Indivisible and Inseparable - Austria-Hungary AAR

[MastahCheef117]

Indivisibiliter ac Inseparabiliter
Austria-Hungary in The Great War

Settings:
Difficulty: Easy*
AI Aggressiveness: Weakling*
IC Takeover: Yes
Tech Team Takeover: Yes
End of Game: The End of the Great War
Cheats Used: No Fog (occasionally I will play without it)

Welcome, one and all, to my new AAR! In this particular AAR, I will play as Austria-Hungary in the 1914 Scenario. I realize now that my previous AARs went quite dead very soon after being posted, but I am resolved not to let that happen to this one.

* - I have the settings below normal for the reason that I just downloaded v1.02, and I wish to get used to the settings and changes - and plus, I am not always the greatest military commander Also do note I will be using anglicized versions of Austrian/German/etc. names, places and so on (i.e. Francis Joseph instead of Franz Josef, Charles instead of Karl, William II instead of Wilhelm...)

Primary Objectives:
-Survive!
-Defeat Montenegro ✓
-Defeat Serbia ✓
-Defeat Russia
-Defeat Italy

Secondary Objectives:
-Claim lands in northern Italy
-Claim lands in southwestern Russia, particularly Sevastopol
-Claim lands in Albania ✓
-Claim lands in Romania

****

Table of Contents
1914
Chapter I - The House of Habsburg-Lorraine
Chapter II - Military Overview & The Ultimatum
Chapter III - To Cross the Danube
Chapter IV - Von Wurm's Assault

1915
Chapter V - The Bulgarian Ruse
Chapter VI - To Capture a Port of the Italian Variety
Chapter VII - The Battle of Tarnopol
Chapter VIII - Occurrences on Other Fronts of War
Chapter IX - The Pocket is Closed
Chapter X - Operation Hammer & Anvil
Chapter XI - My Empire For A Boat! - & Yearly Review

1916
Chapter XII - A New Year of Bickering
Chapter XIII - A Crisis in the Command
Chapter XIV - Battle of the Venetian Gulf
Chapter XV - Von Denta to Save the Day!
Chapter XVI - Fortunes are Reversed

[MastahCheef117]

Chapter I
The House of Habsburg-Lorraine

What were once two European royal families were now one. The House of Habsburg of Austria and the House of Lorraine had been joined when the Austrian sovereign and to this day the only female Habsburg ruler Maria Theresa was married into the House of Lorraine in 1780.

Maria Theresa and Francis I, Grand Duke of Tuscany and Holy Roman Emperor, parented the heir to the Austrian throne, Leopold II. His reign lasted just two years, starting in 1790, until his death in 1792. His successor, his son Francis II (who he fathered with Maria Luisa of Spain), would lead Austria through the Napoleonic Wars. In 1805, with the defeat at the Battle of Austerlitz and the dismantling of the Holy Roman Empire, Francis II united the loosely affiliated kingdoms of Austria into a full-fledged Empire.



Francis II, last Holy Roman Emperor and first Emperor of Austria

Francis also established the German Confederation at the Treaty of Vienna following Napoleon's fall in 1815, a conglomerate of kingdoms and duchies in central Germany under both the influence of Austria and her northern competitor, the growing Kingdom of Prussia. These two nations would clash nearly 50 years later under the reign of Francis Joseph I, during the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, known as the Seven Weeks War. It was within this war that the Austrian Army was devastated in the Battle of Koniggratz by the Prussian army, superior in leadership and training. It was also with this war that the short-lived German Confederation was abolished.

One of Austria's most important victories in the Austro-Prussian War was not one on land, but one on sea. Off the coast of Croatia, at what would be known as the Battle of Lissa, the first major ironclad battle took place where a heavily outnumbered Austrian fleet under Admiral Wilhelm von Tegetthoff defeated a much larger Italian fleet in close-quarters battle. During the battle, the losing Italian fleet, led by Admiral di Persano, participated in desperate ramming attacks on the Austrian warships(1), despite being in vain.



William von Tegetthoff, the influential and reformist
Austrian admiral, also an inspiring leader

The result of the humiliating defeat in the Austro-Prussian War was the formation of the North German Confederation, a more tightly-controlled collection of German nations headed by Prussia in a dominating fashion. This union would last just five years until 1871, in which Prussia forced the south German states into the new German Empire.

In Vienna, defeat in war sent shockwaves through the monarchy. In a spout of nationalism, Emperor Francis made a compromise with the Hungarians in what was later called the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867, giving the Kingdom of Hungary greater autonomy than she previously had as a state under the Austrian Empire. This, in effect, formed a new empire that became Austria-Hungary. The country was ruled through the system of a dual monarchy, with each monarch reigning as king and emperor of all semi-sovereign states of the empire.



