WINTER BATTLES ON THE STYR AND STRYPA RIVERS

As the autumn of 1915 drew to an end and winter approached, the fighting along the eastern front changed from attacks over more or less extensive spaces to trench warfare within very restricted territory and to artillery duels. This change took place, as we have already seen, as far as the front from the Vilia River down to the southern limits of the Pripet Marshes was concerned, as early as the end of September, 1915. Farther south, however, along the Styr and its tributary, the Ikwa, and in the region through which the Strypa, Sereth, and Dniester flow, in the Russian provinces of Volhynia and in Austro-Hungarian East Galicia, the severest kind of fighting was kept up much longer.

The preceding chapter carried us, as far as this territory was concerned, up to October 7, 1915. On that day the Russians attacked with all available forces of men and munitions along the entire Volhynian, Galician, and Bessarabian front. One of the principal points of contention was the little town of Tchartorysk on the Styr, about five miles south of the Warsaw-Kovel-Kieff railroad. To the northwest of it the Germans under General Linsingen began a counterattack on October 7, 1915, and threw the Russians across the Styr. A Russian counterattack, undertaken on the 8th with the object of regaining their lost position, was frustrated by artillery fire. To the north, just across the railroad at Rafalovka, attacks and counterattacks followed each other as regularly as day and night. For about two weeks a series of local engagements on this small front of ten or fifteen miles took place with such short periods of rest that one may well speak of them as the Battle of Tchartorysk. Neither side, however, seemed to be able to gain any marked advantage.

About the 18th of October, 1915, the Russians succeeded, after bringing up reenforcements, in driving a wedge into the Austro-German line which they were able to maintain until October 21, 1915. On that day the Austro-Germans, too, brought up reenforcements and started a strong offensive movement. From three sides the small salient was attacked near Okonsk, and after furious resistance it caved in. Russian counterattacks to the north and south, undertaken in order to relieve the pressure on the center, had no effect. The Russians were forced to retreat, and left 15 officers, 3,600 men, 1 cannon, and 8 machine guns in the hands of their enemies. However, the Russians came on again and again, and the battle continued for a number of days. Step by step the Russian troops were forced back again toward the Styr. Village after village was stormed by the combined Austro-German forces. In many cases small villages changed hands three or four times in as many days. Not a day passed without repeated attempts on the part of both sides to break through the line. But though some of these were successful, sometimes for the Russians and sometimes for their adversaries, the gains were only temporary and local, and were usually wiped out again before long. On November 16, 1915, however, the Austro-German forces gained a decided victory over the Russians, who were thrown back to the east bank of the Styr under very heavy losses. By that time the winter weather had become too severe for extensive operations, and comparative inactivity ruled along that part of the front.

While the Battle of Tchartorysk was raging, engagements of varying importance and extent, but all of great severity and costly to victor and vanquished alike, took place at other parts of the Volhynian, Galician, and Bessarabian front. Just south of Tchartorysk, near Kolki on the Styr, Austrian troops gained additional territory on October 7, 1915. Still farther south at Olyka, west of Rovno, the Russians were thrown back by a bayonet attack, carried out by two Austro-Hungarian infantry regiments. On the Ikwa, northwest of Kremenets, a very bitter struggle ensued for the village of Sopanov, which during one day, October 7, 1915, changed hands not less than four times, but finally remained in the possession of Austro-Hungarian forces west of Tarnopol. Russian attacks gained temporary successes, which were lost again when German and Austro-Hungarian reenforcements were brought to their assistance. On October 8, 1915, these attacks were not only repeated, but new attacks developed on the Strypa at Buczacz, Tluste, and Burkanov, which, however, were all repulsed. During these two days the Russians lost over 6,000 men on the Styr and Strypa Rivers. Again, on October 9-10, 1915, the Russians attacked along these two waterways and on the Ikwa. On the latter day four separate attacks were launched at Burkanov alone. On the 14th another attempt was made to break through the line west of Tarnopol. Then a period of comparative rest set in for about a week.

But on October 20, 1915, a new Russian attack near Novo Alexinez, a small border village, resulted in a slight gain, which, however, could not be enlarged in spite of heroic efforts. An attack east of Zaloshe on the Sereth was likewise without success. Both of these were repeated on October 21-22, 1915, without better results. During the next week the fighting was reduced considerably in volume and severity, until on October 30, 1915, a new attack with replenished forces against the Strypa line started the ball rolling once more. On the same day a Russian aeroplane was brought down southeast of Lutsk. According to official figures published by the General Staffs of the German and Austro-Hungarian armies respectively, the Russian losses during the month of October, 1915, amounted to 244 officers, 41,000 men, 23 cannon, and 80 machine guns, all captured by German forces, and 142 officers, 26,000 men, 1 cannon, 44 machine guns, and 3 aeroplanes captured by the Austro-Hungarian troops. Corresponding figures for the armies of the Central Powers are not available.

On the last day of October, 1915, renewed fighting broke out again on the Strypa, near Sikniava, where the Russians had concentrated strong forces. The Austrians met a strong attack with a prompt counterattack and carried the day. As before, the fighting, once started at one point on the Strypa, quickly spread. On November 2, 1915, the engagement at Sikniava was continued, and a new attack developed near Buczacz with the usual more or less negative result for both sides—maintenance of all attacked positions without gain of new territory. Another series of very bitter clashes occurred between November 4-7, 1915, near the village of Sienkovce on the Strypa. During the same period fighting went on also at many other points of that small river, which by this time had seen the flow of almost as much blood as water.

Southeast of the village of Visnyvtszyk on the Strypa seven separate Russian attacks were launched within these four days. On the 7th a strong attack was made also in the neighborhood of Dubno from the direction of Rovno without gaining ground. Isolated attacks of varying extent took place for a few more days. But by that time severe winter weather restricted operations in this sector just as it had done along the balance of the eastern front. Of course occasional attacks were started whenever a lull in the snowstorms or a favorable change in temperature made it possible. But, generally speaking, the Styr and Strypa section now settled down to trench fighting, artillery duels, and minor engagements between advanced outposts. The Russian losses during the month of November, 1915, as far as they were inflicted by Austro-Hungarian troops, totaled 78 officers, 12,000 men, and 32 machine guns. Late in December, 1915, on the 24th, the Russians, disregarding climatic conditions, once more began an extensive offensive movement in East Galicia and on the Bessarabian border, with Czernovitz, the capital of the Austro-Hungarian province of Bukowina, as its apparent objective. It lasted until January 15, 1916, or twenty-three days, interrupted only occasionally by a day or two of slightly decreased activity. Its net result for the Russian army, in spite of very heavy losses in killed, wounded, and captured, was only the certainty of having inflicted fairly heavy losses on the German and Austro-Hungarian troops opposing them. Territory they could not gain, at least not to a large enough extent to be of any influence on the further development of events. The severest fighting during these operations took place near Toporoutz and Rarawotse on the Bessarabian border. Much of it was at very close range, and on many days the Russians made three and four, sometimes even more, successive attacks against one and the same problem. Especially bitter fighting occurred on January 11, 1916, when one position was attacked five times during the day and a sixth time as late as ten o'clock that night.

Coinciding with the Russian attempt to break once more through the Austro-Hungarian line into the Bukowina, attacks were launched from time to time at various places on the Dniester, Sereth, and Strypa, especially in the vicinity of Buczacz. None of these, however, had any effect, nor were other very occasional attacks west of Rovno and on the Styr of more avail. During the three weeks of fighting the Russians, according to official Austro-Hungarian figures, lost over 5,000 men by capture.

The Battle Front in Russia, January 1, 1916.