- N-Abt, the intelligence department of OHL, produces a report today on the Entente armies on the Western Front. They estimate that the current size of the French army, including the class of 1916, to be approximately three million, which was four hundred thousand less than the size of the army at the outbreak of war. N-Abt further estimates that under normal conditions the French are losing seventy thousand men per month. At this rate, they estimate that the French will be experiencing severe shortages by September 1916 and will be forced to call up younger classes earlier and earlier to meet shortfalls in manpower - for instance, they anticipate the Class of 1918 being called up in June 1916.
The strength of the British army, however, is more difficult for N-Abt to assess. They estimate that the British currently deploys approximately forty-two divisions consisting of 1 057 000 men, including 270 000 regulars, 170 000 Territorials, 400 000 in the 'New Armies', 60 000 Indians, and 47 000 Canadians. However, though it is understood that the British army will grow to about seventy divisions, N-Abt is not able to conclude when this would occur.
Overall, N-Abt's report demonstrates that the Entente are numerically superior to the Germans on the Western Front, and that manpower shortages in the French army will in time be compensated by the growth of the British army. This assessment of the balance of strength on the Western Front will be at the forefront of Falkenhayn's thoughts as they turn to planning operations on the Western Front in 1916.
- Today the commander of the Italian 2nd Army, Lieutenant-General Pietro Frugoni, orders VI Corps to continue the offensive west of Görz. Seeing the setback yesterday at Oslavija as emblematic of the exhaustion of his soldiers, Lieutenant-General Luigi Capello, commander of VI Corps, objects to the order, writing to Cadorna that in the miserable conditions his men are little more than walking clumps of mud, and that further attacks would be pointless. Cadorna sides with Capello, and suspends operations at Görz. To the south, however, the Italian 3rd army continues its attempt to capture Mt. San Michelle. In the heaviest fighting of the 4th Battle of the Isonzo to date, attacks are launched from both flanks towards the summit, but by the end of the day all the Italians have gained is a small stretch of the first enemy trench southwest of St. Martino. Here the Austro-Hungarians simply establish a new trench line two hundred yards east of their old position, and otherwise nothing changes. However, repulsing the enemy assaults costs the Austro-Hungarian VII Corps over 1700 casualties today, and 5th Army sends forward three battalions from reserves.
- Meeting in Rome, the Italian cabinet discusses the evolving situation in the Balkans. Their French allies have requested the deployment of an Italian contingent to Salonika, which Cadorna supports (on the basis that tying down enemy forces here keeps them from the Italian Front). His political masters, however, have their eyes focused on Albania, both closer and seen by the government as within Italy's sphere of influence. Cadorna's advice is ignored, and the formation of an expedition to deploy to Albania is agreed upon.
- The German battlecruiser Goeben is attacked by the Russian submarine Morzh off the Bosphorus while escorting transports. The German warship only narrowly avoids Russian torpedoes, and the decision is made that despite the marked inferiority of the Ottoman navy, Goeben cannot be risked as a mere escort for steamers.
Showing posts with label Goeben. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Goeben. Show all posts
Saturday, November 14, 2015
Thursday, October 01, 2015
October 1st, 1915
- Overnight the portion of the British Guards Division still in the line digs a new trench east of Loos parallel to the Lens-La Bassée road, from which the planned renewal of the offensive is to be launched. Having completed the trench, Guards Division is relieved by the French IX Corps this morning and joins 3rd Guards Brigade in reserve. Haig intends to use the Guards Division to retake the ground lost at the Dump and Fosse 8 over the past several days of severe fighting, but feels this attack must occur before the main offensive is renewed; otherwise, German forces here will be able to fire into the northern flank of the advancing British infantry. As the Guards will not be in position to attack before October 4th, Haig, with the support of Field Marshal French, insists that the Anglo-French offensive be postponed several more days. Unable to compel the British to attack earlier, Foch has no choice but to delay the attack of the French 10th Army until October 6th.
- Given the clear intentions of Bulgaria to enter the war on the side of the Germans, the Russian ambassador presents an ultimatum to the Bulgarian government today, requiring the dismissal of German officers and a formal commitment to neutrality.
- The Russian Black Seas Fleet bombards the Ottoman ports of Kozlu, Zonguldak, and Eregli, an operation that sees the first sortie by the newly-completed dreadnought Imperatrista Maria II. Armed with twelve 12-inch guns, protected by a 12-inch armor belt, and capable of 23 knots, it more than balances the presence of the German battlecruiser Goeben in the Black Sea, and allows the Russians to undertake more aggressive operations.
- At 4pm the lead elements of the Ottoman 35th Division, retreating after defeat at the First Battle of Kut-al-Amara on September 28th, reach the ruins of the ancient city of Ctesiphon, fifteen miles south of Baghdad. It is here that Colonel Nur-ur-din intends to make the next stand against the British advance up the Tigris River, and 35th Division is ordered to begin construction of an elaborate trench system.
- After receiving approval from Kabul, the German mission to Afghanistan was permitted to depart Herat and today arrives at the capital after a journey taking over a year. Here, too, however, the Germans are kept at arms' length - they are not permitted to enter Kabul and their movement is limited. Afghanistan is been under the indirect control of Britain, after the Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907 assigned the country to the British sphere of influence. The primary aim of Emir Habibullah is to lessen the influence of Britain in his country and restore a degree of independence, and it is through this lens that he views the German mission - they are seen as a potentially useful tool to win concessions from the British. He has no interest in the Germans, or indeed the wider war, beyond the extent to which he can manipulate the situation to his own advantage. This does not preclude throwing his lot in with the Germans, but it does require keeping them at arms length at present to avoid an excessive commitment. Indeed, the British, having learned months before of the German mission, have already contacted Habibullah with assurances of friendship and protection. The German mission thus finds themselves as just one piece in the Great Game for control of the Northwest Frontier of India, a game which began long before their arrival and will continue long after the present war has passed.
- Given the clear intentions of Bulgaria to enter the war on the side of the Germans, the Russian ambassador presents an ultimatum to the Bulgarian government today, requiring the dismissal of German officers and a formal commitment to neutrality.
- The Russian Black Seas Fleet bombards the Ottoman ports of Kozlu, Zonguldak, and Eregli, an operation that sees the first sortie by the newly-completed dreadnought Imperatrista Maria II. Armed with twelve 12-inch guns, protected by a 12-inch armor belt, and capable of 23 knots, it more than balances the presence of the German battlecruiser Goeben in the Black Sea, and allows the Russians to undertake more aggressive operations.
- At 4pm the lead elements of the Ottoman 35th Division, retreating after defeat at the First Battle of Kut-al-Amara on September 28th, reach the ruins of the ancient city of Ctesiphon, fifteen miles south of Baghdad. It is here that Colonel Nur-ur-din intends to make the next stand against the British advance up the Tigris River, and 35th Division is ordered to begin construction of an elaborate trench system.
- After receiving approval from Kabul, the German mission to Afghanistan was permitted to depart Herat and today arrives at the capital after a journey taking over a year. Here, too, however, the Germans are kept at arms' length - they are not permitted to enter Kabul and their movement is limited. Afghanistan is been under the indirect control of Britain, after the Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907 assigned the country to the British sphere of influence. The primary aim of Emir Habibullah is to lessen the influence of Britain in his country and restore a degree of independence, and it is through this lens that he views the German mission - they are seen as a potentially useful tool to win concessions from the British. He has no interest in the Germans, or indeed the wider war, beyond the extent to which he can manipulate the situation to his own advantage. This does not preclude throwing his lot in with the Germans, but it does require keeping them at arms length at present to avoid an excessive commitment. Indeed, the British, having learned months before of the German mission, have already contacted Habibullah with assurances of friendship and protection. The German mission thus finds themselves as just one piece in the Great Game for control of the Northwest Frontier of India, a game which began long before their arrival and will continue long after the present war has passed.
Sunday, May 10, 2015
May 10th, 1915
- Almost since the outbreak of the war the German government has been fighting a losing battle over its image abroad among neutrals. While Entente propaganda has undoubtedly made its mark, views on Germany have been inevitably tainted by the way in which it has conducted the war, as more recent incidents such as the use of gas at Ypres and the sinking of Lusitania join with such older episodes as the Rape of Belgium to cast Germany as the villain. The German government has attempted to counter such impressions since the first weeks of the war, and today publishes a White Book on the German occupation of Belgium. Its title - The Conduct of the War by the Belgian People in Violation of International Law - says all that needs to be said regarding its aim. Its objectivity is questionable at best and much dubious 'evidence' is included, and does little to dissuade those who already believe in German perfidy from continuing to do so. Moreover, the Germans are not the only ones who can publish reports . . .
- Even as the German government attempts to defend its conduct of the war, the latest outrage - the sinking of the passenger liner Lusitania - is provoking a violent reaction in Britain, especially in Liverpool and other west coast ports in which many of the dead resided. For these civilians, the torpedoing of Lusitania is seen as culmination of a German campaign of deliberate barbarism that has included the Rape of Belgium, the bombardment of Scarborough and other towns, Zeppelin bombing raids, and the use of gas at Ypres. For many the news of Lusitania's loss is the final straw, and over the past few days anti-German riots have broken out in several British cities, including most prominently Liverpool, the destination of the doomed liner. Large crowds rampage through commercial districts, attacking any shop identified as being owned by Germans and looting its contents. Local police struggle to maintain order, with hundreds arrested. Today is the worst day of violence in Liverpool, and hardly a single commercial enterprise owned by a German remains unscathed at the end of the day. While the violence builds on existing anti-German sentiments and indeed xenophobia, they also arise from the general sense among the British public that the German methods of waging war are a fundamental threat to Western civilization, and that the war is not only worth fighting but must be fought until absolute victory can be secured and 'Prussian militarism', as it is often referred to, is crushed forever. Whether right or not, such views are genuinely held by much of the British public, and go some way to explaining the overwhelming support for the continuation of the war in the months and years ahead.
- A more measured reaction to the sinking of Lusitania is seen today in the United States when President Woodrow Wilson delivers a speech before fifteen thousand in Philadelphia. After several days of deliberation, he has come to the conclusion that an immediate declaration of war is not the proper course of action. More crucially, imbued with a moral sense of American righteousness, he proclaims to the assembled crowd that:
- In Germany, reaction to the sinking of Lusitania has been mixed. Much of the public, convinced that the liner was carrying munitions, celebrates its destruction, as does the naval leadership. For the Chancellor and the Kaiser, the sinking is seen as a disaster. Wilhelm II directly orders the naval chief of staff that
- In Artois today the French 10th Army attacks all along the German line, attempting to repeat the fleeting success of yesterday. Overall the French attacks fail: an attempt to move further east on the Lorette spur was held, and repeated attacks by 70th Division at Carency were also repulsed. However, a German counterattack by elements of 58th and 11th Divisions also fails, and the French XXXIII Corps is able to maintain control of the ground seized yesterday. This salient also leaves German positions at Carency and Ablain just to the north almost isolated, and the commander of the German 28th Division, responsible for this section of line, is concerned that the villages may have to be abandoned.
Further north, in light of the complete failure of the attacks of yesterday, Sir John French calls off the British offensive towards Aubers Ridge early this morning. General Haig, whose 1st Army had been responsible for the operation, is dismayed at the failure. Writing in his diary, he concludes that the defeat 'showed that we are confronted by a carefully prepared position, which is held by a most determined enemy, with numerous machine guns.' To overcome such defences, Haig believes that an 'accurate and so fairly long' preliminary bombardment will be necessary in future to ensure enemy strong points are destroyed before the infantry advance. However understandable Haig's conclusions may be, he is learning the wrong lessons.
- Overnight the Russian counterattack in Galicia is launched, with 44th Division advancing towards Jacmierz into the gap between 11th Bavarian and 119th Divisions and 33rd Division to the south advancing towards Besko. Though the Russians are able to initially gain some ground, the German commanders are more than equal to the task. To the north, 11th Bavarian Division pushes back the southern flank of XXIV Russian Corps to the north, which creates space for the German 20th Division to come up from its reserve position and launch a attack co-ordinated with 119th Division on the Russian 44th Division, throwing the latter back. To the south, the Austro-Hungarian X Corps secures the high ground near Odrzechowa, threatening the flank of the Russian 33rd Division. By nightfall the Russians have been repulsed and are retreating eastward towards Sanok.
The counterattack by the Russian XXI Corps had been the last throw of the dice for 3rd Army, and its defeat means any hope of holding the Germans west of the San River has evaporated. General Ivanov's chief of staff sends a despondent message to Stavka this evening, stating that the army is shattered and the situation is hopeless, and the only option is a pell-mell retreat eastwards: Przemysl will have to be surrendered, the Germans will soon invade the Ukraine, and Kiev should be fortified. The chief of staff is promptly fired, but Stavka finally acknowledges reality and finally acquiesces today to General Dimitriev's repeated requests to retreat behind the San, 3rd Army is a mere shell of its former self. Of the 200 000 men it had on May 2nd, only 40 000 remain to retreat eastwards today, and this despite 3rd Army having received 50 000 replacements in the meantime. Further, the Germans have taken 140 000 prisoners, reflecting the shattered morale of the Russian infantry. Some of its formations have simply ceased to exist: IX Corps has suffered 80% casualties, while III Caucasus Corps, which was sent into the battle on May 4th to restore the situation, has instead lost 75% of its strength in the six days since.
The strategic implications of the crushing defeat suffered by 3rd Army also continue to spread. In order to maintain some semblance of coherent line on the Eastern Front, Stavka issues orders for the southern flank of 4th Army to pull back east almost to the confluence of the San and Vistula Rivers, while 8th Army in the Carpathians will have to retreat to the northeast and reorientate to face to the west instead of the south.
- Though the Treaty of London had been signed on April 26th, details remained to be finalized regarding the nature of Italian co-operation with the Entente, and at sea Italy is in particular eager to secure substantial naval support in the Adriatic. Today in Paris a naval convention is signed between Britain, France, and Italy which calls for the creation of an allied fleet in the Adriatic under Italian command, to which the French would contribute twelve destroyers, a seaplane carrier, and a number of torpedo-boats and submarines, while the British pledged to dispatch four pre-dreadnoughts and four light cruisers. The British reinforcements in particular, however, are to be drawn from the fleet off the Dardanelles, and will not be sent to the Adriatic until they have been replaced by similar warships from France. This detail will be the source of friction between the allies once Italy formally enters the war.
- For Italian Prime Minister Salandra and Foreign Minister Sonnino, the driving force behind Italian intervention on the side of the Entente, the struggle now is to carry the rest of the Italian government with them into the war. This is no easy task, as many politicians do not share their passionate desire for intervention. Instead, a vague desire for neutrality is the most common sentiment, a position to which some within the Cabinet itself adhere to. Moreover, King Victor Emmanuel is unreliable; just yesterday he proclaimed to Salandra his uncertainty as to the right course of action for Italy and the possiblity of abdicating in favour of his uncle the Duke of Aosta. There is also the necessity of securing a majority in parliament for war, which is far from assured. Finally and perhaps of most concern to the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, there is an alternative political leader known to oppose intervention: Giovanni Giolitti, who has served as prime minister on no fewer than four occasions from 1892 to 1914. The possibility exists that if Salandra and Sonnino cannot carry either the cabinet or parliament in support of intervention, Giolitti may form a government pledged, at minimum, to strict neutrality, if not a pro-German attitude. Indeed, when German Ambassador Bülow browbeats the Austro-Hungarian ambassador today to agree to further concessions, he communicates the offer not to the goverment but to Giolitti; the Germans see Giolitti as the last chance to keep Italy out of the war.
