December 12th, 1914

- With the counterattacks of the 10th having failed, and Austro-Hungarian pressure continuing through the 11th, General Ivanov of South-West Front recognizes that the present Russian positions south of the Vistula are not sustainable, and issues for a withdrawal.  VIII Corps, at the threatened point of the line, is pulled back northwestwards across the Lasosina River, abandoning Neusandez to the forces of General Szurmay.  As the Russian forces just south of the Vistula hold their line, the commander of the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army orders his left and centre to hold while Roth's group pursues.  The Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army would also continue to advance northwards against the depleted Russian 8th Army.

The Battle of Limanowa-Lapanow is thus a notable, though not a decisive, Austro-Hungarian victory; they are pushing back the Russians, not breaking through their lines.  It also needs to be recalled that as early as the conference of November 29th Grand Duke Nicholas, General Ruszkii, and General Ivanov had agreed that South-West Front needed to pull back to avoid overstretching itself.  Considering Ivanov's subsequent change of mind, the battle might be said to have convinced him of what his colleagues had been unable to do - namely, retreat.  Instead, the most notable aspect of Limanowa-Lapanow is that it is a victory planned and directed by Austro-Hungarian generals from Conrad down, and achieved almost exclusively by Austro-Hungarian soldiers.  This is the last time in the war such a battle will occur.

- The positive news in the north is more than outweighed by the growing disaster in Serbia.  Today what is left of the Austro-Hungarian 6th army reaches Sabac on the Sava River, and cross over to safety on the north bank.  The Serbian 1st Army has not pursued the defeated enemy with any great vigour, concluding that they should not incur any unnecessary losses fighting 6th Army when it was clear that they were retreating as fast and as far as possible.

Meanwhile south of Belgrade the Serbian 2nd and 3rd Armies were advancing against the lines of the Austro-Hungarian 5th Army.  During the day Serbian units manage to break through at several places, and this evening the commander of 5th Army orders a retreat towards a shorter defensive line closer to Belgrade.

The retreat of the Austro-Hungarian 5th Army at Belgrade, December 12th to 14th, 1914.

The collapse of the Austro-Hungarian position in Serbia has come as a great shock to the government, it coming so quickly on the heels of the euphoria over the capture of Belgrade.  Today Baron Arthur Bolfras, the Emperor's Adjutant-General, writes to Potiorek that 'His Majesty is not pleased' - in the refined language of the Hapsburg court, as harsh a condemnation as possible.  Potiorek's response is to beg for another chance - with reinforcements, he argues, he will be able to launch a fourth invasion of Serbia in four weeks' time, which the Serbs cannot possibly resist this time.  Potiorek's plea for a fourth invasion is greeted with the healthy scepticism it deserves.

December 11th, 1914

- Two days ago the British ambassador in Paris had submitted to the French minister of war a memorandum proposing that the British Expeditionary Force be redeployed to the Entente far left on the Channel coast, so that the Royal Navy could co-operate with BEF operations towards Ostend and Zeebrugge.  As General Sir Henry Wilson notes in his diary today, the reaction of both Joffre and Foch is negative.  First, operations along the coast will do nothing to support the offensives Joffre is planning in Artois and Champagne.  Second, the French fear that the further away the BEF is from the French armies, the more difficult it will be to secure their co-operation in future operations.  Finally, the almost-unspoken fear is that by placing the BEF in Belgium by being on the coast, the British may be seeking an inordinate influence over postwar Belgium - Britain and France may be allies, but France wants to ensure a strong hand in shaping and influencing postwar Europe.

- By today General Roth's group consists of nine infantry and three cavalry divisions, though this was little more than paper strength - his infantry divisions average between two and three thousand, while 3rd Infantry Division can muster only nine hundred soldiers.  Despite this, the Russian VIII Corps opposing them is in hardly better shape, and heavy assaults by the Russians fail to dislodge the Austro-Hungarian defenders east of Limanowa.  For its part General Szurmay's group advances to within sight of Neusandez while parrying an attack on its  by the Russian 48th Division.  The latter formation belongs to XXIV Corps, the second formation sent by General Brusilov to aid his western neighbour.  The rest of the corps, however, is stalled to the east by the northern advance of the Austro-Hungarian III Corps towards the Gorlice-Roba road.  Finally, the weakening of Brusilov's 8th Army to send reinforcements westwards allows the Austro-Hungarian VII Corps to retake the Dukla Pass through the Carpathians.

December 9th, 1914

- The French government returned to Paris today from Bordeaux, to which it had fled in the dark days before the Battle of the Marne.

- While there are no significant gains by either side in the fighting between the Russians and the Austro-Hungarians north of Limanowa, the lead elements of General Szurmay's group from the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army, marching northwest, come within twenty kilometres of Neusandez while Bartfeld, largely abandoned by the Russians, is occupied today.  The indecision over whether to prioritize Bartfeld or Neusandez has cost Szurmay's group about a day.  Conrad typically blames 3rd Army commander, though it was his own refusal to make a decision that created the delay.

