- After the formation of the coalition government in Britain, the existing War Council was renamed the Dardanelles Committee, but otherwise retained the same functions and membership; indeed, for now Churchill even remains a members. Today it meets for the first time in three weeks, and given the name change it is not surprising that the ongoing campaign on Gallipoli is the focus of discussion. The early enthusiasm of February and March for the operation has dissipated, replaced by bewilderment at the lack of success and uncertainty as to the best course of action. Should Gallipoli be reinforced, which by definition means taking units from elsewhere, or should it be evacuated, thus giving the Ottomans a great morale victory and damaging British prestige throughout the Balkans and the Muslim world. After discussion today, including a memo from Churchill, it is agreed to send out a further three divisions to Gallipoli, constituting the reinforcements General Hamilton had requested after the failure of the Second Battle of Krithia. No one as of yet is willing to countenance the embarrassment of defeat by advocating evacuation.
- Overnight three Zeppelins attempted bombing raids on England, with varying degrees of success. The naval Zeppelin L9 drops ten explosive and fifty incendiary bombs on Hull, causing the most extensive damage inflicted on England by a Zeppelin to date. Indeed, during the day there are anti-German riots in Hull, mobs attacking businesses supposedly owned by Germans. The two army Zeppelins sent against England - LZ38 and LZ39 - suffer a much different fate. The former develops engine trouble and returns to its base near Brussels, only to have its shed bombed by two British aircraft based at Dunkirk after daybreak. LZ39, meanwhile, earns the dubious distinction of being the first Zeppelin shot down by enemy fire. Near Ghent it was attacked by several British aircraft, and Flight Sub-Lieutenant Warneford manages to drop a bomb that detonates on the airship, causing it to burst into flames and plummet to the earth. The victory earns Warneford acclaim and the Victoria Cross, while the German army concludes the Zeppelins under its direction would be more profitably used in reconnaissance and bombing roles on the Eastern Front.
Showing posts with label Victoria Cross. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Victoria Cross. Show all posts
Sunday, June 07, 2015
Monday, May 18, 2015
May 18th, 1915
- After yesterday's shocking news regarding the end of his tenure at the Admiralty, Churchill casts about today for any means of remaining in office. Dining with the Conservative politicians F. E. Smith and Max Aitken (the future Lord Beaverbrook), Churchill talks of winning support among the Tories, but Aitken informs him that there is no hope of that. Churchill even goes so far as to talk about making amends with Fisher if it would keep him as First Lord.
- In Artois German reserves continue to arrive at the front to replace the formations battered by French attacks since the 9th; today 2nd Reserve Guard Division is inserted into the line between 13th and 14th Divisions. The ability to rotate out depleted units and replace them with fresh divisions is crucial to the ability of the Germans to hold off the French offensive.
- In central Poland the Russian counterattack by 4th Army shifts direction today; instead of maintaining pressure on the left wing of the Austro-Hungarian 1st Army, the attacking forces move to the northwest in an attempt to hit the flank of Woyrsch's Corps. The Germans here find themselves under heavy pressure and take significant losses, but the shift gives time for 1st Army to regain its equilibrium.
- This evening Mackensen orders the portion of 11th Army on the east bank of the San River to hold their current positions. The pace of the German advance has outrun their supplies, as despite efforts to repaired the rail lines in the region the nearest railhead to 11th Army is sixty-two miles to the west. In particular, great difficulties are being encountered in hauling artillery shells to the front, and the shortage of munitions is critical. A pause in operations is necessary to replenish and resupply before further offensive operations can be undertaken.
The Russians, meanwhile, are not content to give the Germans the necessary breathing space. General Dimitriev of 3rd Army has assembled a new Combined Corps, comprised of 77th Division and 3rd Caucasian Rifle Division drawn from elsewhere on the Eastern Front, and intends this formation to attack the southeastern front of the German bridgehead across the San and roll up the enemy line. This evening the Russian counterattack begins as the Combined Corps hits the German 1st Guard Division and VI Corps between Makowisko and the San.
