The Summer Campaign against Russia, 1915
Government of Lublin. The partition was injurious to the"" common interest of the Allies; many imperatively necessary measures were wrecked on it.
The Commander-in-Chief in the East had had the administration of occupied Poland in his hands since the autumn of 1914. He now made way for General von Beseler, and had more than enough administrative cares in the north-east instead.
Novo Georgievsk will possibly prove the last ring-fortress to be taken after investment. Not that I believe in disarmament The world will very soon learn its lesson in regard to that delusion. However much it may be regretted, mankind will never come to that. But the day of the ring-fortress is past. They cannot stand against modern artillery and its scale of munition-ment, and must give place to something else. Land fortifications will still be necessary, but they will assume the character of fortified lines along the frontier.
VII
When, on August loth, the I2th Army received instructions to march with the right wing up the Bug, on the west it was backing against the 8th Army, which was advancing on either side of the Narew against Lomza. I endeavoured to maintain this echelon as the advance progressed in order to make use of the possibilities of mutual co-operation on the flanks. But by degrees the two armies came up level with their inner wings on the Ostrolenka-Lapy railway. South of the Bug Field-Marshal Prince Leopold's Army Group had moved forward to correspond.
The Commander-in-Chief in the East had to see to the tactical details for the advance, which were unimportant, having regard to the campaign as a whole. Lieutenant-Colonel Hoffmann and I had frequent intercourse with the armies. The two Chiefs of Staff, Colonel Marquard and Major Count Schwerin were excellent soldiers, who gave effective support to their chiefs.
On August gth Lomza was taken from the south-west. For some time past we had had a squadron of bombing aeroplanes