Sixth Battle of the Isonzo

Sixth Battle of the Isonzo

Part of: First World War

Overview map

date	August 6, 1916 to August 16, 1916
place	Gorizia ( Gorica )
output	Occupation of Gorizia after being surrendered by the Austrians

Parties to the conflict
Austria-Hungary	Italy
Commander
Svetozar of Bojna	Emanuel of Savoy
Troop strength
106 battalions 539 guns	223 battalions 940 guns
losses
total approx. 40,000	approx. 100,000 killed and 6,000 prisoners wounded

The Sixth Battle of the Isonzo took place during the First World War between the armed forces of Austria-Hungary and Italy between 6 and 15 August 1916 in the area of ​​the front arch in front of Gorizia .

Starting position

The precarious situation in which the Austro- Hungarian armed forces found themselves in the summer of 1916 (the Brusilov offensive had to be stopped) forced the high command to thin out the Isonzo front as much as possible. It was hoped that Italy would not have recovered enough from its own South Tyrol offensive to be able to take action on the Isonzo . The mood in Italy was, however , at a low point after the fights in South Tyrol (these fights actually took place in Trentino , which at that time was still called South or Welsh Tyrol ), and it was also true according to the previous full-bodied promises (Trieste è Italia) finally to show results. The “Comando Supremo” was not interested in a decisive battle; the action was only intended to strengthen morale, and the term "Gorizia" seemed to be the right choice for this. The aim was to conquer the bridgehead in front of Gorizia and the city itself in a limited attack and then stop the forward movement for the time being. The supposed weakness of the Austro-Hungarian front was to be exploited in a surprise attack. The General Duke of Aosta gathered only a few additional troops in the attack section, only seven brigades were brought in, which the opposing side initially did not notice to their disadvantage.

Chronological sequence

• August 5, 1916

As a diversionary maneuver, Italian mock attacks took place south of Gorizia, near Selz and Monfalcone . The activities here, on the direct route to Trieste , were intended to tempt Colonel-General Boroević to move his reserves south so that they could not be available in the Gorizia area in good time.

• August 6, 1916

At 7:00 a.m. after a quiet night, Italian artillery fire began against the entire front of the Austro-Hungarian 5th Army from Tolmein to almost the sea. In the section of Gorizia and in the high area of Doberdo it rose to the barrage that lasted until the afternoon. The VI began around 4 p.m. (it.) Corps with the attack against the front arch, which was held by the reinforced 58th Austro-Hungarian infantry division with nine battalions in the first line and another seven battalions in the second line on the other side of the Isonzo. Another two battalions covered the section south of the bridgehead as far as the Wippach estuary - also on the eastern bank. Of these 18 battalions only seven - consisting of Dalmatian troops - were fully operational, 11 battalions had only recently been set up from territorial storms and marching formations ; they were completely inexperienced.

Heavy Italian artillery in the Isonzo sector

The waves of the attacking Fanti were able to overrun the thin lines of the defenders and also take the weakly occupied Monte Sabotino. They advanced to the eastern edge of the mountain range, but failed, taking advantage of the momentum, to advance to the Isonzo. In lighter terrain south of Monte Sabatino, however, it was possible to push in the bridgehead in its northern part and to reach the eastern bank of the river with strong forces. The defenders were able to maintain the southern part of the bridgehead. Reserves that were brought in were able to drive the Italians out of the conquered area in bitter hand-to-hand fighting during the night and also to push them back a little on the ridge. About 2000 prisoners were taken.

Since the Monte San Michele flanked the bridgehead of Gorizia, it was imperative for the Italians to take this too. The section was defended by the VII. (Kuk) Corps under General of the Cavalry Archduke Josef , to whom the 17th Infantry Troop Division ( Feldmarschalleutnant von Gelb) and the 20th Honved -kuk Infantry Troop Division]] ( Major General von Lukachich) were available. There were 27 battalions, of which 18 battalions held the 10 km long first line, while the remaining 9 battalions were in reserve.

At the same time as the attack on the bridgehead and Monte Sabotino, the battle for Monte San Michele began. Against the bitter resistance of the defenders, it was possible to penetrate the first positions. Counterattacks stopped the Italian attack swing and threw the attackers back in places. In the evening of the day, the Austro-Hungarian position system on the Doberdo plateau was again completely in the hands of the defenders, with the exception of an advanced Italian position on the summit of Monte San Michele.

