Page - 755 - in THE FIRST WORLD WAR - and the End of the Habsburg Monarchy, 1914 – 1918

The Czech Legion 755 On 30 June 1917, under the new Russian Commander-in-Chief of the South-West- ern Front, Aleksei Brusilov, an offensive began that bore the name of the Minister of War and the Navy Alexander Kerensky : the ‘Kerensky Offensive’. Brusilov intended to repeat his success at Olyka and Lutsk in June and July 1916. The Russian 11th Army was to attack in the direction of Zolochiv (Solotschiw) and topple the Imperial and Royal 2nd Army (Böhm-Ermolli). The Russian 7th Army was given the area around Berezhany (Bereschany) and the German South Army (Bothmer) as its target. After a few days, the Russian 8th Army was also to step up against the Imperial and Royal 3rd Army (Tersztyánszky), which was situated south of the Dniester River. The objectives were not very far-reaching, but if they were achieved, the Russian soldiers would regain their confidence in victory and the Kerensky government a high degree of approval. In some places, the Russians were hardly recognisable. Attempts had been amde to change many things in order to make the soldiers ready for war again. The military adminis- tration had been trawled for men that were fit to fight on the front, since around one million people were busy administering the war (aside from the 2.9 million people who kept the war going in the civilian sector). Whatever could be made available in terms of weapons and ammunition was sent to the western front. The treatment of soldiers had improved somewhat, at least action had begun to be taken against excessive beatings, which had been widespread. The creation of female so-called ‘battalions of death’, for which around 2,000 women volunteered in May 1917 alone,1765 was intended not only as a sign to women but also to be understood as a signal that the manliness of the war- rior was being called into question, and many other things. Ultimately, what mattered was whether the offensive was successful and the disintegration of the Russian Army stopped. At Berezhany, the Russians could not force their way through. German, Aus- tro-Hungarian and Turkish troops achieved a clear defensive victory. In the direction of Zolochiv, however, the Russians gained ground. Brusilov had gathered divisions on the offensive front that had not been influenced by the months-long propaganda of the Central Powers, either because they had proved to be resistant or because they had been in the reserve and hence not reached by the propaganda at the front.1766 On 30 June, the preliminary artillery fire commenced that was characteristic for offensives. Shortly thereafter, the Russians climbed out of their trenches and stormed the Aus- tro-Hungarian lines. After three days, some Imperial and Royal divisions showed signs of disintegration. There was a crisis in the Imperial and Royal 2nd Army, when parts of the 19th Infantry Division crossed over to the Russians. On 4 July, the Russian army report read : ‘The brave troops of the 4th Finnish Division as well as the Czecho-Slova- kian Brigade took possession of the heavily fortified enemy positions on the hills west and south-west of the village of Zborov and the fortified village of Korchilow, after they had broken through 3 enemy trench lines. The enemy withdrew to the other side