November 28th, 1915

- Falkenhayn meets today with German industrialist Walther Rathenau, former head of the Kriegsrohstoffabteilung (War Materials Section), and the latter argues that the war can only be won through a decisive victory on the Western Front, where Germany's most important enemies are to be found.  Moreover, Rathenau believes that an offensive there can succeed, given what he sees as the deficient national character of the French.  In both sentiments Rathenau's views are in general accord with those of Falkenhayn - the German chief of staff is increasingly convinced that a major offensive should be undertaken on the Western Front in 1916, and that in targeting the French the superior morale and resolve of the German soldier, as compared to his French counterpart, will be of vital importance.

- With the Serbian campaign having been brought to a successful conclusion, Mackensen is once again the man of the hour.  Yesterday, Kaiser Wilhelm II telegrammed Mackensen with his congratulations and appointed him proprietary colonel of 129th (Third West Prussian) Infantry Regiment, an honour usually reserved for members of the royal family.  Today, Emperor Franz Joseph conveyed his deep personal gratitude to the German field marshal for his leadership.

- Today the Serbian government, having crossed northern Albania, reaches the city of Scutari, near the Adriatic coast.

- Along the Isonzo River Italian forces once again launch major attacks on Austro-Hungarian positions west of Görz and on either flank of Mt. San Michele, which achieve no more success than the attacks of prior days.  The constant assaults in terrible weather are wearing on the survivors; Austro-Hungarian defenders note an increased willingness of Italian infantry to surrender when counterattacked.  This only exasperates Cadorna's fear of the breakdown of discipline, and today he issues a circular to the Italian army listing four measures to be used at the first sign of cowardice or indiscipline by Italian infantry in battle, which culminate in firing artillery on 'recalcitrant' soldiers.  These measures are also not mere threats - when a number of soldiers from the Pistoia Brigade attempt to surrender in the face of a harsh Austro-Hungarian counterattack today, other Italian soldiers are ordered to shoot them.

November 27th, 1915

- Conrad and Falkenhayn meet at Pless today to discuss next steps in the Balkans with Serbia now defeated, and the Austro-Hungarian chief of staff strongly wants to invade Montenegro and Albania.  Falkenhayn, however, views the offensive in the Balkans as having run its course, with the land link to the Ottoman Empire now opened.  Though he is willing to entertain the idea of attacking Montenegro - its forces had after all fought alongside the Serbs in the recent campaign - he does view Albania as worth the time or effort.

- There is again desperate fighting west of Görz near Oslavija and the heights of Podgora, and in a heavy assault on the latter the Austro-Hungarian defenders, having run out of grenades, resort to hurling rocks at their attackers.  The Italians are repulsed, though the extent to which this can be attributed to the flying stones is unclear.

November 24th, 1915

- Elements of the German IV Reserve Corps and the Bulgarian 9th Division capture the city of Priština today, and though they take a large number of prisoners, the Serbian army itself is already gone, moving towards Prizren en route to the Albanian coast. Moreover, Mackensen realizes that a large-scale pursuit was simply no longer possible.  The terrible conditions inhibited supply and had already forced some formations to go on half rations, while others found their way blocked by a combination of weather and terrain: the Austro-Hungarian 10th Mountain Brigade finds its way blocked by a 4921-foot mountain with the only track around completely iced over, and thirty men had already frozen to death.  Reluctantly, Mackensen declares an end to the Serbian campaign today.  Bulgarian forces in the area will follow the Serbs towards Prizren, but this effort is half-hearted.

The Germans under Mackensen and Seeckt have accomplished in less than two months what the Austro-Hungarians failed to do in three attempts last year under General Potiorek.  Serbia has been occupied at a cost of approximately 67 000 casualties, a mere pittance compared to the losses endured to gain a mile or two on the Western Front.  Moreover, a solid land link had been opened with the Ottoman Empire, allowing the movement of much-needed supplies in particular to the latter.  The only blemish to the effort has been the escape of the Serbian army itself.  Though barely a viable military force at this point, it still exists, and once the current trial of reaching the Adriatic Sea has past it may yet have the opportunity to recover and return to the fight.

- The Italian 3rd Army continues its efforts to capture Mt. San Michele today, and manages to seize a stretch of the enemy line on the northern slope, while to the south there is back and forth fighting near St. Martino that ultimately results in no ground gained by either side.

- Falkenhayn meets today with Enver Pasha in the Austro-Hungarian city of Orsova, where the Ottoman minister of war offers to provide forces to aid a German offensive either in France or Russia.  While Falkenhayn is impressed with Enver's generosity, he declines the suggestion, believing that the Ottoman army would not be suited to operations in the climate of northern and central Europe.  Falkenhayn's decision may also have been influenced by any Ottoman detachment needing to pass through Bulgaria to reach the Western or Eastern Fronts, a movement that would be problematic at best considering the longstanding enmity between Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire - as recently as three years ago the two countries had been at war.

November 6th, 1915

- Falkenhayn and Conrad meet at Pless today to discuss the campaign in Serbia.  From the perspective of the German chief of Staff, the capture of Kragujevać and Niš, combined with the defeat of the Serbian army, accomplished the overall objective of the offensive of opening a land route to the Ottoman Empire.  As such, Falkenhayn wishes to wind down operations in the Balkans, shifting forces from this theatre to the Western Front.  Conrad, as usual, has a different opinion: he feels the Entente landing at Salonika needs to be eliminated, and also favours continuing operations to finish off the remnants of the Serbian army and deal with Montenegro.

After a full day of discussion, with the usual acrimony between the two chiefs of staff, it is agreed to continue the campaign for the time being, but that German forces would be withdraw as desired by Falkenhayn.  In particular, as the pursuit of the Serbs entered the mountains, the German chief of staff wants to withdraw those German divisions not suited to warfare in such conditions.  In practice this means a drawdown of Mackensen's forces to four or five divisions, including the German Alpine Corps, which reaches Kragujevać en route to the front.  Further, Serbia was to be occupied by Austria-Hungary and Bulgaria, with the Morava River separating the two zones of occupation.  Finally, the fate of Montenegro and Albania is deferred to a later date.

Mackensen, for his part, still hopes to trap the bulk of the Serbian army.  To accomplish this he issues orders today for Gallwitz's 11th Army to advance on Kruševac while the Bulgarian 1st Army pushes west from Niš.  The key role would be played by the Austro-Hungarian VIII and the German XXII Reserve Corps of the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army, with the former crossing the West Morava River and marching to Brus, and the latter seizing Kraljevo at the confluence of the West Morava and Ibar Rivers.  If this succeeds, they will cut the line of retreat of the Serbian army falling back from the northeast.

The next phase of the offensive gets off to a good start when the German 43rd Reserve Division of XXII Reserve Corps assaults Kraljevo today.  Crucially, 202nd Reserve Regiment manages to capture the bridge over the West Morava River at the northern edge of Kraljevo before the Serbs can completely destroy it.  Using wooden planks, they are able to patch up the bridge, allowing 201st Reserve Regiment to cross and fight into the city itself.  When the railway station is captured, the municipal government surrenders the city.  Again, because of the disruption of the Serbian rail network, the Germans capture trains loaded with artillery pieces and munitions that had nowhere to go.  The seizure of the city also puts the German forces at the northern end of the Ibar River valley, a key retreat route for the Serbian army.

German soldiers marching through the Serbian town of Paracin, November 1915.

- Cadorna and the senior officers of the Italian army have long seen the civilian soldiers under their command as soft and poorly-equipped psychologically for the rigours of modern warfare.  Morale is indeed a problem within the Italian army, though this is primarily due to high casualties, supply shortages, organizational chaos, and obvious command incompetence.  Unrest is now beginning to manifest itself in actions - in Aosta a number of alpine troops riot attack a barracks, open two military prisons, and prevent trains from leaving for the front.

October 24th, 1915

- After a brief stop yesterday to confer with Conrad at Teschen, Falkenhayn arrives at Mackensen's headquarters at Temesvár at 945am.  After discussion it is decided that the German Alpine Corps will be assigned to the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army to relieve part of the German XXII Reserve Corps, the latter not being well equipped for mountain warfare.  Mackensen and Seeckt also brief the German chief of staff on current operations, and afterwards dine with the Kaiser and his entourage.

At the front, the Austro-Hungarian 3rd and German 11th Armies have advanced relatively unimpeded over the past two days; other than rearguard actions, Serbian forces only put up a sustained defensive effort south of Požarevac, which had covered the main road in the Morava River valley.  Revised orders from Mackensen orders the inner wings of the two armies to seize Kragujevać as quickly as possible, hoping to break the Serbian line into several pockets that could be enveloped.  The weather, however, continues to impede operations; on average, it takes German artillery two hours to move one mile.