- This afternoon General Potiorek admits to Vienna and Army High Command that 6th Army is beaten and must withdraw from Serbia, two of its corps sufficiently shattered as to require two to three weeks of rest to recover.  He still hopes, however, that 5th Army, which has not yet been the target of major Serbian assaults, may yet be able to hold Belgrade and a bridgehead south of the Danube and Sava.

- At 130pm this afternoon a formal surrender ceremony is held at Qurna, with 45 Ottoman officers and 989 Ottoman soldiers marching into captivity.  The newest conquest of Indian Expeditionary D is not much of a town - surrounded by marshes, its British garrison will find itself spending as much time building flood defenses as military defences.  As for the Ottomans, the defenders of Qurna that withdrew yesterday have retreated northwards along the Tigris to Amara, while the remnants of the 38th Division that had fled Basra are now at Nasiriya on the Euphrates.  The British now have firm control over the Shatt al-Arab region, which brings a close to the first phase of the war in Mesopotamia.

- In western German Kamerun, the French column that occupied Nola on October 29th today occupies Baturi.  The force has continued to advance over the past month, primarily because it needs to eat off the land and thus cannot stay in any one place for long.  However, the further it moves into German territory the more difficult communications become - there is no wireless or telegraph links, nor railways messengers can travel over.  Thus a message from Baturi will take over a month, making effective co-ordination of the different Entente columns moving against German Kamerun impossible.

December 8th, 1914

- Further attacks by the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army against the Russian 3rd Army fail to make any significant gains, while the situation on the southern flank of Roth's group around Limanowa worsens - in addition to the advance of the Russian VIII Corps, the Russian XIV Corps is a mere two days march away.  Conrad urges the commander of the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army to hasten his attacks, and the latter decides that, as he does not have sufficient force in position to both attack Bartfeld and advance towards Neusandez, the latter operation should take priority.  Two division and assorted battalions that had been assembled to attack Bartfeld are placed under the command of General Szurmay and ordered to move northwest against Neusandez.

- The Austro-Hungarian 6th Army today falls back across the Kolubara River, having been shattered in the fighting of the prior five days.  Many of its battalions are down to two hundred men, supply columns have been destroyed by Serbian units that have broken through, and some units have now completely run out of ammunition.  At Valjevo, the Austro-Hungarian 50th Division hastily retreats before scouting elements of the Serbian I Dunav Division, and the latter are able to temporarily enter the city.  The episode convinces General Potiorek that 6th Army is no longer combat effective, and will be unable to hold the line of the Kolubara.

- In Mesopotamia the Ottoman defenders of Qurna are disheartened by the British success in occupying the opposite river bank, and more than half the garrison retreats northwards in the early morning hours.  The remainder believe they have been outmaneouvred again when a small British force commandeers two sailboats and effects a river crossing just north of Qurna.  At 1140pm, a small steamer carrying three Ottoman officers approaches one of the British sloops and they offer to surrender Qurna if the garrison is allowed to march out.  The commander of the sloop refuses, and is soon able to badger the Ottomans into an unconditional surrender.

- For the past several weeks, the shattered remnants of C. F. Beyers' commando has been on the run since it was defeated on November 16th, and today it disintegrates when Beyers drowns attempting to cross the Vaal River.  Beyers' death removes a leading rebel figure from the scene, and eliminates the last major rebel commando within South Africa - the only significant forces now are those commanded by Maritz and Kemp just over the border with German South-West Africa.

- At 2am this morning the warships of the German East Asiatic Squadron first sight the Falklands Islands on the northern horizon, and at 530am Admiral Spee splits his force - Gneisenau and Nürnberg will sail into Port Stanley to send landing parties ashore and bombard the town while Scharnhorst, Dresden, and Leipzig remain just out of sight over the horizon, ready to assist.  The weather is perfect, with clear skies and only a slight breeze, making visibility ideal.  The German warships have no idea that they are sailing into mortal danger.

The approach of the German East Asiatic Squadron to the Falklands Islands.

At 7am Gneisenau and Nürnberg sight their first target, a radio mast on Hooker's Point.  The harbour at Port Stanley itself is masked by the line of hills on which the radio mast sits and which reaches out to Cape Pembroke, but the Germans can see the mastheads of a number of ships in Port Stanley and smoke rising as they get underway.  Gneisenau's gunnery officer, up in the spotting top of the foremast, reports that he sees tripod masts - ominous news, as tripod masts mean dreadnoughts.  Gneisenau's captain dismisses the report - there are obviously no dreadnoughts or battlecruisers in the South Atlantic, as they are all in the North Sea facing the High Seas Fleet.

