November 3rd, 1914

- At Ypres General d'Urbal orders another French attack between Zonnebeke and Langemarck, to be undertaken by the 17th, 18th, and 31st Divisions.  Unfortunately for the French, the Germans opposite have been reinforced by units that formerly were along the Yser, but whose presence there is no longer required due to the flooding.  Not only is the French advance halted, but at Bixschoote they are actually forced backward, the village falling to German hands once more.

For the BEF there are no major enemy attacks today, though there is the usual sniping and shelling.  General Haig attempts to compose a corps reserve, but so thin is his line that only three hundred men can be found.  He also pulls some of his artillery back from the fighting, as there is no point in exposing them to shellfire when they lack sufficient ammunition to return fire.

On the German side Prince Rupprecht of 6th Army concludes that unless Army Group Fabeck is reinforced, no decisive success could be achieved at Ypres.  To this end, he transfers more heavy artillery to Army Group Fabeck and allots it all of the ammunition assigned to 6th Army as a whole.  He also issues orders for further reinforcements - 2nd and Bavarian Cavalry Divisions from 6th Army reserve are reassigned immediately to Army Group Fabeck, while several units elsewhere on the Western Front are instructed to redeploy to the Ypres battlefield.

- The Kaiser's edict that the High Seas Fleet is to remain on the defensive in the North Sea, issued in the aftermath of the Battle of the Heligoland Bight, does not extend to the battlecruisers, and thus an operation is ordered for four light cruisers to lay mines along the Norfolk coast, escorted by four battlecruisers under Admiral Franz von Hipper.  The warships departed yesterday afternoon, and by dawn are are off the port of Yarmouth.

Yarmouth on the Norfolk coast of Britain.

As the light cruiser Stralsund lays a line of mines, the German force stumbles upon the British minesweeping gunboat Halcyon, on patrol off Yarmouth.  The Germans immediately open fire, and indeed all four battlecruisers target Halcyon and the destroyer Lively that comes to her aid - this is the first time any have sighted an enemy ship in wartime, and are eager to get their shots in.  The problem is that with all of the shell splashes, it is impossible to tell which shells were fired from which ship, making accurate spotting impossible.  At 740am Hipper decides that he is wasting his time going after such small warships, and turns to disengage.  The battlecruisers fire a few shells in the direction of Yarmouth, but succeed only in rearranging sand on the beach.  The only achievement of the raid comes when a British submarine strikes one of the German mines and is lost.

The response of the Admiralty to the initial report from Halcyon is to do nothing - no one can believe that the battlecruisers of the High Seas Fleet would sail into danger just to lob a few shells onto an English beach.  The prevailing assumption is that it must be a diversion from another, more significant German operation.  Thus for several hours no warships are ordered to pursue the Germans as they wait for the other shoe to drop.  By the time they realize there is no other shoe, Hipper and his force have made their escape.  There is no small amount of public commentary on the apparent ability of the Germans to sail to the English coast and escape.  At the Admiralty it is decided to redeploy the Grand Fleet back to Scapa Flow - if it stays in its bases on the west coast of Scotland and the north coast of Ireland, it is simply too far away to respond to German action in the North Sea.

On the German side, the results were disappointing - when the Kaiser awards Hipper an Iron Cross for the operation, the latter declares, 'I won't wear it until I've done something.'  The apparent ability of the German force to escape without being intercepted, however, is encouraging should further such operations be undertaken in the future.

- At the Admiralty Fisher convenes a meeting of naval officials and private shipbuilders to launch an emergency shipbuilding effort.  Fisher's focus is on increasing the number of orders to the greatest amount possible, and in particular wants a significant expansion of the submarine force.  To the Director of Contracts he threatened 'to make his wife a widow and his house a dunghill if he brought paper work or red tape into the picture; he wanted submarines, not contracts . . . if he did not get them within eight months, he would commit hara-kiri.'  Commodore Roger Keyes, present at the meeting, laughs at Fisher's remark, at which point the latter turns on Keyes with a ferocious glare, saying 'If anyone thwarts me he had better commit hara-kiri too.'  Such are Fisher's management techniques.

- Ludendorff begins today to plan for the next phase of operations in Poland.  Falkenhayn believes that the chief of staff of Ober Ost is merely developing a local counter-attack, but such mundane operations are beneath Ludendorff, who only plans campaigns of sufficient breadth and audacity as suits his genius - at least, that's how Ludendorff sees it.  His plan is to shift the bulk of 9th Army from the Krakow area to between Posen and Thorn to the northwest of Russian Poland, and attack towards Lodz, taking in flank the anticipated Russian invasion of Germany.

