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End of the Battle of Galicia
"The successes of Russians in Galicia were sufficient to strike the blows to the Austro-Hungarian armies, which proved fatal to the entire state organism of the dual monarchy. Austrian troops going into the first battles with great enthusiasm, were already second-rate stuff in the remainder of the war."
General A. A. Svechin
September 8 (21), 1914 ended one of the largest battles of the First World War of 1914-1918 between the Russian and Austro-Hungarian armies in Galicia and Poland - the Battle of Galicia.
The operation of the Russian troops in Galicia involved 5 armies of the Russian Southwestern Front, Dniester detachment under the command of General N. I. Ivanov and 4 Austro-Hungarian armies under the command of Archduke Friedrich and Field Marshal Gёttsendorf, as well as the German group of the General R. Voyrsh. The parties had roughly equal numbers of men, in total it reached about 2 million.
The plans of the Austro-Hungarian command included the main attack by the 1st and 4th Armies in the northern sector to defeat the 4th and 5th Russian armies and exit to the rear of the South-Western Front for its subsequent defeat. Russian headquarters of the Southwestern Front planned, not waiting for full concentration and deployment of its units, to attack the Austro-Hungarian forces in Galicia, defeat them and prevent their retreat to the south, behind the Dniester River and to the west toward Krakow. However, this plan had to be adjusted on the move due to changes in the dislocation of the Austro-Hungarian troops
The Battle of Galicia began August 5-6 (18-19), 1914 with the convergence of the opposing sides and opened with two operations - Lublin-Chelm and Galich-Lviv.
Lublin-Chelm operation began with the onset of the Austro-Hungarian armies near Lublin and Chelm. Having information that the deployment scheme of Austro-Hungarian troops is known to the Russians, K. Hёttsendorf shifted his lines 100 km to the west, thereby having carried out an unexpected flank coverage of the Russian armies. The 4th Russian army under the command of General A. E. Saltz (then by General A, E. Evert) was opposed by twice the size of it’s the 1st Austrian army led by B. Dunkley, which doubly outnumbered the Russians.
The role of the 4th Army as the right-flank one was the most important. Being adjacent to the left bank of the River Wisla open to the enemy, it threatened the main rear ways of Austrians. The battle took place August 10-11 (23-24) near Krasnyk, when the 4th Russian army launched an offensive in the direction of Przemysl and opposed the 1st Austro-Hungarian army, which tried to cover itsr right flank. After two days of heavy fighting and under the threat of a deep turning of the right flank, on August 12 (25), the 4th Army moved to the south-west of Lublin. Enemy’s attempts to further attack Lublin were reflected by Russian troops.
The onset of the 4th Austro-Hungarian army headed by M. Auffenberg toward Tomashov on August 13 (26), led to its clash with the 5th corps of the Russian army under the command of P. A. Pleve near Zamosc, Komarov, Tomashov. Auffenberg’s plan was based on an effort to turn the 5th Russian army from two sides. On the first day, the Austro-Hungarians defeated the 25th corps and drove the 19th corps of the Russians toward Komarov. The days of 14-15 (27-28) August passed in fierce battles. The defeat of the 17th and retreat of the 25th Russian corps caused a threat of encirclement. Despite the reinforcements, which just arrived, the position of the 5th Russian army was becoming heavier. Assessing the situation, Pleve ordered to withdraw to the north to the same line as the 4th Army.
At the same, on the left flank of the Southwestern Front, Galich-Lvov operation was taking place. The 8th Army commanded by the General A. A. Brusilov, which began its offensive August 5 (18), in eight days had made 130-150 km and only 12 (25) August on the river Koropets its corps withstood heavy fighting with the enemy. The onset of the 3rd Army under General N. V. Ruzsky, which began 6 (19) August, was going almost unhindered.
Weak units of the enemy’s covering forces hastily retreated, clashes were rare. August 13-15 (26-28), on the River Gold Lipa, the 3rd Russian army had a battle with the 3rd Austro-Hungarian Army led by the General R. Bruderman (then S. Borojevic), in which the Austrians were defeated and retreated to river Rotten Lipa. In the battle of August 16-19 (August 29 - September 1) on the river Rotten Lipa, the 3rd Russian Army broke through the enemy front near Przemysl, and the 8th Army repulsed a counter-attack of the 2nd Austro-Hungarian army. The right wing of the Austro-Hungarian troops began to retreat toward Gorodok line (to the west of Lviv). August 21 (September 3), Russian troops entered Lviv, and August 22 (September 4) took Galich.
In an effort to seize the initiative in the Galich- Lviv sector, the Austro-Hungarian command redeployed the 4th Army of the General Auffenberg from the north to the south, thereby creating numerical superiority. August 23 (September 5) began a week-long Battle of Gorodok. In the fierce fighting near Rava-Russkaya August 25-26 (7-8 September), the Austro-Hungarian troops pressed the 8th Army of Brusilov. Meanwhile, the Russian troops, which were defending Chelm and Lublin in the north, August 21 (September 3), were reinforced (by the 9th Army of the General P. A. Lechitsky) and August 26 (September 8) achieved a breakthrough near Tarnavka, creating a threat to the rear of the Austro to Hungarian forces, which advanced in the Rava-Russkaya sector. Fearing the collapse of its front, on the night of August 30 (September 12) the Austro-Hungarian army began a general retreat across the river San. Pursuing them, Russians advanced 200 km, took Galicia and September 8 (21) blocked the fortress of Przemysl.
Russian losses in the Battle of Galicia totaled 230,000 men, the Austro-Hungarian forces lost about 360,000 (including about 120,000 prisoners) - more than a third of its armed forces on the Eastern Front. The victory of the Russian army actually eliminated German successes achieved in the East Prussian offensive and diverted considerable forces of Austria-Hungary from Serbia. Plans of the German command to stand firm over the entire Eastern Front just by forces of Austro-Hungarian army suffered a complete failure, and Austria-Hungary lost its military efficiency for long.
Lit.: Белой А. Галицийская битва. М., 1929; Головин Н. Н. Из истории кампании 1914 года. Дни перелома Галицийской битвы. Париж, 1940; Зайончковский А. М. Мировая война 1914-1918. Т. 1. М., 1938; Коленковский А. К. Манёвренный период первой мировой империалистической войны 1914. М., 1940; Оськин М. В. Галицийская битва. Август 1914. М., 2006.
Based on the Presidential Library’s materials:
World War I (1914-1918): [digital collection];
Белой А. С. Выход из окружения 19-го армейского корпуса у Томашова в 1914 г. М., 1937;
Занятие Галиции и полный разгром австрийской армии. М., 1914;