38 states participated in the First World War, more than one and a half billion people were involved in it, i.e. more than ¾ of the population the globe.
The reason for the unleashing of an international conflict was the assassination by Serbian conspirators in the Bosnian city of Sarajevo in June 1914 of the heir to the Austrian throne, Franz Ferdinand. On July 15, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. In response, Russia, as the guarantor of Serbia's independence, began mobilization. Germany demanded an ultimatum to stop it and, having received a refusal, declared war on Russia on July 19. France, an ally of Russia, entered the war on July 21, England the next day, and on July 26 a state of war was declared between Russia and Austria-Hungary.
Two fronts formed in Europe: the Western (in France and Belgium) and the Eastern (against Russia).
At the heart of the war 1914 — 1918 gg. lie growing over many decades of contradictions between groups of capitalist states, the struggle for spheres of influence, markets, which led to the redivision of the world. On the one hand, these were Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy, which took shape in Triple Alliance. On the other hand, England, France and Russia ( Entente).
The course of hostilities on the Eastern Front
Main battles in Russian ( Eastern) theater of operations at the beginning of the war deployed on northwestern (against Germany) and southwestern (against Austria-Hungary) directions. The war for Russia began with the offensive of the Russian armies in East Prussia and Galicia.
East Prussian operation
The East Prussian operation (August 4 - September 2, 1914) ended in a serious failure for the Russian army, but had big influence on the course of operations on Western front: the German command was forced to transfer large forces to the east. This was one of the reasons for the failure of the German attack on Paris and the success of the Anglo-French troops in the Battle of the Marne River.
Galician battle
The Battle of Galicia (August 10 - September 11, 1914) led to a significant military-strategic victory for Russia: the Russian army advanced 280 - 300 km, occupying Galicia and its ancient capital Lvov.
During the ensuing fighting in Poland(October - November 1914) the German army repelled attempts to advance Russian troops within its territory, but it failed to defeat the Russian armies.
Russian soldiers and officers had to fight in exclusively difficult conditions. Russia's unpreparedness for war manifested itself particularly sharply in the poor supply of ammunition to the army. Member State Duma V. Shulgin, who visited the front shortly after the outbreak of hostilities, recalled: “The Germans covered our positions with hurricane fire, and we were silent in response. For example, in the artillery unit where he worked, it was ordered to spend no more than seven shells per day on one field ... gun. In such a situation, the front was held to a large extent due to the courage and skill of the soldiers and officers.
The difficult situation on the Eastern Front forced Germany to take a number of steps to curb Russia's activity. She managed in October 1914 to drag Turkey into the war with Russia. But the very first major operation of the Russian army on Caucasian Front in December 1914 g. led to the defeat of the Turkish army.
The active actions of the Russian army forced the German command in 1915 to radically revise their original plans; instead of defending in the east and attacking in the west, a different plan of action was adopted. Center of gravity in the war moved to Eastern front and specifically against Russia. The offensive began in April 1915 with a breakthrough in the defense of Russian troops in Galicia. By autumn, the German army occupied most of Galicia, Poland, part of the Baltic states and Belarus. However, their main task - the complete defeat of the Russian armed forces and the withdrawal of Russia from the war - was not solved by the German command.
By the end of 1915, the war on all fronts took positional character which was extremely disadvantageous for Germany. In an effort to achieve victory as soon as possible and not being able to carry out a broad offensive on the Russian front, the German command again decided to shift its efforts to the Western Front, making a breakthrough in the area of the French fortress Verdun.
And again, as in 1914, the Allies turned to Russia, insisting on an offensive in the East, i.e. on the Russian front. Summer 1916 troops Southwestern Front under the command of General A.A. Brusilov went on the offensive, as a result of which the Russian troops captured Bukovina and Southern Galicia.
As a result " Brusilov breakthrough“The Germans were forced to withdraw 11 divisions from the western front and send them to help the Austrian troops. At the same time, a number of victories were won on Caucasian front, where the Russian army deepened into Turkish territory for 250-300 km.
Thus, in 1914 - 1916. The Russian army had to take on the powerful blows of the enemy forces. At the same time, shortcomings in weapons and equipment reduced the combat effectiveness of the army and significantly increased its casualties.
The entire period of 1916 - the beginning of 1917. in the political circles of Russia there was a stubborn struggle between supporters of a separate peace with Germany and supporters of Russia's participation in the war on the side of the Entente. After the February Revolution of 1917, the Provisional Government declared Russia's loyalty to its obligations to the Entente countries and in June 1917 launched an offensive at the front, which turned out to be unsuccessful.
Russia's participation in the First World War ended with the signing in March 1918 Brest peace between Germany and Soviet Russia.
On the Western Front, hostilities continued until the autumn of 1918, when November 11, 1918 in the Forest of Compiègne(France) an armistice was signed between the victors (the Entente countries) and the defeated Germany.