- Today the British submarine E14 passes through the Dardanelles and arrives back in the eastern Mediterranean after a three-week sortie in the Sea of Marmara. During this time it sank four Ottoman vessels, including a large transport, which disturbed but did not stop, Ottoman reinforcements to Gallipoli. For this success Lieutenant-Commander E. C. Boyle is awarded the Victoria Cross.
- In Artois German reserves continue to arrive at the front to replace the formations battered by French attacks since the 9th; today 2nd Reserve Guard Division is inserted into the line between 13th and 14th Divisions. The ability to rotate out depleted units and replace them with fresh divisions is crucial to the ability of the Germans to hold off the French offensive.
- In central Poland the Russian counterattack by 4th Army shifts direction today; instead of maintaining pressure on the left wing of the Austro-Hungarian 1st Army, the attacking forces move to the northwest in an attempt to hit the flank of Woyrsch's Corps. The Germans here find themselves under heavy pressure and take significant losses, but the shift gives time for 1st Army to regain its equilibrium.
- This evening Mackensen orders the portion of 11th Army on the east bank of the San River to hold their current positions. The pace of the German advance has outrun their supplies, as despite efforts to repaired the rail lines in the region the nearest railhead to 11th Army is sixty-two miles to the west. In particular, great difficulties are being encountered in hauling artillery shells to the front, and the shortage of munitions is critical. A pause in operations is necessary to replenish and resupply before further offensive operations can be undertaken.
The Russians, meanwhile, are not content to give the Germans the necessary breathing space. General Dimitriev of 3rd Army has assembled a new Combined Corps, comprised of 77th Division and 3rd Caucasian Rifle Division drawn from elsewhere on the Eastern Front, and intends this formation to attack the southeastern front of the German bridgehead across the San and roll up the enemy line. This evening the Russian counterattack begins as the Combined Corps hits the German 1st Guard Division and VI Corps between Makowisko and the San.
- Today the British submarine E14 passes through the Dardanelles and arrives back in the eastern Mediterranean after a three-week sortie in the Sea of Marmara. During this time it sank four Ottoman vessels, including a large transport, which disturbed but did not stop, Ottoman reinforcements to Gallipoli. For this success Lieutenant-Commander E. C. Boyle is awarded the Victoria Cross.
Sunday, April 26, 2015
April 26th, 1915
- At Ypres the French line near the Yser Canal has been reinforced by elements of 152nd and 153rd Divisions, and a French counterattack against the German bridgeheads over the Yser Canal is able to retake the village of Het Sas, though the Germans remain in control of the locks. To the east a major British counterattack by the Lahore Division and the Northumberland Brigade is launched at St. Julien, but the infantry quickly run into a hail of German rifle and artillery fire. The British take heavy losses - the Northumberland Brigade alone suffers almost two thousand casualties - and are able to make no progress. There is also heavy fighting near Grafenstafel, while German attacks are able to make incremental gains near Broodseinde.
- For the past several months, squadrons of the British Royal Flying Corps undertaken increasingly frequent bombing attacks on German railways and supply depots, though not without losses. Today Lieutenant W. B. Rhodes-Moorhouse, the RFC's first Victoria Cross winner, attacks the railway station at Courtrai from 300 feet with a 100-pound bomb. Flying at such low altitude left him vulnerable to ground fire, and he is severely wounded. He manages to fly the thirty-five miles back to his aerodrome and insists on reporting the results of his mission to his CO before receiving medical attention. He will die tomorrow.
- Despite every attempt at secrecy, the German buildup near Gorlice and Tarnow has simply been too substantial to hide completely. Further, the local population in the region is strongly pro-Russian; indeed, Colonel Seeckt, Chief of Staff of the German 11th Army, has wanted to deport the entire population to prevent news reaching the Russians. Nevertheless, the chief of staff of the Russian 3rd Army reports to South-West Front today that indications are that German forces intend to break through east of Krakow, or exactly where they intend to attack.
