October 11th, 1914

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

October 3rd, 1914

- The German pressure around Arras is beginning to tell.  North of the city the French are being pushed back as Rupprecht sends reinforcements to I Bavarian Corps as they attack towards Vimy, and IV Cavalry Corps is sent northwards in the direction of Lille.  French lines south of Arras, manned by territorial divisions, are also buckling.

- This afternoon Churchill arrives in Antwerp, meets with King Albert and the Belgian Prime Minister, and at 635pm telegrams London that the Belgians have agreed to continue resistance at Antwerp for at least ten days, provided that within three days definitive assurances had been received from the British that substantial reinforcements were en route to support the Belgians.  With the Royal Marine Brigade already en route, Churchill suggests the deployment of two naval brigades, which together with the Marines made up the Royal Naval Division.  These two naval brigades were composed of those sailors of the Royal Fleet Reserve who were surplus to requirements when the Royal Navy was mobilized on the outbreak of war.  The men of these two brigades had no practical experience as soldiers, and none had had more than two days of training with rifles.  Among the officers were the poet Rupert Brooke and Arthur Asquith, son of the Prime Minister.  To say the two naval brigades were unprepared for combat would be a colossal understatement, but in the moment of crisis were the only immediately-available units in Britain.

Meanwhile, south of the city the Germans have turned their guns on Fort Kessel, but the Belgian defenders continue to hold out through the day.

- Along the Aisne River, II Corps and 1st and 2nd Cavalry Divisions of the British Expeditionary Force have left the front line and begin their redeployment northwards to Flanders, the first units of the BEF to do so.  II Corps is marching to Compiègne where it will board trains heading north, while the two cavalry divisions will move by road.

- In South Africa, Defense Minister J. C. Smuts has requested Lieutenant-Colonel Maritz of Force B to come to Pretoria for consultations.  Smuts is increasingly concerned about the loyalty of Maritz, while the latter, expecting arrest, refuses the summons of Smuts.  Instead, Maritz moves Force B from Upington to Kakamas, which not coincidentally is closer to the border with German South East Africa.

September 26th, 1914

- Though fighting continues south of Péronne, Rupprecht decides to use his II Bavarian Corps to outflank the French line from the north.  The Bavarians, having entrained at Metz on the 18th and marched from the railhead at Valenciennes, seize Bapaume today, but collide with the French XX Corps moving in the opposite direction, and heavy fighting ensues.

Falkenhayn has also ordered attacks to be undertaken along the Aisne River to pin the Entente armies there and prevent the further movement of units north.  Launched primarily by 7th Army, the attacks fail to make significant progress while suffering heavy casualties, especially in fighting with the British Expeditionary Force, and have no substantial impact on Joffre's redeployments.

- Winston Churchill today visits the headquarters of the British Expeditionary, and while there the First Lord of Admiralty discuss future operations with Sir John French.  Churchill assures the Field Marshal that should the BEF be redeployed to Flanders and Belgium, it would be supported by the Royal Navy via the Channel.  This assurance calms French's fears, and he now agrees that the BEF should be moved north.

- West of Verdun, the offensive of General Mudra's XVI Corps comes to a halt, having advanced approximately eight kilometres along a twenty kilometre stretch of the front over the past week.  The Germans have captured the main town of the region - Varennes-en-Argonne - and more importantly have seized the heights at Vauqois.  From this position artillery observers are able to keep watch on the Verdun to Paris railway line, and guns in the rear are now close enough to hit a portion of the tracks.  Once observers have pinpointed the coordinates, it becomes possible for German artillery to hit trains attempting to pass to Verdun.  This limits train movement to night, and only when the track has been repaired after prior bombardments.  This effectively severs the last rail line to Verdun - though it can be reached by road from Bar-le-Duc, it strains the supply situation at the most important French fortifications on the Western Front.

- The Lahore Division of Indian Expeditionary Force A arrive in Marseilles today, having sailed from India via the Arabian Sea and the Suez Canal.  IEF A also includes a second division - the Meerkut Division - and a cavalry brigade, which are scheduled to arrive in France in several weeks, their delay resulting from the presence of the German light cruisers Emden and Königsberg in the Indian Ocean.  Each division consists of three infantry brigades, which in turn contain one British and three Indian battalions.  These units are drawn from the peacetime Indian Army, and are being deployed to France to serve with the British Expeditionary Force.

