Battle Of Erzurum
The Erzurum Offensive was a major winter offensive by the Imperial Russian Army on the Caucasus Campaign that led to the capture of the strategic city of Erzurum. Ottoman forces, in winter quarters, suffered a series of unexpected reverses that led to a decisive Russian victory.
Russian Soldiers
Russian soldiers with the nine Turkish banners captured during the Battle of Erzurum.
Ottoman Empire
The Battle of Erzurum was fought on November 8/9, 1877, between Russia and the Ottoman Empire. The Russians made an assault on Erzurum but they were forced to retire.
In the winter of 1915-16, whilst British Imperial and French forces fought in Gallipoli to open maritime passage through the Dardanelles and Bosphorus to the Black Sea, Russian Imperial forces advanced into eastern Anatolia through Georgia. On 10th January 1916 they invested the important fortress-city of Erzurum. The timing was not ideal since on 9th January the British and French withdrew from Gallipoli. Nonetheless, the Russian forces of more than 300,000 outnumbered the Ottoman forces 3-to-1 and were able to take the undermanned city defences before reinforcements could arrive.
Abas Mirza
The Battle of Erzurum occurred in 1821 as part of the Ottoman-Persian War of 1821-1823. The Persians were heavily outnumbered with 30,000 men, led by Crown Prince Abbas Mirza, against the Turks with 50,000 men. However, the Persian army had recently been modernised under the leadership of Abbas Mirza's brother Dowlatshah as part of the modernising policy known as Nizam-ı Cedid.
Background
After the defeat at the Battle of Sarikamish, the Ottomans tried to reorganize. The Armenian Genocide made supplying their forces a problem. Trade by Armenians, which had supplied the Ottoman Army, was disrupted. Dismissal of Armenian soldiers into labor battalions and their massacres further worsened the problem. However, throughout 1915, the northern sectors of this front remained quiet.
At the same time, the end of the Gallipoli Campaign would free up considerable Turkish soldiers. Nikolai Yudenich, commander of the Russian Caucasus Army, knew this and prepared to launch an offensive. He hoped to take the main fortress of Erzurum in the area followed by Trebizond. It was a difficult campaign as Erzurum was protected by a number of forts in the mountains.
Eight of these divisions were designated for the Caucasus Front. Yudenich believed he could launch an offensive before these divisions could be ready for battle.
At the same time, the end of the Gallipoli Campaign would free up considerable Turkish soldiers. Nikolai Yudenich, commander of the Russian Caucasus Army, knew this and prepared to launch an offensive. He hoped to take the main fortress of Erzurum in the area followed by Trebizond. It was a difficult campaign as Erzurum was protected by a number of forts in the mountains.
Eight of these divisions were designated for the Caucasus Front. Yudenich believed he could launch an offensive before these divisions could be ready for battle.
Ottoman Nobility
The Ottoman High Command failed to make up the losses of 1915. The war in Gallipoli was using all the resources and manpower. The IX, X and XI Corps could not be reinforced and in addition to that the 1st and 5th Expeditionary Forces were deployed to Mesopotamia Campaign which did not show signs of ending soon. Ottoman High Command recognizing the dire situation on other fronts, decided that this region is secondary importance. As of January 1916, Ottoman forces were 126,000 men, only 50,539 being combat soldiers. There were 74,057 rifles, 77 machine guns and 180 pieces of artillery. Many of the guns which were supposed to defend the city had been moved to battle of Galipoli to counter the British forces. The guns that were left in the region were older weapons and not in very good condition. The soldiers were not in good condition. They suffered from inadequate food as was typical of many Turkish soldiers at that time. Ottoman force in Caucasus Campaign was big on the paper, but not on the ground. Another source claim that 78,000 troops were in this region, perhaps associating the number rifles to actual soldiers.