- At 3pm this afternoon, the ambassadors of France, Russia and Italy meet British Foreign Secretary Sir Edward Grey at the Foreign Office in London, where they sign the treaty that pledges Italy to join the war on the side of the Entente. Territorially, the Italian government has achieved its aims - in exchange for entering the war within one month, Italy is to receive the Trentino and South Tyrol up to the Brenner Pass, the city of Trieste and the surrounding region, including all of Istria, northern Dalmatia, and a number of islands off the coast, as well the Albanian city of Valona. Further, the rest of the Dalmatian coast, though it is to be awarded to Serbia, is to be militarily neutralized, leaving Italy the dominant power in the Adriatic.
At the ceremony, the Russian ambassador is particularly somber, as he recognizes that the treaty is a defeat for Slavic interests in the Balkans, and thus by extension a blow to Russian prestige. However, both Britain and France have stated in secret notes to the Russian government that Italy's entrance into the war does not effect their pledge of the Straits to Russia, and this, from the Russian perspective, is the more important war aim.
Having reaching the diplomatic agreement, the Italian government is now faced with ensuring that parliamentary and public opinion will support the decision for war. This will be no easy task - former Prime Minister Giovanni Giolitti supports neutrality, and reports received today by current Prime Minister Antonio Salandra from fifty prefects indicate that a solid majority of the Italian public, especially in the south, backs continued neutrality.
- At Gallipoli the ANZACs are able to turn back a heavy Ottoman counterattack, with heavy naval gunfire decimating enemy infantry advancing down the face of Battleship Hill. Otherwise, however, the ANZACs are unable to expand their narrow beachhead, and they take their commander's words to heart and dig trenches into the rough terrain. To the south, the landing at Y beach has come to grief; advancing inland, they are taken in flank and fall back to the shore. The decision is taken to evacuate Y beach, which is successful under the covering fire of the pre-dreadnoughts offshore. However, the failure to advance rapidly at Y beach yesterday had thrown away a golden opportunity to strike behind the Ottoman defences holding the British at the tip of Cape Helles, and the evacuation allows the Ottomans to concentrate against the remaining beaches. Furthest south at V beach, the news is somewhat better; after a terrible day of fighting, the Dublin and Munster Fusiliers are able to seize the Ottoman trenches at 2pm and capture Sedd el Bahr and Hill 141 to the north. The British infantry, however, are exhausted, and General Aylmer Hunter-Weston, commander of the British 29th Division, orders them to entrench against a feared Ottoman counterattack. In practice, the halt gives the Ottomans time to bring up additional reinforcements.
As for the Asiatic shore, at 740am General Hamilton instructs General Albert d'Amade, commander of the French forces assigned to the Gallipoli invasion, to send those of his units not committed to the diversionary landing at Kum Kale to land at X Beach on Cape Helles. D'Amade, who had hoped that the Kum Kale operation might be expanded, now realizes that it has accomplished all it possibly (i.e. very little), and at 1130 requests that the French force on the Asiatic show be withdrawn, to which Hamilton agrees.
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| The line at Ypres at midnight, April 26th, 1915. |
- For the past several months, squadrons of the British Royal Flying Corps undertaken increasingly frequent bombing attacks on German railways and supply depots, though not without losses. Today Lieutenant W. B. Rhodes-Moorhouse, the RFC's first Victoria Cross winner, attacks the railway station at Courtrai from 300 feet with a 100-pound bomb. Flying at such low altitude left him vulnerable to ground fire, and he is severely wounded. He manages to fly the thirty-five miles back to his aerodrome and insists on reporting the results of his mission to his CO before receiving medical attention. He will die tomorrow.
- Despite every attempt at secrecy, the German buildup near Gorlice and Tarnow has simply been too substantial to hide completely. Further, the local population in the region is strongly pro-Russian; indeed, Colonel Seeckt, Chief of Staff of the German 11th Army, has wanted to deport the entire population to prevent news reaching the Russians. Nevertheless, the chief of staff of the Russian 3rd Army reports to South-West Front today that indications are that German forces intend to break through east of Krakow, or exactly where they intend to attack.
