Tarnopol, Battle of

In World War I, Austro–German victory over the Russians July 1917 at a town in Polish Galicia (now Ternopol, Ukraine) about 110 km/70 mi southeast of Lemberg (Lviv, Ukraine); one of the first instances of the more general collapse of the Russian armies following the Russian Revolution 1917.

The Russian offensive had been halted by July 1917 and the Austro–German forces began a counterattack 19 July. At first they made little progress, until the 6th Grenadier Division of the Russian 11th Army deserted en masse due to Bolshevik agitation, leaving a gap in the Russian line some 40 km/25 mi wide. Panic spread through the rest of the 11th Army and many more troops deserted the front. General Alexei Brusilov was in Tarnopol and had just ordered a change of command, so there was no senior officer at the front capable of repairing the damage caused by the desertions.

The Austro–German force attacked 20 July and was able to go straight through the gap, as the Russian troops showed no inclination to obey their commanders or make any defence. In spite of a last-minute stand by some loyal Russian regiments, there was little they could do to stop the advance and Tarnopol fell to the Germans 22 July. Within two days the whole Russian front was beginning to crumble. The Austro–German forces kept up their advance until they reached the Russian frontier at Husiatyn (now Gus'atyn), where they halted and awaited the outcome of the dramatic events overwhelming Russia.