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Eastern Front (World War I)

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  1. Introduction
  2.  
  3. The eastern front can no longer be labeled the “Unknown War.” Since the Soviet archives opened in the 1990s, there has been a flood of books on the Russian army itself and its strategy and attempted reform movements before World War I, as well as military sources covering the economics of the war, the home fronts, and nationalities. For the Soviet Union, World War I receded into the background and received little if any attention as a result of the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution. The World War became considered merely a prelude to that most significant event, the revolution. The war, until recently, had not been the subject of serious Soviet scholarly research, except briefly during the 1970s. A major problem was the lack of access to the Russian archives. Then, in the late 1990s the Great War became a more serious topic for Russian historical research and was the subject of two international conferences. For all three warring parties, Austria-Hungary, Germany, and Russia, there were multiple works published immediately after the war. In particular, several émigré Russian officers and a few generals who remained in Russia wrote about the war there. The Austrian War Archives remained the preserve of former kaiserlich und königlich Armee (k.u.k.) officers until well after World War II; thus, the most recent books on Habsburg military history are the most important, particularly for Russian historians since the Soviet archives opened, although access to them remains problematic. For Germany, the opening of the Soviet archives revealed that documents reputedly destroyed when Potsdam was bombed during World War II had actually been transferred to the Soviet Union. A wealth of research material thus became available.
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  5. General Overviews
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  7. There were several differences between warfare on the eastern and western fronts. The most obvious would be the vast distances in the East compared to the West. The latter also had a much more developed infrastructure, while few railroads and manageable roads existed on the former. On the eastern front, horse cavalry would be deployed often, whereas the trench warfare in the West precluded its utilization. Surprise could be achieved if enough troops were deployed to launch a major offensive, and it usually proved successful on the eastern front. In addition to the problems with supply and troop movements, the enormous distances also negatively affected military communication. On the western front the Belgian fortresses fell quickly, and during 1916, Verdun became the site of major battle, whereas on the eastern front, many campaigns evolved around fortresses. On the Austro-Hungarian front, Fortress Przemyśl became the site of major battles throughout 1914 and early 1915 southwest-front combat. During the 1915 Gorlice-Tarnov Offensive, multiple Russian forts would be captured. Also, weapons were more primitive than on the sister front; that is, tanks did not become a major weapon as in the West, and airplanes deployed in the East would often be obsolete models.
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  9. Austria-Hungary
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  11. Bridge 1990 provides one of the best diplomatic histories of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy between the Congress of Vienna and the end of the war. Deák 1990 includes much information on the composition of the Austro-Hungarian officer corps, while Galántai 1989 provides extensive detail of events during the war. Kerchnawe 1921, in which the author used official documents chronologically, covers political, military, economic, and ethnic events during the last days of the dual monarchy and is valuable to the expert in the field. Kiszling 1984 presents a brief overview of key Habsburg battles. Shanafelt 1985 is an excellent, in-depth study of interallied relations.
  12.  
  13. Bridge, F. R. The Habsburg Monarchy among the Great Powers, 1815–1918. New York: Berg, 1990.
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  15. This book, intended for the general reader, traces Habsburg foreign policy until 1918. The author emphasizes allied distrust and rivalry, stressing that the dual monarchy did not possess the means to realize its Great Power pretensions.
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  17. Deák, István. Beyond Nationalism: A Social & Political History of the Habsburg Officer Corps, 1848–1918. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1990.
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  19. Utilizing a random sampling of junior lieutenants, the author presents chapters on promotion (deadly slow unless in the general staff), training, pay, and, most importantly, nationalism, as well as other aspects of the Habsburg officer corps. Political and military history introduces and concludes the book.
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  21. Galántai, József. Hungary in the First World War. Revised by Mark Goodman. Translated by Éva Grusz and Judit Pokoly. Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1989.
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  23. English translation of Die österreichisch-ungarische Monarchie und der Weltkrieg (Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1979.) Originally published in Hungarian and translated into German and English, this work provides a review of World War I events from the Hungarian viewpoint. Primarily for students and the general public with some knowledge of the dual monarchy’s history.
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  25. Kerchnawe, Hugo. Der Zusammenbruch der Österreich-Ungarn Wehrmacht im Herbst 1918. Munich: J. F. Lehmanns Verlag, 1921.
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  27. An excellent chronological overview of the collapse of the dual monarchy, encompassing battlefield, diplomatic, ethnic, and political factors from official documents.
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  29. Kiszling, Rudolf. Die hohe Führung der Heere Habsburg im Ersten Weltkrieg. Vienna: Bundesministerium für Landesverteidigung, Büro für Wehrpolitik, 1984.
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  31. The author’s last book (originally published in 1970), written for the modern Austrian army. Kiszling was the most prolific Austrian military historian who defended the defunct kaiserlich und königlich (k.u.k.) army. A former director of the Vienna War Archives, Kiszling’s works must be read with care. They offer basic facts, but most of his writings are apologies for Conrad and the Habsburg army.
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  33. Shanafelt, Gary W. The Secret Enemy: Austria-Hungary and the German Alliance, 1914–1918. East European Monographs 187. New York: Columbia University Press, 1985.
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  35. Excellent interpretation of the relationship between the two allies during the war, including diplomatic factors. Worth reading for specialists and general readers because of the noteworthy synthesis of vast amounts of information.
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  37. Germany
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  39. Herwig 1997 combines the Central powers of Austria-Hungary and Germany’s wars for the first time in an excellently researched monograph, while Liulevicius 2000 portrays German soldiers and their cultural shock as a result of eastern European poverty conditions.
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  41. Herwig, Holger H. The First World War: Germany and Austria-Hungary, 1914–1918. Modern Wars. New York: Arnold, 1997.
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  43. The author, utilizing multiple archival materials, presents allied Austro-Hungarian–German relations, including their shortcomings. Traces the decline of Habsburg power and the necessity of German assistance throughout the war. For the scholar and general historian, this is an excellent synthesis of information.
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  45. Liulevicius, Vejas Gabriel. War Land on the Eastern Front: Culture, National Identity and German Occupation in World War I. Studies in the Social and Cultural History of Modern Warfare 9. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2000.
  46. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511497186Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  47. The author studies German soldiers’ encounters with the varied ethnic populations and their cultures on the eastern front during the war. According to the author, the shocking conditions in eastern Europe, particularly poverty, influenced Nazi oppression during World War II.
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  49. Russia
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  51. Beyond strictly military developments, Hagen 2007 explores the larger ramifications of the war, in investigating the plans for, and actual occupational policies in, occupied territories in the Habsburg-Romanov borderlands.
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  53. Hagen, Mark von. War in a European Borderland: Occupations and Occupation Plans in Galicia and Ukraine, 1914–1918. Donald W. Treadgold Studies on Russia, East Europe, and Central Asia. Seattle: Herbert J. Ellison Center for Russian, East European, and Central Asian Studies, University of Washington, 2007.
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  55. The author details what actually happened during the occupation of eastern Europe, and the plans for Galicia and the Ukraine.
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  57. Edited Works
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  59. The edited works encompass important information on the armies in Austria-Hungary, Germany and Russia. The Russian contributions also explore prewar material.
