October 31st, 1914

- Between Nieuport and Dixmude the waterlogged soldiers of the German III Reserve Corps make their way eastward back across the flooded fields and over the Yser River to dry land.  Due to the battered state of the Belgian army the Germans are able to undertake the retreat without significant losses, but there is no masking the bitter taste of the outcome of the Battle of the Yser.  At the moment when a breakthough appeared to be at hand, the Germans have victory snatched from their grasp, not by the enemy army, but by the sea, the one remorseless enemy they cannot overcome.  By letting in the sea, the Belgians have created an impenetrable barrier from Dixmude to the Channel.  This gives the Belgian army the opportunity to rest and recover, and indeed it can be said that the flooding saves the army from destruction and Belgium from complete occupation.  As a result, a tiny corner of Belgium will remain in Belgian hands for the duration of the war.  Of course, just as the Germans cannot advance across the flooding, the Belgians cannot counterattack either.  Knowing this allows the Germans to move forces south to reinforce the fighting elsewhere in Flanders.

- Just after midnight, General Foch arrives at BEF headquarters at St. Omer, asking to see Field Marshal French.  The heavy attacks of yesterday have plunged the BEF commander again into pessimism, giving Foch the impression of panic and telling him 'We are for it.'  Attempting to buoy French's spirits, Foch replies: 'We shall see.  In the meantime, hammer, hammer away, keep on hammering, and you will get there.'

Army Group Fabeck today resumes its attacks on the British line from Gheluvlet to Messines.  At the latter, the first advance comes before dawn, catching the British in the middle of relieving the companies holding the front line.  After initially overrunning two companies of Indian infantry after their British officers had been killed, nearby cavalry rallied to push the Germans back.  This, however, was only a prelude - a heavy artillery bombardment at 8am preceded an attack by twelve German battalions at 9am that outnumbered the defenders by more than six to one.  The Germans break into the village of Messines, and advance house to house, using artillery at point-blank range to demolish British positions.  Reinforcements from II Corps are fed into the battle, as well as the first Territorial battalion to see combat.  Counterattacks suffer heavy losses, but relieve some of the pressure on the British defenders in Messines at by nightfall they remain entrenched in the southern portion of the village.

To the north, the British 2nd Cavalry Division comes under attack from the German 3rd Bavarian Division and 6th Bavarian Reserve Division.  Though German artillery opened their bombardment at 6am, German infantry did not advance until just before 3pm, giving enough time for reserves to be deployed, and the Germans are repulsed.

The most serious situation of the day develops at Gheluvelt, where the line was held by I Corps' 1st Division.  The first attack by the German XXIV Reserve Corps is mostly repulsed, but small elements manage to reach an orchard from which the defenders are unable to eject them.  Under an increasingly intense artillery bombardment and fire from the orchard, part of the 2nd Battalion, Welch Regiment falls back, opening a gap in the line which the Germans find.  Within minutes the British position has collapsed, the 2nd Battalion, Welch Regiment suffering 530 casualties in being effectively annihilated.  British soldiers flee to the rear individually or in small groups, and attempts to rally them by officers fail.  A company of 1st Battalion, Gloucestershires is sent to plug the gap, but under German shellfire it is reduced from eighty soldiers to thirteen by the time they arrive in the line.

Further German attacks are launched north and south of the Menin Road at 10am, and despite enduring intense fire are able to push the British back.  By 1130am the Germans have taken Gheluvelt and broken the British line.  Further, the British command structure is dealt a severe blow at 115pm when the chateau at which the commanders and staff of 1st and 2nd Divisions are struck by artillery shells, killing or wounding almost everyone present.  As time has to be taken to find new commanders for both units, Haig at I Corps HQ informs Field Marshal French, General Foch, and General Dubois that 1st Division has been broken and issues orders for a last line of defence to be prepared to the rear.  One of I Corps' intelligence officers returned from the front and provided a vivid description of the situation:

You cannot imagine the scene.  The road was full of troops retreating, stragglers, wounded men, artillery and wagons, a terrible sight.  All the time there was the noise of a terrific bombardment.  It was impossible to get any clear idea of the situation.  Nobody knew anything except what was happening on his immediate front and that was always the same story.  The Germans were attacking in overwhelming strength and our men were being driven back . . .

A decisive moment of the battle is at hand - if the Germans can exploit the breakthrough, the entire British line could be outflanked and forced back, allowing the Germans to seize Ypres and secure victory.  At I Corps HQ Haig organizes the orderlies and mess servants to make a last stand.  When Sir John French arrives they discuss the breakthrough in what the BEF commander will later describe as the worst half-hour of his life.  French then motors to Foch's headquarters to plead for reinforcements, stating, according to Foch's recollection, that the only men he had left were the sentries at BEF HQ and that he would take them 'where the line is broken, and the last of the English will be killed fighting.'  Foch replied: 'We must stand firm first, we can die later.'  He promises an attack by IX Corps and lends a cavalry brigade and three battalions to the British.

Meanwhile, west of Gheluvelt all of 1st Division's reserves had been committed to the fighting, and only three companies of 2nd Battalion, Worcesters, consisting of seven officers and 350 men, remained as 2nd Division's reserve.  A brigade commander from 1st Division orders them to counterattack, and by 145pm they are moving on Gheluvelt Chateau, on the northeast side of the village.  They have dropped their packs and grabbed extra ammunition to be able to advance as quickly as possible.  The last mile is open ground, and the battalion loses a hundred men as they race across.  When they reach the Chateau, they find Bavarians from three regiments who, in the aftermath of seizing Gheluvelt, have relaxed in the afterglow of victory.  The Worcesters smash into them and the Germans are driven from the Chateau.  The shock of the counterattack leads other German units to abandon Gheluvelt, and with stragglers from other units the Worcesters are able to establish a thin defensive line.  For the loss of three officers and 189 men, the Worcesters had regained Gheluvelt and shattered German momentum.

Subsequent counterattacks on either flank by disparate and already-mauled British units are able to stem the German tide, though at the cost of over a thousand casualties.  By the slimmest of margins, I Corps is able to restore its line and hold the Germans.  Not for the first nor the last time the Germans manage to achieve a breakthrough, only to have it closed before it can be exploited.

- To the south of the main fighting at Ypres today the period of the heaviest fighting has come to an end, as the German 6th Army is no longer attempting to break through the British line between Armentières and La Bassée; daily skirmishes continue, however, mainly comprised of spoiling attacks by the Germans to keep the British opposite from redeploying northward.  Since coming into the line, the British III Corps has suffered 5779 casualties, while II Corps was down to 14 000 infantry after arriving in Flanders with 24 000.  The withdrawal of II Corps from the line is also completed today, with its place taken by all of the Indian Corps.

- When the First World War broke out, Portugal remained neutral, but declared its 'support' for the Entente.  This awkward position arose out of Portugal's longstanding alliance with Britain that stretched back to the Middle Ages, but which did not require Portugal to actually go to war.  Moreover, the British had such little regard for the Portuguese military that they saw no advantage to be gained by Portugal actually participating in the war.  Thus Portugal stands in 1914 as unfriendly but not openly hostile to Germany.

The place of Portugal in the war has ramifications in Africa, considering the non-insubstantial Portuguese colonial empire, and in particular both Angola and Mozambique are adjacent to German colonies (German South West Africa and German West Africa respectively).  In September Portugal had dispatched 1500 soldiers to each to buttress their garrison against potential German aggression.  These forces would also aid in maintaining Portuguese rule over their colonies - parts of Angola in particular were in a state of near-perpetual revolt by the indigenous population.

To their German neighbours, however, these reinforcements could be interpreted as a prelude to a Portuguese invasion.  Moreover, since the fall of Togoland in August direct communications with Germany had been severed,  Thus the governor of German South West Africa is uncertain whether or not Germany and Portugal are at war.  Tensions were heightened on October 19th when a German patrol (according to the Portuguese) or mission (according to the Germans) was arrested at a Portuguese border fort, and in the ensuing scuffle three Germans were killed.  The event appears to confirm suspicions that the Portuguese are an active combatant, and the German governor decides to take advantage of the opportunity provided by the ongoing Boer Rebellion temporarily halting South African operations to the south to deal with the Portuguese to the north.

Today a German detachment approaches the Portuguese post at Cuangar, whose garrison is oblivious to the events of October 19th.  Taken by surprise, the Portuguese defenders are overwhelmed and massacred by the Germans.

- The commanders of Indian Expeditionary Force B and C meet today in Mombada with Kenyan and other British officials to finalize their plan for the invasion of German East Africa.  It is decided that IEF B will land at Tanga on November 2nd, while IEF C will attack across the border in the interior on the 3rd.  Crucially, the naval commander of the force escorting IEF B insists that given the prior agreement to neutralize Tanga and Dar es Salaam, it is necessary to inform the Germans that the British have abrogated the agreement before IEF B can land.

- The British light cruiser Glasgow continues to sit off Coronel today.  Despite the volume of intercepted German wireless traffic, no German warships have appeared, so the captain of Glasgow receives permission from Admiral Craddock to enter Coronel, which it does at dusk.  The ship's intelligence officer goes ashore to collect mail and messages from the British consul, who warns of a large German ethnic community, which means the presence of Glasgow in Coronel may have already been reported to the German East Asiatic Squadron.  In fact, one of the squadron's supply ships was in harbour when Glasgow arrived, and had reported its presence to Admiral Spee at 7pm.  An increase in the volume of German wireless traffic convinces the captain of Glasgow that German warships are approaching, so he decides to sail by 9am tomorrow morning.  Further, Admiral Craddock is bringing the rest of his squadron to Coronel to rendezvous with Glasgow - all of the German signals have had the call sign of the light cruiser Leipzig, and Craddock believes that it is operating in isolation from the rest of the German East Asiatic Squadron, providing an opportunity to sink it in isolation.