Both sides pursued predatory goals. Germany sought to weaken Great Britain and France, seize new colonies on the African continent, seize Poland and the Baltic States from Russia, Austria-Hungary - to establish itself on the Balkan Peninsula, Great Britain and France - to keep their colonies and weaken Germany as a competitor in the world market, Russia - to seize Galicia and take control of the Black Sea straits.
Causes
Intending to start a war against Serbia, Austria-Hungary enlisted German support. The latter believed that the war would take on a local character if Russia did not defend Serbia. But if she helps Serbia, then Germany will be ready to fulfill its treaty obligations and support Austria-Hungary. In an ultimatum presented to Serbia on July 23, Austria-Hungary demanded that its military formations be allowed into Serbian territory in order to prevent hostile actions together with Serbian forces. The answer to the ultimatum was given within the agreed 48-hour period, but it did not satisfy Austria-Hungary, and on July 28 it declared war on Serbia. On July 30, Russia announced a general mobilization; Germany used this occasion to declare war on Russia on August 1, and on France on August 3. After the Germans invaded Belgium on August 4, Great Britain declared war on Germany. Now all the great powers of Europe were drawn into the war. Together with them, their dominions and colonies were involved in the war.
The course of the war
1914
The war consisted of five campaigns. During the first campaign in the city, Germany invaded Belgium and the northern regions of France, but was defeated in 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. As a result, there was a transition from maneuverable to positional forms of struggle.
1915
Italy, the disruption of the German plan to withdraw Russia from the war and bloody inconclusive battles on the Western Front.
During this campaign, Germany and Austria-Hungary, concentrating their main efforts on the Russian front, carried out the so-called Gorlitsky breakthrough and ousted Russian troops from Poland and part of the Baltic states, but they were defeated in the Vilna operation and were forced to switch to positional defense.
On the Western Front, both sides conducted a strategic defense. Private operations (at Ypres, in Champagne and Artois) were not successful, despite the use of poison gases.
On the Southern Front, Italian troops launched an unsuccessful operation against Austria-Hungary on the Isonzo River. The German-Austrian troops managed to defeat Serbia. Anglo-French troops successfully carried out the Thessaloniki operation in Greece, but failed to capture the Dardanelles. On the Transcaucasian front, as a result of the Alashkert, Hamadan and Sarykamysh operations, Russia reached the approaches to Erzurum.
1916
The campaign was connected with the entry of Rumania into the war and the waging of an exhausting positional war on all fronts. Germany again shifted efforts against France, but did not succeed in the battle of Verdun. The operations of the Anglo-French troops on the Somna were also unsuccessful, despite the use of tanks.
On the Italian front, the Austro-Hungarian troops undertook the Trentino offensive operation, but were driven back by the counteroffensive of the Italian troops. On the Eastern Front, the troops of the Southwestern Russian Front conducted a successful operation in Galicia on a wide front with a length of up to 550 km (Brusilovsky breakthrough) and advanced 60-120 km, occupied the eastern regions of Austria-Hungary, which forced the enemy to transfer up to 34 divisions to this front from the Western and Italian fronts.
The decisive Battle of Jutland took place on the Baltic Sea. As a result of the campaign, conditions were created for the Entente to seize the strategic initiative.
1917
The campaign was connected with the US entry into the war, Russia's revolutionary withdrawal from the war, and the conduct of a number of successive offensive operations on the Western Front (Operation Nivelle, operations in the Messines region, on Ypres, near Verdun, near Cambrai). These operations, despite the use in them of large forces of artillery, tanks and aviation, practically did not change the general situation in the Western European theater of operations. In the Atlantic, at this time, Germany launched an unrestricted submarine war, during which both sides suffered heavy losses.
1918
The city's campaign was characterized by a transition from positional defense to a general offensive by the armed forces of the Entente. Initially, Germany undertook the Allied March offensive in Picardy, private operations in Flanders, on the rivers Aisne and Marne. But due to lack of strength, they did not develop.
From the second half of the year, with the entry into the war of the United States, the allies prepared and launched retaliatory offensive operations (Amiens, Saint-Miyel, Marne), during which they liquidated the results of the German offensive, and in September, they launched a general offensive, forcing Germany to surrender ( Compiègne truce).
Results
The final terms of the peace treaty were worked out at the Paris Conference of 1919-1920. ; during the sessions, agreements on five peace treaties were determined. After its completion, the following were signed: 1) the Treaty of Versailles with Germany on June 28; 2) Saint-Germain peace treaty with Austria on September 10, 1919; 3) Neuilly peace treaty with Bulgaria on November 27; 4) Trianon peace treaty with Hungary on June 4; 5) Sevres peace treaty with Turkey on August 20. Subsequently, according to the Treaty of Lausanne on July 24, 1923, amendments were made to the Treaty of Sevres.
As a result of the First World War, the German, Russian, Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman empires were liquidated. Austria-Hungary and Ottoman Empire were divided, and Russia and Germany, ceasing to be monarchies, were cut down territorially and economically weakened. Revanchist sentiment in Germany led to World War II. First World War accelerated the development of social processes, was one of the prerequisites that led to revolutions in Russia, Germany, Hungary, Finland. As a result, a new military-political situation was created in the world.
