page_title: Arthur Arz von Straußenburg
section_title: Chief of General Staff
hierarchical_section_title: Arthur Arz von Straußenburg / First World War / Chief of General Staff
context_page_description: Generaloberst Arthur Freiherr Arz von Straußenburg was an Austro-Hungarian colonel general and last Chief of the General Staff of the Austro-Hungarian Army. At the outbreak of the First World War, he commanded the 15th Infantry Division. Soon, he was promoted to the head of the 6th Corps and the First Army. He participated on the Gorlice–Tarnów Offensive in 1915 and the countryside of Romania in 1916. In March 1917, he became Chief of the General Staff until his resignation on 3 November 1918.
context_section_description: Karl I of Austria succeeded Franz Joseph as Emperor on 21 November 1916, bringing with him a wave of change across the upper echelons of the government and military command. One casualty of these changes was Conrad, with Karl reported as "not wanting a genius to command his armies", but following on from the experience of the supremely gifted but often unsuccessful Conrad, rather someone who was just capable. Arz was acquainted with the emperor; not only was he a capable commander of troops, but he also possessed a conciliatory manner which did not make the Emperor feel he was being patronised during discussions on military matters, as was the case with other commanders. Unlike Conrad, Arz was not overtly political, was wholly committed to the Central Powers, and had full faith in the Emperor.
  Once appointed in March 1917, Arz made every effort to comply with the Emperor's wishes, but unlike his predecessor he acted as a personal advisor to the Emperor on army matters, rather than as a driver of his own strategy, which had been Conrad's hallmark. His tenure at the head of the army saw increasing German control over Austro-Hungarian forces and reduced independence of action, but also a number of notable victories in the spring and summer of 1917, including the clearing of Galicia and the Bukovina, as well as the breakthrough at Flitsch Tolmein and the great victory at Caporetto later in the year.
  Promoted to the rank of Generaloberst on 26 February 1918, and also raised to the nobility early the same year, Arz was ultimately responsible for planning the invasion of Italy which was to take place during the summer of 1918, with Russia now knocked out of the war and a good number of experienced forces at his disposal. While planning was underway, both Conrad and Boroević demanded to lead the offensive, and neither Arz nor the AOK was able to make a decisive decision. Instead a compromise suggested by the Emperor was adopted, with their forces divided and sent to attack Italian positions on the front from two different directions. This resulted in the utter failure of the offensive at the Piave River in June 1918.
  Arz took full responsibility for the failure of the massive invasion of Italy and tendered his resignation, but the Emperor refused to accept it, even after Generaloberst Schönburg-Hartenstein had said to the Emperor's face that the army had lost all confidence in Arz. By late October 1918, Arz could see that ultimate defeat for the Imperial forces was inevitable. He had drawn up plans for an orderly troop withdrawal in the event of an armistice, so as to prevent unnecessary further bloodshed. An armistice with Italy was concluded on 3 November 1918 and was to come into effect 36 hours later, during which time thousands of Imperial troops were captured while believing themselves to be at peace, due to poor communication from Army High Command.
caption: Arz (right) with Ludendorff (left) at Army Headquarters in Baden bei Wien, 1917
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