Francis Joseph I, last Emperor of Austria and first dual-monarchist Emperor of Austria-Hungary

Francis Joseph I would reign as emperor of the growing country for many more years to come. He focused on the politics and nations of the Balkans, a hotspot for nationalism, rebellion, and cross-continental feuds between the many countries of Europe, not the least of which included Austria's long-time rival, Russia. Ruled by Nicholas II, Russia was a strong ally and supporter of Serbia, a small independent nation to the southeast of Austria-Hungary. This country was trouble for Austria-Hungary and it's people, there was no doubt. However, the thought that it would start the world's largest and costliest war was impossible to even the smartest military strategist of the time.



Czar Nicholas II, Emperor of the Russian Empire

It would all start on a day like any other, in which the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Francis Ferdinand, would meet an untimely death with his wife at the hand of a previously unknown Bosnian Serb nationalist named Gavrilo Princip. It was June 28, 1914.

****

(1) - These ramming actions against the Austrian fleet would be the last fully intentional ramming of one warship by another in naval history

[GulMacet]

*sings 'Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser'*

[MastahCheef117]

@Macet - Austro-Hungarian Army Choir

****

Chapter II
Military Overview & The Ultimatum

On June 27 of 1914, the Austro-Hungarian Empire was, essentially, a crumbling empire. It's military was horribly outdated, and modernization programs were slow-in-coming and opposed on a grand scale due to their high costs. The army was large, on paper, but in reality it's divisions were at low strength and suffered from low amounts of ammunition and weapons. If war would occur in one hour, the army would surely see defeat.

And so many different orders were given and contracted to several weapons and development companies. These companies would design and produce new weapons and equipment for the army, and a new design of battleship would be built to supplement the slowly-growing Imperial Navy. Procedure at field hospitals would improve in quality and time, which could undoubtedly save many more lives in combat.



Technological advancements made for the Imperial military, June 1914

Racial and cultural tensions ran high from Austria to Bosnia to Hungary and Bohemia. Nationalism of these different population groups threatened to break the empire into civil war. It was widely viewed that the only thing keeping the empire together as a whole was it's emperor, Francis Joseph I. His Austro-Hungarian Compromise over 50 years before had kept Austria from complete destruction, and helped keep the people unified. However, this force that once united the people in massive waves of patriotism was eroding to time; the economy was not as strong as people would like, and with most of the industry devoted to war materiel, the people were getting unsettled. It would take something truly grand to unite the people once again.

In the way of the navy, the Austro-Hungarian Imperial Fleet was in poor condition. Compared to her northern ally's dreadnought count of thirteen, Austria possessed just two dreadnoughts, with two more in building. Supporting these two ships were a large number of severely outdated and horribly ineffective pre-dreadnoughts, some as old as thirty years. If pitted against the likes of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, the French Mediterranean Fleet or the bulk of the Italian Navy, things would not go well. These ships were then supplanted by about one dozen old, outdated light cruisers, and a large number of older torpedo boats.

However, there was one small number of ships that were all too important for the Imperial Navy. They were the submarines.



Named after the famed Austrian admiral, SMS Tegetthoff, flagship of the fleet, was armed
with twelve 12 inch (305 mm) guns in superfiring turrets,
allowing for a powerful broadside

On June 28, at approximately 10:45 AM, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne Francis Ferdinand was assassinated by a Bosnian-Serb nationalist named Gavrilo Princip. His aim was to gain favor and support for an independent Bosnia, to be made independent from the lands of Austria-Hungary.

His efforts would be in vain.

Emperor Francis Joseph immediately ordered, the next day, for the mobilization of arms and equipment for the army. After it was revealed that the Serbian government had been directly supporting and supplying the assassins, troops began encamping on the border. On July 19, the Austro-Hungarian government sent an ultimatum to Serbia. On July 26, the Serbians replied with partial acceptance to the terms. As a result, relations were broken with the small country to the south. More and more troops gathered on the border and were armed en-masse. Recruitment began for four new infantry divisions. War was imminent.

It was then received by Emperor Francis that the German Empire, and it's Kaiser William II, fully supported Austria-Hungary in any decision it made; this included war with the problematic little border country. It was August 24 when the signal was received in Belgrade that they were now at war with their northern neighbors.

To fill in the gaps in the army, conscription was enacted, and even then men flowed into recruitment depots daily. The general mobilization of the army and the devotion of the economy and industry towards a fully war-oriented nation began preparing it's military for a war that would forever change Europe.



Men of the 33rd Infantry Division entering a small Serbian village, late afternoon on August 24

[Falconette]

Great, another WW1 DH AAR) It' nice to read such AARs - even if you're playing as my main enemy

[MastahCheef117]

@Falconette - Thanks! Seeing the outcome of both of our games will be quite interesting

****

Chapter III
To Cross the Danube

Fighting against the fully-trained men of the Serbian army commenced on August 26. The 50,000 men in the area around Resita under the command of General von Wurm began crossing the Danube, attacking some 40,000 Serbs in the area of Bor. The Serbs were equipped with severely outdated weapons, some of which were over thirty or forty years old. Most cannons were inaccurate Russian 3 inch (75 mm) guns that were horribly ineffective against the advancing Austrians. However, resistance was fierce. On the 27th, von Wurm requested assistance from the 80,000 men of the 4th Corps, under the command of General von Bojna. He got it, and the Serb casualties began to skyrocket.



