Russia's Part in the World WarShumsky-Solomonov, C. M.
History
Russia's Part in the World War
Shumsky-Solomonov, C. M.
World War, 1914-1918 -- Soviet Union
[4] How preposterous is this figure of 1,200,000 men, supposed to have
been transferred by the Russians from Galicia to Warsaw, to oppose
Ludendorf, may be seen from the fact that only 3 railway lines run
from Galicia to Warsaw. It is not difficult to demonstrate that it is
impossible to carry 1,200,000 men on 3 railway lines within 2 weeks
(the offensive of the Germans against Warsaw began in the first days of
October, and the retreat began two weeks later, i. e., when the Russian
troops were transferred from Galicia to Warsaw).
One army corps requires 140-150 trains. The best road in Russia can at
most carry 52 trains in 24 hours in one direction. Hence, to entrain
a corps would require 3 days. Consequently the most that could be
entrained within 15 days would be 5 corps to each railway line. Thus,
all 3 roads combined might have been able to carry up to 15 corps, but
actually, of course, they carried less than that. But even if we allow
the computation of 15 corps to stand, we have but 500-600 thousand men,
and not 1,200,000 as Mr. Ludendorf unhesitatingly allots.
[5] According to figures submitted in 1916 by the army committee of
the German Reichstag, the German army lost during the first 12 months
of the War 604 thousand killed, 1,556,000 wounded, and 317 thousand
prisoners. This shows that the number of wounded is 2½ times the number
of killed.
[6] According to the statistics of the "Copenhagen Society," the
French Army lost 1,350,000 in killed, the British--700,000, the
Italian--330,000, and each of the remaining Allies--100,000 and less.
Appendix No. I
Ludendorf--Samsonov
1.) A careful perusal of Ludendorf's memoirs brings out the fact that
during the first Russian invasion of Eastern Prussia there participated
on the German side: the 1st, 17th, 20th and 1st Reserve Corps, the
3rd Reserve Division, the 6th Landwehr Brigade, Goltz's Division, the
garrisons of the Vistula fortresses,--Thorn, Kulm and Graudenitz, and a
brigade of cavalry. The German forces consisted, therefore, not of two
corps numbering 80,000 men but of more than 240,000, not counting the
masses of landsturm, which fact Ludendorf carefully conceals.
2.) The Russians, on the other hand, advanced into East Prussia not
fully mobilized, as this battle took place twenty-seven days after
the War was declared, and the Russian mobilization was only completed
three--four weeks later. Samsonov had no six army corps under his
command, but only 4 corps: the 1st, the 6th, the 13th and the 15th,
and, figuring even at 40,000 men per army corps, this force could not
have exceeded 160,000 men.
3.) It can be seen, therefore, that in this battle over 240,000
Germans were opposing 160,000 Russians at most. However, as a matter
of positive fact, the attack of the 240,000 Germans was directed
against two Russian corps only, the 1st and the 6th, i. e., at only
approximately 80,000 men.
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