At 920am, just as Gneisenau and Nürnberg are about to open fire on the wireless station, two explosions are sighted a thousand yards to port, followed shortly by two more eight hundred yards away.  The size of the detonations clearly indicate 12-inch shells, a stunning surprise to the Germans.  Such large-calibre gunnery means they are facing warships larger than cruisers, and deduce that a pre-dreadnought battleship must be at Port Stanley.  They are correct - the shells are coming from Canopus, beached in the harbour as a defensive battery, its fire directed by gunner observors on land such that it can fire without the ship actually seeing the enemy.  Thus the first shots of the Battle of the Falklands Islands are fired by the warship that was left behind prior to the Battle of Coronel.

The Battle of the Falklands Islands, December 8th, 1914.

Spee decides to abort the attack on Port Stanley, as 12-inch guns could wreck havoc on his squadron and there are more enemy warships that appear to be preparing to exit Port Stanley to engage the Germans.  However, Spee's squadron can also easily outrun a pre-dreadnought, so Gneisenau and Nürnberg are ordered to sail east to rejoin the rest of the German East Asiatic Squadron.

When Gneisenau and Nürnberg were first sighted by British observers ashore just after 730am, they caught Admiral Sturdee and his squadron completely by surprise.  There had been no indication or intelligence to suggest that the Falklands Islands themselves might be a target of the German East Asiatic Squadron.  The British warships are not prepared for action - only the armoured cruiser Kent is able to immediately steam out of the harbour, as the rest are in various stages of coaling or undergoing repairs.  Sturdee quickly issues orders for all warships to raise steam to prepare to sail as soon as possible - his initial fear is that if the Germans sail up to the harbour entrance they might be able to devastate his squadron while it is still at anchor and cannot maneouvre.  Spee's order to retreat alleviates that concern, however, and now Sturdee realizes his advantage. He knows his two battlecruisers can make 25 knots, while Spee's warships can only make 20 knots at most.  Sturdee knows that he will inevitably catch up to the Germans, and then the larger main armament of Invincible and Inflexible will surely guarantee the annihilation of the enemy.  Spee's only chance of escape is poor weather, but the day is exceptionally calm and there is no change of fog or rain in which the German squadron could hide.  By 1030am all of Sturdee's warships have sailed out of Port Stanley and round Cape Pembroke in pursuit of the enemy.

As the German East Asiatic Squadron sails eastwards at its top speed, it can see in the distance British warships in pursuit, and all eyes strain to identify the enemy.  They can see two larger warships that gradually but inexorably overtake the other enemy vessels and begin to close the gap between the two squadrons.  It soon becomes clear that their pursuers include two battlecruisers.  It is a bitter moment for the German East Asiatic Squadron - every sailor knows the overwhelming superiority battlecruisers have over their own ships, and that the day will likely end in their destruction.

The view from the maintop on Invincible as it overhauls the German warships, whose smoke is visible on the
horizon.

For several hours the British pursue the Germans, the battlecruisers drawing ever closer.  At 1255pm, the first shot of the battle is fired by Inflexible, targeting the light cruiser Leipzig.  Invincible soon joins in, and within fifteen minutes British salvos are straddling the German ship.  Spee decides that he must try to save at least part of his squadron.  He orders his three light cruisers to separate and attempt to escape, while Scharnhorst and Gneisenau will turn to fight the battlecruisers.  The latter maneouvre is undoubtedly doomed, but Spee hopes it will prove a sufficient distraction to allow the light cruisers to escape.  Sturdee had anticipated this, however, and the armoured cruisers Kent and Cornwall as well as Glasgow are sent after the German light cruisers while Inflexible and Invincible focus on the two enemy armoured cruisers.

Inflexible opens fire on Scharnhorst and Gneisenau.

By 130pm the British battlecruisers and German armoured cruisers open fire on each other.  The Germans live up to their reputation as crack shots, their salvos consistently straddling the British, while British fire is widely inaccurate - in the first thirty minutes, of 210 rounds fired only four hit the target.  Still, the larger shells of the British guns mean each hit is significantly more damaging than several from the German guns.  For the next two hours damage accumulates on Scharnhorst and Gneisenau - the former has several main guns knocked out, and the latter has two boiler rooms flooded and its speed reduced to 16 knots.  Just before 4pm, its upper deck completely wrecked and three of four funnels shot away, Scharnhorst ceases fire.  Sturdee signals the German warship to surrender, but there was no reply.  Spee's last signal is instead to Gneisenau, conceding that he had been wrong to order the attack on the Falklands.  Scharnhorst's bow sinks ever deeper into the waves until it rolls onto its side and sinks at 417pm.  Of the eight hundred man crew, including Admiral Spee, there are no survivors.  For the next hour and a half, the already-battered Gneisenau endures what amounts to target practice by the British battlecruisers.  At 540 its captain orders the ship scuttled, and it sinks at 6pm.  Between two and three hundred survivors are in the water, and the battlecruisers begin rescue efforts, ultimately pulling 176 from the frigid waters.