Heavily outnumbered Serbs putting up a stout but futile resistance in Bor, Aug. 27

It was on the next day that Germany declared war on France, Belgium, and Luxemburg. The former of the three countries was an ally of Imperial Russia - the two members of the Dual Alliance, or the "Entente", France and Russia.

Luxemburg was annexed on September 9, when the German 31st and 42nd Divisions entered the small country's capital almost unopposed. France and Great Britain were outraged at the occupation of this little country; Germany continued to advance west, attacking the French near Sedan and Longwy.

General von Rhonfeld and Lieutenant General Krauss launched an attack on the capital of Montenegro, Cetinje, starting on September 10. The attack was going well until the 19th, when Serb and Montenegrin reinforcements arrived from the east. Here, the attack began to stall, and casualties began to mount. Debate raged on what should be done, and on September 27 the attack was called off.

In the north, despite the capture of Lutsk by the 11th Corps, the city was immediately counter-attacked by a large number of Russians. Outnumbered and suffering heavily casualties, General von Kovesshaza gave the order to retreat south to Lwow. To the west, General von Denta's 6th Corps, outnumbered and slowly undergoing encirclement, was attacked by 230,000 Russians. Von Denta gave the order to never give up Tarnow - the 9th and 10th Corps, combined totaling 90,000 men, were ordered to the area at maximum speed. However, before the reinforcements could arrive, and after suffering over 35% dead, von Denta signaled a retreat south.



The results of the so-called 'Stand at Tarnow'

Farther south, the advance into Serbia became even more problematic. More and more Serbian troops arrived from the south, and, bolstered by local militias and conscripted peasants, added a large number of men to the Serbian cause. Facing too many men, and fighting increasingly determined Serbian troops, the attack on Bor was called off on October 12. It was hailed in newspapers as the "Work of the Devil against His Majesty's Men".

With the war off to what could only be called a "less-than-mediocre" start, the troops of Austria-Hungary prepared themselves for a brutal war in which at the end of the tunnel lay either Glory and Prosperity or Disaster and Death.



The Empire of Austria-Hungary, borders unchanged, c. October 1914

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STATUS REPORT
As of October 26 1914
Est. Austro-Hungarian Killed: 29,000
Est. Russian Killed: 25,000
Est. Serbian & Montenegrin Killed: 31,000
TOTAL KILLED: 85,000

NOTE: This is a somewhat short update. Future updates will be larger in length, will include some more pictures, and, of course, more text and action.

[son of liberty]

Interesting start, don't let the bear eat you though,

[Falconette]

I hope that Russia won't fall soon . But it's your AAR, so good luck, I believe you'll beat Serbia soon

[MastahCheef117]

@sons of liberty: I'll try not too
@Falconette: Oh God, I hope so. Otherwise I think this AAR will end pretty sooner than I originally expected

****

Chapter IV
Von Wurm's Assault

The last several days of October was spent by the Field Marshals of the army by reviewing the north and south fronts, and deciding on what they should do. In the north, according to German intelligence, the lost territory of Krakow was guarded by a small number of Russians - those that had taken part in the city's fall had been moved east to help take Tarnow from von Denta's 6th Corps. On November 5, von Vares' 9th Corps initiated an attack on the lightly defended area around Krakow.

However, the attack quickly fell apart as Russian reinforcements poured into the area, bolstering the Russian defenders with an extra 20,000 men. Suffering heavy casualties, von Vares called for the assistance of von Denta's Corps, now the most seasoned troops in the army. Von Denta came to help in the attack, which would last well into December.



General von Vares leading the assault on Krakow, late November

As the Battle of Krakow drew out into a lengthy battle of attrition, more developments formed in the south. General von Rhonfeld, commanding a vengeful corps filled with determined soldiers, again led an attack on the Montenegrin capital. The relatively large Serb-Montenegrin army, backed by a horribly small manpower pool, had led to the deaths of many wounded and the lack of replacements for those lost in battle. Thusly, the enemies von Rhonfeld's men faced were even lower on supplies, and were thinner in terms of men they could field. Rhonfeld took the initiative and ordered a breakthrough and capture of the city hall.

However, this did not mean the Serbs and their small allies were incapable of fighting. Many of the defenders were fighting for their lives against the diseases that ravaged their comrades, and were fighting for their very houses and families. And many of these would fight to the death. However, the Austrians slowly pushed through the city streets, one by one, closer to victory each step of the way.