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  61. Austria-Hungary
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  63. Cornwall 1990 provides excellent contributions relative to the collapse of the dual monarchy in 1918. Kann, et al. 1977 contains conference papers, with a section on domestic affairs, but emphasizes military matters. It concludes with four articles on intellectual life, particularly in the Habsburg Empire. Király and Dreisziger 1985 also presents papers, from a conference held in 1983. Six articles encompass the home front, but the essays on the various central European armies are worth reading. The value of Peball 1977 results from its material on General Conrad’s personal writings, but it is not well organized and includes repetitive themes. Schwarte 1922 presents overviews of the battles of the Central powers; the weakness of these overviews is that they are sometimes very general and sometimes too detailed, but all were written by officers who had participated in those campaigns. Wandruszka and Urbanitsch 1987, a massive edited work, includes a six-hundred-page institutional history of the Austro-Hungarian army, and smaller sections on the Honvéds and Habsburg navy.
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  65. Cornwall, Mark, ed. The Last Years of Austria-Hungary: Essays in Political and Military History, 1908–1918. Exeter Studies in History 27. Exeter, UK: University of Exeter Press, 1990.
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  67. The essays provide enlightening material relative to the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy in 1918. They include Habsburg foreign policy and domestic and political conditions prior to the war as well as during the conflict.
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  69. Kann, Robert A., Béla K. Király, and Paula S. Fichtner, eds. The Habsburg Empire in World War I: Essays on the Intellectual, Military, Political, and Economic Aspects of the Habsburg War Effort. Atlantic Studies on Society in Change 2. Boulder, CO: East European Quarterly, 1977.
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  71. Comprises twelve essays varying in topic and depth, generally emphasizing the resilience of the dual monarchy. Of particular interest are the articles stressing the similarity of the Habsburg army to other European forces.
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  73. Király, Béla K., and Nándor F. Dreisziger, eds. East Central European Society in World War I. War and Society in East Central Europe 19. New York: Columbia University Press, 1985.
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  75. A collection of papers presented at a 1983 conference. Some essays are important because they represent the first relating to several east-central European armies. Six articles describe matters on the home front.
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  77. Peball, Kurt, ed. Conrad von Hötzendorf: Private Aufzeichnungen; Erste Veröffentlichungen aus den Papieren des k.u.k. Generalstabs-Chefs. Vienna: Amalthea Verlag, 1977.
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  79. Interesting general outline of some of General Conrad’s prolific writings, but not well organized, with repetition and no cross references to repeated items. Valuable, however, for understanding the general’s postwar position on several key events.
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  81. Schwarte, Max, ed. Der große Krieg 1914–1918. Vol. 5, Der österreichisch-ungarische Krieg. Leipzig: Barth, 1922.
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  83. This fifth volume of the popular multivolume German military history collection, which translates as the Austro-Hungarian War, provides a general overview of the major battles on the various Habsburg fronts, as well as a section on political affairs. The authors, former k.u.k. army officers, frequently participated in these events.
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  85. Wandruszka, Adam, and Peter Urbanitsch, eds. Die Habsburgermonarchie, 1848–1918. Vol. 5, Die Bewaffnete Macht. Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1987.
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  87. An in-depth history of the Austro-Hungarian army, beginning in 1848 and ending in 1913. Massive research undertaking on the institution of the Austro-Hungarian army. Two shorter, excellent sections on the Honvéd and Habsburg navy and a six-hundred-plus-page, in-depth study of the Habsburg army. For the specialist.
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  89. Germany
  90.  
  91. Beck and Speidel 1955 provides some interesting articles relative to critical questions regarding Germany and World War I, particularly strategies for a two-front war.
  92.  
  93. Beck, Ludwig, and Hans Speidel, eds. Studien. Stuttgart: K. F. Koehler, 1955.
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  95. Examines individual problems of World War I through thought-provoking articles, including “Besaβ Deutschland 1914 einen Kriegsplan?” (pp. 89–112) and “West- oder Ost-Offensive 1914?” (pp. 143–189).
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  97. Russia
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  99. Higham and Kagan 2002 and Lohr and Poe 2002 place Russian military performance in historical context, while the two Russian essay collections (Mal’kov 1998 and Pernavskii 2009) present a fairly unblinkered view of the Russian military during the Great War, with Pernavskii 2009 being a reprint of a fine overview that was first composed in the 1920s Soviet Union and Mal’kov 1998 representing proceedings of a 1990s conference. Smirnov 1999 also includes proceedings from a 1990s conference. The last two series of publications (Strategicheskii ocherkivoiny 1914–1918 and Voenno-istoricheskii sborniki), by a variety of authors—many anonymous—were aborted projects that aimed to provide a comprehensive overview of the Russian army during World War I; they are to be found only with difficulty.
  100.  
  101. Higham, Robin, and Frederick W. Kagan, eds. The Military History of Tsarist Russia. New York: Palgrave, 2002.
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  103. A collection of articles examining how the tsarist army reorganized and changed through time. Each provides further reading and research. A scholarly work, but best for a general military historian or beginner. Some articles are by well-established English-speaking Russian historians.
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  105. Lohr, Eric, and Marshall Poe, eds. The Military and Society in Russia, 1450–1917. History of Warfare 14. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2002.
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  107. Actually commences with the Muscovy period. Divided into three sections, it contains twenty-two chapters; its main theme traces societal changes resulting from maintaining armies through Russia’s multiple military conflicts.
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  109. Mal’kov, V. L., ed. Pervaia mirovaia voina: Prolog XX veka. Moscow: Nauka, 1998.
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  111. From this collection of articles, see especially the Brusilov Offensive and legend, plans for the 1917 Kerensky Offensive, demography and wartime morality, early Russian weapon shortages, and the Baltic conflict.
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  113. Pernavskii, G., ed. Velikaia zabytaia voina. Moscow: Eksmo-Iauza, 2009.
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  115. A collection of essays written by tsarist-trained military experts on various topics, such as battle, topography, logistics, and military developments on the eastern front.
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  117. Smirnov, N. N., ed. Rossiia i Pervaia mirovaia voina: Materialy mezhdunarodnogo nauchnogo kollokviuma. Saint Petersburg, Russia: Dmitrii Bulanin, 1999.
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  119. From the proceedings of an international conference in 1998 on Russian war and society between 1914 and 1918, the first since Soviet rule. This volume contains abbreviated summaries of twenty-five conference papers by Russian and Western historians, but without providing sources.
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  121. Strategicheskii ocherkivoiny 1914–1918. 1920–1924.
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  123. Essays on strategy behind the Russian war operations, 1914–1918. An important commission attempted to learn the lessons from the war. Marxist tinted, the project was abandoned. Some primary sources, but its weakness is the multiple topics.
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  125. Voenno-istoricheskii sborniki. 1919–1921.
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  127. Military-historical treatises published in four installments. Includes essays on strategy during the war, tsarist casualties in Galicia during 1915, Russian prisoners of war, and much on the army’s logistics.
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  129. Dissertations
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  131. The following three dissertations stand out for different reasons. Jeřábek 1982 is the most thorough source on the Brusilov Offensive battle in print. Hecht 1969 provides incredible detail on the evolution of the Habsburg army during the war, while Ernharth 1970 does the same with allied-command relations.
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  133. Ernharth, Ronald L. “The Tragic Alliance: Austro-German Military Cooperation, 1871–1918.” PhD diss., Columbia University, 1970.
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  135. Worthwhile for tracing allied relations throughout the various military campaigns. Thorough coverage of interactions between Generals Conrad and Falkenhayn (1914–1916); relations among Hindenburg, Ludendorff, and Conrad between 1916 and 1918; and the conduct of the war.