- In an effort to dissuade the Ottomans from entering the war on the side of German, the British government decides on a display of naval power, to illustrate Ottoman vulnerability should they stand against the Entente.  Two British battlecruisers and two French battleships steam to the entrance to the Dardanelles and bombard the Ottoman fort protecting it, destroying its magazine.  The effort makes no difference, however, as the war party are now in control in Constantinople.

- At dawn Scharnhorst, Gneisenau, and Nürnberg of the German East Asiatic Squadron enter the harbour at Valparaíso, while Leipzig and Dresden remain at sea escorting colliers.  Admiral Spee and the men of his ship receive a rapturous welcome from the German community in the city, including from hundreds of German sailors on merchant ships who volunteer to join the squadron.  Spee, however, is aware that, despite the crushing victory two days ago, there are still obstacles before his squadron.  Both of his armoured cruisers used half of their ammo at Coronel, and there is no possibility of resupply short of returning home.  Moreover, there could be no doubt that the British would redouble their efforts to hunt down and destroy his squadron.

Meanwhile, today the telegram from the British consul at Valparaíso, reporting the presence of the German East Asiatic Squadron but not of the battle, arrives at the Admiralty.  Fisher urges reinforcements for Craddock's squadron, and a signal is sent to Craddock informing him that Defence was en route to join his warships.  It was the order Craddock had long waited to receive, but of course it was no use to him now.  As Churchill was later to write, 'we were already talking into the void.'

- Near Tanga the disorganized landing of Indian Expeditionary Force B continues this morning - the beach is a mass of confused and demoralized soldiers, battalions being hopelessly mixed up.  An attempt begins at 430am to advance on Tanga with the first units landed, but co-ordinated progress in the dense bush proves impossible, and they are back at the beachhead by 10am.

At the same time, inland Indian Expeditionary Force C attempts its advance on German positions at Longido just south of Mount Kilimanjaro.  After initial fighting checks IEF C short of its objective, it is forced to withdraw after its supply arrangements collapse and the soldiers are left without water.

The failure of IEF C allows Colonel Lettow-Vorbeck to deploy all but three of his companies of Schütztruppen to Tanga.  By this evening Lettow-Vorbeck has arrived himself at the port and undertakes a personal reconnaissance of the British beachhead by bicycle.  With seven companies now available, and a further two scheduled to arrive tomorrow, he decides to hold a line east of Tanga before the British while positioning his reserves on his right to take the enemy in their flank.

- For the past month, the Japanese force beseiging Tsingtao has been steadly advancing in the face of determined German resistance.  In conducting their offensive, they apply the lessons learned during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-5 - instead of throwing their men against the German defences, they have conducted a methodical artillery bombardment, digging trenches as close to the enemy lines as possible, and attacking at night.  The result is that the stout defences of Tsingtao are falling one by one.  After seizing Prince Heinrich Hill earlier in October, since the 31st the Japanese have been bombarding the inner defences and the port itself, and today an assault carries the Japanese forces into position to assault the inner line of trenches protecting the last German forts on three hills just northeast of Tsingtao itself.

The defenses of the German naval base at Tsingtao in China.  As of today the besieging Japanese are just before the
'Inner Line of Trenches' marked on the map.

- Today the 'Manifesto of French Universities' is published in the French press.  Endorsed by the faculty councils of all French public universities, the Manifesto is a line-by-line repudiation of the German appeal of October 4th, posing provocative questions including: Which nation had wanted war?  Which nation had violated Belgian neutrality?  Which nation had burned Louvain and bombarded Rheims cathedral?  It is another salvo in the dispute over the origins and conduct of the war, in which the academic and intellectual elite vie with the most strident nationalists in their condemnation of the enemy.

November 1st, 1914

- Despite the ground gained yesterday east of Ypres, Army Group Fabeck failed to achieve the desired breakthrough.  General Fabeck decides that while the offensive will continue, its focus will shift slightly.  After failing to exploit the temporary breach in the British line at Gheluvelt yesterday, today's attacks will be launched between Messines and Wytschaete.

On the Entente side, the French plan three attacks, to be undertaken in large part to relieve the pressure on the British - the first from north of Wytschaete, the second from Zonnebeke, and the third a diversionary attack by the rest of IX Corps.  Each of these attacks fail to accomplish anything today, but they also speak to the growing importance of French forces in the Ypres salient.  The past two week have severely reduced the BEF's strength - of its eighty-four infantry battalions, nine have fewer than a hundred men, while another thirty-one have between one and two hundred.  In comparison, a full battalion would have just over a thousand men.  There are also very few reinforcements in Britain that can be sent immediately to the front - the only regular army units not yet in the fight are the battalions of 8th Division, assembling in Britain after being located around the Empire on the outbreak of war.