Inflexible standing by to pick up survivors from Gneisenau.  The photograph is taken from Invincible.

The three German light cruisers hardly fare better.  As they sailed south in an attempt to escape, they are pursued by the light cruiser Glasgow and the armoured cruisers Kent and Cornwall.  After four months at sea the Germans are several knots below their design speed, which allows the British to slowly close the distance.  At 345pm the three light cruisers go their separate ways - Dresden to the southwest, Nürnberg to the east, and Leipzig to the south.  The pursuing British have to choose how to continue the pursuit, and with Dresden maintaining a fractionally greater speed than the other two light cruisers, the decision is made by the captain of Glasgow to let Dresden go to ensure the destruction of the other two.  While Dresden slips away, Nürnberg and Leipzig are chased down over the next several hours and, once the armoured cruisers are in range, battered into submission - the former sinking at 727pm, and the latter at 923pm.  Only seven survivors are saved from Nürnberg and eighteen from Leipzig.

Damage on the upper deck of Kent.

By nightfall the annihilation of the German East Asiatic Squadron is complete.  Only Dresden survives, fleeing the scene as rapidly as possible westward, its only hope to return to the Pacific.  Admiral Spee, as well as two of his sons who were serving aboard his warships, are lost.  British casualties are negligible - one on Glasgow, four on Kent when a gun position was hit - as the vast majority of German hits failed to penetrate the armour of the British warships.  The Germans had fought well, scoring a much higher hit rate than their counterparts, but it hardly mattered.  For the British, it is a matter of concern that only 5% of their shots, but it is overshadowed by the sheer scale of the victory - the Battle of the Falklands is as decisive victory for the British as the Battle of Coronel was for the Germans.  It does much to restore the luster of the Royal Navy after early setbacks, and is celebrated throughout Britain as a restatement of naval hegemony.  The victory is seen as a particular vindication for the First Sea Lord, Admiral Fisher.  It was his vision that brought the battlecruiser to life, and at the Falklands it fulfilled its strategic role perfectly - have the speed to catch anything it can sink.

December 7th, 1914

- With the occupation of Lodz, General Mackensen desires a pause in operations for his 9th Army, given that it has been in constant combat for a month in poor weather and with few supplies, and he also recognizes that the Russians have withdrawn to a strong defensive position along the Bzura and Rawka Rivers.  Ludendorff, however, insists that the advance continues, with the objective of seizing Warsaw by the end of the year.  He believes that warfare in the East is more mobile than the West, and while generally this is the case, it ignores the specific situation that 9th Army now faces, fighting a defensive line where the Russians have entrenched in strong positions.  Thus 9th Army continues to attack the Russian 1st, 2nd, and 5th Armies opposite, attempting to force river crossings and achieve the breakthrough Ludendorff still believes is possible.

- The Russian 3rd Army pulls its two exposed corps back eastward over the Stradomka River today, a maneouvre that removes the possibility of the southern wing of the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army enveloping and annihilating these corps.  Though Conrad is funnelling reinforcements to Roth's group, General Ivanov of South-West Front is doing the same - in addition to the two corps drawn from 8th Army, two additional corps are coming from 9th Army.  Further, the Russian VIII Corps at Neusandez is already attacking westward towards Limanowa against the exposed flank of Roth's group, which remains orientated northwards.

Meanwhile, the Russian 8th Army in the Carpathians consists of little more than XII Corps, as General Brusilov has sent the remainder westward to support the beleaguered 3rd Army.  This means that when several divisions on the eastern wing of the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army attack today, the Russian defenders are pushed back.  However, poor weather and logistical challenges has delayed the planned Austro-Hungarian attack against Bartfeld, while no forces have been yet dispatched towards Neusandez.

- With the tide turning against Austria-Hungary, the Serbian parliament is emboldened today to issue a declaration on its war aims; namely, to liberate all Serbs, Croatians, and Slovenians (known collectively as the South Slavs) within Austria-Hungary and unite them into a single kingdom under Serbian leadership.

- In Lower Mesopotamia the detachment of Indian Expeditionary Force D sent against Qurna advances on the opposite river bank today, clearing Ottoman units out of several trench positions.  By late afternoon the British are on the river opposite Qurna, and spent the rest of the day exchanging fire with the Ottoman garrison of the town.

The Viceroy of India also telegrams London today, endorsing a proclamation at Basra that British occupation of the region will be permanent, and governed as a province of India.

