- For the past several days, Churchill has been bombarding Asquith with letters begging to remain as First Lord of the Admiralty, using every rhetorical device in his considerable arsenal. It is to no avail, for the price of coalition is Churchill's scalp. Today Churchill meets with the Prime Minister, and the latter confirms his dismissal. As inadequate compensation, Asquith offers the ministerial post of Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. The most junior Cabinet position, and with no practical responsibilities, it is most often given to those without talent for anything more or to ease an elderly colleague into retirement. It is far beneath Churchill's abilities, but as it is better than nothing and Asquith also promises a seat at the War Council, Churchill accepts.
As Churchill has his interview with Asquith, Admiral Fisher realizes that his hope to return to office with his powers greatly enhanced is nothing but a pipe dream. He finally departs London by train, heading north to Scotland, and during a stopover at Crewe receives a letter from Asquith formally accepting his resignation as First Sea Lord. The stormy relationship between the elderly admiral and the young politician ends in mutual destruction.
- At 830pm the German 15th Division at Neuville in Artois launches attacks the French line, hoping to disrupt the ongoing French offensive. However, the preliminary artillery bombardment had been largely unsuccessful; in particular, poor weather prevented the assigned trench mortar battalion from accurately hitting its targets. As a result, the German infantry are unable to penetrate the French trenches.
The failure of today's bombardment, however, masks the growing concentration of German artillery behind the line: over the past two weeks, the number of heavy guns in Artois have doubled. The Germans have also been prodigious in their use, having fired over six hundred thousand shells in the first ten days of the French offensive. Despite this expenditure, OHL has been able to maintain a steady supply of munitions to the front, such that the German batteries are not hampered by a shortage.
- The Italian cabinet approves a mobilization order for the army, and it is published immediately. In practice, however, the Italian army has been slowly mobilizing for over two months; indeed, since before the Treaty of London had even been signed, indicating the extent to which Prime Minister Salandra and Foreign Minister Sonnino had always intended to have Italy join the Entente come what may.
Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Sonnino wires the declaration of war against Austria-Hungary to the Italian ambassador at Vienna, with instructions to deliver it tomorrow. However, through wiretapping and codebreaking the Austro-Hungarian government is able to identify the specific telegram containing the actual declaration of war, and are able to delay its delivery.
Showing posts with label Fisher. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fisher. Show all posts
Friday, May 22, 2015
Tuesday, May 19, 2015
May 19th, 1915
- Continuing his desperate bid to remain First Lord of the Admiralty, Churchill contacts Fisher through an intermediary and offers to meet whatever demands the latter has for rescinding his resignation. Fisher's response is to forward the letter to Bonar Law, having added his own note: 'I rejected the 30 pieces of silver to betray my country.' Churchill also writes Bonar Law directly today, forwarding documents that he argues prove his tenure as First Lord has been a success and should be continued. The Conservative leader's reply is that Churchill's removal from office is 'inevitable.'
Fisher, meanwhile, believes that with Churchill doomed his hour has come, and gives full vent to his megalomania in a letter to Asquith laying out the conditions under which he would remain as First Sea Lord: Churchill must be excluded from the cabinet and the First Lord limited to parliamentary matters, while he would have unlimited and sole authority over the disposition of warships, the appointment of officers, and decisions regarding naval instruction. It hardly needs saying that Asquith declines Fisher's 'offer'. Indeed, as Fisher has not yet had his resignation accepted by the Prime Minister (pending a decision on his replacement), Fisher has for all practical purposes abandoned his post for the past four days, and his actions have won him no friends. Arthur Balfour, a former Conservative Prime Minister, writes that Fisher 'is really a little mad,' while Asquith himself confides to Maurice Hankey 'that Fisher, strictly speaking, ought to be shot for leaving his post.'
- With the pressure of the Russian 4th Army now being brought to bear on the south wing of Woyrsch's army group in central Poland, the Russians opposite the Austro-Hungarian 25th Division disengages this afternoon and pull back towards Iwaniska. The gap between 1st Army and Woyrsch's army group is also covered today when the Austro-Hungarian 84th Regiment makes contact with German Landwehr under the command of General Anatol von Bredow.
- By dawn this morning the Russian counterattack by the Combined Corps against the southeastern face of the German bridgehead across the San River has completely collapsed, and diversionary attacks elsewhere against the German 11th Army have similarly failed to make any progress. The losses of the past two and a half weeks of both men and material have practically eliminated the offensive capability of the Russian formations opposing 11th Army - it is reported today that some of the Russian infantry attacking the German XXXXI Reserve Corps are armed with only grenades or even clubs.
Meanwhile, on the northeastern face of the German bridgehead the advance of the German X Corps creates a gap between the Russian XXIV and III Caucasian Corps. Fearing a German breakout, General Dimitriev of the Russian 3rd Army orders several cavalry divisions into the gap, but also requests permission from General Ivanov of South-West Front for a further withdrawal. This request is denied.
Fisher, meanwhile, believes that with Churchill doomed his hour has come, and gives full vent to his megalomania in a letter to Asquith laying out the conditions under which he would remain as First Sea Lord: Churchill must be excluded from the cabinet and the First Lord limited to parliamentary matters, while he would have unlimited and sole authority over the disposition of warships, the appointment of officers, and decisions regarding naval instruction. It hardly needs saying that Asquith declines Fisher's 'offer'. Indeed, as Fisher has not yet had his resignation accepted by the Prime Minister (pending a decision on his replacement), Fisher has for all practical purposes abandoned his post for the past four days, and his actions have won him no friends. Arthur Balfour, a former Conservative Prime Minister, writes that Fisher 'is really a little mad,' while Asquith himself confides to Maurice Hankey 'that Fisher, strictly speaking, ought to be shot for leaving his post.'
- With the pressure of the Russian 4th Army now being brought to bear on the south wing of Woyrsch's army group in central Poland, the Russians opposite the Austro-Hungarian 25th Division disengages this afternoon and pull back towards Iwaniska. The gap between 1st Army and Woyrsch's army group is also covered today when the Austro-Hungarian 84th Regiment makes contact with German Landwehr under the command of General Anatol von Bredow.
- By dawn this morning the Russian counterattack by the Combined Corps against the southeastern face of the German bridgehead across the San River has completely collapsed, and diversionary attacks elsewhere against the German 11th Army have similarly failed to make any progress. The losses of the past two and a half weeks of both men and material have practically eliminated the offensive capability of the Russian formations opposing 11th Army - it is reported today that some of the Russian infantry attacking the German XXXXI Reserve Corps are armed with only grenades or even clubs.
Meanwhile, on the northeastern face of the German bridgehead the advance of the German X Corps creates a gap between the Russian XXIV and III Caucasian Corps. Fearing a German breakout, General Dimitriev of the Russian 3rd Army orders several cavalry divisions into the gap, but also requests permission from General Ivanov of South-West Front for a further withdrawal. This request is denied.
Sunday, May 17, 2015
May 17th, 1915
- This morning a letter reaches Andrew Bonar Law, the Canadian-born leader of the British Conservative Party, from Admiral Fisher, in which the latter announces his resignation as First Sea Lord. In his typical manner, Fisher holds nothing back: 'W.C. MUST god at all costs! AT ONCE . . . because a very great disaster is very near us in the Dardanelles . . . W.C. is a bigger danger than the Germans by a long way.'
Even without the hyperbole, Bonar Law recognizes the significance of this information. For the past three days he has been struggling to maintain control of his backbenchers, the latter enraged over the report of the 14th in The Times regarding a shortage of shells during the Battle of Aubers Ridge. Bonar Law wants to maintain the electoral truce, but he may not be able to control his own party. With this morning's letter he realizes that the resignation of Fisher will be the final straw for many Conservative MPs, who have long despised Churchill for abandoning the party in 1904 over Tariff Reform. Further, in their eyes Churchill's a administration of the Admiralty in wartime has been a failure: not only has there not been a decisive victory over the High Seas Fleet, but the Antwerp diversion was a debacle and the Dardanelles operation appears to be going nowhere.
After receiving Fisher's letter Bonar Law calls on Lloyd George and asks for confirmation of Fisher's resignation. When Lloyd George provides this, Bonar Law replies that 'the situation is impossible.' Lloyd George agrees, and the pair visit 10 Downing Street where they inform Asquith of the situation. The Prime Minister recoils at the prospect of heated parliamentary debates and denunciations of the management of the war. Further, the Liberal government is a minority, and the possibility exists that it might not survive under effective Conservative criticism. Lloyd George recommends the formation of a coalition government between the parties, in order to head off opposition in the House of Commons. Asquith does not hesitate in accepting this, his willingness to fight for his government perhaps fatally undermined by the news of the 14th regarding Venetia Stanley. It is certainly the case that Asquith never seriously appears to have contemplated fighting the Conservatives, and is perfectly willing to jettison Liberal colleagues to find cabinet places for Conservatives. Most prominent of Bonar Law's conditions for a coalition government is that Churchill must be removed as First Lord of the Admiralty. Neither Asquith nor Lloyd George flinch at the prospect of dismissing their colleague, perhaps realizing it may be the price of keeping their own positions.
Churchill, for his part, has no idea what has transpired when he arrives at 10 Downing Street later this morning to report that he has a new First Sea Lord and is ready to defend his record in the House of Commons. Asquith instead replies that there will be no debate in the House; instead, a coalition government will be formed and, turning to Churchill, asks 'what are we to do with you?' It is at this moment that Churchill realizes that his time at the Admiralty may be at an end. Later this evening, after digesting the news, Churchill writes to Asquith that he would only accept office in the new government if it is directly related to the war effort; otherwise, he would prefer to take up a command in France.
- Overnight the German zeppelin LZ39 was intercepted by several aircraft of the Royal Naval Air Service. They attack the airship by dropping bombs on it, and though it remains in the air LZ39 is sufficiently damaged to force a return to base.
- The first of the new attacks by the French 10th Army in Artois was scheduled to be launched today, but is postponed due to poor weather. Meanwhile the Germans have been attempting to retake the ground lost to the French on Lorette Spur. These attacks, however, have failed, and have worn out the regiments of 117th Division.
- After an intensive bombardment the British launch another attack near Festubert today, and succeed in pushing back the German lines. Indeed, there are indications of a crisis of morale in German ranks, as a number of prisoners are taken before the British infantry had even begun their advance. To reinforce the line 6th Army brings in several battalions of Bavarians and Saxons, as well as 38th Landwehr Brigade. Crucially, they are drawn not from 6th Army's reserve, but rather from the north; the brigade is taken from 4th Army. Thus even though the British have achieved some tactical success at Festubert, they have failed in drawing away German forces from the French offensive to the south, which was the primary reason for the operation.
- The German 11th Army secures a third crossing of the San River today at Nielepkowice north of Jaroslau. Meanwhile Mackensen orders those forces already across the river to consolidate their bridgeheads.
- Just after midnight elements of the Russian 9th Army attempt to storm the town of Delatyn in Bukovina, in the centre of the line held by the Austro-Hungarian 7th Army. In bitter fighting the latter are forced back from the outer defences, but the Russians are unable to break into the town itself. Just as with the Austro-Hungarian attacks to the west, initial advances quickly degenerate into static fighting.
- The reappointed cabinet of Prime Minister Salandra meets today to discuss Italian entry into the war, and agrees to submit a bill to parliament when it reconvenes on the 20th to vest full financial powers in the government in case of war. Also, ex-premier Giovanni Giolitti departs Rome for Piedmont today, knowing full well that attempting to fight for peace when parliament meets in three days would be a lost cause.
Even without the hyperbole, Bonar Law recognizes the significance of this information. For the past three days he has been struggling to maintain control of his backbenchers, the latter enraged over the report of the 14th in The Times regarding a shortage of shells during the Battle of Aubers Ridge. Bonar Law wants to maintain the electoral truce, but he may not be able to control his own party. With this morning's letter he realizes that the resignation of Fisher will be the final straw for many Conservative MPs, who have long despised Churchill for abandoning the party in 1904 over Tariff Reform. Further, in their eyes Churchill's a administration of the Admiralty in wartime has been a failure: not only has there not been a decisive victory over the High Seas Fleet, but the Antwerp diversion was a debacle and the Dardanelles operation appears to be going nowhere.
After receiving Fisher's letter Bonar Law calls on Lloyd George and asks for confirmation of Fisher's resignation. When Lloyd George provides this, Bonar Law replies that 'the situation is impossible.' Lloyd George agrees, and the pair visit 10 Downing Street where they inform Asquith of the situation. The Prime Minister recoils at the prospect of heated parliamentary debates and denunciations of the management of the war. Further, the Liberal government is a minority, and the possibility exists that it might not survive under effective Conservative criticism. Lloyd George recommends the formation of a coalition government between the parties, in order to head off opposition in the House of Commons. Asquith does not hesitate in accepting this, his willingness to fight for his government perhaps fatally undermined by the news of the 14th regarding Venetia Stanley. It is certainly the case that Asquith never seriously appears to have contemplated fighting the Conservatives, and is perfectly willing to jettison Liberal colleagues to find cabinet places for Conservatives. Most prominent of Bonar Law's conditions for a coalition government is that Churchill must be removed as First Lord of the Admiralty. Neither Asquith nor Lloyd George flinch at the prospect of dismissing their colleague, perhaps realizing it may be the price of keeping their own positions.
Churchill, for his part, has no idea what has transpired when he arrives at 10 Downing Street later this morning to report that he has a new First Sea Lord and is ready to defend his record in the House of Commons. Asquith instead replies that there will be no debate in the House; instead, a coalition government will be formed and, turning to Churchill, asks 'what are we to do with you?' It is at this moment that Churchill realizes that his time at the Admiralty may be at an end. Later this evening, after digesting the news, Churchill writes to Asquith that he would only accept office in the new government if it is directly related to the war effort; otherwise, he would prefer to take up a command in France.
- Overnight the German zeppelin LZ39 was intercepted by several aircraft of the Royal Naval Air Service. They attack the airship by dropping bombs on it, and though it remains in the air LZ39 is sufficiently damaged to force a return to base.
- The first of the new attacks by the French 10th Army in Artois was scheduled to be launched today, but is postponed due to poor weather. Meanwhile the Germans have been attempting to retake the ground lost to the French on Lorette Spur. These attacks, however, have failed, and have worn out the regiments of 117th Division.
- After an intensive bombardment the British launch another attack near Festubert today, and succeed in pushing back the German lines. Indeed, there are indications of a crisis of morale in German ranks, as a number of prisoners are taken before the British infantry had even begun their advance. To reinforce the line 6th Army brings in several battalions of Bavarians and Saxons, as well as 38th Landwehr Brigade. Crucially, they are drawn not from 6th Army's reserve, but rather from the north; the brigade is taken from 4th Army. Thus even though the British have achieved some tactical success at Festubert, they have failed in drawing away German forces from the French offensive to the south, which was the primary reason for the operation.
