Wednesday, August 19
The Germans Prepare for Counterattack
A German H Class Zeppelin, of the type used in the East Prussian Campaign
The third day of the Russian invasion of East Prussia was marked mainly by smaller advances by the Russian 1st Army. German aircraft continued to fly reconnaissance flights over Russian formations, but the quality of that information was declining noticeably as the situation on the ground grew more chaotic. Despite this, today General von Francois, the aggressive commander of the German I Corps, proposed to 8th Army headquarters to launch an attack on the flank of the Russian 1st Army’s advance. In order to accomplish this action, Francois intends to deploy the 2nd Division, and further requests that the army commander, General von Prittwitz, immediately order both the newly arrived XVII Corps and the I Reserve Corps to support him. Despite these options being presented to him, the army commander remains indecisive.
The reaction of von Prittwitz is somewhat understandable. The movements of the Russian 2nd Army were very troubling, with General Samsonov’s troops haveing crossed the frontier to the south, as von Rennenkampfs Russian 1st Army continued to advance deeper into the territory from the north. It was readily apparent that if he made the wrong move, the 8th Army could be enveloped and destroyed, leaving the door open into the German heartland. A choice needed to be made, and quickly, and thus von Prittwitz approved Francois’ plan for an attack on the flank of the Russian 1st Army, but refused to commit all of his forces to it, instead electing to keep his army spread out to counter Russian breakthroughs, should they occur.
German troops on the march in 1914
(Possibly Western Front photo)
As soon as he received the order, Francois ordered ordered General Adalbert von Falk, commander of the 2nd Division, to prepare for a night march, with orders to attack the Russian flank at 0400 tomorrow. Falk quickly set about preparing for the fifteen kilometer march, but panic soon spread as word came through the ranks that the Russians had broken through the 1st Division and were about to overrun their position. Falk immediately ordered his division to come about to meet the threat, only to discover that the panic had been started by one soldier shouting “the Russians are coming!”. This led to panic in the exhausted German ranks, and it took some time for Falk to restore order. The march, thus delayed, does not begin until 2200.
Meanwhile, General August von Mackensen, the longtime favorite of Kaiser Wilhelm II, received his orders to move out with XVII Corps at 1730 to support Francois’ attack in the coming morning. I Reserve Corps receives similar orders, advancing toward Goldap to cover XVII Corps’ flank as both formations move out from the Angerapp Line. Much like with the I Corps units, this movement was not without trouble. At one point during the cold, drizzly evening troops of I Reserve Corps engaged unknown troops in the gloom, only discovering they were fellow Germans from XVII Corps after a bayonet charge.
Despite these issues, the Germans would find themselves in position on time, reporting the Russian forces opposing them relatively scattered.
East Prussia - August 19, 1914
Fortress City of Konigsberg
Nordenberg - 8th Army Headquarters
Landwehr Formations on 8th Army’s left flank
Interberg and Gumbinnen - German I Corps begins to mass for a counterattack
Insterberg - German XVII Corps begins to march toward Goldap
Fort Boyen - 3rd Reserve Division
German XX Corps positions
Russian 1st Army
Russian 2nd Army