For all of the difficulties that Salandra and Sonnino face, the forces opposed to intervention are not without their own problems. Giolitti is 73 years old, and both his grip on and influence in Italian politics is not what it once was. He also has little desire to form a government led by himself, fearing he would be branded as a lackey of Austria, and crucially communicates this belief to Victor Emmanuel in an interview this afternoon, which does much to calm the nerves of the king. Salandra and Giolitti also meet this afternoon, and the former sufficiently dissembles to leave the latter with the impression that he is not wholeheartedly committed to war. Still, it is possible that Giolitti may still instruct his supporters in parliament to vote against the war when it reconvenes on May 20th. The next ten days will thus determine not only whether Italy enters the war, but indeed the future course of Italian politics overall.
- Today Admiral de Robeck cables the Admiralty a proposal for a renewed naval attack on the Dardanelles. The suggestion originated in a meeting with Commodore Keyes, who remains a strong advocate of naval action, and is convinced that futher naval pressure can yet secure victory. Robeck is more doubtful, and his message reflects his continued pessimism. Even if a naval attack succeeds, 'the temper of the Turkish army in the peninsula indicates that the forcing of the Dardanelles and subsequent appearance of the fleet off Constantinople would not of itself prove decisive. These are hardly fighting words, but Keyes hopes that even a tepid proposal will inspire Churchill to order another attempt.
- Near the mouth of the Bosporus the Russian Black Sea Fleet makes another appearance to bombard the forts, and this time the recently-repaired ex-German battlecruiser Goeben makes a brief appearance. The Germans are dismayed to discover that the 12-inch guns of the outdated Russian pre-dreadnoughts can still fire farther than the 11-inch guns of Goeben. After the battlecruiser takes two glancing blows it uses its superior speed to break off the battle and return to the Sea of Marmara.
- Even as the German government attempts to defend its conduct of the war, the latest outrage - the sinking of the passenger liner Lusitania - is provoking a violent reaction in Britain, especially in Liverpool and other west coast ports in which many of the dead resided. For these civilians, the torpedoing of Lusitania is seen as culmination of a German campaign of deliberate barbarism that has included the Rape of Belgium, the bombardment of Scarborough and other towns, Zeppelin bombing raids, and the use of gas at Ypres. For many the news of Lusitania's loss is the final straw, and over the past few days anti-German riots have broken out in several British cities, including most prominently Liverpool, the destination of the doomed liner. Large crowds rampage through commercial districts, attacking any shop identified as being owned by Germans and looting its contents. Local police struggle to maintain order, with hundreds arrested. Today is the worst day of violence in Liverpool, and hardly a single commercial enterprise owned by a German remains unscathed at the end of the day. While the violence builds on existing anti-German sentiments and indeed xenophobia, they also arise from the general sense among the British public that the German methods of waging war are a fundamental threat to Western civilization, and that the war is not only worth fighting but must be fought until absolute victory can be secured and 'Prussian militarism', as it is often referred to, is crushed forever. Whether right or not, such views are genuinely held by much of the British public, and go some way to explaining the overwhelming support for the continuation of the war in the months and years ahead.
 |
| The aftermath of the Lusitania riots. |
- A more measured reaction to the sinking of Lusitania is seen today in the United States when President Woodrow Wilson delivers a speech before fifteen thousand in Philadelphia. After several days of deliberation, he has come to the conclusion that an immediate declaration of war is not the proper course of action. More crucially, imbued with a moral sense of American righteousness, he proclaims to the assembled crowd that:
. . . the example of America must be a special example . . . the example, not merely of peace because it will not fight, but of peace because peace is the healing and elevating influence of the world and strife is not. There is such a thing as a man being too proud to fight. There is such a thing as a nation being so right that it does not need to convince others by force that is is right.Wilson's proclamation is greeted by prolonged cheering. In Britain, perhaps not surprisingly, the president's words are not so welcome - Wilson's high-minded rhetoric appears completely divorced from the perceived reality of a struggle for civilization, and there is little inclination to take lessons in morality from someone whose country is resolutely on the sidelines.
- In Germany, reaction to the sinking of Lusitania has been mixed. Much of the public, convinced that the liner was carrying munitions, celebrates its destruction, as does the naval leadership. For the Chancellor and the Kaiser, the sinking is seen as a disaster. Wilhelm II directly orders the naval chief of staff that
. . . for the immediate future, no neutral vessel shall be sunk. This is necessary on political ground for which the chancellor is responsible. It is better than an enemy ship be allowed to pass than that a neutral shall be destroyed.Learning of the Kaiser's order, Bethmann-Hollweg informally conveys to Washington that German submarines have been instructed to avoid neutral vessels. Unfortunately for the pair, the naval chief of staff is committed to unrestricted submarine warfare, and in an act of deliberate insubordination does not convey the Kaiser's order to the fleet. For now the ostensible leaders of Germany are kept in the dark.
- In Artois today the French 10th Army attacks all along the German line, attempting to repeat the fleeting success of yesterday. Overall the French attacks fail: an attempt to move further east on the Lorette spur was held, and repeated attacks by 70th Division at Carency were also repulsed. However, a German counterattack by elements of 58th and 11th Divisions also fails, and the French XXXIII Corps is able to maintain control of the ground seized yesterday. This salient also leaves German positions at Carency and Ablain just to the north almost isolated, and the commander of the German 28th Division, responsible for this section of line, is concerned that the villages may have to be abandoned.
Further north, in light of the complete failure of the attacks of yesterday, Sir John French calls off the British offensive towards Aubers Ridge early this morning. General Haig, whose 1st Army had been responsible for the operation, is dismayed at the failure. Writing in his diary, he concludes that the defeat 'showed that we are confronted by a carefully prepared position, which is held by a most determined enemy, with numerous machine guns.' To overcome such defences, Haig believes that an 'accurate and so fairly long' preliminary bombardment will be necessary in future to ensure enemy strong points are destroyed before the infantry advance. However understandable Haig's conclusions may be, he is learning the wrong lessons.
- Overnight the Russian counterattack in Galicia is launched, with 44th Division advancing towards Jacmierz into the gap between 11th Bavarian and 119th Divisions and 33rd Division to the south advancing towards Besko. Though the Russians are able to initially gain some ground, the German commanders are more than equal to the task. To the north, 11th Bavarian Division pushes back the southern flank of XXIV Russian Corps to the north, which creates space for the German 20th Division to come up from its reserve position and launch a attack co-ordinated with 119th Division on the Russian 44th Division, throwing the latter back. To the south, the Austro-Hungarian X Corps secures the high ground near Odrzechowa, threatening the flank of the Russian 33rd Division. By nightfall the Russians have been repulsed and are retreating eastward towards Sanok.
The counterattack by the Russian XXI Corps had been the last throw of the dice for 3rd Army, and its defeat means any hope of holding the Germans west of the San River has evaporated. General Ivanov's chief of staff sends a despondent message to Stavka this evening, stating that the army is shattered and the situation is hopeless, and the only option is a pell-mell retreat eastwards: Przemysl will have to be surrendered, the Germans will soon invade the Ukraine, and Kiev should be fortified. The chief of staff is promptly fired, but Stavka finally acknowledges reality and finally acquiesces today to General Dimitriev's repeated requests to retreat behind the San, 3rd Army is a mere shell of its former self. Of the 200 000 men it had on May 2nd, only 40 000 remain to retreat eastwards today, and this despite 3rd Army having received 50 000 replacements in the meantime. Further, the Germans have taken 140 000 prisoners, reflecting the shattered morale of the Russian infantry. Some of its formations have simply ceased to exist: IX Corps has suffered 80% casualties, while III Caucasus Corps, which was sent into the battle on May 4th to restore the situation, has instead lost 75% of its strength in the six days since.
The strategic implications of the crushing defeat suffered by 3rd Army also continue to spread. In order to maintain some semblance of coherent line on the Eastern Front, Stavka issues orders for the southern flank of 4th Army to pull back east almost to the confluence of the San and Vistula Rivers, while 8th Army in the Carpathians will have to retreat to the northeast and reorientate to face to the west instead of the south.
 |
| The German offensive at Gorlice-Tarnow, May 10th to 12th, 1915. |
- Though the Treaty of London had been signed on April 26th, details remained to be finalized regarding the nature of Italian co-operation with the Entente, and at sea Italy is in particular eager to secure substantial naval support in the Adriatic. Today in Paris a naval convention is signed between Britain, France, and Italy which calls for the creation of an allied fleet in the Adriatic under Italian command, to which the French would contribute twelve destroyers, a seaplane carrier, and a number of torpedo-boats and submarines, while the British pledged to dispatch four pre-dreadnoughts and four light cruisers. The British reinforcements in particular, however, are to be drawn from the fleet off the Dardanelles, and will not be sent to the Adriatic until they have been replaced by similar warships from France. This detail will be the source of friction between the allies once Italy formally enters the war.
- For Italian Prime Minister Salandra and Foreign Minister Sonnino, the driving force behind Italian intervention on the side of the Entente, the struggle now is to carry the rest of the Italian government with them into the war. This is no easy task, as many politicians do not share their passionate desire for intervention. Instead, a vague desire for neutrality is the most common sentiment, a position to which some within the Cabinet itself adhere to. Moreover, King Victor Emmanuel is unreliable; just yesterday he proclaimed to Salandra his uncertainty as to the right course of action for Italy and the possiblity of abdicating in favour of his uncle the Duke of Aosta. There is also the necessity of securing a majority in parliament for war, which is far from assured. Finally and perhaps of most concern to the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, there is an alternative political leader known to oppose intervention: Giovanni Giolitti, who has served as prime minister on no fewer than four occasions from 1892 to 1914. The possibility exists that if Salandra and Sonnino cannot carry either the cabinet or parliament in support of intervention, Giolitti may form a government pledged, at minimum, to strict neutrality, if not a pro-German attitude. Indeed, when German Ambassador Bülow browbeats the Austro-Hungarian ambassador today to agree to further concessions, he communicates the offer not to the goverment but to Giolitti; the Germans see Giolitti as the last chance to keep Italy out of the war.
For all of the difficulties that Salandra and Sonnino face, the forces opposed to intervention are not without their own problems. Giolitti is 73 years old, and both his grip on and influence in Italian politics is not what it once was. He also has little desire to form a government led by himself, fearing he would be branded as a lackey of Austria, and crucially communicates this belief to Victor Emmanuel in an interview this afternoon, which does much to calm the nerves of the king. Salandra and Giolitti also meet this afternoon, and the former sufficiently dissembles to leave the latter with the impression that he is not wholeheartedly committed to war. Still, it is possible that Giolitti may still instruct his supporters in parliament to vote against the war when it reconvenes on May 20th. The next ten days will thus determine not only whether Italy enters the war, but indeed the future course of Italian politics overall.
- Today Admiral de Robeck cables the Admiralty a proposal for a renewed naval attack on the Dardanelles. The suggestion originated in a meeting with Commodore Keyes, who remains a strong advocate of naval action, and is convinced that futher naval pressure can yet secure victory. Robeck is more doubtful, and his message reflects his continued pessimism. Even if a naval attack succeeds, 'the temper of the Turkish army in the peninsula indicates that the forcing of the Dardanelles and subsequent appearance of the fleet off Constantinople would not of itself prove decisive. These are hardly fighting words, but Keyes hopes that even a tepid proposal will inspire Churchill to order another attempt.
- Near the mouth of the Bosporus the Russian Black Sea Fleet makes another appearance to bombard the forts, and this time the recently-repaired ex-German battlecruiser Goeben makes a brief appearance. The Germans are dismayed to discover that the 12-inch guns of the outdated Russian pre-dreadnoughts can still fire farther than the 11-inch guns of Goeben. After the battlecruiser takes two glancing blows it uses its superior speed to break off the battle and return to the Sea of Marmara.
Friday, April 03, 2015
April 3rd, 1915
- On the southern face of the St.-Mihiel salient, the French XII Corps, on the left of 73rd Division, joins the attack of the latter on the German lines.
- For the past several months. the elderly German General Colmar Freiheer von der Goltz has been serving in Constantinople as a senior military advisor to the Ottoman sultan, but for the past several days has been meeting with Falkenhayn in Germany regarding the strategic situation in the Balkans. Goltz is an advocate of an operation to crush Serbia and open a land link to the Ottoman Empire, a proposition that Falkenhayn is generally supportive of - indeed, Falkenhayn prefers a Serbian campaign to the commitment of further German forces in the Carpathians. However, assembling the forces necessary for such an attack is impossible at present, given the Austro-Hungarian emergency on the Eastern Front and the continued neutrality of Bulgaria, whose armies and geographical position are seen as critical to success. Nevertheless, when Goltz departs German army headquarters today, he carries with him a letter from the Kaiser to the Sultan promising that an offensive against Serbia will be launched 'in the near future.'
- Since striking a mine in late December, the Ottoman/German battlecruiser Goeben has been out of service as repairs were undertaken. Despite there being no drydock in Constantinople large enough to accomodate the damaged vessel, engineers sent from Germany have managed to complete repairs via the construction of two large cofferdams and sealing the leaks with concrete. These repairs have sufficiently progressed to allow Goeben to participate in an Ottoman naval operation in the Black Sea today, the objective of which is the destruction of a number of Russian transports assembled at Odessa, lest they be used to land a Russian force near Constantinople. The attack on Odessa is tasked to the elderly Ottoman protected cruisers Medjidieh and Hamidieh, supported by four torpedo-boats, while Goeben and Breslau are to be off Sevastopol to cover the operation.
The operation comes apart, however, when Medjidieh strikes a mine off Odessa this morning and sinks in shallow water. Though the torpedo boats are able to rescue the crew, they are unable to destroy the wreck, which falls into the hands of the Russians. As for Goeben and Breslau, they sink two Russian merchant vessels before the Russian Black Sea Fleet appears. The latter gives chase throughout the day, but Goeben and Breslau are able to use their superior speed to escape.
- For the past two days Emden's landing party have been besieged by a large Arab force in the desert near Djidda, the latter evidently encouraged by the English to do so. Though several Germans have been wounded, and one seaman has died, the greatest problem the party faces is the water supply, which is expected to run out within twenty-four hours. First Officer Mücke prepares orders for the party to break out and attempt to reach Djidda, leaving those who fall behind, but just before noon another emissary comes from the enemy force, and this time the demands have been reduced to only twenty-two thousand pounds in gold. Mücke deduces from this that an Ottoman relief force from Djidda must be en route, and thus replies that he has water for four weeks and would like nothing more than to continue fighting in the desert. After the emissary's departure Arab firing briefly resumes before halting entirely. Peering over their makeshift defenses, the Germans see an empty desert around them. An hour and a half later, a force of seventy led by Abdullah, second son of the Emir of Mecca, appears, offering water and escort to Djidda. Departing, the two forces make for a curious sight as they cross the desert, the Germans marching behind a giant red banner emblazened with verses from the Koran.