The Serbian 1st and 3rd Armies, meanwhile, have taken up defensive positions on high ground running approximately from Larazec through Arangelovac and south of Palanka to Petrovac, hoping to block access to the Morava and Mlava River valleys.

- On the northern wing of the Italian 2nd Army, 8th Division and Alpine Group A launch repeated attacks on Austro-Hungarian positions north of Tolmein, advancing up slopes soon covered in the dead and dying.  In the late afternoon, Italian infantry finally manage to break into the enemy trenches, only to be driven from them by counterattacks by the Austro-Hungarian 3rd and 14th Mountain Brigades.

To the south, overnight the Italian 29th Division, after four earlier attempts failed, finally break into the first Austro-Hungarian trench line before Mt. San Michele just before dawn.  In an attempt to follow up this meagre success, the commander of the Italian 3rd Army commits his final reserve formation - 21st Division - to a general assault by XIV Corps designed to push past Mt. San Michele.  After an intensive artillery bombardment, eight regiments attack opposite Mt. San Michele just after 3pm, but all along the front the waves of infantry are repulsed with heavy losses.

October 13th, 1915

- At noon today British artillery commence a preliminary bombardment of a six-thousand-yard stretch of the German line north of Loos, the target of today's attack.  Most of the fire is concentrated on German trenches, machine-gun posts, and barbed wire, though 114 guns concentrate on German artillery positions identified by aerial reconnaissance over the past several days.  The lengthy preparation has also allowed the British to move up and deploy gas cylinders, which are opened at 150pm.  The wind carries the gas in the desired direction along the entire line except at the north, where the wind direction would have pushed the gas down the British trenches instead of across No Man's Land.  Ten minutes later at 2pm, whistles sound and four divisions of the British 1st Army go on to the attack.  To the north, 2nd Division of I Corps advances north of the Hohenzollern Redoubt against a trench known as Little Willie, while 46th Division of XI Corps, fresh after being redeployed from the Ypres salient, assaults the German redoubt itself.  IV Corp's other division - 12th - is to seize The Quarries to the south of the redoubt, while 1st Division of IV Corps moves against a stretch of the German line on the Lens-La Bassée road.

The British attack north of Loos, October 13th, 1915.

The gas, however, did not have a noticeable effect on the German defenders other than to warn them that an attack was imminent.  Moreover, the preliminary bombardment had not succeeded in knocking out the German artillery, which open fire on the British infantry in the open as they cross No Man's Land.  As a result, the British suffer heavy casualties before they even reach the German line.  On the northern flank, only one officer, a Lieutenant Abercrombie, and one soldier actually make it into the Little Willie trench, and when Abercrombie sends the other soldier back to ask for support, the latter is wounded and the message never arrives.  On his own, Abercrombie wages what amounts to his own private war against the Germans, putting a machine-gun post out of action with his grenades.  With no bombs remaining, Abercrombie manages to return to British lines unscathed, his success notable for its audacity but otherwise without significance on the larger battle.  To the south, 138th Brigade of 46th Division advances over ground partially sheltered from German view, and are able to break into the Hohenzollern Redoubt.  Efforts to secure Fosse Trench beyond, however, fail as the division's other brigade - 137th - fails to get into the Big Willie trench, leaving the forward elements of 138th Brigade exposed to flanking fire.  Further south, 35th Brigade of 12th Division gains a foothold in the southeast corner of The Quarries while elements of 37th Brigade seize 250 yards of Gun Trench, and both brigades are able to hold off German counterattacks.  On the other hand, the attack of 1st Division is an abysmal failure - artillery fire fails to break the German wire, and the attacking infantry, trying to work their way through the few gaps in the wire, come under withering fire and take heavy losses.

British artillery bombards the Hohenzollern  Redoubt as gas drifts towards the German lines, October 13th, 1915.

Overall the British attack has achieved certain tactical successes, capturing and holding toeholds in the German line from the Hohenzollern Redoubt to Gun Trench.  However, these positions remain precarious and further attacks will be needed simply to consolidate the British gain, to say nothing of driving beyond the German lines attacked today.  The four British divisions, meanwhile, have taken significant losses, and the commander of XI Corps decides that 46th Division suffered sufficient casualties as to necessitate its withdrawal from the line, and this evening he orders the Guard Division back to the front in its place.

- To the south near Vimy Ridge, the German Guard Corps, after a series of counterattacks, manages to retake the trenches at the Five Crossroads west of Givenchy today.  Meanwhile, meeting with Joffre today, Foch argues for a resumption of the attack, given that 'only a bound' can gain the crest of Vimy Ridge.  He argues that the attack of the 11th had broken down due to insufficient artillery support - the heavy artillery of 10th Army had fired 73 000 shells prior to the September 25th assault as compared to only 21 600 shells prior to the 11th.  Joffre, however, replies that he does not have the ammunition to give, and moreover that the most recent failure has shown that 10th Army does not have the ability to make another big push.  Joffre thus instructs Foch to halt further major assaults, only attacking to consolidate the gains won west of Vimy of Ridge over the past three weeks.

- Joffre's order to Foch effectively brings the French fall offensive to a close, given that the French commander-in-chief had halted operations in Champagne on the 7th.  The French have gained ground in both Champagne and Artois - up to four kilometres in the former and up to two kilometres in the latter.  However, the ground seized confers no great strategic advantage, and is a far cry from both Joffre's objectives and the possibilities that appeared to exist in the first days of the attack.  Especially in Champagne, the initial French attack broke through the main German defensive position, driving several kilometres in a matter of hours while inflicting heavy losses on the defenders.  The failure to follow up this success and push through the reserve German line after the 25th highlights once again that the true tactical difficulty on the Western Front is not the initial attack but the follow up; that poor communication, delays in reserve forces moving forward over broken ground, and difficulties in coordinating artillery fire in a fluid engagement all combine to impair subsequent assaults.  In both regions the French had fired almost 4.4 million light and over 800 000 thousand heavy artillery shells, but only on the first day, when they had been firing on German defences that were well-known and whose position had been precisely known, had the bombardment had a decisive effect.  In the following days, when the artillery was firing on unfamiliar, and in some cases unknown, German positions, the bombardment had been much less effective.  It points to the necessity of accurate knowledge of enemy defences and where artillery fire is needed during battle, but the delays in communicating by foot across the former No Man's Land renders this exceedingly difficult.  Overall, the small French gains in Champagne and Artois had come at the cost of just over 190 000 casualties, including 30 000 dead, 110 000 wounded, and 50 000 missing in action.

On the German side, 6th Army in Artois lost just over 50 000 while the casualties of 3rd and 5th Armies in Champagne numbered just over 80 000.  The battle had a notable impact on Falkenhayn; in the first days of the fighting, as the battle hung in the balance and French breakthrough appeared possible, he was acutely aware of how he had stripped the Western Front of reserves for his earlier campaign in Russia and the ongoing operation against Serbia.  When Lieutenant-Colonel Gerhard Tappen, OHL's operations officer, met Falkenhayn on the 27th, he found the German chief of staff 'very dejected'.  However, as the German armies have held on over the next three weeks, Falkenhayn draws different conclusions from the course of the fighting.  Despite Entente superiority in manpower and material, the achievement of operational surprise, and the reduction of German reserves, the British and French had been unable to break through the German lines.  It confirms Falkenhayn's emphasis on the importance of constructing multiple trench lines to contain enemy assaults.  More importantly, Falkenhayn concludes that if an attacking can not achieve a breakthough in such propitious circumstances, a breakthrough is not a realistic possibility given the conditions of the war on the Western Front.  This informs not only Falkenhayn's defensive outlook; instead of attempting to break through Entente lines in the future, another strategic objective will have to inform future German offensives.  Moreover, the failure of the French fall offensive serves to reinforce Falkenhayn's poor opinion of the French army, believing it to be approaching the end of its strength.  These two threads, comprising the key lessons Falkenhayn takes from the fall fighting in Champagne and Artois, will figure decisively in the course of the fighting in 1916.

- In Serbia the storm portented in yesterday's weather has engulfed the region.  It is a Kossava, an autumnal weather sytem that comes up from the southeast, bringing heavy rains and high winds.  Though the storm had been expected, its intensity takes the Germans by surprise.  On the Danube and Save Rivers waves reach six feet high and more, and parts of the islands on the rivers flood.  By the end of the day the raging torrents have destroyed or rendered unusable all of the bridges that German and Austro-Hungarian engineers built across the rivers since the offensive began.  This effectively cuts the German and Austro-Hungarian forces on the southern banks off from their supplies and heavy artillery on the northern bank.  Further, the heavy rains turn the dirt roads of the region into impassible mud.  The conditions makes a pause in the offensive to resupply and await better conditions an obvious option, and General Gallwitz of the German 11th Army argues for precisely this course of action.  Mackensen and Seeckt, however, speed is of the utmost priority to prevent the Entente forces recently landed at Salonika from moving north and reinforcing the Serbian army before it can be defeated in battle.  Moreover, despite the successes to date the bridgeheads of the two armies are still almost twenty miles apart, and creating a continuous front will put more pressure on the Serbs.