- The German 11th Army secures a third crossing of the San River today at Nielepkowice north of Jaroslau. Meanwhile Mackensen orders those forces already across the river to consolidate their bridgeheads.
- Just after midnight elements of the Russian 9th Army attempt to storm the town of Delatyn in Bukovina, in the centre of the line held by the Austro-Hungarian 7th Army. In bitter fighting the latter are forced back from the outer defences, but the Russians are unable to break into the town itself. Just as with the Austro-Hungarian attacks to the west, initial advances quickly degenerate into static fighting.
- The reappointed cabinet of Prime Minister Salandra meets today to discuss Italian entry into the war, and agrees to submit a bill to parliament when it reconvenes on the 20th to vest full financial powers in the government in case of war. Also, ex-premier Giovanni Giolitti departs Rome for Piedmont today, knowing full well that attempting to fight for peace when parliament meets in three days would be a lost cause.
Saturday, May 16, 2015
May 16th, 1915
- Realizing that Admiral Fisher is serious about resignation, Churchill visits the Prime Minister today. He offers his own resignation, hoping for a vote of confidence from Asquith that will allow him to replace Fisher and continue as First Lord of the Admiralty. This is exactly what Asquith gives him today, saying that he had not even thought of Churchill resigning. Buoyed, the First Lord secures the agreement of Admiral Sir Arthur Wilson to replace Fisher as the First Sea Lord, and the other Sea Lords consent to remaining in office. Churchill then prepares a parliamentary address for tomorrow's session to announce Fisher's resignation and defend his own conduct. It is a speech, however, he will never get to deliver.
- General d'Urbal issues new orders for his 10th Army today, incorporating the revised instructions from General Foch. He envisions a series of methodical attacks, each designed to seize a particular objective from which the next assaut would be launched, culminating with the seizure of Vimy Ridge. In the centre, XXXIII Corps was to capture five points before launching its main attack on the village of Souchez, while XXI Corps had three positions of its own to occupy before assisting XXXIII Corps to seize Souchez. The first of these attacks is scheduled to begin tomorrow. On the German side, the units holding the line have gotten hopelessly mixed up over the past week, as companies and battalions have been sent haphazardly to plug gaps in the line and confront the main French assaults. As such, most of the day is devoted to reorganizing the defence, and in particular to straightening out the chain of command for the artillery batteries so that each stretch of the front line had dedicated artillery support. The battered 58th Division is also pulled out of the line, replaced by 16th Division.
To the north, the British 2nd Division launches an attack at dawn near Festubert, and a small amount of progress is made. For the rest of the day British artillery pound the German lines, in preparation for another effort tomorrow.
- As a result of the success of the German offensive at Gorlice-Tarnow, the Russian line in central Poland has been pulled back, to avoid a gap opening between the Russian 4th Army, mostly north of the Vistula River, and 3rd Army to the south. Following the Russians are the Austro-Hungarian 1st Army and an army group under German General Remus von Woyrsch composed of both German and Austro-Hungarian units. As the two forces pursue the retreating Russians, Woyrsch's group is pulled to the northeast, while 1st Army moves to the east, opening a small gap between them. Here, near Opatow, the Russian 4th Army counterattacks today, and the Austro-Hungarian 25th Division is thrown back several kilometres and suffers heavy casualties. The sudden Russian riposte brings Woyrsch's group and 1st Army to halt as they move to contain the unexpected enemy advance.
- Along the San River the German 11th Army attempt several crossings. The main action is at Jaroslau, which is occupied today by the German 2nd Guard Division. Here the town's Jewish population warns the Germans that the Russians have mined the bridge over the San, and shortly thereafter the bridge explodes and falls into the river. The Elisabeth Regiment of 2nd Guard Division then crosses the San at 530pm under the protection of heavy artillery and machine gun fire, and by evening a Russian counterattack has been driven off and the bridgehead is secure. To the north, 92nd Regiment of 20th Division is able to cross the San west of Miazownica, giving X Corps a shallow bridgehead. Thus by the end of the day, 11th Army has breached the river line at two places.
- In Italy the 'Radiant Days of May' are already passing; though a large pro-war demonstration grips the capital today, elsewhere the number and size of such gatherings are in decline. Despite its ephemeral nature, the 'Radiant Days' have completely altered the balance of interventionist vs neutralist opinion among the political classes in favour of the former. After Salandra's resignation on the 13th, Victor Emmanuel had canvassed several other parliamentary leaders, including Giolitti, about their ability to form a government. All had declined, seeing the shift of opinion towards intervention as decisive. This afternoon the king summons Salandra to Villa Savoia, and meets the politician at the gate with a simple declaration: 'It is necessary that you withdraw your declaration.' Salandra agrees, and his cabinet formally returns to office, and Italian entry into the war is now a certainty.
- In the Mediterranean the Austro-Hungarian destroyer Triglav successfully tows the German coastal submarine UB7 through the Straits of Otranto, evading the Entente blockade, and the latter then makes its way eastward towards the Dardanelles.
- General d'Urbal issues new orders for his 10th Army today, incorporating the revised instructions from General Foch. He envisions a series of methodical attacks, each designed to seize a particular objective from which the next assaut would be launched, culminating with the seizure of Vimy Ridge. In the centre, XXXIII Corps was to capture five points before launching its main attack on the village of Souchez, while XXI Corps had three positions of its own to occupy before assisting XXXIII Corps to seize Souchez. The first of these attacks is scheduled to begin tomorrow. On the German side, the units holding the line have gotten hopelessly mixed up over the past week, as companies and battalions have been sent haphazardly to plug gaps in the line and confront the main French assaults. As such, most of the day is devoted to reorganizing the defence, and in particular to straightening out the chain of command for the artillery batteries so that each stretch of the front line had dedicated artillery support. The battered 58th Division is also pulled out of the line, replaced by 16th Division.
To the north, the British 2nd Division launches an attack at dawn near Festubert, and a small amount of progress is made. For the rest of the day British artillery pound the German lines, in preparation for another effort tomorrow.
- As a result of the success of the German offensive at Gorlice-Tarnow, the Russian line in central Poland has been pulled back, to avoid a gap opening between the Russian 4th Army, mostly north of the Vistula River, and 3rd Army to the south. Following the Russians are the Austro-Hungarian 1st Army and an army group under German General Remus von Woyrsch composed of both German and Austro-Hungarian units. As the two forces pursue the retreating Russians, Woyrsch's group is pulled to the northeast, while 1st Army moves to the east, opening a small gap between them. Here, near Opatow, the Russian 4th Army counterattacks today, and the Austro-Hungarian 25th Division is thrown back several kilometres and suffers heavy casualties. The sudden Russian riposte brings Woyrsch's group and 1st Army to halt as they move to contain the unexpected enemy advance.
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| The Battle of Opatow, May 16th to 20th, 1915. |
- Along the San River the German 11th Army attempt several crossings. The main action is at Jaroslau, which is occupied today by the German 2nd Guard Division. Here the town's Jewish population warns the Germans that the Russians have mined the bridge over the San, and shortly thereafter the bridge explodes and falls into the river. The Elisabeth Regiment of 2nd Guard Division then crosses the San at 530pm under the protection of heavy artillery and machine gun fire, and by evening a Russian counterattack has been driven off and the bridgehead is secure. To the north, 92nd Regiment of 20th Division is able to cross the San west of Miazownica, giving X Corps a shallow bridgehead. Thus by the end of the day, 11th Army has breached the river line at two places.
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| The advance of the German and Austro-Hungarian armies at Jaroslau and Przemysl, May 16th to 20th, 1915. |
- In Italy the 'Radiant Days of May' are already passing; though a large pro-war demonstration grips the capital today, elsewhere the number and size of such gatherings are in decline. Despite its ephemeral nature, the 'Radiant Days' have completely altered the balance of interventionist vs neutralist opinion among the political classes in favour of the former. After Salandra's resignation on the 13th, Victor Emmanuel had canvassed several other parliamentary leaders, including Giolitti, about their ability to form a government. All had declined, seeing the shift of opinion towards intervention as decisive. This afternoon the king summons Salandra to Villa Savoia, and meets the politician at the gate with a simple declaration: 'It is necessary that you withdraw your declaration.' Salandra agrees, and his cabinet formally returns to office, and Italian entry into the war is now a certainty.
- In the Mediterranean the Austro-Hungarian destroyer Triglav successfully tows the German coastal submarine UB7 through the Straits of Otranto, evading the Entente blockade, and the latter then makes its way eastward towards the Dardanelles.
Friday, May 15, 2015
May 15th, 1915
- At 5am this morning Admiral Fisher arrives at his desk in the Admiralty building, where he comes across Churchill's revision to the reinforcements to be sent to the Dardanelles. Though the change was only to add two submarines, something in Fisher breaks. It reinforces his belief that Churchill will always want to force the Dardanelles, and will always seek to send more and more reinforcements there, a policy he does not and feels he cannot support. These two submarines become the straw that breaks the camel's back, and Fisher decides then and there that he must resign. Though he has threatened resignation several times before, this time he is determined to follow through. Knowing how persuasive Churchill can be, Fisher concludes that he can only maintain his resolve to resign if he stays out of reach of the First Lord. Thus Fisher leaves a letter of resignation with Churchill's secretary, and then promptly disappears.
Several hours later Churchill arrives at the Admiralty to discover Fisher's letter of resignation. Believing it to be just another idle threat, he seeks him out. To his consternation, however, Fisher is nowhere to be found anywhere in the Admiralty building. Churchill then rushes to 10 Downing Street to inform the Prime Minister of what has occurred. Asquith promptly writes a curt note to Fisher: 'In the King's name, I order you to return to your post.' By disappearing before his resignation could be accepted, Fisher has technically abandoned his post in wartime. Whatever sympathy there may have existed in political circles for Fisher and his struggles against Churchill (and the latter has more than his share of critics), the manner of his resignation is seen, quite properly, as disgraceful.
After several hours Fisher is discovered in a room at the Charing Cross Hotel. Responding to Asquith's summons, he goes to the Prime Minister's residence where both Asquith and Lloyd George attempt to change Fisher's mind, but to no avail. Churchill also writes several letters to Fisher, each pleading for an interview, but the latter remains adamant that he will resign and will not allow himself to be talked out of it.
- Today the American diplomatic note regarding the sinking of Lusitania arrives in Berlin. The German government now begins to prepare a response, one which Chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg hopes will mollify the Americans.
- This evening Foch, as commander of Provisional Group of the North, arrives at the headquarters of General d'Urbal of 10th Army. Foch states that a week of attacks have not achieved the desired result, and that another attack should only be launched after thorough preparation. By switching to a more methodical approach, Foch hopes to be able to advance steadily towards Vimy Ridge, which he hopes can be seized within eight to ten days. General d'Urbal thus cancels orders for an attack tomorrow, and begins to plan for further operations that fit within Foch's framework.
- To the north, the British Expeditionary Force is active once more in attempting to support the French offensive in Artois. Overnight, a British division replaced a French division south of La Bassée, allowing the latter to redeploy south. At 1130pm, the British 2nd Division of Haig's 1st Army attacks the German line near Festubert. Of the three brigades in the operation, one achieves complete surprise and overruns the first German trench line. The other two, however, are spotted beforehand and, illuminated by star shells and searchlights, suffer heavy casualties.
- The second phase of the Gorlice-Tarnow offensive opens today when the German 11th Army assaults the Russian line at and north of Jaroslau. Attacks by 1st and 2nd Guard Divisions seize the Russian defensive positions protecting Jaroslau, and by the end of the day the Russians are streaming back through the town towards the east bank of the San River. To the north, the German X Corps drives to the river, though at seventy yards wide it is too broad to cross without adequate preparations. For his part Mackensen this afternoon orders X, Guard, and XXXXI Reserve Corps to undertake precisely these preparations, including bringing up substantial amounts of artillery shells, to attack across the San and established bridgeheads tomorrow.
- In east Galicia General Pflanzer-Baltin of the Austro-Hungarian 7th Army orders a counteroffensive by his western wing; here the Russians opposite have been forced to pull back to remain in contact with the Russian 11th Army (in turn having retreated due to the collapse of 3rd Army), and Pflanzer-Baltin hopes to catch the Russians off-guard and force a further withdrawal. Though several Austro-Hungarian divisions are able to advance initially, Russian counterattacks soon throw them back, and the fighting quickly degenerates into a stalemate.
Several hours later Churchill arrives at the Admiralty to discover Fisher's letter of resignation. Believing it to be just another idle threat, he seeks him out. To his consternation, however, Fisher is nowhere to be found anywhere in the Admiralty building. Churchill then rushes to 10 Downing Street to inform the Prime Minister of what has occurred. Asquith promptly writes a curt note to Fisher: 'In the King's name, I order you to return to your post.' By disappearing before his resignation could be accepted, Fisher has technically abandoned his post in wartime. Whatever sympathy there may have existed in political circles for Fisher and his struggles against Churchill (and the latter has more than his share of critics), the manner of his resignation is seen, quite properly, as disgraceful.
After several hours Fisher is discovered in a room at the Charing Cross Hotel. Responding to Asquith's summons, he goes to the Prime Minister's residence where both Asquith and Lloyd George attempt to change Fisher's mind, but to no avail. Churchill also writes several letters to Fisher, each pleading for an interview, but the latter remains adamant that he will resign and will not allow himself to be talked out of it.
- Today the American diplomatic note regarding the sinking of Lusitania arrives in Berlin. The German government now begins to prepare a response, one which Chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg hopes will mollify the Americans.
- This evening Foch, as commander of Provisional Group of the North, arrives at the headquarters of General d'Urbal of 10th Army. Foch states that a week of attacks have not achieved the desired result, and that another attack should only be launched after thorough preparation. By switching to a more methodical approach, Foch hopes to be able to advance steadily towards Vimy Ridge, which he hopes can be seized within eight to ten days. General d'Urbal thus cancels orders for an attack tomorrow, and begins to plan for further operations that fit within Foch's framework.
- To the north, the British Expeditionary Force is active once more in attempting to support the French offensive in Artois. Overnight, a British division replaced a French division south of La Bassée, allowing the latter to redeploy south. At 1130pm, the British 2nd Division of Haig's 1st Army attacks the German line near Festubert. Of the three brigades in the operation, one achieves complete surprise and overruns the first German trench line. The other two, however, are spotted beforehand and, illuminated by star shells and searchlights, suffer heavy casualties.
- The second phase of the Gorlice-Tarnow offensive opens today when the German 11th Army assaults the Russian line at and north of Jaroslau. Attacks by 1st and 2nd Guard Divisions seize the Russian defensive positions protecting Jaroslau, and by the end of the day the Russians are streaming back through the town towards the east bank of the San River. To the north, the German X Corps drives to the river, though at seventy yards wide it is too broad to cross without adequate preparations. For his part Mackensen this afternoon orders X, Guard, and XXXXI Reserve Corps to undertake precisely these preparations, including bringing up substantial amounts of artillery shells, to attack across the San and established bridgeheads tomorrow.
