Day Three (24 December 1914)

Sketch: 24 December 1914

11th Corps:

Fighting continued throughout the day. The Russians launched counterattacks in some regions while withdrawing in other regions.

Sketch: 24 December 1914

9th Corps:

The 29th Division eliminated a border detachment of the Russians comprising 300 soldiers, arrived at Bardiz. The 17th and 28th Divisions arrived at Esenyurt and Terpenek, respectively. The intense blizzard dissipated 40% of the 17th Division. Enver Pasha while riding his horse saw this terrible situation. He arrived at Bardiz during the night. He wanted to bring all three Divisions together in Bardiz. However, he learnt from a Russian Soldier that there wasn’t any significant Russian Unit in Sarikamish except a few rearguard units without cannon. Shortly after this he set out to Sarikamish along with the 29th Division. The 17th Division would follow them.

Sketch: 24 December 1914

10th Corps:

In accordance with the order of the Commander of the Army, the 32nd and 30th Divisions would advance in the direction of Kotik and Penek, respectively and the 31st Division would follow the 30th Division. As a result of the attacks made particularly at night, the Russians were drawn back even beyond Penek. The 32nd Division continued to advance as planned but dragged itself along with difficulty and wasting away much time.

General Summary:

Despite the storm, Turkish Soldiers walked over the immense white snow. Moreover, Nashua Bey, The Chief of Staff of the 10th Corps came closer to the forward lines and was captured by the Russians, unluckily during reconnaissance. Worst of all, he was carrying the order of the Supreme Military Command with himself and the Russians got hold of it. As a result, Russians made the necessary adjustments accordingly and began to shift their forces towards Sarikamish despite the rivalry between Russian Commanders.