- For the past several months. the elderly German General Colmar Freiheer von der Goltz has been serving in Constantinople as a senior military advisor to the Ottoman sultan, but for the past several days has been meeting with Falkenhayn in Germany regarding the strategic situation in the Balkans. Goltz is an advocate of an operation to crush Serbia and open a land link to the Ottoman Empire, a proposition that Falkenhayn is generally supportive of - indeed, Falkenhayn prefers a Serbian campaign to the commitment of further German forces in the Carpathians. However, assembling the forces necessary for such an attack is impossible at present, given the Austro-Hungarian emergency on the Eastern Front and the continued neutrality of Bulgaria, whose armies and geographical position are seen as critical to success. Nevertheless, when Goltz departs German army headquarters today, he carries with him a letter from the Kaiser to the Sultan promising that an offensive against Serbia will be launched 'in the near future.'
- Since striking a mine in late December, the Ottoman/German battlecruiser Goeben has been out of service as repairs were undertaken. Despite there being no drydock in Constantinople large enough to accomodate the damaged vessel, engineers sent from Germany have managed to complete repairs via the construction of two large cofferdams and sealing the leaks with concrete. These repairs have sufficiently progressed to allow Goeben to participate in an Ottoman naval operation in the Black Sea today, the objective of which is the destruction of a number of Russian transports assembled at Odessa, lest they be used to land a Russian force near Constantinople. The attack on Odessa is tasked to the elderly Ottoman protected cruisers Medjidieh and Hamidieh, supported by four torpedo-boats, while Goeben and Breslau are to be off Sevastopol to cover the operation.
The operation comes apart, however, when Medjidieh strikes a mine off Odessa this morning and sinks in shallow water. Though the torpedo boats are able to rescue the crew, they are unable to destroy the wreck, which falls into the hands of the Russians. As for Goeben and Breslau, they sink two Russian merchant vessels before the Russian Black Sea Fleet appears. The latter gives chase throughout the day, but Goeben and Breslau are able to use their superior speed to escape.
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| The Ottoman protected cruisers Medjidieh and Hamidieh. |
- For the past two days Emden's landing party have been besieged by a large Arab force in the desert near Djidda, the latter evidently encouraged by the English to do so. Though several Germans have been wounded, and one seaman has died, the greatest problem the party faces is the water supply, which is expected to run out within twenty-four hours. First Officer Mücke prepares orders for the party to break out and attempt to reach Djidda, leaving those who fall behind, but just before noon another emissary comes from the enemy force, and this time the demands have been reduced to only twenty-two thousand pounds in gold. Mücke deduces from this that an Ottoman relief force from Djidda must be en route, and thus replies that he has water for four weeks and would like nothing more than to continue fighting in the desert. After the emissary's departure Arab firing briefly resumes before halting entirely. Peering over their makeshift defenses, the Germans see an empty desert around them. An hour and a half later, a force of seventy led by Abdullah, second son of the Emir of Mecca, appears, offering water and escort to Djidda. Departing, the two forces make for a curious sight as they cross the desert, the Germans marching behind a giant red banner emblazened with verses from the Koran.
Thursday, December 25, 2014
December 25th, 1914
- Along certain stretches of the Western Front remarkable scenes play out today. In what will become famous as the 'Christmas Truce', soldiers on both sides cease firing and for a time congregate in No Man's Land. These episodes are most common in Flanders, where British soldiers (as of yet less prone than the French to hate the Germans, as it was not their country that had been invaded and occupied) and Germans from Saxony and Bavaria (it being generally accepted that Prussians were more war-like). On both sides, Christmas Eve had seen the arrival of all kinds of care packages and donations from the home front, and some trenches were decorated with whatever greenery or 'ornaments' one could find. At night the sounds of singing often echoed across the trenches as one side, then another, would sing Christmas carols. In the daylights hours signs appear over the trenches, often proclaiming in the language of the other side: 'You no shoot, we no shoot.' Soldiers then climb out of the trenches, first cautiously, then eagerly, and move out into No Man's Land. Often the first task undertaken was the burying of the dead, who had lain out of reach for weeks and months. Once completed, the two sides would mingle, frequently trading cigarettes, tinned-meat, and other recent gifts from the home front, while attempting to converse. In some places they even play an improvised game of soccer across the mud and ruin of No Man's Land. Diary entries by soldiers today often speak of sympathy with those on the other side, sharing as they did the terrible conditions of life in the trenches. These 'truces' often continued for much of the day, neither side being in any great rush to return to their lines. When they do depart, it is often with an informal agreement not to immediately resume firing.
The Christmas Truce is the most prominent example of the 'live and let live' attitude that is emerging along stretches of the front - outside of major battles, there is a desire among the common infantry to avoid unnecessary shelling and rifle fire whose only effect can be to prompt reprisals. In other words, for some the attitude is 'if you don't make our lives any more miserable, we won't make yours any more miserable.'
- A half hour before dawn this morning, Commodore Tyrwhitt's force reaches its launch position in the Heligoland. By 630am the seaplanes are in the water, and at 659 the signal is given to take off. Two seaplanes suffer engine failure before takeoff, so seven in total lift into the air and head southeast towards Cuxhaven. At sea the visibility is perfect, but as the aircraft pass over the coast they discover the landscape below covered by thick fog. In good weather the Zeppelin hanger at Nordholz would have been visible a dozen miles away, but today the fog obscures it completely. The seaplanes split up searching for the hanger, but none are able to find it - one drops its bombs on fish-drying sheds by mistake. Only two seaplanes come close to inflicting harm on the Germans. The first, passing over German warships in the Jade estuary, aims its three bombs at the light cruisers Stralsund and Graudenz; the closest falls 200 yards from the latter. The second passes over German warships anchored in the Schilling roads, and though it suffers damage from anti-aircraft fire, its observer, Lieutenant Erskine Childers, is able to pinpoint the location of seven dreadnoughs and three battlecruisers below.
Having failed to accomplish anything, the seaplanes head back out to sea. Running low on fuel, only two reach the seaplane carriers. A third lands beside a British destroyer which takes aboard its crew, and three more come down near British submarines positioned by Keyes near the coast for precisely this reason. The crew of the seventh, meanwhile, is picked up by a Dutch trawler, and are able to convince the Dutch authorities that they are 'ship-wrecked mariners', not combatants, and are thus able to return to Britain.
As the British force recovered the seaplanes and aircrew, they came under sporadic attack by German Zeppelins and seaplanes. Though there were some near misses, no British warship is damaged. The German fleet, meanwhile, remains in port the entire time. Convinced that only the entire Grand Fleet would dare approach this near the German coast, the High Seas Fleet stays in port fearing that it is a British trap to lure them out to destruction. By the time they realize that Tyrwhitt's small force is by itself, they have already departed for home. This is another blow to morale in the German navy - the British have been able to sail close enough to launch airplanes with impunity.
- In the Carpathians Russian attacks continue to batter the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army. The latter are short on ammunition and lack sufficient infantry to cover the entire front. When Russian units push through Jaslo between two of 3rd Army's corps, its commander accepts the inevitable and at 10pm cancels the proposed offensive of his eastern wing and informs his corps commanders that they are permitted to withdraw to the Carpathian watershed if hard-pressed by the enemy.
- Though Albania has existed for less than two years, it has already become a 'failed state'. A recent rebellion has driven out the old monarch, the German Wilhelm of Wied, who had been appointed by the agreement of the Great Powers before the war. A central government, for all intents and purposes, does not exist in Albania, and thus though it is formally neutral, it is entirely unable to defend its sovereignty. Today Italy takes advantage of Albanian disorder to occupy the port of Valore, Albania's second largest city and close to the narrowest point in the Adriatic Sea before it empties into the Mediterranean. The occupation of Valore gives Italy greater control over the Adriatic, which Italian nationalists view as an Italian lake. Such an action would normally have provoked the ire of the other Great Powers, especially Austria-Hungary, but given not only the ongoing war but also the desire to secure Italian support, neither side in the Great War objects. Thus Italy is not only using the war to secure territorial bribes to end its neutrality, but also as a cloak for unprovoked aggression against other states.
- Today the 'Ottoman' battlecruiser Goeben strikes a Russian mine at the entrance to the Bosporus after returning from a sortie in the Black Sea. Though the warship is never in danger of sinking, it will be out of commission for some time.
- The elimination of the German East Asiatic Squadron removes the major impediment to British amphibious operations in the south Atlantic, and today a South African force lands at Walvis Bay on the coast of German South-West Africa.
- A small British detachment of four Indian companies occupies the coastal town of Jasin, located at the mouth of the Umba River and sitting on the border between British East Africa and German East Africa. The occupation is not directly intended as a threat to the Germans - being sixty-four kilometres to the north, it is remote from Tanga, and the move is primarily designed to stabilize the frontier tribes in the Umba Valley inland.
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| German and English soldiers in No Man's Land on Christmas Day, 1914. |
The Christmas Truce is the most prominent example of the 'live and let live' attitude that is emerging along stretches of the front - outside of major battles, there is a desire among the common infantry to avoid unnecessary shelling and rifle fire whose only effect can be to prompt reprisals. In other words, for some the attitude is 'if you don't make our lives any more miserable, we won't make yours any more miserable.'
- A half hour before dawn this morning, Commodore Tyrwhitt's force reaches its launch position in the Heligoland. By 630am the seaplanes are in the water, and at 659 the signal is given to take off. Two seaplanes suffer engine failure before takeoff, so seven in total lift into the air and head southeast towards Cuxhaven. At sea the visibility is perfect, but as the aircraft pass over the coast they discover the landscape below covered by thick fog. In good weather the Zeppelin hanger at Nordholz would have been visible a dozen miles away, but today the fog obscures it completely. The seaplanes split up searching for the hanger, but none are able to find it - one drops its bombs on fish-drying sheds by mistake. Only two seaplanes come close to inflicting harm on the Germans. The first, passing over German warships in the Jade estuary, aims its three bombs at the light cruisers Stralsund and Graudenz; the closest falls 200 yards from the latter. The second passes over German warships anchored in the Schilling roads, and though it suffers damage from anti-aircraft fire, its observer, Lieutenant Erskine Childers, is able to pinpoint the location of seven dreadnoughs and three battlecruisers below.
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| The German North Sea coast targeted by the British seaplanes. |
Having failed to accomplish anything, the seaplanes head back out to sea. Running low on fuel, only two reach the seaplane carriers. A third lands beside a British destroyer which takes aboard its crew, and three more come down near British submarines positioned by Keyes near the coast for precisely this reason. The crew of the seventh, meanwhile, is picked up by a Dutch trawler, and are able to convince the Dutch authorities that they are 'ship-wrecked mariners', not combatants, and are thus able to return to Britain.
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| The British seaplane carrier Empress, one of three to attack the German coast today. |
As the British force recovered the seaplanes and aircrew, they came under sporadic attack by German Zeppelins and seaplanes. Though there were some near misses, no British warship is damaged. The German fleet, meanwhile, remains in port the entire time. Convinced that only the entire Grand Fleet would dare approach this near the German coast, the High Seas Fleet stays in port fearing that it is a British trap to lure them out to destruction. By the time they realize that Tyrwhitt's small force is by itself, they have already departed for home. This is another blow to morale in the German navy - the British have been able to sail close enough to launch airplanes with impunity.
- In the Carpathians Russian attacks continue to batter the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army. The latter are short on ammunition and lack sufficient infantry to cover the entire front. When Russian units push through Jaslo between two of 3rd Army's corps, its commander accepts the inevitable and at 10pm cancels the proposed offensive of his eastern wing and informs his corps commanders that they are permitted to withdraw to the Carpathian watershed if hard-pressed by the enemy.
- Though Albania has existed for less than two years, it has already become a 'failed state'. A recent rebellion has driven out the old monarch, the German Wilhelm of Wied, who had been appointed by the agreement of the Great Powers before the war. A central government, for all intents and purposes, does not exist in Albania, and thus though it is formally neutral, it is entirely unable to defend its sovereignty. Today Italy takes advantage of Albanian disorder to occupy the port of Valore, Albania's second largest city and close to the narrowest point in the Adriatic Sea before it empties into the Mediterranean. The occupation of Valore gives Italy greater control over the Adriatic, which Italian nationalists view as an Italian lake. Such an action would normally have provoked the ire of the other Great Powers, especially Austria-Hungary, but given not only the ongoing war but also the desire to secure Italian support, neither side in the Great War objects. Thus Italy is not only using the war to secure territorial bribes to end its neutrality, but also as a cloak for unprovoked aggression against other states.
- Today the 'Ottoman' battlecruiser Goeben strikes a Russian mine at the entrance to the Bosporus after returning from a sortie in the Black Sea. Though the warship is never in danger of sinking, it will be out of commission for some time.
- The elimination of the German East Asiatic Squadron removes the major impediment to British amphibious operations in the south Atlantic, and today a South African force lands at Walvis Bay on the coast of German South-West Africa.
- A small British detachment of four Indian companies occupies the coastal town of Jasin, located at the mouth of the Umba River and sitting on the border between British East Africa and German East Africa. The occupation is not directly intended as a threat to the Germans - being sixty-four kilometres to the north, it is remote from Tanga, and the move is primarily designed to stabilize the frontier tribes in the Umba Valley inland.
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
November 18th, 1914
- The decision of Duke Albrecht yesterday to suspend offensive operations at Ypres is approved today by Falkenhayn. For several weeks he has been increasingly aware of the growing fatigue within the German army, and clearly even the more limited objectives set in early November, such as Mount Kemmel, could not be seized under present circumstances. Instead, the German army on the Western Front is to go over on to the defensive - the hope for a rapid and decisive victory over the French is finally abandoned.
As the pre-war strategy has failed to deliver the promised victory in wartime, Falkenhayn and the German General Staff is left searching for alternatives. Given the results in the west, a shift to the east appears logical, especially as by standing on the defensive reduces the amount of units needed on the Western Front. Falkenhayn thus informs Hindenburg today that several corps will be shifted from the west to the east, including III Reserve Corps, XIII Corps, II Corps, and XXIV Reserve Corps, the former three coming from Flanders.
There is, however, a crucial difference between Falkenhayn and Hindenburg over what these reinforcements are to accomplish. Hindenburg and Ludendorff believe that a decisive victory over the Russians is possible, one that will allow Germany to impose its peace terms on Russia. Falkenhayn is less optimistic - taking his cue from the campaigns of Napoleon, he feels that the most that can be accomplished in the east are local victories. This, however, is not problematic for Falkenhayn, as he has come to believe that Germany can no longer win a total victory over all of its enemies. Instead, enough damage should be done to Russia to convince it to agree to a compromise peace based on no annexations, which will allow Germany to focus all of its military might against France and Britain. If Russia cannot be convinced to sign a separate peace, Germany will inevitably be ground down by a war of attrition against enemies it can not hope to match in numbers.
Falkenhayn's views on a compromise peace, expressed today in a letter to Chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg, falls on deaf ears. The Chancellor still believes that an absolute victory can be achieved in the east, and in this he has the agreement of Hindenburg and Ludendorff. The prestige of the latter two grows as victories on the Eastern Front (however embellished by Ludendorff) are contrasted with failures, for which Falkenhayn is blamed, on the Western Front. Falkenhayn's advice regarding the future direction of the war are rejected, though because of the personal support of the Kaiser there is no question at this time of replacing Falkenhayn. Instead, the German Chief of the General Staff is left to continue to develop plans to achieve a total victory he no longer feels is within Germany's grasp.