- In east Galicia General Pflanzer-Baltin of the Austro-Hungarian 7th Army orders a counteroffensive by his western wing; here the Russians opposite have been forced to pull back to remain in contact with the Russian 11th Army (in turn having retreated due to the collapse of 3rd Army), and Pflanzer-Baltin hopes to catch the Russians off-guard and force a further withdrawal. Though several Austro-Hungarian divisions are able to advance initially, Russian counterattacks soon throw them back, and the fighting quickly degenerates into a stalemate.
Thursday, May 14, 2015
May 14th, 1915
- This morning the fuse lit by Sir John French five days earlier explodes on the pages of The Times newspaper, which runs an extensive report and editorial on the recent failure at Aubers Ridge. Given the close relationship between French and the newspaper's military correspondent, it is no surprise that the coverage praises the plan for and management of the battle itself. Instead, the paper is harshly critical of the supply of both artillery shells and heavy artillery pieces, and lays blame for this failure directly on the War Office and the Secretary of State for War, Lord Kitchener. The proprietor of The Times, Lord Northcliffe, has come to see Kitchener not as the imperial hero, but as the stubborn incompetent whose mismanagement is damaging the British war effort. Northcliffe is not alone in this view; some within the Conservative party, as well as the Chancellor of the Exchequer David Lloyd George, have become exasperated with Lord Kitchener, and feel he must go if Britain is to fully mobilize its industry in support of the war.
The political impact of The Times' report can hardly be underestimated. Just several weeks earlier Prime Minister Asquith had assured the British public at Newcastle that the supply of munitions was more than sufficient, words that now appear hollow at best and deceitful at worst. In particular, the report crystalizes concerns among many Conservative backbenchers that the Liberal government is mismanaging the war effort. This places the leadership of the Conservative party in a quandary: since the beginning of the war all of the major parties have observed a political truce, but it is increasingly difficult to restrain the backbenches from attacking the government over perceived incompetence, and The Times report pours gasoline on the simmering fire.
This afternoon, meanwhile, the first meeting of the War Council is held in London since April 6th. With the allegations from The Times hanging in the air, Kitchener is in a foul mood, and complains bitterly about the navy abandoning the army at Gallipoli. Fisher has finally had enough, and for the first time speaks of his constant opposition to the Dardanelles operation, a position that is news to most of those in the room. Churchill, annoyed by Fisher's outburst, attempts to defend his own position afterwards in a letter to Asquith, arguing that Fisher has signed off on every order touching on the Dardanelles operation.
Later this evening Churchill and Fisher meet at the latter's office to discuss possible reinforcements for the Dardanelles now that Queen Elizabeth is being withdrawn. Once again Churchill overawes the older Fisher, and the latter agrees to send several monitors to the Mediterranean to allow for the recall of several battleships. After Fisher departs for the night, Churchill adds two submarines, as requested by Admiral de Robeck, to the list of proposed warships to be sent to the Dardanelles. It is a fateful decision.
As the political turmoil swirls in London, Prime Minister Asquith is suffering from a much different kind of angst. For several years he has been desperately in love with Venetia Stanley, a close friend of his daugher Violet. He has shared all manner of state secrets with her, and relies on her utterly for moral support. Today, however, Venetia informs Asquith that their relationship is at an end, and that she is to marry Edwin Montagu, a fellow Liberal politician. Asquith is utterly shattered; he writes to Venetia today that 'this is too terrible; no hell could be so bad.' The gravest crisis the Liberal government has ever faced is at hand, and the Prime Minister is a broken man.
- Today repeated French attacks secure most of Notre-Dame de Lorette in Artois, but the Germans stubbornly remain entrenched on the eastern edge, and from this position they are able to fire into the northern flank of the French XXXIII Corps and prevent a further advance towards Souchez. On the German side additional reinforcements come forward, and 5th Bavarian Division, which has lost two-thirds of its strength since the 9th, is pulled out of the line today. However, when 6th Army commander Crown Prince Rupprecht requests further reinforcements from Falkenhayn, the latter instead replies with a sharp rebuke: most of the reserves on the Western Front have already been sent to 6th Army, and that the forces now available in Artois ought to be more than sufficient to hold the line. In part this reflects Falkenhayn's irritation at Rupprecht's constant demands, but also that the shift to the east in April has meant that the Western Front must defend itself with what it has, and few reserves remain.
- Today the German 11th Army approaches the Russian positions at Przemysl and the San River, and prepares to attack the enemy line at Jaroslau tomorrow.
- When the Austro-Hungarian 7th Army retreated to the Pruth River it left a bridgehead on the north side at Kolomea, and this is the target of an attack by the Russian XXXIII Corps after midday. Despite heavy Russian pressure, the Austro-Hungarians are able to hold on, in part due to the arrival of the first reinforcements from III Corps.
- The resignation of the cabinet of Prime Minister Salandra yesterday evening is a shock to the Italian public. In particular, those who favour intervention in the war on the side of the Entente are shocked, and fear that they will be denied their war at the last moment. What happens next, however, will transform the political situation. Starting today, significant numbers of the urban middle class gather in major cities and towns throughout Italy to call for war against Austria-Hungary. This is the same social group that were the predominant presence in the crowds that in other countries celebrated the outbreak of war last August. These demonstrations appear spontaneously with no organization and little support from the upper classes or political elites other than a few wealthy northern landowners and the owners of industrial concerns such as Fiat. Indeed, the sudden outbreak of pro-war protests comes as a shock to Salandra, Sonnino, and their allies; the old cabinet, in its capacity as a caretaker government until the king appoints a replacement, authorizes local prefects to call in the army if necessary to maintain public order. In practice, the gatherings are generally peaceful, as befitting crowds of the 'respectable' middle-class.
These demonstrations become known as the 'Radiant Days of May' and, precisely because they were so unexpected and spontaneous, they have an impact on the political class far outweighing the actual size of the crowds. Dozens of parliamentary representatives who previously had opposed war now declare in favour of intervention, wanting to stay in step with public opinion. The demonstrations also influence Victor Emmanuel, believing they will sway the votes of a sufficient number of parliamentary representatives as to make the formation of an anti-war cabinet impossible, and thus making the recall of Salandra to the premiership palatable.
- Today Admiral de Robeck receives the Admiralty reply to his message of the 10th regarding a further naval attack on the Dardanelles. In line with Fisher's views, Churchill writes that 'the moment for an independent naval attempt to force the Narrows has passed . . . your role is therefore to support the army in its costly but sure advance and to reserve your strength to deal with the situation which will arise when the army has succeeded.' The fleet is to remain in a subordinate position to the army, and success will depend on the army securing Gallipoli.
The political impact of The Times' report can hardly be underestimated. Just several weeks earlier Prime Minister Asquith had assured the British public at Newcastle that the supply of munitions was more than sufficient, words that now appear hollow at best and deceitful at worst. In particular, the report crystalizes concerns among many Conservative backbenchers that the Liberal government is mismanaging the war effort. This places the leadership of the Conservative party in a quandary: since the beginning of the war all of the major parties have observed a political truce, but it is increasingly difficult to restrain the backbenches from attacking the government over perceived incompetence, and The Times report pours gasoline on the simmering fire.
This afternoon, meanwhile, the first meeting of the War Council is held in London since April 6th. With the allegations from The Times hanging in the air, Kitchener is in a foul mood, and complains bitterly about the navy abandoning the army at Gallipoli. Fisher has finally had enough, and for the first time speaks of his constant opposition to the Dardanelles operation, a position that is news to most of those in the room. Churchill, annoyed by Fisher's outburst, attempts to defend his own position afterwards in a letter to Asquith, arguing that Fisher has signed off on every order touching on the Dardanelles operation.
Later this evening Churchill and Fisher meet at the latter's office to discuss possible reinforcements for the Dardanelles now that Queen Elizabeth is being withdrawn. Once again Churchill overawes the older Fisher, and the latter agrees to send several monitors to the Mediterranean to allow for the recall of several battleships. After Fisher departs for the night, Churchill adds two submarines, as requested by Admiral de Robeck, to the list of proposed warships to be sent to the Dardanelles. It is a fateful decision.
As the political turmoil swirls in London, Prime Minister Asquith is suffering from a much different kind of angst. For several years he has been desperately in love with Venetia Stanley, a close friend of his daugher Violet. He has shared all manner of state secrets with her, and relies on her utterly for moral support. Today, however, Venetia informs Asquith that their relationship is at an end, and that she is to marry Edwin Montagu, a fellow Liberal politician. Asquith is utterly shattered; he writes to Venetia today that 'this is too terrible; no hell could be so bad.' The gravest crisis the Liberal government has ever faced is at hand, and the Prime Minister is a broken man.
- Today repeated French attacks secure most of Notre-Dame de Lorette in Artois, but the Germans stubbornly remain entrenched on the eastern edge, and from this position they are able to fire into the northern flank of the French XXXIII Corps and prevent a further advance towards Souchez. On the German side additional reinforcements come forward, and 5th Bavarian Division, which has lost two-thirds of its strength since the 9th, is pulled out of the line today. However, when 6th Army commander Crown Prince Rupprecht requests further reinforcements from Falkenhayn, the latter instead replies with a sharp rebuke: most of the reserves on the Western Front have already been sent to 6th Army, and that the forces now available in Artois ought to be more than sufficient to hold the line. In part this reflects Falkenhayn's irritation at Rupprecht's constant demands, but also that the shift to the east in April has meant that the Western Front must defend itself with what it has, and few reserves remain.
- Today the German 11th Army approaches the Russian positions at Przemysl and the San River, and prepares to attack the enemy line at Jaroslau tomorrow.
- When the Austro-Hungarian 7th Army retreated to the Pruth River it left a bridgehead on the north side at Kolomea, and this is the target of an attack by the Russian XXXIII Corps after midday. Despite heavy Russian pressure, the Austro-Hungarians are able to hold on, in part due to the arrival of the first reinforcements from III Corps.
- The resignation of the cabinet of Prime Minister Salandra yesterday evening is a shock to the Italian public. In particular, those who favour intervention in the war on the side of the Entente are shocked, and fear that they will be denied their war at the last moment. What happens next, however, will transform the political situation. Starting today, significant numbers of the urban middle class gather in major cities and towns throughout Italy to call for war against Austria-Hungary. This is the same social group that were the predominant presence in the crowds that in other countries celebrated the outbreak of war last August. These demonstrations appear spontaneously with no organization and little support from the upper classes or political elites other than a few wealthy northern landowners and the owners of industrial concerns such as Fiat. Indeed, the sudden outbreak of pro-war protests comes as a shock to Salandra, Sonnino, and their allies; the old cabinet, in its capacity as a caretaker government until the king appoints a replacement, authorizes local prefects to call in the army if necessary to maintain public order. In practice, the gatherings are generally peaceful, as befitting crowds of the 'respectable' middle-class.
These demonstrations become known as the 'Radiant Days of May' and, precisely because they were so unexpected and spontaneous, they have an impact on the political class far outweighing the actual size of the crowds. Dozens of parliamentary representatives who previously had opposed war now declare in favour of intervention, wanting to stay in step with public opinion. The demonstrations also influence Victor Emmanuel, believing they will sway the votes of a sufficient number of parliamentary representatives as to make the formation of an anti-war cabinet impossible, and thus making the recall of Salandra to the premiership palatable.
- Today Admiral de Robeck receives the Admiralty reply to his message of the 10th regarding a further naval attack on the Dardanelles. In line with Fisher's views, Churchill writes that 'the moment for an independent naval attempt to force the Narrows has passed . . . your role is therefore to support the army in its costly but sure advance and to reserve your strength to deal with the situation which will arise when the army has succeeded.' The fleet is to remain in a subordinate position to the army, and success will depend on the army securing Gallipoli.
Wednesday, May 13, 2015
May 13th, 1915
- Yesterday the British 28th Division, having suffered greatly in the recent fighting, was withdrawn from the eastern face of the Ypres salient, replaced by 1st and 3rd Cavalry Division fighting as dismounted infantry. They gain a rapid initiation to the fighting at Ypres, coming under a heavy artillery bombardment early this morning that precedes another German attack. Most of the British line holds, but 7th Cavalry Brigade is forced back hundreds of yards, and a subsequent counterattack by 8th and 10th Cavalry Brigades is unable to fully restore the position.
Though desultory fighting will continue around the Ypres salient for several weeks, the 2nd Battle of Ypres has effectively drawn to a close. In the context of major operations on the Western Front, the battle has undoubtedly been a German victory. Not only were they able to advance several miles towards Ypres, but were also able to force the British to voluntarily yield ground, something virtually unheardof. Moreover, while German casualties numbered 35 000, Entente casualties were in excess of 60 000, and the Germans accomplish this favourable casualty ratio while attacking, inverting the normal situation whereby attackers suffer more than defenders. In a larger sense, however, the 2nd Battle of Ypres was a missed opportunity. Because the operation had never been intended to be a major offensive, the Germans were not prepared when the initial gas attack proved more successful than anyone could have imagined. The shock effect of gas literally blew a hole in the Entente line larger than any seen to date in the war, and with sufficient reserves the Germans might have been able to drive on Ypres and beyond. In a familiar refrain, by the time the Germans realized the opportunity that existed, the moment to exploit it had already passed, and subsequent fighting was comparable to the static fighting seen in other major engagements - the vast majority of the ground captured by the Germans was achieved in the first hours after the gas attack. The lost opportunity, however, is even greater than the specific context of the 2nd Battle of Ypres. The most potent effect of gas is psychological: when it strikes soldiers who are unprepared, their willingness to stand and fight vanishes and resistance becomes impossible. By definition this can only happen the first time gas is used; within twenty-four hours crude countermeasures were being developed, and in future soldiers who are gassed will have gas masks at hand. This ensures that while gas still kills and has an impact on the battlefield, never again can it have the same psychological effect. The most effective use of gas was always going to be the first time, and the Germans threw away this opportunity by not being prepared to exploit the situation. The Germans have also earned the opprobrium of being the first combatant to use asphyxiating gas on the battlefield. Though all countries will soon make extensive use of gas, and work to develop ever more lethal chemicals, 2nd Ypres becomes, in the eyes of many, yet another example of German 'barbarism', in line with the Rape of Belgium and the sinking of Lusitania. For many in both Entente countries and neutrals such as the United States, it is yet another reason why Germany and 'Prussian militarism' must be crushed; one cannot compromise with barbarism. Finally, the battle has been the baptism of fire for 1st Canadian Division. The resiliency (if not sheer stubbornness) of the Canadians in the first days of the German offensive, holding their lines despite gas and overwhelming attacks until British and French reserves could arrive, was vital to preventing a greater German breakthrough, and becomes a celebrated feat of arms. It is the first of many such accomplishments for the Canadians on the Western Front.