The main German attack begins at 1am by nine battalions of the 6th Bavarian Reserve Division.  At Wytschaete the British are outnumbered twelve to one, and by 245am the village is in German hands.  More importantly, as the battle continues German units begin to infiltrate between British positions on the ridge between Wytschaete and Messines, as the defenders here are too few to man an entire trench line at once.  Those British soldiers who remain on the ridge at dawn realize they are in danger of encirclement, and pull back.  By 735am the Germans are in possession of the middle part of the high ground.  This outflanks the British defenders still clinging to the village of Messines itself, and they are ordered to retreat at 9am.  The British fall back to the next line of high ground to the west,  while shelling their former trenches at Messines to impede the German occupation of them.  A British counterattack manages to re-enter Wytschaete later in the day, but otherwise the Entente line here has been pushed back.  On the other hand, the German victory is merely a tactical one, as though the British retreat they are not routed, and a new defensive line stands in the Germans' way.

- The Kaiser arrives near the front today, visiting several cavalry divisions near Courtrai and Lille.  The British intercept several messages regarding his journey, but misinterpret his itinerary to suggest that he will be much closer to the front.  British artillery prepare an appropriate welcome at the villages where they think the Kaiser will be during the day.

The fighting around Ypres, November 1st to 4th, 1914.

- Behind the front, Lord Kitchener is meeting President Poincarè, Joffre, and Foch at Dunkirk to discuss the course of the war.  Kitchener informs them that there are no substantial British reinforcements available until the spring of 1915, as he will not send untrained men into battle.  However, subsequently the size of the BEF will expand rapidly as the 'New Armies' of wartime volunteers come into the field.  Also, know of the sometimes-testy relationship between Joffre and Sir John French, Kitchener offers to replace the latter with General Sir Ian Hamilton.  Joffre declines, believing (ironically, given his own record) that changing the BEF's commander in the middle of a battle would not work out.  Unfortunately for Kitchener, this offer very quickly reaches the ears of Field Marshal French, which earns Kitchener the enduring emnity of the latter.

- By today the German 9th Army has fallen back to the line from which it had started its advance into Poland just over a month ago.  Despite Ludendorff's claims of success, and the generally confused nature of the fighting, the Battle of the Vistula River is a Russian victory - it can hardly be otherwise when the Germans were the attackers and they end the battle where they started.  Nevertheless, the past month have shown the continuing logistical and command problems plaguing the Russian army - the attempt to pursue the retreating Germans has completely broken down, and today it is formally called off.

As for Falkenhayn, his attention remains firmly fixed on the Western Front, and is willing to leave matters on the Eastern Front in the hands of Hindenburg and Ludendorff.  As such, Hindenburg is today appointed commander-in-chief of all German forces in the east, with Ludendorff as his chief of staff and the command to be known as Ober Ost.  General Mackensen is also promoted to take command of 9th Army.

- With the entry of the Ottoman Empire into the war almost inevitable after the events in the Black Sea, the Shah of Persia, its eastern neighbour, declares the neutrality of his state.  The statement, however, is more theoretical than practical.  Though Persia is nominally independent, both Britain and Russia have significant interests and influence within it.  The newest dreadnoughts burn oil, not coal, and with the oilfields of southern Persia being a key source for the Admiralty, the British government controls them through owning a majority share of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company.  To the north, Russia already has five thousand soldiers garrisoning Persian Azerbaijan, seeing the endemic instability of the region as necessitating Russian control.  The Shah himself is only 17 years old, and lacks an effective army to maintain internal order.  Persian neutrality means little when major combatants sees their interests as necessitating intervention within its borders.

- At Coronel the British light cruiser Glasgow slips out of port at 915am, and meets the rest of Craddock's squadron just after 1pm.  The four ships then spread out in a line, sailing north in search of the supposedly-isolated Leipzig.  The German East Asiatic Squadron is doing much the same thing in pursuit of Glasgow, except moving south.  At 420pm Leipzig and Glasgow sight each other, drawing both squadrons together.

The approach of the German East Asiatic Squadron to Chile and the Battle of Coronel, November 1st, 1914.

