Russian soldiers charging across a field into battle on the Eastern Front, ca. 1916 (Likely staged)
Russian soldiers charging across a field into battle on the Eastern Front, ca. 1916 (Likely staged) Today 107 years ago, on July 3, 1916, the Russian Army launched the Baranovichi Offensive on the Eastern Front. To support their Allies at Verdun and on the Somme, in April 1916, the Russians began planning for a major offensive in Galicia against the Austro-Hungarians - the Brusilov Offensive. To support this operation and prevent Austro-Hungarian and German troops from being transferred to Galicia, the Russians planned another offensive further north in the Baranovichi area in modern-day Belarus. This supportive operation were to be carried out by the Russian 4th Army under General Ragoza, who was under the general command of General Evert. However, from the beginning General Evert was against this operation, favoring a defensive approach. On June 4, 1916, General Brusilov launched his offensive in Galicia and broke through the Austrian lines, capturing the city of Lutsk by June 8. Gen...