- In Artois French pressure forces the Germans to abandon most of the village of Ablain, but otherwise French attacks are unsuccessful today. Nevertheless, Crown Prince Rupprecht, commander of the German 6th Army, believes that three of his front-line divisions are completely worn out and must be replaced, and requests further reinforcements from Falkenhayn. The German Chief of Staff agrees, transferring 2nd Guard Reserve Division and two brigades from OHL control to 6th Army's sector.
- The battered Russian 3rd Army completes its retreat to the San River, taking up positions north of the fortification of Przemysl. Its northern wing is entrenched on the east bank from Jaroslau almost to the junction with the Vistula River, where 4th Army covers both sides of the Vistula itself. The southern wing of 3rd Army, between Jaroslau and Przemysl, is actually deployed on the west bank; because the west bank is much higher than the east, holding the river line itself here is not possible. South and east of Przemysl sit 8th and 11th Armies, the latter connecting with 9th Army still conducting its offensive in the Bukovina. Reinforcements are also en route; General Alexeyev has begrudgingly allowed XV Corps, formerly part of Northwest Front, to redeploy southwards, and it is to come into the line between 4th and 3rd Armies.
- In east Galicia the Austro-Hungarian 7th Army continues its retreat to the Pruth River, and by nightfall most of its elements are across. The west and centre wings were able to pull back relatively unmolested, but the east wing came under heavy attack, especially by the Russian XXXIII Corps, as it did so. Here at least the Russians are having some success in the Carpathians, and the offensive has forced the Austro-Hungarians to divert III Corps, initially intended to garrison the frontier with Italy, to Bukovina. Beyond this, however, it has had no impact on the larger strategic picture; Falkenhayn for one knows that if Mackensen and 11th Army continues to achieve success, and in particular force the San River line, the Russian position in the Bukovina will be outflanked and nothing that happens there will matter.
- At 5pm the Italian cabinet reconvenes, and since yesterday's meeting Salandra has met with party leaders over the question of peace or war. He reports to the cabinet that only one - Leonida Bissolati of the moderate Socialists - supported intervention. The cabinet then spends the next four hours debate the issue back and forth. One concern is that if the cabinet, and by convention the king, endorses war, but then is repudiated by parliament, a constitutional crisis may ensue. To clear the air and force the issue, Salandra proposes the government's resignation; his hope is that efforts to cobble together an alternative anti-war government will fail, and thus by default committing Italy to war. At 9pm the cabinet agrees, and Salandra immediately drives to the royal palace at Villa Savoia to offer their resignations. At 1030pm news of the resignation becomes public; the moment of decision is at hand.
- Today the German submarine U21 arrives at the Austro-Hungarian naval base of Cattaro, after several weeks at sea. Due to its lengthy journey from Germany it had only barely made it to port, with only 1.8 tons out of the original 56.5 tons of fuel remaining. Once refueled and resupplied, the Germans will have their first active ocean-going submarine in the Mediterrean (UB-8 is a much smaller coastal submarine).
- For weeks Entente warships have pounded Ottoman positions on Gallipoli with impunity, as none of the shore batteries could fire shells capable of penetrating the armour of the old pre-dreadnoughts. Given their numbers, the Entente fleet has also shown no real concern with naval opposition, and largely assume they may sail and anchor as they please. Overnight, the Ottomans do their best to disabuse the British and French admirals of their misplaced faith in their invulnerability. With a full moon and heavy mist reducing visibility, the Ottoman destroy Muavenet, captained by a German, snuck through the straits and moved up the European coast of Gallipoli. In Morto Bay, not a hundred yards offshore, the destroyer comes across the British pre-dreadnought Goliath at anchor, where it is waiting to continue its shore bombardment at dawn. Surging forward, Muavenet fires three torpedoes and disappears back into the night and through the straits before anyone can react. The torpedoes strike home, and within minutes rolls over and sinks. Because the current here is four to five knots and moving away from shore, none of the British sailors in the water can swim ashore. Five hundred and seventy drown, and only one hundred and eight survive. It is a striking accomplishment for the Ottomans: the Sultan awards each sailor on Muavenet a gold watch and a purse filled with gold.
The sinking of Goliath shows that the waters off the Dardanelles are now contested, and the aftershocks of the loss of the pre-dreadnought reach London this afternoon, where news of the sinking prompts a passionate outburst from Admiral Fisher. For months he has worried over the potential loss of warships during the Dardanelles campaign, and in particular is concerned about Queen Elizabeth, Britain's newest and most advanced battleship. The loss of Goliath stokes these fears to a fever pitch, and Fisher insists that Queen Elizabeth be ordered to return to home waters immediately. Churchill accedes to the First Sea Lord's demand, but later this evening the argument is joined by Kitchener when he visits the Admiralty on a different matter. When the Secretary of War learns of Queen Elizabeth's recall, he goes into a rage, accusing the navy of abandoning the army after the army had come to the aid of the navy after the latter's failure to force the Dardanelles. Fisher, never one to back down from a fight, fires right back at Kitchener, declaring that Queen Elizabeth will sail for home this instant or he would resign on the spot. Kitchener returns to the War Office and pens an aggressive note to Asquith, but for now Fisher has won the argument: the orders for Queen Elizabeth's recall stand. The crisis over the Dardanelles, however, is just beginning.
- In German South-West Africa the advance of South African forces from Swakopmund on the coast and from the south has been slow and irregular, disrupted by supply difficulties more than German opposition. After several months, however, today the northern detachment, under the direct command of Prime Minister Botha, enters Windhoek, the capital of the German colony. In doing so the South Africans also seize the main wireless station, disrupting communications between the remaining German forces in the colony, now retreating northeast along the lone railway, and the outside world.
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| The front line at Ypres, May 13th, 1915. |
Though desultory fighting will continue around the Ypres salient for several weeks, the 2nd Battle of Ypres has effectively drawn to a close. In the context of major operations on the Western Front, the battle has undoubtedly been a German victory. Not only were they able to advance several miles towards Ypres, but were also able to force the British to voluntarily yield ground, something virtually unheardof. Moreover, while German casualties numbered 35 000, Entente casualties were in excess of 60 000, and the Germans accomplish this favourable casualty ratio while attacking, inverting the normal situation whereby attackers suffer more than defenders. In a larger sense, however, the 2nd Battle of Ypres was a missed opportunity. Because the operation had never been intended to be a major offensive, the Germans were not prepared when the initial gas attack proved more successful than anyone could have imagined. The shock effect of gas literally blew a hole in the Entente line larger than any seen to date in the war, and with sufficient reserves the Germans might have been able to drive on Ypres and beyond. In a familiar refrain, by the time the Germans realized the opportunity that existed, the moment to exploit it had already passed, and subsequent fighting was comparable to the static fighting seen in other major engagements - the vast majority of the ground captured by the Germans was achieved in the first hours after the gas attack. The lost opportunity, however, is even greater than the specific context of the 2nd Battle of Ypres. The most potent effect of gas is psychological: when it strikes soldiers who are unprepared, their willingness to stand and fight vanishes and resistance becomes impossible. By definition this can only happen the first time gas is used; within twenty-four hours crude countermeasures were being developed, and in future soldiers who are gassed will have gas masks at hand. This ensures that while gas still kills and has an impact on the battlefield, never again can it have the same psychological effect. The most effective use of gas was always going to be the first time, and the Germans threw away this opportunity by not being prepared to exploit the situation. The Germans have also earned the opprobrium of being the first combatant to use asphyxiating gas on the battlefield. Though all countries will soon make extensive use of gas, and work to develop ever more lethal chemicals, 2nd Ypres becomes, in the eyes of many, yet another example of German 'barbarism', in line with the Rape of Belgium and the sinking of Lusitania. For many in both Entente countries and neutrals such as the United States, it is yet another reason why Germany and 'Prussian militarism' must be crushed; one cannot compromise with barbarism. Finally, the battle has been the baptism of fire for 1st Canadian Division. The resiliency (if not sheer stubbornness) of the Canadians in the first days of the German offensive, holding their lines despite gas and overwhelming attacks until British and French reserves could arrive, was vital to preventing a greater German breakthrough, and becomes a celebrated feat of arms. It is the first of many such accomplishments for the Canadians on the Western Front.
- In Artois French pressure forces the Germans to abandon most of the village of Ablain, but otherwise French attacks are unsuccessful today. Nevertheless, Crown Prince Rupprecht, commander of the German 6th Army, believes that three of his front-line divisions are completely worn out and must be replaced, and requests further reinforcements from Falkenhayn. The German Chief of Staff agrees, transferring 2nd Guard Reserve Division and two brigades from OHL control to 6th Army's sector.
- The battered Russian 3rd Army completes its retreat to the San River, taking up positions north of the fortification of Przemysl. Its northern wing is entrenched on the east bank from Jaroslau almost to the junction with the Vistula River, where 4th Army covers both sides of the Vistula itself. The southern wing of 3rd Army, between Jaroslau and Przemysl, is actually deployed on the west bank; because the west bank is much higher than the east, holding the river line itself here is not possible. South and east of Przemysl sit 8th and 11th Armies, the latter connecting with 9th Army still conducting its offensive in the Bukovina. Reinforcements are also en route; General Alexeyev has begrudgingly allowed XV Corps, formerly part of Northwest Front, to redeploy southwards, and it is to come into the line between 4th and 3rd Armies.
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| The German and Austro-Hungarian advance towards Jaroslau and Przemysl, May 13th to 16th, 1915. |
- In east Galicia the Austro-Hungarian 7th Army continues its retreat to the Pruth River, and by nightfall most of its elements are across. The west and centre wings were able to pull back relatively unmolested, but the east wing came under heavy attack, especially by the Russian XXXIII Corps, as it did so. Here at least the Russians are having some success in the Carpathians, and the offensive has forced the Austro-Hungarians to divert III Corps, initially intended to garrison the frontier with Italy, to Bukovina. Beyond this, however, it has had no impact on the larger strategic picture; Falkenhayn for one knows that if Mackensen and 11th Army continues to achieve success, and in particular force the San River line, the Russian position in the Bukovina will be outflanked and nothing that happens there will matter.
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| The Battle of Dniester, May 13th, 1915. |
- At 5pm the Italian cabinet reconvenes, and since yesterday's meeting Salandra has met with party leaders over the question of peace or war. He reports to the cabinet that only one - Leonida Bissolati of the moderate Socialists - supported intervention. The cabinet then spends the next four hours debate the issue back and forth. One concern is that if the cabinet, and by convention the king, endorses war, but then is repudiated by parliament, a constitutional crisis may ensue. To clear the air and force the issue, Salandra proposes the government's resignation; his hope is that efforts to cobble together an alternative anti-war government will fail, and thus by default committing Italy to war. At 9pm the cabinet agrees, and Salandra immediately drives to the royal palace at Villa Savoia to offer their resignations. At 1030pm news of the resignation becomes public; the moment of decision is at hand.
- Today the German submarine U21 arrives at the Austro-Hungarian naval base of Cattaro, after several weeks at sea. Due to its lengthy journey from Germany it had only barely made it to port, with only 1.8 tons out of the original 56.5 tons of fuel remaining. Once refueled and resupplied, the Germans will have their first active ocean-going submarine in the Mediterrean (UB-8 is a much smaller coastal submarine).
- For weeks Entente warships have pounded Ottoman positions on Gallipoli with impunity, as none of the shore batteries could fire shells capable of penetrating the armour of the old pre-dreadnoughts. Given their numbers, the Entente fleet has also shown no real concern with naval opposition, and largely assume they may sail and anchor as they please. Overnight, the Ottomans do their best to disabuse the British and French admirals of their misplaced faith in their invulnerability. With a full moon and heavy mist reducing visibility, the Ottoman destroy Muavenet, captained by a German, snuck through the straits and moved up the European coast of Gallipoli. In Morto Bay, not a hundred yards offshore, the destroyer comes across the British pre-dreadnought Goliath at anchor, where it is waiting to continue its shore bombardment at dawn. Surging forward, Muavenet fires three torpedoes and disappears back into the night and through the straits before anyone can react. The torpedoes strike home, and within minutes rolls over and sinks. Because the current here is four to five knots and moving away from shore, none of the British sailors in the water can swim ashore. Five hundred and seventy drown, and only one hundred and eight survive. It is a striking accomplishment for the Ottomans: the Sultan awards each sailor on Muavenet a gold watch and a purse filled with gold.
The sinking of Goliath shows that the waters off the Dardanelles are now contested, and the aftershocks of the loss of the pre-dreadnought reach London this afternoon, where news of the sinking prompts a passionate outburst from Admiral Fisher. For months he has worried over the potential loss of warships during the Dardanelles campaign, and in particular is concerned about Queen Elizabeth, Britain's newest and most advanced battleship. The loss of Goliath stokes these fears to a fever pitch, and Fisher insists that Queen Elizabeth be ordered to return to home waters immediately. Churchill accedes to the First Sea Lord's demand, but later this evening the argument is joined by Kitchener when he visits the Admiralty on a different matter. When the Secretary of War learns of Queen Elizabeth's recall, he goes into a rage, accusing the navy of abandoning the army after the army had come to the aid of the navy after the latter's failure to force the Dardanelles. Fisher, never one to back down from a fight, fires right back at Kitchener, declaring that Queen Elizabeth will sail for home this instant or he would resign on the spot. Kitchener returns to the War Office and pens an aggressive note to Asquith, but for now Fisher has won the argument: the orders for Queen Elizabeth's recall stand. The crisis over the Dardanelles, however, is just beginning.
- In German South-West Africa the advance of South African forces from Swakopmund on the coast and from the south has been slow and irregular, disrupted by supply difficulties more than German opposition. After several months, however, today the northern detachment, under the direct command of Prime Minister Botha, enters Windhoek, the capital of the German colony. In doing so the South Africans also seize the main wireless station, disrupting communications between the remaining German forces in the colony, now retreating northeast along the lone railway, and the outside world.
Monday, May 11, 2015
May 11th, 1915
- For months the First Sea Lord, Admiral Fisher, has held deep misgivings about the Dardanelles operation, fearing heavy losses for negligible gain. When Admiral de Robeck's signal arrives at the Admiralty suggesting another naval attempt to force the straits, Fisher erupts in anger, writing to Churchill: 'I cannot under any circumstances be a party to any order to Admiral de Robeck to make any attempt to pass the Dardanelles until the shores have been effectively occupied.' Churchill, in contrast, is willing to at least allow a limited attack to clear the minefield off Kephez. The vast divergence of opinion between the two over the Dardanelles operation is now in the open, and Fisher has laid down the gauntlet: if the naval operation proceeds he will no longer serve as First Sea Lord. Another fuse is lit . . .
- General d'Urbal orders further attacks today in Artois, and sends additional divisions to XXXIII and XX Corps as reinforcements. After a two hour artillery bombardment, the infantry advance, but are repeatedly repulsed by strong German defences; Pétain reports his attacks are broken up by heavy machine gun fire on his flanks and increased enemy artillery fire. On the German side OHL releases 117th Division as a further reinforcement to 6th Army, and it arrives southwest of Lens. With additional reinforcements it is hoped to be able to hold the threatened villages of Carency and Ablain.
