For too long the eastern front in World War I has remained, in Winston Churchill's estimation, "the unknown war." This book examines one of the critical campaigns of the war on the eastern front. With Austria-Hungary threatened by a possible Russian advance through the Carpathian Mountains into Hungary, Germany came to her ally's rescue. The German Chief of the General Staff, Erich von Falkenhayn, decided to commit a new army in an offensive to counter this threat. Headed by August von Mackensen and his chief of staff Hans von Seeckt, the German Eleventh Army, assisted by the Austro-Hungarian Third and Fourth Armies, shattered the Russian defenses between Gorlice and Tarnow. Advancing through the hole created, Mackensen's forces outflanked the Russian forces in the Carpathians, compelling their retreat. The offensive was steadily extended until both the fortress of Przemysl and the capital of Austrian Galicia, Lemberg, were back in the hands of the Central Powers. Turning north, "Mackensen's Phalanx," in concert with other German and Austro-Hungarian forces, was able to overrun Russian Poland by the end of August 1915. Dinardo argues that the Germans were able to accomplish this by a combination of normal infantry tactics combined with the judicious use of heavy artillery, aided by aerial reconnaissance and improved means of communication. DiNardo also suggests that the campaign marked the emergence of August von Mackensen as one of Germany's most able field commanders. Breakthrough is the first full English language study of one of the most remarkable campaigns of World War I.
Length: 67 Minutes
Lecture Date: May 6, 2010