On the ground, the next objective of the German XXII Reserve Corps and the Austro-Hungarian VIII Corps of the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army are the Avala Hills, but when they advance today they encounter well-developed defensive positions manned by the Serbian 1st Timok, 2nd Timok, and 1st Morava Divisions.  In the poor weather and advancing over difficult terrain, the attackers make minimal progress.  To the west, additional attacks by the Austro-Hungarian XIX Corps failed to secure significant gains yesterday, and today Mackensen orders the corps to leave only enough soldiers to hold the bridgeheads and redeploy the rest east to cross the Save River at Big Zigeuner Island where it can take its intended position on the western wing of the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army.  On the front of the German 3rd Army, despite Gallwitz's reservations, the German 107th Division attacks east of Požarevac, fighting its way through a Serbian defensive line at Kalidol, while X Reserve Corps seizes the high ground at Lipovac.

Meanwhile, the Bulgarian government formally severs diplomatic relations with Serbia today, a prelude to the planned invasion of the country tomorrow.  General Zhekov, chief of the Bulgarian general staff, has deployed two armies - 1st and 2nd - along the country's western frontier with Serbia.  To the north, 1st Army, consisting of 6th, 8th, 9th, and 1st Divisions, is deployed east of its ultimate objective, the de facto Serbian capital at Niš.  To the south, 2nd Army, with 3rd and 7th Divisions, is push westwards into the Vardar River valley and sever the railway linking Niš and Salonika, thus preventing the rapid movement of Entente forces at the latter into Serbia.

October 3rd, 1915

- Joffre writes a long memorandum to the war minister today in response to General Sarrail's dispatch on operations in the Balkans.  Not surprisingly, the French commander in chief strongly objects to the suggestion of transferring three or four corps to Salonika.  Britain. he suggests, should assume primary responsibility for aiding their allies in the Balkans, and while France should contribute to any such support, it should be kept to a bare minimum.  A larger commitment, he fears, would be a fruitless dispersal of strength and involve a weakening of the Western Front.  Joffre also acknowledges has failed to break through the second German defense line.  He prepares his civilian master for the suspension of the offensive in the near future, given the need for fresh infantry and additional ammunition before another operation of similar scope can be undertaken.  This does not preclude, however, the assault Joffre ordered yesterday, hoping to secure additional ground through one final effort.  Moreover, he insists that the initial success in Champagne 'gives us confidence in the final victory' and that 'all our efforts should seek to achieve a large strategic rupture that will have as its first consequence the liberation of national territory.'  A significant commitment to the Balkans, however, would constitute an unacceptable and unnecessary diversion from this effort.

- At Loos the French IX Corps has taken over the British line up to the ruins of the Puit 14 factory, including responsibility for the village of Loos itself.  This has allowed the entire Guards Division to be pulled out of the line for rest before the planned resumption of the offensive.  To the north, following the recapture of a stretch of Gun Trench on the 30th, German forces launched a series of attacks over the past few days against the northern side of the salient carved out by the initial British attack on the 25th.  After heavy fighting, early this morning German infantry manage to recapture the Hohenzollern Redoubt, a significant loss for the British as it exposes any future British attack towards Hulloch to flanking fire from the north.

- As the French prepare for one last push in Champagne, Falkenhayn asks Lieutenant-General Konstantin Schmidt von Knobelsdorf, chief of staff to Crown Prince Wilhelm, whether it would be possible to undertake a major offensive in Alsace, the plans for which Knobelsdorf had examined during the summer.  Though the conclusion is that, with significant forces committed to the Serbian offensive, such an operation is not practical at present, Falkenhayn's inquiry speaks to the extent to which the great crisis of September 25th, when it appeared that both the British and French had broken through at Loos and in Champagne respectively, has passed.

- The Greek government lodges a formal diplomatic complaint of the imminent violation of its neutrality by British and French forces landing at Salonika.  Having fulfilled the requirements of international law to preserve the facade of diplomacy, no interference is offered when British and French officers land at Salonika today to begin planning for the arrival of the lead French brigades on the 5th.

The Anglo-French landing at Salonika, Greece, October 1915.

September 30th, 1915

- To the north side of Loos, efforts by the British 28th Division to recover the slap heap known as the Dump, lost on the 27th, are called off today.  A German counterattack, meanwhile, manages to regain 250 yards of Gun Trench, located between the Quarries and the Hulloch-Vermelles road.  To the south of Loos, the delayed relief of the British 47th Division south of Loos by the French IX Corps is completed overnight, and in turn 47th Division has shifted north and relieved 3rd Guard Brigade, the latter going back into reserve.  Given the delay, when General Foch and Field Marshall French meet today they agree to postpone the Anglo-French offensive at Vimy Ridge and Loos to October 3rd.

British dead lay before a captured German trench near Loos, Sept. 30th, 1915.

Ruined buildings in the village of Loos, Sept. 30th, 1915.

On the German side, the first train carrying the German XI Corps from the Eastern Front passes through Liège this morning en route to 6th Army.  Further, the situation has sufficiently stabilized from Falkenhayn's perspective to permit further relief of the battered VI Corps, sending in elements of I Bavarian Corps into the line in its place.  Falkenhayn also receives reports that ample ammunition remains for defensive artillery in the event of further Entente assaults.  The German chief of staff concludes today that while fighting on the Western Front continues, the armies have weathered the worst of the enemy attacks, and though the margin of victory was at times narrow, this has been accomplished without having to divert significant forces from the Balkans and delay the impending invasion of Serbia.

- As a result of the debacle in Champagne that ensued after the false report of a breakthrough by the French 14th Division, Castlenau informs Joffre today that several days will be needed to reorganize and recover from the earlier fighting before the offensive can be resumed.  Though a decision about timing has yet to be made, Joffre tells Castlenau to proceed as if another attack will be undertaken.

- As German and Austro-Hungarian forces finalize preparations for their invasion of Serbia, German aircraft have been conducting aerial reconnaissance of Serbian positions and key crossings of the Save and Danube Rivers.  In addition, a series of bombing raids have been carried out, principally against Požarevac, the main Serbian airfield, and Kragujevać, home to munitions factories.  By the end of September, the Germans have dropped approximately 2400 kilograms of bombs.  At this stage of the war, however, aerial bombardment is still primitive, and it is estimated that half of the bombs fail to detonate.  Only minimal resistance is faced by the German aircraft, though today Serbian air defenses score their only success of the campaign when they shoot down a German Albatross today, part of six-plane raid on Kragujevać.

September 26th, 1915

- At 1am, the German counterattack around Loos is undertaken by the reserve forces of 6th Army, newly-arrived at the front.  Though 8th Infantry Division, attacking from the direction of Lens, is unable to gain any significant ground, 26th Brigade attacking from the northeast has more success; their advance happens to be directed at a weak point in the new British line where reinforcements are in the process of arriving, and they manage to push the British back five hundred yards and recapture the Quarries northwest of Hulluch.  The Germans also score a coup when they capture the commander of the British 27th Brigade.

Meanwhile, the British 21st and 24th Divisions continue to struggle across the broken terrain of the old No Man's Land towards the new front line.  Due to the communication delays endemic to the modern battlefield, Haig's order of 827pm for the two divisions to take up position between Hulluch and Hill 70 does not even arrive at the headquarters of the latter until 2am this morning, and the former receives the directive even later.  By the time they reach the new position and sort out the confusion caused by the march, it is already dawn.  Haig has assumed that the two divisions would reach the line Hulluch-Hill 70 much earlier overnight and would have had time to rest before they attack this morning.  In reality, the men are already exhausted without a shot having been fired in anger.

Haig's plan for the second day of the British offensive is to attack what is perceived to be the weakest point of the German line, that stretching from Hill 70 to just north of Hulluch, where the British had secured the greatest gains yesterday.  On the northern end, I Corps is instructed to capture the village of St Elie, while IV Corps is ordered to seize Hulluch as well as recapture the high ground of Hill 70.  In between these two points, 21st and 24th Divisions of XI Corps are to drive over the second German trench line, advancing three miles to the Haute Deule Canal.  The most important advance is thus of the 'fresh' 21st and 24th Divisions.  Both formations are part of Kitchener's 'New Armies', composed of men who volunteered for military service in the first months of the war.  This is not the first time divisions of the 'New Armies' will enter combat - two of the six divisions that had attacked yesterday were from the 'New Armies'.  However, those formations had been given substantial time to prepare an attack against defences that had been subject to a four-day bombardment.  Today's attack by 21st and 24th Divisions, however, are to be undertaken by already-exhausted formations against German defences that will have been bombarded for only a couple of hours.  Such circumstances are hardly ideal, but Haig believes the Germans remain weak, and regardless the two divisions are the only reserves immediately at hand: if the offensive is to be continued, they need to be committed to the attack.

