The First World War is one of the bloodiest in human history. The armed conflict began in 1914 with the Sarajevo massacre. On June 28, Archduke Franz Ferdinand died at the hands of a terrorist, a student from Bosnia. This caused aggression in Europe, more and more countries were drawn into the hostilities. As a result of the war, four empires were wiped off the face of the earth, 10 million soldiers and officers died, and five times more were injured. Massive and merciless people remember the First World War. The main battles of this European "meat grinder" today amaze with their scale and cruelty.
Tannenberg operation
In another way, it is also called the Battle of Grunwald. During this battle in the east of Prussia, Russian troops converged, the first and second armies, in which there were 250 thousand soldiers, and the German army of 200 thousand soldiers.
The constant strife and inconsistency of actions within the Russian army led to the fact that entire divisions were defeated and strongly thrown back. As a result, many ordinary soldiers died. Losses on the part of the Russians were more extensive: 150-200 thousand, which was almost 2/3 of the total number of military personnel based in this area. Germany lost 50,000 of its subjects fighting under its flag.
The Russian army was defeated in the Tannenberg operation. And this led to the fact that the Germans were able to transfer significant reinforcements to the Western Front. At the same time, the rapid advance of Russia cut off the German troops from the allies, the Austro-Hungarian soldiers. Having received no help from Prussia, they lost another important battle, the Galician, for which the First World War is also famous. The main battles also include this fight in their bloody list.
Battle of Galicia
It happened in the summer, in August 1914. The main stage fell on the first days of this month. As evidenced by historical archival records, Russian and Austro-Hungarian forces converged in equal numbers: 4 armies participated in battles on both sides.
The main battles of the First World War are also distinguished by these battles, which took place near Lviv, Galich and Lublin on the Ukrainian-Polish territory. The fate of the Battle of Galicia was sealed when the Russians near Tarnavka broke through and launched an offensive. This greatly influenced the further course of events and became their trump card in obtaining the coveted victory.
Losses from the Galician battle near Austria-Hungary were colossal: 325 thousand soldiers. It was a third of all the forces of the empire on the Eastern Front. Further residue from this routfelt in the actions of the army. She was never able to get back on her feet after the crushing blow, and only thanks to the help of the Germans won a handful of minor successes.
Sarykamysh fight
Speaking about the main battles of the Great Patriotic War (that's what it was called before the start of World War II), one cannot fail to mention this operation. Russia and Turkey competed in it on the threshold of the new 1915. At that time, the Turkish command was developing a cunning plan: to capture Karas and completely destroy the army of the Caucasus.
The Crescent Forces were advancing. The Russians were surrounded in Sarykamysh, but they continued to pin down the main enemy forces and prevented his advance. Accustomed to a milder climate, their opponents did not survive the harsh winter. From severe frosts and snowstorms, tens of thousands of Turkish soldiers died in just one day.
The Russians at this time were waiting, which was the right decision. Soon reinforcements approached Sarykamysh, and the army of the Crescent was defeated. In total, about 100 thousand people died in this operation. The biggest battles of the First World War include this battle, as it played an important strategic role: the situation in the Caucasus was stabilized, and the Russians were able to curb the ardent enemy - Turkey.
Brusilovsky breakthrough
The main battles of World War 1 were not without the courage and strategic skills of General Brusilov. In the summer of 2016, under his leadership, the Russians broke through on the Southwestern Front. Austro-Hungarianthe army lost many soldiers and officers. The figure is amazing - 1.5 million killed.
Russians occupied Bukovina and Galicia. This forced the Germans to strengthen their positions here by transferring additional forces from the Western Front to this area. Despite this, Russia's allies strengthened themselves in this territory, the Entente was also understaffed by Romania, which went over to the side of the Union.
Russian troops also missed a lot of valiant heroes. And therefore, a new wave of mobilization was announced in the country, calling on newcomers to replenish the thinned ranks of the army. This unpopular step of the government aroused the indignation and discontent of the common people. People did not want to be "cannon fodder", because neither the old nor the young were spared by the First World War. The main battles show that there were many losses both on the part of the Russians and on the part of their opponents.
Kerensky Offensive
In 1917, the Bolsheviks overthrew the monarchy, and therefore the further course of the war was dictated by the revolutionary events in the country. The Russians launched an offensive in June 1917, but after two days of active advance, they suddenly stopped. The soldiers considered that this was enough, they fully fulfilled their sacred duty.
Newcomers also refused to stand in the front rows. All this confusion and general disobedience took place against the background of the regular desertion that the revolution provoked. Major battles of World War I never seen beforesuch mass chaos and panic among the military personnel.
At this time, taking advantage of the situation, Germany attacked and pushed the Russian units back to their old positions. The once strong and courageous army of Russia actually ceased to exist as an organized force. Germany was no longer afraid of its enemy and was able to fortify itself on all fronts. The Russians had to conclude the Brest peace, unprofitable and humiliating for our country.
Goeben and Breslau
Naval battles of the First World War are also striking in their scale. With the beginning of the battles, the parties to the conflict turned their attention to the Mediterranean Sea. It was an important component for the transportation of the army, especially the French. In order to transport its soldiers across the waters of the Mediterranean without obstacles, France had to destroy the German cruisers Goeben and Breslau, which cruised off the coast of Sardinia.
In August 1914, these two German ships bombarded the ports of Algiers and headed for Constantinople. No matter how hard the British troops tried, the German ships reached the Sea of Marmara. Entering the Turkish fleet, "Goeben" and "Breslau" fired at Russian positions in the Black Sea. It changed the course of the First World War. Russia declared war on Turkey, while British and French forces began blockade of the Dardanelles. They also believed that Germany's Austrian allies needed to be neutralized. The Anglo-French fleet crossed the Adriatic more than once, hoping to challengeAustrian ships, but this did not bring the desired result.
Operation "Dardanelles"
Another major naval battle spanning the entire year 1915. The campaign included the capture of the straits and the landing of the Anglo-French troops. But the First World War was characterized by unforeseen situations. The main battles did not always go according to the developed plan, sometimes the operations failed. This is what happened with the strategic plan called the Dardanelles. The parties suffered colossal losses: almost 200 thousand soldiers suffered in the Turkish army, 150 thousand among the allies. These are the wounded and killed, as well as the missing.
In May, Italy joined the Entente. At the same time, German submarines were able to penetrate the Mediterranean. They managed to sink 100 merchant ships while losing only one of their vehicles. Thus, despite Italian assistance, the Allies in the 1915 naval campaign failed to achieve superiority. The only plus was the evacuation of the Serbian army, which was defeated by enemy forces in the autumn.
Battles in the B altic
This sea side called the secondary. The First World War, the main battles of which took place not only on land, but also on water, did not rely on the B altic. The British considered the Russian fleet exhausted after the Russo-Japanese War, so they did not count on its help. Only old ships cruised the B altic.
But inIn August 1914, on this calm and serene sea, an incident occurred that could affect the course of the war. The German cruiser Magdeburg ran aground in the Gulf of Finland. Soon the Russians took over. They found the ship's signal book, handed it over to the British - this played a major role in breaking the German naval cipher. Using the knowledge gained, the Allies pulled off many successful operations.
This is only part of the main battles of that time. And there were a lot of them. The main battles of the First World War, the scheme, table and schedule of operations, their detailed course are described today in history books. Reading them, we understand how bloody that period of time became, and how it influenced the future fate of the countries drawn into it.
