Battle of Inčukalns
The Battle of Inčukalns was the first battle of the Latvian War of Independence located in Inčukalns, the battle was as an attempt by the Landeswehr to delay the Bolsheviks approach to Riga.[3][4]
The battle[edit]
On the morning of 31 December, the 4th rifle regiment started shelling the positions of the Landeswehr at Inčukalns manor, while the 1st regiment went to the Inčukalns station. The Landeswehr held their positions, but later the strategic situation worsened in the positions in the left wing of the 3 km long front line near the manor, when Kliments Didorovs, the captain of the Russian company was driven from it's positions.[4][5] The 1st platoon of the 1st company of the Latvian Riflemen remained as a reserve while the rest of the platoons continued attacking.[4]
Later, in the morning of 1 January, the Inčukalns station was attacked by the 4th Latvian Riflemen regiment from the side of the manor. In the afternoon, the attack from the Latvian Riflemen on the left wing of the Landeswehr, and were overcome with panic.[4]
On the night of 1 January, the Russian Red Archers launched a shock attack, the 1st regiment approached Inčukalns station from the south, but got stuck on barbed wire left from the World War I and their attack stalled, this gave the Landeswehr time to regroup the defense, but a counterattack from the strike company's platoon forced the Landeswehr to retreat 2km from Inčukalns.
Most of the soldiers of the infantry companies of the Landeswehr retreated to the Ropaži station, where they were received early in the morning by a train coming from Riga, which was taking the 1st and 3rd platoons of the Strike Group and two light field guns to Inčukalns. The company of Latvian instructors commanded by Oskars Kalpaks was also supposed to come to help, but he remained in Riga.[4]
In order to avoid an encirclement, the Shock Company began to retreat to the right wing, which until now had held an attack of the 1st regiment. The artillery fire from the active enemy and the machine guns from the flanks prevented the removal of the guns caught in the crossfire from their positions and had to be abandoned. When they reached the railway, the fire of the machine gun team prevented the Landeswehr from crossing it to cut off the retreat, it was clear that the battle was lost.[5]
Aftermath[edit]
The German government representative, August Winnig, made an announcement for the German troops to evacuate from Riga, by the time of the end of the battle on 1 January, the Germans left.
On 2 January, at 7:00 AM, the Latvian Provisional Government, led by Kārlis Ulmanis, also left Riga with the Separate Student Troupe by train to Jelgava. The remaining units of the Latvian Provisional Government under the command of Oskars Kalpaks left Riga on 3 January.
On 4 January, by the Revolutionary Military Council, renamed Soviet Russian forces occupying Latvia to the Soviet Latvian Army, which was led by Jukums Vācietis until March.[4]
Refrences[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Andersons E. Latvijas vēsture : 1914-1920. Stokholma: Daugava , 1967., 375. lpp.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Фабрициус Я.Ф., Траванский A.B. Исторические заметки о гражданской войне в Прибалтике (ответ на статью К.Янэля) // Война и революция. 1928. № 12
- ↑ "A Different War in Latvia". Public Broadcasting of Latvia. June 7, 2018.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 "Inčukalna kauja". Time Note.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Inčukalna kauja". July 6, 2016.
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