That all of the German wireless traffic has had the call signal of Leipzig, of course, is a deliberate ruse by Admiral Spee to mask the presence of his entire squadron off the Chilean coast.  When he learns of Glasgow's presence in Coronel, he decides to trap the British warship when it departs Coronel tomorrow; by law a warship that spends more than twenty-four hours in a neutral port is to be interned.  Thus the commanders of both squadrons believe that they are moving to engage a single warship of the other.

October 30th, 1914

- General Beseler of III Reserve Corps believes that the final breakthrough against the Belgians is imminent, and orders 5th and 6th Reserve Divisions to assault the enemy line along the railway embankment.  The Belgians are clearly at their breaking point - as of today the Belgian 2nd Division has only sixty shells per artillery piece - and one more push might shatter the enemy.  The ground is increasingly inundated and the German find water up to their ankles in places, but they attribute this to recent rains and think nothing more of it.  In the course of the day's fighting the Germans reach the embankment, and in several places pierce the Belgian line, most significantly by seizing the village of Ramscappelle to the west of the railway.  By this evening Beseler fully intends to resume the attack tomorrow, exploiting the breaches to move past the embankment and into open country.

At the supreme moment of crisis for the Belgian army, as it sits on the brink of defeat, the flooding begun on the 28th finally takes effect.  Water that was at the ankle this morning is at the knee this evening, making rapid movement impossible.  Those Germans who have reached the embankment look back on the fields they have crossed over the past few days to find instead nothing but water behind them.  German trenches are flooded, and soldiers cannot lay down in the face of machine gun and artillery fire, for to do so would mean drowning.  Not only is further advance impossible, but bringing up ammunition and provisions to resupply the Germans at the embankment is also out of the question.  With great reluctance, Beseler bows to the inevitable and just before midnight orders 5th and 6th Reserve Divisions to give up the ground captured at such great expense and retreat back across the Yser River.

The Battle of the Yser, October 1914, showing the area flooded between the
Nieuport-Dixmude railway embankment and the Yser River.

- The attack of Army Group Fabeck opens with a diversionary attack at Zonnebeke by XXVII Reserve Corps, intended to compel the British and French to commit their reserves there before the main attack is launched to the south.  After a preliminary bombardment at 600am, German infantry advance at 630.  They face elements of the British 1st and 2nd Divisions, which crucially have had time to entrench effectively, including lines of barbed wire.  The German attacks fail to break through the British lines at any point, and realizing the German threat was being contained, no reserves of I Corps are committed to the fight here.  Thus not only does the attack not capture Zonnebeke, but it fails as a diversionary effort as well.

- The main offensive begins at 645 with a heavy artillery bombardment of British positions from Zandvoorde to Messines, held by 7th Division and 3rd Cavalry Division around Zandvoorde, 2nd Cavalry Division around Hollebeke, and 1st Cavalry Division at Messines.  The British defensive position is weakest at Zandvoorde, where again 7th Division is holding trenches on a forward slope in clear view of German artillery, and by 8am the Germans had overrun the line, and at 10am occupy the village itself.  Situated on a small ridge, the capture of Zandvoorde allows the Germans pour enfilade fire on British positions nearby, including by artillery brought up to fire over direct sights.  Reserves from I Corps, Cavalry Corps, and 3rd Cavalry Division are brought forward, but, having to advance over open ground, suffer heavy losses and are unable to recapture Zandvoorde.  The best that can be done is to create a new defensive line northwest of Zandvoorde, and Haig, aware of the weakness of his position, asks General Dubois of the French IX Corps for aid.  Despite the latter continuing to attempt attacks northeast of Ypres, to his great credit Dubois instantly dispatches several battalions south.  The new defensive line northwest of Zandvoorde holds, not least because the Germans are again reluctant to keep pressing forward - indeed, by the end of the day German divisional commanders were protesting that due to heavy losses further attacks should be curtailed.

Elsewhere, at noon a heavy bombardment commences against the British 2nd Cavalry Division, and by 1230 the destruction of their meager trenches forces them to withdraw, and Hollebeke falls to the Germans.  Further south, however, German attacks against 1st Cavalry Division at Messines fail to break through.  Overall, despite tactical gains, the Germans have not achieved the decisive breakthrough desired.  The German command leadership, however, is determined to continue the advance tomorrow.  For the British, though the German attacks have been contained, the sheer strength of the German offensive, combined with the continued inability to determine the size and identity of the German formations opposite, lead to growing concerns about the continued ability of the BEF to hold on.  Sir John French gives up the idea of further attacks, ordering his forces to simply hold on, and instructing General Smith-Dorrien of II Corps to the south to send reserves northward to reinforce the British line.

The Battle of Ypres, October 30th and 31st, 1914, showing the gains achieved over these two
days by Army Group Fabeck.

- As the fighting at Ypres intensifies, Chief of the General Staff Falkenhayn meets in Berlin with General Ludendorff.  The latter seeks the redeployment of significant forces from the Western Front to the Eastern Front, to allow for another, more substantial offensive operation against the Russians after the indecisive fighting of October.  Falkenhayn, however, insists that a decisive victory can still be achieved in the West, and refuses Ludendorff's request.

- Today Admiral Sir John 'Jackie' Fisher is announced as the successor to Prince Louis of Battenberg as First Sea Lord.  The seventy-three year old Fisher already served a term as First Sea Lord from 1904 to 1910, during which he transformed and modernized the Royal Navy, overseeing the dreadnought revolution, refocusing the fleet in home waters to meet the German threat while retiring hundreds of outdated warships to reduce expenses, and revolutionizing the education of officers and the methods of promotion.  It is no exaggeration to say that the Royal Navy that entered the First World War is the creation of Jackie Fisher.

In bringing Fisher out of retirement to serve again as First Sea Lord, Churchill is hoping to tap into the admiral's famous drive and work ethic.  Despite his age, Fisher remains perhaps the textbook definition of a 'mad genius'.  He is absolute in his opinions and convinced of his own intellectual superiority - thankfully for the Royal Navy, most of the time he is right.  He is ruthless with subordinates, expecting each to perform up to Fisher's expectations or be discarded.  Not surprising, there are a legion of sworn enemies of Fisher within and without the navy, and the division of the officer corps into pro- and anti-Fisher factions was one of the contributing factors to his partially-forced retirement in 1910.  Fisher for his part relishes conflict with his foes and is merciless to those who oppose him and who he deems to have failed, while his sharp tongue and vitriolic language is legendary.  As an example, Fisher had long been dismissive of Admiral Sir Berkeley Milne, and when the latter as commander of the Mediterranean Fleet permitted the escape of Goeben and Breslau Fisher declared to a friend that the 'serpeant' 'Sir Berkeley Goeben' should be shot.

The appointment of the elderly Fisher is generally received with favour among the press and the public, being seen in a similar light to Kitchener by bringing authority and drive to the senior service.  It is hoped that he will ensure that the navy more vigourously pursues the enemy, while reigning in the wilder impulses of Churchill.  In reality, the two heads of the Royal Navy - the First Lord and the First Sea Lord - are both impulsive forces used to getting their own way.  For now, the two, who for several years have been friends, recognize each other as kindred spirits.  Should there ever be a clash between the two, however, the explosion promises to be epic.

- In the aftermath of yesterday's bombardment of the Russian Black Sea coast, the British ambassador delivers an ultimatum to the Ottoman government in Constantinople, demanding that the German crews be removed from Goeben and Breslau.  He receives no response, as the Ottoman government is divided itself about what has transpired.  The Grand Vizier is outraged that he was not consulted about the attack and threatens to resign, while a majority of the Cabinet wishes to disavow Admiral Souchon's action.  However, the counter of Enver Pasha and his supporters is simply that the die has been cast; that the logical outcome of the secret German alliance was always war with the Entente - Souchon has merely hastened the inevitable.

- For the past several weeks, the German light cruiser Königsberg has been hiding in the Rufiji River Delta in German East Africa, attempting to fix engine trouble and waiting for additional coal.  Today British warships discover the hiding place of Königsberg by sighting its masts from the mouth of the delta.  However, having discovered Königsberg, the British find themselves unable to do anything about it.  The German light cruiser is sufficiently far up the river delta to be beyond the reach of the British cruisers offshore.  Moreover, the delta itself covers 1500 square miles of islands, marshes, swamps, and channels, and only the Germans have ever charted them, leaving the British unsure of the proper path through the delta to Königsberg, or where it could emerge to go back to sea.  The only alternative at present is for the British to blockade all the exits of the Rufiji Delta, requiring the permanent deployment of twenty-five warships that can be ill-spared from other theatres.  Thus Königsberg, simply by continuing to exist, has a noticeable impact on the operations of the Royal Navy.

- Off the Chilean coast, Admiral Spee decides to send his supply ships into Valparaíso and Coronel to take on coal and other supplies.

October 29th, 1914

- West of the Yser the Germans inch closer to the Belgian line along the railway embankment, approaching to within several hundred yards.  Meanwhile, a shortage of artillery shells prevents a resumption today of the artillery bombardment of Dixmude, though Minenwerfers are used to keep the enemy trenches east of Dixmude under fire.

- The German attack today against Gheluvelt is aimed in particular at the crossroads just east of the village where the Menin Road crosses the road connecting Kruiseecke and Poezelhoek.  Here the British line is held by the left flank of the already much-damaged 7th Division and the right flank of 1st Division, and the trenches here are emblematic of many of the difficulties encountered with British defenses during the battle.  Here the trenches are deep and narrow, and not all are connected.  There is only a single strand of wire protecting the trenches, connected to tins with pebbles to warn of a German attempt to rush the trenches.  No sandbags have been used - indeed, the first large shipment from Britain arrived in France only yesterday.  Observation from the trenches is impeded by the continued existence of buildings and trees, and a lack of communication trenches meant that one position could be overwhelmed without its neighbours realizing it.

