War and Revolution in Asiatic Russia
in view, the Turkish military plans were laid for a grand offensive. As soon as the mobilization of the whole 3rd Army of the "Armenian Inspection Area" was completed, Enver Pasha himself came to take charge of the campaign. He was assisted by a German officer, von Schellendorf, as Chief of his Staff. It soon came to their knowledge that the Russian preparations in the Caucasus were not making very rapid progress, and that there were some weak spots in the long line across the plateau, stretching from the Black Sea to north-west Persia, particularly in the Olti region (middle Chorokh basin),[1] where only a regiment of frontier troops had been put to guard the fortress of Kars and the supply-base of Sary-Kamish from flanking movements on the North. Some years before a Georgian officer, Amiradjibi, on the Russian General Staff for the Caucasian Army, had warned his colleagues of the danger of a flanking movement on Kars via the Olti depression. Little attention was paid to his warnings, because it was thought that the Bardus Pass, leading up from this depression on to the Kars plateau, was impassable for an army, especially during the winter, when it was known to be covered with snow. But the Caucasus Staff had not reckoned on the endurance of the Turkish soldier. Sending the 9th and 10th Army Corps into the Olti depression, and holding the main force of the Russians on the Passan plain with the 11th Corps, Enver Pasha took the field in spite of frost and deep snow, which on December 3rd was falling fast all over the plateau. He was warned of the rashness of his plan by one of his Staff officers, who saw the danger of leading two Army
- ↑ See Map.
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