Attack of the Dead Men
Battle at Osowiec Fortress during WWI
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Key Takeaways
- The Attack of the Dead Men , or the Battle of Osowiec Fortress , was a battle of World War I that took place at Osowiec Fortress (in present-day northeastern Poland), at 4:00 AM on August 6, 1915.
- While coughing up blood and often pieces of their inner organs, the surviving Russian soldiers covered their faces with cloths, counter-attacked, and routed the German troops.
- Initially penned for seizure by German forces in September 1914, the fortress was again attacked in February and March 1915.
- German planning The German command opted to employ chemical warfare, using chlorine and bromine gases to flush out the Russian defenders and ensure an easy capture of the fortress.
- The use of gas was intended to dispose of the Russian garrison, which lacked adequate gas protection or masks.
The Attack of the Dead Men, or the Battle of Osowiec Fortress, was a battle of World War I that took place at Osowiec Fortress (in present-day northeastern Poland), at 4:00 AM on August 6, 1915.
The incident received its grim name from the bloodied, corpse-like appearance of the Russian combatants after German artillery had bombarded them with a mixture of poison gases, chlorine and bromine. While coughing up blood and often pieces of their inner organs, the surviving Russian soldiers covered their faces with cloths, counter-attacked, and routed the German troops.
Background
The Osowiec Fortress, located 23 kilometers from the border with East Prussia, was strategically positioned to protect the vital corridor between the Nemen and Vistula-Bug rivers. Initially penned for seizure by German forces in September 1914, the fortress was again attacked in February and March 1915. In early July 1915, under the command of Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg, a third attempt to capture the fortress was undertaken as part of a wider German offensive.
German planning
The German command opted to employ chemical warfare, using chlorine and bromine gases to flush out the Russian defenders and ensure an easy capture of the fortress. By late July 1915, 30 gas artillery batteries had been deployed to the German front lines, each equipped with several thousand gas shells. The use of gas was intended to dispose of the Russian garrison, which lacked adequate gas protection or masks.
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