- The German artillery bombardment begins at 530am, and the three battalions of the 16th Bavarian Reserve Infantry Regiment advance shortly thereafter.  In the morning fog visibility is limited to forty yards, delaying the British response, and crucially two British machine guns near the crossroads jam.  By 630 the Germans have penetrated the line north of the crossroads, but the British south of the line have no idea the enemy has broken through - indeed, the reserves covering that portion of the line were sent to the rear for breakfast in the belief that no further German advance would be forthcoming.  At 730 four German battalions attack, and after hand-to-hand fighting break through here as well.

Poor communications and the morning fog prevent 7th Division's commander from learning of the defeat until 1015.  As British reserves are finally sent forward, the Germans, instead of advancing into the gap they have formed, turn north and south and attempt to roll up the British lines.  Only at 1130 do the Germans move westward from the crossroads, by which time almost all of I Corps reserves have been committed to rebuilding a British line, and a further five squadrons have been sent by the Cavalry Corps to the south.  The German attack peters out, but a British counterattack in the afternoon fails utterly to regain any of the lost ground.

The result of the day's fighting is that though the Germans are halted short of Gheluvelt itself, the crossroads to the east of the village have been secured, which, due to a dip in the ground there gives the Germans a favourable position for a further attack.  The attack did not accomplish everything that General Fabeck desired, but it did suffice for the major offensive.  For the British, though Haig of I Corps is now focused on holding his line, Sir John French still believes that they and the French should be on the offensive, optimism that he shares with Foch.  They are about to be violently disabused of their hopes.

A British trench near Ypres, October 1914.  Note its rudimentary nature, with no barbed wire, sandbags, trench supports
to prevent collapses, or communication trenches.

- An Order in Council issued today by the British government is another step in the tightening of the blockade against Germany.  It declares a number of items that had previously been conditional contraband - i.e. seizure was discretionary - are henceforth to be absolute contraband, meaning that any ship carrying such goods and destined for Germany will be seized with no exceptions.

- Two days after departing Constantinople, Admiral Souchon and his squadron undertake the real purpose of his sortie - ensuring Ottoman entry into the war on the side of the Germans.  Souchon does this in the most direct way possible - with Goeben and Breslau as the core of his squadron, he sails to the Russian Black Sea coast and proceeds to bombard Odessa, Sevastopol, and Novorossisk this morning.  In addition to damage ashore, a Russian gunboat, minelayer, and six merchant ships are sunk, all done by ships flying the flag of the Ottoman Empire.  As the Ottomans hesitate to join the war willingly, Souchon has decided to force their hand by provoking Russia to declare war on the Ottomans themselves.

- In German Kamerun, the French column that had advanced westward from French Equatorial Africa and occupied the village of Carnot has been experiencing supply problems - the African porters so essential to the movement of equipment have been on half rations, and on the 21st the Europeans were reduced to two-thirds rations.  To avoid starvation, the commander of the column hits on the only real option possible - given the utter impossibility of shipping supplies through the jungle to his present location, he moves the column to where they can scavenge for food.  The column moves further westward into German territory where fertile agricultural lands can be plundered.

-  Off the Chilean coast, while Admiral Craddock and Good Hope, Monmouth, and Otranto depart their anchorage near the Huasco River, Glasgow approaches the port of Coronel.  This afternoon the wireless room aboard Glasgow starts to pick up signals in German code, indicating an enemy warship was nearby.  The captain of Glasgow hesitates to take his ship into Coronel, for fear the sudden arrival of German warships could blockade him in port.  He receives permission from Admiral Craddock to delay entering Coronel to ascertain if the arrival of the German East Asiatic Squadron was imminent.

October 28th, 1914

- This evening the Belgians make a second attempt at opening the locks, Hendrik Geeraert leading Belgian soldiers to lock gates just before the German lines.  This time they get the timing right, and the North Sea begins to flood the area between the Yser River and the railway embankment.  Meanwhile, the Germans launch attacks against the southern portion of the French line defending Dixmude, but are unable to make any progress against the fresh Senegalese units.

- As Army Group Fabeck begins to assemble for the planned offensive southeast of Ypres, both Fabeck and Falkenhayn decide that a preliminary operation is required to capture Gheluvelt, as continued British control of the village would allow them to pour fire on the northern flank of the main attack.  Thus the 6th Bavarian Reserve Division, I Cavalry Corps, and XXVII Reserve Corps are instructed to co-operate in attacking Gheluvelt tomorrow morning.  As the planning continues Falkenhayn orders 4th Army to cancel a scheduled attack nearby in order to be able to assist the push on Gheluvelt if necessary.  When 4th Army headquarters signals the change in orders to XXVII Reserve Corps in the clear, the message is intercepted by the British.

- For their part, the leadership of the BEF had been growing in confidence over the past few days.  There is a palpable sense that they have defeated the big German push - the attacks of the reserve corps - and that they are now going back over to the offensive.  True, the gains of the French IX Corps have been minimal, a further attack today not securing anything of consequence, while recent setbacks such as the loss of Neuve Chapelle are dismissed as local events of no significance.  There is also a belief that the Germans have shot their bolt, Sir John French writing Kitchener yesterday that the Germans were 'quite incapable of making any strong and sustained attack' - not the Field Marshal;s most insightful observation.  When aerial reconnaissance reports the roads behind the German front clogged with vehicles, the general conclusion is that most are refugees fleeing the fighting, as opposed to reinforcements approaching the front.

Thus the interception of the German 4th Army's signal regarding the planned attack against Gheluvelt tomorrow does not cause quite the alarm it perhaps should.  As the attack will fall on the junction of I Corps' 1st and 7th Division, plans are made to co-ordinate the artillery fire of those two divisions plus 2nd to the north, and they are authorized to exceed their daily quota of shell usage.  However, the attention of both French and Haig remains on the offensive to the north, and orders remain for 2nd Division to advance.  Moreover, the British reaction was slowed by poor communications - though I Corps HQ knows of the German attack by 3pm, it is not until midnight that the information reaches the headquarters of the relevant battalions.  This delay is not the product of poor staff work, but rather the realities of modern communications in 1914.  Almost all messages go either by telephone or messenger, and the lines of the former are frequently destroyed by shell fire, while the latter have to move in the open and in the range of enemy fire to get to front-line headquarters given that the rudimentary defences lack communication trenches.

- To the south, another counterattack is attempted against Neuve Chapelle.  After a short preliminary bombardment the British advance at 1130am.  The attack is a shambles - the soldiers are exhausted after several days of constant fighting and there are great difficulties coordinating the large number of small formations participating in the operation.  The only success is registered by two companies of the 47th Sikhs who advanced on the village single-handedly.  Astonishingly, they not only reach the ruins of Neuve Chapelle but in hand-to-hand combat force the German defenders back.  The inevitable counterattack, however, pushes the 47th Sikhs out, and only 68 men survive from the 289 who began the attack.

- The first three months of the war at sea have not evolved as many in the British government and among the public.  For a century the Royal Navy has been seen as the strongest naval power on earth, and that it was the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 that cemented this status.  For a decade there has been an intense naval rivalry with Germany, centred on the construction of dreadnoughts.  There was a general expectation that in the event of war, there would be another Trafalgar - a massive naval battle between both fleets after which the victor would rule the waves, and there being no doubt in Britain as to which side would triumph.

The war to date, however, have not delivered the expected victory.  Both the Grand Fleet and the High Seas Fleet have largely remained confined to port and their home waters - the former through fear of submarines and mines, and the latter as a result of numerical inferiority.  Further, while Admiral Jellicoe is undoubtedly correct that he does not need a naval victory at sea to secure the blockade, it does not make for particularly exciting war news from the navy, especially in contrast to the massive battles being waged across Europe, including by the BEF.

Moreover, the events that have occurred at sea have not been entirely in Britain's favour.  Against the victory at the Battle of the Heligoland Bight must be set the escape of Goeben and Breslau, the loss of the three armoured cruisers in one morning off the Dutch coast, and the continued activity of both the German East Asiatic Squadron in the Pacific and the light cruiser Emden in the Indian Ocean.  Often added to this list is the fall of Antwerp, where Churchill dispatched the naval brigades in what is now seen as a doomed attempt to save the city, and ended up having thousands taken prisoner or interned.

Criticism in the press of the navy's performance comes to be centred on the First Sea Lord, Louis of Battenberg.  He is the military head of the Royal Navy, and his appointed as First Sea Lord in 1911 was the culmination of a lifelong career at sea.  Born a German citizen to the ruling family of Hesse, he was and is related to most of the dynastic families of Europe, including Britain and Russia.  His friendship with the second son of Queen Victoria led to him to become a British citizen at the age of fourteen upon his entry to the Royal Navy.  There has never been any basis to doubt his loyalty to Britain - indeed, the Hohenzollern family of Kaiser Wilhelm II is one of the few that have a poor relationship with the Battenbergs, while his nephew, Prince Maurice of Battenberg, died at Ypres yesterday, fighting for the British.

However, in time of war, when Britain is involved in a life-or-death struggle with the Germans, it is not difficult for the conspiracy-minded to link the perceived poor performance of the Royal Navy with the German background of the First Sea Lord.  In the cheap press the wildest rumours have flown - one suggested that as a German spy he had deliberately allowed the Goeben and Breslau to escape to Constantinople.  Further, any admiral who has climbed the greasy pole of naval politics has left a trail of rivals, and in Battenberg's case they see a perfect opportunity to bring him down.  A whisper campaign against the First Sea Lord has traveled among London's clubs, and have reached the highest ears.

