Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)/Lutzk

LUTZK, Russia, a strongly fortified town on the Styr river, fifty miles W. of Rovno and 120 miles S. W. of Lublin. This fortress, together with Dubno and Rovno, formed a very powerful triangle of permanent fortifications erected by Russia in recent years. Lutzk was taken by the Germans on Aug. 30, 1915, after only three days of fighting, the stronghold having been previously abandoned by the Russians for strategic reasons. Twenty-three days later it was recaptured by the Russians. Four days later the Russians were again forced to withdraw. On June 8 it was again taken by the Russians, under General Brusiloff, during his famous Galician drive, together with over 11,000 prisoners and much war material. Henceforth the fortress remained in Russian hands until the termination of hostilities on the eastern front. The town is the center of an agricultural grain-raising region, with a population, before the war, of about 32,000.