Upon confirming the presence of the entire German East Asiatic Squadron, Craddock knows that his force is markedly inferior to the Germans.  He decides, however, to fight - first, his armed merchant liner Otranto was not fast enough to escape; and second, he felt bound by the Admiralty's orders to engage the enemy.  Craddock turns his squadron around so that both forces are sailing southwards, roughly parallel to each other.  With the sun setting to the west, Craddock hopes to force an action when the sun is blinding the eyes of the German gunners, giving the British a window of opportunity.  At 618pm Craddock aboard Good Hope signals the rest of his ships to follow him in closing with the Germans.

Spee, however, knows just as well as Craddock the impact the setting sun can have, and when the British ships turn to close the gap, he orders his ships to simply turn as well, maintaining the distance between the two squadrons.  Thus the sun sets without a single ship being fired, and now all of the advantages are with the Germans - the British are now silhouetted against the twilight sky.  At 650pm the Germans turn towards the British, and open fire at 704pm.

Craddock never had a chance.  Despite the rough seas, the excellent marksmanship of Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, honed to near-perfection in peacetime gunnery exercises, is immediately obvious.  The third salvo of Scharnhorst strikes Good Hope, destroying one of its 9.2-inch guns, and henceforth the German armoured cruisers pour accurate and rapid fire on Good Hope and Monmouth.  The British attempt to fire back, but most of their 6-inch shells fall short and the single 9.2-inch gun remaining operational on Good Hope can hardly hope to win the battle by itself.  In less than an hour Good Hope is reduced to a flaming wreck, and having absorbed thirty-five hits from Scharnhorst, explodes and sinks at 750pm.  Monmouth survives only an hour more, sinking at 858pm.  As Spee's focus is naturally on the two largest opponents, both Glasgow and Otranto are able to make their escape in the night.

All aboard Good Hope and Monmouth, including Craddock, are lost.  On the German side, only Gneisenau was hit even once by shells that exploded, and it suffered no serious damage and only three sailors were slightly wounded.  Glasgow manages to warn Canopus sailing north with the squadron's colliers of the disaster, and the survivors escape southwards.  The German East Asiatic Squadron has won a notable and completely-lopsided victory at the Battle of Coronel, the first significant defeat of British warships at the hands of the enemy for a century.

The Battle of Coronel, November 1st, 1914.

- As in Canada, the outbreak of war saw thousands of volunteers come forward in Australia and New Zealand.  However, the continued presence of German cruisers in the Pacific and Indian Oceans required that the convoy carrying the volunteers be delayed until sufficient escorts could be assembled.  Today, protected by British, Australian, and Japanese warships, thirty-eight transports carrying almost 21 000 Australian and just under 8500 New Zealand soldiers departs Australia today.  Their destination is Egypt, where they will undergo training.

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 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 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 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 18th, 1914

- Today the German III Reserve Corps launches an attack on the Belgian line between Dixmude and Nieuport.  The land here is low-lying pasture fields, much of which is below sea-level.  A railway connecting the two towns sits only six feet above sea level, and the roads of the region are even lower.  A series of locks at Nieuport drains the Yser River at low tide and keeps the sea out at high tide.

The German attack succeeds in capturing several advanced posts on the eastern side of the river, but fail to secure bridgeheads across the Yser itself.  The Belgian defense is aided by a British naval squadron just offshore, centered on two monitors that bombard the advancing Germans.

- In Flanders there are a number of scattered French units, haphazardly thrown into the fight to plug holes or exhausted after retreating, which include the French marines at Dixmude, several territorial divisions, and a number of cavalry divisions.  Today Joffre organizes these units into a single detachment under the command of General Victor d'Urbal, who will report to Foch.  Of these forces several cavalry divisions under General de Mitry advancing northeast of Ypres occupy Roulers.

Further south, Sir John French orders the British 7th Division of IV Corps to advance on Menin, in co-operation with de Mitry's move towards Roulers.  The division finds itself short of Menin at nightfall, General Rawlinson being concerned of marching beyond his flank support.  The British Cavalry Corps, in the front line between IV Corps to the north and III Corps to the south, is unable to make any progress against a determined German defense west of Comines, and III Corps itself, ordered to advance northeast down the valley of the Lys River, finds itself running to the main German line defending Lille and can make little headway.  Finally, II Corps seizes a bridge just under a mile east of Givenchy, but further progress is halted by German machine gun fire from brick-stacks to the north and a factory to the south that had so far avoided destruction from artillery fire.

