In 1914–1915, the Russian Empire forcibly deported local inhabitants from Russian-occupied areas of East Prussia to more remote areas of the empire, particularly Siberia. The official rationale was to reduce espionage and other resistance behind the Russian front lines.[1] As many as 13,600 people, including children and the elderly, were deported.[2] Due to difficult living conditions, the mortality rates were high, and only 8,300 people returned home after the war.[2]
| Russian atrocities in East Prussia in World War I | |
|---|---|
| Part of War crimes in World War I | |
 Map of military movements in East Prussia in 1914 | |
| Location | East Prussia, Germany |
| Date | 1914-1915 |
| Target | German civilians |
Attack type | Deportation, mass murder,[3] arson[4] |
| Deaths | At least c. 5,300 |
| Victims | 13,600 deported |
| Perpetrators | Imperial Russian Army |
The deportations had not received much attention from scholars, as they were overshadowed by the much larger refugee crisis in the Russian Empire[5] and the expulsion of Germans after World War II.[6]
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
buttarwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
kramerwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Watson, Alexander (2014). ""Unheard-of Brutality": Russian Atrocities against Civilians in East Prussia, 1914–1915". The Journal of Modern History. 86 (4): 780–825. doi:10.1086/678919.
- ^ Watson, Alexander (2014). ""Unheard-of Brutality": Russian Atrocities against Civilians in East Prussia, 1914–1915". The Journal of Modern History. 86 (4): 780–825. doi:10.1086/678919.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
perrinwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
leiserwas invoked but never defined (see the help page).