• August 7, 1916

All day long the Italians tried to push in the bridgehead on a broad front with at least 12 regiments and also to bring Monte San Michele back into their possession. By the evening, however, they were unable to force a success in the bridgehead against the vehemently defending defenders. On the Monte San Michele the attackers had succeeded in taking the Austro-Hungarian positions; an immediate counterattack by the last reserves of the kuk VII Corps could force them out again for a short time, but the situation could not be held and one had to go back again. Although the positions on the other parts of the Doberdo plateau remained firmly in the hands of the defenders, the Austro-Hungarian High Command now recognized the hopelessness of the situation - the 2nd and 8th Mountain Brigades promised as reinforcements from Tyrol had not yet arrived - and saw forced to act to prevent the worst case scenario.

• August 8, 1916

At 2:00 am the Austro-Hungarian High Command gave the order to clear the front arc west of the Isonzo; the rearguards withdrew to the left bank of the Isonzo on the night of August 9. Here an attempt was initially made to offer resistance, but since the Italians had managed to cross the river further south, the danger threatened from the left flank - the defenders had to surrender Gorizia and retreat to the second line behind the city. The staff of the Austro-Hungarian troops in this section had fallen to around 5,000 operational men. The artillery support abated since it came to bottlenecks in munitions.

Fight on the Doberdo

The situation on the plateau was hopeless for the attackers, all actions were unsuccessful.

However, further shortening of the front line for tactical reasons had become inevitable; It was therefore decided to give up the Doberdo plateau and to reorganize the defense in the position behind the Vallone section. It would take some time, however, to recover all of the war equipment and move the artillery to the rear. The front straightening could therefore begin on the morning of August 10th at the earliest. On the night of August 8th to 9th, sappers of the Austrian troops blew up the main stone arch of the Salcanobrücke when retreating from Gorizia.

• August 9, 1916

The Italian high command now expanded the attack and after Gorizia also tried to take the northern of the two cornerstones of the front, Monte Santo, from Plava. All day-long attacks on the mountain failed due to the resistance of the Austro-Hungarian infantry regiments No. 22 (Dalmatia) and No. 52 (Hungary). The Hungarian Landwehr was able to briefly recapture the summit of Monte San Michele, but then had to give it up again. This area was then quiet.

• August 10, 1916

Further attacks on Monte Santo remained unsuccessful. The positions on Monte San Michele were evacuated undisturbed. There was no further fighting.

• August 11, 1916

No major activities. The 2nd and 8th Mountain Brigades arrived.

• August 12, 1916

Massive Italian attacks against the new front line of the 58th Austro-Hungarian Division east of Gorizia were repulsed.

• 13-15 August 1916

Constant attacks against Sv. Katarina, Panowitz, San Marco and Vertojba in the Wippachtal, against the rocky slab of Nad Logem, against the places Lokvica, Opacchiasella and Nova Vas, against heights 208 and 144 on the karst plateau. Particularly heavy and extremely lossy battles took place on the plateau of Comen, as there were no prepared positions for the defenders and these had to be laboriously created in the rocky floor of the Karst .

• August 16, 1916

After the Italians failed to advance beyond the straightened front, the offensive was suspended that day.

Use of poison gas

During the Sixth Isonzo Battle in August 1916, a gas attack by Austro-Hungarian troops took place. The poison gas was released into the opposing positions in a "blowing process" from pressure bottles using wind conditions. Emperor Franz Joseph , who opposed the use of poison gas, was changed by the misinformation that Italian troops had also used poison gas. The use of poison gas had already been considered before the First World War. In 1912, Lieutenant Colonel Adolf von Boog suggested the introduction of gas ammunition. In 1916, after poison gas had become widespread as a weapon, Boog claimed authorship in a letter to the Austro-Hungarian Army High Command.

literature

• Contribution of Major General Anton Ritter von Pitreich in: The Austro-Hungarian War - The summer and autumn battles of 1916 against Italy . Barth, Leipzig 1922.

Footnotes

1. ↑ generally so called, but in reality it represented a front arch
2. ^ Italian infantry
3. ↑ www.technischesmuseum.at
4. ↑ ^{a b} Austrian State Archives : Online Documentation 1914–1918. 100 years of the First World War , including the gas war section ( online ), accessed January 17, 2015
5. ↑ Manfried Rauchsteiner : Die Gaswerfer von Flitsch , in: Die Presse , print edition from October 20, 2007 and online edition from October 19, 2007 , accessed on January 17, 2015