”..I simply could not bear to see...
Cover image: German troops launch a bayonet assault on a fortified Russian position during the battle of Lodz (near Petrikau).
On 11 November 1914, Mackensen’s German 9th Army attacked Rennenkampf’s 1st Army near Włocławek before Russian defenses were ready. The German advance forced the 5th Siberian Corps to retreat, creating a gap Mackensen exploited. By 16 November, the Germans captured Kutno and crossed the Bzura, threatening Łódź. Grand Duke Nicholas redirected Plehve’s 5th Army north to save the 2nd Army, striking Mackensen’s flank on 18 November. Though the Germans tried to outflank Łódź, Russian counterattacks closed around Brzeziny. Lieutenant General Scheffer-Boyadel’s XXV Reserve Corps became trapped as Russian forces recaptured Brzeziny, turning the tables and encircling the Germans.
Surrounded by the Russian 1st Army under General Paul von Rennenkampf, General Reinhard von Scheffer-Boyadel’s men were cut off from their supply lines and communications. The trap appeared complete. “There is no doubt: if we don’t make it today, we will end up dead in this soil or we will go to Siberia.” That’s what the commander of the 49th Division of the German Imperial Army, Thiesenhausen, told Lieutenant General Reinhard von Scheffer-Boyadel, while they were cut off and desperately searching for a way to escape from the deadly Russian encirclement.
Believing they had encircled a far larger force, the triumphant Russians arranged transport for 20,000 prisoners. In truth, the German contingent within the pocket comprised roughly 11,000 combatants and an additional 3,000 wounded.
For the 63-year-old Scheffer, recalled from retirement only weeks before, the choices seemed stark: surrender, or annihilation. But he refused to yield. His 11,000 combat troops, together with some 3,000 wounded, would attempt the impossible — a breakout through the tightening Russian noose.
On the freezing, fog-shrouded night of November 23, 1914, Scheffer’s columns marched silently toward the town of Brzeziny. There, fate delivered them an opening: the Russian 6th Siberian Rifle Division, having grown complacent, had relaxed its security. The Germans seized the moment. With bayonets fixed and orders to avoid firing, they stormed through the sleeping Russians, sowing chaos and seizing half the town before the first gunshot rang out.
General Karl Litzmann led the spearhead of the assault, later recalling how stunned Russian soldiers were dragged from their beds as prisoners. By dawn, the tables had turned: instead of being annihilated, the Germans were advancing — and the Russians were reeling. He later recounted: “We struck swiftly, overwhelming the Siberian troops who had let their guard down. The town fell into our hands before they could react.”
Confusion spread through the Russian ranks. Cavalry units, spotting the long columns of Germans mixed with thousands of Russian captives, mistook the movement for enemy reinforcements and dared not attack. Meanwhile, higher command collapsed into paralysis, with General Nikolai Ruzsky issuing contradictory orders as the situation slipped from his grasp. In his official report, General Scheffer-Boyadel described the breakout: “The Russians, taken by surprise, were unable to mount a coherent defense. Our forces advanced rapidly, capturing prisoners and artillery, and by dawn, we had reached our lines.”
When Scheffer’s exhausted corps finally reached German lines, they had not only saved themselves but also brought with them 12,000 Russian prisoners and 64 captured guns. What had seemed certain disaster was transformed into a stunning victory.
Scheffer’s cool head and iron will were crucial. He is said to have gone 72 hours without sleep, directing the breakout and rallying his men. Combined with the remarkable endurance and determination of the German soldiers, his leadership turned near-defeat into a legendary escape. The noted American military historian Trevor N. Dupuy called it one of the greatest feats in military history, describing it as almost unbelievable. For this action Scheffer-Boyadel received the Pour le Mérite on December 2, 1914.
The Battle of Brzeziny became known as a “miracle” — proof, at least to the Germans, that discipline and resolve could defy the odds. For Karl Litzmann, it earned the title “Lion of Brzeziny.” For Scheffer, it secured his place in military history as the general who would not surrender.
Sources:
https://historia-nieznana.blogspot.com/2024/11/bitwa-o-odz-1914-bitwa-o-brzeziny.html
K. von Wulffen and P. B. Harm, The Battle of Lodz, publ. Washington, D.C.: s.n., 1932
N. Stone, The Eastern Front 1914–1917, publ. London: Penguin, 1998 (orig. 1971)
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