Churchill and the Prime Minister decide that a change in command is needed to quell the rumours and remove the distractions of Battenberg's ancestry.  The First Lord informs Battenberg that he must resign, and the latter does so with such great dignity, refusing to attack those who have defamed him, that there is a widespread sympathetic reaction among much of the British press.  Such are the whims of the British press.  Churchill, meanwhile, must find a new Sea Lord.

- On the same day the First Sea Lord resigns, another tragedy befalls the Royal Navy.  This morning the 2nd Battle Squadron of the Grand Fleet, commanded by Vice-Admiral Sir George Warrender and consisting of eight of the Royal Navy's newest and most powerful dreadnoughts, is at sea off the north Irish coast for gunnery practice.  This squadron is one of those moved out of Scapa Flow on the 17th after the reported presence of a German submarine in the anchorage.  The move, ironically, has placed the warships directly in harm's way.  Six days earlier, the German liner Berlin, armed as a cruiser and carrying a large number of mines, had laid two hundred mines off the north Irish coast.  As of day, the Royal Navy has no idea the minefield exists, and Vice-Admiral Warrender inadvertently leads his dreadnoughts directly into it.

At 9am, there is a large explosion on the port side of the dreadnought Audacious.  Initially believing it to be caused by a torpedo, Warrender quickly sails away to protect the rest of his squadron.  Despite the damage for two hours the stricken warship is able to make 9 knots towards the harbour at Lough Swilly before the engine room was swamped and the warships comes to a halt.  At 130pm the British liner Olympic, sister ship of Titanic and on the last day of a voyage from New York to Liverpool, comes across the dreadnought.  Olympic's captain offers to take Audacious in tow, and for several hours crews struggle to secure lines between the two, but the weight of the latter causes the lines to repeatedly snap.  At 9pm, Audacious finally succumbs to its wounds, capsizing and sinking.

The crew of the British dreadnought Audacious takes to lifeboats as the warship flounders.

Admiral Sir John Jellicoe, commander of the Grand Fleet, is desperate to suppress news of the loss of Audacious.  He believes that his margin in dreadnoughts over the High Seas Fleet is now only seventeen to fifteen, and fears that if the Germans learn of the sinking, they will be tempted to take advantage of being one dreadnought closer to parity.  The problem is the presence of Olympic, full of civilians, many of them Americans and a few of whom managed to take pictures of the stricken dreadnought.  When Olympic reaches Lough Swilly, Jellicoe orders it isolated to prevent communication from ship to shore.  Ultimately the effort is unsuccessful - news leaks in the American press in November - but the Admiralty will not admit publicly to the loss of Audacious until after the war.

- For the past two months, the German light cruiser Emden has been terrorizing Entente shipping in the Indian Ocean.  In addition to its shelling of Madras, it has seized or sunk several dozen merchant ships, leading to a moratorium on any merchant sailing in the Bay of Bengal.  This morning Emden accomplishes its most audacious feat in the harbour of Penang, a port on the western coast of British Malaya.  In the pre-dawn hours, Emden, with all of its lights extinguished, slowly makes its way in the harbour unseen by anyone.  It finds there the Russian Yemtschuk at anchor.  Emden manoeuvres into position and fires a single torpedo, and there is no reaction from Yemtschuk until the torpedo strikes it amidships.  A few sailors are seen scurrying on deck, and a couple of guns attempt to return fire, but Emden is sufficiently unmolested to be able to turn 180 degrees and fire a second torpedo.  The detonation of the latter breaks the back of Yemtschuk, which promptly sinks.  Emden then makes its way out of the harbour - a French destroyer at anchor fires a few shots, but otherwise the German light cruiser gets away.  Later this morning, it encounters another French destroyer - Mousquet - returning to Penang after patrolling the Bay of Bengal, and in short order sinks it as well.  Emden then disappears once more into the Indian Ocean.

The loss of a light cruiser sitting in a supposedly-guarded port is a significant embarrassment to the Entente; the German ship, however, had the good fortune to be targeting a singularly ill-prepared foe.  At the moment the Germans attacked, Yemtschuk's captain was ashore at a Penang hotel with his 'lady friend'.  Moreover, there was no night watch on the light cruiser, as the crew was being 'entertained' by sixty prostitutes below deck.  Emden's attack brought a rather abrupt end to the night's 'entertainment.'  Perhaps not surprisingly, the captain and first officer will be court-martialled for negligence.  Meanwhile the legend of Emden grows.

October 27th, 1914

- Along the Yser both sides spend the day bombarding each other, the Germans in particular concluding that Dixmude needs another period of intense artillery fire before the town can be seized.  Under the supervision of the elderly lockkeepr Geeraert, this evening the Belgians make a first attempt at opening the locks, but fail due to the low tide level.

- The offensive by the French IX Corps northeast of Ypres continues today, and despite the delayed arrival of 31st Division they again make no significant progress.  Their efforts to advance come under heavy enemy fire from German positions on the high ground at Poelcappelle and Passchendaele, and only the smallest of gains are recorded.  On their right the division and brigade of I Corps in the line are also unable to accomplish anything of note.

- Bitter fighting continues today over the battered remains of the village of Neuve Chapelle, as the British II Corps attempts to recover the lines lost yesterday to the German VII Corps.  General Smith-Dorrien assembles a heterogenous force, which includes Indian troops and French bicyclists and cavalrymen, assault the German defenders repeatedly, which include all twelve battalions of 14th Reserve Division and reinforcements from neighbouring corps.  At 130pm the British attack the northern part of the village, but as the attack falters the Germans launch their own at 230pm in the south of Neuve Chapelle, which pushes the British westward out of the village.  The commitment of the last reserves of II Corps manages to reconstitute the front line, but by this evening Smith-Dorrien is forced to accept the loss of Neuve Chapelle and orders the construction of a new line of trenches to the west.

Though II Corps has managed to hold on, it has been in near-constant combat since its arrival in Flanders, and Smith-Dorrien has repeatedly warned Sir John French that his men are at the end of their endurance.  The BEF commander, who does not have a high opinion of Smith-Dorrien's abilities, nevertheless agrees that II Corps should be withdrawn from the front and replaced by the Indian Corps, the latter having only lent small units as reserves to II and III Corps over the past few days of fighting.

- For the past two days, General Rawlinson's IV Corps has consisted only of 7th Division.  To address this anomalous situation, Field Marshal French decides today to disband IV Corps and reassign 7th Division to General Haig's I Corps.  In part a move to rationalize administration of the BEF, it is also in part a reflection of the belief that 7th Division has under-performed during the battle.  As for General Rawlinson, he and the former IV Corps staff is returned to England to prepare 8th Division for deployment to France.  This has the advantage of removing from Ypres a corps commander that the Field Marshal has had trouble with while ostensibly giving him what he had asked for - he argued on the 25th that IV Corps would not be effective until 8th Division arrived, so now he can expedite their deployment directly.

- General Falkenhayn arrives today at 6th Army headquarters to discuss the progress of operations with Prince Rupprecht.  The German Chief of the General Staff is not pleased with the results achieved over the past week - despite the concentration of forces neither 4th or 6th Army had been able to achieve a decisive success.  Indeed, over the past few days the French and British have been able to go over onto the offensive northeast of Ypres, and though they have not broken through a defensive battle cannot possibly give Falkenhayn the decisive victory he believes is essential to win the war.  In his view, both 4th and 6th Armies have failed, and there is no prospect of imminent success from their efforts.

Falkenhayn, however, is unwilling to give up the initiative and fully go over on to the defensive.  Instead, he seeks a new concentration of force to achieve a breakthrough and victory.  The plight of the new reserve corps of 4th Army since the 22nd have shown the importance of battlefield experience.  Moreover, an analysis of the defensive needs of the rest of the Western Front have raised several instances where, due to the redeployment of French forces to Flanders, German units could be redeployed as well.  As a result, XV Corps from the Aisne and II Bavarian Corps from Peronne are en route to Flanders, and to this force are added 26th Division of XIII Corps, in turn replaced by a reserve division from Metz, and the 6th Bavarian Reserve Division has also just arrived in Flanders (the latter including a certain Corporal Hitler).  These units are organized into a single formation under the command of General Max von Fabeck, formerly commander of XIII Corps, and is to be called Army Group Fabeck.

The new formation is to take its place on the front line south of Menin, in the area currently occupied by the cavalry corps of 6th Army.  Falkenhayn is emphatic that Army Group Fabeck does not belong to 6th Army, and the latter cannot issue or alter orders to the former.  Instead of simply adding reinforcements to the two armies, Army Group Fabeck is to be a single cohesive offensive unit, and the two adjacent armies are reduced to a supportin role while also dispatching artillery to support the Army Group.

Falkenhayn's plan is for 4th and 6th Armies to launch spoiling attacks on October 30th to force the French and British to commit their reserves.  At the same time, Army Group Fabeck is to attack south of Ypres, against the enemy line between Gheluvelt (just northwest of Kruiseecke) and Ploegsteert Wood (north of Armentières).  Its objective is Mont Kemmel, high ground south of Ypres.  Its seizure would break the enemy line and allow the Germans to outflank the enemy positions to the north and south.  Such a success offers to Falkenhayn the potential to drive the enemy from Flanders and occupy the Channel ports, and perhaps tip the military balance on the Western Front in Germany's favour.

- For two and a half months Admiral Wilhelm Souchon and his two warships have been at Constantinople, maintaining the fictin that the two have been transferred to Ottoman control.  There is never any doubt as to where Souchon's true loyalty lies however, and as the Ottoman government continues to prevaricate over whether to enter the war, he decides the time has come for action.  With the collaboration of Enver Pasha and the other pro-German and pro-war ministers, Souchon, in his position as commander of the Ottoman navy, takes Goeben and Breslau, along with an Ottoman cruiser and four Ottoman destroyers, into the Black Sea.  Ostensibly to undertake training, the real purpose of the mission is to provoke Ottoman entry into the war.

