3rd Army (Austria-Hungary)

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The Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army was a large unit of the Austro-Hungarian Army in World War I , which was deployed in Galicia from August 1914, in the Balkans from September 1915 , in South Tyrol from March 1916 and again on the Eastern Front from late 1916 to January 1918 .

history

Battle of Galicia

General of the cavalry Rudolf von Brudermann

After the mobilization against the Russian Empire , the troops of the 3rd Army marched in Galicia under the command of General of the Cavalry Rudolf von Brudermann . As Chief of Staff of the 3rd Army was Major General Pepper used. Together with the army group of General Kövess (III. And XII. Corps), the 3rd Army was assigned the defense of the East Galician border and the capital Lemberg , while the armies of the Northern Group (Austro-Hungarian 1st and 4th Army ) took the offensive in the direction of Lublin carried out.

Already on August 21, 1914 there was a first major battle in the Zloczow area by reconnaissance cavalry from both sides on the Galician eastern border near Jaroslawice . While the XI. Corps remained in the Lemberg area, the Styrian III. Corps (General Colerus von Geldern) from August 26th in the Zloczow area and the Transylvanian XII. Corps (General Hermann von Kövess) at Pomorzany to the east. The 3rd Army was thrown back by strong Russian vanguard at the Battle of Przemyslany until August 27th. The Austrian corps, which were advancing eastwards again, were again severely defeated by the Russian 3rd Army under General Russki on August 28 and 29 in the battle of the Gnila Lipa . The capital of Galicia, Lemberg, was directly threatened. In this situation, the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army with around 115 battalions and 376 guns faced almost 200 Russian battalions with 685 guns from the Russian 3rd Army:

  • XI. Corps (Lemberg, Kdr . Gen : Desiderius Kolossváry ) - 23rd and 30th Infantry Divisions
  • XIV Corps (Innsbruck, Kdr.Gen: Archduke Joseph Ferdinand ) - 3rd, 8th and 44th Infantry Divisions
  • 41st Infantry Division (FML. Johann Nikic)
  • 2nd Cavalry Division (FML. Emil Ritter von Ziegler)
  • 4th Cavalry Division (GMj. Edmund Ritter von Zaremba)
  • 11th Honved Cavalry Division (GMj. Julius von Nagy)
  • III. Corps (Graz, Kdr.Gen: Emil Colerus von Geldern ) - 6th, 22nd and 28th Infantry Division

The crumbling front of 3rd Army rendered the successes of 1st and 4th Armies on the northern sector useless. In the Battle of Lemberg , General Lesch's corps group (Russian X and XII AK) threw the units of the Imperial and Royal 3rd Army between Janow and Gródek back onto the Werescyca (a northern tributary of the Dniester ). On August 30, the Russian 3rd Army broke through with over 100,000 men (XI., IX. And X. Corps) from the Zloczow area via Gliniany to the west in the direction of Lemberg. On September 2nd, the 3rd Army had to evacuate Lemberg and go back to a new line on the Wereszyca - Jaworow - Gródeker Teiche west of the lost city.

Strengthened by incoming units of the 2nd Army from Serbia, Chief of Staff Conrad von Hötzendorf believed he could master the crisis by counter-attacking, the exhausted 3rd Army was ordered to attack again despite two defeats. After the replacement of General Bruderman, General of the Infantry Svetozar Boroević received the army command on September 4th . The occupied position on the Werescyca was extended to the south by two corps of the 2nd Army (XII. And VII. Corps), which withstood the attacks of the Russian 8th Army between Gródek and Komarno until the general retreat. On September 7, 1914, the Russians advancing westwards, after bitter fighting, were able to conquer the city ​​of Gródek . The attack of the 3rd Army on the central Werescyca, initiated on September 8, collapsed completely by September 10. The entire Austrian front in Galicia was dissolved. On September 11th, the order to withdraw behind the San was given . The Przemyśl fortress was enclosed and besieged by the Russian 3rd Army on September 16. On September 21, General Boroevic gave up the last eastern bridgehead on the San near Jaroslau .

