Siege of Novogeorgiewsk

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Ruins of a fort of the Novogeorgiewsk fortress on the Narew
Major military operations on the
Eastern Front (1914-1918)

The siege of Novogeorgiewsk was a military conflict that took place during the First World War (1914-1918) from August 4 to 19, 1915 between the armies of the German Empire and Russia . It ended with the capture of the Novogeorgiewsk Fortress ( Russian : Новогеоргиевская крепость ) by the German troops.

prehistory

General von Beseler; Postcard (1914)

North of Warsaw was the Russian fortress Nowogeorgiewsk ( German fortress Modlin ). This was built in the 1830s and continuously strengthened. The Russo-Japanese War (1904/05), however, left doubts as to whether it made sense to continue to invest military spending in the construction of the fortress. The fortress was already out of date by 1900, so the Minister of War considered a task. However, it was outvoted in the government, so that Nowogeorgiewsk was modernized and expanded with financial support from the French alliance partner. Over time, the fortress had become a symbol of Russian rule in Poland. So it came about that for political reasons they could not be given up, as their loss was tantamount to the loss of rule over Poland.

After the general success of the breakthrough at Gorlice-Tarnów in May 1915, the German military leadership agreed to expand the successes achieved so far by further offensive attacks. Among other things, this also included an action by the Gallwitz army group against the Narew . The Corps Dickhuth (consisting of the so-called main reserve of the fortress Thorn) and the XVII. Reserve corps were deployed in the direction of Novogeorgiewsk fortress in mid-July 1915. On the evening of July 17, a small German advance division of Landwehr Regiment 10 surprised a Russian staff vehicle with which the Russian engineer-general, Colonel Korotkewitsch-Notschewnoi, had set out on a reconnaissance trip. After a brief fire attack, the astonished soldiers found a briefcase with the secret documents about the previously poorly known fortress next to the fallen colonel. This coincidence gave the German side a considerable advantage.

After the German combat units advancing from different directions had reached the fortress area, it became necessary to place the forces destined for the attack under a single order. To this end, the commanding general of the III met on July 20, 1915 . Reserve Corps , Lieutenant General Hans von Beseler a. This had already excelled in 1914 in the successful fight against fortresses (→ Siege of Antwerp ) . All associations involved in the siege were now combined to form the Beseler Army Group . This was subordinate to the Gallwitz Army Group, renamed the 12th Army , but was independent in matters of the attack on Novogeorgiewsk. Beseler's attack group initially included the Dickhuth corps and the 14th Landwehr Division of the XVII. Reserve corps . The commandant of the fortress made no failures . The German leadership therefore believed that the occupation was weak and planned a quick coup against the fortress. However, this plan had to be abandoned after the Russian counter-offensive on the Narew on July 26th had made the deployment of larger parts of the siege troops elsewhere necessary.

At the beginning of the siege there were about 90,000 soldiers under General Nikolai Bobyr , 1,600 artillery pieces and almost a million grenades in the fortress , so the Russian military leadership assumed that they would be able to hold their own for a long time. These troops consisted mainly of the 58th and 63rd Infantry Divisions and remnants of the 2nd Siberian Division. However, the Russian headquarters were aware that it would not be possible to quickly dismay the trapped crew and that their loss was therefore only a matter of time.

course

Novo Georgiewsk 1915.jpg
Novogeorgiewsk fortress area
Soldiers of the Landsturm Infantry Regiment 101 entrenching in front of Novogeorgiewsk; Postcard (1915)
Soldiers of the Landsturm Infantry Regiment 101 attacking Novogeorgiewsk; Postcard (1915)
Russian prisoners

After the Russian troops suffered a defeat on the Narew and had to withdraw (→ Great Withdrawal ) , the German 12th and 9th Armies went into pursuit. The Beseler army group could now attack Nowogeorgiewsk. However, since the railway lines were overstretched and overloaded, it took until August 4th to bring heavy artillery and grenades. First, the 21st Landwehr Brigade and the Arrow Brigade took action against the Russian bridgeheads Dembe and Zegrze . After they had captured the foremost Russian positions, the Russians gave way on the night of 6/7. August over the Narew and destroyed the bridges, which also destroyed the last route of retreat for the fortress troops. The Westernhagen detachment (of the 9th Army) marched south of Novogeorgiewsk and also enclosed the fortress from the south. On August 9, the 169th Landwehr Brigade finally blocked the fortress in the southeast. After the Russian troops abandoned the Benjaminov fort on August 10, Novogeorgievk was completely enclosed.