- At 9am this morning the British squadron under the command of Admiral Sturdee sights the Falklands Islands, and his warships, led by Invincible and Inflexible, sail into Port Stanley.  Though the squadron needs coal, only two colliers are available, so the ships will take turns, while the armoured cruiser Cornwall and the light cruiser Bristol extinguish their fires to clean its boilers and repair an engine respectively.  The armed merchant cruiser Macedonia is assigned to patrol outside the harbour, while the armoured cruiser Kent is scheduled to relieve Macedonia at 8am tomorrow morning.

Admiral Sturdee summons his captains to Invincible, where he informs them that the squadron will sail in forty-eight hours - reports have German colliers assembling near Tierra del Fuego, and Sturdee wants to get around Cape Horn before the German East Asiatic Squadron.  Unbeknownst to Sturdee and his captains, fate is about to delivery the German warships right into their hands.

December 6th, 1914

- Joffre sends a reply today to Grand Duke Nicholas' telegram of the 3rd, assuring the commander-in-chief of the Russian army that the French will shortly resume major offensive operations, once weapons appropriate to the new conditions resembling siege warfare are assembled.  At the same time he receives another report from the Operations Bureau recommending attacks in Artois and either Champagne or near Verdun.  This encapsulates the basic framework of the operation Joffre and his staff now begin to plan - a drive by the French 10th Army from the vicinity of Arras towards Cambrai, and an advance in Champagne east of Rheims by the French 4th Army from Suippes to Rethel.

- Overnight Russian forces at Lodz have abandoned the city and retreated eastward, and when wireless intercepts reveal the situation to the Germans, elements of 9th Army occupy the city.  The retreat, however, is not a precipitate withdrawal - the advance of the right wing of the German 9th Army and the Austro-Hungarian 2nd Army had resulted in Lodz forming a bulge in the front, and by retreating the Russians can shorten their line and establish themselves on defensible positions on the Bzura and Rawka Rivers west of Warsaw.  Indeed, for the past several days the centre and left of the German 9th Army has been battering itself against the Russian positions on the lower Bzura to no avail.  Further, the Russian forces opposite the Austro-Hungarian 2nd Army remain in place, frustrating the hope for a further advance.  By abandoning Lodz, the Russians are in a better position to defend the remainder of Poland.

German soldiers marching through Lodz, December 6th, 1914.

- Southeast of Krakow further Austro-Hungarians attacks by Roth's forces on the Russian defences fail to achieve a breakthrough or turn the enemy's southern flank.  However, the continued pressure convinces the commander of the Russian 3rd Army to pull back the two corps that still faced westward between Wisniowa and Wieliczka.  Meanwhile reconnaissance reports from elements of the 10th Cavalry Division report significant Russian forces in Neusandez, but General Roth's focus remains the attack northwards - he has been ordered to continue the offensive in this direct irregardless of the threat to his own flank.

Operations of the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army during the Battle of
Limanowa-Lapanow, December 6th to 9th, 1914.

- To the southeast the commander of the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army is planning an operation aimed at recapturing Bartfeld, lost on the 1st.  Though his army is exhausted, the apparent redeployment of elements of the Russian 8th Army westwards has opened a window of opportunity to go over to the attack.  However, today Conrad orders the left wing of 3rd Army to advance on Neusandez to support the offensive of 4th Army.  The commander of 3rd Army knows his force is not capable of attacking Bartfeld and moving to Neusandez simultaneously, so he asks Conrad which operation he should undertake first.  In an evasion typical of Conrad, he replies that the choice is at 3rd Army's discretion.

- Romanian Prime Minister Bratianu refuses today an Entente request to guarantee the independence of Greece against Bulgarian aggression.

- A small Ottoman force of twenty-four Russian-speaking cavalrymen attempt a raid today near Odessa on the Black Sea coast.  Landing at Akkerman and dressed in Russian uniforms, their objective is to cut a key railway before escaping into neutral Romania.  The attempt is a complete failure as every Ottoman soldier is rounded up shortly after making landfall.

- Early today reinforcements reach the detachment of Indian Expeditionary Force D encamped just south of Qurna on the opposite bank.  Reconnaissance has revealed that Ottoman soldiers numbering over a thousand have reoccupied the trenches to the north that the British had captured and then evacuated on the 4th.  The local British commander decides that these Ottomans will need to be defeated to secure the west bank of the river, the necessary prerequisite to then crossing the river to seize the town of Qurna itself.

- Admiral Spee convenes a meeting of his captains as the German East Asiatic Squadron continues to anchor off Picton Island.  Believing that the Falklands Islands are unprotected, de proposes an attack on Port Stanley to destroy the wireless station, burn any stocks of coal (the bunkers of his ships now being full), and capture the British governor to balance the British seizure of the governor of German Samoa.  Only the captain of Nürnberg supports the plan - the other captains wish to avoid the Falklands and pursue Entente shipping off the River Platte.  Spee, however, overrules his captains and they sail this afternoon to attack Port Stanley on the morning of December 8th.  It is a fateful, and for many a fatal, decision.