- Today President Wilson presents to his cabinet the draft of a note he intends to send to the German government regarding the sinking of Lusitania. While he states that he does not believe the German government directly ordered the sinking, he sees it as the natural consequence of conducting unrestricted submarine warfare:
- In Galicia the Russian 3rd and 8th Armies begin their retreat eastward towards the San River, pursued by (from northwest to southeast) the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army, the German 11th Army, the Austro-Hungarian 3rd and 2nd Armies, and Südarmee. In places the battered Russians are able to disengage entirely, while in others their retreat is hastened by yet further fighting.
- Only in far eastern Galicia are the Russian still on the advance, continuing their offensive into the Bukovina. Today the Russian XXXIII Corps enlarged its bridgehead across the Dniester River yesterday, and today an attack to the west against the right wing of the Austro-Hungarian 15th Division forces the latter back. This retreat threatens the flank of the forces bottling up XXXIII Corps, and as a result the Austro-Hungarians are forced to withdraw to a new defensive line to the south, running through Horodenka and Obertyn.
- In Italy King Victor Emmanuel meets with Prime Minister Salandra this afternoon. The monarch is in a better mood than in prior days; yesterday's meeting with Giolitti has reassured him that the former prime minister will not attempt to return to power and provoke a grave constitutional crisis. Salandra, however, is still concerned about the extent of Giolitti's support in parliament, as the latter has voiced the belief that a vote of four-fifths against intervention would be sufficient to annul any otherwise binding commitment made to the Entente.
- In Mesopotamia General Nixon, commanding the Indian forces at and around Basra, formally instructs General Townshend of 6th Indian Division to clear the positions held by the Ottomans around Qurna, advance upriver, and occupy Amara.
- General d'Urbal orders further attacks today in Artois, and sends additional divisions to XXXIII and XX Corps as reinforcements. After a two hour artillery bombardment, the infantry advance, but are repeatedly repulsed by strong German defences; Pétain reports his attacks are broken up by heavy machine gun fire on his flanks and increased enemy artillery fire. On the German side OHL releases 117th Division as a further reinforcement to 6th Army, and it arrives southwest of Lens. With additional reinforcements it is hoped to be able to hold the threatened villages of Carency and Ablain.
- Today President Wilson presents to his cabinet the draft of a note he intends to send to the German government regarding the sinking of Lusitania. While he states that he does not believe the German government directly ordered the sinking, he sees it as the natural consequence of conducting unrestricted submarine warfare:
The government of the United States desires to call the attention of the Imperial German Government . . . to . . . the practical impossibility of employing submarines in the destruction of commerce without disregarding those rules of fairness, reason, justice, and humanity which all modern opinion regards as imperative. It is practically impossible for the officers of a submarine at sea to visit a merchantman at sea and examine her papers and cargo. It is practically impossible for them to make a prize of her; and if they cannot put a prize crew on board her, they cannot sink her without leaving her crew and all aboard to the mercy of the sea in her small boats. . . . Manifestly, submarines cannot be used against merchantmen . . . without an inevitable violation of many sacred principles of justice and humanity.Within cabinet, Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan sees the note as too pro-British; have not the British also violated international law in their conduct of their naval blockade of Germany? Bryan also opposes Americans travelling on ships belonging to combatants. His views are opposed by State Department Counselor Robert Lansing, who argues that the American government, having permitted American citizens to sail on British steamships to date, cannot now disavow such activity, and must insist on a German pledge to never conduct such an attack again. Bryan's objections are overruled, and Wilson's original note will be conveyed to the German government as is.
- In Galicia the Russian 3rd and 8th Armies begin their retreat eastward towards the San River, pursued by (from northwest to southeast) the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army, the German 11th Army, the Austro-Hungarian 3rd and 2nd Armies, and Südarmee. In places the battered Russians are able to disengage entirely, while in others their retreat is hastened by yet further fighting.
- Only in far eastern Galicia are the Russian still on the advance, continuing their offensive into the Bukovina. Today the Russian XXXIII Corps enlarged its bridgehead across the Dniester River yesterday, and today an attack to the west against the right wing of the Austro-Hungarian 15th Division forces the latter back. This retreat threatens the flank of the forces bottling up XXXIII Corps, and as a result the Austro-Hungarians are forced to withdraw to a new defensive line to the south, running through Horodenka and Obertyn.
- In Italy King Victor Emmanuel meets with Prime Minister Salandra this afternoon. The monarch is in a better mood than in prior days; yesterday's meeting with Giolitti has reassured him that the former prime minister will not attempt to return to power and provoke a grave constitutional crisis. Salandra, however, is still concerned about the extent of Giolitti's support in parliament, as the latter has voiced the belief that a vote of four-fifths against intervention would be sufficient to annul any otherwise binding commitment made to the Entente.
- In Mesopotamia General Nixon, commanding the Indian forces at and around Basra, formally instructs General Townshend of 6th Indian Division to clear the positions held by the Ottomans around Qurna, advance upriver, and occupy Amara.
Sunday, April 05, 2015
April 5th, 1915
- Today the French VIII and XXXI Corps advance against the southern face of the St.-Mihiel salient, advancing on the left flank of XII Corps. With this attack, covering almost the whole line from St.-Mihiel east to the Moselle River, the French hope to draw German reserves southwards as the main offensive is launched simultaneously against the western face of the salient. Here the French attacks are directed against the northern end of the salient, aiming to drive through the German lines towards the Woëvre plain, compelling the evacuation of the German positions to the south. A key objective is the hill of Les Éparges, from which the Germans can overlook the main French to the north towards the Woëvre plain.
The morning sees heavy rain and poor visibility, which postpones the attack until conditions improve in the afternoon. After a preliminary artillery bombardment commencing at 11am, the infantry advance starting at 215pm. Everywhere the attack is a shambles, primarily due to inadequate artillery support. With insufficient time to plan the bombardment, many German positions have not been struck, while the rolling terrain has hindered artillery observers. Further, the soil, saturated from days of rain, absorbed numerous shells before they could detonate. Nowhere have the French secured any ground of significance.
- Conrad writes to Falkenhayn today, reemphasizing yet again the difficult situation faced by the Austro-Hungarian army in the Carpathians. Further, Conrad argues, another reverse there would only encourage both Italy and Romania to enter the war, and that should this occur, Austria-Hungary would need to withdraw ten divisions from the Carpathians to meet this three (seven against Italy and three against Romania). He seeks assurances from Falkenhayn that these divisions will be replaced by German units should their withdrawal be necessary.
- Unbeknownst to Conrad, Falkenhayn is considering his own arrangements: General Cramon, the German military attache at Austro-Hungarian army headquarters, inquires of Colonial Johann Straub, head of the Austro-Hungarian Railroad Office, of the rail situation in the Gorlice-Tarnow region. Straub informs Cramon that it would be possible to send one hundred trains into the area, each of one hundred and eight cars, of which forty would haul supplies and sixty available to carry soldiers. This suggests a German force of four corps could be deployed there in about eight days.
- Meanwhile, in the Carpathians themselves, Austro-Hungarian fortunes are beginning to turn thanks to the arrive of German reinforcements. By this morning 25th and 35th Reserve Divisions of the German Beskid Corps are now in the line between Lupkow and the Laborczra valley, and launch a counterattack on the Russian lines, aided by the Austro-Hungarian 2nd Division. By late afternoon, they have advanced and seized the heights of Javirska and Kobila.
- Admiral Fisher once again writes to Churchill of his unease with the ongoing Dardanelles operation, which has only been heightened by the losses of March 18th: 'You are just simply eaten up with the Dardanelles and cannot think of anything else. Damn the Dardanelles! They will be our grave!' The fuse continues to burn . . .
- As British regular forces scattered throughout the Empire are called home in the first months of the war for service in France, the necessity arises for replacements for essential defense tasks. In some circumstances, the Colonial Office turns to the dominions for aid. Today, the first half of No. 6 Company, Royal Canadian Garrison Artillery, arrives at St. Lucia in the British Windward islands to man the half dozen artillery pieces defending the island.
The morning sees heavy rain and poor visibility, which postpones the attack until conditions improve in the afternoon. After a preliminary artillery bombardment commencing at 11am, the infantry advance starting at 215pm. Everywhere the attack is a shambles, primarily due to inadequate artillery support. With insufficient time to plan the bombardment, many German positions have not been struck, while the rolling terrain has hindered artillery observers. Further, the soil, saturated from days of rain, absorbed numerous shells before they could detonate. Nowhere have the French secured any ground of significance.
- Conrad writes to Falkenhayn today, reemphasizing yet again the difficult situation faced by the Austro-Hungarian army in the Carpathians. Further, Conrad argues, another reverse there would only encourage both Italy and Romania to enter the war, and that should this occur, Austria-Hungary would need to withdraw ten divisions from the Carpathians to meet this three (seven against Italy and three against Romania). He seeks assurances from Falkenhayn that these divisions will be replaced by German units should their withdrawal be necessary.
- Unbeknownst to Conrad, Falkenhayn is considering his own arrangements: General Cramon, the German military attache at Austro-Hungarian army headquarters, inquires of Colonial Johann Straub, head of the Austro-Hungarian Railroad Office, of the rail situation in the Gorlice-Tarnow region. Straub informs Cramon that it would be possible to send one hundred trains into the area, each of one hundred and eight cars, of which forty would haul supplies and sixty available to carry soldiers. This suggests a German force of four corps could be deployed there in about eight days.
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| The attack of the German Beskid Corps, Apr. 2nd to 5th, 1915. |
- Admiral Fisher once again writes to Churchill of his unease with the ongoing Dardanelles operation, which has only been heightened by the losses of March 18th: 'You are just simply eaten up with the Dardanelles and cannot think of anything else. Damn the Dardanelles! They will be our grave!' The fuse continues to burn . . .
- As British regular forces scattered throughout the Empire are called home in the first months of the war for service in France, the necessity arises for replacements for essential defense tasks. In some circumstances, the Colonial Office turns to the dominions for aid. Today, the first half of No. 6 Company, Royal Canadian Garrison Artillery, arrives at St. Lucia in the British Windward islands to man the half dozen artillery pieces defending the island.
Monday, March 23, 2015
March 23rd, 1915
- In the Vosges the French 1st Chasseur Brigade attacks German positions on Hartmannswillerkopf, and are able to capture the first two enemy lines on the Siberloch flank of the mountain.
- In the aftermath of the fall of Przemysl, Falkenhayn had written to Conrad expressing his belief that the best chance for success in the east lay in an offensive against Serbia. As this would necessitate Austria-Hungary standing on the defensive in the Carpathians, Conrad strongly objects in his reply of today. He fears that any failure against Serbia would be the final nail in the coffin of the Dual Monarchy's prestige, while he believes that a resumption of the offensive in the Carpathians can still achieve success. Conrad is not going to allow devastating failure to stop him from trying again.
- Admiral Robeck signals the Admiralty this morning of his intention to abandon a purely naval assault on the Dardanelles. Instead, he proposes to launch a combined naval and army attack on the straits and Gallipoli peninsula on or after April 14th, when General Hamilton has stated his forces will be prepared to land.
The news from Robeck comes as a surprise to Churchill, who had expected the attack of the 18th to be merely the first stage of an ongoing operation. The losses incurred in that attack, while unfortunate, are acceptable given the ability to dispatch reinforcements and the significance of the objective. The First Lord intends to overrule Robeck and order an immediate resumption of a naval-only operation, and summons a meeting of the senior leadership of the Royal Navy, including Admiral Fisher. The collected admirals, however, insist that Robeck, as the senior commander on the spot, is best-suited to judge the proper course of action, and if he advises that a landing is necessary, then the Admiralty should agree. For Fisher in particular, who has long loathed the Dardanelles operation and feared the consequences of heavy losses, Robeck's message is a godsend, providing the justification needed to abandon the naval assault and shift to an operation on which the major burden will fall on the army. All morning Churchill argues with Fisher and the admirals, and as a last resort the First Lord appeals to Asquith. The Prime Minister responds, however, that while he may personally sympathize with Churchill's position, he does not feel it proper to overrule the professional advice of the admirals.
At a Cabinet meeting this afternoon, Churchill mournfully announces that the naval operation against the Dardanelles is to be abandoned, replaced by a joint operation in which the focus shall be on an amphibious operation by forces under General Hamilton's command. Kitchener declares that the army will see the operation through to a successful conclusion, and the matter is settled. Afterwards Churchill informs Robeck that his plan has been approved. Entente operations at the Dardanelles will henceforth be directed by Hamilton and the army leadership, with the navy relegated to the role of providing fire support.
- Over the past few months the relationship between the Senussi in the Sahara and the Ottoman Empire has improved, given that the former has enthusiastically answered the call to jihad issued by the latter. Money and equipment has been smuggled in on Greek merchant ships, while today Nuri Efendi, younger brother of Enver Pasha and a veteran of the 1912 fighting in Libya against Italy, lands at Sollum near the Libyan-Egyptian frontier with fifty Ottoman officers to aid the Senussi.
- In the aftermath of the fall of Przemysl, Falkenhayn had written to Conrad expressing his belief that the best chance for success in the east lay in an offensive against Serbia. As this would necessitate Austria-Hungary standing on the defensive in the Carpathians, Conrad strongly objects in his reply of today. He fears that any failure against Serbia would be the final nail in the coffin of the Dual Monarchy's prestige, while he believes that a resumption of the offensive in the Carpathians can still achieve success. Conrad is not going to allow devastating failure to stop him from trying again.
- Admiral Robeck signals the Admiralty this morning of his intention to abandon a purely naval assault on the Dardanelles. Instead, he proposes to launch a combined naval and army attack on the straits and Gallipoli peninsula on or after April 14th, when General Hamilton has stated his forces will be prepared to land.
The news from Robeck comes as a surprise to Churchill, who had expected the attack of the 18th to be merely the first stage of an ongoing operation. The losses incurred in that attack, while unfortunate, are acceptable given the ability to dispatch reinforcements and the significance of the objective. The First Lord intends to overrule Robeck and order an immediate resumption of a naval-only operation, and summons a meeting of the senior leadership of the Royal Navy, including Admiral Fisher. The collected admirals, however, insist that Robeck, as the senior commander on the spot, is best-suited to judge the proper course of action, and if he advises that a landing is necessary, then the Admiralty should agree. For Fisher in particular, who has long loathed the Dardanelles operation and feared the consequences of heavy losses, Robeck's message is a godsend, providing the justification needed to abandon the naval assault and shift to an operation on which the major burden will fall on the army. All morning Churchill argues with Fisher and the admirals, and as a last resort the First Lord appeals to Asquith. The Prime Minister responds, however, that while he may personally sympathize with Churchill's position, he does not feel it proper to overrule the professional advice of the admirals.
