Page - 758 - in THE FIRST WORLD WAR - and the End of the Habsburg Monarchy, 1914 – 1918

758 Kerensky Offensive and Peace Efforts it, even if it was, at best, only half the truth. ‘It could be read in French newspapers that the 81st (“Iglau”) Infantry Division [had] deserted to the enemy in droves’, wrote Lance Corporal Robert Nowak to his mother ; he had gained knowledge of this information through official channels.1776 And the Grazer Tagblatt commented on the events of 6 July as follows : ‘Czech soldiers who during the three years of war have either deserted to the enemy or been captured by the Russians, form a brigade within the Russian army units, not to serve in the Russian hinterland but instead to raise their weapons at the front against their fatherland, against their national comrades. […] Perhaps this occurrence at Tborov is the most ignominious crime that has been committed in this war by the sons of Austria. We have known for a long time that the captive Czechs are not treated as enemies in Russia, but that they will sink so deep as to take part in an offensive on Austrian soil ordered by the English and the French  – this had to become clear at a time when the Russian regiments are being presented with red flags. Is that the thanks of the House of Libussa for the magnanimous deed of our Emperor ?’1777 The front had to be withdrawn. The 19th Infantry Division was substituted with German troops, and the crisis had then been mastered for the time being. On 6 July, however, the Russian 8th Army (Kornilov) advanced south of the Dniester as far as Stanislau and was able to force back the Imperial and Royal 3rd Army at Kalush (Kalusch). The cause was established as the failure of the predominantly Hungarian 15th Infantry Division. Reinforcements from the German South Army were also able to bring about a stabilisation here, until additional German troops could be brought in from Transylvania. In this case, it was not the members of the division that were reprimanded but instead the commanders. The Commander of the 3rd Army, General Tersztyánszky, was above all dismissed and replaced by the current Commander of the X Corps, General Křitek. The short-term failures of the troops of the Central Powers did not have any lasting effect on the situation on the Eastern Front, since already a few days later not only was the offensive power of the Russians exhausted but the countermeasures of the Central Powers also made themselves felt. Also in this case, however, the pattern of 1916 was retained : the army commander and other Austro-Hungarian commanders and chiefs of staff were relieved of their posts. German commanders and chiefs of staff were in- creasingly brought in. German divisions that had already been transferred to the east at the first signs of an impending Russian offensive were inserted into the front. Finally, on 19 July a counter-attack took place and hit the Russians, who were in the meantime on their last legs. The Eastern Front High Command forewent a stronger participation on the part of Imperial and Royal troops.1778 Kerensky and Brusilov had hoped that the offensive would initiate a lasting turna- round and also absorb something of the revolutionary potential. This, however, would have required a sweeping success  – and that was not achieved. After the brief consol-