Everything about Kerensky Offensive totally explained
The
Kerensky Offensive (aka
July Offensive or
Galician Offensive) was the last
Russian offensive in
World War I. It took place in July
1917.
Background
It was decided by
Alexander Kerensky, Minister of War in the Russian provisional government, and led by General
Brusilov. Such a decision was ill-timed, because, following the
February Revolution, there were strong popular demands for peace, especially within the army, whose fighting capabilities were quickly deteriorating.
Discipline within the Russian Army had reached at a point of crisis since the
Tsar's abdication. The
Petrograd Soviet's "Order Number 1" tremendously weakened the power of officers, giving an overriding mandate to "soldier committees". The abolition of the death penalty was another contributing factor, as was the high presence of revolutionary agitators at the front including
Bolshevik agitators, who promoted a defeatist agenda (and whom Kerensky tolerated considerably more than conservative agitators). Riots and mutineering at the front became common, officers were often the victims of soldier harassment and even murder. Furthermore, the policy of the new government towards the war effort was one of fulfilling obligations towards Russia's allies, as opposed to fighting for the sake of total victory, thus giving soldiers a less credible motivation to fight.
However, Kerensky hoped that an important Russian victory would gain popular favour and restore the soldiers' morale, thus strengthening the weak provisional government and proving the effectiveness of "the most democratic army in the world", as he referred to it.
The Offensive
Starting on
July 1, 1917 the Russian troops attacked the
Austro-Hungarian and
German forces in
Galicia, pushing toward
Lviv. The operations involved the Russian 11th, 7th and 8th Armies against the Austro-Hungarian/German South Army (General
Felix Graf von Bothmer) and the Austro-Hungarian 7th and 3rd Armies.
After an initial success, the offensive was halted because the Russian soldiers soon mutinied and refused to fight. It collapsed altogether by
July 16. On July 18 the Germans and Austro-Hungarians counterattacked, meeting little resistance and advancing through Galicia and
Ukraine as far as the
Zbruch River. The Russian lines were broken on July 20, and by July 23, the Russians had retreated about 240 kilometers (150 miles).
Aftermath
The Russian provisional government was greatly weakened by this military catastrophe, and the possibility of a Bolshevik
coup d'état became increasingly real. Far from strengthening Russian army morale, this offensive proved that Russian army morale no longer existed. No Russian general could now count on the soldiers under his command actually doing what they were ordered to do.
This offensive also helped the start of the July days.
One last fight took place between the Germans and the Russians in this war. On
September 1, 1917 the Germans attacked and captured
Riga. The Russian soldiers defending the town refused to fight and fled from the advancing German troops.
Further Information
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