At a Cabinet meeting this afternoon, Churchill mournfully announces that the naval operation against the Dardanelles is to be abandoned, replaced by a joint operation in which the focus shall be on an amphibious operation by forces under General Hamilton's command. Kitchener declares that the army will see the operation through to a successful conclusion, and the matter is settled. Afterwards Churchill informs Robeck that his plan has been approved. Entente operations at the Dardanelles will henceforth be directed by Hamilton and the army leadership, with the navy relegated to the role of providing fire support.
- Over the past few months the relationship between the Senussi in the Sahara and the Ottoman Empire has improved, given that the former has enthusiastically answered the call to jihad issued by the latter. Money and equipment has been smuggled in on Greek merchant ships, while today Nuri Efendi, younger brother of Enver Pasha and a veteran of the 1912 fighting in Libya against Italy, lands at Sollum near the Libyan-Egyptian frontier with fifty Ottoman officers to aid the Senussi.
Wednesday, March 04, 2015
March 4th, 1915
- Today the commander of the German 6th Army submits to Falkenhayn a plan for a major offensive operation in northern France, drawn up by the army's chief of staff. It called for a breakthrough on both sides of Arras, followed by an advance to the northwest towards the Channel coast between Calais and Boulogne. To the north, a secondary attack around Mount Kemmel would pin the Entente forces north of the breakthrough, while the southern flank would be protected by forces taking up defensive positions along the line Albert-Doullens-Authis.
Particular focus in the plan is placed on the initial breakthrough, working out in detail how such a success could be achieved given the stalemate on the Western Front. It argued that the initial attack should be undertaken by six corps along a twenty-six kilometre front, supported by 160 heavy and 374 field batteries. A further seven corps, plus two cavalry corps, would then follow to exploit the breakthrough. Special emphasis is placed on the plentiful provisin of artillery ammunition - 6th Army's operations around Ypres in October and November of last year had been hindered by shortages, which could not be repeated if the proposed operation were to be launched.
- This evening the Zeppelin L 8 is ordered to depart the airship base at Gontrode, near Ghent, and return to Düsseldorf. The commander of L 8 decides to interpret his orders liberally, and departs Gontrode with seventy incendiary bombs, intending to take a circuitous route to Düsseldorf and dropping his payload on the Essex coast. L 8 flies westward through thick clouds, occasionally descending below the cloud cover to ensure it is following the Channel coast. At 9pm, it descends to under a thousand feet at Nieuport, firing off recognition signals. Unfortunately for the Zeppelin, the Belgian trenches extend right to the Channel's edge, and they respond to the sudden appearance of the German airship by riddling it with rifle and machine-gun fire. L 8 dropped all of its bombs, ballast, and water to rise above the intense fire, and limps back eastward, hydrogen leaking from its air cells. Just after midnight, it will come down eighty-five miles short of Düsseldorf.
- In the Dover Straits, the British have erected nets with 'indicator' nets in an effort to prevent the movement of German submarines through the English Channel. Today these nets claim their first victim, U-9, when it becomes entangled and is sunk by gunfire from the destroyer Gurkha.
- Today the growing number of Ottoman soldiers on the Gallipoli peninsula leads to the withdrawal of the last of the Royal Marine landing parties set ashore on the 26th. Nevertheless, they have accomplished their objective of destroying the remainder of the Ottoman guns at the entrance to the Dardanelles.
Back in London, doubts over the Dardanelles operation continue to gnaw at Admiral Fisher, as he writes to Churchill today: 'The more I consider the Dardanelles the less I like it.'
Particular focus in the plan is placed on the initial breakthrough, working out in detail how such a success could be achieved given the stalemate on the Western Front. It argued that the initial attack should be undertaken by six corps along a twenty-six kilometre front, supported by 160 heavy and 374 field batteries. A further seven corps, plus two cavalry corps, would then follow to exploit the breakthrough. Special emphasis is placed on the plentiful provisin of artillery ammunition - 6th Army's operations around Ypres in October and November of last year had been hindered by shortages, which could not be repeated if the proposed operation were to be launched.
- This evening the Zeppelin L 8 is ordered to depart the airship base at Gontrode, near Ghent, and return to Düsseldorf. The commander of L 8 decides to interpret his orders liberally, and departs Gontrode with seventy incendiary bombs, intending to take a circuitous route to Düsseldorf and dropping his payload on the Essex coast. L 8 flies westward through thick clouds, occasionally descending below the cloud cover to ensure it is following the Channel coast. At 9pm, it descends to under a thousand feet at Nieuport, firing off recognition signals. Unfortunately for the Zeppelin, the Belgian trenches extend right to the Channel's edge, and they respond to the sudden appearance of the German airship by riddling it with rifle and machine-gun fire. L 8 dropped all of its bombs, ballast, and water to rise above the intense fire, and limps back eastward, hydrogen leaking from its air cells. Just after midnight, it will come down eighty-five miles short of Düsseldorf.
- In the Dover Straits, the British have erected nets with 'indicator' nets in an effort to prevent the movement of German submarines through the English Channel. Today these nets claim their first victim, U-9, when it becomes entangled and is sunk by gunfire from the destroyer Gurkha.
- Today the growing number of Ottoman soldiers on the Gallipoli peninsula leads to the withdrawal of the last of the Royal Marine landing parties set ashore on the 26th. Nevertheless, they have accomplished their objective of destroying the remainder of the Ottoman guns at the entrance to the Dardanelles.
Back in London, doubts over the Dardanelles operation continue to gnaw at Admiral Fisher, as he writes to Churchill today: 'The more I consider the Dardanelles the less I like it.'
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
January 28th, 1915
- A meeting of the War Council in London is scheduled for 1130am. Beforehand, Churchill receives a letter of resignation from Fisher over the latter's opposition to the proposed Dardanelles campaign. Unwilling to lose the First Sea Lord, Churchill drags Fisher to a private meeting with Asquith at 10 Downing Street. There the two rehash their positions, and Asquith, forced to choose, decides that the operation should go forward, and when Fisher receives the decision in silence, Churchill assumes the First Sea Lord has been won over. The trio then go to the War Council meeting in the Cabinet Room. Fisher, however, believes that Asquith resolved that the final decision will not be taken today. When Asquith instead states that a decision needs to be made today, Fisher silents stands and makes for the door. Lord Kitchener, well understanding what Fisher meant to do, leaps to his feet, gets to the door before Fisher, and steers him aside. The Secretary of State for War argued to Fisher that he was the only one opposed to the mission, and as the Prime Minister had made his decision, it was the First Sea Lord's responsibility to the country to implement the choice. Reluctantly, Fisher returns to the table, sitting in petulant silence as the discussion on the operation continues.
At 2pm the meeting is adjourned, at which point Churchill corners Fisher and proceeds to place, as he would later write, 'great and continuous pressure' on the First Sea Lord. Churchill, with his overbearing personality and absolute conviction in the rightness of his beliefs, finally wears down Fisher, and the latter finally agrees to consent to the operation. Elated, Churchill announces when the War Council reconvenes later in the afternoon that the entire Admiralty is behind the Dardanelles plan, and the meeting gives its final authorization for the attack to begin, though it will take several more weeks until the naval force is prepared to commence the operation. Fisher, however, has only momentarily yielded under the pressure of his associates; in his heart he still believes the Dardanelles operation is foolhardy and risks significant losses. It will only take for his fears to become reality for his opposition to resurface again.
- General de Langle of the French 4th Army issues details to his corps commanders today regarding his plan for the resumption of the offensive in the Champagne. For this next phase of the battle, 4th Army is to utilize five corps in the line, of which two - XVII and I - will undertake the initial penetration of the German front at Perthes. Once they have reached their objective, located about 1500 metres behind the line, they are to turn left and right in order to attack the German defenses from the flank and enlarge the breach. Following the breach IV Corps, 4th Army's reserve is to advance deep into the enemy position. Notably, the tactics de Langle outlines are for successive waves of infantry in order to achieve the initial breakthrough.
- In France while the shortage of artillery shells has been a focus of economic concern, there has also been criticism of the government regarding the provision of rifles. Production has been minimal, while 850 000 have been lost in the first six months of the war, leaving a shortfall of almost 700 000. Today the director of artillery meets with representatives of private industry regarding their manufacturing rifles for the army. While the firms represented are willing to take on government contracts, many are unable to fulfill the terms of the agreement - the precision required to produce rifles was far greater than such firms were accustomed to, and mobilization has reduced the available pool of skilled labour.
- As the Russian counterattack in the Carpathians continues, the east wing of the Russian 8th Army is able to advance against the centre of the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army. Today, XVIII Corps of the latter is pushed back five miles by the Russians.
At 2pm the meeting is adjourned, at which point Churchill corners Fisher and proceeds to place, as he would later write, 'great and continuous pressure' on the First Sea Lord. Churchill, with his overbearing personality and absolute conviction in the rightness of his beliefs, finally wears down Fisher, and the latter finally agrees to consent to the operation. Elated, Churchill announces when the War Council reconvenes later in the afternoon that the entire Admiralty is behind the Dardanelles plan, and the meeting gives its final authorization for the attack to begin, though it will take several more weeks until the naval force is prepared to commence the operation. Fisher, however, has only momentarily yielded under the pressure of his associates; in his heart he still believes the Dardanelles operation is foolhardy and risks significant losses. It will only take for his fears to become reality for his opposition to resurface again.
- General de Langle of the French 4th Army issues details to his corps commanders today regarding his plan for the resumption of the offensive in the Champagne. For this next phase of the battle, 4th Army is to utilize five corps in the line, of which two - XVII and I - will undertake the initial penetration of the German front at Perthes. Once they have reached their objective, located about 1500 metres behind the line, they are to turn left and right in order to attack the German defenses from the flank and enlarge the breach. Following the breach IV Corps, 4th Army's reserve is to advance deep into the enemy position. Notably, the tactics de Langle outlines are for successive waves of infantry in order to achieve the initial breakthrough.
- In France while the shortage of artillery shells has been a focus of economic concern, there has also been criticism of the government regarding the provision of rifles. Production has been minimal, while 850 000 have been lost in the first six months of the war, leaving a shortfall of almost 700 000. Today the director of artillery meets with representatives of private industry regarding their manufacturing rifles for the army. While the firms represented are willing to take on government contracts, many are unable to fulfill the terms of the agreement - the precision required to produce rifles was far greater than such firms were accustomed to, and mobilization has reduced the available pool of skilled labour.
- As the Russian counterattack in the Carpathians continues, the east wing of the Russian 8th Army is able to advance against the centre of the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army. Today, XVIII Corps of the latter is pushed back five miles by the Russians.
Sunday, January 25, 2015
January 25th, 1915
- This morning the heavy-damaged battlecruiser Seydlitz limps into the harbour at Wilhelmshaven, and after pumping out six hundred tons of water, it enters dry dock to begin what will be an extensive and lengthy repair. The devastation wrought by the explosion of the two aft turrets on Seydlitz does have one benefit, as the Germans realize just how potentially destructive a fire in a turret can be. In particular, they are acutely aware of how narrowly they avoided disaster; if the fire in the turrets had ignited the main magazine as the result of a 'flash fire', as the phenomenon is named, the warship would have ceased to exist. The conclusion drawn is that the turret must always be isolated from the magazine, even while ammunition is being hoisted from the latter to the former. To do this, automatic doors are to be installed on all German dreadnoughts and battlecruisers designed to close immediately after a load of ammunition has passed them by. Through this, it is hoped that the destruction wrought by a 'flash fire' will be limited only to the turret initially struck. It is a vital insight that the Royal Navy, having no warship damaged by a flash fire, is entirely ignorant, an oversight for which several thousand sailors will pay with their lives in seventeen months time.
- In Britain construction of the battlecruisers Renown and Repulse begins today as the keels are laid down. The design of the two warships was done at the insistence of Admiral Fisher, who views Renown and Repulse as embodying a further evolution of battlecruiser design; namely, even higher speed with even less armour. The two will have six 15-inch guns and the remarkable maximum speed of 32 knots, though this is accomplished at the expense of armour - they are more thin-skinned than any other dreadnought or battlecruiser afloat. Fisher does nothing by moderation, and if he is wants to trade armour and armament for speed, then there is no length to which he is not willing to go.
- Admiral Fisher sends a memorandum relating his views on the proposed attack against the Dardanelles to Prime Minister Asquith today, with a copy to Churchill. The First Sea Lord argues that any subsidiary operations play into Germany's hands, as the margin of superiority in the North Sea is vital to naval supremacy, and any losses, even of second-rank warships, can have an impact. Though Fisher asks that his memorandum be circulated to the War Council, Asquith, on Churchill's advice, refuses.
- Though held by the French during the Race to the Sea, the town of Albert is within easy shelling distance of German artillery on the other side of the front line. Today, a German shell strikes the top of the Basilica of Notre Dame de Brebières in Albert, causing the statue of Mary holding the baby Jesus to lodge in a horizontal position that appeared to defy logic and gravity. The 'Leaning Virgin', as it will be known, becomes a familiar sight to Entente soldiers marching to the nearby front, and both sides believe that whomever will cause the statue to fall will lose the war.
- Falkenhayn issues further instructions to his army commanders on the Western Front regarding the defense of German lines. While he authorizes the construction of reserve lines and fortifications , he emphasizes that every effort must be expended on holding the first trench line, and the additional defences are only to be utilized in the case that the front trench is penetrated. Further, any lost ground is to be the target of an immediate counterattack.
- In Galicia the offensive by the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army and Südarmee continues to make little progress. X Corps of the former has seen its attack on the Russian lines fail and is ordered to cease offensive operations so that the few reserves available to 3rd Army can be sent to the east wing in an effort to find a way forward.
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| The damaged German battlecruiser Seydlitz returning to port after the Battle of Dogger Bank. |
- In Britain construction of the battlecruisers Renown and Repulse begins today as the keels are laid down. The design of the two warships was done at the insistence of Admiral Fisher, who views Renown and Repulse as embodying a further evolution of battlecruiser design; namely, even higher speed with even less armour. The two will have six 15-inch guns and the remarkable maximum speed of 32 knots, though this is accomplished at the expense of armour - they are more thin-skinned than any other dreadnought or battlecruiser afloat. Fisher does nothing by moderation, and if he is wants to trade armour and armament for speed, then there is no length to which he is not willing to go.
- Admiral Fisher sends a memorandum relating his views on the proposed attack against the Dardanelles to Prime Minister Asquith today, with a copy to Churchill. The First Sea Lord argues that any subsidiary operations play into Germany's hands, as the margin of superiority in the North Sea is vital to naval supremacy, and any losses, even of second-rank warships, can have an impact. Though Fisher asks that his memorandum be circulated to the War Council, Asquith, on Churchill's advice, refuses.
- Though held by the French during the Race to the Sea, the town of Albert is within easy shelling distance of German artillery on the other side of the front line. Today, a German shell strikes the top of the Basilica of Notre Dame de Brebières in Albert, causing the statue of Mary holding the baby Jesus to lodge in a horizontal position that appeared to defy logic and gravity. The 'Leaning Virgin', as it will be known, becomes a familiar sight to Entente soldiers marching to the nearby front, and both sides believe that whomever will cause the statue to fall will lose the war.