The orders for the preliminary attack on Hill 70 only reach the involved battalions at 7am, leaving little time for preparations for the attack scheduled for 9am.  More seriously, the artillery bombardment is hindered by a lack of ammunition: batteries that had moved forward to Loos overnight cannot be resupplied over roads that are clogged with the debris of battle and under constant German artillery fire, and thus can contribute only the shells they brought with them.  Confusion over where exactly the front line was, combined with the delay in communication orders, also means that a few of the British shells fall short among their own infantry.  When the infantry attack Hill 70 at 9am, a morning mist that had impeded the artillery bombardment lifts just in time for the German machine gunners to take a terrible toll on the advancing infantry.  Some manage to get into the redoubt on the top of Hill 70, but in bitter close-quarters fighting are unable to push the Germans back, and the survivors soon retreat westwards.  Attempts by the British to attack again are futile - four senior officers, starting with the Lieutenant-Colonel commanding 10/Green Howards, climb out of the trenches to encourage the infantry to advance once more.  Each of the four is killed in turn, and the soldiers prefer to take what cover is possible from the growing tide of German fire.

Despite the failure to take Hill 70, the commander of XI Corps orders the main attack by 21st and 24th Divisions to go ahead as planned.  Here too the preliminary bombardment is ineffective - in the chaoes of the battlefield the artillery of the two divisions had struggled to get forward, and when the morning mist clears at 9am they find that they have positioned themselves in full view of the German lines.  The result is that the Germans pour artillery fire of their own on the British guns, and the latter are understandibly unable to provide much of a preliminary bombardment of their own.  At exactly 11am the infantry of the two divisions leave the trenches hastily-constructed early this morning and begin to cross the thousand yards that separate them from the second German trench line.  This position is not nearly as elaborate as the old first German line - it lacks the usual support or communication trenches - but otherwise the Germans are in a favourable position.  Though the counterattack overnight largely failed, 8th Division is now available to aid 117th Division in repelling the British attack.  Artillery of both divisions, supported by fire from Hill 70, tear great holes in the ranks of the advancing infantry, and German machine guns sweep back and forth, felling hundreds at a time.  Despite the horrendous losses and the horrific baptism of fire, the British infantry continue to advance eastward.  The German trench is protected by great belts of barbed wire, which the preliminary bombardment has done nothing to disperse.  The survivors who reach the barbed wire can find no way through, and while their search for a way forward losses continue to mount.  Officers capable of coordinating attacks fall - five of the eight battalion commanders of 24th Division that went over the top are killed or wounded - and communications to the rear were nonexistant.  No formal order is given for the divisions to retire - there hardly remains anyone alive to even give such an order - but slowly the survivors begin to pull back from the German wire and return to the trenches from which they had departed.  The German defenders are impressed by the determination and bravery of the British infantry in making it as far as they did in the face of murderous fire, and so great has been the slaughter that out of compassion for a thoroughly beaten foe the German machine guns fall silent as the British withdraw.  German medics even move into No Man's Land to minister to those British wounded not yet beyond aid, and allow them to return to their lines unmolested.  The Germans refer to the battle as der Leichenfel von Loos - the Field of Corpses of Loos.  Of the 15 000 men of 21st and 24th Divisions, over 8000 have been killed or wounded in just four hours of fighting - for all intents and purposes, the two divisions have been destroyed.

When the first news of the attack reach Lieutenant General R. C. B. Haking of XI Corps, he simply cannot believe that it has been such an abject and thorough failure.  Neither can Haig, present at Haking's headquarters, and a staff officer is sent forward to ascertain the actual state of affairs.  When he returns shortly after 4pm, the report he provides extinguishes hope that any success has been accomplished by the attack.  The most significant reserve force available to Haig has thus failed to maintain the momentum of yesterday.  The only other reserve that remains is the Guards Division, which remained under Field Marshal French's control when 21st and 24th Divisions had been ordered forward on the 25th.  Now orders go out to the Guards to advance to the new British line from which the two 'New Army' divisions had attacked this morning.  They are to prevent a German counterattack against the shattered divisions from retaking the ground gained yesterday while also placing them in position to resume the offensive.  Again, orders are delayed and movement across the battlefield is painfully slow: it is not until 6pm that the Guards reach the old British front line trench from which the offensive had begun yesterday, and only reach the new front line after dusk, where they being to relieve the shattered remnants of 21st and 24th Divisions.

- To the south of the British 1st Army, the two northernmost corps of the French 10th Army attack at 110pm this afternoon after an artillery bombardment this morning, and though they are able to capture the pulverized ruins of Souchez, they are unable to advance further.  The attacks south of Arras yesterday, however, are not renewed, General d'Urbal having concluded, with Foch's agreement, that the offensive should only be continued where there was reasonable prospects of success, which existed only where 10th Army had gained ground the prior day.  Future operations of 10th Army are further limited as a result of a meeting of Joffre and Foch south of Amiens at 3pm, where the former remarkably instructs the latter to 'stop the attacks of 10th Army but avoid giving the British the impression that we are leaving them to attack alone, or the Germans that our offensive is slackening off.'  Believing that the operation in Champagne has the greatest chance of succeeding, Joffre wants to concentrate all resources there and draw down the commitment to Artois.  The meeting is also a telling reflection of Joffre's opinion of his British ally.

For their part, while Foch and d'Urbal narrow the scope of 10th Army's activities, they do not completely abandon offensive operations, if only to show the British that they are doing something.  There is a momentary surge of optimism late today when a message reaches 10th Army headquarters that XII Corps has broken through near Neuville.  The report, however, is mistaken, and such misinformation is another consequence of the chaos and interruption of communication on the modern battlefield - in such conditions, reports from subordinate formations of minor advances can become exaggerated and reflect instead the hopes of recipients.  Before the report can be corrected, orders are issued to two corps in the centre of 10th Army to attack, and though the orders are cancelled before they can be carried out, the corps are left sufficiently disordered to be unable to participate in other operations tomorrow.

- In Champagne, Falkenhayn believes that the German 5th Army under Crown Prince Wilhelm reacted better to the French offensive than 3rd Army, and that the command staff of the latter largely lost control of the battle and had made no attempt to inform itself of the state of VIII Reserve Corps.  The German chief of staff thus decides to place 3rd Army under the direction of Crown Prince Wilhelm, so that the efforts of the two armies could be better coordinated.  When news of the change in the command structure is telephoned to 3rd Army headquarters, the chief of staff of 3rd Army objects to serving under 5th Army's chief of staff, who by rank is his junior.  Falkenhayn's reply is to fire 3rd Army's chief of staff and replace him with Colonel Fritz von Lossberg, deputy chief of the Operations Section at OHL.  Arriving at 3rd Army headquarters at 330pm, he receives a call from General Fleck of VIII Reserve Corps, asking whether the withdrawal he proposed yesterday is to be carried out.  Keeping in mind his instructions from Falkenhayn to hold the line, Lossberg instead replies that 'VIII Reserve Corps must stand and die in its current position.'  A later tour of VIII Reserve Corps' line convinces Lossberg that it can hold on with reinforcements now arriving at the front, though he also orders the construction of a new reserve line several kilometres to the north.  He also instructs that the primary responsibility for halting French attacks is to fall on the artillery, which is to cut down the attacking infantry before they reached the German line.  This reflects not only the superiority of artillery on the modern battlefield but also acknowledges the heavy losses VIII Reserve Corps has already suffered.

On the French side, after their gains yesterday the inner wings of 2nd and 4th Armies resume their attacks this morning, focusing on the reserve defensive line of the battered VIII Reserve Corps north of Souain and Perthes.  Though this position is not nearly as fortified as the primary line the French overran yesterday morning, the one advantage it does have is that it is on the reverse slope of the Py Valley, which prevents French observation.  As a result, artillery bombardment early this morning is less effective, and most of the belts of barbed wire remain in place.  The French XIV Corps of 2nd Army attacks twice this morning, but is halted both times just north of Tahure.  Another attempt is made this afternoon, and in bitter fighting a brigade manages to work its way through the second line of trenches.  By this time, however, reinforcements ordered to the front yesterday by Falkenhayn are reaching the scene, and elements of the newly-arrived German 56th Division drives the French brigade back.  To the west, the French VI Corps, ordered into the line yesterday, attacks at 230pm, but barbed wire belts up to sixty meters deep prevent the infantry from reaching the German trenches.  Some success is achieved further to the west, where the French VII Corps, which had not gained ground yesterday, pushes through the first German trench line and reaches the second line, bringing it level with II Colonial Corps.  Though its efforts to fight through the reserve line are also frustrated, its advance raises hopes that another push tomorrow will finally break the German lines.

