- Operation Albion
-
Operation Albion Part of World War I 
Operation Albion amphibious operations 10–20 OctoberDate September–October 1917 Location Baltic Sea Result German victory Belligerents 
German Empire
Russian RepublicCommanders and leaders Ludwig von Estorff
Ehrhard Schmidt
Mikhail BakhirevStrength 23,000 men,
5,000 horses,
1,400 vehicles,
150 machine guns,
54 guns,
12 mortars and munitionsCasualties and losses Battleship Slava lost Baltic Sea 1914–1918- British submarine flotilla in the Baltic
- Åland Islands
- Gulf of Riga
- Operation Albion
- Moon Sound
- Ice Cruise
- British campaign in the Baltic (1918–1919)
See also: Occupation of Estonia by German EmpireOperation Albion was the German land and naval operation in September-October 1917 to invade and occupy the Estonian islands of Saaremaa (Ösel), Hiiumaa (Dagö) and Muhu (Moon), then part of the Russian Republic. The land campaign opened with landings at Tagalaht Bay, Saaremaa, on 11 October 1917, after extensive naval activity to clear mines and subdue coastal artillery batteries, and the island was secured by 16 October. The Russian Army evacuated Muhu on 18 October.
After two failed attempts, the Germans managed to land on Hiiumaa on the 19th and captured the island on the following day. The Russian Baltic Fleet had to withdraw from Muhu Sound after major losses (see Battle of Moon Sound). The Germans claimed 20,000 prisoners and 100 guns captured during Operation Albion from 12 October.
Contents
Strategic significance
At the beginning of World War I the islands were of little importance to either Imperial Russia or Germany. However after the revolutionary turmoil in Russia during 1917, the German high command believed capturing the islands would outflank Russian defences and lay St Petersburg vulnerable to attack.[1]
Order of battle
German units
- 42nd Division
- 2nd Infanterie Cyclist Brigade
- Special Unit
- Flagship: Moltke
- Squadron III
- Squadron IV. Vizeadmiral Wilhelm Souchon
- II Aufklarungsgruppe
- VI Aufklarungsgruppe
- Flagship: Emden
- II Flottille (10 boats)
- VIII Flottille (11 boats)
- VI Flottille (11 boats)
- X Flottille (11 boats)
- 7th Half-Flottille (7 boats)
- U-Flottille Kurland (6 boats)
- Sperrbrechergruppe.
- II Minesweeper Flottille.
- 3rd Half-Flottille
- 4th Half-Flottille
- 8th Half-Flottille
- 3rd S-Half-Flottille
- S-Flottille of the Baltic.
- Netbarrier Unit of the Baltic.
- Battleship Kaiser
Russian units[2]
- Battleships: Tsesarevich, Slava
- Armored cruiser: Admiral Makarov
- Destroyers: Desna, Novik, Pobeditel, Zabijaka, Grom, Konstantin
- Gunboats: Chivinetz, Grozyashchi
- Blockship: Lavwija
- Minelayer: Pripyat
- Submarines: C26, C27, C32
References
Notes
- ^ Barrett (2008), p8
- ^ http://www.gwpda.org/naval/albion1.htm
Bibliography
- Barrett, Michael B. Operation Albion: The German Conquest of the Baltic Islands. Indiana University Press: Bloomington, IN. ISBN 978-0-253-34969-9
External links
Categories:- Conflicts in 1917
- 1917 in Russia
- 1917 in Estonia
- Baltic operations of World War I
- Military operations of World War I involving Germany
- Military operations of World War I involving Russia
- History of Estonia
- World War I stubs
- European military stubs
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