- Overall, the deployment and advance of the BEF in Flanders has not achieved its objectives.  Though it has to date covered the northern flank of the French line reaching up from Arras, its attempt to turn the German flank has been painfully slow, and objectives such as La Bassée, to say nothing of Lille, remain out of reach.  Moreover, there is no awareness of the impending German offensive - though information from the Belgians suggests German reserves have been marching west from Brussels, it is generally believed that these are second-class troops who will simply take over portions of the German line.  Indeed, Sir John French's plan remains to continue the advance, and it is believed that the imminent arrival of I Corps, the last to leave the Aisne, will give the attack sufficient weight to push back the Germans, reach Lille, and outflank the enemy.  In reality, this evening the four new reserve corps belonging to 4th Army (XXII, XXIII, XXVI, and XXVII) reach the start line of the planned German attack, arranged north to south approximately ten to seventeen miles east of the Yser and Ypres Canal.  Falkenhayn's grand offensive to win the war in the west is about to begin, and the Entente forces opposite have no idea what is about to descend on them.

- Ludendorff, aware now that 9th Army will not be able to accomplish anything against the Russian numerical superiority in central Poland, issues orders today for 9th Army to retreat beginning on October 20th.  The Russian armies opposite along the Vistula are still not yet fully assembled, but to the south in Galicia the Russians go back onto the attack, recrossing the San River and threatening Przemysl with encirclement again.

- While British strategy regarding German Kamerun has focused on the coast and denying the Germans use of the port of Duala, French strategy has instead aimed at the interior.  The German colony is bordered by French Equatorial Africa to the east and south, and the French were particularly interested in recovering the territory ceded by them to the Germans in 1911 as part of the resolution of the Second Moroccan Crisis.  Thus the first French attacks sees one column advancing westward seize Carnot yesterday, and a second advancing north up the Sanga River takes Nola today.  The advances have been without opposition - in the prior three years the Germans had only begun to integrate the former French territories into their colony, and have left them largely undefended.  Further, though the two attacks were designed to be linked together as one offensive operation, the realities of communication in central Africa - where orders can take weeks to travel from one column to another - makes practical co-ordination impossible.

- At 5pm, the German East Asiatic Squadron, fully coaled and provisioned, departs Easter Island, sailing east to the Chilean coast.

- Yesterday the old pre-dreadnought Canopus left the River Plate, and today its captain signals Admiral Craddock at the Falklands that his ship can only do 12 knots and thus will be unlikely to arrive until the 22nd.  The news is of great concern to Craddock, as it means that adding Canopus to his squadron will slow its speed to 12 knots, which would be far too slow to catch the German East Asiatic Squadron.  Moreover, if they did fight the Germans would be able to use their superior speed to stay out of the range of Canopus' main guns.  The old battleship is thus for all intents and purposes useless to Craddock, he sends the following telegram to the Admiralty: 'I trust circumstances will enable me to force an action, but fear that strategically, owing to Canopus, the speed of my squadron cannot exceed twelve knots.'

In London the telegram is interpreted simply as Craddock informing them of his squadron's speed with Canopus attached, and thus send no reply.  Craddock, however, still feels himself bound by the orders of September 14th to attack the German East Asiatic Squadron.  He is thus faced with an impossible conundrum - keep Canopus and be unable to force battle with the Germans, or leave Canopus behind but be outgunned by the enemy.

October 14th, 1914

- Along the Channel coast, the retreating Belgians reach the Yser River, where they begin to entrench between Nieuport and Dixmude.  To the east, the pursuing German III Reserve Corps occupies Bruges.

- Early today the British 3rd Cavalry Division makes contact with the British Cavalry Corps at Kemmel, linking the British force retreating from Antwerp with the BEF deploying between Béthune and Ypres.  By this evening Rawlinson's 7th Division has taken position just east of Ypres, covering the arrival of the French 87th Territorial Division in the town.  To the south the Cavalry Corps has secured village of Messines, while III Corps takes Bailleul, abandoned early by the Germans.

- As the XXII, XXIII, XXVI, and XXVII Reserve Corps begin their march west from Brussels today, Falkenhayn orders Rupprecht's 6th Army to halt offensive operations, to give time for the reserve corps to reach the front and to avoid giving the Entente indications of the coming attack.  Instead, 6th Army will hold on a line from Menin southwards, and today the XIII and XIX Corps take up position between Menin and Armentières.

