The Eastern Front in wwi 17. 08. 1914-03. 03. 1918

The Eastern Front in WWI

• 17.08.1914-03.03.1918

Belligerents:

• The Russian Empire (later the Russian Republic, Russian SFSR) and Romania (1916)

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• versus 

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• The German Empire, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria.

Introduction

• Eastern Front around 1600km long, stretching from Saint Petersburg and the Baltic in the North to the Black Sea in the south.
• Different warfare compared to the Western Front.
• Opening battle the Battle of Stallupönen.
• 1914-1918

Battles

• There were numerous battles going on on the Eastern Front from 1914-1916. These include:

• Battle of Stallupönen (first battle)
• Battle of Tannenberg (significant)
• Battle of Galicia 

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• Battle of Gumbinnen
• First and Second Battle of the Masurian Lakes
• Battle of Bolimov
• Battle of Lake Naroch
• Battle of Lutsk

Battle of Stallupönen (Present day Nesterov)

• This is a significant battle because this was the first military action that was seen on the Eastern Front.
• The battle was between Paul von Rennenkampf's men (Russia - 200,000 troops) and Hermann von Francais' men (Germany - 40,000 troops).
• This battle ended in a minor victory for Germany and did not affect Russia as a strength significantly (yet).

The Battle of Tannenberg 1914

• 23-30.08.1914
• Complete defeat and demoralization of the Russians(~78,000 killed or wounded, whereas only 5,000 Germans killed).   
• Early phases 23-26.08.
• Main battle 26-30.08.
• Demoralised the  Russian armies completely.
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7qbZaf_olY

The Battle of Galicia (1914)

• Russia invaded the Austro-Hungarian province of Galicia.
• They won, and ruled Galicia for almost a year.
•  Contributed to the decision made by the Central Powers to concentrate on the Eastern Front starting in 1915.

1915: The Central Powers Attack

• The Central Powers launched a major offensive in 1915 against the Russians. 
• Russians retreated, more due to lack of sufficient weapons than lack of knowledge or numbers. 
•  Russians pushed back hundreds of kilometers from Ger/Aus-Hun borders, advance was stopped as the threat from Russia was gone.
• Front stayed more or less the same until 1917.

1916: Limited Russian Success

• The Russians, having received more and newer weaponry, attacked.
• Larger military concentration/population than Germany
• June 1916: General Brusilov started an offensive that went 50-70km into Austria-Hungary, capturing hundreds of thousands of prisoners, and weaponry.
• Ended in September due to reinforcements coming in from the west. 
• Romanians successful at first, but then overthrown by superior weaponry and lack of support from Russians. 

The Eastern Front (Provisional Govt)

• Following the February Revolution, the government of Alexander Kerensky needed a victory to raise support for the war.
• The Kerensky offensive in July 1917.
• Early successes, complete failure later due to lack of discipline and morale.
• Complete halt by July 16th, followed by retreat.

The Eastern Front (Communist)

• Despite wanting to end the war, Lenin did not want to accept the harsh German peace terms.
• The Germans started marching across Ukraine more or less with impunity.
• Lenin was in essence forced to agree to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.
• The war on the Eastern Front was over (3 March 1918 - signing of Brest-Litovsk).

Main Sources

• BBC - History: World War One     http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwone/

• First World War.com - The Eastern Front     http://www.firstworldwar.com/battles/ef.htm   The War Times Journal - The Eastern Front 1914-1917     http://www.richthofen.com/ww1sum2/