- The German 9th Army arrives today just north of Lodz, but discover the city well-defended. In something of a miracle, considering the Russian army's well-earned reputation for sluggishness, both 2nd and 5th Army have managed to retreat to the city before the Germans could arrive to seize it. For 5th Army in particular it is a significant achievement, accomplished by non-stop marching over the past three days. The result is that the four corps of the German 9th Army at Lodz find themselves facing seven Russian corps, and, as the latter is the supply centre for 2nd and 5th Army, for once it is the Russians who are better-supplied. Ludendorff, however, orders Mackensen to continue the offensive - he has misinterpreted the Russian move back to Lodz as yet another panicked retreat, not an orderly redeployment. It is a case of Ludendorff seeing what he wants to sees in the information arriving from the front. Thus the Germans, despite being outnumbered, attack into the Russian lines.
- Yesterday a Russian squadron of five pre-dreadnoughts, three cruisers, and thirteen destroyers bombarded the Turkish Black Sea port of Trebizond. On hearing of the attack Admiral Souchon decided to sortie with his 'Turkish' warships Goeben and Breslau in an effort to catch a portion of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. In thick fog the two squadrons stumble into each other twenty miles off Cape Sarych on the Crimean coast just after midday. Because of the poor visibility, Goeben does not sight the Russian squadron until it is already within range of the main guns of the latter's pre-dreadnoughts. This nullifies the advantage Goeben would normally have over pre-dreadnoughts - i.e. that its main armament can fire longer distances.
The Russian flagship Evstafiy hits Goeben with its first salvo, killing twelve Germans and one Turk. Though Goeben in turn is able to land five hits on Evstafiy, killing thirty-four, Admiral Souchon quickly realizes that the short range - about seven thousand yards - means his ships are heavily outgunned, and he decides to use his superior speed to break off the engagement. The battle lasts only fourteen minutes, and most of the warships present never fire a shot. From this battle the Russians draw the conclusion that all of its large warships must operate together to avoid defeat in detail at the hands of Goeben, while for Souchon the engagement reinforces the isolation of his battlecruiser - as a light cruiser, Breslau is of little aid in a large naval battle, and the other warships of the Ottoman navy are of no value whatsoever (had they been present at Cape Sarych they would have lacked the speed to escape).
- In Russia five Bolshevik Duma representatives are arrested for distributing Vladimir Lenin's Theses on the War calling for the transformation of the 'imperialist war' into a 'civil war' to bring about revolution. At this point, however, most on the left still support the war effort.
As the pre-war strategy has failed to deliver the promised victory in wartime, Falkenhayn and the German General Staff is left searching for alternatives. Given the results in the west, a shift to the east appears logical, especially as by standing on the defensive reduces the amount of units needed on the Western Front. Falkenhayn thus informs Hindenburg today that several corps will be shifted from the west to the east, including III Reserve Corps, XIII Corps, II Corps, and XXIV Reserve Corps, the former three coming from Flanders.
There is, however, a crucial difference between Falkenhayn and Hindenburg over what these reinforcements are to accomplish. Hindenburg and Ludendorff believe that a decisive victory over the Russians is possible, one that will allow Germany to impose its peace terms on Russia. Falkenhayn is less optimistic - taking his cue from the campaigns of Napoleon, he feels that the most that can be accomplished in the east are local victories. This, however, is not problematic for Falkenhayn, as he has come to believe that Germany can no longer win a total victory over all of its enemies. Instead, enough damage should be done to Russia to convince it to agree to a compromise peace based on no annexations, which will allow Germany to focus all of its military might against France and Britain. If Russia cannot be convinced to sign a separate peace, Germany will inevitably be ground down by a war of attrition against enemies it can not hope to match in numbers.
Falkenhayn's views on a compromise peace, expressed today in a letter to Chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg, falls on deaf ears. The Chancellor still believes that an absolute victory can be achieved in the east, and in this he has the agreement of Hindenburg and Ludendorff. The prestige of the latter two grows as victories on the Eastern Front (however embellished by Ludendorff) are contrasted with failures, for which Falkenhayn is blamed, on the Western Front. Falkenhayn's advice regarding the future direction of the war are rejected, though because of the personal support of the Kaiser there is no question at this time of replacing Falkenhayn. Instead, the German Chief of the General Staff is left to continue to develop plans to achieve a total victory he no longer feels is within Germany's grasp.
- The German 9th Army arrives today just north of Lodz, but discover the city well-defended. In something of a miracle, considering the Russian army's well-earned reputation for sluggishness, both 2nd and 5th Army have managed to retreat to the city before the Germans could arrive to seize it. For 5th Army in particular it is a significant achievement, accomplished by non-stop marching over the past three days. The result is that the four corps of the German 9th Army at Lodz find themselves facing seven Russian corps, and, as the latter is the supply centre for 2nd and 5th Army, for once it is the Russians who are better-supplied. Ludendorff, however, orders Mackensen to continue the offensive - he has misinterpreted the Russian move back to Lodz as yet another panicked retreat, not an orderly redeployment. It is a case of Ludendorff seeing what he wants to sees in the information arriving from the front. Thus the Germans, despite being outnumbered, attack into the Russian lines.
- Yesterday a Russian squadron of five pre-dreadnoughts, three cruisers, and thirteen destroyers bombarded the Turkish Black Sea port of Trebizond. On hearing of the attack Admiral Souchon decided to sortie with his 'Turkish' warships Goeben and Breslau in an effort to catch a portion of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. In thick fog the two squadrons stumble into each other twenty miles off Cape Sarych on the Crimean coast just after midday. Because of the poor visibility, Goeben does not sight the Russian squadron until it is already within range of the main guns of the latter's pre-dreadnoughts. This nullifies the advantage Goeben would normally have over pre-dreadnoughts - i.e. that its main armament can fire longer distances.
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| The Battle of Cape Sarych, November 18th, 1914. This map gives the Turkish names for Goeben (Yavuz) and Breslau (Midilli). |
The Russian flagship Evstafiy hits Goeben with its first salvo, killing twelve Germans and one Turk. Though Goeben in turn is able to land five hits on Evstafiy, killing thirty-four, Admiral Souchon quickly realizes that the short range - about seven thousand yards - means his ships are heavily outgunned, and he decides to use his superior speed to break off the engagement. The battle lasts only fourteen minutes, and most of the warships present never fire a shot. From this battle the Russians draw the conclusion that all of its large warships must operate together to avoid defeat in detail at the hands of Goeben, while for Souchon the engagement reinforces the isolation of his battlecruiser - as a light cruiser, Breslau is of little aid in a large naval battle, and the other warships of the Ottoman navy are of no value whatsoever (had they been present at Cape Sarych they would have lacked the speed to escape).
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| The Russian pre-dreadnought Estafiy. |
- In Russia five Bolshevik Duma representatives are arrested for distributing Vladimir Lenin's Theses on the War calling for the transformation of the 'imperialist war' into a 'civil war' to bring about revolution. At this point, however, most on the left still support the war effort.
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
October 29th, 1914
- West of the Yser the Germans inch closer to the Belgian line along the railway embankment, approaching to within several hundred yards. Meanwhile, a shortage of artillery shells prevents a resumption today of the artillery bombardment of Dixmude, though Minenwerfers are used to keep the enemy trenches east of Dixmude under fire.
- The German attack today against Gheluvelt is aimed in particular at the crossroads just east of the village where the Menin Road crosses the road connecting Kruiseecke and Poezelhoek. Here the British line is held by the left flank of the already much-damaged 7th Division and the right flank of 1st Division, and the trenches here are emblematic of many of the difficulties encountered with British defenses during the battle. Here the trenches are deep and narrow, and not all are connected. There is only a single strand of wire protecting the trenches, connected to tins with pebbles to warn of a German attempt to rush the trenches. No sandbags have been used - indeed, the first large shipment from Britain arrived in France only yesterday. Observation from the trenches is impeded by the continued existence of buildings and trees, and a lack of communication trenches meant that one position could be overwhelmed without its neighbours realizing it.
- The German artillery bombardment begins at 530am, and the three battalions of the 16th Bavarian Reserve Infantry Regiment advance shortly thereafter. In the morning fog visibility is limited to forty yards, delaying the British response, and crucially two British machine guns near the crossroads jam. By 630 the Germans have penetrated the line north of the crossroads, but the British south of the line have no idea the enemy has broken through - indeed, the reserves covering that portion of the line were sent to the rear for breakfast in the belief that no further German advance would be forthcoming. At 730 four German battalions attack, and after hand-to-hand fighting break through here as well.
Poor communications and the morning fog prevent 7th Division's commander from learning of the defeat until 1015. As British reserves are finally sent forward, the Germans, instead of advancing into the gap they have formed, turn north and south and attempt to roll up the British lines. Only at 1130 do the Germans move westward from the crossroads, by which time almost all of I Corps reserves have been committed to rebuilding a British line, and a further five squadrons have been sent by the Cavalry Corps to the south. The German attack peters out, but a British counterattack in the afternoon fails utterly to regain any of the lost ground.
The result of the day's fighting is that though the Germans are halted short of Gheluvelt itself, the crossroads to the east of the village have been secured, which, due to a dip in the ground there gives the Germans a favourable position for a further attack. The attack did not accomplish everything that General Fabeck desired, but it did suffice for the major offensive. For the British, though Haig of I Corps is now focused on holding his line, Sir John French still believes that they and the French should be on the offensive, optimism that he shares with Foch. They are about to be violently disabused of their hopes.
- An Order in Council issued today by the British government is another step in the tightening of the blockade against Germany. It declares a number of items that had previously been conditional contraband - i.e. seizure was discretionary - are henceforth to be absolute contraband, meaning that any ship carrying such goods and destined for Germany will be seized with no exceptions.
- Two days after departing Constantinople, Admiral Souchon and his squadron undertake the real purpose of his sortie - ensuring Ottoman entry into the war on the side of the Germans. Souchon does this in the most direct way possible - with Goeben and Breslau as the core of his squadron, he sails to the Russian Black Sea coast and proceeds to bombard Odessa, Sevastopol, and Novorossisk this morning. In addition to damage ashore, a Russian gunboat, minelayer, and six merchant ships are sunk, all done by ships flying the flag of the Ottoman Empire. As the Ottomans hesitate to join the war willingly, Souchon has decided to force their hand by provoking Russia to declare war on the Ottomans themselves.
- In German Kamerun, the French column that had advanced westward from French Equatorial Africa and occupied the village of Carnot has been experiencing supply problems - the African porters so essential to the movement of equipment have been on half rations, and on the 21st the Europeans were reduced to two-thirds rations. To avoid starvation, the commander of the column hits on the only real option possible - given the utter impossibility of shipping supplies through the jungle to his present location, he moves the column to where they can scavenge for food. The column moves further westward into German territory where fertile agricultural lands can be plundered.
- Off the Chilean coast, while Admiral Craddock and Good Hope, Monmouth, and Otranto depart their anchorage near the Huasco River, Glasgow approaches the port of Coronel. This afternoon the wireless room aboard Glasgow starts to pick up signals in German code, indicating an enemy warship was nearby. The captain of Glasgow hesitates to take his ship into Coronel, for fear the sudden arrival of German warships could blockade him in port. He receives permission from Admiral Craddock to delay entering Coronel to ascertain if the arrival of the German East Asiatic Squadron was imminent.
- The German attack today against Gheluvelt is aimed in particular at the crossroads just east of the village where the Menin Road crosses the road connecting Kruiseecke and Poezelhoek. Here the British line is held by the left flank of the already much-damaged 7th Division and the right flank of 1st Division, and the trenches here are emblematic of many of the difficulties encountered with British defenses during the battle. Here the trenches are deep and narrow, and not all are connected. There is only a single strand of wire protecting the trenches, connected to tins with pebbles to warn of a German attempt to rush the trenches. No sandbags have been used - indeed, the first large shipment from Britain arrived in France only yesterday. Observation from the trenches is impeded by the continued existence of buildings and trees, and a lack of communication trenches meant that one position could be overwhelmed without its neighbours realizing it.
- The German artillery bombardment begins at 530am, and the three battalions of the 16th Bavarian Reserve Infantry Regiment advance shortly thereafter. In the morning fog visibility is limited to forty yards, delaying the British response, and crucially two British machine guns near the crossroads jam. By 630 the Germans have penetrated the line north of the crossroads, but the British south of the line have no idea the enemy has broken through - indeed, the reserves covering that portion of the line were sent to the rear for breakfast in the belief that no further German advance would be forthcoming. At 730 four German battalions attack, and after hand-to-hand fighting break through here as well.
Poor communications and the morning fog prevent 7th Division's commander from learning of the defeat until 1015. As British reserves are finally sent forward, the Germans, instead of advancing into the gap they have formed, turn north and south and attempt to roll up the British lines. Only at 1130 do the Germans move westward from the crossroads, by which time almost all of I Corps reserves have been committed to rebuilding a British line, and a further five squadrons have been sent by the Cavalry Corps to the south. The German attack peters out, but a British counterattack in the afternoon fails utterly to regain any of the lost ground.
The result of the day's fighting is that though the Germans are halted short of Gheluvelt itself, the crossroads to the east of the village have been secured, which, due to a dip in the ground there gives the Germans a favourable position for a further attack. The attack did not accomplish everything that General Fabeck desired, but it did suffice for the major offensive. For the British, though Haig of I Corps is now focused on holding his line, Sir John French still believes that they and the French should be on the offensive, optimism that he shares with Foch. They are about to be violently disabused of their hopes.
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| A British trench near Ypres, October 1914. Note its rudimentary nature, with no barbed wire, sandbags, trench supports to prevent collapses, or communication trenches. |
- An Order in Council issued today by the British government is another step in the tightening of the blockade against Germany. It declares a number of items that had previously been conditional contraband - i.e. seizure was discretionary - are henceforth to be absolute contraband, meaning that any ship carrying such goods and destined for Germany will be seized with no exceptions.
- Two days after departing Constantinople, Admiral Souchon and his squadron undertake the real purpose of his sortie - ensuring Ottoman entry into the war on the side of the Germans. Souchon does this in the most direct way possible - with Goeben and Breslau as the core of his squadron, he sails to the Russian Black Sea coast and proceeds to bombard Odessa, Sevastopol, and Novorossisk this morning. In addition to damage ashore, a Russian gunboat, minelayer, and six merchant ships are sunk, all done by ships flying the flag of the Ottoman Empire. As the Ottomans hesitate to join the war willingly, Souchon has decided to force their hand by provoking Russia to declare war on the Ottomans themselves.
- In German Kamerun, the French column that had advanced westward from French Equatorial Africa and occupied the village of Carnot has been experiencing supply problems - the African porters so essential to the movement of equipment have been on half rations, and on the 21st the Europeans were reduced to two-thirds rations. To avoid starvation, the commander of the column hits on the only real option possible - given the utter impossibility of shipping supplies through the jungle to his present location, he moves the column to where they can scavenge for food. The column moves further westward into German territory where fertile agricultural lands can be plundered.
- Off the Chilean coast, while Admiral Craddock and Good Hope, Monmouth, and Otranto depart their anchorage near the Huasco River, Glasgow approaches the port of Coronel. This afternoon the wireless room aboard Glasgow starts to pick up signals in German code, indicating an enemy warship was nearby. The captain of Glasgow hesitates to take his ship into Coronel, for fear the sudden arrival of German warships could blockade him in port. He receives permission from Admiral Craddock to delay entering Coronel to ascertain if the arrival of the German East Asiatic Squadron was imminent.
