Russians take Jarosław

On 21 September 1914 the Austro-Hungarian Third Army of General Svetozar Boroević abandoned the fortified bridgehead at Jarosław, the last position the Dual Monarchy’s army still held on the east bank of the San. The town passed into Russian hands.

A bridgehead on the San

Jarosław, an old trading town on the San, had been an important point in the Austrian defence system of Galicia since the 1870s. When Austria began building the fortress of Przemyśl, Jarosław, lying about 30 kilometres to the north, was to defend the crossings of the San. The garrison was enlarged, and the town turned into a great military camp.

In the summer of 1914 thousands of reservists heading for the front passed through Jarosław. Public buildings were turned into hospitals and depots. The Austrian military authorities suspected the inhabitants of spying for Russia, and according to the town chronicle six people were shot against the wall of the town hall.

Retreat behind the San

After the defeat in the Battle of Galicia the Austro-Hungarian armies began their great retreat behind the San. In mid-September they crossed the river, but were unable to hold the line of the San. The bridgehead at Jarosław, defended by the rearguard of the Third Army, covered the withdrawal of the troops. On 21 September it too was abandoned, and the retreating units moved further west, towards the Wisłoka and the Dunajec.

The dates of the town’s capture differ in the sources. The British chronology and military studies give 21 September, while the town’s history says the Russians had been in Jarosław since 18 September. It is possible that Russian units entered part of the town before the Austrians finally evacuated the bridgehead.

Meanwhile, a few dozen kilometres to the south, the Russian Third Army of General Radko Dimitriev was closing the ring around Przemyśl. By 26 September the fortress, with a garrison of more than 100,000, was completely encircled.

Under Russian rule

The first Russian occupation was short. The Russians set up a gallows in front of the town hall to intimidate the inhabitants. At the beginning of October the counter-offensive of the Central Powers began, and on 5 October the Russians withdrew from Jarosław to the line of the San. On 3 November, however, they returned to the town and stayed there for more than six months. Jarosław was retaken by German and Austro-Hungarian troops only on 15 May 1915, after the breakthrough at Gorlice. A two-day artillery bombardment then destroyed or badly damaged several hundred houses.