Battle of Erzincan

Battle of Erzincan
Эрзинджанское сражение
Date2–25 July 1916
LocationErzincan, Erzurum Vilayet, Ottoman Empire
Result Russian victory
Belligerents
 Russian Empire  Ottoman Empire
Commanders and leaders
Nikolai Yudenich
Sebastatsi Murad		 Vehip Pasha
Strength
Russian Caucasus Army Third Army
Casualties and losses
Unknown 17,000 killed
17,000 captured

The Battle of Erzincan (Russian: Эрзинджанское сражение, Turkish: Erzincan Muharebesi) was a Russian victory over the Ottoman Empire during the First World War.

In February 1916, Nikolai Yudenich had taken the cities of Erzurum and Trabzon. Trabzon had provided the Russians with a port to receive reinforcements in the Caucasus. Enver Pasha ordered the Third Army, now under Vehip Pasha, to retake Trabzon.[1] Vehip's attack failed and General Yudenich counterattacked on July 2.[1] The Russian attack hit the Turkish communications center of Erzincan forcing Vehip's troops to retreat as well as losing 34,000 men, half taken as POWs.[1] As a result the Third Army was rendered ineffective for the rest of the year.[2]

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 A Global Chronology of Conflict, Volume Four, ed. Spencer C. Tucker, (ABC-CLIO, 2010), 1625.
  2. ↑ David Eggenberger, An Encyclopedia of Battles: Accounts of Over 1,560 Battles from 1479 b.c. to the Present, (Courier Dover Publications, 1985), 137.

References

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