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  137. Hecht, Rudolf. “Fragen zur Heeresergänzung der gesamten bewaffneten Macht Österreich-Ungarns während des ersten Weltkrieges.” PhD diss., University of Vienna, 1969.
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  139. Contains much detail on the Austro-Hungarian army during the war, particularly relative to the problems encountered in forming Ersatz (replacement) units. Significant information for experts on this rarely researched area.
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  141. Jeřábek, Rudolf. “Die Brussilowoffensive 1916: Ein Wendepunkt in der Koalitionskriegsführung der Mittelmächte.” PhD diss., University of Vienna, 1982.
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  143. This massive dissertation provides the most comprehensive account of the Brusilov Offensive in print; hundreds of pages describe events leading to the offensive. The research is impeccable. Not intended for the general reader; invaluable for researchers.
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  145. Official Histories
  146.  
  147. Österreich-Ungarns letzer Krieg provides much information on the Habsburg army and its campaigns during the war, but it does not analyze Conrad von Hötzendorf’s leadership, merely glossing over this important topic. Written by former kaiserlich und königlich (k.u.k.) officers, the official history can be very subjective. The Reich’s Archive history Der Weltkrieg 1914 bis 1918 does contain criticism, particularly of General Falkenhayn, but the authors of this gigantic work belonged to the influential General Schlieffen school, which colored their writing. Otherwise, it contains an enormous amount of information on the various German campaigns.
  148.  
  149. Der Weltkrieg 1914 bis 1918: Die militärischen Operationen zu Lande. 14 vols. Berlin: E. S. Mittler & Sohn, 1925–1942.
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  151. Critical for research on German operations during the war. Also contains important information on allied Austro-Hungarian and German actions and interrelationships that correlate to the Austrian official history. Can be relied on for more comprehensive information than the Austrian version.
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  153. Österreich-Ungarns letzer Krieg, 1914–1918. 15 vols. Bundesministerium für Heereswesen und vom Kriegsarchiv. Vienna: Verlag der Militärwissenschaftlichen Mitteilungen, 1930–1938.
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  155. Good for general information on the Habsburg military campaigns, but no evaluation or judgment is provided for strategy or tactics. Ten small supplementary volumes provide maps and charts, a valuable feature, and further details on specific topics.
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  157. Origins of the War
  158.  
  159. The following works discuss specific eastern-front origins of the war or are a collection of works, which include information on Austria-Hungary, Germany, and Russia. The English version of Geiss 1967 presents a mere sampling of the author’s two-volume German version. Many documents tie in the chronological origins of the war; the German version is far more valuable. Hamilton and Herwig 2003 investigates the clique of individuals responsible for the outbreak of the war, for each of the participating nations. Lieven 1983 and Williamson 1991 provide coverage of Austria-Hungary and Russia. McMeekin 2011 presents the most recent, but not original, account for Russia, with an interesting thesis. Mombauer 2001 presents great detail on the role of General Moltke in the origins of the war; particularly interesting is the author’s version of Moltke’s role during the July crisis. Williamson 1991 interestingly commences with a long, but necessary, narrative on the 1912–1913 Balkan Wars as a background to the July crisis. It is a must-read, while Williamson and van Wyk 1983 offers excellent overviews of key individuals and their role in the July crisis. Williamson and Pastor 1983 studies various phases of the war, with interesting articles on the origins of the conflict and case studies of prisoners of war. Of the many books covering the origins of the war, there are only a few that concentrate on Austria-Hungary, Germany, and Russia; the most relevant are cited.
  160.  
  161. Geiss, Imanuel, ed. July 1914: The Outbreak of the First World War; Selected Documents. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1967.
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  163. English translation of Julikrise und Kriegsausbruch 1914: Eine Dokumentensammlung (Hannover, Germany: Verlag für Literatur und Zeitgeschehen, 1963–1964). English version considerably abbreviated. The German version contains two volumes; both include important documents on military and diplomatic events during the July 1914 crisis.
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  165. Hamilton, Richard F., and Holger H. Herwig, eds. The Origins of World War I. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2003.
  166. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511550171Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  167. Valuable for Holger Herwig’s “Germany” (pp. 150–187), David Rich’s “Russia” (pp. 188–226), and Graydon Tunstall’s “Austria-Hungary” (pp. 112–149). The authors portray the key individuals who proved most influential in the July crisis, and why.
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  169. Lieven, Dominic C. B. Russia and the Origins of the First World War. Making of the 20th Century. New York: St. Martin’s, 1983.
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  171. One of a series of short paperbacks on the origins of the war. Excellent for the general reader and scholar in areas other than Russian history. Emphasizes the key decision makers and the diplomatic and military leadership in Russia, but no new material is revealed.
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  173. McMeekin, Sean. The Russian Origins of the First World War. Cambridge, MA: Belknap, 2011.
  174. DOI: 10.4159/harvard.9780674063204Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  175. Traces the Russian strategy of seizing the Turkish Straits from the prewar period to the end of the Russian revolutions. Main thesis: Russia went to war over Turkish possessions, not just Serbia, and much greater guilt should be attributed to Foreign Minister Sazanov for the outbreak of the war than previously accepted. Much has been written on these themes earlier.
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  177. Mombauer, Annika. Helmuth von Moltke and the Origins of the First World War. New Studies in European History. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2001.
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  179. An in-depth study of the role of the younger Moltke in the outbreak of the war. A must-read for the general reader and scholar on General Moltke’s influence during the July crisis and on his role as an important advocate of preventive war in 1914.
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  181. Williamson, Samuel R., Jr. Austria-Hungary and the Origins of the First World War. Making of the 20th Century. New York: St. Martin’s, 1991.
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  183. The definitive book for those studying the origins of World War I for Austria-Hungary, written by the specialist on that topic. Unlike other volumes in this series, the narrative commences with the 1912–1913 Balkan Wars and continues through the 1914 July crisis.
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  185. Williamson, Samuel R., Jr., and Peter Pastor, eds. Essays on World War I: Origins and Prisoners of War. War and Society in East Central Europe 5. New York: Columbia University Press, 1983.
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  187. Part I of this very interesting monograph deals with the origins of the war, while Part II presents case studies of prisoners of war in Russia during the conflict.
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  189. Williamson, Samuel R., Jr., and Russel van Wyk. July 1914: Soldiers, Statesmen, and the Coming of the Great War; A Brief Documentary History. Bedford Series in History and Culture. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 1983.
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  191. An excellent overview of the most important figures and events that affected the July 1914 crisis. Excellent for textbook and general readership.
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  193. Eastern Front Battles
  194.  
  195. Published after the turn of the 21st century, Dowling 2008, Tunstall 2010, and DiNardo 2010 discuss specific eastern-front campaigns; Showalter 1991 is a bit older. Pitreich 1929 and Pitreich 1934 are revisionist to the Austrian official history of the war and are worthy of study. The Russian volume Nastuplenie Iugo-Zapadnogo fronta v mae-iune 1916 goda represents Soviet documentation on the Brusilov Offensive, one of the few sources on World War I during the Stalin era. Hamilton and Herwig 2009 presents the war plans of the eastern-front participants.
  196.  
  197. DiNardo, Richard L. Breakthrough: The Gorlice-Tarnów Campaign, 1915. War, Technology, and History. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger, 2010.
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  199. Presents the German side of the Gorlice-Tarnov Offensive, including material on Austro-Hungarian participation in the battle. The author utilized documents from the Vienna and Freiburg war archives, as well as important secondary sources.