- At 3pm this afternoon, the ambassadors of France, Russia and Italy meet British Foreign Secretary Sir Edward Grey at the Foreign Office in London, where they sign the treaty that pledges Italy to join the war on the side of the Entente. Territorially, the Italian government has achieved its aims - in exchange for entering the war within one month, Italy is to receive the Trentino and South Tyrol up to the Brenner Pass, the city of Trieste and the surrounding region, including all of Istria, northern Dalmatia, and a number of islands off the coast, as well the Albanian city of Valona. Further, the rest of the Dalmatian coast, though it is to be awarded to Serbia, is to be militarily neutralized, leaving Italy the dominant power in the Adriatic.
At the ceremony, the Russian ambassador is particularly somber, as he recognizes that the treaty is a defeat for Slavic interests in the Balkans, and thus by extension a blow to Russian prestige. However, both Britain and France have stated in secret notes to the Russian government that Italy's entrance into the war does not effect their pledge of the Straits to Russia, and this, from the Russian perspective, is the more important war aim.
Having reaching the diplomatic agreement, the Italian government is now faced with ensuring that parliamentary and public opinion will support the decision for war. This will be no easy task - former Prime Minister Giovanni Giolitti supports neutrality, and reports received today by current Prime Minister Antonio Salandra from fifty prefects indicate that a solid majority of the Italian public, especially in the south, backs continued neutrality.
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| The territories of Austria-Hungary promised to Italy in the London Treaty. |
- At Gallipoli the ANZACs are able to turn back a heavy Ottoman counterattack, with heavy naval gunfire decimating enemy infantry advancing down the face of Battleship Hill. Otherwise, however, the ANZACs are unable to expand their narrow beachhead, and they take their commander's words to heart and dig trenches into the rough terrain. To the south, the landing at Y beach has come to grief; advancing inland, they are taken in flank and fall back to the shore. The decision is taken to evacuate Y beach, which is successful under the covering fire of the pre-dreadnoughts offshore. However, the failure to advance rapidly at Y beach yesterday had thrown away a golden opportunity to strike behind the Ottoman defences holding the British at the tip of Cape Helles, and the evacuation allows the Ottomans to concentrate against the remaining beaches. Furthest south at V beach, the news is somewhat better; after a terrible day of fighting, the Dublin and Munster Fusiliers are able to seize the Ottoman trenches at 2pm and capture Sedd el Bahr and Hill 141 to the north. The British infantry, however, are exhausted, and General Aylmer Hunter-Weston, commander of the British 29th Division, orders them to entrench against a feared Ottoman counterattack. In practice, the halt gives the Ottomans time to bring up additional reinforcements.
As for the Asiatic shore, at 740am General Hamilton instructs General Albert d'Amade, commander of the French forces assigned to the Gallipoli invasion, to send those of his units not committed to the diversionary landing at Kum Kale to land at X Beach on Cape Helles. D'Amade, who had hoped that the Kum Kale operation might be expanded, now realizes that it has accomplished all it possibly (i.e. very little), and at 1130 requests that the French force on the Asiatic show be withdrawn, to which Hamilton agrees.
Saturday, December 13, 2014
December 13th, 1914
- Grand Duke Nicholas confers with Generals Ruszkii and Ivanov at Brest-Litovsk today regarding the strategic situation on the Eastern Front. Since the evacuation of Lodz on the 6th the German 9th Army has been hammering at the lines of the 1st and 2nd Russian armies west of the lower Bzura River, while the Russian 8th and 4th Armies are falling back in the face of the Austro-Hungarian victory at Limanowa-Lapanow. The Grand Duke orders his front commanders to pull back their armies in Poland - the 1st, 2nd, and 5th Armies of North-West Front are to retreat to the defensive positions already established along the lower Bzura and Rawka Rivers which protect Warsaw, while the 9th and 4th Armies of South-West Front are to withdraw to a line running north-south along the Nida River. By shortening the line in central Poland, the Grand Duke seeks to free up units that can then be deployed on the flanks - to 10th Army facing East Prussia, and 8th Army in the Carpathians.
In Galicia south of the Vistula River, the Austro-Hungarians attempt a vigorous pursuit of the retreating Russians, but are largely frustated both by enemy rear-guard actions and the sheer exhaustion and depletion of the Austro-Hungarian infantry.