As early as August 8, Beseler had started preparations for the attack on the fort's works. On August 13, after several hours of artillery preparation, the infantry attack against the outer works began. After several hours of fighting, in which the Russian troops attempted some unsuccessful counter-attacks against the German incursions, the Russian lines had to be withdrawn further. From August 14th to 16th, 1915 there was a barrage on the fortress. The German troops suffered from the first shortages of artillery ammunition. In the morning the infantry advanced again to attack, this time against forts XV and XVI in the northeast. The successes fell short of expectations, but at least a break in the Russian lines was achieved. Over the next three days, parts of the fortress were conquered bit by bit.

General Bobyr recognized the hopelessness of his situation and on August 17th ordered all supplies to be destroyed, the cannons to be sunk, the horses to be shot and the bridges destroyed. He himself moved into a command post in the citadel . The following day, the German attackers broke into the inner belt of the fortifications, so that on the evening of that day the defense was concentrated on individual plants and the citadel. On the evening of August 19, negotiations began on the Russian side. General Bobyr met Lieutenant General von Beseler and negotiated with him the terms of surrender the following night . The following morning at 7:30 a.m. most of the crew surrendered. However, a number of officers and soldiers in the citadel refused to surrender and held out for a few hours. Also some forts in the south were not informed of the end of the fighting and the resistance continued for some time. On the evening of August 20, 1915, however, the fortress was finally in the possession of the German troops.

consequences

Since the Russian fortress fell in a relatively short time, most of the Russian occupation fell into German captivity . In addition, large numbers of artillery pieces and large stocks of ammunition and food fell into the hands of the victors. The victory had strategic effects insofar as the waterways of the Vistula and Narew were now usable for the German military command, as well as the important railway line Mława-Warsaw . The troops of the Beseler Army Group were now free for other uses, while the Russian army had suffered considerable losses.

In a telegram published later, Kaiser Wilhelm II wrote to Chancellor Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg :

“Thanks to the gracious assistance of God and the proven guidance of the conqueror of Antwerp, General v. Beseler, as well as the heroic bravery of our magnificent troops and the excellent German and Austro-Hungarian siege armies, the strongest and most modern Russian fortress, Novo-Georgievsk, is ours. Deeply moved, I have just expressed my thanks to my brave troops, they were in a splendid mood. Iron crosses handed out. All Landwehr and Landsturm . It is one of the army's finest feats of arms. The citadel is on fire, long columns of prisoners met Me on the way there and back. Villages mostly completely destroyed by Russians on retreat. It was a sublime day for which I humbly thank God. "

- Kaiser Wilhelm II.

literature

  • Franz Bettag: The conquest of Novo Georgiewsk. Using the official sources of the Reichsarchiv, personal records of fellow combatants and a description of the major and 1st general staff officer of the siege army, v. Well . Verlag Gerhard Stalling, Oldenburg, 2nd edition 1926 (= battles of the world war in individual representations , vol. 8).
  • Max Schwarte : The German Land War . Verlag de Gruyter, Leipzig 1933 (= The world struggle for honor and law , vol. 2). ( Online version )
  • Norman Stone: The Eastern Front 1914-1917 . Penguin Books, London 1998, ISBN 0-684-14492-1 .
  • Reichsarchiv (Hrsg.): The operations of 1915 - the events in the west in spring and summer, in the east from spring to the end of the year . Verlag ES Mittler & Sohn, Berlin 1932 (= The World War 1914–1918 - The military operations on land , vol. 8).

Web links

Commons : Siege of Novogeorgiewsk  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Norman Stone: The Eastern Front 1914-1917 , London 1998, p. 30
  2. ^ Max Schwarte: The German Land War , Leipzig 1933, p. 190
  3. ^ Franz Bettag: The conquest of Nowo Georgiewsk . 2nd ed. 1926, pp. 13-25 (chapter The Death Voyage of the Russian Engineer General ).
  4. ^ Max Schwarte: Der deutsche Landkrieg , Leipzig 1933, p. 193
  5. ^ Max Schwarte: Der deutsche Landkrieg , Leipzig 1933, p. 208
  6. ^ Tony Jaques: Dictionary of Battles and Sieges , Vol. 2, Westport 2007, p. 741
  7. ^ Max Schwarte: Der deutsche Landkrieg , Leipzig 1933, pp. 207f
  8. ^ Max Schwarte: Der deutsche Landkrieg , Leipzig 1933, pp. 209f
  9. ^ A b Hermann Stegemann: History of the War , Vol. 3, Stuttgart / Berlin 1921, p. 353
  10. ↑ Norddeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung (August 22, 1915). See official war dispatches based on reports from Wolff's Telegraph Bureau , Vol. 3, Berlin 1916