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  201. Dowling, Timothy C. The Brusilov Offensive. Twentieth-Century Battles. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2008.
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  203. Utilizing Vienna War Archives sources, Dowling describes the Austro-Hungarian and Russian armies during the offensive. Russian sources consist of secondary material. Of particular interest are Conrad-Falkenhayn relations and Brusilov’s planning for his offensive and subsequent battle, in detail.
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  205. Hamilton, Richard F., and Holger H. Herwig, eds. War Planning 1914. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2009.
  206. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511642371Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  207. The worthwhile articles pertaining to the eastern front include Günther Kronenbitter on Austria-Hungary, Annika Mombauer on Germany, and Bruce Menning on Russia.
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  209. Pitreich, Max Freiherr von. Lemberg, 1914. Vienna: Verlag von Adolf Holzhausens Nachfolger Universitätsbuchdrucker, 1929.
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  211. Provides a more accurate account of this critical battle during the opening 1914 campaign for Austria-Hungary than does the Austrian official history. A revisionist presentation to the official Austrian history.
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  213. Pitreich, Max Freiherr von. 1914: Die militärischen Probleme unseres Kriegsbeginnes; Ideen, Gründe und Zusammenhänge. Vienna: Selbstverlag, 1934.
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  215. This intriguing monograph disappeared after self-publication. A more factual interpretation and counterpresentation of 1914 military events compared to the Austrian official history, Österreich-Ungarns letzer Krieg. Includes offensive preparations and the opening campaigns on the Russian and Serbian fronts.
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  217. Showalter, Dennis E. Tannenberg: Clash of Empires. Hamden, CT: Archon, 1991.
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  219. Relies on extensive sources to reconstruct the battle through the eyes of the soldiers. Great detail from army records, personal papers, and the official German history of the war, including regimental histories. Interesting for all readers.
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  221. Tunstall, Graydon A., Jr. Blood on the Snow: The Carpathian Winter War of 1915. Modern War Studies. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2010.
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  223. The first book in English or German focusing on the Carpathian Winter War. Extensive use of sources from the Vienna and Budapest War Archives. A military history study with an in-depth emphasis on strategy, battles, and the effects of terrain, supply, and weather on the troops. Lacks primary Russian sources.
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  225. Generals
  226.  
  227. Multiple books were written about World War I during the interwar years. Many of these works were penned by former generals providing their perspective. Often, they presented false or misleading information.
  228.  
  229. Austro-Hungarian
  230.  
  231. Several books in the German language by Austro-Hungarian generals appeared during the interwar period (Cramon 1920, Conrad von Hötzendorf 1921–1925). Sondhaus 2000, a biography of Conrad, traces his entire career, while Broucek 1980 follows the career of a Habsburg general who became even more famous after the war. The former provides much information on leading Habsburg figures, while Conrad’s memoirs contain misleading information and serious manipulation of original sources.
  232.  
  233. Broucek, Peter, ed. Ein General im Zwielicht: Die Erinnerungen Edmund Glaises von Hortenau. Vol. 1, K.u.K. Generalstabsoffizier und Historiker. Veröeffentlichungen der Kommission für Neuere Geschichte Österreichs 67. Vienna and Cologne: Böhlau, 1980.
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  235. The first of three volumes on the life of an important Habsburg military figure. An enormous amount of valuable information concerning the inner workings of the Habsburg military, and immense detail relative to personal information from an “insider.”
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  237. Conrad von Hötzendorf, Franz. Aus meiner Dienstzeit, 1906–1918. 5 vols. Vienna and Leipzig: Rikola Verlag, 1921–1925.
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  239. Long-utilized source on the origins of the war; however, the final volume was written after Conrad’s death and the diplomatic and military documents had been altered, presenting inaccurate and misleading information. Must be carefully perused but does contain worthwhile material.
  240. Find this resource:
  241. Cramon, August von. Unser Österreichisch-Ungarischer Bundesgenosse im Weltkriege: Erinnerungen aus meiner vierjährigen Tätigkeit als bevollmächtigter deutscher General beim k.u.k. Armeeoberkommando. Berlin: E. S. Mittler & Sohn, 1920.
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  243. Important because General Cramon served as the senior German liaison officer at Habsburg headquarters from January 1915 until the end of the war. His role as intermediary between Generals Conrad and Falkenhayn proved very important. Offers interesting insight into allied relations.
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  245. Sondhaus, Lawrence. Franz Conrad von Hötzendorf: Architect of the Apocalypse. Studies in Central European Histories. Boston: Humanities Press, 2000.
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  247. A comprehensive biography. Should be read to the exclusion of the multiple tainted Austrian monographs about him. Thoroughly researched, including private papers received by the archives in 1991. Interesting explanation as to why Conrad became a major figure during the outbreak of the war. The only weakness is a dependence on the Austrian official history of the war for the conflict years. For the novice and historian alike.
  248. Find this resource:
  249. German
  250.  
  251. Afflerbach 1994, on General Falkenhayn, is worth the read, while the general’s memoir (Falkenhayn 1919) remains interesting but must be utilized with care. The two books on General Ludendorff, Ludendorff 1919 and Ludendorff 1920, include much information, but one has to be wary of the veracity of the contents. This is a perfect example of immediate postwar writing that presents questionable interpretation of key events.
  252.  
  253. Afflerbach, Holger. Falkenhayn: Politisches Denken und Handeln im Kaiserreich. Beiträge zur Militärgeschichte 42. Munich: R. Oldenbourg, 1994.
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  255. Thorough monograph on General Falkenhayn. For eastern-front purposes, his discussions of the Conrad-Falkenhayn correspondence and interaction and of the activity on the front are definitely worthwhile reading.
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  257. Falkenhayn, Erich von. General Headquarters, 1914–1916, and Its Critical Decisions. London: Hutchinson, 1919.
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  259. English translation of Die oberste Heeresleitung, 1914–1916: In ihren wichtigsten Entschliessungen (Berlin: E. S. Mittler & Sohn, 1920). Emphasizes Germany’s necessity to conserve its soldier material. Cites the multiple problems encountered between German and Austro-Hungarian headquarters. A memoir worth reading, albeit with care.
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  261. Ludendorff, Erich. Meine Kriegserinnerungen, 1914–1918. Berlin: E. S. Mittler & Sohn, 1919.
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  263. Based primarily on memory; contains much material and commentary, but little is based on fact or evidence. Includes a description of battles, but no real evaluation of them.
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  265. Ludendorff, Erich. Urkunden der obersten Heeresleitung über ihre Tätigkeit 1916–18. Berlin: E. S. Mittler & Sohn, 1920.
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  267. Works by Ludendorff tend to present information without documentation. Thus, he should be read with caution. Nevertheless, this work contains interesting material.
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  269. Russian
  270.  
  271. On the Russian side, some of the books were not censored immediately but would be later. There were also multiple monographs written by émigré Russian officers, as well as many books penned to provide excuses for particular actions or in which the author had an axe to grind. All the Russian generals whose works are cited here wrote their memoirs as émigrés during the interwar period, except Brusilov and Zaionchkovskii, who remained in Russia. Brusilov 1930, Denikin 1975, and Golovin 1931 are the most informative, while Zaionchkovskii 1924 and Zaionchkovskii 2000 provide the best accounts of the Russian side of the World War. Danilov 1925 is interesting because the author was one of the Russian military-planning masterminds, while Dobrorolski 1922 and Suchomlinov 1924 present the authors’ interpretations of the major events they participated in. The latter must be read with great care.