Indian soldiers parade in Marseilles, September 26th, 1914.

- At Duala in German Kamerun, the small German garrison abandons the city and retreats inland.  They well understand that holding the port in the face of British naval power is impossible, but they do not intend to retreat far, in order to continue to pose a threat to the anticipated British occupation of Duala and force the British to continue to maintain a significant presence to hold it.

- Along the Orange River on the southern border of German South-West Africa, an advance guard of Force A has crossed the river at Sandfontein, consisting of three hundred men and two artillery pieces.  Though the South African government has learned that the main German force is not opposing the recent landing at Lüderitz but rather moving on the Orange River, but has not informed General Henry Lukin, commander of Force A.  Thus his advance guard is unsupported, and the Germans today sweep down and, having encircled the South Africans, capture the entire force after a brief firefight.

The defeat reflects the hasty improvisations necessary to put the three forces into the field at an early date, and the lack of adequate communications between them.  This is overshadowed, however, by Lukin's insistence that Force B ought to have advanced simultaneously, in order to divide the German defenders.  General Maritz of Force B insists that his force is still unready to move, being insufficiently trained.  Such disobedience does not reflect well on his loyalty to the South African government, despite the collapse on the 15th of the first acts of insubordination.  Defense Minister Smuts now faces the prospect of dealing with a recalcitrant general with a body of soldiers under his command.

- The German East Asiatic Squadron today arrives at the island of Nuku Hiva in the French Marquesas Islands.  With its lack of defenders and isolated position, Admiral Spee has his ships stop to coal and take on fresh provisions.

August 21st, 1914

- The British Expeditionary Force is today marching northeast from Le Cateau and Maubeuge, with an objective of Soignes.  Field Marshall Sir John French does not expect serious fighting before the 24th, and believes the overall position of the BEF is favourable.  However, his force is about a days march behind the French 5th Army on his right, and is not yet in a position to support them.

- This morning Joffre orders 5th Army to cross the Sambre River and advance north and engage the German forces moving through Belgium, in concert with the British Expeditionary Force on his left.  His plan is to fix the German forces in Belgium so they cannot counter the French offensive in the Ardennes to the south.  When General Lanrezac of 5th Army informs Joffre that the BEF will not be in position to advance until the 23rd, Joffre orders 5th Army to attack by itself.

As this conversation is ongoing, however, the Germans are beginning both to upset the French plans and realize Lanrezac's worst fears.  The French 5th Army finds itself in the path of the 2nd and 3rd German armies - the former moving south towards the Sambre and the latter moving southwest against the Meuse.  In addition to attacking the demoralized Belgian garrison at Namur, where the Sambre and Meuse meet, advance elements of the German 2nd Army seize several bridges over the Sambre, pushing back French forces at the river's edge in the first action of what will come to be known as the Battle of Charleroi.  The seizure of the river crossings is relatively uncontested by 5th Army, Lanrezac believing that only small outposts have fallen, with most of the defenders of the Sambre entrenched on high ground south of the river.

- Joffre's primary focus is not on 5th Army today - to the south, the offensive by the French 3rd and 4th Armies begins as they advance into the Ardennes.  Between them the French armies have nine infantry and one cavalry corps, and expect to outnumber the Germans, believing significant forces have been pinned to the south by 1st and 2nd Armies while the Germans also appear to have committed heavily to the Belgian invasion.  They are disastrously misinformed, however.  Opposing the French in the Ardennes are the German 4th and 5th Armies, who form the pivot of the Schlieffen Plan, and include ten infantry corps plus reserve forces.  Unlike the three armies to the north, 4th and 5th Armies had less distance to travel, were moving more slowly, and had been entrenching as they advanced.

The advance begins in a thick fog which prevents any accurate reconnaissance by French cavalry.  Further, the French advance was poorly coordinated in the rough terrain of the Ardennes, with corps losing contact with their neighbours and gaps opening in the French lines.  Blundering through the woods and hills, lead elements of the French armies encounter their German counterparts, fighting a series of short, sharp preliminary engagements.  In these small fights, French officers are reluctant to order their soldiers to entrench as the Germans have, fearing that doing so will make them reluctant to attack.  It is clear that tomorrow the major clash will occur.  To the Minister of War, Joffre telegrams that 'the moment of decisive action is near.'  Joffre is correct, but not in the way he imagines.

Operations in the Ardennes, Aug. 21st to 26th, 1914.

