"Our troops entered the town at the enemy's heels. We ran into the town, despite our fatigue, with thunderous cheering.
"An episode which had much to do with ending the enemy's dogged resistance occurred during the fighting between the first and second lines. The Austrians in the hope of checking the Russian effort to encircle the town had thrown out a heavy screen of Slav troops with a backing of Magyars who had been ordered to shoot down the Slavs from behind if they showed any hesitation.
"This circumstance became known to the Russian commander, who ordered a terrific artillery fire over the heads of the Slavs and into the ranks of the Magyars. This well-directed fire set the whole line in panic."
More than 35,000 Austrians and Russian wounded were abandoned on the field of battle between Tarnow, Lemberg and Tarnopol owing to lack of means of transportation, according to reliable reports. Both armies declined to ask for an armistice for the burial of the dead and the collection of the wounded, each fearing to give an advantage to the other.
THE BATTLE BEFORE LEMBERG
The immense superiority of the Austrian forces east of Lemberg enabled the Austrians at first to adopt the offensive. As soon, however, as the Austrians realized the impossibility of an advance on Warsaw they concentrated their large and overwhelming forces in an attempt to outflank the right wing of the Russian army, which was drawing slowly but surely towards Lemberg, On the other Russian flank the two Russian army corps, after crossing the River Zlota Lipa without much opposition, continued their advance to the River Knila Lipa, where they found the bridges had all been destroyed by the Austrian advance guards. Two bridges were constructed on the Rogarten-Halicz line, which enabled a crossing to be effected in spite of heavy and incessant artillery fire from the Austrian 24-centimeter guns.
Once across the river, the two Russian corps crossed the upper reaches of the River Boog and so approached the town of Lemberg from the east. The main Austrian army, however, had by this time moved up to bar the further advance of the Russian forces, and the whole of their armies on the left bank of the River Vistula being in front of the three Russian corps, the latter were compelled to adopt a defensive rôle for three or four days, after which, having received large reinforcements, the Russian force moved forward and drove the Austrian troops out of their entrenchments outside Lemberg at the point of the bayonet. A desperate attempt was made by means of a counter-attack to arrest the advance of the Russian troops, but this only resulted in the capture of 6,000 Austrian prisoners.
Lemberg was not a fortress but was recently converted into a semi-fortified place, as a series of lunettes, redoubts, etc., had been hastily prepared. It was the headquarters of the 11th Austrian Corps, which consisted of the famous 43rd Landwehr infantry division, and was further divided into three Landwehr brigades. There was also a Landwehr Uhlan regiment, together with a howitzer division of field artillery. These batteries were armed with 10.5-centimeter guns, fitted with the German or Krupp eccentric breech action. The forts outside the town were said to be armed with the 15-centimeter siege gun made of steel, also with a Krupp action. The ammunition for these guns is chiefly high explosive shell and shrapnel; one of the forts is also said to have had a battery of three 24-centimeter heavy siege guns of quite a modern pattern.