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| The Basilica of Notre Dame de Brebières in Albert, with the 'Leaning Virgin' poised as if in mid-air. |
- Falkenhayn issues further instructions to his army commanders on the Western Front regarding the defense of German lines. While he authorizes the construction of reserve lines and fortifications , he emphasizes that every effort must be expended on holding the first trench line, and the additional defences are only to be utilized in the case that the front trench is penetrated. Further, any lost ground is to be the target of an immediate counterattack.
- In Galicia the offensive by the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army and Südarmee continues to make little progress. X Corps of the former has seen its attack on the Russian lines fail and is ordered to cease offensive operations so that the few reserves available to 3rd Army can be sent to the east wing in an effort to find a way forward.
Monday, January 19, 2015
January 19th, 1915
- Joffre today issues an order for 4th Army to commence planning for a resumption of its offensive in the Champagne. However, the attack is to wait until dry weather, while General de Langle of 4th Army insists on fourteen days of preparation time.
- After a first attempt by Zeppelins to raid the English coast on January 13th was aborted due to heavy rain, a second attempt this evening by L 3 and L 4 is successful (L 6 was forced to turn back due to engine failure). The former crossed the north Norfolk coast and made its way to the port of Great Yarmouth, where it dropped six 110-pound explosive bombs and seven incendiary bombs which do only minor damage while killing two civilians. L 4, meanwhile, also crosses the coast in Norfolk, but its commander believes himself to be near the Humber estuary, almost eighty miles away. This Zeppelin follows a meandering course over the English countryside, searching for a river that he is nowhere near to, periodically dropping bombs in response to being fired upon. Notably, one of these bombs on the village of Sandringham, home of the royal home of the same name. Believing his airship to be north of the Humber, the commander of L 4 drops seven explosive and six incendiary bombs on the town of King's Lynn, killing a woman and a boy.
- Though Admiral Fisher has acquiesced to the Dardanelles operation, he remains deeply concerned about the potential for naval losses in the effort to force the Straits. Today he unburdens himself to Jellicoe in his typical forthright manner:
Fisher feels trapped by his obligations as First Sea Lord - the decision to attack the Dardanelles is ultimately one made by the politicians, and once agreed upon he is obligated to implement it, regardless of whatever personal misgivings he has. Resignation is the only way out of the quandary and will remain in Fisher's mind in the months ahead.
- In German East Africa Colonel Lettow-Vorbeck has concentrated nine companies of Schütztruppen against the British garrison at Jasin, which had been occupied on December 25th. After days of fighting, and outnumbered with no prospect of relief, the four Indian companies surrender today. In the aftermath of the defeat at Tanga in November, it is yet another blow to British morale and prestige in eastern Africa. However, it is also a Phyrric victory for Lettow-Vorbeck, as in the fighting he lost 15% of his overall strength, including twenty-three of 265 Europeans killed, and had used 200 000 rounds of ammunition. Given the unlikelihood of reinforcement from Germany, losses of any kind need to be avoided, and considering that the British garrison at Jasin posed no threat to any position of importance in German East Africa, the offensive was misguided, and a reflection of how Lettow-Vorbeck's instincts, at least in this early phase of the war, were still in favour of frontal attacks as opposed to guerrilla warfare.
- After a first attempt by Zeppelins to raid the English coast on January 13th was aborted due to heavy rain, a second attempt this evening by L 3 and L 4 is successful (L 6 was forced to turn back due to engine failure). The former crossed the north Norfolk coast and made its way to the port of Great Yarmouth, where it dropped six 110-pound explosive bombs and seven incendiary bombs which do only minor damage while killing two civilians. L 4, meanwhile, also crosses the coast in Norfolk, but its commander believes himself to be near the Humber estuary, almost eighty miles away. This Zeppelin follows a meandering course over the English countryside, searching for a river that he is nowhere near to, periodically dropping bombs in response to being fired upon. Notably, one of these bombs on the village of Sandringham, home of the royal home of the same name. Believing his airship to be north of the Humber, the commander of L 4 drops seven explosive and six incendiary bombs on the town of King's Lynn, killing a woman and a boy.
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| Damaged property in King's Lynn after the bombing raid of L 4, January 19th, 1915. |
- Though Admiral Fisher has acquiesced to the Dardanelles operation, he remains deeply concerned about the potential for naval losses in the effort to force the Straits. Today he unburdens himself to Jellicoe in his typical forthright manner:
The Cabinet have decided on taking the Dardanelles solely with the navy using fifteen battleships and 32 other vessels, and keeping out there three battlecruisers and a flotilla of destroyers all urgently needed at the decisive theater at home. There is only one way out and that is to resign. But you say 'No!' which simply means I am a consenting party to what I absolutely disapprove. I don't agree with one single step taken . . . The way the war is conducted both ashore and afloat is chaotic! We have a new plan every week.
Fisher feels trapped by his obligations as First Sea Lord - the decision to attack the Dardanelles is ultimately one made by the politicians, and once agreed upon he is obligated to implement it, regardless of whatever personal misgivings he has. Resignation is the only way out of the quandary and will remain in Fisher's mind in the months ahead.
- In German East Africa Colonel Lettow-Vorbeck has concentrated nine companies of Schütztruppen against the British garrison at Jasin, which had been occupied on December 25th. After days of fighting, and outnumbered with no prospect of relief, the four Indian companies surrender today. In the aftermath of the defeat at Tanga in November, it is yet another blow to British morale and prestige in eastern Africa. However, it is also a Phyrric victory for Lettow-Vorbeck, as in the fighting he lost 15% of his overall strength, including twenty-three of 265 Europeans killed, and had used 200 000 rounds of ammunition. Given the unlikelihood of reinforcement from Germany, losses of any kind need to be avoided, and considering that the British garrison at Jasin posed no threat to any position of importance in German East Africa, the offensive was misguided, and a reflection of how Lettow-Vorbeck's instincts, at least in this early phase of the war, were still in favour of frontal attacks as opposed to guerrilla warfare.
Tuesday, January 13, 2015
January 13th, 1915
- An all-day meeting of the War Council is held in London today. After an exhausting discussion that touched on a wide range of issues, including the ongoing stalemate on the Western Front, just after sunset Churchill presents his plan for a purely naval attack on the Dardanelles. The mood of the meeting is suddenly transformed - from despair at the futility of operations in France and Belgium to optimism and hope at the prospects in the eastern Mediterranean. Here Churchill's plan offered the potential for a war-winning operation without the massive casualties that would be necessitated by further efforts to pierce the German lines on the Western Front. Success at the Dardanelles would allow the British squadron to anchor off Constantinople, and under the threat of bombardment force the surrender of the Ottoman government. With the Straits in Entente hands, munitions and armaments could flow unimpeded to the Russian, giving them the material necessary to complement their numerical advantage on the Eastern Front. Such a visible and overwhelming Entente victory would also certainly persuade the Balkan neutrals to enter the war on their side, and would open up a southern front for the invasion and destruction of Austria-Hungary. Churchill presented the plan with all his oratorical talents, and the Council is caught up in his enthusiasm. Admiral Fisher is in attendance, but is not asked for, nor does he offer, his opinions - he sees the War Council as a political, not a military, body, and thus the service chiefs are there merely to offer advice if asked, not attempt to persuade. The Council unanimously agrees that the Admiralty should prepare for an operation to break through the Dardanelles, with Constantinople as its objective. What will become one of the most controversial campaigns of the First World War has now been set in motion, and the next link in the chain connecting Enver Pasha's decision to invade the Caucasus and the fall of the last Liberal government in Britain is created.
- Along the Aisne French reinforcements are dispatched to the immediate north of Soissons to regain the ground lost yesterday at Crouy. The French movement, however, is a double failure - not only to they fail to regain the lost trenches around Crouy, buy they are also out of position to respond to the major German attack launched this afternoon just to the west centred on Vregny. By evening the Germans have pushed through Vregny and reached the northern edge of the wooded slope stretching down to the Aisne River.
- Joffe formally suspends the attacks of 10th Army in Artois and 4th Army in Champagne today, with neither offensive accomplishing more than the most negligible gains. For his part, General Fernand de Langle de Cary, commander of 4th Army, submits a review of his operation to Joffre which emphasizes the difficulty of breaking through the enemy front through a 'continous' attack. Instead, he suggests that once initial objectives have been achieved, it is necessary to repeat preparations for subsequent attacks, including digging approach trenches and an intensive preliminary artillery bombardment. De Langle is arguing in favour of a methodical, step-by-step approach to offensive operations, as opposed to the 'continuous' method which calls for repeated waves of infantry assaults to overwhelm defensive positions.
- In Austria-Hungary today Count Berchtold is replaced as Foreign Minister by Count Stephan Burián, reflecting the triumph of the opponents of territorial concessions to Italy and Romania. Instead, the Empire will seek to restore its international reputation through battlefield victory.
- In German South-West Africa the South African force that landed at Walvis Bay on December 25th today occupies the town of Swakopmund just to the north, which is also the terminus of the northern rail line running from the coast inland to the colonial capital at Windhoek. Further south, a thousand Boer rebels, formed into different groups commanded by Maritz and Kemp, cross the frontier into South Africa for a second time after the failure of December.
- Along the Aisne French reinforcements are dispatched to the immediate north of Soissons to regain the ground lost yesterday at Crouy. The French movement, however, is a double failure - not only to they fail to regain the lost trenches around Crouy, buy they are also out of position to respond to the major German attack launched this afternoon just to the west centred on Vregny. By evening the Germans have pushed through Vregny and reached the northern edge of the wooded slope stretching down to the Aisne River.
- Joffe formally suspends the attacks of 10th Army in Artois and 4th Army in Champagne today, with neither offensive accomplishing more than the most negligible gains. For his part, General Fernand de Langle de Cary, commander of 4th Army, submits a review of his operation to Joffre which emphasizes the difficulty of breaking through the enemy front through a 'continous' attack. Instead, he suggests that once initial objectives have been achieved, it is necessary to repeat preparations for subsequent attacks, including digging approach trenches and an intensive preliminary artillery bombardment. De Langle is arguing in favour of a methodical, step-by-step approach to offensive operations, as opposed to the 'continuous' method which calls for repeated waves of infantry assaults to overwhelm defensive positions.
- In Austria-Hungary today Count Berchtold is replaced as Foreign Minister by Count Stephan Burián, reflecting the triumph of the opponents of territorial concessions to Italy and Romania. Instead, the Empire will seek to restore its international reputation through battlefield victory.
- In German South-West Africa the South African force that landed at Walvis Bay on December 25th today occupies the town of Swakopmund just to the north, which is also the terminus of the northern rail line running from the coast inland to the colonial capital at Windhoek. Further south, a thousand Boer rebels, formed into different groups commanded by Maritz and Kemp, cross the frontier into South Africa for a second time after the failure of December.
Monday, January 12, 2015
January 12th, 1915
- Admiral Carden submits his plan for the attack on the Dardanelles this morning. He suggests a slow and methodical approach, knocking out the Ottoman forts one-by-one while minesweepers clears the Straits, in order to minimize losses. He estimates the operation will take one month, and should be undertaken by a force of twelve pre-dreadnoughts, three battlecruisers (to deal with Goeben), three light cruisers, sixteen destroyers, six submarines and twelve minesweepers.
Carden's plan is discussed at the Admiralty by Churchill and his senior admirals, including the First Sea Lord. No one objects to Churchill's strong endorsement of the proposal, and crucially Fisher suggests adding to the force the newly-commissioned dreadnought Queen Elizabeth. It was scheduled to undertake gunnery training off Gibraltar in February, but if it is going to be lobbing 15-inch shells in practice, they might as well be aimed at Ottoman forts instead of the open sea.
- Falkenhayn travels to the headquarters of OberOst at Posen today, where he discusses the general situation on the Eastern Front with Hindenburg and also receives a briefing from Colonel Max Hoffman regarding ongoing planning for an offensive from East Prussia. Falkenhayn, however, refuses to commit to deploying the four new reserve corps to the Eastern Front before his departure back to Berlin.
- At 11am this morning, the German counterattack north of Soissons is launched on the heights east of Crouy, home to vital French artillery observation posts. The attack catches the French completely by surprise and the Germans capture the heights, resulting in a noticeable slackening of French artillery fire. At noon, two regiments of 9th Infantry Brigade takes the trenches north and northwest of Crouy which, in combination with an attack of 7th Reserve Division to the west, undoes the French success achieved over the past few days. This convinces General Lochow of III Corps to launch the previously-planned offensive tomorrow.
Carden's plan is discussed at the Admiralty by Churchill and his senior admirals, including the First Sea Lord. No one objects to Churchill's strong endorsement of the proposal, and crucially Fisher suggests adding to the force the newly-commissioned dreadnought Queen Elizabeth. It was scheduled to undertake gunnery training off Gibraltar in February, but if it is going to be lobbing 15-inch shells in practice, they might as well be aimed at Ottoman forts instead of the open sea.
- Falkenhayn travels to the headquarters of OberOst at Posen today, where he discusses the general situation on the Eastern Front with Hindenburg and also receives a briefing from Colonel Max Hoffman regarding ongoing planning for an offensive from East Prussia. Falkenhayn, however, refuses to commit to deploying the four new reserve corps to the Eastern Front before his departure back to Berlin.
- At 11am this morning, the German counterattack north of Soissons is launched on the heights east of Crouy, home to vital French artillery observation posts. The attack catches the French completely by surprise and the Germans capture the heights, resulting in a noticeable slackening of French artillery fire. At noon, two regiments of 9th Infantry Brigade takes the trenches north and northwest of Crouy which, in combination with an attack of 7th Reserve Division to the west, undoes the French success achieved over the past few days. This convinces General Lochow of III Corps to launch the previously-planned offensive tomorrow.
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| The Battle of Soissons, January 12th to 14th, 1915. |
Saturday, January 03, 2015
January 3rd, 1915
- Churchill discusses a potential naval operation against the Ottoman Dardanelles today with Admiral Fisher. The latter is enthusiastic, but only if an attack is immediate, includes the landing of 100 000 soldiers (75 000 from the Western Front and 25 000 from India), military support from Greece and Bulgaria, and uses only pre-dreadnoughts. Of the four points, only the latter is possible - in particular, there is absolutely no chance whatsoever of Sir John French agreeing to withdraw such a substantial force from the Western Front, given the belief of himself and the rest of the BEF leadership that the war can only be won or lost in France and Belgium.
The First Lord, however, is taken with the idea of a purely naval operation, and in particular of using the power of the Royal Navy to force the Ottoman Empire out of the war. The great hope is that if a powerful British squadron can force its way through the Dardanelles and anchor off Constantinople, the Ottoman government will collapse, opening sea lanes to Russia and invasion routes to the Balkans. This is more than simply aiding the Russians - to its most ardent supporters the Dardanelles operation carries the potential to win the war without the constant slaughter of the Western Front.
