| Conflict: | Battle of Dniestr |
| Partof: | the Eastern Front of World War I |
| Date: | 17 March-2 June 1915 |
| Place: | Dniester (present-day Poland and Western Ukraine) |
| Result: | Russian victory |
| Combatant1: | |
| Combatant2: | Russian Empire |
| Commander1: | Karl von Pflanzer-Baltin |
| Commander2: | Platon Lechitsky Vasily Gurko |
| Units1: | South Army VII Army |
| Units2: | IX Army XI Army |
The Dniester front a series of battles on the eastern front between Russia and the central powers summer offensive.
The Austro-Hungarian armies, not included in the army group of A. von Mackensen, received passive tasks of pinning down the opposing Russian forces and gradually liberating the territory of eastern Galicia from the Russian troops by attacking Buchach and Chortkiv. Since the left tributaries of the Dniester were natural defensive lines, the commander of the 7th Austro-Hungarian Army, cavalry general Karl von Pflanzer-Baltin, decided to force the Dniester River between the mouths of the Strypa and Seret rivers.
| Conflict: | Khotyn operation |
| Date: | 17-22 March 1915 |
| Place: | Dniester |
| Result: | Russian victory |
| Combatant1: | |
| Combatant2: | Russian Empire |
| Commander1: | Karl von Pflanzer-Baltin |
| Commander2: | Platon Lechitsky |
| Strength1: | Unknown |
| Strength2: | 6 division |
| Units1: | VII Army |
| Units2: | IX Army |
| Casualties1: | 3,000 captured 8 machine guns |
| Casualties2: | Unknown |
A Russian defensive operation to prevent the encirclement of the 9th Army. It ended with the failure of the Austro-Hungarian troops.
| Conflict: | Battle of Prut |
| Date: | 19-24 May 1915 |
| Place: | Prut |
| Result: | Russian victory |
| Combatant1: | |
| Combatant2: | Russian Empire |
| Commander1: | Karl von Pflanzer-Baltin |
| Commander2: | Platon Lechitsky |
| Strength1: | Unknown |
| Strength2: | Unknown |
| Units1: | VII Army |
| Units2: | IX Army |
| Casualties1: | Heavy; including 16,000 captured 20 machine guns |
| Casualties2: | 6,082[1] |
A Russian sabotage operation in the territory near the Dniester and the Prut. The Russians successfully crossed the Prut, while incurring heavy losses, but after a while they managed to throw back the Austro-Hungarian units from a height in front of the river and capture large trophies at the same time.
| Conflict: | Khotyn operation |
| Date: | 1915 |
| Place: | Dniester |
| Result: | Russian victory |
| Combatant1: | |
| Combatant2: | Russian Empire |
| Commander1: | Karl von Pflanzer-Baltin |
| Commander2: | Platon Lechitsky |
| Strength1: | Unknown |
| Strength2: | 6 division |
| Units1: | VII Army |
| Units2: | IX Army |
| Casualties1: | 8,000 captured 20 machine guns |
| Casualties2: | Unknown |
| Conflict: | First battle of Dniester |
| Date: | 26 April-2 May 1915 |
| Place: | Dniester |
| Result: | Russian victory |
| Combatant1: | |
| Combatant2: | Russian Empire |
| Commander1: | Karl von Pflanzer-Baltin |
| Commander2: | Platon Lechitsky |
| Strength1: | 8 infantry and 5 cavalry division |
| Strength2: | 9 infantry and 6 cavalry division |
| Units1: | VII Army |
| Units2: | IX Army |
| Casualties1: | 25,000 captured 20 guns and 33 machine guns |
| Casualties2: | Relatively small |
The operation was carried out in order to alleviate the condition of the Russian army against the background of the catastrophe in Galicia. The main force of the 9th Russian army consisted of cavalry and militia squads.[2] Later, the famous Finnish figure Mannerheim also participated in the battle.The Russians were opposed by the 7th army of Austria-Hungary, as well as 2 Polish brigades.Russian Russians launched a large-scale offensive on the morning of April 27, such tactics immediately had an effect and the Russians effortlessly broke through the enemy's front in several places.Some Russian units suffered quite heavy losses, the 1st Trans-Amur division lost up to half of its personnel in the battles for the city of Chernilets, but was able to capture the city and prisoners into the bargain.[3] During the first day of fighting, the 33rd Corps lost 26 officers and 1,589 lower ranks, and she captured 753 prisoners.[4] Russian reinforcements came after that, the fighting went on with varying success, but the Russians still forced the enemy to retreat from the Dniester and capture several cities and 25,000 prisoners.
| Conflict: | Second battle of Dniester |
| Date: | 24 May-2 June 1915 |
| Place: | Dniester |
| Result: | Russian victory |
| Combatant2: | Russian Empire |
| Commander1: | Alexander von Linsingen |
| Commander2: | Vasily Gurko |
| Strength1: | Unknown |
| Strength2: | 8 infantry and 1 cavalry division |
| Units1: | South Army |
| Units2: | XI Army |
| Casualties1: | 28,000 captured 29 guns and 110 machine guns |
| Casualties2: | Unknown |
The battle began with the German troops advancing on the Russian bridgehead at Zhuravno, it was well fortified and flanked by impassable marshes. The Russian troops were well equipped and eager to fight.The Germans attacked unsuccessfully along the entire front, and apparently in poor morale, as cases were recorded when entire companies of the Prussian Guard surrendered.[5] The Russians heroically defended the bridgehead from the troops of the central powers, capturing prisoners and inflicting losses on the guard.[6] The Russians defeated several corps and pushed them away from the Dniester, but after that they had to retreat due to general failures in Galicia and the withdrawal of Brusilov's 8th army.[7]
Austro-Hungarian troops were unable to cross the Dniester and defeat the Russian troops in eastern Galicia. Their trophies amounted to only 7 machine guns and 5,168 prisoners (34 of them officers).[8] During this time, Russian troops were able to capture more than 80,000 during five operations on this sector of the front.