The Fortress: The Great Siege of Przemysl

Watson, Alexander. 2019. The Fortress: The Great Siege of Przemysl. London: Allen Lane, Penguin Books. ISBN 9780241309063 [Book]

No full text available

Abstract or Description

In the autumn of 1914 Europe was at war. The battling powers had already suffered casualties on a scale previously unimaginable. On both the western and eastern fronts elaborate war plans lay in ruins and had been discarded in favour of desperate improvisation. In the west this resulted in the remorseless world of the trenches; in the east all eyes were focused on the old, beleaguered Austro-Hungarian fortress of Przemysl.

The siege that unfolded at Przemysl was the longest of the whole war. In the defence of the fortress and the struggle to relieve it Austria-Hungary suffered some 800,000 casualties. Almost unknown in the west, this was one of the great turning points of the conflict. If the Russians had broken through they could have invaded Central Europe, but by the time the fortress fell their strength was so sapped they could go no further.

Item Type:

Book

Keywords:

World War I, Przemysl, siege

Departments, Centres and Research Units:

History

Date:

17 October 2019

Item ID:

27157

Date Deposited:

17 Oct 2019 09:24

Last Modified:

10 Mar 2021 13:12

URI:

https://research.gold.ac.uk/id/eprint/27157

Edit Record Edit Record (login required)