- At 7am this morning, the first ships of an important convoy arrive in Plymouth in southwest England.  The ships had departed Quebec City on October 3rd, and contained twenty-five thousand volunteers for military service, as well as a further five hundred from the separate Dominion of Newfoundland.  These soldiers comprised the Canadian Contingent, whose formation and organization had been agreed to in August.  As in most other combatants, the onset of war had seen a rush of volunteers, and it was decided that, in addition to the existing militia, they would be sent to Britain for service on the Western Front.  They will be a part of the British army, and initially Lord Kitchener wanted to scatter the Canadians throughout British divisions as replacements and individual battalions.  This course of action was fiercely opposed by Sam Hughes, the Canadian Minister of Militia and a figure of considerable energy as well as controversy, in a meeting with Kitchener.  After appeals to the British government the Canadians got their way - after several months training in England, the Canadian Contingent will be reformed as the 1st Canadian Division, and will operate as such in France.

- Despite the usefulness of its 75mm artillery pieces, the French army has been hindered in its operations over the first months of the war by an overall relative lack of artillery as compared to the German army.  Today Joffre outlines what will become known as the 'October 14th Programme', which establishes the requirements of the French army with respect to heavy artillery.  Joffre also stipulates that henceforth all artillery rounds use smokeless rather than black powder, as the smoke that results from the latter gives away the position of guns that fire it.  This illustrates that the 'shells crisis' that has and will afflict all of the major combatants in the first phases of the war is not simply about the number of shells available, but also their quality as well as the availability of the most effective types of artillery pieces.

- In Britain, it was the navy that had priority on munitions, given the widespread assumption that in a future war it would be the fleet that would experience the most combat.  Given the contrast between the continued commitment of the British Expeditionary Force to heavy fighting in France and the relative inactivity of the navy, the Admiralty reluctantly agrees to release a thousand tons of cordite from its reserves to the army for use in munitions production.

- In German Kamerun British forces undertake a second attempt to seize Jabassi.  This time, the advancing columns are directing along both sides of the river to divide the German defenders, and the British commander accompanies the advance by boat to supervise their coordination.  The result is the capture of Jabassi after a brief fight.

- A closer bombardment attempt at Tsingtao sees the British pre-dreadnought Triumph struck by a German shore battery.

- In the Pacific Japanese forces have landed on and captured the undefended German islands in the Marshall, Caroline, and Mariana island chains, formerly attached to the German New Guinea colony.  This leaves only Tsingtao as the sole German colony in the Pacific still under their control.  The British position is that the final disposition of these German colonies will be decided after the war; in practice, the Japanese have no intention of yielding them.  Indeed, the islands they secured without casualties or combat in 1914 will cost the Americans thousands of lives to take in the course of the Second World War.

- At Easter Island the German light cruiser Leipzig arrives today to join the German East Asiatic Squadron.  Having been off the west coast of North America upon the outbreak of war, it has brought three colliers with a thousand tons of coal each to the island, and the other German ships begin to top up their coal bunkers.  The squadron is now composed of two armoured cruisers and three light cruisers.

- The Admiralty finally responds today to Rear-Admiral Craddock's two telegrams of October 8th and 11th.  They signal their agreement with his suggestion of forming a separate squadron to cover the South Atlantic, and among the ships to be assigned to the new squadron is the armoured cruiser Defence.  Crucially, this new squadron is to be a separate command, not under the direction of Craddock.  By having the new squadron independent, and by assigning Defence to it rather than Craddock's command, the implication appears clear to the Rear-Admiral - the Admiralty believes that his squadron as presently constituted, and with only the old pre-dreadnought Canopus en route as reinforcement, is sufficient to engage the German East Asiatic Squadron.

October 13th, 1914

- As the Belgians continue their retreat to the Yser River, tonight the British 7th Division is at Roulers, with the British 3rd Cavalry Division to the south covering its movement towards Ypres.  Meanwhile, this morning the British III Corps completes its assembly at Hazebrouck, and begins its advance at 1030am.  Though its objective is a line running north from Armentières, the corps encounters serious German opposition by elements of two cavalry divisions at the village of Meteren.  It is not until nightfall that the village is captured, the Germans retreating in good order while inflicting 708 casualties on the British.  Just to the north, the British Cavalry Corps clears German defenders off of Mont Noir.

On the German side, XIX Corps marches through Lille today on its way to the front, while the four reserve corps of 4th Army are detraining at Brussels.

- The offensive by General Mudra's XVI Corps in the Argonne west of Verdun has made only painfully slow progress.  Despite the use of new weaponry such as Minenwerfers and hand grenades, it is only today that the first line of French trenches has been taken.  The inability of new technology to immediately transform the battlefield is a theme that will recur in the years to come.

- In an effort to prod General Ivanov to attack, Grand Duke Nicholas reassigns 2nd and 5th armies to General Ruzski of North-West Front.  All this accomplishes in practice is to divide command of the operation, and over the prior two months the Russians have shown themselves singularly incapable of co-ordinating the efforts of separate commanders.