General von Rhonfeld, commander of the Montenegrin Front

However, back north, von Denta faced new problems. His attacks had been stopped cold by more and more Russian reinforcements. Soon, he was fighting 70,000 with his own 80,000. Von Vares' own corps was suffering from massive casualties, and was not receiving the supplies it needed to continue fighting for the ruined city - and so, his corps retreated and waited as it was gradually resupplied and rested. This left 40,000 Austrians versus what was now 80,000 Russians, and the former were beginning to suffer casualties of their own. Von Denta ended his assault on Krakow on December 13.



Perished Austrian soldiers of von Vares' 9th Corps, ravaged by disease and casualties

To counter these embarassing early defeats, another southern front commander - General von Wurm - launched a second assault on the Serb town of Bor. His 130,000 men quickly overran the initial fortifications of the badly mauled 15,000 Serb defenders, suffering from both disease and lack of supplies. By the morning of December 24 - roughly one week after the attack against the town began - this number plummeted to just 6,000. Victory was achieved at 2 AM the next morning, Christmas Day. It was hailed as a Godsend and was believed to be a sign that the Austro-Hungarians were destined to win against their "Evil and Fiendish Serb Enemies". Wurm was the first general of the army to achieve a victory in the war, almost five months after it began.

Farther south, the battle of Cetinje had taken a turn for the worst. Serb reinforcements - mostly more conscripted peasants and militia - had arrived in their allied capital's defense. The Austrians, the attack already falling apart, began to break as the enemy they had previously killed was replaced by a fresh one. The attack was called off and the Austrians retreated west a second time.



General von Wurm, who successfully captured Bor on December 25,
the first Austrian victory of the war

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STATUS REPORT
As of January 1 1915
Est. Austro-Hungarian Killed: 36,000 (65,000 total)
Est. Russian Killed: 18,000 (43,000 total)
Est. Serbian & Montenegrin Killed: 59,000 (90,000 total)
TOTAL KILLED: 113,000 (198,000 total)

****

The "total" number will successively be added up over time to show an overall death toll for all countries that participate in the battles of the Austro-Hungarian military. The first number is representative of the death toll for a single update.

[TremblingBlue]

Really well presented.

What have you done to your screenshots? I like the effect.

[MastahCheef117]

@TremblingBlue: Thank you I use a program called "Smilla Enlarger" (however cheesy it may be) that allowed me to focus in and enlargen certain parts of pictures (taken with Fraps), and I then use the "sharpen" or "default" setting to slightly change the look.

Expect an update today! I was trying to type one the night before, but there was a power outage just as I was about to finish it :| I will re-do it as best I can.

[MastahCheef117]

Chapter V
The Bulgarian Ruse

General von Wurm's "Glorious Assault" on the tightly held and not-easily-given up Serbian town of Bor gave the men of the Army a much-needed boost of morale. This also gave the commanders a new view for the war - if Serbia and Montenegro could quickly be defeated, then these men fighting in the south could quickly be transferred north to fight the biggest of battles against Imperial Russia.

It was on February 3 that it was believed the Fall of Serbia was within the grasp of the Austrian commanders. Bulgaria had had strong ties with the Dual Monarchy - despite this, she had fought hand-in-hand with their western Serbian allies against the Ottomans just several years previous. Now, being confronted by Austrian diplomats, they were being asked to join the Central Powers. The agreement was simple: should the Bulgarians join the alliance with Germany and Austria-Hungary, and contributed to the fighting against Serbia, Bulgaria would gain swathes of territory in southeastern Serbia, and would also receive economic support and training for their small army of their army, which was in comparison equipped and supplied in an inferior manner. The Bulgarians accepted the next day, on the 4th.



Bulgaria, allied with Austria-Hungary and at war with the Serb-Montenegrin Menace

It was this very same day that the troops occupying Bor, supported by men to the north in Ruma and Petrovgrad, began the assault on Belgrade. The city was pounded into ruins during an extensive bombardment running from the early morning hours of the fourth - following the comfirmation of the Bulgarian alliance acceptance - and continued through the 8th. By the end of this massive bombardment involving over 250 3 inch (75 mm), 4.1 inch (105 mm), and 6 inch (150 mm) Austrian guns, the Serbian capital was in absolute ruins. 170,000 men of Field Marshal von Gyllenband's Army fell upon the poorly-equipped 32,000 remaining defenders of the city. This huge numerical advantage, however, was not as it seemed: the Serbs fought for their very freedom, their jobs, their wives and family. Many would fight to the death. The city was encircled and pounded continuously each day, and constant Austrian charges and attacks wore down the desperate defenders.



Austrian soldiers participating in
an attack on Belgrade, February 10

With the defenders ground into a pulp, the city was surrendered on February 23. Austrian morale skyrocketed to an all-time high, and General von Bojna was awarded the Military Merit Cross (2nd Class) at his headquarters by Emperor Francis.

Following this grave Serbian defeat, the destruction of the Serbian Army came swift and devastatingly effective. Austrian troops chased their Serbian enemies south across the mountains and hills of their collapsing country, and troops surrendered en masse. It seemed the end of Serbia was in plain sight.