Crucially, when Churchill sends a message to Vice Admiral Sackville Hamilton Carden, commanding the British squadron currently blockading the Dardanelles, he asks simply if he thinks the Dardanelles can be forced by a naval operation - no mention is made of amphibious operations. This opens what will grow into a great chasm between the First Lord and the First Sea Lord - the former believes that the navy can do the job by itself, while the latter, worried over warship losses, believes army support is essential. It will be a long-simmering divide, but one that will eventually destroy not only their working relationship but the government itself as well.
The First Lord, however, is taken with the idea of a purely naval operation, and in particular of using the power of the Royal Navy to force the Ottoman Empire out of the war. The great hope is that if a powerful British squadron can force its way through the Dardanelles and anchor off Constantinople, the Ottoman government will collapse, opening sea lanes to Russia and invasion routes to the Balkans. This is more than simply aiding the Russians - to its most ardent supporters the Dardanelles operation carries the potential to win the war without the constant slaughter of the Western Front.
Crucially, when Churchill sends a message to Vice Admiral Sackville Hamilton Carden, commanding the British squadron currently blockading the Dardanelles, he asks simply if he thinks the Dardanelles can be forced by a naval operation - no mention is made of amphibious operations. This opens what will grow into a great chasm between the First Lord and the First Sea Lord - the former believes that the navy can do the job by itself, while the latter, worried over warship losses, believes army support is essential. It will be a long-simmering divide, but one that will eventually destroy not only their working relationship but the government itself as well.
Wednesday, November 05, 2014
November 5th, 1914
- In Flanders General d'Urbal recieves instructions from General Foch that, as per communications from Joffre, the possibility of a decisive breakthrough north or south of Ypres had all but disappeared, given the time the Germans have had to entrench in their current positions. Conversely, indications at present suggest the Germans have themselves abandoned hopes for a breakthrough. Instead, it would be preferable to withdraw troops from the fighting to reconstitute reserves for the French army elsewhere.
The one thing Foch does not do is order d'Urbal to cease his attacks on the German lines. In the absence of such orders, attacking is precisely what d'Urbal does. For his efforts today precisely no ground is gained, and indeed Hill 75, just to the west of Messines, is captured by the Germans today.
On the British front it is finally possible this evening to relieve 7th Division and 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, replacing the former with battalions drawn from II Corps and the latter with 6th Cavalry Brigade. 7th Division epitomizes the struggles faced by the BEF and the losses they have suffered. It has been in near-constant combat, and under continual shelling, since October 19th, and of the 12 522 officers and men who comprised the division when it landed at Ghent on October 12th, only 4149 men remain when it is pulled out of the line today, which includes 2000 soldiers sent as reinforcements over the past month - its commander has been heard to joke darkly that he is a divisional commander without a division.
Nevertheless, the prevailing mood at BEF HQ is that the worst has now past. Field Marshal French and his corps commanders meet today to discuss the disposition of the BEF over the winter and the provision of leave arrangements.
This optimism, of course, is completely unfounded, as Falkenhayn has determined to make one last push at Ypres. Today 4th Division, one of the units designated as reinforcements for the offensive, begins detraining today at Lille.
- Today the British government declares the entire North Sea a war zone, and that all vessels entering these waters do so at their own risk. Ostensibly the move is a response to the laying of German mine fields in the North Sea, but in practice it is a further step in tightening the blockade of Germany - by declaring the North Sea a war zone, the hope is that all neutral traffic would use the Dover Straits where it could be inspected for contraband, a much easier process than patrolling the gap between Scotland and Norway. Again the British government is undertaking a delicate balancing act - the needs of the Admiralty must constantly be balanced by the Foreign Office's concerns with the impact on neutral opinion.
- This evening the British battlecruisers Invincible and Inflexible depart Cromarty Firth on the west Scottish coast, where they had been a part of Admiral Beatty's Battlecruiser Squadron, en route to Plymouth, where they are to have machinery replaced and take on supplies prior to departure for the South Atlantic. Their redeployment is the brainchild of Admiral Fisher, just as the ships themselves were a result of his vision of modern naval warfare expounded upon during his earlier tenure as First Sea Lord. He believed that speed and firepower was paramount, and envisioned the battlecruiser being able to catch everything it could sink and escape from what it couldn't. In practice this meant having the main armament, but not the armour, of a dreadnought, which gave it several knots advantage over the latter.
In sending them to the South Atlantic they are to form the cornerstone of the British effort to find and sink the German East Asiatic Squadron. The two battlecruisers are faster than Spee's armoured cruisers, and with heavier main armament is able to fire larger shells over a distance significantly farther than Spee's own main armament can reach. In other words, they are the perfect weapon to annihilate the German squadron and avenge Coronel - it is the Royal Navy equivalent of stacking the deck in its favour. Indeed, this is one of the core missions Fisher had envisioned his battlecruisers undertaking - hunting down and sinking enemy commerce raiders.
Of course, the admirals losing Invincible and Inflexible are not pleased about the redeployment. Beatty is aghast at losing two of his precious battlecruisers, and while Admiral Jellicoe can understand the logic behind the move, he is all-too-aware that it further reduce the British margin of superiority in the North Sea shortly after the loss of the dreadnought Audacious. The next several months will constitute the closest the German High Seas Fleet will come to parity with the British Grand Fleet.
- All other options exhausted, Britain and France today declare war on the Ottoman Empire. Simultaneously, the British announce the formal annexation the Ottoman island of Cyprus, which they have occupied since the Congress of Berlin in 1878. Though this does little more than make de jure what has long been de facto, the action outrages public opinion in Greece, given the substantial Greek population on Cyprus and the belief that the island belongs to them.
The Entente powers are also cognizant of the potential for unrest among the Muslim population of their colonies as they go to war with the preeminent Muslim state in the world. In an effort to neutralize the issue, the governor-general of French Algeria issues a proclamation that differentiates between the Young Turk rulers of the Ottoman Empire, who are seen as puppets of Germany, and the Turkish people as a whole.
- The Russian declaration of war on the Ottoman Empire yesterday opens a new front in the war, as the two empires share a frontier in the Caucasus. The terrain here is rough and broken, dominated by the Caucasus and Taurus mountain ranges, and the poverty of the region was such that at the best of times the peasants were barely able to feed themselves. Two railways on the Russian side approached the border, but their configeration was based on commerce, not defense, while on the Turkish side the nearest railway to Erzurum, the principal Ottoman city in the Caucasus, is 640 miles away. The weather is also terrible, winter lasting from early November to between late March and May, with snow of two metres in the valleys and temperatures falling below minus twenty degrees centigrade.
All of this combines to convince the Russians that there is little risk of Ottoman invasion. Indeed, the primary Russian focus is internal, not external - the region has always been a troublesome colonial frontier for the Russians, and groups such as the Georgians continue to agitate and organize to fight for independence. To this end the Russian I Caucasian Corps, the main Russian force responsible for the region's defense, has been ordered to secure the line Bayazit-Eleskirt-Id, just inside the Ottoman border, this constituting a shorter front than if the corps remained on the Russian side of the frontier. However, this evening General Georgii Bergmann, who commands I Caucasian Corps and desires glory on the battlefield, orders in his own initiative a further advance to Hasankale on the main road to Erzurum.
- At Tanga the German defenders now number 1500, but Colonel Lettow-Vorbeck is uneasy. Though the British were repulsed yesterday, he is aware that they had managed to penetrate into Tanga before doing so, and is concerned that a more concerted and determined British advance might yet succeed. Further, though the enemy advance on Longido failed on the 3rd, he is conscious that he has only three companies there should the British go back over onto the attack. At 5pm, he concludes that Tanga can no longer be held, and begins preparations to withdraw.
As it turns out, however, the British had beaten him to the punch. After the debacle of yesterday the soldiers of Indian Expeditionary Force B were hopelessly demoralized, and their commander convinced that victory was impossible. Thus the British evacuate their forces from the beachhead near Tanga, a process complete by 320pm. Such was their haste to evacuate that they left all of its heavy supplies behind, among which were eight machine-guns, 455 rifles, and half a million rounds, a vital contribution to Lettow-Vorbeck's force given the difficulties of resupply from Germany itself. The entire British operation, from first to last, has been a disaster, giving the Germans a notable victory and, for now at least, bringing a halt to offensive operations against German East Africa.
The one thing Foch does not do is order d'Urbal to cease his attacks on the German lines. In the absence of such orders, attacking is precisely what d'Urbal does. For his efforts today precisely no ground is gained, and indeed Hill 75, just to the west of Messines, is captured by the Germans today.
On the British front it is finally possible this evening to relieve 7th Division and 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, replacing the former with battalions drawn from II Corps and the latter with 6th Cavalry Brigade. 7th Division epitomizes the struggles faced by the BEF and the losses they have suffered. It has been in near-constant combat, and under continual shelling, since October 19th, and of the 12 522 officers and men who comprised the division when it landed at Ghent on October 12th, only 4149 men remain when it is pulled out of the line today, which includes 2000 soldiers sent as reinforcements over the past month - its commander has been heard to joke darkly that he is a divisional commander without a division.
Nevertheless, the prevailing mood at BEF HQ is that the worst has now past. Field Marshal French and his corps commanders meet today to discuss the disposition of the BEF over the winter and the provision of leave arrangements.
This optimism, of course, is completely unfounded, as Falkenhayn has determined to make one last push at Ypres. Today 4th Division, one of the units designated as reinforcements for the offensive, begins detraining today at Lille.
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| The Battle of Ypres, October 5th to 9th, 1914. |
- Today the British government declares the entire North Sea a war zone, and that all vessels entering these waters do so at their own risk. Ostensibly the move is a response to the laying of German mine fields in the North Sea, but in practice it is a further step in tightening the blockade of Germany - by declaring the North Sea a war zone, the hope is that all neutral traffic would use the Dover Straits where it could be inspected for contraband, a much easier process than patrolling the gap between Scotland and Norway. Again the British government is undertaking a delicate balancing act - the needs of the Admiralty must constantly be balanced by the Foreign Office's concerns with the impact on neutral opinion.
- This evening the British battlecruisers Invincible and Inflexible depart Cromarty Firth on the west Scottish coast, where they had been a part of Admiral Beatty's Battlecruiser Squadron, en route to Plymouth, where they are to have machinery replaced and take on supplies prior to departure for the South Atlantic. Their redeployment is the brainchild of Admiral Fisher, just as the ships themselves were a result of his vision of modern naval warfare expounded upon during his earlier tenure as First Sea Lord. He believed that speed and firepower was paramount, and envisioned the battlecruiser being able to catch everything it could sink and escape from what it couldn't. In practice this meant having the main armament, but not the armour, of a dreadnought, which gave it several knots advantage over the latter.
In sending them to the South Atlantic they are to form the cornerstone of the British effort to find and sink the German East Asiatic Squadron. The two battlecruisers are faster than Spee's armoured cruisers, and with heavier main armament is able to fire larger shells over a distance significantly farther than Spee's own main armament can reach. In other words, they are the perfect weapon to annihilate the German squadron and avenge Coronel - it is the Royal Navy equivalent of stacking the deck in its favour. Indeed, this is one of the core missions Fisher had envisioned his battlecruisers undertaking - hunting down and sinking enemy commerce raiders.
Of course, the admirals losing Invincible and Inflexible are not pleased about the redeployment. Beatty is aghast at losing two of his precious battlecruisers, and while Admiral Jellicoe can understand the logic behind the move, he is all-too-aware that it further reduce the British margin of superiority in the North Sea shortly after the loss of the dreadnought Audacious. The next several months will constitute the closest the German High Seas Fleet will come to parity with the British Grand Fleet.
- All other options exhausted, Britain and France today declare war on the Ottoman Empire. Simultaneously, the British announce the formal annexation the Ottoman island of Cyprus, which they have occupied since the Congress of Berlin in 1878. Though this does little more than make de jure what has long been de facto, the action outrages public opinion in Greece, given the substantial Greek population on Cyprus and the belief that the island belongs to them.
The Entente powers are also cognizant of the potential for unrest among the Muslim population of their colonies as they go to war with the preeminent Muslim state in the world. In an effort to neutralize the issue, the governor-general of French Algeria issues a proclamation that differentiates between the Young Turk rulers of the Ottoman Empire, who are seen as puppets of Germany, and the Turkish people as a whole.
- The Russian declaration of war on the Ottoman Empire yesterday opens a new front in the war, as the two empires share a frontier in the Caucasus. The terrain here is rough and broken, dominated by the Caucasus and Taurus mountain ranges, and the poverty of the region was such that at the best of times the peasants were barely able to feed themselves. Two railways on the Russian side approached the border, but their configeration was based on commerce, not defense, while on the Turkish side the nearest railway to Erzurum, the principal Ottoman city in the Caucasus, is 640 miles away. The weather is also terrible, winter lasting from early November to between late March and May, with snow of two metres in the valleys and temperatures falling below minus twenty degrees centigrade.
All of this combines to convince the Russians that there is little risk of Ottoman invasion. Indeed, the primary Russian focus is internal, not external - the region has always been a troublesome colonial frontier for the Russians, and groups such as the Georgians continue to agitate and organize to fight for independence. To this end the Russian I Caucasian Corps, the main Russian force responsible for the region's defense, has been ordered to secure the line Bayazit-Eleskirt-Id, just inside the Ottoman border, this constituting a shorter front than if the corps remained on the Russian side of the frontier. However, this evening General Georgii Bergmann, who commands I Caucasian Corps and desires glory on the battlefield, orders in his own initiative a further advance to Hasankale on the main road to Erzurum.
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| The Caucasus Theatre. |
- At Tanga the German defenders now number 1500, but Colonel Lettow-Vorbeck is uneasy. Though the British were repulsed yesterday, he is aware that they had managed to penetrate into Tanga before doing so, and is concerned that a more concerted and determined British advance might yet succeed. Further, though the enemy advance on Longido failed on the 3rd, he is conscious that he has only three companies there should the British go back over onto the attack. At 5pm, he concludes that Tanga can no longer be held, and begins preparations to withdraw.
As it turns out, however, the British had beaten him to the punch. After the debacle of yesterday the soldiers of Indian Expeditionary Force B were hopelessly demoralized, and their commander convinced that victory was impossible. Thus the British evacuate their forces from the beachhead near Tanga, a process complete by 320pm. Such was their haste to evacuate that they left all of its heavy supplies behind, among which were eight machine-guns, 455 rifles, and half a million rounds, a vital contribution to Lettow-Vorbeck's force given the difficulties of resupply from Germany itself. The entire British operation, from first to last, has been a disaster, giving the Germans a notable victory and, for now at least, bringing a halt to offensive operations against German East Africa.
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| Indian dead on the beaches near Tanga, November 5th, 1914. |
Monday, November 03, 2014
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.
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.
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.
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