Siege of Przemyśl
The siege of Przemyśl[a] was the longest siege in Europe during the First World War.[4] The siege was a crushing defeat of the Austro-Hungarian Army by the Russian Army. Przemyśl was a fortress-town and stronghold on the River San in what is now southeastern Poland. The investment of Przemyśl began on 16 September 1914 and was briefly suspended on 11 October, due to an Austro-Hungarian offensive. The siege resumed again on 9 November and the Austro-Hungarian garrison surrendered on 22 March 1915, after holding out for a total of 133 days.[1] The siege has been referred to as "Austria-Hungary's Stalingrad".[5][6]
For other uses, see Battle of Przemyśl (disambiguation).Background[edit]
In August 1914, Russian armies moved against both German East Prussia and one of Austria-Hungary's largest provinces, Galicia, straddling the present-day border between Poland and Ukraine. Its advance into Germany was soon repulsed but its Galician campaign was more successful. General Nikolai Ivanov overwhelmed the Austro-Hungarian forces under Conrad von Hötzendorf during the Battle of Galicia, and the whole Austrian front fell back over 160 kilometres (100 mi) to the Carpathian Mountains. The fortress at Przemyśl was the only Austrian post that held out and by 28 September, was completely behind Russian lines. The Russians were now in a position to threaten the German industrial region of Silesia, making the defense of Przemyśl of importance to the Germans as well as the Austro-Hungarians.
50 kilometres (30 mi) of new trenches were dug and 1,000 km (650 mi) of barbed wire were used to make seven new lines of defence around the perimeter of the town. Inside the fortress, a military garrison of 127,000, as well as 18,000 civilians, were surrounded by six Russian divisions. Przemyśl reflected the nature of the Austro-Hungarian Empire – orders of the day had to be issued in fifteen languages. Austrians, Poles, Jews and Ruthenians (Ukrainians) were together in the besieged town, that was hit constantly with artillery fire, and as the toll of dead and sick and wounded rose, and starvation threatened, so did mutual distrust and ethnic tension.[7]
Second siege[edit]
By the end of October, the German and Austro-Hungarian armies were retreating west after their reversals in the Battle of the Vistula River. On 4 November, civilians were ordered to leave Przemyśl. On 10 November, the second siege started.[8]: 354–355 The Russian 11th Army (General Andrei Nikolaevich Selivanov) took up the siege operations. Selivanov did not order any frontal assaults as Dimitriev had, and instead settled to starve the garrison into submission. By mid-December, the Russians were pounding the fortress with ceaseless artillery fire seeking to compel the town's surrender. During the winter 1914–1915 the Habsburg armies continued to fight their way to the fortress. Months of fighting resulted in great losses, largely from frostbite and disease but relieving forces failed to reach the garrison at Przemyśl.
In February 1915, Boroevic led another relief effort towards Przemyśl. By the end of February, all relief efforts having been defeated, Hötzendorf informed Hermann Kusmanek von Burgneustädten that no further efforts would be made. Selivanov was given sufficient artillery to reduce the fortress. The Russians overran the northern defenses on 13 March. An improvised line of defense held up the Russian attacks long enough for Kusmanek to destroy anything left in the city that could be of use to the Russians once captured. On March 19 Kusmanek ordered an attempt to break out but his sallies were repulsed and he was forced to retreat back into the city. With nothing useful left within the city, Kusmanek had no choice but to surrender. On 22 March, the remaining garrison of 117,000 surrendered to the Russians. Among the captured were nine generals, ninety-three senior staff officers, 2,500 other officers,[9][10] and the Hungarian war poet Geza Gyoni.
Mail communications[edit]
Airmail flights from Przemyśl during both sieges when airmail postcards, mostly military mail, were flown from the besieged city on twenty-seven flights. Following a forced landing, mail from one flight was confiscated by the Russians and sent to Saint Petersburg for postal censorship and onward transmission. Balloon mail, on some manned but mainly unmanned paper balloons, was also carried out of the city.[12] Pigeon mail was also used to send messages out of the city.[13]