December 5th, 1914

- After a day of heavy fighting the Russian counterattack in central Poland by III Caucasian Corps has stalled, and the arrival of the first elements of 27th Division gives the commander of the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army confidence that the enemy will not be able to break through.  However, the delay imposed on the Austro-Hungarian advance has given the Russians time to move additional reinforcements into the area.  Further to the north, efforts by the centre and left of the German 9th Army, though inflicting losses and grinding forward, have been unable to break through the Russian 1st and 2nd Armies at and north of Lodz.

- South of Krakow further attacks by the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army fail to gain ground, the only significant success being achieved by the German 47th Reserve Division, which had begun to enter the line alongside XIV Corps yesterday.  The line of 4th Army now resembles an 'L', with XIV Corps and Nagy's cavalry along the bottom and the remainder of the army along the side.

- There have been no significant Russian attacks in the Carpathians for the past three days, and the reason for the sudden passivity is revealed to the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army today through wireless intercepts indicating that the headquarters of the Russian VIII Corps is at Neusandez.  Confirmation is received when cavalry moving east towards Neusandez encounter Russian infantry and are thrown back.  This clearly indicates that elements of the Russian 8th Army are moving to reinforce 3rd Army south of the Vistula River, and these forces, if they can continue westward past Neusandez, may be able to attack the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army from the south - Roth's group attempting to outflank the Russian 4th Army may be outflanked itself.

December 4th, 1914

- The Canadian soldiers encamped on Salisbury Plain continue to endure miserable conditions.  There is heavy rainfall almost every day, while cold was a constant companion and frost frequently occurred each night.  Today the weather offers a particular insult - as soldiers line up to receive their pay, a sudden storms blows the treasury bills away.

- The Operations Bureau at French army headquarters submits another assessment to Joffre, this time emphasizing the importance of railways and lines of communication.  Unfortunately from their perspective, the territory Germany occupies has a dense railway network, both laterally and reaching back across the Rhine, allowing the Germans to both bring reinforcements to the front quickly and move reserves between different parts of the line.  The assessment emphasizes the importance of major offensive operations targeting important rail connections to negate this German advantage.

- Today the French 1st Bombardment Group undertakes its first mission, striking the railway station at the German city of Freiburg.

- As the Serbian counteroffensive continues today, it is aided by a break in the weather.  In contrast to the wet and muddy conditions of late November, today begins a warm spell that drys out the ground and eases their advance.  The Serbs continue to hammer the Austro-Hungarian 6th Army, which falls back in disarray.

- Only this afternoon does the Russian 3rd Army realize that its southern flank is in danger and move reserves to counter the Austro-Hungarian advance.  Thus when Roth's infantry divisions shift their line of advance to the north to envelop the Russian 3rd Army, they encounter significant resistance for the first time.  This convinces the commander of the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army that his forces should be concentrated to the north, while only a small cavalry force is needed to screen Neusandez to the east.

It is also today that General Ivanov at South-West Front headquarters realizes that the Austro-Hungarians are undertaking a major counteroffensive south of Krakow against 3rd Army.  Moreover, General Ruszkii of North-West Front is insisting Ivanov needs to send reinforcements northwards to aid the defence of Poland.  Under these pressures, Ivanov has ordered General Brusilov of 8th Army to redeploy VIII  and XXIV Corps towards Neusandez and Gorlice, while the rest of 8th Army is to shift over to the defensive.

- At 5am this morning the detachment of Indian Expeditionary Force D assigned to move on Qurna departs the British camp and sails up the Shatt al-Arab, escorted by two warships and two armed steamers.  As the warships silence two Ottoman artillery pieces the soldiers land on the west bank and begin their advance northwards.  Their movement is slowed by a lack of cavalry, meaning reconnaisance on the unknown terrain had to be undertaken by infantry.  Coming up to an Ottoman position, the Indian infantry first perceived great enemy defenses, only to discover they had been a mirage and the Ottoman soldiers were only weakly-entrenched.  The retreating Ottomans are able to cross over to Qurna on the east bank, and for several hours the Indian and Ottomans exchange fire across the river.  As the British officers have no accurate maps of the region the width of the Tigris (200-300 yards) at this point comes as something of a surprise to them, and the British commander quickly concludes that his small force is insufficient to force a crossing.  He orders his detachment to fall back southward to where they had landed in the morning, while reinforcements are dispatched from the main IEF D camp at Basra.

December 3rd, 1914

- Today Joffre receives a message from Grand Duke Nicholas, Commander in Chief of the Russian Army.  The latter complains that inadequate pressure by the French on the Western Front has allowed the Germans to transfer significant forces to the Eastern Front, and that if further redeployments occurred the Russian army would have to cease offensive operations and dig entrenchments similar to those in the West.