Monday, October 27, 2014
October 27th, 1914
- Along the Yser both sides spend the day bombarding each other, the Germans in particular concluding that Dixmude needs another period of intense artillery fire before the town can be seized. Under the supervision of the elderly lockkeepr Geeraert, this evening the Belgians make a first attempt at opening the locks, but fail due to the low tide level.
- The offensive by the French IX Corps northeast of Ypres continues today, and despite the delayed arrival of 31st Division they again make no significant progress. Their efforts to advance come under heavy enemy fire from German positions on the high ground at Poelcappelle and Passchendaele, and only the smallest of gains are recorded. On their right the division and brigade of I Corps in the line are also unable to accomplish anything of note.
- Bitter fighting continues today over the battered remains of the village of Neuve Chapelle, as the British II Corps attempts to recover the lines lost yesterday to the German VII Corps. General Smith-Dorrien assembles a heterogenous force, which includes Indian troops and French bicyclists and cavalrymen, assault the German defenders repeatedly, which include all twelve battalions of 14th Reserve Division and reinforcements from neighbouring corps. At 130pm the British attack the northern part of the village, but as the attack falters the Germans launch their own at 230pm in the south of Neuve Chapelle, which pushes the British westward out of the village. The commitment of the last reserves of II Corps manages to reconstitute the front line, but by this evening Smith-Dorrien is forced to accept the loss of Neuve Chapelle and orders the construction of a new line of trenches to the west.
Though II Corps has managed to hold on, it has been in near-constant combat since its arrival in Flanders, and Smith-Dorrien has repeatedly warned Sir John French that his men are at the end of their endurance. The BEF commander, who does not have a high opinion of Smith-Dorrien's abilities, nevertheless agrees that II Corps should be withdrawn from the front and replaced by the Indian Corps, the latter having only lent small units as reserves to II and III Corps over the past few days of fighting.
- For the past two days, General Rawlinson's IV Corps has consisted only of 7th Division. To address this anomalous situation, Field Marshal French decides today to disband IV Corps and reassign 7th Division to General Haig's I Corps. In part a move to rationalize administration of the BEF, it is also in part a reflection of the belief that 7th Division has under-performed during the battle. As for General Rawlinson, he and the former IV Corps staff is returned to England to prepare 8th Division for deployment to France. This has the advantage of removing from Ypres a corps commander that the Field Marshal has had trouble with while ostensibly giving him what he had asked for - he argued on the 25th that IV Corps would not be effective until 8th Division arrived, so now he can expedite their deployment directly.
- General Falkenhayn arrives today at 6th Army headquarters to discuss the progress of operations with Prince Rupprecht. The German Chief of the General Staff is not pleased with the results achieved over the past week - despite the concentration of forces neither 4th or 6th Army had been able to achieve a decisive success. Indeed, over the past few days the French and British have been able to go over onto the offensive northeast of Ypres, and though they have not broken through a defensive battle cannot possibly give Falkenhayn the decisive victory he believes is essential to win the war. In his view, both 4th and 6th Armies have failed, and there is no prospect of imminent success from their efforts.
Falkenhayn, however, is unwilling to give up the initiative and fully go over on to the defensive. Instead, he seeks a new concentration of force to achieve a breakthrough and victory. The plight of the new reserve corps of 4th Army since the 22nd have shown the importance of battlefield experience. Moreover, an analysis of the defensive needs of the rest of the Western Front have raised several instances where, due to the redeployment of French forces to Flanders, German units could be redeployed as well. As a result, XV Corps from the Aisne and II Bavarian Corps from Peronne are en route to Flanders, and to this force are added 26th Division of XIII Corps, in turn replaced by a reserve division from Metz, and the 6th Bavarian Reserve Division has also just arrived in Flanders (the latter including a certain Corporal Hitler). These units are organized into a single formation under the command of General Max von Fabeck, formerly commander of XIII Corps, and is to be called Army Group Fabeck.
The new formation is to take its place on the front line south of Menin, in the area currently occupied by the cavalry corps of 6th Army. Falkenhayn is emphatic that Army Group Fabeck does not belong to 6th Army, and the latter cannot issue or alter orders to the former. Instead of simply adding reinforcements to the two armies, Army Group Fabeck is to be a single cohesive offensive unit, and the two adjacent armies are reduced to a supportin role while also dispatching artillery to support the Army Group.
Falkenhayn's plan is for 4th and 6th Armies to launch spoiling attacks on October 30th to force the French and British to commit their reserves. At the same time, Army Group Fabeck is to attack south of Ypres, against the enemy line between Gheluvelt (just northwest of Kruiseecke) and Ploegsteert Wood (north of Armentières). Its objective is Mont Kemmel, high ground south of Ypres. Its seizure would break the enemy line and allow the Germans to outflank the enemy positions to the north and south. Such a success offers to Falkenhayn the potential to drive the enemy from Flanders and occupy the Channel ports, and perhaps tip the military balance on the Western Front in Germany's favour.
- For two and a half months Admiral Wilhelm Souchon and his two warships have been at Constantinople, maintaining the fictin that the two have been transferred to Ottoman control. There is never any doubt as to where Souchon's true loyalty lies however, and as the Ottoman government continues to prevaricate over whether to enter the war, he decides the time has come for action. With the collaboration of Enver Pasha and the other pro-German and pro-war ministers, Souchon, in his position as commander of the Ottoman navy, takes Goeben and Breslau, along with an Ottoman cruiser and four Ottoman destroyers, into the Black Sea. Ostensibly to undertake training, the real purpose of the mission is to provoke Ottoman entry into the war.
- Admiral Craddock's signal of yesterday arrives at the Admiralty in London today. It is a time of turmoil within the upper echelons of the Royal Navy, as the resignation of the First Sea Lord is imminent. Thus the news from Craddock, including crucially that Canopus is not with him, is not given the attention it deserves. Meanwhile, Craddock's four ships rendezvous off the Chilean coast near the mouth of the Huasco River, where Craddock orders Glasgow, his fastest warship, to sail to Coronel to see if any further orders had been dispatched to him.
- The German East Asiatic Squadron, meanwhile, departs Más Afuera today for the Chilean coast. Admiral Spee has received information from German agents in Chile of the passage of a British warship through the Straits of Magellan, and thus decides for now to keep his larger armoured cruisers out of sight of the shore, while sending all radio transmissions using Leipzig's call sign, to give the appearance that only one German warship was in the area, as opposed to all five.
- The offensive by the French IX Corps northeast of Ypres continues today, and despite the delayed arrival of 31st Division they again make no significant progress. Their efforts to advance come under heavy enemy fire from German positions on the high ground at Poelcappelle and Passchendaele, and only the smallest of gains are recorded. On their right the division and brigade of I Corps in the line are also unable to accomplish anything of note.
- Bitter fighting continues today over the battered remains of the village of Neuve Chapelle, as the British II Corps attempts to recover the lines lost yesterday to the German VII Corps. General Smith-Dorrien assembles a heterogenous force, which includes Indian troops and French bicyclists and cavalrymen, assault the German defenders repeatedly, which include all twelve battalions of 14th Reserve Division and reinforcements from neighbouring corps. At 130pm the British attack the northern part of the village, but as the attack falters the Germans launch their own at 230pm in the south of Neuve Chapelle, which pushes the British westward out of the village. The commitment of the last reserves of II Corps manages to reconstitute the front line, but by this evening Smith-Dorrien is forced to accept the loss of Neuve Chapelle and orders the construction of a new line of trenches to the west.
Though II Corps has managed to hold on, it has been in near-constant combat since its arrival in Flanders, and Smith-Dorrien has repeatedly warned Sir John French that his men are at the end of their endurance. The BEF commander, who does not have a high opinion of Smith-Dorrien's abilities, nevertheless agrees that II Corps should be withdrawn from the front and replaced by the Indian Corps, the latter having only lent small units as reserves to II and III Corps over the past few days of fighting.
- For the past two days, General Rawlinson's IV Corps has consisted only of 7th Division. To address this anomalous situation, Field Marshal French decides today to disband IV Corps and reassign 7th Division to General Haig's I Corps. In part a move to rationalize administration of the BEF, it is also in part a reflection of the belief that 7th Division has under-performed during the battle. As for General Rawlinson, he and the former IV Corps staff is returned to England to prepare 8th Division for deployment to France. This has the advantage of removing from Ypres a corps commander that the Field Marshal has had trouble with while ostensibly giving him what he had asked for - he argued on the 25th that IV Corps would not be effective until 8th Division arrived, so now he can expedite their deployment directly.
- General Falkenhayn arrives today at 6th Army headquarters to discuss the progress of operations with Prince Rupprecht. The German Chief of the General Staff is not pleased with the results achieved over the past week - despite the concentration of forces neither 4th or 6th Army had been able to achieve a decisive success. Indeed, over the past few days the French and British have been able to go over onto the offensive northeast of Ypres, and though they have not broken through a defensive battle cannot possibly give Falkenhayn the decisive victory he believes is essential to win the war. In his view, both 4th and 6th Armies have failed, and there is no prospect of imminent success from their efforts.
Falkenhayn, however, is unwilling to give up the initiative and fully go over on to the defensive. Instead, he seeks a new concentration of force to achieve a breakthrough and victory. The plight of the new reserve corps of 4th Army since the 22nd have shown the importance of battlefield experience. Moreover, an analysis of the defensive needs of the rest of the Western Front have raised several instances where, due to the redeployment of French forces to Flanders, German units could be redeployed as well. As a result, XV Corps from the Aisne and II Bavarian Corps from Peronne are en route to Flanders, and to this force are added 26th Division of XIII Corps, in turn replaced by a reserve division from Metz, and the 6th Bavarian Reserve Division has also just arrived in Flanders (the latter including a certain Corporal Hitler). These units are organized into a single formation under the command of General Max von Fabeck, formerly commander of XIII Corps, and is to be called Army Group Fabeck.
The new formation is to take its place on the front line south of Menin, in the area currently occupied by the cavalry corps of 6th Army. Falkenhayn is emphatic that Army Group Fabeck does not belong to 6th Army, and the latter cannot issue or alter orders to the former. Instead of simply adding reinforcements to the two armies, Army Group Fabeck is to be a single cohesive offensive unit, and the two adjacent armies are reduced to a supportin role while also dispatching artillery to support the Army Group.
Falkenhayn's plan is for 4th and 6th Armies to launch spoiling attacks on October 30th to force the French and British to commit their reserves. At the same time, Army Group Fabeck is to attack south of Ypres, against the enemy line between Gheluvelt (just northwest of Kruiseecke) and Ploegsteert Wood (north of Armentières). Its objective is Mont Kemmel, high ground south of Ypres. Its seizure would break the enemy line and allow the Germans to outflank the enemy positions to the north and south. Such a success offers to Falkenhayn the potential to drive the enemy from Flanders and occupy the Channel ports, and perhaps tip the military balance on the Western Front in Germany's favour.
- For two and a half months Admiral Wilhelm Souchon and his two warships have been at Constantinople, maintaining the fictin that the two have been transferred to Ottoman control. There is never any doubt as to where Souchon's true loyalty lies however, and as the Ottoman government continues to prevaricate over whether to enter the war, he decides the time has come for action. With the collaboration of Enver Pasha and the other pro-German and pro-war ministers, Souchon, in his position as commander of the Ottoman navy, takes Goeben and Breslau, along with an Ottoman cruiser and four Ottoman destroyers, into the Black Sea. Ostensibly to undertake training, the real purpose of the mission is to provoke Ottoman entry into the war.
- Admiral Craddock's signal of yesterday arrives at the Admiralty in London today. It is a time of turmoil within the upper echelons of the Royal Navy, as the resignation of the First Sea Lord is imminent. Thus the news from Craddock, including crucially that Canopus is not with him, is not given the attention it deserves. Meanwhile, Craddock's four ships rendezvous off the Chilean coast near the mouth of the Huasco River, where Craddock orders Glasgow, his fastest warship, to sail to Coronel to see if any further orders had been dispatched to him.
- The German East Asiatic Squadron, meanwhile, departs Más Afuera today for the Chilean coast. Admiral Spee has received information from German agents in Chile of the passage of a British warship through the Straits of Magellan, and thus decides for now to keep his larger armoured cruisers out of sight of the shore, while sending all radio transmissions using Leipzig's call sign, to give the appearance that only one German warship was in the area, as opposed to all five.
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
October 22nd, 1914
- The battle intensifies between Ypres and the Channel. In the pre-dawn hours, the German 26th Reserve Infantry Regiment of III Reserve Corps closes up to the Yser River just south of Schoore. By using the bayonet to clear out Belgian outposts east of the river, the defenders on the west bank have not been alarmed. Using the cover of night, engineers bridge the river at two places, and by dawn most of two battalions are on the west bank. The Germans are able to resist Belgian counterattacks, but the small bridgehead comes under fierce and sustained artillery fire, preventing reinforcement during the day. Only after nightfall can additional German soldiers get across the river.
- To the south, a monumental attack is launched by the Germans against the British I and IV Corps. The British line around Ypres today forms a semi-circle, and it is against its northern and eastern portions that the attack falls. The bulk of the German XVI Reserve Corps, assisted by a division of XXIII Reserve Corps, throws itself against the line held by the British 1st Division between Bixschoote and Langemarck, while to the southeast the British 2nd Division spends most of the day under a heavy artillery bombardment before the Germans attempt to rush the enemy trenches at dusk. Further south, 7th Division of IV Corps is assaulted by the German XVII Reserve Corps south of Zonnebeke.
The trial of the four reserve corps consigned to the attack by Falkenhayn is now at hand. They form up for the advance, officers, some on horseback, in front, with the soldiers in massed ranks. The volunteers of the corps have had time only to learn the most basic parade-ground maneouvres, while those with prior military training have either forgotten the bulk of it or learnt it so long ago as to be practically useless. There are only a sprinkling of officers and NCOs through the corps who have seen combat in this war, and thus the infantry advance in the mass formations of peacetime - they have not gained the knowledge learnt at great cost over the past few months of the realities of the modern battlefield. The instructions for the formations are simple - advance and overwhelm the enemy. As they march into battle, some of the units begin to sing 'Deutschland über Alles' or 'Die Wacht am Rhein.' In part they do so as a recognition signal - so inexperienced are they that they fear firing on their own soldiers, so singing the two great German patriotic songs is an unmistakable signal of their identity. The singing also, however, reflects the great patriotism amongst in particular the volunteers, those who rushed to enlist in August 1914. These volunteers, many high school and university students, sometimes with their teachers alongside, represent the pinnacle of German war enthusiasm - they march into battle because they choose to, believing in the righteousness of their cause and the irresistibility of their advance.
Their singing reaches the British soldiers huddling in their meagre trenches opposite. As the Germans advance, flags flying in near-perfect parade-ground formation, the British open fire. The patriotism and enthusiasm of the German volunteers meets the fire of machine guns and rifles, and the result is never in doubt. Huge swathes are cut through the German ranks - the British regulars, trained to fire fifteen aimed rifle shots a minute, fire between 500 and 600 times today. Hundreds and hundreds of Germans are wounded and killed as they attempt to march to the British line. Now the inexperience of the reserve corps manifests itself in another way - they do not know when enemy fire is too intense to continue. Not knowing better, they continue to advance long after it becomes painfully obvious to those with battlefield experience that all further attacks will accomplish is pile the German bodies higher. Even when the Germans pull back, they simply reform and advance again. In some cases they get as close as fifty yards to the British trenches, a range at which no British regular could possibly miss. Even some of the British officers cannot help but admire the courage of the Germans in continuing to attack. But as the past few months have shown, courage against the machine gun can have only one outcome.