- Admiral Craddock's signal of yesterday arrives at the Admiralty in London today.  It is a time of turmoil within the upper echelons of the Royal Navy, as the resignation of the First Sea Lord is imminent.  Thus the news from Craddock, including crucially that Canopus is not with him, is not given the attention it deserves.  Meanwhile, Craddock's four ships rendezvous off the Chilean coast near the mouth of the Huasco River, where Craddock orders Glasgow, his fastest warship, to sail to Coronel to see if any further orders had been dispatched to him.

- The German East Asiatic Squadron, meanwhile, departs Más Afuera today for the Chilean coast.  Admiral Spee has received information from German agents in Chile of the passage of a British warship through the Straits of Magellan, and thus decides for now to keep his larger armoured cruisers out of sight of the shore, while sending all radio transmissions using Leipzig's call sign, to give the appearance that only one German warship was in the area, as opposed to all five.

October 26th, 1914

- Heavy German assaults on the Belgian left and centre of their line between Nieuport and Dixmude force the defenders back upon the railway embankment.  King Albert pleads for further reinforcements from his allies; with the heavy fighting at Dixmude and to the south, they have none to give.  The Belgian command staff begin to discuss a further withdrawal, and cavalry are posted on bridges to the rear to cover a potential retreat.  King Albert, however, knowing such a withdrawal might unhinge the entire Entente line in Flanders and lead to the destruction of the Belgian army, forbids any retreat.  The Belgians turn to the only other option available - the sea.  Much of the land between Nieuport and Dixmude is below sea level, and the waters are kept out by a series of locks and sluices.  If the locks can be opened at high tide, and closed at low tide, the land can be flooded, making further German assaults impossible.  The trouble is finding any civilians in the area who actually know where the lock cranks are and the order in which they should be opened and closed.  Fortuitously for the Belgians, an elderly lockkeeper named Hendrik Geeraert is found who knows how the lock system works.

- In Dixmude the bitter fighting has continued through this morning, when several battalions of Senegalese soldiers arrive to reinforce the defenders.  The commander of the German XXII Reserve Corps reluctantly orders 43rd Reserve Division back to its starting trenches.  Dixmude is now an utter ruin, and over the past two days of street fighting at least 161 civilians are deliberately killed by the attacking Germans.

- The focus of both Field Marshal French and General d'Urbal remains an attack to the northeast, along the lines attempted over the past few days.  The French IX Corps is to be reinforced by 31st Division today, and General Haig orders an infantry and artillery brigade from 1st Division to support the French.  Again, however, little progress is made.  Given his approaching reinforcements, General Pierre Dubois of IX Corps decides to widen the breadth of his attack to include Poelcappelle and Passchendaele.  This, however, disperses French strength instead of concentrating it.  Moreover, the arrival of 31st Division is delayed by masses of refugees on the road, and only arrives at St. Julien, its assembly point, at 5pm, too late to participate in the day's attack.  Some of the French formations are also badly managed - several wander in front of the British portion of the line, delaying the operations of both.  French infantry struggle to advance under German rifle and artillery fire - at the village of Zonnebeke, the air is filled with clouds of red dust from brick houses annihilated by the explosion of German shells.  At best IX Corps is able to advance between four and five hundred yards.  On their south the British 2nd Division of I Corps make no progress, their advance disrupted early in the afternoon when a false report of an imminent German counterattack arrives at Haig's headquarters.

- At Kruiseecke, the plight of 20th Brigade of 7th Division worsens.  The poorly-sited trenches have been under constant bombardment for thirty-six hours, with great numbers of British soldiers buried by collapsing trenches and sand blown into the air clogging rifles.  The nerves of the defenders are thus already frail when a major German attack by fifteen battalions at 9am.  After bitter fighting Germans begin to infiltrate the British line after 10am, which causes widespread chaos as some Germans shout out 'Retire! Retire!'  Belief that a general retreat has been ordered appears entirely plausible to many of the companies, given the heavy bombardment and enemy attack.  Individually and in small groups, British soldiers withdraw from their trenches and stream to the rear.  Three miles of the front held by 20th Brigade have been lost, and the Germans are able to advance several thousand yards, capturing Kruiseecke in particular and 'caving in' the point of the British salient southeast of Ypres.  7th Division calls on I Corps and the Cavalry Corps for reinforcements, and when General Haig arrives to the rear of 20th Brigade's position he is 'astounded at the terror-stricken men coming back.'  The reinforcements are able to create a new defensive line, and many soldiers of 20th Brigade who broke in the morning regain composure once they are out of the firing line.  Nevertheless, the brigade suffers over a thousand casualties today, and 7th Division as a whole has lost 162 officers and 4320 other ranks over the past nine days of fighting, the losses constituting 44% and 37% of the numbers they arrived in France with.

The salient around Ypres, October 26th to 29th, 1914.

- Along the front of the British II Corps, the German 14th Reserve Division of VII Corps launches a major assault today against the village of Neuve Chapelle.  The weakest point of the British line was held by 2nd Battalion, Royal Irish Rifles, which after two days of constant artillery bombardment and fighting had been reduced to two officers and seventeen soldiers.  Many of this and neighbouring units had been repeatedly buried when trenches collapsed under shell fire.  When the attack is launched at 4pm, the line held by 2nd Battalion, Royal Irish Rifles collapses, and Germans stream through Neuve Chapelle.  The British battalions north and south of the village, however, are able to hold their trenches, and the reserve company of 1st Battalion, Wiltshires manages to plug the gap.  This evening a counterattack is launched by a number of whatever companies could be assembled at short notice, which makes their co-ordination difficult.  By the end of the day, the southern portion of Neuve Chapelle has been recaptured, but the old trench line and a number of houses remain in German hands.

- Over the past few days Conrad's plan for an offensive by the Austro-Hungarian 1st Army in Poland has fallen apart.  The Russian armies moving across the Vistula River have done so north-to-south, so that by the time Russians appear before 1st Army the bulk of the Russian forces are already west of the river.  Thus instead of fighting only a portion of the enemy, 1st Army finds itself outnumbered almost two to one and have suffered forty thousand casualties.  Today Conrad orders 1st Army to retreat to the southwest, joining the German 9th Army in retreat.  The one salvation for the German and Austro-Hungarian armies is that the poor weather and logistical difficulties within the Russian army prevent an aggressive pursuit.

- Today Talat Pasha, the Ottoman Minister of the Interior, orders the governor of the province of Van, located in eastern Anatolia, to remove the Christian Syriac population in Hakk[a]ri near the Persian border.  In Talat's opinion, this population is potentially subversive, and ought to be relocated to western Anatolia where, safely distant from the Empire's borders, they would pose no security risk after the outbreak of war.  Though the order is not implemented at present, it is an ominous portent of the attitude the Ottoman government will take towards ethnic minorities within the state and the measures to be undertaken against those deemed unreliable.

- The German East Asiatic Squadron arrives today at the island of Más Afuera, 450 miles west of Chile.  Though a possession of Chile, it is inhabited only by fishermen, so Admiral Spee ignores the island's supposed 'neutrality' and stops to coal.

- As the old armoured cruiser Good Hope steams up the Chilean coast to rendezvous with Glasgow, Monmouth, and Otranto, Admiral Craddock signals the Admiralty his intention to find and fight the German East Asiatic Squadron, while Canopus has been left behind to convoy colliers.

October 25th, 1914

- It is a day of relative quiet along the Belgian line from Nieuport to Dixmude, and the battered Belgians take advantage of the lull to evacuate over nine thousand wounded from the battle line.  The Belgian command staff believe, however, that the Germans will inevitably resume their assault, and that the present line between the Yser River and the Nieuport-Dixmude railway will not hold.  Preparations are thus undertaken for utilizing the railway embankment as a final defensive line, as in the flat terrain of the area its height of six feet is almost towering.

- After the continuous bombardment of Dixmude yesterday, the German 43rd Reserve Division begins its assault at 1am.  Over the next five hours, fifteen separate attacks are launched, and day of vicious street fighting ensues.  In the chaos of the ruins trenches are won and lost, machine guns reaching out from buildings to strike down swathes of attackers.  Dead and wounded alike are trampled underfoot.  This evening bayonets are fixed, and hand-to-hand fighting ensues.  A detachment of about fifty Germans manages to cross the Yser bridge, but are wiped out.

- By 8am the British 1st Division has withdrawn from the front line, replaced by French territorial units.  Over the past four days of fighting, the division has suffered fourteen hundred casualties.

- The French IX Corps attempt to resume their counteroffensive this afternoon, as as they advance the British 2nd Division, returned to the line on their right flank, is to follow.  IX Corps encounters heavy resistance, and the movement of 2nd Division is delayed four hours.  Through bitter fighting, the French and British units are able to push the line forward northeastwards, and one British battalion manages to reach the Passchendaele-Becelaere which marks the high point of the ridge between the two villages.

- To the south, 20th Brigade of IV Corps hold the 'corner' of the Ypres salient at Kruiseecke, and the German artillery bombardment they endure today is made more devastating by their weak defenses.  7th Division, to which 20th Brigade belongs, has dug their trenches on a forward slope, so the Germans can see them directly and pinpoint their artillery bombardment.  Moreover, they have attempted to cover their trenches with wooden planks and earth, but this is shown to be worse than leaving trenches open to the sky, as the detonation of high-explosive shells turns the wood planks into shrapnel-like splinters.  At night a German attack seizes a quarter-mile of 20th Brigade's front, and it is only with great difficulty that it is regained.  General Rawlinson tells Field Marshal French tonight that his IV Corps is 'only hanging on by our eyelids.'  The comment does not endear Rawlinson to his commanding officer - Sir John French's attention is still on the hoped-for advance to the northeast, and does not want to hear about setbacks elsewhere on the line.