- In central Poland the Russian III Caucasian Corps begins to move northwards towards Belchatow, occupied today by Austro-Hungarian cavalry, in order to strike the southern flank of the advance of the right wing of the German 9th Army and the left wing of the Austro-Hungarian 2nd Army.  Radio messages indicating the planned counterattack are intercepted, however, which allows the Austro-Hungarian 2nd Army to plan an attack of its own to pre-empt the Russian operation.  As the front north of Krakow has settled into trench warfare, the Austro-Hungarian 1st Army is able to order the redeployment of its 27th Division northwards to assist 4th Army.

- South of Krakow today the right wing of the Austro-Hungarian 4th Army, under the overall command of General Joseph Roth and consisting of XIV Corps and Nagy's cavalry divisions, push eastward today after defeating the Russians at Dobra yesterday, and capture Limanowa.  However, though the southern flank of the Russian 3rd Army has given way, its centre stymies further Austro-Hungarian attacks today.

The Battle of Limanowa-Lapanow, December 1914.

- When the Serbian counteroffensive is launched this morning, it strikes the Austro-Hungarian armies at a particularly opportune moment.  The occupation of Belgrade has stretched it to the northeast, leaving 6th Army with a longer front to cover.  Moreover, the Austro-Hungarian supply situation is dire, as both food and ammunition are scarce, and the infantry are tired from the constant advance of the past month.  The destruction of bridges and roads by the retreating Serbs has also held up heavy artillery, and thus most of the line cannot count on artillery fire for support.

Thus when the infantry of the Serbian 1st Army attack out of the morning mist at 7am, they are able to immediately shatter the lines.  By nightfall all three corps of the Austro-Hungarian 6th Army are on the retreat.  The response of General Potiorek is sluggish, as information is scarce and he believes only one corps of 6th Army has been seriously engaged.

The Serbian counteroffensive, December 3rd to 12th, 1914.

- Today the troop convoy from Australia and New Zealand arrives at Alexandria.  The soldiers begin to disembarck, and the first move by train to Cairo where their encampment is located.

Australian soldiers arriving at Alexandria, December 3rd, 1914.

- Having rounded Cape Horn, yesterday the German East Asiatic Squadron came across and seized an English sailing vessel with 2800 tons of coal, and this morning the squadron anchors off Picton Island.  Admiral Spee, cognizant of the uncertainty of access to coal in the Atlantic, decides to take the time to parcel out the seized coal among his five ships.

December 2nd, 1914

- Falkenhayn, Hindenburg, and Ludendorff meet at Breslau today with Conrad and other military officials from both countries, with the Kaiser also in attendance.  In discussing future operations on the Eastern Front, Falkenhayn informs Conrad that the Germans aim to push the Russians over the Vistula and San Rivers, with the principal role being played by the German 9th Army, for which reinforcements are still arriving.  The German Chief of Staff expects the Austro-Hungarians to pin down Russian forces opposite their lines to prevent them from redeploying northwards to meet the main German thrust.  Falkenhayn also states categorically that no further reinforcements will come from the Western Front.

This news is disappointing to Conrad, who hoped for more significant German redeployments to the East, specifically to aid the Austro-Hungarians.  While not arguing with the overall premise of German strategy, Conrad does inform his German counterparts that his armies are about to undertake their own offensive actions south of the Vistula River.

- Southeast of Krakow, three Austro-Hungarian cavalry divisions under General Julius Nagy begin their advance today.  Situated on the right of XIV Corps, they are to cover the southern flank of 4th Army as it advances to meet the Russian 3rd Army.  One division heads towards Neusandez, a key town through which the Russian 8th Army can most easily send reinforcements to the Russian 3rd Army once the main battle begins.

- In the early hours of this morning, elements of the Austro-Hungarian 5th Army occupy Belgrade, encountering no opposition from the Serbian army.  The news of the capture of the Serbian capital is greeted with widespread celebrations in Vienna, and is applauded by its German ally.

There are storm clouds on the horizon, however.  For the past several days, soldiers of the Serbian 1st Army have been able to rest while being resupplied, and their morale has recovered from the November retreat.  Fresh shipments of artillery shells have also reached 1st Army's artillery batteries.  The commander of 1st Army orders a counterattack for tomorrow, and inspires General Putnik to instruct the entire Serbian army to go over onto the offensive.

- In South Africa, Christian De Wet's commando, one of the leading forces in the Boer Rebellion, has been decimated by desertion over the past few weeks since its defeat at Mushroom Valley, many being enticed by a promise of a government pardon.  Today its disintegration is completed when De Wet himself is captured by government soldiers.  At the same time, another of the rebel leaders, J. C. G. Kemp, and five hundred Boer rebels join forces with S. G. Maritz's force just inside the frontier of German South-West Africa, where the latter retreated after its defeat at Kakamas on October 24th.