- In South Africa, in response to Maritz's declaration of rebellion, Christian de Wet, C. F. Beyers, and J. C. G. Kemp renew contact with each other, and discuss joining Maritz's revolt.

- At the Admiralty, First Lord Churchill discusses the continued pursuit of the German East Asiatic Squadron with the First Sea Lord, Prince Louis of Battenberg.  Their understanding is that Craddock will concentrate his ships at the Falklands Islands, and approve the formation of a second squadron.  They also conclude that Craddock understands that if his squadron is not strong enough to engage the German East Asiatic Squadron by itself, he will endeavour to shadow them until reinforcements arrive.  This is a crucial misunderstanding by the First Lord and First Sea Lord.  Craddock had been given orders on September 14th to destroy the German cruisers, a directive that had never been countermanded and which Craddock felt bound to obey regardless of the strength of the warships under his command.

October 11th, 1914

- When General Pau reported to Joffre King Albert's thoughts on the Belgians retiring past Calais, the French Commander-in-Chief was appalled.  He desperately wants the Belgians to take up position along the Entente front line, in order to cover part of the gap that remains north of Arras.  Joffre's concerns, however, are for naught - the Belgian king has had a change of heart.  He feels it is essential both for the Belgian war effort and the morale of the Belgian army for them to hold on to at least a small portion of Belgian territory, to emphasize that they are still an active participant, not only helping their allies but defending their homeland.  Albert thus orders the Belgian army today to retire to the Yser River between Dixmude to the south and Nieuport and the Channel coast to the north.

- Aware now that the bulk of the Belgian army has escaped Antwerp, General Beseler's III Reserve Corps is ordered westward, advancing to Ostend via Ghent and Bruges.  By this afternoon, advance German units are approaching Ghent, prompting the Entente forces defending the town to fall back.  The British are the last to retire from Ghent at 10pm this evening.  The British 3rd Cavalry Division, meanwhile, is in the vicinity of Thourout clearing the route for the Entente forces.

The Entente retreat to the Yser, October 10th to 15th, 1914.

- Today the German 179th Infantry Division of XIX Corps approaches the city of Lille, one of the largest cities in France and a key industrial centre.  It is garrisoned by a territorial brigade, and it had been hoped by Joffre that the ongoing effort to outflank the Germans at and north of Arras would link up with the city.  However, the Germans have arrived in strength first.  XIX Corps has been marching for a week, departing from the vicinity of Rheims with Lille as its objective.  At 9pm, a note is sent to the garrison commander at Lille demanding the city's surrender.  When no response is received, an artillery bombardment begins at 930pm.

- The British II Corps has reached Béthune, its first objective, and have deployed north-to-south.  Tomorrow they are to relieve the French cavalry divisions screening them and advance northeast to a line running roughly between Estaires and la Bassée.  The two British cavalry divisions of the Cavalry Corps are both operating to the north of II Corps, and, having swept aside advance patrols of the German IV Cavalry Corps, entered Hazebrouck.  Further, since yesterday III Corps has been detraining at St. Omer, though delays on the railway result in part of 4th Division not having arrived today.  Nevertheless, 19th Brigade is ordered forward to Hazebrouck thirteen miles to the east to cover the arrival of the rest of III Corps.

- Along the Vistula River, though still opposed to a general advance, permits individual corps to secure bridgeheads across the Vistula River.  The efforts are generally a debacle - though two bridgeheads are gained, German and Austro-Hungarian artillery fire inflicts substantial casualties and the survivors are unable to exploit their crossings.  5th Army is particular inept - they had no bridging equipment immediately at hand, so soldiers attempted to cross in rafts and barges in the face of machine-gun fire.  When bridging equipment finally did arrive, the bridge they erected floated away.  Finally, they were unable to counter enemy artillery fire, as the army staff had forgotten where they had left their field mortars.  Overall, the crossings themselves posed no great threat to the German 9th Army and Austro-Hungarian 1st Army.

- In response to Martiz's declaration of rebellion, Defense Minister Smuts today declares martial law.  This forces the critical choice on the Boers of South Africa - do they rise with Maritz, or under the compulsion of martial law aid in his suppression.

- Though the Admiralty has yet to respond to his message of October 8th, Rear-Admiral Craddock sends another dispatch today, recommending the creation of a second squadron to cover the South Atlantic.  This would allow Craddock to take the full strength of his squadron in pursuit of the German East Asiatic Squadron, without fearing that the Germans could slip past him and wreck havoc in the Atlantic.

