Battle of Smorgon

Battle of Smorgon
Part of the Eastern Front of World War I

Trenches near Smorgon, April 1917
Date15 September 1915 – 4 December 1917
(2 years, 2 months, 2 weeks and 5 days)
Location
Result Russian victory
Territorial
changes
  • Smorgon successfully defended
  • Russian offensive failed
Belligerents
Russian Empire  German Empire
Commanders and leaders
Anton Denikin German Empire Otto von Garnier
Units involved
Western Front
German Empire 6th German Cavalry Corps
Strength
Initial: 4 cavalry batallions
7 infantry battalions
Final: 16 infantry divisions
2 cavalry divisions
~900 guns
6 infantry divisions
4 cavalry divisions

The Battle of Smorgon (Belarusian: Абарона Смаргоні; Russian: Оборона Сморгони) was an 810-day battle near the town of Smorgon along the Eastern Front of World War I.[1] It was during this battle that Russian troops successfully halted the enemy's advance for the first time since the Great Retreat. In addition, chemical weapons were used for the first time on the Eastern Front in the Smorgon region.[1]

The settlement was completely destroyed and went down in history as a "dead city".[2]

  1. ^ a b "Defence of Smorgon". National Library of Belarus. Archived from the original on 2021-12-02. Retrieved 2024-08-11.
  2. ^ Е.К. Новик, И.Л. Качалов, Н.Е. Новик (2011). История Беларуси с древнейших времён до 2010 г. Минск: «Вышэйшая школа».{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)