  272.  
  273. Brusilov, Alexei A. A Soldier’s Note-Book, 1914–1918. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1930.
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  275. English translation of Moi vospominaniia (Moscow: ROSSPĖN, 2001). Criticizes the technical backwardness of the Russian army and its effects on the battlefield, emphasizing the lack of heavy artillery and shells. Detailed discussion of various tsarist commanders extends into the October 1917 revolution. Reprinted in 1971.
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  277. Danilov, Jurij N. Rußland im Weltkriege, 1914–1915. Jena, Germany: Verlag Frommann, 1925.
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  279. Important tsarist general who served as quartermaster general and had enormous influence on Russian war planning and strategy, particularly during 1914–1915.
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  281. Denikin, Anton I. The Career of a Tsarist Officer: Memoirs, 1872–1916. Translated and annotated by Margaret Patoski. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1975.
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  283. English translation of Put’ russkogo ofitsera (Moscow: Vagrius, 2002). Easily readable memoirs; the Russian version includes his Ocherki russkoi smuty (Moscow: Nauka, 1991). An interesting biography and an important source for the White Armies during the Russian Revolution.
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  285. Dobrorolski, Sergei. Die Mobilmachung der russischen Armee 1914. Beiträge zur Schuldfrage 1. Berlin: Deutsche Verlagsgesellschaft für Politik und Geschichte, 1922.
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  287. Interesting because Dobrorolski was in charge of the July 1914 Russian mobilization, but he wrote the book as an émigré. Much new information has since become available.
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  289. Golovin, Nicholas N. The Russian Army in the World War. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1931.
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  291. Most useful of the émigré books; thorough overview of the Russian army, which provides much detail concerning the war. Presents an insider’s view because the author served on the tsarist general staff.
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  293. Suchomlinov, V. A. Erinnerungen. Berlin: Verlag von Reimar Hobbing, 1924.
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  295. Highly controversial memoirs of the Russian minister of war. Provides an interesting émigré interpretation of the Russian army in the war, particularly relative to the author’s role.
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  297. Zaionchkovskii, Andrei Medardovich. Mirovaia voina 1914–1918 gg.: Obshchii strategicheskii ocherk. Moscow: Gosudarstvennoe voennoe izdatel’stvo, 1924.
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  299. The most famous Russian general history of World War I, written by a noted early Soviet military historian of the 1920s. Main contribution relates to strategic matters. Early version not overly censored, though later editions had different titles.
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  301. Zaionchkovskii, Andrei Medardovich. Pervaia mirovaia voina. Saint Petersburg, Russia: Poligon, 2000.
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  303. This comprehensive 880-page volume analyzes military preparations for the war, as well as the campaigns.
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  305. Interwar Period
  306.  
  307. The interwar period produced many memoirs by multiple participants, many not worthy of reading. Most are apologies or misrepresentations of facts to protect the authors’ reputations. Archives had not been open to researchers. Besides the citations included in the following subsections, also peruse the subsections under Generals.
  308.  
  309. Austria-Hungary
  310.  
  311. Pitreich 1930 is of interest because it contains great detail on some of the Habsburg military campaigns during the war, while Franek 1933 provides interesting information on the evolution of the Habsburg army as it attempted to catch up with the other great powers during the first half of the war.
  312.  
  313. Franek, Fritz. Die Entwicklung der österreich-ungarischen Wehrmacht in den ersten zwei Kriegsjahren. Vienna: Verlag Militärwissenschaftlicher Mitteilungen, 1933.
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  315. Interesting addition to the Austrian official history, which provides important detail on the development of the kaiserlich und königlich (k.u.k.) army during the early years of the war.
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  317. Pitreich, Anton. Der österreichisch-ungarische Bundesgenosse im Sperrfeuer. Klagenfurt, Austria: Arthur Kollitsch, 1930.
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  319. An interesting military study by a participant of the conflict, strong on the Italian campaigns. Also good source on the k.u.k. army operations in general, particularly during 1914.
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  321. Germany
  322.  
  323. Cramon 1920 is significant because of the author’s role as the highest-ranking German liaison officer assigned to the Habsburg Supreme Command during the war, while Cramon and Fleck 1932 provides a selected and general overview of allied relations. Schwarte 1921–1933, an edited work, offers the official interpretation of the German and Austro-Hungarian aspects of war battles. It can best be utilized as an overview and was written by former German and Austro-Hungarian officers, many of whom participated in the battles. Wendt 1936 contains interesting interpretations because the author places the Italian war theater at the forefront, but he also presents many details on German and Austro-Hungarian allied relations, particularly those of Generals Conrad and Falkenhayn.
  324.  
  325. Cramon, August von. Unser Österreichisch-Ungarischer Bundesgenosse im Weltkriege: Erinnerungen aus meiner vierjährigen Tätigkeit als bevollmächtigter deutscher General beim k.u.k. Armeeoberkommando. Berlin: E. S. Mittler & Sohn, 1920.
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  327. Very important because Cramon became the “peacemaker” between Generals Conrad and Falkenhayn. Also provides some worthwhile interpretations of Habsburg High Command activities.
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  329. Cramon, August von, and Paul Fleck. Deutschlands Schicksalsbund mit Österreich-Ungarn: Von Conrad von Hötzendorf zu Kaiser Karl. Berlin: Verlag für Kulturpolitik, 1932.
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  331. A popular and simplified version of allied relations; Cramon’s memoir is much more valuable and less for public consumption.
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  333. Schwarte, Max, ed. Der groβe Krieg 1914–1918. 10 vols. Leipzig: Barth, 1921–1933.
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  335. This multivolume series was written by seventy different authors, mostly former army officers. Intended for the general public, it contains much information. The volume Die militärischen Lehren des groβen Krieges und Kriegslehren in Beispielen aus dem Weltkriege (E. S. Mittler & Sohn, 1925) is interesting reading.
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  337. Wendt, Hermann. Der italienische Kriegsschauplatz in europäischen Konflikten: Seine Bedeutung für die Kriegführung an Frankreichs Nordostgrenzen. Berlin: Junker und Dünnhaupt Verlag, 1936.
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  339. Though Wendt’s book primarily investigates the French and Italian war theaters, it contains some interesting material on Germany and Austria-Hungary. Particularly worthwhile reading on the Conrad-Falkenhayn relationship during the war.
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  341. Russia
  342.  
  343. The two volumes in Knox 1921 provide many interesting details of the Russian front campaign, written by a British liaison officer. Rich with particulars, it contains fascinating information, much of it critical of the Russian performance during the war. One can also find information on the Russian side under Generals.
  344.  
  345. Knox, Alfred. With the Russian Army, 1914–1917. 2 vols. London: Hutchinson, 1921.
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  347. Provides insight into tsarist commanders, the army, and military campaigns. Easy reading containing much interesting information. A detailed source by the key British military attaché with the Russian army, emphasizing the poor performance of the tsarist officer corps, in two large volumes. Republished in 1971 (New York: Arno).
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  349. Post–World War II
  350.  
  351. The opening of the Russian archives in the 1990s provided much information that revises interpretations relative to several war events. This must be kept in mind when reading pre-1991 published books. The Austrian War Archives in Vienna became available for research about two decades earlier, having served as a bastion for former kaiserlich und königlich (k.u.k.) officers since the end of World War I. Until 1991, it had been assumed that much research material had been destroyed during the bombing of Potsdam during World War II. Since the opening of the Russian archives, a treasure chest of information for the German side has been deposited in the Freiburg archives.