October 8th, 1914

- This morning the German I and II Cavalry Corps, under increasing pressure north of Lens, is rescued by the arrival of XIV Corps, which had entrained at Metz on October 4th and had marched from Mons.  As the German XIV Corps and French XXI Corps grapple to a standstill, the two cavalry corps are redeployed between La Bassée and Armentières.

- Further north, the German IV Cavalry Corps sweeps around Lille and passes through Ypres today, but as they advance down the roads towards Hazebrouck, they are pushed back by the newly-arrived French 4th and 5th Cavalry Divisions.

- Field Marshal Sir John French meets with General Ferdinand Foch at the latter's headquarters north of Amiens to discuss the deployment of the British Expeditionary Force.  It is agreed that the BEF will come into the Entente line to the north of General Maud'huy's 10th Army, with the road between Béthune and Lille dividing the two commands.  The British II Corps, the first scheduled to arrive in Flanders, will take its position immediately to the north of the French 10th Army, and next in the line will be III Corps to the north of II Corps, followed by I Corps further north.  In each case, the 1st and 2nd Cavalry Divisions will cover the left flank of the most recently-arrived corps until the next arrives.  They also discuss future operations - the conclusion is that the enemy only has a few cavalry divisions in Flanders, and thus the opportunity exists for a general advance through Lille and for the German flank to be enveloped.

- The German bridgehead secured yesterday by 37th Landwehr Brigade over the Schelde River at Schoonaerde is reinforced today by two further brigades, and in spite of Belgian resistance is able to advance nearly to Lokeren, approximately halfway between the Schelde and the Dutch frontier.  The escape corridor for the soldiers at Antwerp is slowly closely.

- At Antwerp, the German heavy artillery is brought over the Nethe River today, and the bombardment intensifies, both of the city itself and the inner forts.  Fires rage uncontrolled in Antwerp, as the destruction of the waterworks means they cannot be contained.  At 5pm reports arrive at the headquarters of the Belgian commander of the garrison that Forts No. 1 and 2 have been abandoned under intensive German fire.  With the inner line of forts breached, all that remained was to withdraw to the city itself.  In such circumstances, only a portion of the Belgian fortress troops would be required, and thus at 530pm orders were issued for the Belgian 2nd Division and the Royal Marine Division to retreat from Antwerp and move westward to the line of the Terneuzen Canal.  By 1130pm the Belgians were across the Schelde and marching west.

The conveyance of the orders for the retreat of the Royal Naval Division, however, were botched.  Officers were sent to the headquarters of the Royal Marine Brigade and the 1st and 2nd Naval Brigades, and in the case of the Royal Marine Brigade and the 2nd Naval Brigade the orders arrived between 630pm and 7pm.  However, the officer dispatched to 1st Naval Brigade headquarters delivered his order to the Drake Battalion, one of the battalions belonging to the Brigade.  Thus while the Drake Battalion marched out of the line as ordered, the remaining three battalions of the 1st Naval Brigade remained in absolute ignorance of the decision to retreat.  The Royal Marine Brigade (less a rearguard battalion), 1st Naval Brigade, and the Drake Battalion have crossed the Schelde by 10pm, and are marching to Beveren Waes where they are told to expect trains waiting to convey them to Ostend.

- The British 3rd Cavalry Division, commanded by Major-General Sir Julian Byng, disembarks at Ostend over the course of the day.  To cover the landing, the British 7th Division has marched from Bruges to form an arc around Ostend.  Further east, the bulk of the Belgian army has reached the line of the Terneuzen Canal between Ghent and the Dutch frontier, while the French marine brigade is at Ghent itself.  At 5pm General Rawlinson receives instructions from Lord Kitchener ordering his force to cover the anticipated retreat of the British brigades at Antwerp.

The fall of Antwerp, October 8th to 10th, 1914.

- Admiral Craddock is at Port Stanley in the Falklands today, pondering an Admiralty signal he had received yesterday.  It had informed him of the wireless intercept of the 4th indicated that the German East Asiatic Squadron is likely en route to the South American coast, and that he must prepare to 'meet' them with Glasgow, Canopus, Otranto, and either Good Hope or Monmouth, the other to remain in the South Atlantic to protect trade.  He sends a reply to the Admiralty today, questioning the assumption that Scharnhorst and Gneisenau are accompanied only by a single light cruiser, and inquiring about the deployment of the armoured cruiser Defence.  The Admiralty's message of the 7th had made no mention of Defence, implying (though not outright saying) that they feel the existing ships under Craddock's command are sufficient to engage the German squadron.