Battle of Bakhmach (''Bitva u Bachmače'' in

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech ...

), was one of the last battles on the Eastern Front in World War I between the Entente-backed

Czechoslovak Legion , image = Coat of arms of the Czechoslovak Legion.svg , image_size = 200px , alt = , caption = Czechoslovak Legion coat of arms , start_date ...

, Soviet Russia and the

Central Powers The Central Powers, also known as the Central Empires,german: Mittelmächte; hu, Központi hatalmak; tr, İttifak Devletleri / ; bg, Централни сили, translit=Tsentralni sili was one of the two main coalitions that fought in W ...

occupying Ukraine after the

Treaty of Brest-Litovsk The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (also known as the Treaty of Brest in Russia) was a separate peace treaty signed on 3 March 1918 between Russia and the Central Powers ( Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire), that ended Russi ...

. The battle lasted from March 8 to March 13, 1918 over the city of

Bakhmach Bakhmach ( uk, Бахмач, lit=plantations, ) is a city located in Nizhyn Raion of Chernihiv Oblast (province), in northern Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Bakhmach urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. It has a population of ...

(Бахмач), today in Ukraine and was the last engagement in World War 1 for the Soviets. Following a Legion victory, the Germans negotiated a truce.

Prelude

On March 3, 1918

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eight ...

, controlled by the

Bolshevik The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...

s, signed the Brest-Litovsk peace treaty with Germany, in which it gave up control over Ukraine. On March 8 Germans troops reached Bakhmach, an important rail hub, and in doing so threatened the Czech Legion with encirclement. The threat was so grave because captured legionnaires were summarily executed as traitors of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1 ...

. The 6th "Hanácký" and 7th "Tatranský" Rifle Regiments, together with the Assault battalion of Czechoslovak Army Corps of the Legion, set up defenses at the town against incoming German 91st and 224th Infantry divisions.

Battle

The battle was notable because the troops were not only fighting for Bakhmach

railway junction A junction, in the context of rail transport, is a place at which two or more rail routes converge or diverge. This implies a physical connection between the tracks of the two routes (assuming they are of the same gauge), provided by ''points'' ( ...

(victory of Stanislav Čeček), but also for the bridge over the river Desna, which led to bloody battles at Doch. The climax of the fighting occurred on March 10. Thanks to the Legion victory, the Germans negotiated a truce, during which Czechoslovak armoured trains could freely pass through Bakhmach railway junction to

Chelyabinsk Chelyabinsk ( rus, Челя́бинск, p=tɕɪˈlʲæbʲɪnsk, a=Ru-Chelyabinsk.ogg; ba, Силәбе, ''Siläbe'') is the administrative center and largest city of Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia. It is the seventh-largest city in Russia, with a ...

. The Czechoslovak Legion (about 42,000 soldiers) during the truce set up for escape from Russia via the

Trans-Siberian railroad The Trans-Siberian Railway (TSR; , , ) connects European Russia to the Russian Far East. Spanning a length of over , it is the longest railway line in the world. It runs from the city of Moscow in the west to the city of Vladivostok in the eas ...

. Armies of Germany and Austria-Hungary then started to occupy the land without much resistance. Losses of the Legion were: 145 killed, 210 wounded, 41 missing. Estimate of German losses is around 300 dead and hundreds wounded. Similarly to Battle of Zborov or the " Siberian anabasis", the battle of Bakhmach became one of the symbols of the Czechoslovakian Legions and their fight for independence.

Sources

* Václav Cháb: "Německý vpád na slovanský východ : kus dějin - kus boje o budoucnost", Prague, 1938 * Václav Cháb: "Bachmač : březen 1918", Prague, 1948 * Karel Goš: "Bitva u Bachmače byla slavnou epizodou Hanáckého pluku : největší oslavy proběhly v roce 1938", article in newspaper ''Olomoucký den'', March 20, 1999, page 10 * PRECLÍK, Vratislav. Masaryk a legie (Masaryk and legions), váz. kniha, 219 str., vydalo nakladatelství Paris Karviná, Žižkova 2379 (734 01 Karviná) ve spolupráci s Masarykovým demokratickým hnutím (Masaryk Democratic Movement, Prague), 2019, , pages 50 - 70, 72 - 100, 124 - 128,140 - 148,184 - 190 * M. Vlachynský: "V březnu 1918 bojovali legionáři u Bachmače", article in newspaper ''Českobudějovické listy'', March 14, 1998, page 12 *Adolf Kubíček: Hanáci v revoluci (Hanakians in revolution: The Chronicle of 6th Czechoslovak Rifle Regiment), Olomouc, 1928

External links

Short overviews of the battle

Bachmač
from Valka Municipality website {{DEFAULTSORT:Battle Of Bakhmach Battles of the Eastern Front (World War I), Bakhmach

March 1918 events

History of Chernihiv Oblast