Battle of Łódź (1914)

The Battle of Łódź (German: Schlacht um Łódź) or Lodz operation (Russian: Лодзинская операция, romanized: Lodzinskaya operatsia) took place from 11 November to 6 December 1914, near the city of Łódź in Poland. Battles were fought between German units of the 8th Army, 9th Army, Austrian 1st Army, and the Russian 1st, 2nd, and 5th Armies, in harsh winter conditions. The Germans redeployed their 9th Army around Thorn, so as to threaten the Russian northern flank, following German reversals after the Battle of the Vistula River. The German objective was to prevent an invasion of Germany, by encircling and destroying the Russians; instead, the Germans were surrounded and lost two corps; still, the invasion of Germany was prevented. The battle had a strong impact on both the Western and Eastern fronts. It ended with the tactical victory of the Russian troops, although the Russians eventually withdrew and the pressure on the Austrians eased, as reinforcements that could have gone to Przemyśl went instead to Łódź; implying a strategic victory for Germany.