In total, the First World War lasted 51 months and 2 weeks. It covered the territories of Europe, Asia and Africa, the waters of the Atlantic, the North, Baltic, Black and Mediterranean seas. This is the first military conflict on a global scale, in which 38 of the 59 independent states that existed at that time were involved. Two-thirds of the world's population participated in the war. The number of warring armies exceeded 37 million people. The total number of those mobilized into the armed forces amounted to about 70 million people. The length of the fronts was up to 2.5-4 thousand km. The casualties of the parties amounted to about 9.5 million killed and 20 million wounded.
In the war, they developed and wide application new types of troops: aviation, armored troops, anti-aircraft troops, anti-tank weapons, submarine forces. New forms and methods of armed struggle began to be used: army and front-line operations, breaking through the fortifications of the fronts. New strategic categories arose: operational deployment of the Armed Forces, operational cover, frontier battles, initial and subsequent periods of the war.
Used materials
- Dictionary "War and Peace in Terms and Definitions", World War I
- Encyclopedia "Circumnavigation"
World War I 1914-18 World War I 1914-18 - a war between two coalitions of powers: the Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey, Bulgaria) and the Entente (Russia, France, Great Britain, Serbia, later Japan, Italy, Romania, the USA, etc.; a total of 38 states). The reason for the war was the assassination in Sarajevo of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, by a member of the Young Bosnia terrorist organization. July 15 (28), 1914 Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, July 19 (August 1) Germany - Russia, July 21 (August 3) - France, July 22 (August 4) Great Britain - Germany. Having created a superiority in troops on the Western Front, Germany in 1914 occupied Luxembourg and Belgium and began a rapid advance to the north of France towards Paris. However, already in 1914 the German plan to quickly defeat France failed; this was facilitated by the offensive of the Russian troops in East Prussia, which forced Germany to withdraw part of the troops from the Western Front. In August-September 1914, Russian troops defeated the Austro-Hungarian troops in Galicia, in late 1914 - early 1915 Turkish troops in Transcaucasia. In 1915, the forces of the Central Powers, conducting a strategic defense on the Western Front, forced the Russian troops to leave Galicia, Poland, part of the Baltic states, and defeated Serbia. In 1916, after an unsuccessful attempt by the German troops to break through the Allied defenses in the Verdun region (France), the strategic initiative passed to the Entente. In addition, the heavy defeat inflicted on the Austro-German troops in May - July 1916 in Galicia actually predetermined the collapse of Germany's main ally - Austria-Hungary. In August 1916, influenced by the successes of the Entente, Romania entered the war on its side, but its troops acted unsuccessfully and were defeated at the end of 1916. At the same time, in the Caucasian theater, the initiative continued to be retained by the Russian army, which in 1916 occupied Erzurum and Trebizond. The collapse of the Russian army that began after the February Revolution of 1917 allowed Germany and its allies to intensify their operations on other fronts, which, however, did not change the situation as a whole. After the conclusion of the separate Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Russia (March 3, 1918), the German command launched a massive offensive on the Western Front. The troops of the Entente, having eliminated the results of the German breakthrough, went on the offensive, which ended in the defeat of the Central Powers. On September 29, 1918, Bulgaria capitulated, on October 30 - Turkey, on November 3 - Austria-Hungary, on November 11 - Germany. During the First World War, about 74 million people were mobilized, the total losses amounted to about 10 million killed and over 20 million wounded.
Historical dictionary. 2000 .
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Content:
Any war, no matter what its nature and scale, always brings tragedy with it. It is the pain of loss that does not subside with time. This is the destruction of houses, buildings and structures that are monuments of centuries-old culture. During the war, families break up, customs and foundations are broken. All the more tragic is a war involving many states, and which, in this regard, is defined as a world war. One of the saddest pages in the history of mankind was the First World War.
Main reasons
Europe on the eve of the 20th century was formed as a conglomerate of Great Britain, Russia and France. Germany remained on the sidelines. But only as long as its industry stood on solid feet, its military power strengthened. So far, she did not aspire to the role of the main force in Europe, but she began to lack markets for the sale of her products. There was a lack of space. Access to international trade routes was limited.
Over time, the highest echelons of power in Germany realized that the country lacked colonies for its development. Russia was a vast state with vast expanses. France and England did not develop without the help of the colonies. Thus Germany was the first to ripen for the necessity of repartitioning the world. But how to fight against the bloc, which included the most powerful countries: England, France and Russia?
It is clear that one cannot do it alone. And the country enters into a bloc with Austria-Hungary, Italy. Soon this block was named Central. In 1904, England and France enter into a military-political alliance and call it the Entente, which means "cordial agreement." Before that, France and Russia signed an agreement in which the countries pledged to help each other in case of military conflicts.
Therefore, the alliance between Great Britain and Russia was a matter of the near future. Soon this happened. In 1907, these countries entered into an agreement in which they defined spheres of influence in Asian territories. With this, the tension that separated the British and Russians was removed. Russia joined the Entente. Some time later, already during the hostilities, Germany's former ally Italy also gained membership in the Entente.
