1st Army (Russian Empire)

Division of the Imperial Russian Army from 1914 to 1918 August 2020 1st Army Emblem of the Ministry of the Interior of the Russian Empire.svg July 1914 – beginning of 1918 Russian Empire 20px Imperial Russian Army Field army World War I Eastern Front Battle of Stallupönen Battle of Gumbinnen Battle of Tannenberg First Battle of the Masurian Lakes Battle of Łódź Bug–Narew Offensive Second battle of Przasnysz Narew Offensive General Aleksei BrusilovGeneral Lavr KornilovGeneral Paul von Rennenkampf The 1st Army (ru 1-я армия 1-ya armiya) was an army-level command of the Russian Imperial Army created during World War I. The First Army, commanded by General Paul von Rennenkampf, invaded East Prussia at the outbreak of war in 1914 along with the Second Army commanded by General Alexander Samsonov.Patrick Murphy The Victories and Defeats of the Russian Army: 1914 http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wwi/articles/russianarmy1914.aspx MilitaryHistoryOnline.com 6 March 2006 7 September 2012 28 March 2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20170328150843/http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wwi/articles/russianarmy1914.aspx dead After declaring war on the German Empire, the Russian Empire had been able to mobilize very quickly. All Russian forces were put under the command of Grand Duke Nikolai and his Quartermaster General Yuri Danilov. The invading forces made a determined and speedy attack on East Prussia. However, the First and Second Armies were stopped by the German Eighth Army, led by Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg and his chief of staff, General Erich Ludendorff. The German and Russian armies met at Tannenberg, where the Second Army was encircled and suffered complete destruction. Both the First and Second Armies suffered terrible casualties in one of the most comprehensive German victories of World War I. The First Army also suffered defeat at the First Battle of the Masurian Lakes in September 1914, which led to Rennenkampf's dismissal and replacement by Litvinov. First Army served under Northwestern front for the remainder of the war. Litvinov was replaced by Sokovnin in April 1917. Vannovski replaced Sokovnin in July and the army's final commander, von Notbek, took over in September 1917. Order of battle on formation The First Army consisted of the following units in August 1914: Organization of 1st Army in August 1914 Army Corps Division 1st Army 2nd Army Corps 26th Infantry Division 43rd Infantry Division 3rd Army Corps 25th Infantry Division 27th Infantry Division 4th Army Corps 30th Infantry Division 40th Infantry Division 20th Army Corps28th Infantry Division29th Infantry Division (Unattached)56th Infantry Division1st Guards Cavalry Division2nd Guards Cavalry Division1st Cavalry Division2nd Cavalry Division3rd Cavalry Division Military Fronts in which the 1st Army participated Northwestern Front (July 1914 – August 1915) Western Front (August 1915 – April 1916) Northern Front (April 1916 – July 1917) Southwestern Front (July – September 1917) Northern Front (September 1917 – the beginning of 1918) Engagements Battle of Stallupönen (17 August 1914) Battle of Gumbinnen (20 August 1914) Battle of Tannenberg (23–30 August 1914) First Battle of the Masurian Lakes (8–11 September 1914) Battle of Łódź (11 November – 6 December 1914) Commanders The 1st Army had the following commanders until it was demobilized in 1918. +1st Army From Until Rank Name 19 July 1914 18 November 1914 General of the Cavalry Paul von Rennenkampf 5 December 1914 2 April 1917 General of the Cavalry Aleksandr Litvinov 12 April 1917 25 April 1917 Lieutenant General Ilya Odishelizde 22 April 1917 30 July 1917 Lieutenant General Mikhail Sokovin 31 July 1917 9 September 1917 Lieutenant General Gleb Vannovsky 9 September 1917 November 1917 Lieutenant General Vladimir von Notbek See also List of Imperial Russian Army formations and units References Category:Military units and formations established in 1914 Category:1914 establishments in the Russian Empire Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1918 01