Failure of Russian army's offensive (June - July of 1917)
The Provisional Government tried to make its position more stable but without refusing from the idea of starting the offensive at the battle-front, planned in accordance with decisions of interallied conferences in Shantilya (France) in November, 1916 and in Petrograd in January - February, 1917.
The instruction on preparation of the advance was given by the Supreme Commander-in-Chief general M.V.Alekseyev as early as March 30, 1917. The main blow was to be delivered by forces of Southwest front in the direction of Lvov city and auxiliary thrust in Kaluga city direction. The front was to assume the offensive on June 12, which on June 22 was to be supported by armies of Western and on July 1 by Northern and Romanian fronts. The Russian armed forces outnumbered the German armies and its allies in one and a half time. However, morally, soldiers were not ready act on the offensive. A.F.Kerensky, who inspected the forces of the Western front, recognized: "I do not believe in any success of the offensive".
Despite everything, armies of the Southwest front passed to the offensive on June 18. By noon Russian divisions seized the first, and somewhere the second lines of enemies' trenches. But the further advance became slower. Success was achieved only by the 8th army (under command of general L.G.Kornilov) that assumed the offensive on June 23. In three days it occupied Galich city and advanced further to the valley of Lomnitsy river, made a forced crossing, and on June 28 occupied Kalush. However other armies of the Southwest front, because of refusal of soldiers to battle, did not support the advance of the 8th army. All this, as well as the strong overflows of Lomnitsy, which complicated the supply of armies, made the 8th army leave Kalush on July 3.
The German headquarters, taking advantage of lull in the West, sent 9 infantry divisions against Russian army. In July, after using of chemical weapons, German armies delivered a strike on the 11th, and later on 7th and 8th armies of the Southwest front. By July 17 the enemy approached the Zbruch river and was stopped. During offensive and defensive operations the Russians lost 132,5 thousand soldier and officers.
The offensive of the Romanian front began too late: on July 9 instead of July 1. Battle formations, together with Romanian armies, reached Putna river on July 17 where they were stopped because of threatening situation in Galitsia and Bukovina. Forces of the Western front assumed the offensive simultaneously with armies of the Romanian front. But reluctance of soldier to fight, growth of desertion and strengthening of resistance of enemy compelled A.I.Denikin, the commander-in-chief, to stop the advance of the Western front on July 10. Forces of the Northern front for the same reasons carried out active actions only from July 8 till July 10. Russian forces, having lost 200 thousand people, failed to achieve the purpose of operation, which had been prepared for half a year. |
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