After the Kerensky Offensive's failure by the Russian Army, coupled with the Tarnopol breakthrough by the Austro–Hungarian and German troops, General Lavr Kornilov, the 8th Army's commander, who managed to hold the front in a difficult situation, was appointed commander–in–chief of the armies of the Southwestern Front. On the evening of the same day, Kornilov sent a telegram to the Provisional Government with a description of the situation at the front ("The army of maddened dark people ... is running ...") and his proposals for rectifying the situation (the introduction of the death penalty and field courts at the front). Two weeks later, he was appointed the Supreme Commander–in–Chief. Before accepting this position, he stipulated the conditions on which he would agree to do so – one of such conditions was the implementation of the army reorganization program. To restore discipline, at the request of General Kornilov, the Provisional Government returned the death penalty in the army. By decisive and harsh methods, with the use of deserters in exceptional cases, General Kornilov restored the army's combat capability and restored the front.