- The Austro-Hungarian 5th Army endures another day of battering south of Belgrade at the hands of the advancing Serbs. General Potiorek signals General Liborius Frank, commander of 5th Army, that he should abandon Belgrade unless he was absolutely sure it could be held without serious damage to his army. Frank replies that he can guarantee neither point - his army is down to forty thousand combatants and there are insufficient fortifications facing the enemy.
- Since the arrival of Goeben and Breslau at Constantinople in early August, an Entente squadron of French and British warships have patrolled the western exit of the Dardanelles, prepared to sink the two German warships should they attempt to break into the eastern Mediterranean. Other than the brief (and unsuccessful) bombardment of the forts in early November designed to dissuade the Ottomans from entering the war, the squadron has seen no action. There are, however, also a half-dozen submarines attached to the squadron, and today one - the British submarine B11 - attempts to enter the Dardanelles.
At 415am B11 submerges and enters the straits, making painfully slow progress against the current. A number of Ottoman minefields are known to have been laid across the Dardanelles, and to combat this steel tubes have been attached to the hydroplanes and other sharp edges to prevent them from snagging the mine cables. Over five hours later B11 clears the minefields, and rises to periscope depth in Sari Siglar Bay. When the captain, Lieutenant-Commander Norman Holbrook, views the horizon, he is astonished to see the Ottoman pre-dreadnought Messudieh anchored less than a mile away. At a range of eight hundred yards, one torpedo is fired at what is, for all intents and purposes, a sitting duck. The torpedo runs true and strikes the Ottoman warship, which immediately begins to sink.
As shore batteries open up on it, B11 quickly submerges to make its escape. However, the compass has fogged, leaving Holbrook to navigate the ship by instinct. The current has also pushed them into the path of several shoals, and B11 bounces from one to another running at full speed to avoid getting stuck. In the shallow water the conning tower is visible, signaled by the nearby splashes of fire from more shore batteries. The Ottoman gunners fail to strike B11, and it manages to escape to open water. The success is celebrated in Britain, and Holbrook becomes the first submariner to be awarded the Victoria Cross.
In Galicia south of the Vistula River, the Austro-Hungarians attempt a vigorous pursuit of the retreating Russians, but are largely frustated both by enemy rear-guard actions and the sheer exhaustion and depletion of the Austro-Hungarian infantry.
- The Austro-Hungarian 5th Army endures another day of battering south of Belgrade at the hands of the advancing Serbs. General Potiorek signals General Liborius Frank, commander of 5th Army, that he should abandon Belgrade unless he was absolutely sure it could be held without serious damage to his army. Frank replies that he can guarantee neither point - his army is down to forty thousand combatants and there are insufficient fortifications facing the enemy.
- Since the arrival of Goeben and Breslau at Constantinople in early August, an Entente squadron of French and British warships have patrolled the western exit of the Dardanelles, prepared to sink the two German warships should they attempt to break into the eastern Mediterranean. Other than the brief (and unsuccessful) bombardment of the forts in early November designed to dissuade the Ottomans from entering the war, the squadron has seen no action. There are, however, also a half-dozen submarines attached to the squadron, and today one - the British submarine B11 - attempts to enter the Dardanelles.
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| The British submarine B11 - the size of the sailors around the conning tower gives a good idea of how small early submarines were. |
At 415am B11 submerges and enters the straits, making painfully slow progress against the current. A number of Ottoman minefields are known to have been laid across the Dardanelles, and to combat this steel tubes have been attached to the hydroplanes and other sharp edges to prevent them from snagging the mine cables. Over five hours later B11 clears the minefields, and rises to periscope depth in Sari Siglar Bay. When the captain, Lieutenant-Commander Norman Holbrook, views the horizon, he is astonished to see the Ottoman pre-dreadnought Messudieh anchored less than a mile away. At a range of eight hundred yards, one torpedo is fired at what is, for all intents and purposes, a sitting duck. The torpedo runs true and strikes the Ottoman warship, which immediately begins to sink.