- The Russian 1st Army remains stationary today, recovering from its victory of the day before.  In this rest, Colonel Max Hoffman, Deputy Chief of Operations of the German 8th Army, senses opportunity.  He had argued the night before that if 1st Army did not move for several days, 8th Army could use interior lines to redeploy against the Russian 2nd Army, which today is crossing the German border southwest of the Masurian Lakes.  When aerial reconnaissance confirms the lack of activity by the Russians at Gumbinnen, Hoffman convinces his superior to execute his plan.  I Corps, with the longest to go to reach the Russian 2nd Army, is to move by train to the western flank of XX Corps, the only unit currently in the south.  8th Army's other two corps - XVII Corps and I Reserve Corps - are to disengage from the Russian 1st Army and march to the eastern flank of XX Corps.  In doing so, the units of 8th Army were aided by their familiarity with East Prussia - I and XVII Corps had previously executed these precise movements during manoeuvres in 1910.  Hoffman's plan leaves open the ability to face the Russian 1st Army again should it advance in the next couple of days - as I and XVII Corps are to march on foot, they can reverse course if necessary - but allows for a revival of the original war plan of 8th Army; namely, the defeat of invading Russian armies in detail.

Simultaneously, officers of Moltke's staff at Colblenz have been in touch with 8th Army's corps commanders, who have painted a more optimistic picture of the situation than Prittwitz's report of the previous day.  With Moltke once again paralyzed by indecision - it never occurred to him that when he received Prittwitz's report, he could simply overrule his subordinate and order 8th Army to stand its ground - it is the officers of the operations staff who conclude that Prittwitz and his chief of staff must go.  For the latter post, they desired someone who had already proven himself in action, and had the imagination and temperament essential to deal with the fluid situation in East Prussia.  They select General Erich Ludendorff, whose star is in the ascent after his success at Liège.  He is currently overseeing 2nd Army's attack on the Belgian forts at Namur, so an officer is dispatched by car to summon him to OHL headquarters.

- The offensive of the Austro-Hungarian 6th Army, which General Potiorek had intended to be the main axis of advance, has achieved local successes along the Drina.  However, the prior defeat of the 5th Army to the north allows General Putnik to concentrate most of the Serbian army against the Austro-Hungarian 6th Army, and under pressure 6th Army is forced to fall back.

- Minister of Defence Jan Christian Smuts finalizes today his plan for the South African campaign against German South-West Africa.  South African forces would be divided in three: Force A at Port Nolloth and Force B at Upington would advance north across the border, while Force C will land at Lüderitz on the coast and advance inland.  Total strength of the three forces will be five thousand men and fourteen guns.

German South-West Africa

August 14th, 1914

- As of today all of the forts north and east of Liège have fallen, opening the roads north of the city and allowing 1st Army to begin its advance.

- The first major French offensive begins today, as 1st and 2nd Armies begin their advance into Lorraine.  1st Army is tasked with the capture of Sarrebourg (sixty kilometres east of Nancy) and Donon (twenty-five kilometres south of Sarrebourg), the latter a key German defensive position covering a valley in the Vosges.  To its left, 2nd Army was to advance towards Morhange (forty-five kilometres northeast of Nancy) while covering the northern flank of 1st Army.  To the south, the newly-formed Army of Alsace, consisting of VII Corps and additional divisions, was to advance again on Mulhouse.

Opposing them are the German 6th and 7th Armies, with orders to gradually retire in the face of the French attacks.  From the perspective of the Schlieffen Plan, a French attack here was welcome news - the further east the French moved, the farther away they would be from Paris and northern France, where, it was believed, the war would be decided.  Thus the first day of the offensive sees Donon captured and French forces advance ten miles towards Sarrebourg.  Both French and German commanders believe the fighting is going according to plan.

Operations in Lorraine, Aug. 14th to 20th, 1914.

- To the north of the French attack into Lorraine, 3rd and 4th Armies are preparing for their own offensive into the Ardennes, which 5th Army is to support.  However, the commander of 5th Army, General Charles Lanrezac, is increasingly nervous about developments in Belgium.  Unlike Joffre, he believes that the German attack on Liège indicates that the focal point of the German effort will be an invasion through Belgium to descend on France from the northeast.  If true, 5th Army is the only French formation in position to contest the German advance.  Lanrezac desires to re-orientate his army to face north, and advance to defensive positions along the Sambre and Meuse Rivers southwest of Namur.  To date Joffre has dismissed Lanrezac's concerns, seeing the German invasion as only a minor operation - indeed, it is to be welcomed, as German forces in Belgium will be cut off once the offensive through the Ardennes is successful.

