isolating them for attack by follow-up troops with heavier weapons. Soldiers take the initiative to identify enemy weak points and choose their own routes, targets, moments and methods of attack; this requires a high degree of skill and training, and can be supplemented by special equipment and weaponry to give them more local combat options.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastern Front (World War I)</span> East European theater of World War I

The Eastern Front or Eastern Theater of World War I was a theater of operations that encompassed at its greatest extent the entire frontier between Russia and Romania on one side and Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, the Ottoman Empire, and Germany on the other. It ranged from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Black Sea in the south, involved most of Eastern Europe, and stretched deep into Central Europe. The term contrasts with the Western Front, which was being fought in Belgium and France.

The 1st Army was a field army-level command in the ground forces of Austria-Hungary during World War I. The army fought in Galicia and Russian Poland in 1914–15 before being briefly dissolved in the summer of 1916. Shortly afterwards, it was reformed and sent to fight in the Romanian Campaign for the next two years. The 1st Army was demobilized in April 1918 due to its heavy losses, following Romania's surrender.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Archduke Joseph Ferdinand of Austria</span>

Archduke Joseph Ferdinand of Austria, full name Joseph Ferdinand Salvator Maria Franz Leopold Anton Albert Johann Baptist Karl Ludwig Rupert Maria Auxilatrix; 24 May 1872 – 28 August 1942, was an Austro-Hungarian Archduke, military commander, from 1916 Generaloberst, and early advocate of air power. He later retired to live as a common citizen of Austria, and was briefly imprisoned in Dachau during the Nazi era.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gorlice–Tarnów offensive</span> 1915 German offensive on the Eastern Front of World War I

The Gorlice–Tarnów offensive during World War I was initially conceived as a minor German offensive to relieve Russian pressure on the Austro-Hungarians to their south on the Eastern Front, but resulted in the Central Powers' chief offensive effort of 1915, causing the total collapse of the Russian lines and their retreat far into Russia. The continued series of actions lasted the majority of the campaigning season for 1915, starting in early May and only ending due to bad weather in October.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aleksei Evert</span> Russian general (1857–1918 or 1926)

Aleksei Ermolaevich Evert was an Imperial Russian general of Orthodox German extraction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Mărăști</span> First World War battle in Romania

The Battle of Mărăști was one of the main battles to take place on Romanian soil in World War I. It was fought between 22 July and 1 August 1917, and was an offensive operation of the Romanian and Russian armies intended to encircle and destroy the German 9th Army. The operation was planned to occur in tandem with the Nămoloasa offensive; however, this operation was abandoned before it began.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Limanowa</span> 1914 battle of World War I

The Battle of Limanowa-Łapanów took place from 1 December to 13 December 1914, between the Austro-Hungarian Army and the Russian Army near the town of Limanowa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hermann Kövess von Kövessháza</span> Commander-in-Chief of the Austro-Hungarian Army

Hermann Albin Josef Freiherr Kövess von Kövessháza was the final, and completely ceremonial, Commander-in-Chief of the Austro-Hungarian Army. He served as a generally competent and unremarkable commander in the Austro-Hungarian Army and was close to retirement in 1914 when the First World War broke out and he was given a command post.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Kowel</span>

The Battle of Kowel took place during World War I, from 28 July to 8 August 1916. It began with an Austrian counter-attack by Alexander von Linsingen south of Kowel, a city located in the Volyn Oblast (province), in north-western Ukraine. Linsingen intended to halt the Russian offensive under the command of General Aleksei Alekseevich Brusilov.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Kostiuchnówka</span> 1916 battle on the Eastern Front of WWI

The Battle of Kostiuchnówka was a World War I battle that took place July 4–6, 1916, near the village of Kostiuchnówka (Kostyukhnivka) and the Styr River in the Volhynia region of modern Ukraine, then part of the Russian Empire. It was a major clash between the Russian Army and the Polish Legions during the opening phase of the Brusilov Offensive.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rovno offensive</span> 1915 Austria-Hungary offensive on the Eastern Front of World War I

The Rovno offensive — the operation of the Austro-Hungarian Northern armies against the armies of the Russian Southwestern Front — the so-called "campaign on Rovno", or Lutsk-Rovno offensive operation. The purpose of the offensive was the liberation of Eastern Galicia, but by the end of the operation, a small part of Eastern Galicia was still held by the Russian Imperial Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Komarów (1914)</span> August 1914 battle of WW1s Eastern Front

The Battle of Komarow was a battle on the Eastern Front during World War I. It would prove a victory for the Austro-Hungarian forces, but one they would not be able to reproduce in the coming months of the war.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gorlice breakthrough</span> Central powers offensive at 1915 on the Eastern front

The Gorlice breakthrough occurred in the May 1–10, 1915 as part of the Gorlice–Tarnów Offensive during World War I. The German 11th Army led by General August von Mackensen, with the support on the flanks by the 3rd and 4th Austro-Hungarian Armies, defeated the 3rd Russian Army. For the first time in the history of the First World War a heavily fortified and long-term defensive position was broken through during the Gorliсе offensive.

The 12th Army was a field army-level command of the Austro-Hungarian Army that existed only for one month during World War I, led by Archduke Karl Franz Joseph. It had been formed in response to the success of the Russian Empire's Brusilov Offensive, and was dissolved upon the formation of Army Group Archduke Karl.

The 3rd Army was a field army-level command within the ground forces of Austria-Hungary during World War I. It was primarily active on the Eastern Front against the Russian Empire and in the Balkans against Serbia and Montenegro. Later on, the 3rd Army took part in some fighting on the Italian Front before returning to the eastern theater by 1917 to repulse the Kerensky Offensive. Its remaining units were merged with the 7th Army in January 1918.

Let the Thunder of Victory Rumble! is a novel by Boris Akunin, the second part of the third book on the adventures of Russian and German spies during the First World War. It describes the military adventures of Aleksei Romanov in the spring of 1916 in Galicia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Romanian Campaign (1917)</span> Aspect of World War I

The 1917 Romanian Campaign consisted in three battles between late July and early September 1917, fought between Germany and Austria-Hungary on one side versus Romania and Russia on the other. Romania emerged from this campaign with a slight net territorial gain and won its most important battle during the First World War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vistula–Bug offensive</span> 1915 German offensive on the Eastern Front of World War I

The Vistula–Bug offensive from July 13 to August 28, 1915, was a major Central Powers offensive with the decisive role of the German Imperial Army during World War I on the Eastern Front to defeat the forces of the Russian army in South Poland and Galicia.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "First World War.com - Battles - The Battle of Lutsk, 1916". www.firstworldwar.com. Retrieved 2024-03-13.
  2. 1 2 Dowling, Timothy C. (2008). The Brusilov Offensive. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. pp. 78–79. ISBN   978-0-253-35130-2.