However, more events were developing on other fronts. In Russia, the arrival of another 30,000 men from the Italian border had provoked (once again) an assault on the Russian-occupied town of Krakow. This time, however, it seemed successful - the Russians, caught unawares from Austrians now approaching from the southwest, were nearly encircled in the initial stages of combat and barely managed to survive total destruction. By March 30, the Russians were outnumbered almost four-to-one.



The so-called "Last Attack on the Fortifications of Krakow"

However, these advances were setback by new diplomatic disasters. Following the German invasion of a pro-Entente Belgium, Italy had protested and withdrawn from the Triple Alliance. Now, wooed by France and tempted by the capture of "proper Italian" Austran territories, the country declared war on the Central Powers. The few thousand troops stationed on the border in the Alps - commanded by Lieutenant General von Schilawsky - mounted immediate offensives on the poorly-prepared Italians, and were met with initial great success.

And, with cries from Grand Admiral Haus that his fleet was being "neglected in turn for the Army's needs", four new battleships were ordered and laid down in Pola and Split. These ships - called the Ersatz Monarch-class - would mount 13.8 inch (350 mm) cannons in four turrets (two possessing three guns, and two possessing two guns, for a total of ten) and would displace more than 5,000 tons more than their Tegetthoff sisters. Not only would these ships significantly boost Austria-Hungary's diplomatic and overseas strength, but it would, in times of war, allow the Imperial Navy to do battle with the Russian Black Sea Fleet, as well as other Mediterranean navies (like Italy or France). However, to Admiral Haus' dismay, these ships would not be commissioned into the fleet until mid-1918.



Battleship Poltava, flagship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet

On April 2, Krakow was taken from the Russians. It was the first major victory against the Russian Army in the war. Troops marched through the ruined streets of Krakow in victory.

And on April 7, news reached the commanders fighting in Serbia and Montenegro that the Albanian government was allowing refuge to the remains of the Serbian army. In a bid to gain the territory of the tiny nation, and to show to all the power of Austria-Hungary, Emperor Francis ordered that war be declared against the small southern neighbor.



War is begun with Albania, April 7, 1915

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STATUS REPORT
As of April 7 1915
Est. Austro-Hungarian Killed: 17,000 (82,000 total)
Est. Russian Killed: 44,000 (87,000 total)
Est. Serbian & Montenegrin Killed: 78,000 (168,000 total)
Est. Italian Killed: 21,000
TOTAL KILLED: 160,000 (358,000 total)

****

[Falconette]

These 3 HQ divisions in Krakow look funny - AI made a big mistake) By the way - is it already 1915? Wow, you're fast...maybe your updates would be less "global"? Only 4 updates for 1914 - your AAR is going to be too short

assault on the Russian town of Krakow

I think it should be called "Russian-occupied" - you know that originally this town was Austrian

[MastahCheef117]

@Falconette: Indeed, I was thinking about how I was already speeding through it. I think once Montenegro & Albania are completely conquered (shouldn't take more than a month or two), I'll get real in-depth with the battles against Italy and Russia, not to mention some naval encounters as my fleet ventures out. The latter probably won't occur on a major scale until I get enough capital ships. But you never know And as you will see, this update will also cover a broad period of time, but they WILL be shorter in the future as I expand upon single battles with fluff and so on.

****

Chapter VI
To Capture a Port of the Italian Variety

The recent victories against Serbia and Montenegro was freeing up large numbers of troops to be trained north towards the Italian and Russian fronts, and the former of which was in dire need of these troops. This front had been, with the diverting of troops south and east against their Russian and Serb enemies, horribly neglected. Now, the Italian Army, under command of Lieutenant General von Schilawsky, was under command of 80,000 men of poor quality and was across the field of battle from 160,000 Italians, most of which were French-led. Schilawsky, in such a poor state, was given the objective of capturing Venice. Doing so would lead to his promotion.



Italian troops entrenched around Venice, May 1915

It was on May 22 when he began with his assault. 50,000 men, the core of his army, began the attack on Venice in a general direction from the northeast. Supporting his men offshore were all fifteen pre-dreadnoughts of the KuK Kriegsmarine - Schilawsky had asked for support from the navy's dreadnought battleships, but had been denied his request as the loss or damage of these ships were absolutely unacceptable. By the 30th, however, demoralization got the best of the attacking Austrians, and 20,000 men were pulled from the assault due to casualties and ineptitude.



The 20,000 men under the direct command of von Schilawsky fail in battle, leaving the battle in a
numerically even state in favor of the Italian defenders

By June 2, with news of the bulk of the Italian Navy sortieing from Taranto, and not wishing to lose fifteen battleships in a single afternoon, Admiral Haus recalled the battleships back to port. Now without support of any kind from the navy, and with rapidly increasing casualties, von Schilawsky reluctantly ended his assault by the 5th.