French artillery firing during the 2nd Battle of Champagne, Sept. 26th, 1915.

- Given Falkenhayn's instructions of yesterday and the inability of the German 10th Army to advance further past Vilna, Ludendorff acknowledges the inevitable and calls his September, or Sventsiany, offensive to an end.  Instead the armies of OberOst are instructed to establish a permanent line of trenches on which they will stand for the foreseeable future.

Ludendorff's decision to call off the offensive of the German 10th Army effectively brings an end to German operations on the Eastern Front, which had originated in the attack of Mackensen's 11th Army at Gorlice-Tarnow at the beginning of May.  In the months since, the Russian army has been forced to evacuate Poland while the Russian pressure on Austria-Hungary has been relieved.  Though the Russian army escaped the massive envelopment envisioned by Ludendorff, they have still suffered crushing losses: since the spring, the Russian army has lost over two million men, including a million prisoners of war.  Of almost equal significance, the fighting since May has reinforced the belief among Russian generals that the German soldier is inherently superior to his Russian counterpart, which has left them extremely reluctant to undertake offensive operations against the Germans.  Thus, despite the fact that the Russians still have a marked numerical superiority over the Germans - the former has seventy-five divisions arrayed against the forty-five divisions under Ludendorff - Falkenhayn has accomplished his objective of destroying the offensive capability of the Russian army, a victory as psychological as material.  This is the necessary prerequisite for offensive operations planned by Falkenhayn in other theatres - even if the Russians have not been knocked out of the war, they have been sufficiently damaged to allow for a significant redeployment of German divisions elsewhere.  It is also a vindication of Falkenhayn's operational approach of eschewing grand envelopments in favour of concentrating firepower to crush the enemy line and grinding the enemy down.

The Eastern Front at the end of the German offensives of 1915.

- This morning the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army discovers the Russians on the opposite bank of the Styr River have retreated overnight, but their own pursuit is delayed by a lack of bridges and boats, and it is not until evening that significant elements of the army have crossed to the east bank.  As a result, though Lutsk is recaptured, 4th Army has completely lost touch with the withdrawing Russian 8th Army.  Meanwhile, to the north the German XXIV Reserve Corps, the core of a group under General Friedrich Gerok sent from the Army of the Bug, crosses the Styr River at Kolki.

- With the imminent Anglo-French expedition to Salonika, Italian Prime Minister Sydney Sonnino asks his military advisors whether Italian forces can be commited to the operation.  Given that Italian governments have traditionally seen the southwestern Balkans as properly within their sphere of influence, an Entente deployment to the region without Italian participation may be detrimental to Italy's long-term interests.  Lieutenant-General Vittorio Zupelli, the war minister, argues that nothing can be spared from the Italian Front and that supplies to support such an expedition do not exist and are beyond the capability of Italian industry to produce.  Lieutenant-General Luigi Cadorna, the Italian chief of staff, takes the opposite view, believing that Austro-Hungarian forces tied down fighting in the Balkans means fewer defenders along the Isonzo River.  Though he is planning a major offensive for October, Cadorna states that afterwards he will be able to spare 20 000 men for the Balkans.

- West of Kut-al-Amara the British 6th Indian Division approaches the Ottoman defences, with 16th and 17th Brigades on the south bank and only 18th Brigade on the north bank.  Opposing them are two Ottoman divisions, one on either bank, with further battalions in reserve.  The British force, however, outnumbers the Ottomans almost two to one, at eleven thousand men to six thousand.  The two British brigades on the south bank establish a very conspicuous deception camp, and successfully convince the Ottomans that the main British attack will come south of the Tigris River, Ottoman artillery firing shells into the 'camp'.  The British had also hoped to encourage Ottoman guns north of the Tigris to fire, since it is here that the main British effort will actually be made and it is desirable to know the location of enemy guns so they can be knocked out when the main attack goes in on the 28th.  However, the British deception has been too effective; thinking there are no valuable targets north of the Tigris, the Ottoman artillery here remains silent.  The British here resort to any number of ruses to get the Ottomans to fire, including one captain who walks out into the open and, in full view of the Ottomans, sits on the desert ground and proceeds to read The Times.  Even the captain, though, was not tempting enough for the Ottoman gunners.

September 25th, 1915

- At 3am General Haig and his chief of staff meet once more with Captain Gold, and the latter informs the commander of 1st Army that the wind would be most favourable at dawn.  Haig then issues orders for the chlorine gas cylinders to be opened right at dawn at 550am, with the infantry assault beginning at 630am.

The divisions of the British I and IV Corps prior to the attack at Loos, Sept. 25th, 1915.

The first British use of gas, however, is not without difficulties.  At 440am, a German shell strikes one of the cylinders in the sector of 3rd London Regiment of the Indian Corps, and some of the infantry are impacted by the gas before enough dirt can be shoveled onto the burst cylinder.  Elsewhere shifts in the wind affect the direction of the gas clouds.  In some sectors the gas settles into No Man's Land, and in a few places actually blows back on the British infantry; on the northern flank of I Corps, a gas cloud blows back on two platoons and the battalion machine gun section of 1/9th Highlanders of 2nd Division before they had their gas masks in place, and within a minute only sixteen of eighty men remain capable of action.  Though two reserve platoons are called up to take their place, given that the Germans opposite are now fully awake the British attack here is abandoned.  The employment of gas is of greater help on the front of IV Corps, the southern wing of 1st Army.  In some places the gas clouds at least mix with smoke to obscure the advance of British infantry (equipped with effective gas masks) until they are almost on top of the first German trench line.  In front of 15th Division (opposite the village of Loos) and 47th Division to the south, the gas works as intended, the clouds slowly rolling over the German trenches, with the attacking infantry following immediately behind.

North of La Bassée Canal, the diversionary attacks of 8th Division at III Corps and the Meerut Division of the Indian Corps capture several stretches of the first German trench line.  However, those elements that push forward successfully find themselves under attack on their flanks from those portions of the first German trench lines that remain in enemy hands, and by nightfall the Germans have recaptured their lost positions.  British casualties here are heavy - the Meerut Division alone loses four thousand men - but the attacks at least serve to pin the German forces opposite and prevent them from moving south against the main British attack.

South of La Bassée Canal, 2nd Division, attacking over broken terrain of brick heaps and shell craters, gets nowhere while suffering heavy casualties.  On its right 9th (Scottish) Division has more success: while its 28th Brigade to the north never reaches the first German trench line, 26th Brigade on the right, covered effectively by smoke and gas, breaks into and clears a German strongpoint known as the Hohenzollern Redoubt, passes through the second trench line, and reaches its objectives for the first day, all in the first hour.  26th Brigade, however, has suffered terrible losses for its success; of eight hundred men who attacked at 630am, only one hundred remain in action an hour later.  On 9th (Scottish) Division's right, 7th Division also achieves notable success: by 730am both of its brigades have pushed through both the first and support German trench lines, and by 930 have captured an old chalk mining area known as the Quarries in addition to capturing a German battery of eight artillery guns.  As of 11am they have reached the second German line opposite the villages of St. Elie and Hulluch, but as with the Scots to the north, the two attacking brigades of 7th Division have paid a high price to secure their gains.

Most of General Rawlinson's IV Corps also achieves significant gains in the first hours of the offensive.  On the corps' northern wing, though 1st Brigade of 1st Division is initially held up at the German wire, 2nd Brigade passes through the German lines and by late morning is also approaching the village of Hulluch.  In the corps' centre, 15th (Scottish) Division advances the furthest this morning: by 705am most of the first German line has been captured, and shortly thereafter British infantry pass through the ruined village of Loos itself, where the British artillery has been particularly thorough in wrecking the German communication trenches.  By 800am men of 44th Brigade reach Hill 70, the 'tallest' feature on the Loos battlefield and soon sweep over the crest, capturing the partially-completed redoubt the Germans were still in the process of constructing on the summit.  On the corps' southern wing, 47th Division pushes forward and has captured all of its objectives for the day by 9am.

Infantry of the British 47th Division advance into the clouds of chlorine gas released just prior to their attack, Sept. 25th, 1915.  The
photograph is taken from the forward British trenches looking towards the German lines.