December 1st, 1914

- Albert Ballin, a prominent German shipowner, and Hans-Nils Anderson, a Danish industrialist, begin negotiations to draw up a proposal designed to convert Russian conservatives to the cause of a separate peace.

- Yesterday the southern wing of the German 9th Army, comprised mainly of units recently arrived from the Western Front, began an attack to the south of Lodz, and today are joined by the northern wing of the Austro-Hungarian 2nd Army.  The objective is to break through the Russian 5th and 4th Armies and outflank the Russian position at Lodz.

The Eastern Front, December 1st, 1914.

- The Battle of Limanowa-Lapanow opens today south of Krakow.  The Austro-Hungarian XIV Corps, southern-most of 4th Army's corps and on the outside of the advance and turn into the Russian 3rd Army's flank, is still assembling its units, so the formations already present launch attacks today to keep the enemy away from its deployment zone.

- In the Carpathians elements of the Russian 8th Army seize the town of Bartfeld.  After weeks of desperate fighting, the commander of the Austro-Hungarian 3rd Army holding the Carpathians informs Conrad today that his units will need a period of sustained rest before being capable of further operations, and will be unable to hold its present positions if the Russians continue to apply pressure.  As such, 3rd Army commander considers whether preparations ought to begin for a retreat as far south as Budapest.

November 30th, 1914

- To both sides on the Western Front, the trench system is both unprecedented and unexpected - neither side thought they would be fighting such a static war, and indeed expectations remain that trench warfare is but a phase which will soon pass.  In the meantime, as both sides try to find tactical solutions to the problem of attacking trenches, they first draw on their experience and pre-war training, which suggests that trench warfare is most similar to the conduct of sieges, the latter involving prolonged fighting before extensive defenses.  Thus in the initial months of trench warfare both sides attempt to apply the tactics for conducting sieges to operations on the Western Front.  For example, today Joffre issues a communication to all army commanders instructing them to dig their trenches to within 150 yards of the German lines.  This is precisely what the standard approach to siege warfare is, and Joffre hopes the order will have the same benefit - the closer the infantry are to the enemy when they attack, the less time it will take them to cross the killing zone between the lines and reach the enemy positions.  While the order reflects the fact that generals did look for ways to break the deadlock that did not involve the repetition of the same tactics over and over again, it also is indicative how these same generals were in many ways prisoners of their own experience and training, whereas the conditions of trench warfare required entirely new ways of thinking on the battlefield.

- A British fishing trawler in the North Sea makes a remarkable discovery when it hauls in its catch - a lead-lined chest in amongst the fish.  The chest is from a German minelaying destroyer which had been sunk off the Dutch coast on October 17th, and within the chest is a treasure worth more than gold to the British Admiralty.  It includes secret charts of the North Sea showing the operational grid the Germans use to plot the location of warships, and a codebook intended for communication with warships overseas.  These two finds, in combination with earlier breakthroughs, allow the British to decypher German wireless signals, a vital advantage to the war at sea.

- As the Russian 3rd Army continues to advance westwards towards Krakow, the Austro-Hungarian Chief of Staff issues orders today for another offensive.  Despite the battering 4th Army has taken in recent weeks, Conrad orders it back on to the attack - the movement of the Russian 3rd Army has opened a gap between it and the Russian 8th Army in the Carpathians to the southeast, and his intention is that the southern wing of 4th Army will move into this gap and then pivot northward to hit the southern flank of the Russian 3rd Army.

- The Serbian army completes its evacuation of Belgrade today as elements of the Austro-Hungarian 5th Army approach the city.  General Potiorek has ordered his other units to halt, both to recover from the recent fighting and to resupply.  The retreating Serbs had thoroughly destroyed transportation infrastructure as they retreated through November, and the Austro-Hungarians have outrun their supplies and are encountering all manner of shortages.

- Orders are issued for a detachment of Indian Expeditionary Force D, including two and a half infantry battalions, to embark on four river steamers, where they will be escorted by two warships and two armed steamers up the Shatt al-Arab.  Their orders are to land on the riverbank opposite of Qurna, clear that side of the river of the enemy, and then move on Qurna itself.

- Ayesha sets a course westward into the Indian Ocean and, satisfied that the schooner is leaving for good, the Dutch warship De Zeven Provincian halts its pursuit.  The German crew are sailing to a point in the eastern Indian Ocean where they hope to rendezvous with a German merchant ship.  While at Padang it was impermissible for any of the crew to meet with sailors from the German merchant ships alongside, First Officer Mücke happened to say several times quite loudly that his ship would be at this point in the Indian Ocean for several weeks.  His hope is that one of the German merchant ships, motivated by patriotism, will meet them there and allow Ayesha's crew to transfer to the steamer for the next stage of the journey back to Germany.