Fortification of the 77th Reserve Infantry Division of the German Kaiser Army
by Lake Laukesa
The 77th reserve division was entrenched between Lake Šventė and the group of lakes located northwest of the town of Medumi. Also in the land position from Medumi to the east to the Vilnius - Daugavpils railway. The second line of defense in the interlake at the current Lithuanian-Latvian border, at the Kampiniškii-Laukesa lakes and further along the border, at the main road Zarasai-Daugpilis, it was in the cemetery near the Egipte church. The third line ran on the other side of Laukesa, in Smėlyne, from where it was possible to perfectly support the defense of the main line. The main center of the division is the city of Zarasai, then called Nowoaleksandrovsk. The headquarters of the division was installed in the Laukesa estate. The division was commanded by Lieutenant General Sigismund von Fiorster.
Reserve line and warehouses were set up. For such purposes, the slopes facing south-west and west towards the Laukesa lakes near the area of Egipte (Wilkomjest) were very suitable, where the Germans installed "caves" - hiding places, above which trenches were installed, which can still be seen today in the cemetery near the Egipte church. At the same time, also in the cemetery, reserve positions were set up in Smėlyne. The cemetery also contains the graves of soldiers of the German Empire.
in 1916 At the beginning of the year, the position of Smělynė was established by a reserve infantry battalion under the command of lieutenant colonel von Reitzenstein. In a small village, due to its location, a whole town settled, and the brigade headquarters was established here.
Before the war, the cemetery was located on a small hill. Cemetery was plowed from all sides by the trenches of the First World War. The Smělynė church was connected to the trenches by a tunnel. There was a pioneer depot in the village of Smęlyne, which managed open-type engineering stocks located in the area of the current parking lot. At the end of 1915, several wooden shelters were installed on the southern slope of the Smęlyne cemetery, where the soldiers defending the 2nd position hid.
The towers of the Smęlyne and Egipte churches were demolished, as they were an excellent landmark for adjusting the long-range artillery fire to the positions occupied by the Germans. The photo shows the demolition of the Smělynė church. It did not survive the First World War.
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