SMS Radetzky, one of the last pre-dreadnoughts,
"flagship of the Pre-Dreadnoughts" and of Admiral von Montecuccoli's
Reserve Battle Squadron

Against the Russians, the war had been dealt a large setback. Przemsyl had fallen from an overwhelming attack by Russian troops - even with the retaking of Tarnow, this was a great defeat. General von Denta, reorganizing from his numerous assaults on the previously Russian-held Krakow, pushed hard against the 230,000 Russians defending Przemsyl with 220,000 of his own in what could only be called the "Clash of the Titans". His rival, Russian Field Marshal Evert, was among the most skilled and trusted of Russian commanders - he had also participated in the stunning capture of Tarnow and Krakow and held the line against many Austrian counterattacks on the respective areas. The battle, so far the largest not only against the Russians but in the entire war, but was also the most costly - in the single day of battle and bombardment, 20,000 lives were lost on both sides. The next morning, the two armies broke combat.



The Second Battle of Przemsyl, the largest battle of
the war up to mid 1915

On June 12, tragedy struck the Empire and the army. As he observed his final attacks on the Montenegrin capital of Cetinje, General von Rhonfeld was killed by an enemy sniper with a single bullet just above the heart. He was replaced by General von Paar, an equally-skilled general of same rank. Though von Rhonfeld was to be surely and dearly missed, his new repalcement was to be anticipated to live up to and surpass his former's mistakes and defeats against the Serbs and their allies.

And it seemed he was fully able to live up to the pride of the Austro-Hungarian Army when he fully annexed and made defunct the Kingdom of Montenegro. Von Paar headed north, toward Italy, with 60,000 of his own men - another 80,000 would move northeast towards Russia, where the army began to suffer from a new defeat. Tarnopol, which had been previously untouched by the Russians, suffered from a massive and overwhelming attack that almost destroyed the entire city's garrison. Retreating south, the Austrians had barely put up a fight - the attack was "so sudden", said a survivor of the initial fighting, "the garrison had barely the time to scream to our allies to the south and west of our distress".

With defeat in the east, victory in the south, and stalemate in the west, the Austro-Hungarian Empire continued pushing through the destruction around it as it fought to stay alive in the seemingly unending wave of enemy soldiers.



Territorial situation of the Empire, as of July 2, 1915

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STATUS REPORT
As of July 2 1915
Est. Austro-Hungarian Killed: 32,000 (114,000 total)
Est. Russian Killed: 28,000 (115,000 total)
Est. Serbia & Montenegrin Killed: 60,000 (228,000 total)
Est. Italian Killed: 14,000 (35,000 total)
Est. Albanian Killed: 11,000
TOTAL KILLED: 145,000 (503,000 total)

[MastahCheef117]

Chapter VII
The Battle of Tarnopol

With victory having been acquired by von Schilawsky in Venice, the proud and celebrated commander was promoted to full General, and became undisputed commander of the Army of Italy. The capture of the large Italian port-city came as a great victory for Austria-Hungary and a humiliating defeat for Italy; Austria now had one port more from which to operate it's expanding navy, and vice versa in Italy's case.

When it came to the Eastern Front, however, the Austrians were spending more time defending than attacking. A total defeat at Tarnow was barely avoided by the arrival of 40,000 reinforcements, which warded off the 150,000 attacking Russians and prevented them from again taking the town. To the east, the Russian-held Tarnopol - last of the lost Austro-Hungarian provinces - was deemed of absolute vital importance to the nation, and Emperor Francis himself ordered that the area be retaken. The first to step up to the plate was Field Marshal von Gyllenband.

Gyllenband, recently promoted to his current rank of Field Marshal, was overall commander of the 1st Army, the forces fighting farther east in the Russian Front. In his quest to retake the Austrian town of Tarnopol, he brought with him, in a massive show of power and organizational skill, 290,000 Austrian troops, whereas his enemy, Field Marshal Grand Duke Nicholas defended the town with 110,000 of his own men. Severely outnumbered and surprised by the sudden Austrian attack, Field Marshal Nicholas immediately fell back into what remained of the city, and established a large network of entrenchments and fortified defenses, including large numbers of mortar pits, machine gun nests, and ambush points. The Austrians came into contact in the city proper on July 27.



Field Marshal Gyllenband launches his mass-assault on
Field Marshal Nicholas' defenders of the taken city of Tarnopol

Gyllenband's men were initially taken by surprise at how well prepared the Russians were. However, Gyllenband countered this by halting the primary attack and initiating a three-day bombardment (1), utilizing all of his 572 guns under his command. It was with this bombardment that brought the Russian numbers down to 100,000 - attrition started hacking away at their numbers as well. On August 2, as the Austrians began making their first major advances into the city, the Russians were tunneling 10,000 of their own men into the city defenses, in an effort to strengthen Nicholas' corps and to prolong the city's fall until proper reinforcements could arrive from the east. It would never come.