The German attacks accomplish nothing of strategic significance. The small village of Kortekeer is taken on the front of the British 1st Division, but no breakthrough is achieved and the British are quick to plan a counterattack. By nightfall the sound of singing has been replaced by the piteous moans of the wounded and dying. British soldiers peering through the twilight sees the fields before them covered by fallen Germans. Here and there a wounded German, sometimes variously with arms or legs missing, attempts to crawl to safety. Many of the German formations have lost half or more of their strength.
From today's attacks, and ones by the reserve corps in subsequent days, a legend will grow in Germany - the Kindermord, or Massacre of the Innocents. The proportion of the reserve corps composed of young volunteers is inflated, such that the attack is depicted as the ultimate expression of German patriotism. Far from being seen as a defeat, the Kindermord comes to be celebrated as the triumph of national will, of how no trial, however arduous, can extinguish the flame of German patriotism. The anniversary of the Kindermord comes to be celebrated each year in wartime Germany as a symbol of the unshakeable will of the German people and faith in ultimate victory. After the war, the Kindermord will be appropriated by the right, including the Nazis, for whom the Battle of Langemarck, as the Germans call it, becomes a key touchstone for the celebration of German militarism and the patriotism that was betrayed by the 'stab in the back.'
The reality of the Kindermord is more prosaic - the soldiers of the reserve corps die miserable deaths, often without even seeing the enemy or firing a shot. For many, the rude introduction to the realities of modern warfare become the last few seconds of their lives. They believed they were marching to victory; instead they advanced into oblivion.
- Along the line held by the British II Corps, an early morning German attack catches the 1st Battalion, Cheshire Regiment in the open digging trenches, and within a matter of minutes their numbers are reduced from 382 to 153. The battalion falls back and the Germans advance until held by reserve British forces. In light of the increasing pressure, and concerned about remaining in touch with French cavalry to his north, General Smith-Dorrien orders II Corps to withdraw tonight to a reserve trench line stretching from the La Bassée Canal to Fauquissart. The retreat is completed overnight without interference from the Germans.
- This afternoon Germans launch a major attack on the village of St. Laurent, just east of Arras, under the eyes of the Kaiser, who has arrived to witness the fall of the city. The French Alpine Division, reinforced by cavalry that had just arrived, fight a desparate battle, and heavy fighting continues into the evening as the two forces struggle over the ruins of the village.
- This morning the old pre-dreadnought Canopus arrives at Port Stanley in the Falklands. Its captain confirms to Rear-Admiral Craddock that his ship is capable of only 12 knots, and further that it cannot leave port again until he had fixed the ship's condensers and cleaned its boilers. Craddock sees Canopus as no value to his command, but still feels himself bound by the earlier Admiralty orders to attack the German East Asiatic Squadron. In the back of his mind is the escape of the Goeben and Breslau in the Mediterranean in the first days of the war. There, Admiral Troubridge had decided against engaging the German ships with his inferior squadron, and he had been widely criticized, with some calling into question his honour and courage. Craddock will not allow this to happen to himself - to his friend Admiral Hedworth Meux he writes today that 'I will take care I do not suffer the fate of poor Troubridge.' The only course of action consistent not only with Admiralty orders but also with the dictates of honour is that he sail with his squadron, without Canopus, to fight the German East Asiatic Squadron. He does so knowing that there is little chance of success - to the governor of the Falklands he states that he will not see him again. Thus this afternoon Craddock aboard Good Hope slips out of harbour sailing westward, to join Glasgow, Monmouth, and Otranto where they will seek out battle, while Canopus is ordered to follow when possible with three colliers. Thus the reverberations of the escape of the Goeben and Breslau continue to echo.
- Enver Pasha today transmits the Ottoman war plan for hostilities against the Entente to Germany. It was not a monumentally-detailed plan for mobilization and operations in the vein of one produced by the German General Staff. Indeed, it is not readily apparent that Enver sought any professional advice in developing it. Instead, the plan contains six 'options' for war, though not in any particular order. First, the 'new' Turkish fleet would bombard the Black Sea ports of Russia. Second would be the declaration of holy war against the Entente, inspiring their Muslim subjects to rebellion. Third, the Ottomans would hold the line in the Caucasus, tying down Russian units. Fourth would be an offensive against Egypt, possibly by XII Corps, seizing the Suez Canal as its first phase. Fifth, if Bulgaria entered the war the Ottomans would join with them in attacking Serbia. Finally, the possibility is raised of deploying Ottoman forces to the north Black Sea coast.
The importance of the document does not rest with its detailed plans for military operations, of which there are very few details given. Instead, the Ottoman war plan is designed primarily as a political document to demonstrate to the Germans the value of Ottoman military support. In particular, the invasion of Egypt, the option given the most detail in the plan, accomplishes something that the Germans themselves cannot - attack the British Empire directly. Thus by emphasizing Ottoman military potential against Britain, they enhance their stature in the eyes of the German General Staff. Pre-war dismissals by German officials of the military value of the Ottoman army give way to tantalizing and enticing possibilities of striking deadly blows against the British.
- In South Africa, the Boer dissidents decide to rise in rebellion against the government. They do so in protest of the war, the invasion of German South-West Africa, and conscription. They also draw support from landless Boers who fear the growing urbanization of the country will drive them into the cities and into the working-class, and those who feel the traditional Boer values of egalitarianism and republicanism are under threat. However, the rebellion divides the Boer populace, and significant pillars of the community, including both the Dutch Reformed Church and J. B. M. Hertzog, leader of the National Party, giving the Boer Rebellion the character of a domestic dispute among Boers, as opposed to a unified Boer uprising against British occupation and colonization.
- In August the German ports of Dar es Salaam and Tanga in their East African colony were declared to be open cities, but today the British announce that they are voiding the agreements. They have developed plans for a two-pronged offensive against the northern portion of the colony, both utilizing units of the Indian Army - Detachment B of the Indian Expeditionary Force is to land and seize Tanga, while Detachment C will advance overland to Moshi. Once both towns are taken the British will control both ends of the railway that connects the two, placing them in position to advance on the central railway in the colony. The same railway, however, gives the defending Germans the ability to rapidly shift forces between the two threatened points.
- To the south, a monumental attack is launched by the Germans against the British I and IV Corps. The British line around Ypres today forms a semi-circle, and it is against its northern and eastern portions that the attack falls. The bulk of the German XVI Reserve Corps, assisted by a division of XXIII Reserve Corps, throws itself against the line held by the British 1st Division between Bixschoote and Langemarck, while to the southeast the British 2nd Division spends most of the day under a heavy artillery bombardment before the Germans attempt to rush the enemy trenches at dusk. Further south, 7th Division of IV Corps is assaulted by the German XVII Reserve Corps south of Zonnebeke.
The trial of the four reserve corps consigned to the attack by Falkenhayn is now at hand. They form up for the advance, officers, some on horseback, in front, with the soldiers in massed ranks. The volunteers of the corps have had time only to learn the most basic parade-ground maneouvres, while those with prior military training have either forgotten the bulk of it or learnt it so long ago as to be practically useless. There are only a sprinkling of officers and NCOs through the corps who have seen combat in this war, and thus the infantry advance in the mass formations of peacetime - they have not gained the knowledge learnt at great cost over the past few months of the realities of the modern battlefield. The instructions for the formations are simple - advance and overwhelm the enemy. As they march into battle, some of the units begin to sing 'Deutschland über Alles' or 'Die Wacht am Rhein.' In part they do so as a recognition signal - so inexperienced are they that they fear firing on their own soldiers, so singing the two great German patriotic songs is an unmistakable signal of their identity. The singing also, however, reflects the great patriotism amongst in particular the volunteers, those who rushed to enlist in August 1914. These volunteers, many high school and university students, sometimes with their teachers alongside, represent the pinnacle of German war enthusiasm - they march into battle because they choose to, believing in the righteousness of their cause and the irresistibility of their advance.
Their singing reaches the British soldiers huddling in their meagre trenches opposite. As the Germans advance, flags flying in near-perfect parade-ground formation, the British open fire. The patriotism and enthusiasm of the German volunteers meets the fire of machine guns and rifles, and the result is never in doubt. Huge swathes are cut through the German ranks - the British regulars, trained to fire fifteen aimed rifle shots a minute, fire between 500 and 600 times today. Hundreds and hundreds of Germans are wounded and killed as they attempt to march to the British line. Now the inexperience of the reserve corps manifests itself in another way - they do not know when enemy fire is too intense to continue. Not knowing better, they continue to advance long after it becomes painfully obvious to those with battlefield experience that all further attacks will accomplish is pile the German bodies higher. Even when the Germans pull back, they simply reform and advance again. In some cases they get as close as fifty yards to the British trenches, a range at which no British regular could possibly miss. Even some of the British officers cannot help but admire the courage of the Germans in continuing to attack. But as the past few months have shown, courage against the machine gun can have only one outcome.
The German attacks accomplish nothing of strategic significance. The small village of Kortekeer is taken on the front of the British 1st Division, but no breakthrough is achieved and the British are quick to plan a counterattack. By nightfall the sound of singing has been replaced by the piteous moans of the wounded and dying. British soldiers peering through the twilight sees the fields before them covered by fallen Germans. Here and there a wounded German, sometimes variously with arms or legs missing, attempts to crawl to safety. Many of the German formations have lost half or more of their strength.
From today's attacks, and ones by the reserve corps in subsequent days, a legend will grow in Germany - the Kindermord, or Massacre of the Innocents. The proportion of the reserve corps composed of young volunteers is inflated, such that the attack is depicted as the ultimate expression of German patriotism. Far from being seen as a defeat, the Kindermord comes to be celebrated as the triumph of national will, of how no trial, however arduous, can extinguish the flame of German patriotism. The anniversary of the Kindermord comes to be celebrated each year in wartime Germany as a symbol of the unshakeable will of the German people and faith in ultimate victory. After the war, the Kindermord will be appropriated by the right, including the Nazis, for whom the Battle of Langemarck, as the Germans call it, becomes a key touchstone for the celebration of German militarism and the patriotism that was betrayed by the 'stab in the back.'
The reality of the Kindermord is more prosaic - the soldiers of the reserve corps die miserable deaths, often without even seeing the enemy or firing a shot. For many, the rude introduction to the realities of modern warfare become the last few seconds of their lives. They believed they were marching to victory; instead they advanced into oblivion.
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| The German assaults on the British lines around Ypres, October 22nd and 23rd, 1914. |
- Along the line held by the British II Corps, an early morning German attack catches the 1st Battalion, Cheshire Regiment in the open digging trenches, and within a matter of minutes their numbers are reduced from 382 to 153. The battalion falls back and the Germans advance until held by reserve British forces. In light of the increasing pressure, and concerned about remaining in touch with French cavalry to his north, General Smith-Dorrien orders II Corps to withdraw tonight to a reserve trench line stretching from the La Bassée Canal to Fauquissart. The retreat is completed overnight without interference from the Germans.
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| The southern portion of the line held by the British, October 1914. The thick red line is indicative of the line to which II Corps withdrew to overnight. |
- This afternoon Germans launch a major attack on the village of St. Laurent, just east of Arras, under the eyes of the Kaiser, who has arrived to witness the fall of the city. The French Alpine Division, reinforced by cavalry that had just arrived, fight a desparate battle, and heavy fighting continues into the evening as the two forces struggle over the ruins of the village.
- This morning the old pre-dreadnought Canopus arrives at Port Stanley in the Falklands. Its captain confirms to Rear-Admiral Craddock that his ship is capable of only 12 knots, and further that it cannot leave port again until he had fixed the ship's condensers and cleaned its boilers. Craddock sees Canopus as no value to his command, but still feels himself bound by the earlier Admiralty orders to attack the German East Asiatic Squadron. In the back of his mind is the escape of the Goeben and Breslau in the Mediterranean in the first days of the war. There, Admiral Troubridge had decided against engaging the German ships with his inferior squadron, and he had been widely criticized, with some calling into question his honour and courage. Craddock will not allow this to happen to himself - to his friend Admiral Hedworth Meux he writes today that 'I will take care I do not suffer the fate of poor Troubridge.' The only course of action consistent not only with Admiralty orders but also with the dictates of honour is that he sail with his squadron, without Canopus, to fight the German East Asiatic Squadron. He does so knowing that there is little chance of success - to the governor of the Falklands he states that he will not see him again. Thus this afternoon Craddock aboard Good Hope slips out of harbour sailing westward, to join Glasgow, Monmouth, and Otranto where they will seek out battle, while Canopus is ordered to follow when possible with three colliers. Thus the reverberations of the escape of the Goeben and Breslau continue to echo.
- Enver Pasha today transmits the Ottoman war plan for hostilities against the Entente to Germany. It was not a monumentally-detailed plan for mobilization and operations in the vein of one produced by the German General Staff. Indeed, it is not readily apparent that Enver sought any professional advice in developing it. Instead, the plan contains six 'options' for war, though not in any particular order. First, the 'new' Turkish fleet would bombard the Black Sea ports of Russia. Second would be the declaration of holy war against the Entente, inspiring their Muslim subjects to rebellion. Third, the Ottomans would hold the line in the Caucasus, tying down Russian units. Fourth would be an offensive against Egypt, possibly by XII Corps, seizing the Suez Canal as its first phase. Fifth, if Bulgaria entered the war the Ottomans would join with them in attacking Serbia. Finally, the possibility is raised of deploying Ottoman forces to the north Black Sea coast.
The importance of the document does not rest with its detailed plans for military operations, of which there are very few details given. Instead, the Ottoman war plan is designed primarily as a political document to demonstrate to the Germans the value of Ottoman military support. In particular, the invasion of Egypt, the option given the most detail in the plan, accomplishes something that the Germans themselves cannot - attack the British Empire directly. Thus by emphasizing Ottoman military potential against Britain, they enhance their stature in the eyes of the German General Staff. Pre-war dismissals by German officials of the military value of the Ottoman army give way to tantalizing and enticing possibilities of striking deadly blows against the British.
- In South Africa, the Boer dissidents decide to rise in rebellion against the government. They do so in protest of the war, the invasion of German South-West Africa, and conscription. They also draw support from landless Boers who fear the growing urbanization of the country will drive them into the cities and into the working-class, and those who feel the traditional Boer values of egalitarianism and republicanism are under threat. However, the rebellion divides the Boer populace, and significant pillars of the community, including both the Dutch Reformed Church and J. B. M. Hertzog, leader of the National Party, giving the Boer Rebellion the character of a domestic dispute among Boers, as opposed to a unified Boer uprising against British occupation and colonization.
- In August the German ports of Dar es Salaam and Tanga in their East African colony were declared to be open cities, but today the British announce that they are voiding the agreements. They have developed plans for a two-pronged offensive against the northern portion of the colony, both utilizing units of the Indian Army - Detachment B of the Indian Expeditionary Force is to land and seize Tanga, while Detachment C will advance overland to Moshi. Once both towns are taken the British will control both ends of the railway that connects the two, placing them in position to advance on the central railway in the colony. The same railway, however, gives the defending Germans the ability to rapidly shift forces between the two threatened points.