Lanrezac decides to visit Joffre's headquarters today to put his case directly to the commander of the French Army.  Joffre is still not impressed - he and his staff suggest that there are no German forces west of the Meuse, and that Lanrezac should focus on the upcoming offensive.  Indeed, in Joffre's mind Lanrezac is exceeding his authority by questioning the strategic basis for the plan of operations - it is for Joffre, not Lanrezac, to draw conclusions regarding the main push by the Germans.  Lanrezac departs Joffre's meeting pessimistic about the course of the campaign.  Back at his headquarters, he receives an intelligence report stating that there are now eight German corps across the Meuse.  Angry at this confirmation of his fears, he fires off an aggressive message to Joffre, insisting that the Germans are coming through Belgium in strength.

- Field Marshall French, Wilson, and other officers of the British Expeditionary Force arrive at Amiens, where the BEF will de-train prior to marching up to its assembly point at Maubeuge.

- The German East Asiatic Squadron, consisting of the armoured cruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau and the light cruiser Nürnberg, departs Ponape eastward in the direction of the Marshall Islands, while Emden sails southwest towards the Indian Ocean.

- South African Minister of Defence J. C. Smuts meets today with the senior officers of the armed forces, and encounters opposition to the suspected campaign against German South-West Africa, especially from the Commandant-General, C. F. Beyers, and two district commanders, J. C. G. Kemp and S. G. Maritz.  Smuts handles the meeting to ensure there are no resignations, believing that it is better to keep such opposition within the army, in contrast to their leaving and potentially raising the flag of rebellion.

- Conrad has allowed 2nd Army on the Serbian frontier to establish bridgeheads across the Sava at Mitrovica and Sabac, in support of the advance of 5th Army to its right.  General Putnik, commander of the Serbian Army, nevertheless realizes by this day that the main Austro-Hungarian attack will be coming from 5th Army, and that 2nd is a mere diversion.  Moreover, this conclusion is reinforced by signals intelligence passed on by the Russians that 2nd Army will soon depart for Galicia.  Putnik is thus able to redeploy his three armies westward against the Austro-Hungarian 5th Army without fear of being taken in the flank.  Thus 5th Army, stumbling across the Drina, is about to advance into almost the entirety of the Serbian army.

- In Constantinople, Enver Pasha emphasizes in discussion with the German ambassador that the Emir of Afghanistan was willing to launch an invasion of India.

- Moltke today sends a telegram to Count Georg von Waldersee, Chief of Staff to the German 8th Army: 'When the Russians come, not defence only, but offensive, offensive, offensive.'  The note reflects the differing priorities of 8th Army, the only German formation assigned to East Prussia at the start of the war.  Strategically, it is responsible for holding off the Russians until the success of the Schlieffen Plan will allow for the redeployment of most of the German army to the East.  To accomplish this, however, requires 8th Army to also go on the attack - the Russians have superior numbers, so a purely defensive approach could allow the Russians to overwhelm 8th Army.  Instead, General Maximilian von Prittwitz und Graffron, commander of 8th Army, is prepared to use the broken terrain of East Prussia to its advantage.  The Masurian Lakes in particular are impassable by sizeable formations, and thus Prittwitz hopes to use interior lines to defeat the Russians in detail by focussing his forces either north or south of the lakes.  Such a plan requires strong nerves to temporarily leave the other side of the lakes uncovered.  Moreover, Moltke's telegram also speaks to the larger understanding that a German offensive in East Prussia is desirable to relieve Russian pressure on their Austro-Hungarian allies.

August 11th, 1914

- Today an Australian boarding party seizes the German merchant ship Hobart off Melbourne, and in the process secure a codebook used by the Germans to communicate between warships and merchant ships.  It is the first break that will allow the British to read German naval signals traffic.

- In South Africa, Minister of Defence Jan Christian Smuts publishes the government's intention to raise four volunteer regiments for use in any contingency that may arise.  The unspoken 'contingency' Smuts refers to is the conquest of German South-West Africa, but this campaign has not yet been made public.  Some Boer veterans are unnerved by Smut's declaration, seeing in the khaki uniforms and hierarchical structure of the regiment system an effort to 'Anglicize' the Boers.