First Battle of Oituz | |||||||
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Part of World War I | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Romania | Austria-Hungary Germany | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Eremia Grigorescu Nicolae Sinescu | Charles I Erich von Falkenhayn |
The First Battle of Oituz was fought between 12 and 27 October 1916 between the Kingdom of Romania on one side and Austria-Hungary and the German Empire on the other. It was part of the Romanian operations for the defense of the passes in the Carpathians. The objectives of the operation were to resist the enemy attack on the Transylvanian front, to obtain and maintain a defensive device in the Carpathian alignment and to create the conditions for an eventual counter-offensive. At the end, the Central Powers (Germany and Austria-Hungary) failed to defeat the Romanian forces and the battle was a victory for the latter. [1]
The Austro-Hungarian forces were commanded by Charles I of Austria, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, while the German army was commanded by General Erich von Falkenhayn. [2] On the other hand, the Romanian commanders were Eremia Grigorescu and Nicolae Sinescu. [1]
General Erich Georg Sebastian Anton von Falkenhayn was the second Chief of the German General Staff of the First World War from September 1914 until 29 August 1916. He was removed on 29 August 1916 after the failure at the Battle of Verdun, the opening of the Battle of the Somme, the Brusilov Offensive and the entry of Romania into the war on the Allied side undid his strategy to end the war before 1917. He was later given important field commands in Romania and Syria. His reputation as a war leader was attacked in Germany during and after the war, especially by the faction supporting Paul von Hindenburg. Falkenhayn held that Germany could not win the war by a decisive battle but would have to reach a compromise peace; his enemies said he lacked the resolve necessary to win a decisive victory. Falkenhayn's relations with the Chancellor Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg were troubled and undercut Falkenhayn's plans.
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