Page 306 - Le Operazioni Interforze e Multinazionali nella Storia Militare - ACTA Tomo I

306 XXXIX Congresso della CommIssIone InternazIonale dI storIa mIlItare • CIHm

gunners would fire their rounds according to the predefined data. This had to take into
9
account the exact position of the ship, the waves, and any possible wind. The impact
was observed by the assigned balloon division and by air forces. The impact of the en-
tire artillery bombardment was so immense, that the infantry brigades advancing on the
South section were hardly met with any considerable resistance. On January 9, access to
the Lovcen plateau was already in Austro-Hungarian hands, and their brigades were on
a continuous advance. Resistance on the Montenegrin side varied significantly. While
withdrawal movements could be seen on the south section, the attackers in the middle
and north section had to fight hard for every col and summit. By January 10, however,
the Lovcen summit had been taken. By that time, the Montenegrins had lost almost their
entire artillery. An attempt by the Montenegrin Army Command to recapture the Lovcen
summit in a counterattack on the night of January 11 failed due to the complete exhaus-
tion of the troops, which were already showing considerable signs of disintegration. The
collapse of the Lovcen defence prompted Montenegro’s political leaders to request an
armistice already on January 11, which was nevertheless considerably delayed by the
demand of the Imperial and Royal Army Command for unconditional capitulation. On
January 13, the first Austro-Hungarian spearheads reached Centinje, which was subse-
quently occupied almost without a fight. 10

Even if the collapse of Montenegro that followed, it did not have any strategic im-
pact on the overall military situation, the storming of the Lovcen and the victory over a
previously considered impregnable Montenegrin defence must be seen as a remarkable
operational feat. On the one hand, the Imperial and Royal Army demonstrated a consid-
erable clout towards its German ally and, on the other, the offensive against the Lovcen,
which included air and naval forces, stands as one of the most successful “combined
forces” operations. The fact that this success carried the price of a serious rift between
the German and Austro-Hungarian Chiefs of Staff was not to have any grave conse-
quences, since Falkenhayn was eventually relieved of his duties in the autumn of 1916.

9 Enne Peter, p. 137
10 Ibid. p.112