The lifting of the siege of Przemyśl remained one of the most important tasks of the 3rd Army, in the Battle of the San this succeeded in the short term, but all successes of the Austrians were destroyed by the Russians from mid-October. Until October 31, the German attack in the Battle of the Vistula was unsuccessful, the troops of the Central Powers had to go back to Silesia. The Austro-Hungarian 2nd and 3rd Armies also had to break off their desperate attempts at attacking the San in Galicia and retreat to the Carpathian Mountains . On November 9, 1914, the advancing Russians were able to continue the briefly lifted siege of Przemyśl, this time with the newly founded 11th Army under General Selivanov .

Battle in the Carpathians 1914–1915

General of the Infantry Svetozar Boroevic of Bojna

Boroevic meanwhile had to give in to the pressure of the Russian 8th Army (Brusilov) and retreat south to the Eperjes line, Laborcza valley-north Homonna - Uschok pass in the Carpathians . On November 20, 1914, the Russian Southwest Front under Artillery General Ivanov opened its attack on Krakow , the strategic goal being to break through to northern Hungary. After the withdrawal of the 2nd Army to Silesia, the 3rd Army also had to extend its front section significantly to the south in order to guarantee the connection to the army group of General Planter-Baltin . The left wing corps of the Austrian 4th Army was pushed back onto the Szreniawa. The left wing of the 3rd Army could no longer hold, as a result of which there was a gap in the front about 30 km wide from November 23, which was only closed again at the beginning of December by the Austrian counter-offensive at Limanowa . The 3rd Army attacked with the left wing - IX. and III. Corps entered the fighting from the south and reached the Ryglice and Brzostek lines by December 15, in the center the VII Corps took Krosno , the right wing stalled - the Krautwald group again encountered a superior enemy at Lisko. - From the defensive front in Poland and from the Dniester , General Ivanov had already sent reinforcements for the beleaguered 3rd and 8th Armies. The Russians intensified the resistance and started a counterattack on December 20th. The Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army, which was only able to receive reinforcements by way of a long detour via Cracow, was thrown from the superior forces on December 28th in the battle of Jaslo and thrown back onto the Carpathians.

The main threat to the Carpathian-Hungary direction had not yet been resolved, as supplies to the Przemyśl fortress threatened to collapse due to a lack of food and ammunition. To relieve the fortress, Conrad von Hötzendorf planned extensive offensive operations in the winter, all of which failed continuously until March 1915 in the Carpathian Battle. From January 1915 Adolf von Boog was the new Chief of Staff of the 3rd Army. Since January 13, 1915, the German Carpathian Corps was brought in for reinforcement, these units were inserted as the German Southern Army on the eastern section of the front between the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army and the Army Group Planter-Baltin , which was based in Bukovina .

Only at the beginning of May, as a result of the battle of Gorlice-Tarnow, was the operational breakthrough of the Central Powers in Galicia forced, which also gave the pinned-down 3rd Army their freedom of movement back. The Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army (Svetozar Boroević) participated after the breakthrough on the southern wing in the Beskids between Duklapass and Sztropko with 10th divisions and 2nd cavalry divisions:

Corps Command VII was transferred to the Isonzo Front in June 1915 .

Serbia campaign 1915

Hermann Kövess von Kövessháza, 1915

On September 28, 1915 General Hermann Kövess was appointed commander of the newly organized Imperial and Royal 3rd Army. During the Serbian campaign in October 1915, the 3rd Army formed the right wing of the Central Powers going over to the offensive and marched in the area north of the Danube between Mitrowitza and Belgrade , it was composed as follows:

VIII Corps under Feldzeugmeister von Scheuchenstuel

  • 57th Infantry Division (FML Goiginger ) (2nd and 6th Mountain Brigade)
  • 59th Infantry Division (FML Snjaric) (9th and 18th Mountain Brigade)

German XXII. Reserve Corps under General of the Falkenhayn Cavalry

The Austro-Hungarian Army Command 3 also had the Danube flotilla with six monitors available for their attack on Belgrade and the necessary crossing over the Danube. The Serbian capital fell into the hands of the Central Powers by the end of October. The simultaneous attack of the tactically subordinate western group (Army group Sarkotić ) on the Drina section was more difficult .

