Abstract
Reviewed by: Gregory Vitarbo, Meredith University, Raleigh, NC, USA
One of a comparatively small number of researchers producing English-language scholarship on the Dual Monarchy in the era of World War I, Graydon Tunstall builds upon his previous work to provide a meticulously researched account of the Austro-Russian front during the early months of the conflict. While the terrible Hapsburg losses in this theatre are common to accounts of the Great War, Tunstall provides greater insight and understanding regarding the imperatives that drove Austrian military decisions, while illustrating, in vivid detail, the consequences of those decisions. Drawing extensively upon archival records, official histories, memoirs and manuscripts, he effectively develops his central thesis that commander Conrad von Hotzendorf’s obsession with the liberation of Fortress Przemyśl through two sieges distorted Hapsburg strategic planning beyond all military logic. This obsession, a product of various military, political and diplomatic considerations, led to operational and tactical choices which were disastrous and, according to Tunstall, ultimately indefensible. The result was the largely useless sacrifice of 800,000 men, including, critically, much of the professional officer corps and NCOs of the pre-war royal and imperial army. Tunstall returns again and again to the same grim refrain in discussing Hapsburg efforts: ‘the fatal combinations of insufficient troop numbers, overextended front lines, unfavorable weather conditions, and impassable terrain’ constantly hampered operations, while ‘sickness, excessive physical exertions, and large numbers lost as prisoners of war and stragglers’ (178), as well as exposure, frostbite and disease, took a terrible toll on the troops. While the narrative keeps its focus on the armies and their operations, Tunstall also conveys the pitiable plight of civilians, mostly peasants, caught in the war zone, as their homes are razed and burned, their food and possessions seized, and they themselves are subjected to rape, robbery and execution. It is particularly harrowing as the siege of Przemyśl enters its final stage and increasing crime, vice, inflation and corruption attend larger social breakdown. Indeed, the most lasting impression of the book is that of the almost unimaginable human suffering endured by the denizens of the fortress and the hapless soldiers given the impossible task of liberating them.
Tunstall concludes by asserting that ‘Fortress Prezymsl, a relatively unknown entity until the outbreak of World War I’ had by 1915 ‘become the Verdun of the east’ (339). His invocation of that name is deliberate, chosen to convey the scale of the suffering and bloodletting, but at least von Falkenhayn had a clear strategy in the West, novel and chilling though it was. In contrast, Tunstall argues that while some of Conrad’s considerations, particularly the attitude of neutral powers, were valid to an extent, others, such as Hapsburg military honour and the prestige of the empire, were not. Conrad himself comes across as stubborn, self-serving, unwilling to entertain alternative opinions unless given no choice, and utterly indifferent to the welfare and fate of his troops. While incompetence, an obsession with fortresses and bloodcurdling callousness were common enough among the officers of World War I, here Conrad took them to ludicrous extremes. But for the aid and timely intervention of his German allies, the outcome might indeed have been even worse, with Tunstall describing a looming Russian invasion of Hungary as a distinct possibility early in 1915, before a German-led counter-offensive turned the tide.
Despite the book’s many merits, some shortcomings remain. The narrative itself is occasionally disjointed and repetitive, as descriptions of various operations and the units involved become entangled. At times events are alluded to by Tunstall, promised more attention, then forgotten; an example is the alleged unreliability of various Slavic units in the Hapsburg armies. Related, key issues are sometimes noted in passing but not explained sufficiently. For example, a central theme of Tunstall’s narrative is the growing and profound effect that malnutrition and eventually outright starvation took on the fortress garrison. Yet while countering official claims that no food remained in the fortress by the time of its capitulation, he mentions but fails to explain exactly why panicked civilians were nevertheless able to find large stocks of food as they ransacked fortress supply magazines (287). Was it incompetence, corruption, logistical difficulties or some combination of these factors that kept this food out of the hands of starving soldiers? Tunstall does not say. As this example illustrates, Tunstall at times ventures his opinions and analysis in response to official Hapsburg accounts and subsequent historiography. However, the book would be improved if these occasional discussions were developed in somewhat more depth, detail and frequency. Lastly, while the text is supplemented with a handful of maps and photographs, it could have benefitted from greater use of supporting visual materials to supplement the narrative.
Nevertheless, Tunstall has provided a thorough, comprehensive account of a critical yet still understudied theatre of conflict that will be welcomed by specialists of the history of the Great War.