Thus, two powerful military blocs were formed, the confrontation of which could not but result in a military conflict. The most interesting thing is that the desire to acquire colonies and markets that the Germans dreamed of is far from the main reasons for the subsequent outbreak of world war. There were mutual claims of other countries to each other. But all of them were not so important as to unleash a global fire of war because of them.
Historians are still scratching their heads over the main reason that prompted all of Europe to take up arms. Each state names its own reasons. One gets the feeling that this most important reason was not at all. Has the global slaughter of people become the reason for the ambitious mood of some politicians?
There are a number of scholars who believe that the contradictions between Germany and England gradually escalated until a military conflict arose. The rest of the countries were simply forced to fulfill their allied duty. There is also another reason. This is the definition of the path of socio-economic development of society. On the one hand, the Western European model dominated, on the other, the Central-South European one.
History, as you know, does not like subjunctive mood. And yet, more and more often the question arises - was it possible to avoid that terrible war? Of course you can. But only in the event that the leaders of European states, primarily the German one, would like it.
Germany felt its power and military strength. She could not wait to walk around Europe with a victorious step and stand at the head of the continent. No one then could have imagined that the war would drag on for more than 4 years, and what consequences it would lead to. Everyone saw the war fast, lightning-fast and victorious on each side.
The fact that such a position was illiterate and irresponsible in all respects is evidenced by the fact that 38 countries were involved in the military conflict, covering one and a half billion people. Wars with such a large number participants cannot end quickly.
So, Germany was preparing for war, waiting. I needed a reason. And he did not keep himself waiting.
The war started with one shot
Gavrilo Princip was an unknown student from Serbia. But he was in the youth revolutionary organization. On June 28, 1914, the student immortalized his name with black glory. He shot Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo. Among some historians, no, no, yes, a note of annoyance will slip through, they say, if the fatal shot had not happened, the war would not have arisen. They are wrong. There would still be a reason. Yes, and organizing it was not difficult.
Less than a month later, on July 23, the Austrian-Hungarian government issued an ultimatum to Serbia. The document contained requirements that could not be met. Serbia undertook to fulfill many points of the ultimatum. But Serbia refused to open the border for law enforcement agencies of Austria-Hungary to investigate the crime. Although there was no outright refusal, it was proposed that negotiations be held on this item.
Austria-Hungary rejected this proposal and declared war on Serbia. In less than a day, bombs rained down on Belgorod. Following on the territory of Serbia entered the Austro-Hungarian troops. Nicholas II telegraphs Wilhelm I with a request to peacefully resolve the conflict. Recommends that the dispute be brought to the Hague Conference. Germany responded with silence. On July 28, 1914, the First World War began.
Huge plans
It is clear that Germany stood behind Austria-Hungary. And her arrows were directed not towards Serbia, but towards France. After the capture of Paris, the Germans intended to invade Russia. The goal was to subjugate part of the French colonies in Africa, some provinces of Poland and the Baltic states, belonging to Russia.
Germany intended to further expand its possessions at the expense of Turkey, the countries of the Middle and Near East. Of course, the redistribution of the world was started by the leaders of the German-Austrian bloc. They are considered the main culprits of the started conflict, which escalated into the First World War. It is amazing how simple the leaders of the German General Staff, who were developing the blitzkrieg operation, imagined the victory march.
Given the impossibility of conducting a quick campaign, fighting on two fronts: with France in the west and with Russia in the east, they decided to deal with the French first. Assuming that Germany would mobilize in ten days, and Russia would need at least a month for this, they intended to deal with France in 20 days, in order to then attack Russia.
So the military leaders of the General Staff calculated that in parts they would deal with their main opponents and that same summer of 1914 they would celebrate the victory. For some reason, they decided that Great Britain, frightened by Germany's victorious march across Europe, would not get involved in the war. As for England, the calculation was simple. The country did not have strong ground forces, although it had a powerful navy.
Russia did not need additional territories. Well, the turmoil started by Germany, as it seemed then, was decided to be used to strengthen its influence on the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles, subjugate Constantinople, unite the lands of Poland and become a sovereign mistress in the Balkans. By the way, these plans were part of the general plan of the Entente states.
Austria-Hungary did not want to stand aside. Her thoughts extended exclusively to the Balkan countries. Each country got involved in the war, not only fulfilling its allied duty, but also trying to grab its own part of the victory pie.
After a break, caused by waiting for an answer to the telegram, which never came, Nicholas II announced general mobilization. Germany issued an ultimatum demanding that the mobilization be cancelled. Here Russia has already kept silent and continued to carry out the decree of the emperor. On July 19, Germany announced the beginning of the war against Russia.
And yet on two fronts
Planning for victories and celebrating forthcoming conquests, countries were ill-prepared for war in technical terms. At this time, new, more perfect species weapons. Naturally, they could not help but influence the tactics of warfare. But this was not taken into account by the military leaders, who were accustomed to using the old, outdated methods.