As shore batteries open up on it, B11 quickly submerges to make its escape. However, the compass has fogged, leaving Holbrook to navigate the ship by instinct. The current has also pushed them into the path of several shoals, and B11 bounces from one to another running at full speed to avoid getting stuck. In the shallow water the conning tower is visible, signaled by the nearby splashes of fire from more shore batteries. The Ottoman gunners fail to strike B11, and it manages to escape to open water. The success is celebrated in Britain, and Holbrook becomes the first submariner to be awarded the Victoria Cross.
Monday, September 01, 2014
September 1st, 1914
- After deliberations with his staff yesterday, Joffre issues General Instructions No. 4. It orders 3rd, 4th, and 5th armies to continue their retreat, if necessary to the line of the Seine and Aube Rivers. Once the threat to 5th Army of envelopment has passed, the French will go back on to the offensive. Further reinforcements are to be drawn from Lorraine, while 6th Army was to cover Paris. Though the Instructions do not specify a date on which the French are to go back on the attack, Joffre comments to the War Minister that he expects to resume the offensive by September 8th.
- Shortly after midnight, Lord Kitchener decides that given Sir John French's continued insistence on retreat, his only option is to visit French directly. At 2am he walks into Grey's bedroom to inform him he is going to France, and thirty minutes later he leaves Charing Cross by a special train for Dover, where a fast cruiser carries him across the Channel. By morning, Kitchener is in Paris, and has summoned French and his staff to the British Embassy, where Premier Viviani will also be present. The BEF commander is instantly offended when Kitchener arrives - the latter has worn his blue undress Field Marshal uniform, which Sir John French takes as an attempt to pull rank. The conversation among the group becomes increasingly heated, at which point Kitchener pulls French into a private room. The specifics of their conversation are unknown, but Kitchener repeats the key point in a letter later today to the BEF commander, a copy of which is also sent to Prime Minister Asquith - the BEF is 'now engaged in the fighting line, and will remain conforming to the movements of the French Army.' Sir John French has been told as bluntly as possible that retreat out of the Entente line is not to occur, and thus the BEF is to remain in the battle. The meeting, of course, does nothing to improve Sir John French's dispostion.
- Even as Kitchener is informing the BEF commander of his responsibilities, the 1st Cavalry Brigade and L Battery of the Royal Horse Artillery, covering the rear of the BEF, come under attack by the German 4th Cavalry Division, belonging to Kluck's 1st Army, at the village of Néry. During the fighting all but one gun of L Battery are destroyed, and the crew of No. 6 are constantly under enemy fire. Despite continued losses, the soldiers manning No. 6 gun maintain fire for two and a half hours, providing cover for 5th Dragoon Guards to strike the Germans in their flank, forcing the Germans to retire. Three soldiers (one posthumously) who manned No. 6 gun are awarded the Victoria Cross, Britain's highest award for gallantry. The action allows the BEF to once again escape destruction, enraging General Kluck.
- The French 3rd and 4th Armies, together with Foch's army detachment, launches an attack today out of the Verdun fortified region against the German 5th Army, straddling the Meuse River. Their objective is to turn from facing northeast to facing north, so to cover the right flank of Foch's army detachment as it comes into the line. When the French attack is called off in the afternoon, Moltke believes the Germans have smashed a major counteroffensive, and the chimera of a Cannae appears once more to him. He orders 3rd Army to move southeast across the Aisne River, followed by the left wing of 2nd Army. His hope is to cut behind the French force attacking 5th Army, surrounding them and allowing for their destruction.
- As the French army retreats, the maintenance of morale is crucial. Despite the exhausting marches, soldiers must continue to obey orders to avoid having the retreat turn into a rout. To help ensure discipline is maintained, French officers are today given authorizations to conduct executions within 24 hours of those convicted of desertion - in a life and death struggle for the survival of France, providing the right 'incentives' to the army as a whole is more important than the fate of any individual soldier.
- On the Galician Front, STAVKA, Russian army headquarters, orders 3rd Army to adjust its advance to the northwest, to close the gap between it and 5th Army, and aid the latter. General Brusilov's 8th Army, meanwhile, is to cover 3rd Army's southern flank and advance on Lemberg.
