The Sventiany Offensive (now

Švenčionys Švenčionys (, known also by several alternative names) is a town located north of Vilnius in Lithuania. It is the capital of the Švenčionys district municipality. , it had population of 4,065 of which about 17% is part of the Polish minority ...

) was a military operation mostly undertaken by the

Imperial German Army The Imperial German Army (1871–1919), officially referred to as the German Army (german: Deutsches Heer), was the unified ground and air force of the German Empire. It was established in 1871 with the political unification of Germany under the l ...

's 10th Army against the

Imperial Russian Army The Imperial Russian Army (russian: Ру́сская импера́торская а́рмия, tr. ) was the armed land force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian Ar ...

's 10th Army on the Eastern Front during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. On 9 September 1915, the Germans broke through the Russian defences and four German

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

division Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...

s, reinforced from 13 September 1915 by two others, went into the breach to gain the rear of the Russian 10th Army. Later the German cavalry operations, devoid of

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

and

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

support, weakened; and on 15–16 September 1915 the newly formed Russian 2nd Army finally stopped the German attack. The Russians attempted to push the Germans back and eliminate the Sventiany breach, however, on 2 October 1915, German reinforcements held against the Russian attack and inflicted heavy casualties on the Russians.

Sources

*Yevseyev, I. ''Sventyanski proryv'', Moscow, 1936.

References

1915 in the Russian Empire Battles of the Eastern Front (World War I) Battles of World War I involving Germany Battles of World War I involving Russia Military history of Lithuania Conflicts in 1915 September 1915 events October 1915 events Švenčionys {{Russia-battle-stub