- Overnight a German attack against 3rd Division of II Corps hits the 1st Battalion, Gordon Highlanders particularly hard, and their trenches are lost.  On their flank the 15th Sikhs, one of the first Indian units to enter the line, hold their position under heavy artillery fire.  So fearless were the Sikhs that they walked about in the open as German shells fell around them - General Smith-Dorrien had to suggest to their commander that perhaps this was not the wisest of ideas.  Early this morning a counterattack retakes the lost trenches, and for the rest of the day the Germans are content to bombard II Corps' positions, though with sufficient intensity to force some enemy battalions to pull out of their trenches until nightfall.

October 24th, 1914

- The Entente crisis deepens today along the Yser.  By dawn the Germans have secured five kilometres of the river, and all of 6th Reserve Division is on the west bank.  Though the Germans continue to be unable to bring artillery or supplies across due to enemy bombardment, the Belgian defensive line on the river has been broken.  The Belgian divisions are being ground down, and there are no reserves to relieve them.  General d'Urbal authorizes the French 42nd Division at Nieuport to send a brigade to the Belgian centre to keep it from crumbling, which arrives this morning.  Nevertheless, the north and centre of the Belgian line along the Yser is withdrawn to the Noordvaart and Beverdyk, small streams running north-south between the river to the east and the Nieuport-Dixmude railway embankment to the west.  The German 4th Army also undertake a heavy bombardment of Dixmude, including by the massive siege guns used at Antwerp, clearing in preparation for a major attack on the town.

- The developments along the Yser mean that the planned by Foch and d'Urbal is reduced to an attack by the recently arrived IX Corps.  From 7am this morning the French 17th Division of IX Corps attacks the German lines between Langemarck and Zonnebeke northeast of Ypres, held by portions of the German XVII and XVIII Reserve Corps.  In the morning most progress is achieved near Langemarck where they are able to advance a thousand yards.  Early in the afternoon the German 51st Reserve Division counterattacks at Zonnebeke, but is driven off, and the village recaptured by this evening.

- On the left of the French 17th Division the British 1st Division of I Corps has a relatively uneventful day, only experiencing heavy bombardment in the evening.  The plan is to relieve 1st Division with two French territorial brigades, so that all of I Corps is out of the line and thus can be utilized in a British counteroffensive to the south.  The heavy shelling in the evening, however, delays the handover of the trench line.

On the right of the French 17th Division, the British 7th Division of IV Corps has a very trying day.  It sits holding the southeastern 'angle' of the Ypres salient, and comes under heavy attack throughout the day.  The most critical moments come at the tiny village of Rethel, which sits just in front of Polygon Wood.  This section of line was at the junction of two brigades, and was defended by the 2nd Battalion, Wiltshires and a company of 2nd Battalion Scots Guards.  A preliminary bombardment begins at 430am, and in the early morning light two regiments of the German 53rd Reserve Division advance.  The German artillery keeps firing as their infantry reaches Rethel which, though it places the infantry at risk of being hit by friendly fire, suppresses the British infantry - many are too busy hiding from enemy shells to fire on the German infantry advancing on their trenches.  The Wiltshires initially are able to hold up the German advance, but the artillery fire has largely destroyed the position of the company of the Scots Guards - when the Germans reach the latter's position, they are able to easily overrun them and capture the British trench.  This outflanks the Wiltshires, and the Germans are able to work their way down the trench, systematically wiping out the British defenders.  The Wiltshires collapse, and most of the survivors fall into German hands.

The Germans had managed to blast a hole in the British line - there was nothing directly west of Rethel to hold the Germans.  The commander of 7th Division had no further reserves at hand - they had been committed to hold against other German attacks today - so he calls on 2nd Division to the rear for any aid they can send.  He also orders all of the headquarter staff, orderlies, clerks, and other administrative individuals to rally for a last stand.

The position of 7th Division is saved by the simple fact that the commander of the German 244th Regiment, who had achieved the breakthrough, had no idea that he had accomplished any such thing.  He is content to remain at Rethel, and only tentatively sends part of his force into Polygon Wood after over two hours of relative inactivity.  It is at this point that two battalions dispatched from 2nd Division arrive, and in desperate hand-to-hand fighting with the bayonet, the Germans are ejected from the Wood.  Rethel remains in German hands, but the relief force is able to reconstitute the British line at the edge of Polygon Wood.  For only the briefest of moments, the opportunity for a breakthrough appeared, but in the confusion of the battlefield it vanished before the Germans even knew it was there.

To the south the Germans launch a series of attacks near Gheluvelt this afternoon, but are repulsed.  After a difficult day, 7th Division has held its line with the exception of the loss of Rethel.  But the victories have not been without cost.  In the fighting between the 22nd and today, 7th Division has lost just over 2800 men, or almost 40% of its total strength.

- To the south, nine battalions from the German XIII and XIX Corps advance on positions of the British III Corps at Le Quesne, while elements of the German VII Corps, eager to come to grip with the enemy after they escaped unnoticed the day before, launch a series of methodical attacks on II Corps.  In heavy fighting the British lines bend but do not break, and by midnight all ground lost in fighting earlier in the day has been recaptured.

- From the perspective of the German 4th Army, the capture of the ruins of Rethel hardly compensates for both failures elsewhere and the French advance between Langemarck and Zonnebeke.  The reserve corps have been thoroughly battered after several days of fighting, with casualties over 60% in some regiments.  It is clear that they are no longer in any shape to undertake offensive operations, so the decision is made to order them to entrench and go on to the defensive.  The situation to the north, however, is much more promising, with the expanding bridgehead across the Yser by III Reserve Corps.  A breakthrough here might still achieve victory by sweeping along the Channel coast.  Moreover, it is known that the French have reinforced the Belgian lines west of the Yser, which opens the possibility that they have no reserves left to support the defenders of Dixmude.  The major focus of 4th Army thus shifts from the Ypres salient to the line Nieuport-Dixmude.

- A shortage of artillery shells is becoming acute in the BEF.  Field Marshal French today telegrams Kitchener that while his guns have fired as many as seventy-six shells per day, only the equivalent of seven rounds per day were arriving from Britain, and there were only one hundred fifty shells per gun that had not already been issued to the artillery positions.  Kitchener advised that restrictions on ammunition expenditure be considered to avoid running out at a critical moment.

The lines around Ypres, October 24th and 25th, 1914.

- In South Africa Marwitz's force, which had sparked the Boer Rebellion, is defeated by government forces led by Coen Brits at Kakamas.  Marwitz briefly considers surrender, but the news of the general rebellion, in particular of De Wet in the Orange Free State and Beyers in the western Transvaal, encourages Marwitz to continue.

October 23rd, 1914

- In the pre-dawn hours, the Germans are able to push another two and a half battalions over the Yser River to the bridgehead captured twenty-four hours earlier, and during the day seize Tervaete, reducing the fire on the soldiers pinned on the west bank.  Heavy Belgian and French artillery fire, however, prevent the Germans from bringing up artillery of their own to support the bridgehead.  Elsewhere along the Yser, the Germans suffer under bombardment both from Entente guns and warships off shore, as they are finding that shifting sands and the high level of ground water makes it impossible to dig trenches of any depth.  Further, the French 42nd Division arrives today to reinforce the Belgians defending Nieuport.

- Generals Foch and d'Urbal have planned a French counter-offensive for today, with the orders having gone out late last night, in line with Foch's continuing interpretation of the battle as one of maneouvre in which an Entente advance can win a decisive victory.  The orders call for the French 42nd Division to advance along the coast, the French marines at Dixmude to move on Thourout, and the French IX Corps, still in the process of moving through Ypres to the front, to attack northeast from along the line Zonnebeke-Becelaere in the direction of Passchendaele and Roulers.  Foch also sent messages to the Belgian and British commanders, asking for their assistance in the operation.  The Belgians are only barely holding on, and are in no shape to attack anyone.  The message to the British reaches Sir John French and Douglas Haig only at 2 am, for an attack scheduled to begin at 9am.  Both object that British co-operation at such a late stage is a practical impossibility.  Furthermore, the advance of IX Corps would require it to pass through the lines of the British 2nd Division of I Corps, which would be a difficult operation even with sufficient planning.  In the event, the proposed attack comes to naught.  17th Division, lead element of IX Corps, is held up on the roads by streams of refugees, and do not reach the front until the afternoon.  General Dubois of IX Corps decides that given the circumstances it would be better to reinforce the British front instead of trying to pass through and attack today.  The attempt at an offensive is postponed until tomorrow.

- On the British line, 1st and 2nd Divisions of I Corps and 7th Division of IV Corps are heavily engaged again today.  At dawn, a force of five battalions of 1st Division, drawn from three brigades and the Corps' reserve, launch a counterattack against Kortekeer, the capture of which was the one success the Germans achieved yesterday.  The defenders appear to be taken by surprise, and by noon all of the ground lost has been regained.  Over five hundred prisoners are taken, and fifty-four Cameron Highlanders, made prisoner yesterday, are released.  The most stubborn resistance comes from a single German sniper in a windmill - the threat is not removed until the windmill is burnt to the ground with the sniper still in it.  A German counterattack at 5pm is easily driven off.

On 1st Division's right, a major effort is made starting at 8am by elements of the German XXIII Reserve Corps to seize Langemarck.  The British trench had been constructed only the night before, and the portions of two battalions holding them were significantly outnumbered.  Despite this, the German advance is greeted with murderous machine gun and rifle fire.  For several hours the Germans come on, only to be mowed down by the British.  By 1pm the Germans finally withdraw, only to be shelled heavily by British artillery as they depart the field.  1st Division casualties today are 1344; German losses were significantly higher.

At 530pm a major effort is mounted by XXVI Reserve Corps against 2nd Division.  Some Germans reach within twenty-five yards of the British trenches, but the German formations, denser than those of yesterday, are badly mauled, the fields in front of the British line soon covered with German dead.  This evening, it is decided that the French 17th Division will relieve the British 2nd Division, and the former has taken over the lines of the latter by 11pm, 2nd Division reforming between their old line and Ypres.