An important point was the involvement of more soldiers during operations, specialists who can work for new technology. Therefore, the schemes of battles and diagrams of victories drawn at the headquarters were crossed out by the course of the war from the first days.
However, powerful armies were mobilized. The Entente troops numbered up to six million soldiers and officers, the Triple Alliance gathered three and a half million people under its banner. For the Russians, this was a big test. At this time, Russia continued military operations against the Turkish troops in the Transcaucasus.
On the Western Front, which the Germans initially considered the main one, they had to fight the French and the British. In the east, the Russian armies entered the battle. The United States refrained from military action. Only in 1917, American soldiers landed in Europe and took the side of the Entente.
The Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich became the Supreme Commander in Russia. As a result of mobilization, the Russian army grew from one and a half million people to five and a half million. 114 divisions were formed. 94 divisions came out against the Germans, Austrians and Hungarians. Germany fielded 20 of its own and 46 allied divisions against the Russians.
So the Germans began to fight against France. And they stopped almost immediately. The front, which at first arched towards the French, soon leveled off. They were assisted by the British units that arrived on the continent. The battles went on with varying success. This came as a surprise to the Germans. And Germany decides to withdraw Russia from the theater of operations.
First, fighting on two fronts was unproductive. Secondly, it was not possible to dig trenches along the entire length of the Eastern Front because of the vast distances. Well, the cessation of hostilities promised Germany the release of armies to use them against England and France.
East Prussian operation
At the request of the command of the French armed forces, two armies were hastily formed. The first was commanded by General Pavel Rennenkampf, the second - by General Alexander Samsonov. Armies were built in haste. After the mobilization was announced, almost all the military personnel who were in the reserve arrived at the recruiting stations. There was no time to sort things out, officer positions were filled quickly, non-commissioned officers had to be enrolled in the rank and file.
As historians note, at that moment both armies were the color of the Russian army. They were led by military generals, glorified in battles in the east of Russia, as well as in China. The beginning of the East Prussian operation was successful. On August 7, 1914, the 1st Army, near Gumbinen, utterly defeated the German 8th Army. The victory turned the heads of the commanders of the North-Western Front, and they ordered Rennenkampf to advance on Königsberg, then go to Berlin.
The commander of the 1st Army, following the order, was forced to remove several corps from the French direction, including three of them from the most dangerous sector. The 2nd Army of General Samsonov was under attack. Further events were disastrous for both armies. Both of them began to develop offensives, being far from each other. The warriors were tired and hungry. There was not enough bread. Communication between the armies was carried out by radiotelegraph.
The messages were sent in plain text, so the Germans knew about all the movements of military units. And then there were also messages from higher commanders that brought disorder into the deployment of armies. The Germans managed to block the army of Alexander Samsonov with the help of 13 divisions, deprive it of its advantageous strategic position. On August 10, the German army of General Hindenburg begins to surround the Russians and by August 16 drives it into swampy places.
Selected guards corps were destroyed. Communication with the army of Paul Rennenkampf was interrupted. At an extremely tense moment, the general with staff officers leaves for a dangerous facility. Realizing the hopelessness of the situation, acutely experiencing the death of his guardsmen, the illustrious general shoots himself.
Appointed instead of Samsonov as commander, General Klyuev gives the order to surrender. But not all officers followed this order. Officers who did not obey Klyuev led about 10,000 soldiers out of the swampy cauldron. It was a crushing defeat for the Russian army.
General P. Rennenkampf was blamed for the disaster of the 2nd Army. He was credited with treason, cowardice. The general was forced to leave the army. On the night of April 1, 1918, the Bolsheviks shot Pavel Rennenkapf, accusing him of betraying General Alexander Samsonov. That's really, as they say, from a sick head to a healthy one. Also in tsarist time the general was even credited with the fact that he bore a German surname, which means he had to be a traitor.
In this operation, the Russian army lost 170,000 fighters, the Germans were missing 37,000 people. That's just the victory of the German troops in this operation was strategically equal to zero. But the destruction of the army settled in the souls of the Russians devastation, panic. The mood of patriotism has disappeared.
Yes, the East Prussian operation was a disaster for the Russian army. Only she confused the cards for the Germans. The loss of the best sons of Russia became a salvation for the French armed forces. The Germans failed to capture Paris. Subsequently, Marshal Foch of France noted that thanks to Russia, France was not wiped off the face of the earth.
The death of the Russian army forced the Germans to switch all their forces and all their attention towards the east. This, ultimately, predetermined the victory of the Entente.
Galician operation
In contrast to the northwestern theater of operations in the southwestern direction, the affairs of the Russian troops were much more successful. In the operation, later called the Galician, which began on August 5 and ended on September 8, the troops of Austria-Hungary fought against the Russian armies. Approximately two million soldiers from both sides took part in the battles. 5,000 guns fired at the enemy.
The front line stretched for four hundred kilometers. The army of General Alexei Brusilov launched an attack on the enemy on August 8. Two days later, the rest of the armies entered the battle. It took the Russian army a little more than a week to break through the enemy defenses and go deep into enemy territory up to three hundred kilometers.