Despite the failure of the use of chlorine gas to have a decisive effect, by late morning the bulk of the British 1st Army has pushed through the first German trench line and has reached the second trench line, in some cases advancing over three thousand yards.  On the German side, 117th Division of IV Corps, responsible for the stretch of the front from south of Haines to south of Hill 70, has suffered the worst, with fifteen companies destroyed and twenty-two guns lost.  It no longer has the strength to garrison the entire length of the second trench line it has been pushed into, and has lost touch with 7th Division on its southern flank.  When reports of the crisis reach the headquarters of the German 6th Army, Rupprecht immediately orders his entire army reserve - 8th Division, 26th Brigade, and three battalions drawn from II Bavarian Corps - to reinforce the battered IV Corps.  It will be late afternoon at the earliest before these forces can reach the battlefield, however; further British attacks in the hours ahead will have to be held by the battered remnants of 117th Division.

On either side of Arras, the assault infantry of the French 10th Army are in their forward trenches by 430am, and the artillery bombardment reaches its crescendo at 9am.  However, Foch's plan does not have them attack until 1225pm, the delay hopefully giving time for the British attack to the north to draw German attention and reserves.  Shortly before noon, however, rain begins to fall, and the resulting mud makes movement difficult.  It is too late to abandon the attack, however, given that the coordination of the overall Entente offensive depends on each main assault occurring on schedule.  Thus the French infantry go over the top at the scheduled hour.  Unlike the British, the French do not mass-release chlorine gas; instead, French artillery fires gas and smoke shells on rear areas and specified targets.

Overall, the assault of the French 10th Army has mixed results.  The attack of the French 43rd Division, located on the northern wing of 10th Army adjacent to the British, is repulsed by the German 7th Division opposite.  To the south, however, the weather works to the advantage of the French 13th and 70th Divisions northwest of Souchez - the trenches of the German 123rd Saxon Division of VI Corps have become waterlogged, and when the French infantry emerge from the smoke they overrun the German defenders and are able to push forward two kilometres to the base of Giesler Hill.  Further south, at Neuville St. Vaast, French infantry push through the German lines at several points, with some reaching the forward slope of Vimy Ridge itself.  On the other hand, the southern wing of 10th Army is unable to make any progress opposite and south of Arras against the German 1st Bavarian Corps.

For the Germans opposite the French 10th Army, the multiple enemy advances between Souchez and Neuville St. Vaast pose the greatest danger, where VI Corps struggles to hold the line.  However, the ability of either General Kurt von Pritzelwitz of VI Corps or Crown Prince Rupprecht of 6th Army to direct the defence of the threatened sectors has been impaired by the destruction of telephone lines by artillery fire and aerial bombardment, leaving the German commanders in the dark about the specific circumstances at the front.  Moreover, Rupprecht has already had to dispatch all of his army's reserves to contain the British assault at Loos, and thus has nothing left to send VI Corps; the forces already in the line will have to fight and contain the French on their own.

The ground seized by the French 10th Army north of Arras, Sept. 25th, 1915.

In the Champagne, at 9am the French artillery shift their fire to concentrate on the first German trench line, and add gas and smoke shells into the mix to reduce the visibility of the enemy defenders.  Fifteen minutes later, infantry from eighteen divisions go over the top, and the heaviest attack is undertaken on the inner wings of the French 4th and 2nd Armies, with II Colonial Corps of the former on the left and XIV Corps of the latter on the right.  Here the French artillery bombardment has been particularly effective - many of the German defensive positions have been completely destroyed, while many of the German survivors are too stunned to offer serious resistance.  So thick is the smoke and gas clouds laid down by the artillery that in some cases the French infantry reach the German trenches before the German soldiers can even emerge from their dugouts, and the latter are captured or killed before they are ready to even fight back.  The French bombardment has also cut most of the German telephone lines, cutting off communications and preventing frontline commanders from calling for reserves or counterartillery fire.  The result is that XIV and II Colonial Corps simply roll over the first trench line of the German VIII Reserve Corps.  By noon, both French corps have advanced three to four kilometres and are assaulting the final German reserve line just south of Somme Py.  The advancing French also turn east and west, and begin to roll up the flanks of the German forces on either side of the breakthrough.  In response, the German divisions on either side of VIII Reserve Corps, though more successful in repelling the French attacks, have to pull back several kilometres to avoid having their inner flanks turned.  Several German artillery batteries are overrun and captured by the French, and each of VIII Reserve Corps' three divisions suffer five thousand casualties.

The gains of the French offensive in Champagne, Sept. 1915.

One of the defining characteristics of the Western Front in the First World War is the length of time it takes information and orders to pass up and down the chain of command.  In an era before portable wireless radio, reports are either relayed by telephone or send by messenger; the former are extremely vulnerable to artillery fire, while the latter, making their way from newly-won or heavily attacked positions, must navigate both enemy fire and the broken terrain of the battlefield.  Delays in communication will be central to the outcome of the fall offensive of the Entente, but one of its first manifestations is seen on the German side.  Continuing his inspection tour of the army headquarters on the Western Front, this morning Falkenhayn arrives at Montmédy, and even though British and French forces have been attacking (and advancing) for several hours, now significantly out-of-date reports from 3rd and 6th Army headquarters are sanguine, indicating nothing more than the continuation of artillery bombardments that have been ongoing now for several days.  Believing that nothing in particular is amiss, Falkenhayn issues no new instructions and departs shortly thereafter for Stenay, headquarters of 5th Army.  While enroute, 3rd Army headquarters finally learns of the plight of VIII Corps, and sends an urgent plea for reinforcements to its neighbour 5th Army, saying that the 'enemy has broken through in the area of Souain-Somme Py.  Having also been attacked this morning, 5th Army is in no position to send aid, and its commander, Crown Prince Wilhelm, refuses.  With Falkenhayn having recently arrived at 5th Army headquarters, the request by 3rd Army is submitted directly to the German chief of staff.  Almost simultaneously, at 1230pm 6th Army headquarters in Artois sends an equally urgent message to Falkenhayn: 'Aided by gas the enemy has broken into the positions of IV Corps at Haisnes and Loos . . . The entire Army Reserve and the 8th Division had to be put at the disposal of IV Corps.  Further reinforcements for the army are urgently required.'  A telephone conversation with 3rd Army commander General Einem and his chief of staff, Lieutenant-General Ritter von Höhn, further brings home to Falkenhayn the perilous state of affairs, and the German chief of staff feels compelled to remind the badly-shaken Einem and Höhn that the Kaiser expects 'every man to do his duty.'

In an instant, Falkenhayn's understanding of the situation was transformed.  Not only were the British and French undertaking significant operations, but they appeared to be on the verge of achieving breakthroughs in both Artois and Champagne - Falkenhayn's strategy of standing on the defensive in the west to permit offensives in the east and the Balkans now appears to hover on the brink of disaster.  It was essential now to rapidly move all available reserves to 3rd and 6th Armies to allow them to hold their present lines.  Falkenhayn immediately orders 192nd Brigade transferred from 7th Army's reserve to 6th Army and 56th Division from Lorraine to 3rd Army.  Shortly after 1pm he departs Stenay for Mézières, OHL's headquarters on the Western Front, to better coordinate the response to the Entente offensive.  Here he instructs the Guard and X Corps, currently in Belgium resting and recovering after lengthy service on the Eastern Front, to move to reinforce 6th Army and 3rd Army respectively.  It would take hours for these reinforcements to arrive, however, and in the meantime 6th and 3rd Armies will have to hang on with what they have in hand.  Falkenhayn's entire strategy for 1915 hangs in the balance.

Meanwhile in Flanders the focus of British commanders this afternoon is pushing up reinforcements to continue the advance.  In each division, two brigades had led the attack this morning, while the third brigade was held in reserve, and the struggle now is to get these brigades forward to exploit the gains already won.  Now the British experience the difficulties in communicating on the modern battlefield.  At 910am, the commander of 1st Division, whose 1st Brigade has advanced almost to the village of Hulluch, issues orders for a two-battalion detachment under Lieutenant-Colonel E. W. B. Green (imaginatively named Green Force).  Several messengers are dispatched from 1st Division headquarters with the instructions, but several are struck by German artillery fire or get lost in a landscape where almost every identifying feature has literally been blown away.  As a result, the order to advance does not reach Lt-Col Green until 1055am, even though the latter's headquarters was only 2500 yards from the former.  It then takes another hour for the order to pass down through battalion and company commanders, so it is not until after midday that Green Force actually begins to move forward.  Similarly, to the north 27th Brigade, the reserve of 9th Division, is ordered forward towards Haisnes.  Prior to the battle, two communication trenches had been assigned to 27th Brigade to facilitate their movement to the front, but as the infantry attempt to pass through them they find the trenches blocked with wounded coming back to medical stations.  When they attempt to move around the blockages they find themselves under German artillery fire, so the brigade has suffered significant casualties before even reaching the front.  By the time they approach Haisnes, the German line has been reinforced, and the exhausted infantry instead concentrate on improving the defences of the ground seized.  The experience of 21st Brigade, the reserve of 7th Division, is similar - ordered forward to push through the German line north of Hulluch, as they approach the front line just west of St Elie German shrapnel shells cut great swathes through their ranks, and to the survivors who reach the front line it is clear no further advance is possible without more extensive artillery support.