7th Division spends most of the day under a heavy German artillery bombardment, which only lifts when infantry attacks are sent in.  In a few places the Germans are able to penetrate between defensive positions, only to be driven back by the timely deployment of reserve battalions.

- In contrast to the situation to the north, the British II Corps has an uneventful day.  The German VII Corps opposite had not detected the withdrawal overnight of II Corps to a new defensive position, and so this morning shell the now abandoned trenches before German units advance.  Expecting a sharp fight, they discover instead deserted defenses.  The initial response of the German soldiers is, naturally enough, relief at not having to fight for the positions, but the mode is rapidly spoiled by British artillery.  As II Corps was withdrawing, its artillery was precisely registering the ranges to their old trenches, and so once the Germans took them the British pours very accurate artillery fire on them, inflicting significant casualties.  The day is wasted for the Germans, and VII Corps does not reach the new British defensive line by nightfall.

- Today Field Marshal French and General Smith-Dorrien meets with the commander of the Lahore Division of the Indian Corps, the latter having detrained at Hazebrouck on the 20th.  For now, the Indians will be held in reserve behind the lines of II and III Corps, to be used only in emergencies.

- To date the German offensive, and in particular the attacks of the reserve corps over the past two days, have failed to achieve their objectives.  It is true that local gains have been achieved - there is III Reserve Corps bridgehead on the Yser, the seizure of the high ground northeast of Ypres, and the forced retreat of the British II Corps.  However, a decisive breaking of the Entente line, the likes of which would justify the commitment of the four inexperienced reserve corps and the horrendous losses they have suffered, has not occurred.  Falkenhayn is not pleased with the results of the past few days, and warns the commanders of 4th and 6th Armies that their operations will be reviewed if greater success is not achieved soon.

The commanders of both armies - Duke Albrecht of 4th Army and Prince Rupprecht of 6th Army - owe their appointment to their place as hereditary rulers of German states.  Real power rested with their chiefs of staff, and they know that success in Flanders will reflect as much on them as their nominal superiors.  Both take Falkenhayn's warning to heart, and seek to recast their operations.  Major-General Kraft von Delmensingen of 6th Army concludes that the efforts of his army have been spread out to far, and it would be better to focus their strength on particular points.  Given the role of 4th Army, it is logical for 6th Army to concentrate the front they hold immediately south of their neighbour, and after discussions with the General Staff it is agreed that the focal point of 6th Army's future attacks will lay between La Bassée and the Ypres-Menin road.  Major-General Emil Ilse of 4th Army, meanwhile, is appalled by the losses suffered by the four reserve corps - the ranks of experienced officers in the corps, already thin, have been decimated over the past two days.  Moreover, he believes the key to the enemy line is Dixmude, the capture of which would outflank both the Belgians along the Yser River and the French and British lines around Ypres, and a major effort against the town is planned for tomorrow.

- The French defenders at Arras are rescued today by the timely arrival of six battalions of Senegalese soldiers, which allow them to hold off the Germans.  The Kaiser departs, once again disappointed.

- Today the large units of the Canadian Contingent finish disembarking at Plymouth, and make their way to a large encampment on Salisbury Plain where they will spend several months training.  Even as they begin, recruiting continues in Canada for a second contingent of volunteers.

October 22nd, 1914

- The battle intensifies between Ypres and the Channel.  In the pre-dawn hours, the German 26th Reserve Infantry Regiment of III Reserve Corps closes up to the Yser River just south of Schoore.  By using the bayonet to clear out Belgian outposts east of the river, the defenders on the west bank have not been alarmed.  Using the cover of night, engineers bridge the river at two places, and by dawn most of two battalions are on the west bank.  The Germans are able to resist Belgian counterattacks, but the small bridgehead comes under fierce and sustained artillery fire, preventing reinforcement during the day.  Only after nightfall can additional German soldiers get across the river.

- To the south, a monumental attack is launched by the Germans against the British I and IV Corps.  The British line around Ypres today forms a semi-circle, and it is against its northern and eastern portions that the attack falls.  The bulk of the German XVI Reserve Corps, assisted by a division of XXIII Reserve Corps, throws itself against the line held by the British 1st Division between Bixschoote and Langemarck, while to the southeast the British 2nd Division spends most of the day under a heavy artillery bombardment before the Germans attempt to rush the enemy trenches at dusk.  Further south, 7th Division of IV Corps is assaulted by the German XVII Reserve Corps south of Zonnebeke.

The trial of the four reserve corps consigned to the attack by Falkenhayn is now at hand.  They form up for the advance, officers, some on horseback, in front, with the soldiers in massed ranks.  The volunteers of the corps have had time only to learn the most basic parade-ground maneouvres, while those with prior military training have either forgotten the bulk of it or learnt it so long ago as to be practically useless.  There are only a sprinkling of officers and NCOs through the corps who have seen combat in this war, and thus the infantry advance in the mass formations of peacetime - they have not gained the knowledge learnt at great cost over the past few months of the realities of the modern battlefield.  The instructions for the formations are simple - advance and overwhelm the enemy.  As they march into battle, some of the units begin to sing 'Deutschland über Alles' or 'Die Wacht am Rhein.'  In part they do so as a recognition signal - so inexperienced are they that they fear firing on their own soldiers, so singing the two great German patriotic songs is an unmistakable signal of their identity.  The singing also, however, reflects the great patriotism amongst in particular the volunteers, those who rushed to enlist in August 1914.  These volunteers, many high school and university students, sometimes with their teachers alongside, represent the pinnacle of German war enthusiasm - they march into battle because they choose to, believing in the righteousness of their cause and the irresistibility of their advance.

Their singing reaches the British soldiers huddling in their meagre trenches opposite.  As the Germans advance, flags flying in near-perfect parade-ground formation, the British open fire.  The patriotism and enthusiasm of the German volunteers meets the fire of machine guns and rifles, and the result is never in doubt.  Huge swathes are cut through the German ranks - the British regulars, trained to fire fifteen aimed rifle shots a minute, fire between 500 and 600 times today.  Hundreds and hundreds of Germans are wounded and killed as they attempt to march to the British line.  Now the inexperience of the reserve corps manifests itself in another way - they do not know when enemy fire is too intense to continue.  Not knowing better, they continue to advance long after it becomes painfully obvious to those with battlefield experience that all further attacks will accomplish is pile the German bodies higher.  Even when the Germans pull back, they simply reform and advance again.  In some cases they get as close as fifty yards to the British trenches, a range at which no British regular could possibly miss.  Even some of the British officers cannot help but admire the courage of the Germans in continuing to attack.  But as the past few months have shown, courage against the machine gun can have only one outcome.

The German attacks accomplish nothing of strategic significance.  The small village of Kortekeer is taken on the front of the British 1st Division, but no breakthrough is achieved and the British are quick to plan a counterattack.  By nightfall the sound of singing has been replaced by the piteous moans of the wounded and dying.  British soldiers peering through the twilight sees the fields before them covered by fallen Germans.  Here and there a wounded German, sometimes variously with arms or legs missing, attempts to crawl to safety.  Many of the German formations have lost half or more of their strength.

From today's attacks, and ones by the reserve corps in subsequent days, a legend will grow in Germany - the Kindermord, or Massacre of the Innocents.  The proportion of the reserve corps composed of young volunteers is inflated, such that the attack is depicted as the ultimate expression of German patriotism.  Far from being seen as a defeat, the  Kindermord comes to be celebrated as the triumph of national will, of how no trial, however arduous, can extinguish the flame of German patriotism.  The anniversary of the Kindermord comes to be celebrated each year in wartime Germany as a symbol of the unshakeable will of the German people and faith in ultimate victory.  After the war, the Kindermord will be appropriated by the right, including the Nazis, for whom the Battle of Langemarck, as the Germans call it, becomes a key touchstone for the celebration of German militarism and the patriotism that was betrayed by the 'stab in the back.'

The reality of the Kindermord is more prosaic - the soldiers of the reserve corps die miserable deaths, often without even seeing the enemy or firing a shot.  For many, the rude introduction to the realities of modern warfare become the last few seconds of their lives.  They believed they were marching to victory; instead they advanced into oblivion.

The German assaults on the British lines around Ypres, October 22nd and 23rd, 1914.

- Along the line held by the British II Corps, an early morning German attack catches the 1st Battalion, Cheshire Regiment in the open digging trenches, and within a matter of minutes their numbers are reduced from 382 to 153.  The battalion falls back and the Germans advance until held by reserve British forces.  In light of the increasing pressure, and concerned about remaining in touch with French cavalry to his north, General Smith-Dorrien orders II Corps to withdraw tonight to a reserve trench line stretching from the La Bassée Canal to Fauquissart.  The retreat is completed overnight without interference from the Germans.

The southern portion of the line held by the British, October 1914.  The thick red line is indicative of the line to which
II Corps withdrew to overnight.

- This afternoon Germans launch a major attack on the village of St. Laurent, just east of Arras, under the eyes of the Kaiser, who has arrived to witness the fall of the city.  The French Alpine Division, reinforced by cavalry that had just arrived, fight a desparate battle, and heavy fighting continues into the evening as the two forces struggle over the ruins of the village.