The cities of Galich, Lviv, as well as the vast territory of the whole of Galicia, were captured. The Austro-Hungarian troops lost half their strength, approximately 400,000 fighters. The enemy army lost its combat capability until the very end of the war. The losses of Russian formations amounted to 230,000 people.
The Galician operation affected further military operations. It was this operation that broke all the plans of the German General Staff for a lightning-fast military campaign. German hopes faded military establishment allies, in particular Austria-Hungary. The German command had to urgently redeploy military units. And in this case, divisions had to be withdrawn from the Western Front.
It is also important that it was at this time that Italy left its ally Germany and took the side of the Entente.
Warsaw-Ivangorod and Lodz operations
October 1914 was also marked by the Warsaw-Ivangorod operation. On the eve of October, the Russian command decided to transfer the troops stationed in Galicia to Poland in order to subsequently deliver a direct blow to Berlin. The Germans, to support the Austrians, transferred the 8th Army of General von Hindenburg to help her. The armies were given the task of entering the rear of the Northwestern Front. But first, it was necessary to attack the troops of both fronts - the North-Western and South-Western.
The Russian command sent three armies and two corps from Galicia to the Ivangorod-Warsaw line. The fighting was accompanied large quantity killed and wounded. The Russians fought bravely. Heroism took on a massive character. It was here that for the first time the name of the pilot Nesterov, who committed a heroic deed in the sky, became widely known. For the first time in the history of aviation, he went to ram an enemy aircraft.
On October 26, the advance of the Austro-German forces was stopped. They were pushed back to their original positions. The troops of Austria-Hungary during the period of the operation lost up to 100,000 people killed, the Russians - 50,000 fighters.
Three days after the completion of the Warsaw-Ivangorod operation, hostilities moved to the Lodz region. The Germans set out to encircle and destroy the 2nd and 5th armies, which are part of the Northwestern Front. The German command transferred nine divisions from the Western Front. The fights were very stubborn. But for the Germans, they were unsuccessful.
The year 1914 became a strength test for the warring armies. A lot of blood was shed. The Russians lost up to two million soldiers in battles, the German-Austrian troops thinned out by 950,000 soldiers. None of the parties received a tangible advantage. Although Russia, not being ready for military action, saved Paris, forced the Germans to fight on two fronts at once.
Everyone suddenly realized that the war would be protracted, and a lot more blood would be shed. The German command began to develop an offensive plan in 1915 along the entire line of the Eastern Front. But again, a hatred mood reigned in the German General Staff. It was decided to quickly deal with Russia first, and then one by one to defeat France, then England. By the end of 1914, there was a lull on the fronts.
Calm before the storm
Throughout 1915, the belligerents were in a state of passive support of their troops in their positions. There was a preparation and redeployment of troops, the delivery of equipment, weapons. This was especially true for Russia, since by the beginning of the war the factories producing weapons and ammunition were not fully prepared. The reform in the army at that time was not yet completed. The year 1915 gave a favorable respite for this. But it was not always quiet on the fronts.
Having concentrated all forces on the Eastern Front, the Germans initially achieve success. The Russian army is forced to leave positions. This takes place in 1915. The army retreats from heavy losses. The Germans did not take into account one thing. The factor of vast territories begins to act against them.
Coming to Russian soil after thousands of kilometers of foot crossings with weapons and ammunition, the German soldiers were left without strength. Having won a part Russian territory they didn't win. However, it was not difficult to defeat the Russians at this moment. The army was almost without weapons and ammunition. Sometimes three ammunition made up the entire arsenal of means of one gun. But even in an almost unarmed state, Russian troops inflicted significant damage on the Germans. The highest spirit of patriotism was also not taken into account by the conquerors.
Having not achieved noticeable results in the battles with the Russians, Germany returned to the Western Front. The Germans and the French met on the battlefield near Verdun. It was more like exterminating each other. In that battle, 600 thousand soldiers fell. The French survived. Germany was unable to turn the tide of battle in its favor. But that was already in 1916. Germany became more and more bogged down in the war, dragging after itself more and more countries.
And 1916 began with the victories of the Russian armies. Turkey, which was at that time in alliance with Germany, suffered a series of defeats from the Russian troops. Having advanced deep into Turkey up to 300 kilometers, the armies of the Caucasian Front, as a result of a number of victorious operations, occupied the cities of Erzerum and Trebizond.
After the lull, the victorious march was continued by the army under the command of Alexei Brusilov.
To ease tension on the Western Front, the Entente allies turned to Russia with a request to begin fighting. Otherwise, the French army could be destroyed. Russian military leaders considered this an adventure that could turn into a collapse. But the order came to attack the Germans.
The offensive operation was led by General Alexei Brusilov. According to the tactics developed by the general, the offensive was launched on a broad front. In this state, the enemy could not determine the direction of the main attack. For two days, on May 22 and 23, 1916, artillery salvos thundered over the German trenches. Artillery preparation gave way to a lull. As soon as the German soldiers got out of the trenches to take up positions, the shelling began again.
