Early fighting

At the beginning Russian forces launched an attack into both Austria and Germany. At the end of August 1914, Germany counterattacked near the town of Tannenberg. The Germans crushed the invading Russian army and drove it into full retreat. More than 30,000 Russian soldiers were killed. Russian forces defeated the Austrians twice in September 1914. Not until December of that year did the Austrian army manage to turn the tide. Austria defeated the Russians and eventually pushed them out of Austria-Hungary.