Saturday, August 16, 2014
August 16th, 1914
- Fort Loncin, the last surviving Belgian fort near Liège, comes under bombardment from a Krupp 420 mortar firing from within the town itself. One shell penetrates the concrete and explodes in the fort's magazine, detonating the ammunition stores and blowing up the fort from the inside. With the destruction of Fort Loncin, all Belgian resistance at Liège has come to an end. It has taken the Germans twelve days from the moment they crossed the Belgian frontier to clear the forts. For their efforts General Emmich and Ludendorff are awarded the Pour le Mérite, Germany's highest military honour. Nevertheless, the Liège forts have served their purpose - overall, the advance of the German 1st and 2nd Armies has been delayed by several days. In the context of the Schlieffen Plan, such delay is of the gravest importance.
- Today the shipment of the British Expeditionary Force reaches its peak, as thousands of soldiers cross the Channel. Throughout this process, the German navy has made no effort whatsoever to interdict the British ships. Doing so would require sending the navy into the narrows of the Strait of Dover, where they would be susceptible to mines, subject to submarine attacks, and could potentially have their avenue of retreat cut off by the Grand Fleet sailing south from Scapa Flow. Perhaps more importantly, however, the Germans do not feel that stopping the BEF from arriving in France is of particular importance. By continental standards, the BEF is pitifully small - four infantry divisions plus cavalry, in comparison to the seven entire armies the Germans have in the West. It is felt that the BEF is too small to make a decisive difference, and once the Schlieffen Plan is successfully executed it can be dealt with easily. Yet another assumption of the German General Staff that will be upset by events.
- Moltke and the Supreme German Command (OHL in German), the headquarters of the German army in the war, relocates from Berlin to Coblenz on the Rhine River today. It is still eighty miles from the frontlines, and Moltke lacks information about the progress of the fighting. Wireless communications are inconsistent at best - the Eiffel Tower is being used to jam German signals. Telephone communication is also problematic - as the German armies advance, the telephone lines are broken and only irregularly repaired. The best method of communication is for junior officers, acquainted with Moltke's views, to be dispatched from headquarters to subordinate commands. For an operation that requires such precision as the Schlieffen Plan, this is hardly an ideal system of administration.
One communication that does get through to OHL today is from Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria, commander of 6th Army. He is responsible for the defense of the German left, the actions of 7th Army conforming to his orders. For two days he has been gradually retreating in the face of the French offensive in Lorraine, though inflicting heavy casualties on the French. As per the Schlieffen Plan, this is the essential task of the German left, to draw in the French and make it more difficult to respond to the advance through Belgium. Rupprecht, however, does not appreciate being assigned such a mundane task. Instead, he yearns to go on the attack and win glory on the battlefield. Further, a strong attack will pin the French forces in Lorraine, preventing them from redeploying against the German right moving through Belgium. However, he makes an even more tantalizing argument to Moltke and OHL. A successful German counterattack in Lorraine could open the way for an advance into France itself, and ultimately achieve the great goal of almost every general since Hannibal - a second Cannae. If the German right and left wings can break through, they can surround the entire French army and annihilate it. It is a major break from the Schlieffen Plan, and will necessitate committing forces to 6th and 7th Armies that might be more profitably utilized in Belgium.
Moltke, whose confidence has never really recovered from the Kaiser's rebuke on August 1st, is chronically indecisive. Does he seize an opportunity on the battlefield, or does he rigidly adhere to the war plan developed and refined over the past decade? A staff officer is sent by Moltke to Rupprecht's headquarters, but discussion solves nothing, and the question remains undecided.
- Field Marshall Sir John French meets General Joseph Joffre at the latter's headquarters for the first time since the outbreak of war. Neither particularly likes the other - French disdains Joffre's plebeian background, while Joffre feels the British commander is too concerned with his own army's fate, and insufficiently attuned to the needs of the broader campaign. Joffre insists that the BEF needs to be prepared to go into action to the left of Lanrazac's 5th Army by August 21st at the latest. In contrast to his discussion with President Poincarè, today French says he will do his best. When the British commander requests that French cavalry, to be deployed on the BEF's left flank, be put under his control, Joffre refuses - the British are here to aid the French army, not command it, and the French commander is hardly interested in delegating authority to his own subordinates, let alone the British.
- A surprise night counterattack by Serbian forces savages VIII Corps of the Austro-Hungarian Army, throwing it into retreat.
- The arrival of Goeben and Breslau at the Dardanelles six days ago has created the issue of what, exactly, should be done with the two ships. As the Ottoman Empire is still neutral, combatant ships are supposed to be interned, but there is no chance of this being acceptable to Admiral Souchon. Instead, the German ambassador suggested that the ships be 'sold' to the Ottomans, a solution quickly seized upon by the Ottoman government. Not only would this resolve the status of the ships, but it would also appear as compensation provided by the Germans to the Ottomans for the seizure of the latter's dreadnoughts under construction in Britain. Today, in a formal ceremony the German flag is lowered from the ships, replaced by the Ottoman flag, and the ships are re-christened Jawus Sultan Selim (ex-Goeben) and Midilli (ex-Breslau). The British ambassador can only protest feebly. The British have been hoist on their own petard - having seized the Ottoman dreadnoughts, they can hardly complain about the Ottomans 'purchasing' replacement vessels. In practice, the 'sale' is a fiction. The ships remain manned by German sailors (though now in fezzes) and commanded by Admiral Souchon, the latter loyal to Berlin over Constantinople. It is another step of the Ottoman Empire into the orbit of Germany.
Meanwhile, a meeting between the German military mission in the Ottoman Empire and Enver Pasha discuss possible Ottoman operations in the event of their entry into the war. An offensive against Egypt receives the most emphasis, while amphibious operations in the Black Sea, backed by Goeben and Breslau, are also canvassed.
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| Fort Loncin after its destruction on Aug. 16th, 1914. |
- Moltke and the Supreme German Command (OHL in German), the headquarters of the German army in the war, relocates from Berlin to Coblenz on the Rhine River today. It is still eighty miles from the frontlines, and Moltke lacks information about the progress of the fighting. Wireless communications are inconsistent at best - the Eiffel Tower is being used to jam German signals. Telephone communication is also problematic - as the German armies advance, the telephone lines are broken and only irregularly repaired. The best method of communication is for junior officers, acquainted with Moltke's views, to be dispatched from headquarters to subordinate commands. For an operation that requires such precision as the Schlieffen Plan, this is hardly an ideal system of administration.
One communication that does get through to OHL today is from Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria, commander of 6th Army. He is responsible for the defense of the German left, the actions of 7th Army conforming to his orders. For two days he has been gradually retreating in the face of the French offensive in Lorraine, though inflicting heavy casualties on the French. As per the Schlieffen Plan, this is the essential task of the German left, to draw in the French and make it more difficult to respond to the advance through Belgium. Rupprecht, however, does not appreciate being assigned such a mundane task. Instead, he yearns to go on the attack and win glory on the battlefield. Further, a strong attack will pin the French forces in Lorraine, preventing them from redeploying against the German right moving through Belgium. However, he makes an even more tantalizing argument to Moltke and OHL. A successful German counterattack in Lorraine could open the way for an advance into France itself, and ultimately achieve the great goal of almost every general since Hannibal - a second Cannae. If the German right and left wings can break through, they can surround the entire French army and annihilate it. It is a major break from the Schlieffen Plan, and will necessitate committing forces to 6th and 7th Armies that might be more profitably utilized in Belgium.
Moltke, whose confidence has never really recovered from the Kaiser's rebuke on August 1st, is chronically indecisive. Does he seize an opportunity on the battlefield, or does he rigidly adhere to the war plan developed and refined over the past decade? A staff officer is sent by Moltke to Rupprecht's headquarters, but discussion solves nothing, and the question remains undecided.
- Field Marshall Sir John French meets General Joseph Joffre at the latter's headquarters for the first time since the outbreak of war. Neither particularly likes the other - French disdains Joffre's plebeian background, while Joffre feels the British commander is too concerned with his own army's fate, and insufficiently attuned to the needs of the broader campaign. Joffre insists that the BEF needs to be prepared to go into action to the left of Lanrazac's 5th Army by August 21st at the latest. In contrast to his discussion with President Poincarè, today French says he will do his best. When the British commander requests that French cavalry, to be deployed on the BEF's left flank, be put under his control, Joffre refuses - the British are here to aid the French army, not command it, and the French commander is hardly interested in delegating authority to his own subordinates, let alone the British.
- A surprise night counterattack by Serbian forces savages VIII Corps of the Austro-Hungarian Army, throwing it into retreat.
- The arrival of Goeben and Breslau at the Dardanelles six days ago has created the issue of what, exactly, should be done with the two ships. As the Ottoman Empire is still neutral, combatant ships are supposed to be interned, but there is no chance of this being acceptable to Admiral Souchon. Instead, the German ambassador suggested that the ships be 'sold' to the Ottomans, a solution quickly seized upon by the Ottoman government. Not only would this resolve the status of the ships, but it would also appear as compensation provided by the Germans to the Ottomans for the seizure of the latter's dreadnoughts under construction in Britain. Today, in a formal ceremony the German flag is lowered from the ships, replaced by the Ottoman flag, and the ships are re-christened Jawus Sultan Selim (ex-Goeben) and Midilli (ex-Breslau). The British ambassador can only protest feebly. The British have been hoist on their own petard - having seized the Ottoman dreadnoughts, they can hardly complain about the Ottomans 'purchasing' replacement vessels. In practice, the 'sale' is a fiction. The ships remain manned by German sailors (though now in fezzes) and commanded by Admiral Souchon, the latter loyal to Berlin over Constantinople. It is another step of the Ottoman Empire into the orbit of Germany.
Meanwhile, a meeting between the German military mission in the Ottoman Empire and Enver Pasha discuss possible Ottoman operations in the event of their entry into the war. An offensive against Egypt receives the most emphasis, while amphibious operations in the Black Sea, backed by Goeben and Breslau, are also canvassed.
Sunday, August 10, 2014
August 10th, 1914
- At 3am the battlecruisers of the British Mediterranean Fleet enter the Aegean Sea. Detecting increased wireless signals, Admiral Souchon decides that his two ships must depart for the Dardanelles at dawn. At first light, Goeben and Breslau raise their anchors and begin the final stage of their journey. On a calm sea the two ships make 18 knots, and just after 5pm reach the entrance to the Dardanelles. As they sit in the shadow of the Ottoman fortresses guarding the narrows, the Ottoman government deliberates their fate. Ultimately, it is Enver Pasha who makes the decision to allow them to pass, with all that likely entails regarding the place of the Ottoman Empire in the war. As night falls Goeben and Breslau pass the ancient fortress at Chanak and anchor. Their voyage is at an end, but the repercussions are just beginning.
- The Serbian army today completes its mobilization.
- After twenty-four hours of combat, the German counteroffensive pushes the French VII Corps out of Mulhouse, and the latter is forced to retreat back across the border.
- A train carrying the two Krupp 420 mortars reaches the Belgian border today, but is forced to halt twenty miles east of Liège, as the railroad tunnel ahead had been earlier dynamited by the retreating Belgians. The two mortars will have to be unloaded and proceed by road.
- Today the South African Cabinet agrees to the request from the British government to undertake the conquest of German South-West Africa, on two conditions: first, the campaign must be approved by Parliament; and second, only volunteers are to be used. Both conditions are designed to ensure that the campaign will work to unify the South African population, instead of dividing it between Boer and Briton.
- The Serbian army today completes its mobilization.
- After twenty-four hours of combat, the German counteroffensive pushes the French VII Corps out of Mulhouse, and the latter is forced to retreat back across the border.
- A train carrying the two Krupp 420 mortars reaches the Belgian border today, but is forced to halt twenty miles east of Liège, as the railroad tunnel ahead had been earlier dynamited by the retreating Belgians. The two mortars will have to be unloaded and proceed by road.
- Today the South African Cabinet agrees to the request from the British government to undertake the conquest of German South-West Africa, on two conditions: first, the campaign must be approved by Parliament; and second, only volunteers are to be used. Both conditions are designed to ensure that the campaign will work to unify the South African population, instead of dividing it between Boer and Briton.
Saturday, August 09, 2014
August 9th, 1914
- Today the Royal Navy sinks its first German U-boat of the war. As anti-submarine weapons do not exist as of yet, the light cruiser Birmingham attacks the submarine U-15 by ramming it. Sliced in half, the submarine sinks quickly, and all hands are lost.
- German industrialist Walther Rathenau meets today with War Minister General Erich von Falkenhayn. Rathenau's initial concern is the exploitation of Belgian industry, but he also has concerns about the German economy as a whole if, as he suspects, the war will be lengthy. In a memorandum he submits to Falkenhayn, he suggests the creation of an organization to manage to the appropriation and distribution of raw materials, in order to ensure German industry was operating as efficiently as possible, and that factories producing the essentials of war - steel, ammunition, etc. - have priority on the raw materials they need. Falkenhayn is convinced, and establishes the Kriegsrohstoffsamt (KRA) under Rathenau's leadership. The KRA will play a vital role in managing the wartime German economy, especially in the face of shortages caused by the Entente naval blockade.
- At dawn, Goeben and Breslau arrive at the harbour of Denusa, meeting their collier. The two German ships attach themselves to either side of collier, and begin transferring coal as rapidly as possibly, sailors shoveling nonstop throughout the day and into the night. At 9pm, the wireless room on Goeben report the first faint signals from approaching British warships.
- This morning, German units sent from Strasbourg begin a counterattack against the French force that has occupied Mulhouse.
- The embarkation of the British Expeditionary Force begins at ports in southern England. Eighty thousand infantrymen and twelve thousand cavalrymen are destined for Le Havre and other nearby French ports.
- Two Krupp 420 mortars have been readied at Essen for use, and tonight are loaded on freight cars for transportation towards Liège.
- German industrialist Walther Rathenau meets today with War Minister General Erich von Falkenhayn. Rathenau's initial concern is the exploitation of Belgian industry, but he also has concerns about the German economy as a whole if, as he suspects, the war will be lengthy. In a memorandum he submits to Falkenhayn, he suggests the creation of an organization to manage to the appropriation and distribution of raw materials, in order to ensure German industry was operating as efficiently as possible, and that factories producing the essentials of war - steel, ammunition, etc. - have priority on the raw materials they need. Falkenhayn is convinced, and establishes the Kriegsrohstoffsamt (KRA) under Rathenau's leadership. The KRA will play a vital role in managing the wartime German economy, especially in the face of shortages caused by the Entente naval blockade.
- At dawn, Goeben and Breslau arrive at the harbour of Denusa, meeting their collier. The two German ships attach themselves to either side of collier, and begin transferring coal as rapidly as possibly, sailors shoveling nonstop throughout the day and into the night. At 9pm, the wireless room on Goeben report the first faint signals from approaching British warships.
- This morning, German units sent from Strasbourg begin a counterattack against the French force that has occupied Mulhouse.
- The embarkation of the British Expeditionary Force begins at ports in southern England. Eighty thousand infantrymen and twelve thousand cavalrymen are destined for Le Havre and other nearby French ports.
- Two Krupp 420 mortars have been readied at Essen for use, and tonight are loaded on freight cars for transportation towards Liège.
Friday, August 08, 2014
August 8th, 1914
- The economic impact of the outbreak of war has reached the neutral United States, as Europeans withdraw funds from American banks. As a result, by today the gold reserves of the New York banks have declined by $43 million.
- Two British cruisers appear off Dar es Salaam in German East Africa, and proceed to bombard the harbour. The governor, Heinrich Schnee, proclams Dar es Salaam an open city, knowing it cannot be defended. The tiny German garrison destroys the wireless station and retreat inland.