  352.  
  353. Austria-Hungary
  354.  
  355. Kronenbitter 2003 is a well-researched book on the Habsburg army to 1914. Rauchensteiner 1993 includes in-depth research with the most authoritative account of Austria-Hungary during the war years, while Forstner 1987 details the significant role of Fortress Przemyśl on the Habsburg front against Russia through 22 March 1915. Stone 1975 remains the only major book on the eastern front, covering 1914–1917, and is still the classic on the subject, while Lein 2011 provides a fascinating revisionist work on Habsburg Czech units “surrendering” to the enemy. Lucas 1973 provides details on the prewar Austro-Hungarian army, while Rothenberg 1976 presents an overview of the Habsburg army throughout its history, with very interesting but short chapters covering the pre–World War I years. Tunstall 1993 combines diplomatic and military events from German unification through the opening battles of the war for Austria-Hungary.
  356.  
  357. Forstner, Franz. Przemyśl: Österreich-Ungarns bedeutendste Festung. Militärgeschichtliche Dissertationen österreichischer Universitäten 7. Vienna: Österreichischer Bundesverlag, 1987.
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  359. History of Fortress Przemyśl and its pivotal role during the 1914–1915 Habsburg campaigns on the eastern front. Particularly good description of the day-to-day existence of those within the fortress and their connection to field army battles during the attempts to liberate the citadel. A valuable contribution.
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  361. Kronenbitter, Günther. “Krieg im Frieden”: Die Führung der k.u.k. Armee und die Grossmachtpolitik Österreich-Ungarns 1906–1914. Studien zur internationalen Geschichte 13. Munich: Oldenbourg, 2003.
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  363. Presents the most comprehensive background of the Austro-Hungarian army before the war, utilizing a vast amount of public and private foreign-office and military document sources. A most thorough examination of war preparations and analysis of Habsburg foreign policy. The final section discusses the July 1914 crisis in detail.
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  365. Lein, Richard. Pflichterfüllung oder Hochverrat? Die tschechischen Soldaten Österreich-Ungarns im Ersten Weltkrieg. Europa Orientalis 9. Vienna: Weltkrieg Verlag, 2011.
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  367. This book challenges most historiography relative to unit-size Czechoslovakian desertions to the Russians in the Habsburg army. The author cites two well-known incidents, the infamous Infantry Regiment Twenty-Eight desertion during the Carpathian Winter War in April 1915 and Czech units in the 1917 Kerensky Offensive at Zborow, to prove his thesis.
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  369. Lucas, James S. Austro-Hungarian Infantry, 1914–1918. London: Almark, 1973.
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  371. A basic book on the Habsburg army, describing in detail its various army branches, weapons, and uniforms. Readers will find the photographs, as well as descriptions of infantry, artillery, and Jäger troops, interesting.
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  373. Rauchensteiner, Manfried. Der Tod des Doppeladlers: Österreich-Ungarn und der Erste Weltkrieg. Vienna and Cologne: Styria Verlag, 1993.
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  375. The definitive book on Austria-Hungary during the war. Each year is presented in detail, including the wartime economy and deteriorating social conditions. Extensively researched. Highly recommended both for the researcher and specialist in Habsburg history.
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  377. Rothenberg, Gunther E. The Army of Francis Joseph. West Lafayette, IN: Purdue University Press, 1976.
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  379. Although this book traces the history of the Habsburg army to its origins, the chapters on the Balkan Wars, July crisis, and World War I present an excellent, but short, overview of the events for the novice. The author utilized vast Vienna War Archive documentation in his research.
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  381. Stone, Norman. The Eastern Front, 1914–1917. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1975.
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  383. Long-time standard work on the eastern front, but since its publication, much more has been written on the subject. Several of the author’s assumptions have been challenged. Russian archives were not accessible when Stone wrote, but it is still worth reading, particularly regarding the tsarist economy and Habsburg-Romanov military history.
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  385. Tunstall, Graydon A., Jr. Planning for War Against Russia and Serbia: Austro-Hungarian and German Military Strategies, 1871–1914. War and Society in East Central Europe 31. New York: Columbia University Press, 1993.
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  387. Provides separate chapters on diplomacy and military planning from 1905 through 1914, particularly relating to the Bosnian crisis, Balkan Wars, and July crisis. Additional chapters describe the Habsburg mobilization and deployment and the army’s opening campaign.
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  389. Germany
  390.  
  391. Ritter 1969–1973, which includes four massive volumes, provides great detail on varying topics, but it has an anti-Fischer war guilt slant. Kitchen 1976 provides a well-researched look at Generals Hindenburg and Ludendorff and their roles in the war from late August 1916 through 1918.
  392.  
  393. Kitchen, Martin. The Silent Dictatorship: The Politics of the German High Command under Hindenburg and Ludendorff, 1916–1918. New York: Holmes & Meier, 1976.
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  395. A detailed, carefully documented description of the rise to power of Generals Hindenburg and Ludendorff between August 1916 and November 1918. Thoroughly researched and highly readable; largely based on original archival material, except for the final chapters.
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  397. Ritter, Gerhard. The Sword and the Scepter: The Problem of Militarism in Germany. 4 vols. Translated by Heinz Norden. Coral Gables, FL: University of Miami Press, 1969–1973.
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  399. Volume 2, The European Powers and the Wilhelminian Empire, 1890–1914, is a dated study of German planning for war and the responsibility of militarism, particularly of the General Staff and the outbreak of the conflict. Counterargument to the Fischer-Geiss war guilt school, with much information. See also Volume 3, The Tragedy of Statesmanship—Bethmann Hollweg as War Chancellor, 1914–1917, and Volume 4, The Reign of German Militarism and the Disaster of 1918.
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  401. Russia
  402.  
  403. Some serious books on the Russian army during World War I finally appeared in the Soviet Union during the 1970s (Rostunov and Institut voennoĭ istorii 1975, Frenkin 1978), but, since the early 1980s, multiple important works have been published. Stoff 2006, Holquist 2002, and Steinberg 2010 represent the most recent of several volumes that have appeared. Thus, the cited works represent the 1970s through 2010. Fuller 1992, Menning 1992, Rich 1998, and Steinberg 2010 explore the tsarist army through various time periods until 1914 and should be consulted. Wildman 1980, the first of two volumes, provides an interesting interpretation of Russia during the third year of the war, while a second volume traces events after the Bolshevik Revolution. The author’s research in the Soviet archives is a definite positive.
  404.  
  405. Frenkin, Mikhail S. Russkaia armiia i revoliutsiia 1917–1918. Munich: Logos, 1978.
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  407. An important book for military historians. Written by a Jewish émigré, it covers the army’s collapse in 1917 and 1918 in detail.
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  409. Fuller, William C., Jr. Strategy and Power in Russia, 1600–1914. New York: Free Press, 1992.
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  411. Authoritative examination of Russian strategic thinking and military planning prior to World War I. Explains how technological advancements affected economic, political, and social problems in the Russian army. Seminal survey of the activities of Russian strategic thinking from the 17th century until the Great War.
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  413. Holquist, Peter. Making War, Forging Revolution: Russia’s Continuum of Crisis, 1914–1921. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2002.
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  415. Holquist’s research has helped historians to extend the Russian World War I period to 1914–1921, rather than the earlier accepted 1914–1918. Events from the war years are described as already containing revolutionary events and place the Civil War into the context of the World War and Russian revolutions.