It took only three hours to crush the enemy's first line of defense. Several tens of thousands of soldiers and officers of the enemy were captured. The Brusilovites advanced for 17 days. But the command did not allow Brusilov to develop this offensive. The order was given to stop the offensive and go on the defensive.
It's been 7 days. And Brusilov was again given the command to go on the attack. But time has been lost. The Germans managed to pull up reserves and well prepare fortification redoubts. Brusilov's army had a hard time. Although the offensive continued, but slowly, and with losses that could not be called justified. With the onset of November, Brusilov's army completed its breakthrough.
The results of the Brusilov breakthrough are impressive. 1.5 million enemy soldiers and officers were killed, another 500 were taken prisoner. Russian troops entered Bukovina, occupied part of the territory of East Prussia. was saved french army. The Brusilovsky breakthrough was the most notable military operation of the First World War. But Germany continued to fight.
A new commander-in-chief was appointed. The Austrians transferred 6 divisions from the south, where they opposed the Italian troops, to the Eastern Front. For the successful advance of Brusilov's army, support was needed from other fronts. She didn't follow.
Historians give this operation a very great importance. They believe that it was a crushing blow to the German troops, after which the country never recovered. Its result was the practical withdrawal of Austria from the war. But General Brusilov, summing up his feat, noted that his army worked for others, and not for Russia. By this, he seemed to say that the Russian soldiers saved the allies, but did not reach the main turning point of the war. Even though there was a fracture.
The year 1916 became favorable for the troops of the Entente, in particular, for Russia. At the end of the year, the armed forces numbered 6.5 million soldiers and officers, of which 275 divisions were formed. In the theater of operations stretching from the Black to the Baltic Seas, 135 divisions participated in military operations from Russia.
But the losses of Russian military personnel were huge. During the entire period of the First World War, Russia lost seven million of its best sons and daughters. The tragedy of the Russian troops was especially clearly manifested in 1917. Having shed a sea of blood on the battlefields, and emerging victorious in many decisive battles, the country did not take advantage of the fruits of its victories.
The reason was that the Russian army was demoralized by the revolutionary forces. On the fronts, fraternization with opponents began everywhere. And the defeat began. The Germans entered Riga, captured the Moondzun archipelago, located in the Baltic.
Operations in Belorussia and Galicia ended in defeat. The country was swept by a wave of defeatism, the demands for an exit from the war sounded louder and louder. The Bolsheviks used this brilliantly. Having proclaimed the Decree on Peace, they attracted to their side a significant part of the military who were tired of the war, from the incompetent leadership of military operations by the supreme command.
The country of the Soviets came out of the First World War without hesitation, concluding the Brest Peace with Germany in the March days of 1918. On the Western Front, military operations ended with the signing of the Compiegne Armistice Treaty. This happened in November 1918. The final results of the war were formalized in 1919 at Versailles, where a peace treaty was signed. Soviet Russia was not among the participants in this agreement.
Five periods of opposition
It is customary to divide the First World War into five periods. They are correlated with the years of confrontation. The first period falls on 1914. At this time, hostilities took place on two fronts. On the Western Front, Germany was at war with France. In the East - Russia collided with Prussia. But before the Germans turned their weapons against the French, they easily occupied Luxembourg and Belgium. Only after that they began to speak out against France.
Lightning war did not work. Firstly, France turned out to be a hard nut to crack, which Germany never managed to crack. On the other hand, Russia put up a worthy resistance. The plans of the German General Staff were not given to be realized.
In 1915 fighting between France and Germany alternated with long periods of calm. The Russians had a hard time. Poor supply was the main reason for the retreat of the Russian troops. They were forced to leave Poland and Galicia. This year has become tragic for the warring parties. A lot of fighters died on both sides. This stage in the war is the second.
The third stage is marked by two big events. One of them became the most bloody. This is the battle of the Germans and the French at Verdun. Over a million soldiers and officers were killed during the battle. Second important event was the Brusilovsky breakthrough. He entered the textbooks of the military educational institutions many countries, as one of the most ingenious battles in the history of wars.
The fourth stage of the war came in 1917. The bloodless German army was no longer capable not only of conquering other countries, but also of putting up serious resistance. Therefore, the Entente dominated the battlefields. Coalition troops are getting stronger military units The United States, which also joined the military bloc of the Entente. But Russia leaves this union in connection with the revolutions, first the February, then the October.
The final, fifth period of the First World War was marked by the conclusion of peace between Germany and Russia on very difficult and extremely unfavorable conditions for the latter. The Allies leave Germany, having made peace with the Entente countries. Revolutionary moods are maturing in Germany, defeatist moods are roaming in the army. As a result, Germany was forced to surrender.
Significance of World War I
The First World War was the largest, bloodiest for many countries that took part in it in the first quarter of the 20th century. The Second World War was still far away. And Europe tried to heal the wounds. They were significant. Approximately 80 million people, including military personnel and civilians, were killed or seriously injured.