Gyllenband gave general orders to his soldiers, which included moving in columns on the side of roads when traveling, always having two comrades to assist themselves, and to never leave a Russian alive if they had a weapon that could kill. Slowly but surely, the Russians abandoned their trenches and fortifications and retreated deeper into the city. On August 4, another 20,000 Russians arrived from the north, further bolstering the city's defenses. Again, however, these efforts at defense would be in vain.



Nicholas, Grand Duke and Field Marshal, commander
of the defense of Tarnopol

On August 7, Nicholas had evacuated his headquarters fifty miles east of the city. With messengers arriving of his men's suffering and widespread casualties as street by street fell to the Austrians, Nicholas ordered a general retreat east, and the abandonment of the hard-fought-for city of Tarnopol. As Austrian soldiers saw before their very eyes Russian troops breaking off and running for the hills, they knew they had won.

As the Austrians quickly dug into the ruined city, with fresh supplies and rations flowing to their positions, they quickly came under a counterattack from 200,000 Russians under General Bekman. The attack was almost immediately thwarted; captured Russian equipment, coupled with battle-hardened and well equipped Austrians mowed down entire companies of Russians before the enemy realized their mistake and retreated.



A once heavily-populated area of Tarnopol, now absolute ruins

The battle was viewed as, so far, the greatest victory of Austria-Hungary since the start of the conflict. Celebrations were held nationwide over the great victory the soldiers of the Empire achieved against the invading Russians. Soon, it was believed, Sevastopol would be Austrian. But that would have to wait.

To the west, the 160,000 men of von Denta's Army(2) attacked, in unison with another 200,000 Germans from the north, the Russian province of Lublin. The area was very hard-fought-for, and for the first time during the war, Austrian and German troops fought alongside one another, and successfully at that.



360,000 troops of the Armies of the Central Powers attacking Lublin in unison

The attack beginning on August 19, it would end by August 23, with the Russians having received torturous casualties. With the Germans and Austrians securing more and more victories against the Russian Empire, one could but hope that the war could, at the slightest chance, be over before the leaves fell from the trees.

****

(1) The second bombardment had been preceded by a 12-hour bombardment, as von Gyllenband did not believe the Russians were well-enough prepared for his coming assault
(2) General von Denta commands the smaller but more seasoned and victorious 2nd Army, which spans the western half of the front line with Russia

****

STATUS REPORT
As of August 23 1915
Est. Austro-Hungarian Killed: 20,000 (134,000 total)
Est. Russian Killed: 57,000 (172,000 total)
Est. Italian Killed: 25,000 (60,000 total)
Est. Albanian Killed: 5,000 (16,000 total)
TOTAL KILLED: 107,000 (610,000 total)

[Ivir Baggins]

Hang on. You said Gyllenband commanded the 2nd Army. Now you say Denta commands the 2nd army. Which armies are which?

[MastahCheef117]

Hang on. You said Gyllenband commanded the 2nd Army. Now you say Denta commands the 2nd army. Which armies are which?

Woops, typo von Denta commands the 2nd, while Gyllenband commands the 1st. My mistake

[Falconette]

Great, you're doing well against the Russians. Maybe some words about Western and Turkish fronts to highlight the things more global?

[Soulstrider]

Nice progress, I am ashamed to say that I once tried Austria-Hungary and the Empire totally collapsed after massive partisan revolts.

Also I agree with Falconette, a bit of focus on the other fronts would be quite welcome.

[MastahCheef117]

@ Falconette: Will do This particular update will be largely focused on other fronts (but will include some domestic events), and future updates will be largely domestic, but will include some achievements and updates on the fronts the Germans are fighting on
@ Soulstrider: Thanks

****

Chapter VIII
Occurrences on Other Fronts of War

The war for Austria-Hungary's survival, and by extension, it's prosperity and expansion, was not viewed as important on other fronts as it actually was.

The particular progress of Germany's fronts were very positive, but not at successful as originally planned. A failed German advance into Russian Lithuania and Latvia - with the goal of seizing Jelgava and Riga - had ended up with the loss of nearly 30,000 Germans in a master encirclement conducted by Russian general Brusilov, who allowed the capture of the two port cities and then quickly cut them off from supply. It was one of the first Russian victories against Germany in the war, and gave hope to the Russians and bolstered the army's faltering morale. In Germany, it was viewed as an invonvenience - most of northern and western Russian Poland had fallen (albeit with help from General von Denta and his 2nd Army) under the might of the Germany Army, and the brilliant general who was placed in command of the eastern front, Paul von Hindenburg. Hindenburg had, in a single week of combat, taken Warsaw and all hopes the Russians had of retaining their hold on the whole of Poland. Any other general would have spent weeks, if not months, attempting to circle and lay siege to the city.