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  417. Menning, Bruce W. Bayonets Before Bullets: The Imperial Russian Army, 1861–1914. Indiana-Michigan Series in Russian and East European Studies. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1992.
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  419. The best comprehensive study of the Russian army before World War I. The author explores the multiple problems encountered during the war. Thoroughly researched and well written. A must for those interested in the tsarist army before and during the war.
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  421. Rich, David Alan. The Tsar’s Colonels: Professionalism, Strategy, and Subversion in Late Imperial Russia. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1998.
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  423. A well-researched book tracing the modernization of the Russian General Staff from the 1856 Crimean War. Rich provides an excellent explanation of how modernization efforts were negatively affected by the tsarist regime and its supporters.
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  425. Rostunov, Ivan I., and Institut voennoĭ istorii, eds. Istoriia pervoi mirovoi voiny, 1914–1918. 2 vols. Moscow: Nauka, 1975.
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  427. First comprehensive Russian study of World War I since the 1920s with a Soviet version of the conflict. Contains some bias and ideological content and does not improve upon earlier versions written in the 1920s by the Zaionchkovskii or Svechin generation.
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  429. Steinberg, John W. All the Tsar’s Men: Russia’s General Staff and the Fate of the Empire, 1898–1914. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2010.
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  431. A valuable explanation of the failure to reform the Russian army before and after the Russo-Japanese War, which resulted in its disastrous performance during World War I. Covers the Russian General Staff, preparations for war, and the role of the aristocracy and tsar in thwarting modernizing reformers.
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  433. Stoff, Laurie S. They Fought for the Motherland: Russia’s Women Soldiers in World War I and the Revolution. Modern War Studies. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2006.
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  435. A scholarly work on a much-needed topic on which there has been little research. Possibly a definitive work on Russian women soldiers.
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  437. Wildman, Allan K. The End of the Russian Imperial Army: The Old Army and the Soldiers’ Revolt (March–April 1917). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1980.
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  439. Wildman traces the relationship between field commanders and front soldiers and the escalating social turmoil that occurred during the war’s third year. A second volume, The End of the Russian Imperial Army: The Road to Soviet Power and Peace (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1987), continues the story to the Bolshevik takeover. Extensive source materials, including Soviet archives.
  440. Find this resource:
  441. Home Front
  442.  
  443. The home fronts proved critical during World War I, particularly for Austria-Hungary and Russia, because they could not fight a modern, industrial war. The dual monarchy, like Germany, suffered from the effects of the British blockade. Thus, on the home front, it faced a disastrous declining economic situation combined with the explosive nationality question and events on the battlefront in 1918. Russia also suffered serious economic distress from the closing of the Turkish Straits and the fact that tsarist ports were open for only six months on the Pacific coast and northern European boundaries. Recent German research has emphasized specific geographical areas of the home front.
  444.  
  445. Austria-Hungary
  446.  
  447. In addition to the classic Rauchensteiner 1993 (cited under Post–World War I: Austria-Hungary), the books cited here present material on the ultimate collapse of the dual monarchy. Glaise von Horstenau 1929 is valuable because of the author’s participation in the events, while Plaschka and Mack 1970 provides much information (some articles are far superior to others). Plaschka, et al. 1974 focuses specifically on the domestic situation and the effects of internal actions and military unit mutinies, as well as the effect of returning Russian prisoners of war in 1918.
  448.  
  449. Glaise von Horstenau, Edmund. Die Katastrophe: Die Zertrümmerung Österreich-Ungarns und das Werden der Nachfolgerstaaten. Vienna: Amalthea-Verlag, 1929.
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  451. An interesting study on the collapse of the dual monarchy and on the nationality issue, by a participant in the events leading to the creation of the successor states.
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  453. Plaschka, Richard, Horst Haselsteiner, and Arnold Suppan. Innere Front: Militärassistenz, Widerstand und Umsturz in der Donaumonarchie 1918. 2 vols. Österreichisches Ost- und Südosteuropa-Institut 8. Vienna: Verlag für Geschichte und Politik, 1974.
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  455. Focuses on the domestic situation and decline of internal order in Austria-Hungary, emphasizing the increase in disturbances and military unit insurrections between January and November 1918. Research was performed in successor state archives, as well as in Vienna.
  456. Find this resource:
  457. Plaschka, Richard, and Karlheinz Mack, eds. Die Auflösung des Habsburgerreiches: Zusammenbruch und Neuorientierung im Donauraum. Schriftenreihe des Österreichischen Ost- und Südosteuropa-Instituts 3. Munich: R. Oldenbourg, 1970.
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  459. Sixty articles from a 1968 symposium including forty from Communist countries. Diverse topics, but many are not significant. Emphasis is on the interaction between internal and external events.
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  461. Germany
  462.  
  463. Multiple volumes have been written on specific geographic areas in Germany during the World War. Ziemann 2006, concentrating on rural Bavaria, represents one of the best. Chickering 1998 provides an overview of the topic, while Kocka 1984, although some material is contested, provides a classic German approach.
  464.  
  465. Chickering, Roger. Imperial Germany and the Great War, 1914–1918. New Approaches to European History 13. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1998.
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  467. The author synthesized and summarized military, diplomatic, economic, social, and cultural aspects of World War I, from English and German sources. The book would be most useful for undergraduate students. A strength is that it contains an annotated bibliography.
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  469. Kocka, Jürgen. Facing Total War: German Society, 1914–1918. Translated by Barbara Weinberger. Leamington Spa, UK: Berg, 1984.
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  471. English translation of Klassengesellschaft im Krieg: Deutsche Sozialgeschichte 1914–1918 (Göttingen, Germany: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1973; reprinted as recently as 2011). The author attempted to portray German society through its social classes, utilizing at times a self-proclaimed Marxist method. He analyzed German society primarily on the basis of German literature during World War I. The well-organized book contains extensive notes, and the translation is good.
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  473. Ziemann, Benjamin. War Experiences in Rural Germany, 1914–1923. Legacy of the Great War. Oxford: Berg, 2006.
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  475. The book traces the everyday German war experiences, by connecting the population and soldiers at the home front through war letters, concentrating on rural Bavaria. Excellent sources, including those from obscure archives, and a good translation.
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  477. Russia
  478.  
  479. The following are examples of the mostly nonmilitary side of Russian activity during the war, published in the 1990s and the early 21st century. The topics include Russia and its occupied territories (Bakhturina 2000), tsarist economy and refugees (Gatrell 2005), Siberian home front (Ikonnikova 1999), ethnic groups (Lohr 2003), conscription (Sanborn 2003), influence of the war in the provinces (Belova 2011), the effect of grain prices (Kondratiev 1991), and home front support for the war (Jahn 1995).
  480.  
  481. Bakhturina, A. Iu. Politika Rossiiskoi Imperii v Vostochnoi Galitsii v gody Pervoi mirovoi voiny. Moscow: AIRO-XX, 2000.
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  483. Bakhturina focuses on the wartime policies of the Russian government in occupied Galicia. She utilizes several imperial archives, above all the Russian State Military History Archive in Moscow. Her next volume, Okrainy rossiiskoi imperii: Gosudarstvennoe upravlenie i natsional’naia politika v gody Pervoi mirovoi voiny; 1914–1917 gg. (Moscow: ROSSPĖN, 2004), covers Russian rule in occupied territories and Russian borderlands.
