![]() The Eighth Army in East Prussia would go to war with barely 10 per cent of this total." The total strength of the fully mobilised German Army in 1914 amounted to 1,191 battalions, the great majority of which would be deployed against France. In the east, limited German forces would defend against any Russian attack until more forces became available from the west, fresh from victory over the French. According to Prit Buttar, "In combination with his own strong desire to fight an offensive war featuring outflanking and encircling movements, Schlieffen went on to develop his plan for a sweeping advance through Belgium. Germany entered World War I largely following the Schlieffen Plan. Although the battle actually took place near Allenstein ( Olsztyn), Hindenburg named it after Tannenberg, 30 km (19 mi) to the west, in order to avenge the Teutonic Knights' defeat at the First Battle of Tannenberg 500 years earlier. The almost miraculous outcome brought considerable prestige to Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg and his rising staff-officer Erich Ludendorff. It is also notable for the failure of the Russians to encode their radio messages, broadcasting their daily marching orders in the clear, which allowed the Germans to make their movements with the confidence they would not be flanked. The battle is particularly notable for fast rail movements by the German Eighth Army, enabling them to concentrate against each of the two Russian armies in turn, first delaying the First Army and then destroying the Second before once again turning on the First days later. A series of follow-up battles ( First Masurian Lakes) destroyed most of the First Army as well and kept the Russians off balance until the spring of 1915. The battle resulted in the almost complete destruction of the Russian Second Army and the suicide of its commanding general, Alexander Samsonov. The Battle of Tannenberg, also known as the Second Battle of Tannenberg, was fought between Russia and Germany between 23 and 30 August 1914, the first month of World War I. This had even had an impact on the outcome of the First Battle of the Marne.Vivat ribbon commemorating the Battle of Tannenberg, showing Wilhelm II and " Hindenburg the victor of Tannenberg" This was correct in many ways, as the defeat of the Russians had resulted in a significant reduction in forces on the Western Front. However, the Grand Duke Nicholai, commander-in-chief of the Russian Army, stated that it was “an honour to make such a sacrifice”. ![]() The defeat was so great that Britain decided to keep it from the public. ![]() The defeat was so catastrophic that Samsonov committed suicide. Of the 150,000 men in the Russian Second Army, just 10,000 managed to escape, with 30,000 becoming casualties and more than 95,000 taken prisoner. In fact, many Russian soldiers threw their rifles away and surrendered. Samsonov had realised the severity of his situation on 28th August, but his attempts to breakout near Tannenburg ended in disaster. Other German units were also moved to the Tannenberg region and the Germans surrounded the Russian Second Army. The 1 Corps were then moved into a position that would prevent the Second Army from retreating to Russia, which effectively trapped Samsonov. General Francois, who commanded the 1 Corps, captured Soldau and further weakened the Russian lines of communication. ![]() The German’s attack on Samsonov’s Second Army took place on 27th August and was very successful. The Germans, on the other hand, were finding it easy to intercept Russian messages, including one informing Samsonov of Rennenkampf’s marching plan - stating outright that Samsonov would not receive help from the First Army - and another stating the routes Samsonov planned to use to attack the Germans. Struggling with lack of communications, Samsonov was unaware of what Hoffman had planned and he also didn’t that the Russian First Army had halted its advances - he assumed Rennenkampf was moving through East Russia as planned. Ludendorff and Hindenburg were both credited for the events at Tannenberg but it was actually Colonel Maximilian Hoffman who had detailed how they should surround Russia’s Second Army. By 22nd August, the Eastern Front was tabled and the Germans started to surround Samsonov’s army.
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