Meanwhile, the Austro-Hungarian 1st Army has advanced to the outskirts of Lublin to the north after its victory in the Battle of Kraśnik. However, the Russian 4th Army opposite is being reinforced by the arrival of the Russian 9th Army, and the Austro-Hungarians are able to make no further progress.
- Shortly after midnight, Lord Kitchener decides that given Sir John French's continued insistence on retreat, his only option is to visit French directly. At 2am he walks into Grey's bedroom to inform him he is going to France, and thirty minutes later he leaves Charing Cross by a special train for Dover, where a fast cruiser carries him across the Channel. By morning, Kitchener is in Paris, and has summoned French and his staff to the British Embassy, where Premier Viviani will also be present. The BEF commander is instantly offended when Kitchener arrives - the latter has worn his blue undress Field Marshal uniform, which Sir John French takes as an attempt to pull rank. The conversation among the group becomes increasingly heated, at which point Kitchener pulls French into a private room. The specifics of their conversation are unknown, but Kitchener repeats the key point in a letter later today to the BEF commander, a copy of which is also sent to Prime Minister Asquith - the BEF is 'now engaged in the fighting line, and will remain conforming to the movements of the French Army.' Sir John French has been told as bluntly as possible that retreat out of the Entente line is not to occur, and thus the BEF is to remain in the battle. The meeting, of course, does nothing to improve Sir John French's dispostion.
- Even as Kitchener is informing the BEF commander of his responsibilities, the 1st Cavalry Brigade and L Battery of the Royal Horse Artillery, covering the rear of the BEF, come under attack by the German 4th Cavalry Division, belonging to Kluck's 1st Army, at the village of Néry. During the fighting all but one gun of L Battery are destroyed, and the crew of No. 6 are constantly under enemy fire. Despite continued losses, the soldiers manning No. 6 gun maintain fire for two and a half hours, providing cover for 5th Dragoon Guards to strike the Germans in their flank, forcing the Germans to retire. Three soldiers (one posthumously) who manned No. 6 gun are awarded the Victoria Cross, Britain's highest award for gallantry. The action allows the BEF to once again escape destruction, enraging General Kluck.
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| Group photograph of L Battery of the Royal Horse Artillery, prior to embarkation for France. Of the men pictured, twenty-three were killed and thirty-one wounded at Néry today. |
- The French 3rd and 4th Armies, together with Foch's army detachment, launches an attack today out of the Verdun fortified region against the German 5th Army, straddling the Meuse River. Their objective is to turn from facing northeast to facing north, so to cover the right flank of Foch's army detachment as it comes into the line. When the French attack is called off in the afternoon, Moltke believes the Germans have smashed a major counteroffensive, and the chimera of a Cannae appears once more to him. He orders 3rd Army to move southeast across the Aisne River, followed by the left wing of 2nd Army. His hope is to cut behind the French force attacking 5th Army, surrounding them and allowing for their destruction.
- As the French army retreats, the maintenance of morale is crucial. Despite the exhausting marches, soldiers must continue to obey orders to avoid having the retreat turn into a rout. To help ensure discipline is maintained, French officers are today given authorizations to conduct executions within 24 hours of those convicted of desertion - in a life and death struggle for the survival of France, providing the right 'incentives' to the army as a whole is more important than the fate of any individual soldier.
- On the Galician Front, STAVKA, Russian army headquarters, orders 3rd Army to adjust its advance to the northwest, to close the gap between it and 5th Army, and aid the latter. General Brusilov's 8th Army, meanwhile, is to cover 3rd Army's southern flank and advance on Lemberg.
Meanwhile, the Austro-Hungarian 1st Army has advanced to the outskirts of Lublin to the north after its victory in the Battle of Kraśnik. However, the Russian 4th Army opposite is being reinforced by the arrival of the Russian 9th Army, and the Austro-Hungarians are able to make no further progress.
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| The situation on the Galician front, Sept. 1st, 1914 |
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