Battle of Muş

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Battle of Muş
Part of Caucasus Campaign

Ottoman soldiers surrender
Date3-23 August 1916
Location
Turkey
Result Russian victory[2][3][4][5]
Belligerents
 Ottoman Empire

Russia Russian Empire

Commanders and leaders
Ottoman Empire Ahmed Izzet Pasha
Ottoman Empire Mustafa Kemal Pasha

Russia Nikolai Istomin

Russia Nikolai Yudenich
Russia Tovmas Nazarbekian[6]
Strength
Second Army
Kurdish Tribesmen
74,000-120,000 men[7]		 Russian Caucasus Army
Armenian Fedayi
50,000 men
Casualties and losses
56,000-60,000 killed, wounded or captured[8][9][7] 20,000 killed, wounded and captured

The Battle of Muş, also known as the Ognot campaign, took place during World War I in the southeastern Anatolian region of Turkey. General Mustafa Kemal (later known as Atatürk) played in this battle.[10] The battle ended in a Russian victory, with Mus captured by the Russians after prolonged fighting[11]and the Ottoman Empire's second army was almost completely destroyed.[4]

Battle[edit]

After the Russians completely defeated the third army in a series of major battles in the northern theater of operations, and also occupied Bitlis in the south. This forced the Ottoman command to transfer a huge part of the troops, including the Gallipoli victors, who defeated Russia's Western allies in the Battle of Gallipoli.

Having created a huge advantage in manpower (2.5 times), on August 3, the Turks launched a general offensive along the entire front. Russians abandoned Mush on August 6-8 during long battles, the Turks pressed on the entire front and in the fire direction the 1st Russian division completely defeated 4 Ottoman ones. Due to the remote front, the first part of the operation took place in very dangerous conditions for the Russians, in some parts it was necessary to repel an offensive against an enemy 3-4 times stronger[12]

The heroic resistance of the Russians, new types of mobile artillery did their job and the Turks suffered enormous losses as a result of the offensive.[13] Yudnich immediately took advantage of this and began to counterattack along the entire front.[14]

On August 23, the Russians took Mus and killed the Ottoman General Faik Pasha in battle[4]

Aftermath[edit]

The failure of the Turks in the south finally consolidated the superiority of Russia, the troops that won at Gallipoli were killed by Russian cannons.

After the battle, the second army was so drained of blood that it resembled a corps [4]

Notes and References[edit]

  1. ^ Kreiser, Klaus (2014). Atatürk: eine Biographie (in German). Beck. ISBN 978-3-406-66594-3.
  2. ^ Jaques, Tony (2006). Dictionary of Battles. Vol. 1, A–E. Greenwood Press. While Russian General Nikolai Yudenich seized Erzincan, Ahmet Izzet Pasha's Second Army advanced agains the Russian left flank, where his corps cammder Mustafa Kemal seized Bitlis and Mus. Yudenich counter-attacked and, after prolonged combat west of Lake Van, he retook Bitlis and the Turks abandoned Mus before winter ended the fighting
  3. ^ The International Military Digest Annual: A Review of the Current Literature of Military Science for 1915. New York City: The International Military Digest. 1916. p. 224. Noteworthy in this theater is the Russian success in recapturing Mush and Bitlis (Aug 25), which the Turks had won earlier in the month.
  4. ^ a b c d Олейников 2016, p. 177.
  5. ^ Herman, Gerald (1992). The Pivotal Conflict: A Comprehensive Chronology of the First World War, 1914-1919. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. p. 268. ISBN 0-313-22793-4
  6. ^ Monnier, Fabrice (9 April 2015). Atatürk. La naissance de la Turquie moderne: Naissance de la turquie moderne (in French). CNRS Editions. ISBN 978-2-271-08615-0. Le 2 août, le 16e corps de Mustafa Kemal, appuyé par des irréguliers kurdes, attaque à nouveau Muş et Bitlis. Menacé d'encerclement, le général russe Tovmas Nazarbekov évacue Bitlis le 5 août puis, quelques jours plus tard, Muş.
  7. ^ a b Олейников 2016, p. 259.
  8. ^ Керсновский А. А. История Русской армии. Часть IV. Глава XVI. Борьба на Кавказе
  9. ^ Алексей Олейников. Огнотская операция Кавказской армии — триумф русской гаубичной артиллерии, июль-август 1916 г.
  10. ^ Erickson, Edward J. (20 August 2013). Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4728-0458-7.
  11. ^ Encyclopedia Americana. Vol. 29. Danbury, Connecticut: Grolier. 2000. p. 300. ISBN 0-7172-0133-3. In any case, Yudenich was able to recapture Mus and Bitlis on August 24
  12. ^ Алексей Олейников. Огнотская операция Кавказской армии — триумф русской гаубичной артиллерии, июль-август 1916 г. // Битва гвардий. Дата обращения: 6 августа 2020
  13. ^ Allen W. E. D., Muratoff P. P. Caucasian Battlefields: A History of the Wars on the Turco-Caucasian Border. 1828—1921 (англ.). — Cambridge: CUP, 1953. — 614 p. — ISBN 978-1-108-01335-2.
  14. ^ Айрапетов О. Р. Участие Российской империи в Первой мировой войне (1914—1917): Серия из 4 книг. — М.: Кучково поле, 2014—2016

Literature[edit]

  • Олейников, Алексей (2016). Россия-щит Антанты. С предисловием Николая Старикова. St. Petersburg: Питер. ISBN 978-5-496-01795-4.
  • Allen W. E. D., Muratoff P. P. Caucasian Battlefields: A History of the Wars on the Turco-Caucasian Border. 1828—1921 (англ.). — Cambridge: CUP, 1953. — 614 p. — ISBN 978-1-108-01335-2
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