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The massive offensives on the Eastern Front during 1915 are too often overshadowed by the events in Western Europe, but the scale and ferocity of the clashes between Imperial Germany, Hapsburg Austria-Hungary, and Tsarist Russia were greater than anything seen on the Western Front and ultimately as important to the final outcome of the war. Now, with the work of internationally renowned Eastern Front expert Prit Buttar, this fascinating story of the unknown side of the First World War is finally being told.
In Germany Ascendant, Buttar examines the critical events of 1915, as the German Gorlice–Tarnow Offensive triggered the collapse of Russian forces, coming tantalizingly close to knocking Russia out of the war altogether. Throughout the year, German dominance on the Eastern Front grew--but stubborn Russian resistance forced the continuation of a two-front war that would drain Germany's reserves of men and equipment. From the bitter fighting in the Carpathian Mountains, where the cragged peaks witnessed thousands of deaths and success was measured in feet and inches, to the sweeping advances through Serbia where the capital Belgrade was seized, to the almost medieval battle for the fortress of Przemysl, this is a staggeringly ambitious history of some the most important moments of the First World War.
Published | Mar 21 2017 |
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Format | Paperback |
Edition | 1st |
Extent | 464 |
ISBN | 9781472819376 |
Imprint | Osprey Publishing |
Illustrations | 16pp plate section in black and white |
Dimensions | 9 x 6 inches |
Series | General Military |
Short code | GNM |
Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
In this book Prit Buttar continues his analysis and narrative on what was happening on the Eastern Front in the Great War from his previous Collision of Empires: The War on the Eastern Front in 1914 [Osprey, 2014].
He continues to make the point that most scholars focus on the dreadful suffering and stalemate on the Western Front without any consideration of what was happening on the Eastern Front. This meticulous survey reveals that the Central Powers were making measurable progress to the east with the GoliceTarnow Offensive which led to the retreat of Russian forces from Poland and the occupation of Serbia, being two examples of their advances. These successes were achieved at the expense of massive human losses, basically unreported in the west. However, amidst this success, Prit Buttar does stress that leadership weaknesses on the part of the Central Powers balanced mismanagement on a massive scale by the Russians, leading to an absence of a final success for either side.
Prit Buttar communicates his narrative and associated analysis in a very clear manner. This is a book for scholars with a focused interest. By contrast the enormity of the detail will deter the casual enquirer unless they are carefully guided to begin by exploring the opening and concluding chapters. These very carefully both set the scene and also explain what had happened over that year. With that preparation the interested reader might then explore some or all of the key events of the 1915 campaigns in the east.
Trevor James, The Historian
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