- This morning the old pre-dreadnought Canopus arrives at Port Stanley in the Falklands.  Its captain confirms to Rear-Admiral Craddock that his ship is capable of only 12 knots, and further that it cannot leave port again until he had fixed the ship's condensers and cleaned its boilers.  Craddock sees Canopus as no value to his command, but still feels himself bound by the earlier Admiralty orders to attack the German East Asiatic Squadron.  In the back of his mind is the escape of the Goeben and Breslau in the Mediterranean in the first days of the war.  There, Admiral Troubridge had decided against engaging the German ships with his inferior squadron, and he had been widely criticized, with some calling into question his honour and courage.  Craddock will not allow this to happen to himself - to his friend Admiral Hedworth Meux he writes today that 'I will take care I do not suffer the fate of poor Troubridge.'  The only course of action consistent not only with Admiralty orders but also with the dictates of honour is that he sail with his squadron, without Canopus, to fight the German East Asiatic Squadron.  He does so knowing that there is little chance of success - to the governor of the Falklands he states that he will not see him again.  Thus this afternoon Craddock aboard Good Hope slips out of harbour sailing westward, to join Glasgow, Monmouth, and Otranto where they will seek out battle, while Canopus is ordered to follow when possible with three colliers.  Thus the reverberations of the escape of the Goeben and Breslau continue to echo.

- Enver Pasha today transmits the Ottoman war plan for hostilities against the Entente to Germany.  It was not a monumentally-detailed plan for mobilization and operations in the vein of one produced by the German General Staff.  Indeed, it is not readily apparent that Enver sought any professional advice in developing it.  Instead, the plan contains six 'options' for war, though not in any particular order.  First, the 'new' Turkish fleet would bombard the Black Sea ports of Russia.  Second would be the declaration of holy war against the Entente, inspiring their Muslim subjects to rebellion.  Third, the Ottomans would hold the line in the Caucasus, tying down Russian units.  Fourth would be an offensive against Egypt, possibly by XII Corps, seizing the Suez Canal as its first phase.  Fifth, if Bulgaria entered the war the Ottomans would join with them in attacking Serbia.  Finally, the possibility is raised of deploying Ottoman forces to the north Black Sea coast.

The importance of the document does not rest with its detailed plans for military operations, of which there are very few details given.  Instead, the Ottoman war plan is designed primarily as a political document to demonstrate to the Germans the value of Ottoman military support.  In particular, the invasion of Egypt, the option given the most detail in the plan, accomplishes something that the Germans themselves cannot - attack the British Empire directly.  Thus by emphasizing Ottoman military potential against Britain, they enhance their stature in the eyes of the German General Staff.  Pre-war dismissals by German officials of the military value of the Ottoman army give way to tantalizing and enticing possibilities of striking deadly blows against the British.

- In South Africa, the Boer dissidents decide to rise in rebellion against the government.  They do so in protest of the war, the invasion of German South-West Africa, and conscription.  They also draw support from landless Boers who fear the growing urbanization of the country will drive them into the cities and into the working-class, and those who feel the traditional Boer values of egalitarianism and republicanism are under threat.  However, the rebellion divides the Boer populace, and significant pillars of the community, including both the Dutch Reformed Church and J. B. M. Hertzog, leader of the National Party, giving the Boer Rebellion the character of a domestic dispute among Boers, as opposed to a unified Boer uprising against British occupation and colonization.

- In August the German ports of Dar es Salaam and Tanga in their East African colony were declared to be open cities, but today the British announce that they are voiding the agreements.  They have developed plans for a two-pronged offensive against the northern portion of the colony, both utilizing units of the Indian Army - Detachment B of the Indian Expeditionary Force is to land and seize Tanga, while Detachment C will advance overland to Moshi.  Once both towns are taken the British will control both ends of the railway that connects the two, placing them in position to advance on the central railway in the colony.  The same railway, however, gives the defending Germans the ability to rapidly shift forces between the two threatened points.

October 21st, 1914

- Awareness has finally dawned for Sir John French of the enormity of the threat facing his command.  His operations order for today, issued last night at 930pm, still included the instructions for the advance of I Corps, but the other formations of the BEF were instructed to assume defensive positions - the hope at the time was that I Corps, pushing to Thourout and beyond, would serve as the outflanking force while the rest of the BEF held the line and fixed the Germans opposite.  By morning, however, prisoner interrogations indicated the presence of four new reserve corps in Flanders, which meant both that the BEF was significantly outnumbered and that a major German offensive was unmistakably taking place.  For the BEF commander the situation begins to take on similarities with the retreat from Mons to the Marne, where he daily worried about the safety of his army.

It is with this mindset that Sir John French greets Joffre as the latter arrives at the former's HQ at St. Omer.  Joffre brings welcome news - the French IX Corps is being transferred to Flanders to join General d'Urbal's detachment - and the meeting goes well until Field Marshal French requests Joffre to make available the resources necessary to construct a great armed camp at Boulogne sufficient to hold the entire BEF.  French's desire is for a secure base to which he can retreat to if overwhelmed at the front, from which the BEF can be supported and/or evacuated by the Royal Navy.  Joffre is instantly reminded of the great difficulties he had in convincing his British counterpart to stay in the fight in the two weeks between Mons and the Marne, and does not want to give any effect to French's fears.  Though inwardly seething, he keeps his composure and states that while he is willing to guard against a German coup-de-main against Boulogne the resources and manpower are simply not available to do anything more.  Joffre assures French that he will not prioritize the portions of the front lines held by the armies of France for reinforcements, but that it was vital that they stand together and fight the Germans where they stood.  Departing with expressions of good intentions, Joffre's mood recovers during a subsequent meeting with King Albert and with the arrival of the first units of IX Corps.

- The front held by the BEF extends about thirty-five miles, and in addition to I through IV Corps and the Cavalry Corps, there are several French cavalry divisions holding the line.  Overall, on this stretch of the front there are seven and a third infantry divisions and five cavalry divisions of the British and French armies.  Opposing them are eleven German infantry and eight cavalry divisions.  The contrast is heightened by the prolonged fighting most of the BEF has already experienced, in contrast to the fresh divisions of the new reserve corps of the German 4th Army.  The length of the front line held is simply too long for it to be covered in anything like reasonable depth.  Along much of the front there is only a single shallow trench, entrenching tools being in very short supply, with perhaps a few strands of barbed wire.  In places there are gaps in the line, which are covered by artillery or crossfire from nearby positions.  The range of fire is also shorter than desired, as much of the buildings, trees, and other impediments have yet to be completely pulverised into dust by artillery bombardments.

For their part the Germans attack all along the line, seeking out weak points in the Entente line, as opposed to concentrating their forces and blasting their own holes in the enemy formations.  Throughout the battle the Germans consistently overrate the density and strength of the Entente, believing the lines they encounter are only advanced pickets when in reality they are the only defensive line at all.  The more experienced corps of 6th Army are also beginning to learn from the harsh lessons of the battlefield, advancing in small groups instead of a single wave.  The inexperienced formations of 4th Army, however, have no such experience to draw upon, much to their detriment.

- II and III Corps as well as the Cavalry Corps are hard-pressed today by German attacks.  Indeed, the latter is effectively fighting as infantry as well, defending trenches and only using their horses to shift from one position to another.  The Germans achieve no breakthroughs, but at several points British units are forced to withdraw to avoid envelopment.  A mistaken retreat order nearly opened a gap between the Cavalry Corps and IV Corps to the north, but the German cavalry opposite are slow to exploit and the British are able to close the gap.  Indeed, the lethargy of the German cavalry is sufficient to prompt a change of command this evening, General Hollen being replaced by General Marwitz.

IV Corps' 7th Division is also under severe pressure - their prior attempt to advance on Menin has left them in poor defensive positions, the Germans opposite them on a ridge at Passchendaele, allowing the latter to direct accurate artillery fire upon the British.  The Germans temporarily break through 7th Division's two brigades, but a company of the 2nd Battalion, Royal Scots Fusiliers is able to plug the gap.  To the north Haig attempts to execute French's orders to advance this morning, though the streams of refugees on the roads forces a delay of almost two hours.  Heavy losses are suffered by I Corps as it attempts to fight through hedgerows, and German artillery fire intensifies the further the British advance.  By the afternoon further progress is impossible, and I Corps has only advanced 1000 to 2000 yards to just beyond Zonnebeke.  The left flank of I Corps is nearly uncovered by the continued retreat of General de Mitry's French cavalry, the latter having yielded Houthulst Forest to the attack of the German XXIII Reserve Corps.  Fortunately for I Corps, the commander of the immediately adjacent French cavalry division refused the order until the British flank was secured.  De Mitry's cavalry retreat to the line of the Ypres Canal, also defended by two territorial divisions, running between Ypres and Dixmude.  The effect is to create a sharp angle in the British line from Bixschoote to Langemarck, in which elements of I Corps are facing almost north.  Beyond there the German III Reserve Corps spends the day pounding the Belgian positions along the Yser.

The attacks of the German 4th Army on the British lines, October 21st, 1914.

- Sixth Army also commences a heavy artillery bombardment not only of the French lines defending Arras, but also of the town itself, in preparation for a major attack scheduled for tomorrow.

- General Ivanov believes the Russian armies assembled in central Poland are finally ready to go onto the offensive, advancing west from the Vistula River.  Unfortunately for the Russians, the delays in organizing the armies has given the Germans the opportunity to retreat, which as per Ludendorff's orders began yesterday.  However, the fighting is not yet at an end, for the Austro-Hungarian Chief of Staff has a plan of his own.  Conrad orders 1st Army to concentrate on the Itxanka River south of Ivangorod, and attack northwards into the Russians when they have only partially crossed the Vistula.

- In Britain, the Cabinet Committee on Munitions meets for the third time today, and their solution to the ongoing shortages of weapons and ammunition has been largely to increase the number of orders placed with armament firms.  This does little, however, to address the root causes of the shortages - i.e. many highly-skilled engineers and munitions workers have volunteered for the army, leaving armaments firms understaffed, and many firms either do not have the equipment to expand production or do not have the proper experience to produce the items desired by the government.  As such, the primary result of placing additional orders for munitions is to heighten the sense of panic over a lack munitions - the more orders there are, the more go unfulfilled, creating a cycle of crisis.