- Mulhouse is captured by elements of the French VII Corps at 3pm, the French force having encountered no strong German resistance. Thousands of Alsatians greet VII Corps with cheers of 'Vive la France!', while the news is met with joyous celebration in France.
- As Goeben and Breslau sail among the Greek islands, Admiral Souchon orders his collier to meet him at Denusa, a remote island on the far side of the Aegean. Meanwhile, the British battlecruisers finally leave Malta and begin to sail eastwards after the German pair. Admiral Sir Archibald Berkeley Milne, commander of the British Mediterranean Fleet, still believes that the ultimate intention of the Germans is to double back and attack the conveys, so he is in no rush to catch up to Goeben and Breslau. He has no idea that the Dardanelles is a possible destination for the ships.
- French General Joffre issues his General Instructions No. 1 today, outlining his plan for the campaign. In line with Plan XVII, 1st and 2nd Armies will attack into Lorraine south of the Metz-Thionville fortified zone, while 3rd and 4th Armies will attack through the Ardennes north of Metz-Thionville. The objective of the offensive is the destruction of the German armies. The plan rests on the assumption that the German army is concentrated in Luxembourg and Metz-Thionville. The German invasion of Belgium, meanwhile, is dismissed as a comparatively secondary operation.
- The French 1st Army seizes several passes in the Vosges, in order to protect its flank for its imminent offensive under General Instructions No. 1.
- Ludendorff returns from Liège to 2nd Army headquarters, reporting on the seizure of the town. As the surrounding forts continue to resist, he argues that special siege artillery will be needed to ensure their destruction. The Germans have two types of such guns - several Skoda 305 mortars are on loan from Austria-Hungary, and Krupp is frantically finishing construction of its Krupp 420 mortars at its factory in Essen. These mortars are the largest land guns in history, and only they can fire shells of sufficient size (12-inch for the Skodas and 16.5 inch for the Krupps) to penetrate the thick concrete of the Belgian forts at Liège.
- Two British cruisers appear off Dar es Salaam in German East Africa, and proceed to bombard the harbour. The governor, Heinrich Schnee, proclams Dar es Salaam an open city, knowing it cannot be defended. The tiny German garrison destroys the wireless station and retreat inland.
- Mulhouse is captured by elements of the French VII Corps at 3pm, the French force having encountered no strong German resistance. Thousands of Alsatians greet VII Corps with cheers of 'Vive la France!', while the news is met with joyous celebration in France.
- As Goeben and Breslau sail among the Greek islands, Admiral Souchon orders his collier to meet him at Denusa, a remote island on the far side of the Aegean. Meanwhile, the British battlecruisers finally leave Malta and begin to sail eastwards after the German pair. Admiral Sir Archibald Berkeley Milne, commander of the British Mediterranean Fleet, still believes that the ultimate intention of the Germans is to double back and attack the conveys, so he is in no rush to catch up to Goeben and Breslau. He has no idea that the Dardanelles is a possible destination for the ships.
- French General Joffre issues his General Instructions No. 1 today, outlining his plan for the campaign. In line with Plan XVII, 1st and 2nd Armies will attack into Lorraine south of the Metz-Thionville fortified zone, while 3rd and 4th Armies will attack through the Ardennes north of Metz-Thionville. The objective of the offensive is the destruction of the German armies. The plan rests on the assumption that the German army is concentrated in Luxembourg and Metz-Thionville. The German invasion of Belgium, meanwhile, is dismissed as a comparatively secondary operation.
- The French 1st Army seizes several passes in the Vosges, in order to protect its flank for its imminent offensive under General Instructions No. 1.
- Ludendorff returns from Liège to 2nd Army headquarters, reporting on the seizure of the town. As the surrounding forts continue to resist, he argues that special siege artillery will be needed to ensure their destruction. The Germans have two types of such guns - several Skoda 305 mortars are on loan from Austria-Hungary, and Krupp is frantically finishing construction of its Krupp 420 mortars at its factory in Essen. These mortars are the largest land guns in history, and only they can fire shells of sufficient size (12-inch for the Skodas and 16.5 inch for the Krupps) to penetrate the thick concrete of the Belgian forts at Liège.
Thursday, August 07, 2014
August 7th, 1914
- In the pre-dawn hours, as Goeben and Breslau continue to sail eastwards, a British squadron of four armoured cruisers under Rear Admiral Ernest Troubridge are moving to intercept. However, Troubridge is troubled at the scenario playing out. His force will not be in position to attack Goeben and Breslau until after dawn. Further, Goeben is faster than his ships, and the main guns of Goeben can shoot farther than his own. His fear is that his squadron would be unable to close to engage Goeben, the latter using its superior speed to keep the range at where the Goeben can fire but the British armoured cruisers cannot. Despite outnumbering the German force, at 405am Troubridge, fearing annihilation, orders his squadron to abandon the chase.
At dawn, Goeben and Breslau, unaware of how close they had come to battle, sail eastwards, still followed by the light cruiser Gloucester. Early this afternoon, Admiral Souchon attempts to shake his pursuer by turning to fight, but Gloucester simply turns as well, remaining outside the range of Goeben's guns. Souchon orders a return to the prior course, needing to rendezvous with his collier if he is to reach the Dardanelles. At 440pm, Gloucester, almost out of coal, is forced to give up the chase. The British now lose track of Goeben and Breslau.
- As with the other self-governing dominions of the British Empire - Canada, Australia, and New Zealand - South Africa was automatically at war with Germany when Great Britain declared war on August 4th. Today the South African government receives a telegram from London asking whether South African forces could seize key points in neighbouring German South-West Africa. Prime Minister Louis Botha is supportive of the appeal - the conquest of the German colony offers the prospect of the creation of an empire of its own for South Africa. But the issue is not clear-cut - when Botha brings the request before his cabinet today, four ministers support him, while four are opposed. The issue raises to the surface the underlying tension in South African society - the Boer population, which politically dominate the dominion, are not altogether supportive of Britain and its war. It has only been a dozen years since the Boers were forced to surrender their autonomy at the end of the Second Boer War in 1902. Further, German South-West Africa has been a haven for die-hard Boer rebels, raising the possibility of Boer fighting Boer in an invasion of the German colony. Finally, the rhetoric of Britain makes many Boers uncomfortable - Britain declares itself to be fighting on behalf of small nations such as Belgium, which stands in uneasy contrast to British policy towards the very small Boer republics prior to 1902. Thus there is a genuine fear among ministers in Botha's government that a move to openly support Britain through attacking German South-West Africa might destabilize South Africa itself and lead to a rebellion among those Boers who have never completely reconciled themselves to membership in the British Empire.
- As the rest of the French army continues to assemble, General Joffre orders the VII Corps to undertake an offensive into Alsace with the objective of seizing Mulhouse. This is separate from the main offensives Joffre is planning to launch under Plan XVII, and is designed both to satisfy the desire of the French public to reclaim the 'lost territories' of Alsace-Lorraine and demonstrate to their allies the readiness of the French army. Undertaken by two infantry divisions and one infantry brigade, this force crosses the border at 5am and begins the twenty-five kilometre march to Mulhouse.
- At Liège, Ludendorff decides that the brigade he has led inside the ring of forts should assault the town itself. The German force is able to enter the town unopposed, the Belgian 3rd Division having been withdrawn the previous day. Ludendorff himself drives up to the old Citadel guarding the centre of the town, strides up to the gates, and demands their surrender. The Belgian soldiers remaining in the Citadel, instead of shooting Ludendorff for his insolence, surrender. How much better for the Entente would it have been if they had surrendered only after dispatching Ludendorff first? Regardless, the Germans now control the town of Liège, but there are still the forts around the town to subdue before 1st and 2nd Armies can fully begin their march through Belgium.
- Lord Kitchener issues his first public appeal for volunteers, calling for 100 000 recruits. Kitchener intends these volunteers to form the seventy-division British army he envisions will be needed to win a war that will last years, not months.
At dawn, Goeben and Breslau, unaware of how close they had come to battle, sail eastwards, still followed by the light cruiser Gloucester. Early this afternoon, Admiral Souchon attempts to shake his pursuer by turning to fight, but Gloucester simply turns as well, remaining outside the range of Goeben's guns. Souchon orders a return to the prior course, needing to rendezvous with his collier if he is to reach the Dardanelles. At 440pm, Gloucester, almost out of coal, is forced to give up the chase. The British now lose track of Goeben and Breslau.
- As with the other self-governing dominions of the British Empire - Canada, Australia, and New Zealand - South Africa was automatically at war with Germany when Great Britain declared war on August 4th. Today the South African government receives a telegram from London asking whether South African forces could seize key points in neighbouring German South-West Africa. Prime Minister Louis Botha is supportive of the appeal - the conquest of the German colony offers the prospect of the creation of an empire of its own for South Africa. But the issue is not clear-cut - when Botha brings the request before his cabinet today, four ministers support him, while four are opposed. The issue raises to the surface the underlying tension in South African society - the Boer population, which politically dominate the dominion, are not altogether supportive of Britain and its war. It has only been a dozen years since the Boers were forced to surrender their autonomy at the end of the Second Boer War in 1902. Further, German South-West Africa has been a haven for die-hard Boer rebels, raising the possibility of Boer fighting Boer in an invasion of the German colony. Finally, the rhetoric of Britain makes many Boers uncomfortable - Britain declares itself to be fighting on behalf of small nations such as Belgium, which stands in uneasy contrast to British policy towards the very small Boer republics prior to 1902. Thus there is a genuine fear among ministers in Botha's government that a move to openly support Britain through attacking German South-West Africa might destabilize South Africa itself and lead to a rebellion among those Boers who have never completely reconciled themselves to membership in the British Empire.
- As the rest of the French army continues to assemble, General Joffre orders the VII Corps to undertake an offensive into Alsace with the objective of seizing Mulhouse. This is separate from the main offensives Joffre is planning to launch under Plan XVII, and is designed both to satisfy the desire of the French public to reclaim the 'lost territories' of Alsace-Lorraine and demonstrate to their allies the readiness of the French army. Undertaken by two infantry divisions and one infantry brigade, this force crosses the border at 5am and begins the twenty-five kilometre march to Mulhouse.
- At Liège, Ludendorff decides that the brigade he has led inside the ring of forts should assault the town itself. The German force is able to enter the town unopposed, the Belgian 3rd Division having been withdrawn the previous day. Ludendorff himself drives up to the old Citadel guarding the centre of the town, strides up to the gates, and demands their surrender. The Belgian soldiers remaining in the Citadel, instead of shooting Ludendorff for his insolence, surrender. How much better for the Entente would it have been if they had surrendered only after dispatching Ludendorff first? Regardless, the Germans now control the town of Liège, but there are still the forts around the town to subdue before 1st and 2nd Armies can fully begin their march through Belgium.
- Lord Kitchener issues his first public appeal for volunteers, calling for 100 000 recruits. Kitchener intends these volunteers to form the seventy-division British army he envisions will be needed to win a war that will last years, not months.
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| Volunteers for Kitchener's 'New' Army in London, Aug. 7th, 1914. |
Wednesday, August 06, 2014
August 6th, 1914
Upon his appointment Potiorek is informed by Conrad that he will only have use of the 2nd Army until August 18th, at which point it was to entrain for the Russian front. As such, the 2nd Army could only support the operations of Potiorek's other two armies - 5th and 6th - and was not to cross into Serbian territory. Needless to say, Potiorek is less than pleased with this arrangement.
- General I. G. Zhilinskii, a former Chief of Staff of the Russian Army, is appointed commander of the North-West Front. Facing the Germans in East Prussia, he has two armies under his authority - 1st Army, under General Paul Rennenkampf, and 2nd Army, under General Alexander Samsonov. At the direction of Grand Duke Nicholas, Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Army, North-West Front was to launch an invasion of East Prussia as soon as possible, in order to support their French allies by compelling the Germans to move forces from the West to the East. The coordination of the operations of 1st and 2nd Armies will be hindered, however, by the bitter professional rivalry of Rennenkampf and Samsonov.
- At Liège the Germans have their first success, in large part due to the actions of General Erich Ludendorff, a former operations officer on the General Staff who was now the liasion officer between 2nd Army and Emmich's task force. When the advance of the 14th Brigade stalled, Ludendorff rode up to ascertain the cause. Learning that the commander of the 14th Brigade has been killed, Ludendorff assumes command, and directs the brigade to attack into a gap between two of the Belgian forts. In fierce fighting the brigade breaks through, and by 2pm is on the east bank of the Meuse River overlooking Liège and its citadel. Ludendorff demanded the surrender of the Belgian commander of the town, but was refused. In reply, the Zeppelin L-Z drops thirteen bombs on Liège, killing nine civilians - it is the first time a European city has been bombarded from the air.
- Though the Belgian commander is determined to continue resistance, the German advance between two of his forts is worrying - it raises the possibility of each fort being isolated in turn. He decides to send the Belgian 3rd Division, which had been supporting the defense of the forts, back to the main concentration of the Belgian army to avoid it being surrounded and forced to surrender.
- Three French cavalry divisions are ordered into Belgium to reconnoiter German strength north of the Ardennes Forest. However, General Joffre has no intention whatsoever of sending a significant French force to aid the Belgians - his focus is solely on the execution of Plan XVII and the offensives into Alsace and Lorraine. He does not believe that the Germans are committing significant forces to the advance through Belgium, and does not want to dilute his imminent offensives by redirecting divisions northwards.
- A second meeting of the War Council in Britain finally reaches a decision on the deployment of the British Expeditionary Force. At Kitchener's insistence, instead of the full six infantry divisions of the regular army being sent to France, only four, plus the cavalry division, will depart at once, while the fifth may follow in the near future, but the sixth is to remain home. It is a precarious balance between those, like General Wilson, who want a full commitment to France, and those, like both Kitchener (training of an expanded army) and Asquith (public order) who have other concerns. Under pressure from Joffre, the deployment area of the BEF will remain Maubeuge, in line with pre-war planning. Joffre wants the BEF forward at the extreme left of the Entente line - though the left is not a priority under Plan XVII, it does need to be covered, and the BEF can fulfill that role while the important fighting is done by the French in Alsace and Lorraine. It is worth noting that Field Marshal Sir John French, Commander of the BEF, preferred it to be deployed either in Belgium directly or Amiens. With deployment at Maubeuge, French is being required to carry out a strategy he does not agree with.
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| Departure of the 1/5th Seaforth Highlanders from Wick, Scotland, Aug. 6th, 1914 |
- Goeben and Breslau depart Messina this afternoon, sailing southwards. The British light cruiser Gloucester, watching the southern exit of Messina Strait, observes the two German warships, and falls in behind them. By nightfall Goeben and Breslau have turned southeastward, and by 11pm it is clear that they are heading not for the French troopships or the Adriatic, but the Aegean. The British battlecruisers are hopelessly out of position, and Gloucester by herself would be easily sunk by Goeben. However, there is a British squadron of four old armoured cruisers steaming south of Corfu. Receiving word of the direction of Goeben and Breslau, they move to intercept.
- China formally declares its neutrality in the war. In practice this does not mean much - the Great Powers have enclaves and zones of influence in the country, particularly at water's edge, and they will act as they deem necessary in the circumstances.
- The tiny country of Montenegro declares war on Austria-Hungary, in solidarity with its Serbian allies, and places its small army under Serbian control.
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