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  485. Belova, Irina B. Pervaia mirovaia voina i rossiiskaia provintsiia: 1914–fevral’ 1917g. Moscow: AIRO-XXI, 2011.
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  487. The author presents various topics relative to the effect of the war in the provinces and care of wounded POWs. Discusses conscription, enlistment, and civilian refugees from the West, as well as other topics. An important contribution by a young Russian scholar.
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  489. Gatrell, Peter W. Russia’s First World War: A Social and Economic History. Harlow, UK: Pearson/Longman, 2005.
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  491. This important monograph, from research in Russian and English sources, surveys the tsarist state and private economic sectors. An expert on the final years of the war, Gatrell examines the tsarist economy, various difficulties, and then the results of the Bolshevik Revolution. For the specialist and general reader. His book A Whole Empire Walking: Refugees in Russia during World War I (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1999) relates the tragedy of refugees during the war.
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  493. Ikonnikova, Tatjana Ia. Dal’nevostochnyi tyl Rossii v gody pervoi mirovoi voiny. Khabarovsk, Russia: Khabarovskii Gospedinstitut, 1999.
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  495. Ikonnikova presents a local history of the Far East Hinterland and Siberian home front, in addition to the effects and results of the transfer of Siberian troops to the western front during the war.
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  497. Jahn, Hubertus F. Patriotic Culture in Russia during World War I. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1995.
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  499. Jahn’s book explores the Russian home front, raising the important question of the extent of support for the war. The author claims that the war did not garner the enthusiasm it did in the West, but nevertheless it was supported.
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  501. Kondratiev, Nikolai D. Rynok khlebov i ego regulirovanie vo vremia voiny i revoliutsii. Moscow: Nauka, 1991.
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  503. The author, a famous economist, describes how the grain market functioned and explains regulations during the war and revolutionary periods. Emphasizes the connection between the battlefront and cities.
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  505. Lohr, Eric. Nationalizing the Russian Empire: The Campaign against Enemy Aliens during World War I. Russian Research Center Studies 94. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2003.
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  507. A narrow interpretation of ethnic groups and the home front. Presents state and merchant initiatives that discriminated against and persecuted “foreign companies” operating in the empire, and describes the militarization and politicization of ethnicity in many areas.
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  509. Sanborn, Joshua A. Drafting the Russian Nation: Military Conscription, Total War, and Mass Politics, 1905–1925. DeKalb: Northern Illinois University Press, 2003.
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  511. Sanborn describes the interaction between the military and society (effect and response of Russian society to the war) and conscription. Gives Soviet leaders credit for successful modernizing efforts. His basic argument is that Russia fits into a general European pattern. One of the historians who extends the war timetable, to 1925. Well researched.
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  513. Prisoners of War
  514.  
  515. Three excellent books have appeared since 2002 on the significant topic of World War I prisoners of war on the eastern front—Nachtigal 2003, Nagornaia 2010, and Rachamimov 2002. While one of the first Soviet publications on the subject appeared in 1920 (see Zhdanov 1920), Taitl 1992, published decades later, is also a worthwhile contribution. Nachtigal 2003 contains a reservoir of information gleaned from extensive research. It should be noted that Austria-Hungary and Russia had the highest number of prisoners of war during the conflict, totaling millions.
  516.  
  517. Nachtigal, Reinhard. Rußland und seine österreichisch-ungarischen Kriegsgefangenen (1914–1918). Remshalden, Germany: Greiner, 2003.
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  519. Highly informative book that utilizes exhaustive research, including Soviet archives, to focus on Austro-Hungarian soldiers who became Russian prisoners of war. Describes the immense logistical and bureaucratic problems that an unprepared Russia encountered because of the enormous number of captured enemy soldiers.
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  521. Nagornaia, Oksana S. “Drugoi voennyi opyt”: Rossiiskie voennoplennye Pervoi mirovoi voiny v Germanii, 1914–1922. Moscow: Novyi khronograf, 2010.
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  523. Product of the author’s extensive research in Russian and German archives. Details the living conditions in various prisoner-of-war camps, emphasizing the unanticipated numbers of the incarcerated. Also discusses forced labor and the difficulties faced by millions of POWs when they returned home.
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  525. Rachamimov, Alon. POWs and the Great War: Captivity on the Eastern Front. Legacy of the Great War. New York: Berg, 2002.
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  527. The author concentrates on Austro-Hungarian prisoners of war in Russia, contrasting the differences between those held in Russia, Germany, and Austria. Thorough research including documents from all three pertinent archives.
  528. Find this resource:
  529. Taitl, Horst. Kriegsgefangen—Österreichischer und Ungarn als Gefangene der Entente 1914 bis 1921. Vol. 1. Schriftenreihe der Österreichischen Arbeitsgemeinschaft Feld- und Zensurpost 1914–1918. Dorbirn, Austria: H. Taitl, 1992.
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  531. Should be included on any reading list on Austro-Hungarian prisoners of war in Russia. Provides much detail, written before the later volumes cited above.
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  533. Zhdanov, N. Russkie voennoplennye v mirovoi voine, 1914–1918 g.g. Trudy Voenno-istoricheskoi Komissii. Moscow: Voenno-istoricheskoi Komissii, 1920.
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  535. Important because it is one of the first Soviet publications on Russian POWs in World War I.
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  537. Air Force
  538.  
  539. The airplane introduced a new and unproven weapon during the early war years, which added a three-dimensional aspect to the battlefront. In rapid succession, aircraft would be utilized for reconnaissance, which became its most important mission, and quickly developed in 1915 into fighter planes and bombers. As industrialized countries, Britain, France, and Germany became the key powers in the development of air warfare. The eastern front tended to receive obsolete aircraft, but nevertheless, although having far fewer numbers, reconnaissance missions still proved to be very effective throughout the war. Morrow 1993 provides an excellent overview of aerial events during the war, and Morrow 1982 portrays German aircraft industrial development. Kennett 1991 is valuable, particularly the chapter on “other fronts,” including the eastern. Kilduff 1991 traces the evolution of the German air force but includes many interesting individual citations. Grosz, et al. 2002 provides much information and many pictures of the Habsburg aircraft during the war.
  540.  
  541. Grosz, Peter M., George Haddow, and Peter Schiemer. Austro-Hungarian Army Aircraft of World War One. 2d ed. Boulder, CO: Flying Machines, 2002.
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  543. Offers great detail on Habsburg aircraft; contains many interesting photographs. Originally published in 1993.
  544. Find this resource:
  545. Kennett, Lee. The First Air War, 1914–1918. New York: Free Press, 1991.
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  547. The author presents an overview of air forces during the Great War, which includes an excellent chapter on the events on fronts other than the western.
  548. Find this resource:
  549. Kilduff, Peter. Germany’s First Air Force, 1914–1918. London: Arms and Armour, 1991.
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  551. Kilduff describes all the fronts while tracing the development of fighter planes, balloons, bomber aircraft, and pilot training, with individual stories involving multiple pilots.
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  553. Morrow, John H., Jr. German Air Power in World War I. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1982.
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  555. A scholarly monograph based on serious archival research, which traces the German military aircraft industry from the 1914 mobilization to the end of the war, and its adaptation to total war.
  556. Find this resource:
  557. Morrow, John H., Jr. The Great War in the Air: Military Aviation from 1909 to 1921. Smithsonian History of Aviation. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1993.
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  559. Morrow provides an excellent overview of prewar and the air war in great detail, with much information on the German air force, but less for the Austro-Hungarian and Russian sides.
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