In a very short period of time in five years, four empires ceased to exist. These are Russian, Ottoman, German, Austro-Hungarian. In addition, the October Revolution took place in Russia, which firmly and for a long time divided the world into two irreconcilable camps: communist and capitalist.
There have been tangible changes in the economies of countries that are in colonial dependence. Many ties in trade between countries were destroyed. With a reduction in the receipt of goods industrial production from the metropolises, the colonially dependent countries were forced to establish their own production. All this accelerated the process of development of national capitalism.
The war caused enormous damage to the agricultural production of the colonial countries. At the end of World War I, there was a surge of anti-war protests in the countries that participated in it. In some countries it has developed into revolutionary movement. Subsequently, following the example of the world's first country of socialism, parties of a communist orientation began to be created everywhere.
Following Russia, revolutions took place in Hungary and Germany. The revolution in Russia overshadowed the events of the First World War. Many heroes are forgotten, the events of those days are erased from memory. In Soviet times, there was an opinion that this war was senseless. To some extent, this may be true. But the sacrifices were not in vain. Thanks to the skillful military actions of the generals Alexei Brusilov? Pavel Rennenkampf, Alexander Samsonov, other military leaders, as well as the armies led by them, Russia defended its territories. Mistakes of military operations were adopted by the new military leaders and subsequently studied. The experience of this war helped during the Great Patriotic War survive and win.
By the way, the leaders of Russia at the present time are calling for the use of the definition “Patriotic” in relation to the First World War. There are more and more insistent calls to announce the names of all the heroes of that war, to perpetuate them in history books, in new monuments. During World War I, Russia once more showed that she knows how to fight and defeat any enemy.
Having resisted a very serious enemy, the Russian army fell under the onslaught of an internal enemy. And again there were human losses. It is believed that the First World War gave rise to revolutions in Russia and in other countries. The statement is controversial, as well as the fact that another result was Civil War which also claimed the lives of people.
It is important to understand something else. Russia survived a terrible hurricane of wars that devastated it. Survived, revived. Of course, today it is impossible to imagine how strong the state would be if there were no multimillion-dollar losses, if not for the destruction of cities and villages, and for the devastation of the most grain-growing fields in the world.
It is unlikely that anyone in the world understands this better than the Russians. And that is why they do not want war here, in whatever form it may be presented. But if a war happens, the Russians are ready to once again show all their strength, courage and heroism.
Notable was the creation in Moscow of the Society for the Remembrance of the First World War. The collection of data on that period is already underway, the documents are being examined. The Society is an international public organization. This status will help to receive materials from other countries.
In what year did World War I start? This question is quite important in view of the fact that the world has really changed in before and after. Before this war, the world did not know such a mass death of people who died literally for every inch of the front.
After the First World War, Oswald Spengler wrote the famous book "The Decline of Europe", in which he predicted the decline of Western European civilization. After all, the First World War, in which Russia was involved and will be unleashed between the Europeans.
Also, this event will be the true beginning of the 20th century. It is not for nothing that historians say that the 20th century was the shortest historical century: from 1914 to 1991.
Start
World War I began on July 28, 1914, one month after the assassination Archduke of Austria Franz Ferdinand and his wife.
How did it all start?
On June 28, 1914, Franz Ferdinand was assassinated in Sarajevo by the Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip.
Austria-Hungary is old from the beginning to consider this situation as an opportunity to establish its influence in the Balkans. She demanded from Serbia not to fulfill a number of requirements that infringed on the independence of this small Slavic country. The most painful was that Serbia had to agree to the Austrian police investigating this case. All these demands were framed in the so-called July ultimatum, which Austria-Hungary sent to Serbia July 23, 1914.
Serbia agreed with all the demands (to purge the state apparatus of nationalists or someone else), except for the point to allow the Austrian police into its territory. Realizing that this is actually a threat of war, Serbia began to mobilize the army.
For those who don’t know, all states switched to a conscription army recruitment structure after the Franco-Prussian war of the early 1870s, when the Prussian army defeated the French in a couple of weeks.
26 July Austria-Hungary began a retaliatory mobilization. Austrian troops began to concentrate on the border between Russia and Serbia. Why Russia? Because Russia has long positioned itself as a defender of the Balkan peoples.
July 28th due to failure to comply with the conditions of the ultimatum, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. Russia has declared that it will not allow a military invasion of Serbia. But the actual declaration of war is considered the beginning of the First World War.
July 29 Nicholas II suggested that Austria resolve the issue amicably by referring it to the Hague International Court. But Austria could not allow the Russian emperor to dictate his terms to the Austrian empire.
July 30 and 31 mobilizations were carried out in France and in Russia. To the question of who fought with whom and where does France, you ask? Despite the fact that Russia and France entered into a number of military alliances back in the 19th century, and since 1907 England joined them, as a result of which the Entente was formed - a military bloc opposing the Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy)
August 1, 1914 Germany declared war on Russia. On the same date, inglorious hostilities began. By the way, about them you can. In what year did it end: in 1918. Everything is written in more detail in the article on the link.
In total, 38 states were involved in this war.
Sincerely, Andrey Puchkov