Situation on the Eastern Front along the German front lines, August 1915

On the waters of the Baltic and the North Sea, the German Kaiserliche Marine was fairing quite well against the numerically superior Royal Navy. Despite having lost a battlecruiser and a light cruiser(1) in the early stages of the war, the High Seas Fleet had still been able to bring to battle a small detachment of the Grand Fleet in December 1914, in which the British dreadnought HMS Thunderer had been sunk under the 11 inch guns of Germany's first battlecruiser, SMS Von der Tann.

Before the British could retaliate, a massive thunderstorm swept over the western North Sea, occluding the skies and preventing the British from hunting down the German Fleet. It was viewed as a horrible and humiliating defeat in Britain; and a total, massive victory in Germany.



HMS Thunderer, an Orion class dreadnought commissioned in 1912. Despite her
youth, her 12 inch (300 mm) belt armor was easily penetrated by
the 11 inch (280 mm) shells of SMS Von der Tann

However, shortly after this British naval defeat, the British retaliated in an amphibious landing, the first of the war. Codenamed Operation Black Eagle, 20,000 men of the 6th and 9th Australian Divisions would land near Kiel, and would sink and destroy as many submarines as possible while they were still docked. The capture of the port would prevent the Germans from using it and would force them to pull troops from the front lines in France and Belgium to deal with the landing. However, it was not as it was expected. The U-boats at anchor quickly threw off their lines and dived once out of port - just a single boat was sunk at anchor. The weather was cold and dark - at 7:30 am - and just a single division, the 9th, could come ashore. Supplies were lost in the landings and weapons were jammed from the sands and rocks from the beach.

The worst, however, was yet to come. Soon, arriving from the garrison in Berlin were the 37th Infantry and 7th Guard Infantry divisions, who immediately pushed the 9th back from it's position in Lubeck. By this point, the 6th Australians had also landed, but suffered from lack of a supply train - the British fleet had departed for fuel and ammunition, and for the single reason that the High Seas Fleet could attack at any time from Heligoland and Wilhelmshaven.



The so-called "Australian Problem". The Australians, without
a constant line of supplies, fought conservatively
and courageously against the determined Germans

To the south, the war against the French was going well. Luxemburg had fallen - not surprisingly - within just the first few days of the war. Most of eastern Wallonia had been taken, and the Belgians had bled themselves dry along the defenses the Germans had in place in a series of desperate and ineffective counterattacks.

In late August of 1914, the Germans had launched a massive offensive across the River Rhine, with the goal of pushing the French out of their part of Alsace-Lorraine and Longwy. It was mostly a success, but the French still controlled Nancy, Colmar, and the surrounding areas. In an attempt to distract the Germans and to bring the front to a stand still, the French launched an attack on Freiburg. The Germans, unsuspecting and not believing such an attack would happen, were taken aback and retreated. However, before the French could reinforce the taken German city, 150,000 Germans counterattacked against the small-in-number French captors. The Germans succeeded in retaking the city, denouncing any French beliefs that the city could at all remain French for a long period of time.



The Western Front and Germany's Situation, August 1915

The annexation of Albania took place on August 27, when the Austrians finally defeated the remnants of the Albanian Army outside of Tirana. With the need for troops in the south no longer present, the 110,000 men that had once been fighting the Serbs and Montenegrins and were still present in the Balkans were quickly split into two corps and sent west and northeast, to fight in Italy and Russia, respectively.

The next day, SMS Szent Istvan completed her trials and was made a fully-commissioned ship in the Imperial Navy. Now possessing four dreadnoughts to Italy's other four - the battleships RN Leonardo da Vinci, RN Giulio Cesare, RN Dante Alighieri, and the new super-dreadnought RN Conte di Cavour. With the Austro-Hungarian and Italian Royal Navies now more or less at an equilibrium, with the exception in the number of armored cruisers (2), Grand Admiral Haus began planning for a naval operation that would seek out and attempt to destroy the Italian fleet.



SMS Szent Istvan (foreground), SMS Tegetthoff (middleground)
and SMS Veribus Unitis (background) in Pola, late August 1915. The fourth of the
class, SMS Prinz Eugen, was overseeing the capture
and repair of the ports of Tirana and Cetinje

In the early morning hours of September 1, 40,000 Germans on the Italian Front captured the city of Bologna in the face of almost 80,000 Italian and French soldiers. A crushing and humiliating defeat for the former, it was expected that the arrival of 60,000 men from the Balkans would see to the destruction and dismantling of the Kingdom of Italy.

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(1) - The battlecruiser Goeben and light cruiser Breslau had been chased into hiding by the British Mediterranean Fleet, where the two ships were transferred to the Ottoman Navy
(2) - as of September 1 1915, Italy had in commission ten armored cruisers to Austria-Hungary's three

STATUS REPORT
As of September 1 1915
Est. Austro-Hungarian Killed: 1,000 (135,000 total)
Est. Russian Killed: 2,000 (174,000 total)
Est. Italian Killed: 7,000 (67,000 total)
Est. Albanian Killed: 2,000 (18,000 total)
TOTAL KILLED: 12,000 (622,000 total)