With the delays and difficulties encountered by the divisional reserves, it will take the commitment of further reserve forces to maintain the momentum of the British attack.  However, neither I or IV Corps has any reserve, nor does 1st Army.  Instead, XI Corps, consisting of 21st and 24th Divisions, the Guards Division, and the Cavalry Corps were under the direct command of Field Marshal French.  The commander of the British Expeditionary Force has never been enthusiastic about the offensive at Loos, and it is possible that he retained direct control over these forces to prevent their commitment to a losing cause - the BEF still numbers only thirty-seven divisions, six of which are Territorial divisions with little experience and six of which are 'New Army' divisions with none at all, and given that Britain does not yet have conscription, the destruction of the six divisions of the BEF reserve would have been a serious setback.  The practical implication, however, is that after the success of the morning attack, another layer of command is added to the communication delays intrinsic to the First World War battlefield, and will become a major point of contention among the senior leadership of the BEF after the battle.

When the infantry attacked at dawn this morning, the lead columns of 21st and 24th Divisions were about four and a half miles behind the British front line, but the infantry are exhausted after marching all night from their prior concentration areas to the west.  At 7am, Haig sends a staff officer by car to French's headquarters, informing the latter that the attack is progressing satisfactorily and requesting the release of XI Corps.  Though it ought to have taken only forty-five minutes to cover the ground between the two locations by car, at 845am no response has been received and Haig dispatches another officer.  This message reaches French, who in turn at 930am orders the commander of XI Corps to begin moving his two divisions to the front.  It is another hour before the order reaches the divisional headquarters, and another forty-five minutes before the lead elements actually begin to move - by this time, the British advance means that they are now seven miles behind the current front line.  The exhausted infantry do their best to push forward, but the few roads are already clogged with military traffic and their progress is painstakingly slow.  Impatient, at 235pm Haig orders the commander of XI Corps to detach one brigade from each division and prioritize getting those forces to the front as quickly as possible, hoping they can launch an attack today towards the Haute Deule Canal, several kilometres past Hulluch.  It is not until 6pm that the first infantry of 62nd Brigade of 21st Division actually arrive at the front, and Haig realizes that it will be impossible to to attack this evening.  Instead, just after 8pm he orders XI Corps to take up position between Hulluch and Hill 70, in anticipation of an advance by the full corps early tomorrow morning.

On the German side, the hours of the afternoon pass without the expected resumption of the British advance.  Though fierce fighting continues, there is no concerted push against the reserve German trenches.  As the first reinforcements arrive later in the day, IV Corps uses them to reestablish a continuous front.  To the north, elements of 2nd Guard Division, transferred from VII Corps, reestablish contact with the northern flank of 117th Division between Auchy and Haisnes, while to the south, elements of 7th and 123rd Saxon Divisions, sent from VI Corps, advance to Hill 70 and make contact with the southern wing of 117th Division.  Though the Germans have suffered heavily, by evening they have recreated a cohesive front line, without gaps that could be exploited by the British.  Limited counterattacks have also been undertaken, and though little ground is retaken they have the virtue of at least keeping the British forces off guard, and help convince the lead British brigades that, after the morning battles, they need to wait for reserves before the advance can be resumed.  On the southern wing of the British gains, however, the infantry of 44th Brigade that captured the summit of Hill 70 and pushed down the eastern slope come under increasingly heavy German fire from the ruins of workers' cottages to the east.  Moreover, their very success means they are now confronted with German defenses that had not been given the same attention from British artillery as the first German trench line.  Taking losses, the men of 44th Brigade pull back from the eastern slope of Hill 70, and, given that the summit is now being swept by enemy machine gun fire, they retreat to the western slope and entrench.

As the situation stabilizes through the afternoon, the commander of the German IV Corps decides that the primary reserves dispatched from 6th Army headquarters - 8th Division and 26th Brigade - should be used to counterattack the salient around Loos carved out by the British.  Initially hoping to attack this evening, delays are experienced in getting the reserves to the front: 26th Brigade is attempting to deploy into trenches still contested by British infantry, while the soldiers of 8th Division have to move through the maze of ruined houses in the town of Lens.  Postponed several times, the counterattack is finally scheduled to go in at midnight.

The first day of the Battle of Loos has seen several British divisions advance several thousand yards, sweeping over the first German trench positions, seizing the village of Loos itself, and pushing up to the German reserve lines.  Having achieved this notable success, the pace of the advance faltered, as the forces of the initial attack have suffered losses and reserves have been delayed in getting to the front.  Nevertheless, Haig believes that the planned attack of 21st and 24th Divisions at dawn tomorrow will complete the breaking of the German lines.

The gains of the British 1st Army at Loos, Sept. 25th, 1915.

After its progress in the morning, the situation of the French 10th Army deteriorates in the afternoon.  Three regiments of the German 123rd Division, supported by the southern flank of the German 7th Division, attack after dark the French infantry that had pushed to Giesler Hill, and the exhausted French yield some of the ground won earlier today.  Opposite Neuville St. Vaast, further French assaults are unable to break through the reserve German trench lines, and though the Germans are unable to recover the forward trench lost this morning, they are able to reestablish a solid defensive line.

In Champagne, the German VIII Reserve Corps fights desperately throughout the afternoon to hold on to its reserve trench line.  To stem the French tide, the corps commander orders his recruiting depot (consisting of new recruits from the home front and returning wounded veterans) into the line at Somme Py.  In addition, most of 5th Division, located in 3rd Army's rear area and whose orders to transfer to the Balkans had been cancelled just yesterday, is fed into the battle over the afternoon and evening.  On the French side, the experience in the aftermath of initial success is similar to that of the British in Flanders: the lead infantry are exhausted and have taken significant losses.  Further, in the chaos of battle battalions have been hopelessly mixed up and lines of command confused, while the very extent of the French advance has caused its own problems, as isolated groups of German infantry, bypassed by the initial attack, now emerge to fight in ground the French believe they have already captured.  The result is that bitter fighting through the afternoon is not nearly as successful at that of the morning, and the Germans are just barely able to hang on.  Nevertheless, General Friedrich Fleck, commanding VIII Reserve Corps, and General Einem of 3rd Army believe the crisis is far from having past, and as the breakdown of communications prevents accurate news from reaching headquartesr to the rear, in the vacuum of news pessimism reigns.  Indeed Fleck, believing his command is on the verge of disintegration, requests permission this evening to withdraw from the reserve defensive position northwards past Somme Py and out of the trenches.  This retreat, if implemented, would give the French precisely the breakthrough in Champagne they are so desperate to achieve.

On the French side, as reports filter back to the headquarters of the French 2nd and 4th Armies of the successful advance of II Colonial and XIV Corps, General Castlenau of the Army Group of the Centre at 415pm orders the two divisions of VI Corps to enter the line and follow up the attack of and expand the ground seized by II Colonial Corps.  Again, however, it takes time for orders to make their way down the chain of command, and for the infantry to make their way across the shattered landscape, and it is midnight before VI Corps is in the front line.  Optimism remains high, however, that further attacks tomorrow will shatter the weakened Germans and push on to the north.

- South of Vilna, the withdrawal of Russian forces to counter the German offensive at and north of the city has allowed the German 12th Army to reach the Berezina River east of Lida while the army group under Prince Leopold has arrived at the Szczara River.  To the east of Vilna itself, the German 10th Army has ground its way towards Smorgon, but against increasing resistance has been unable to advance further.

To Falkenhayn, Ludendorff's September offensive at Vilna and Sventsiany has achieved exactly what the German chief of staff expected - namely, a minor advance of no great strategic consequence.  Considering both the impending invasion of Serbia and the Entente offensive on the Western Front, Falkenhayn believes it is both necessary and desirable to end operations on the Eastern Front.  Though the great German victories achieved since the attack at Gorlice-Tarnow in May have not convinced the Tsar to agree to a negotiated peace, they have sharply reduced the strength of the Russian army and it will likely be many months until the Russians are again capable of major offensive actions.  As such, Falkenhayn today issues orders for German forces on the Eastern Front to hold their present positions and construct a strong defensive line that can be held with a reduced commitment of forces.  At the northern end of the line, the armies under OberOst are to entrench on a line running from west of Riga through Mitau and west of Dvinsk to Lake Narotch and the mouth of the Bierieza River.  From here, the army group under Prince Leopold and the Army of the Bug will hold on a line running from the Bierieza River through Baranowicze to Pinsk.