On October 20th the capture of Šabac followed , the success marked the conclusion of the conquest of the Mačva . On October 22nd, the 3rd Army had advanced with its right wing on Lazarevac, the center was 15 kilometers from Arangjelovac and the left wing was about 10 kilometers north of Kovačevac. On October 25th, Austro-Hungarian cavalry entered the Valjevo transport hub, which had been evacuated by the Serbs almost without a fight . On October 29, the German 43rd Reserve Division took the heights east of the Rudnik Pass. The VIII. Corps pushed back the Serbian positions on the upper Roca, strong Serbian counter-attacks threw back the right wing of the 59th Division, the German troops were advancing on Kragujevac , where the connection to the allied Bulgarian 1st Army was established. On November 17, the 18th Mountain Brigade advanced further in the area east of Kosutica, the bulk of the 57th Division reached the Topica Valley and caught up with the Serbian rear guard at Lukovo. On November 22nd, parts of the 62nd Division penetrated the Serbian security south of Goražde , on November 24th the Ibar near Ribaric and thus the border of Montenegro was reached.

The 3rd Army began a second phase of attack in the campaign against Montenegro on December 15, 1915 with around 101,000 men and 1,170 horsemen . The Austro-Hungarian VIII Army Corps (Scheuchenstuel) had to attack against the northern and eastern fronts , deployed in three columns from the Novi Pazar -Priština- Prizren line , and the Serbian retreat via Podgorica to Skutari was forced. On the right wing the 62nd Division was advancing against the Tara sector, the 57th Division pursued the Serbs over Pristina , in the middle the 53rd (Major General Pongrácz) and 59th Divisions were assigned to Berane and Ipek. The advance was to Raska , the 53rd Division advanced near Ivenjica, the 57th Division fought west of Rozaj against the Montenegrins, the 59th Division advanced with the 9th Mountain Brigade on Ipek. The 62nd Division advanced against the heights of Plevlje. Until January 15th, the occupation of Montenegro was in close cooperation with the XIX. Corps ( Trollmann ) completed.

Deployment in South Tyrol in 1916

In March 1916, Army Command 3 was relocated to South Tyrol for the planned South Tyrol offensive and placed under the command of Colonel General Archduke Eugen on the Southwest Front . The 3rd Army had the left wing of the 11th Army , which led the main attack across the Folgaria plateau to support the attack in the Sugan Valley in the direction of Borgo . The army had 89 ½ battalions and 43 batteries (245 guns) with a combat strength of about 72,000 men.

  • XVII. Corps under General Karl Křitek (18th Division, 2nd and 8th Mountain Brigade, and 181st Infantry Brigade)
  • I. Corps under General Karl von Kirchbach (10th and 34th Infantry Division and 43rd Rifle Division)
  • XXI. Corps under General Kasimir von Lütgendorf (Kaiserschützen Division and 44th Rifle Division)

Only the XVII. Corps with the 18th and 48th Divisions (altogether 26 battalions) intervened effectively in the fighting from May 20th. However, the 18th Division had already been used in Valsugana and the 48th Division had also already been involved in the attack operations. After partial success, the offensive ran into the resistance of the Italian 1st Army under General Conte Pecori-Giraldi .

For the second time on the Eastern Front in 1917/8

Karl Kritek

At the end of 1916, Army Command 3 was again transported to the Eastern Front for new tasks. After the Tarnopol offensive of the Winckler army group near Zborow in July 1917, the Austro- Hungarian 3rd Army was also able to advance into Bukovina following the German Southern Army . The subordinate corps groups were:

  • Group Litzmann (GenKdo. XXXX.RK ) with 16th and 75th reserve division , 83rd division
  • XXVI. Corps under FML Hadfy (later Csanady von Bekes) (5th and 15th Divisions)
  • XIII. Corps under FML Schenk (36th and 42nd Divisions)
  • Sallagar Group (2nd Cavalry Division, 16th Division)

On August 3, 1917, the 5th, 36th and 42nd Divisions managed to recapture Chernivtsi .

Commander in chief

literature

  • Austrian Federal Ministry for Army Affairs from the War Archives: Austria-Hungary's Last War 1914–1918 , seven volumes of text and supplements, Verlag der Militärwissenschaftlichen Mitteilungen, Vienna 1930
  • Anton Wagner: The First World War . Troop service series, Carl Ueberreuter Verlag, 1981
  • Hermann Stegemann: History of the World War. Volume I, Deutsche Verlagsanstalt, Stuttgart 1917.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Austria-Hungary's Last War, Volume I, Vienna 1930, war organization p. 73
  2. ↑ Austria-Hungary's Last War, Volume III, Vienna 1930, p. 200 f.
  3. ^ Anton Wagner: The First World War, p. 153 f.

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