- Russian cavalry and aircraft have reported the movement of the German XXIV Reserve Corps and other formations southeastward toward the northern flank of the Russian 8th Army.  Though General Brusilov wishes to stand on the Styr while redeploying the Russian XXX Corps towards Kolki to block the German advance.  His superior, the more cautious General Ivanov, disagrees and, seeking to avoid a potential envelopment, orders Brusilov's 8th Army to retreat eastward towards the Putilowka and Kormin Rivers.

- As plans are finalized for the Serbian campaign, preliminary operations are deemed necessary to seize several large islands in the Danube River east of Belgrade - in German or Austro-Hungarian hands, the islands shorten the distance needed by the main crossings, and can serve as platforms to position light artillery closer to the front.  The most substantial island is Temesziget, over twelve miles long and up to three miles wide, and its capture has been assigned to 11th Bavarian Division of IV Reserve Corps.  Overnight elements of the division crossed to the north shore of the island, and the small Serbian detachments are quickly overwhelmed.

- After several days of debate, the French Council of Ministers decides to go to the aid of the Serbs, and authorizes the dispatch of an expedition to the Balkans.  A telegraph is sent to the Greek government informing it that the Entente will provide the 150 000 troops required by Greek Prime Minister Venizelos to activate the convention with Serbia and bring Greece into the war.  The British government also agrees to commit forces to the Balkans, though with considerably more disagreement: while David Lloyd George is in favour of contributing to the expedition, Lord Kitchener argues that redeploying forces from Gallipoli to the Balkans is 'jumping out of the frying pan into the fire.'  In order to maintain the aura of neutrality, Prime Minister Venizelos requests twenty-four hours notice of the landing of the first Entente forces in Greece, so his government can lodge a diplomatic (though meaningless) protest.  The Entente plan is to land at the port city of Salonika in northern Greece, using it as a base of operations for forces moving north to Serbia's aid.

September 24th, 1915

- Overnight violent thunderstorms strike Flanders, and heavy rains turn the trench floors into mud, slowly the final movement of supplies up to the front for the British offensive scheduled for tomorrow.  At dawn visibility is reduced by low clouds and ground fog, preventing aerial bombing or reconnaissance, though artillery firing on pre-selected and pre-sighted targets.  The British bombardment of identified German artillery batteries is believed to be particularly successful, given that many of the positions targeted have ceased firing.  In practice, however, the Germans silenced their batteries voluntarily to give the impression that they have been knocked out.  They only await the main British attack before they resume firing.  Meanwhile, on the British side two field batteries per division are attached to their horses this evening, in expectation of immediately following the infantry as they advance tomorrow.

Meanwhile at the headquarters of the British 1st Army, Haig waits with his corps commanders Rawlinson and Gough for the latest weather updates, to see if conditions at dawn tomorrow will allow for the use of chlorine gas.  This afternoon Captain Gold reports that based on the morning's observations, there was a possibility only of a fair wind tomorrow morning.  As the hours passed and more recent observations could be added to his report, Gold become confident that the weather would cooperate for tomorrow - at 9pm he informed Haig that there was a favourable chance of a wind blowing west at ten miles per hour at ground level tomorrow morning.  With this assurance, Haig issues orders for chlorine gas to be used prior to the main infantry assault.

- In Artois the Entente artillery bombardment reaches a crescendo today, with the greatest volume directed against the German VI Corps in the Loos sector.  Further confirmation of the imminent enemy offensive comes via a French deserter, who is captured west of Vimy Ridge and reports that the French will attack at 5am tomorrow.

- In Champagne, French patrols enter No Man's Land to clear French wire, inspect and clear the remaining German wire, and observe the state of the enemy line.  Though they frequently come under fire from German defenders, it allows the French call down artillery fire on these surviving positions.  To this point most of the assault infantry have been kept several kilometres behind the front, to avoid casualties from German artillery fire, but after sundown they move up to their jumping-off points and prepare for the attack, scheduled for 915am tomorrow morning

- At Metz today, Falkenhayn receives reports during the day of continued heavy bombardments of the German 6th Army in Artois and the 3rd and 5th Armies in Champagne.  In response, the German chief of staff transfers several heavy artillery batteries to 3rd Army, and further agrees that 5th Division, scheduled to depart for the Balkans for the Serbian campaign, will instead be kept behind 3rd Army.  Nevertheless, Falkenhayn continues to have doubts that the Entente actually intend to launch an major offensive - in a telephone conversation with General Karl von Einem, commander of 3rd Army, that the French 'did not have the willpower' to attack.  Falkenhayn has allowed what he wants the French to do to cloud his judgement of what the French will actually do - his campaigns in the East and the Balkans are based on the premise that the forces left on the Western Front are sufficient to hold the line, and thus does not want to see an Entente offensive that could upset the delicate balance.

- On the northern flank of the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army, elements of the Austro-Hungarian 1st, 2nd, and 9th Cavalry Divisions clear Russian forces out of the Okonsk-Jablonka area as well as Borowicy and Kopyli on the Styr River, opening the path for the German XXIV Reserve Corps advancing rapidly from the north.

- At the request of Franz Joseph, Mackensen journeys to Vienna today to meet the aged Austro-Hungarian emperor, where he is awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Saint Stephan and the two have a thirty-minute private audience after dinner.  Both Franz Joseph and his military retinue are won over by Mackensen's natural charm and character, as well as his reputation for success on the Eastern Front.  Mackensen is practically alone among his fellow German officers in being viewed positively by the Austro-Hungarian leadership (neither Falkenhayn nor Ludendorff can hide their oft-justified contempt), ensuring a degree of co-operation, even at times harmony, in the forthcoming Serbian campaign that is unimaginable had any other German general been in command.

- As the French Council of Ministers debates a French expedition to the Balkans to aid Serbia, Minister of War Alexandre Millerand sends a note to the French commander at Gallipoli, informing him that a division may be shortly ordered to cover the railway from the Greek port of Salonika to the de facto Serbian capital at Niš.  Meanwhile, Joffre advises the government that while he recognizes the desirability of propping up their Serbian allies, an expedition should be composed of four divisions - two French and two British - drawn from Gallipoli.  From his perspective, it is simply a case of redeploying the force already in the Near East from one theatre (the Dardanelles) to another (the Balkans).  This also has the advantage, from his perspective, of not requiring the withdrawal of forces from the Western Front to make up the expedition.

- The hesitant performance of the Italian navy to date has come in for criticism in the Italian press, and the unease claims a victim today as Vice-Admiral Leone Viale, the minister of marine, resigns today.  Ostensibly stepping aside for health reasons, having just undergone minor surgery, in practice he had quarrelled with Vice-Admiral Paolo Count Thaon di Revel and was increasingly left out of the loop regarding operational decisions.

- The British 6th Indian Division has completed its assembly at Sannaiyat on the Tigris River, and begins today the advance towards the Ottoman defensive line east of Kut-al-Amara.  Given the overall strength of the Ottoman position, General Townshend has decided on deception: the bulk of the division today moves slowly westward on the southern bank of the Euphrates River, giving the impression that it is here that the British intend to concentrate their attack.  On the north bank only 18th Brigade remains, which is deployed between the Tigris and Suwada Marsh.  North of Suwada Marsh sits another Ottoman defensive position, three redoubts supported by a trench system leading up to another marsh - Ataba - to the north.  This is the northernmost section of the Ottoman line, but reconnaissance has informed Townshend that Ataba Marsh is rapidly drying out, and that a gap of three hundred yards has emerged between the end of the Ottoman trenches and the start of the swamp.  It is this gap that has caught Townshend's attention and is to be the key point of the assault.  After the force on the southern bank makes a suitable demonstration of British intent to convince the Ottomans to keep significant strength here, this force is to cross over to the north bank at night and pass behind both 18th Brigade and Suwada Marsh where it will split into two forces: the first to assault the three Ottoman redoubts, and the second to pass through the gap to the north.  This force is intended to roll up the Ottoman line from the north, resulting in the capture of the Ottoman 35th Division deployed on the north bank.  It is a plan that would be inconceivable on the Western Front, but the conditions of the war in the Middle East - fewer soldiers and greater supply difficulties - means that flanks exist and can be turned.

The First Battle of Kut-al-Amara, September 24th to 29th, 1915.