August 30, 1914

One hundred years ago today forces from New Zealand occupied German Samoa (which today is the independent nation of Samoa). German colonial officers surrendered without resistance. After the war the Samoan islands would be put under British, and later New Zealand's, control until 1962 when it would become an independent nation.

On the Eastern Front the Battle of Tannenburg, which had started on the 26th, ended with a crushing defeat the southern half of the Russian invasion force at the hands of the defending German army. The German army now turned to face the northern half of the Russian invasion. Even though the German army had defeated half of the Russian army at Tannenburg, the half that remained was still four times larger than the German army on the Eastern front. In a few days the fate of Germany would be determined near the Masurian Lakes. 

Author's note: The battles at Tannenburg and Masurian Lakes were some of the most influential of the war. A more detailed post explaining both battles and their significance will be posted on the anniversary of the battle of the Masurian Lakes (September 7th) as one battle cannot be explained without explaining the other.     

August 29, 1914

One hundred years ago today on the Western Front the French army counterattacked the advancing German army outside the city of Saint Quentin. The attack successfully halted the German army for 24 hours. By the next day the French army would withdraw to a more defendable position and the German army would continue its march to Paris, now only 90 miles away.    

August 28, 1914

One hundred years ago today the first major naval battle of the war occurred, the Battle of Heigoland Bight. Up to this point there had been many small naval engagements in oceans all over the globe. The British navy had penned in most of the German navy in its home waters early in the war. The German Navy was trapped in its harbors in northern Germany, not powerful enough to face the British navy concentrated in confines of the North Sea. The British navy was not powerful enough attack the German Navy close to shore where it would have support from submarines, mines, costal artillery and short ranged coastal ships. So the two navies were locked in a standoff.

On August 28, 1914 the British navy attempted to ambush a German patrol off the German coast. The goal was to take on the German navy in small pieces as it left the safety of its harbors. Giving Great Britain a naval victory and boost sagging moral after a string of defeats in France and Belgium. of the British army   

The battle began around 7:00am, by 3:00pm the battle was over. It was a major victory for the British, who suffered less than one hundred causality and only one ship suffered significant damage. The German navy lost six ship (three midsized, and three smaller ships) and six more ships were badly damaged, over 1,000 German sailors were killed, wounded or captured.    

Historically speaking the battle was not very large. But it had a huge impact on the war. In the early 20th century navies were the pride of nations, and any nation that wanted to be taken seriously on the international stage needed a large modern navy, which both Great Britain and Germany had. But the German navy was untested and fairly recently constructed. The German Kaiser, the Emperor of Germany, was so fearful of losing these ships, that were such a source of pride to the German people and the Kaiser, that he ordered that German navy remain in its harbors after the battle as to not risk further losses. This fear was not entirely unjustified, as the British Navy had shown itself to be a great threat and it was possible the war would be won on land in a few weeks. So it made sense not to risked expensive warships if there was not need.

But the withdraw of the German navy meant that Great Britain had essentially neutralized the German navy as threat, and with one small battle assured itself control of European waters. The Kaiser's ordered frustrated the German Naval command, which would turn to other methods to threaten Great Britain at sea and in the processes changed naval warfare forever. The era of submarine warfare was about to begin.  

On land on this day Austria-Hungary declared war on Belgium.

August 27, 1914

One hundred years ago today the Japanese navy blockaded the German controlled port city of Tsingtao (today known as Qingdao) in northeast China. Germany had taken control of this region of China in 1889. With war declared on German, Japan was determine to end German control of this region.

August 26, 1914

One hundred years ago today on the Western Front the Germany army continued to press the French and British armies back towards Paris. The French and British were unable to halt the Germans, but the Germans were unable to overtake and destroy the French and British forces as it advanced.

The German army was now 100 miles from Paris. 

On the Eastern Front in the south Austro-Hungry launched in invasion into Russia following its earlier victory a few days earlier. Though there would be some initial success, ultimately the attack would be a failure.

On in the north on the Eastern Front the Russian army attempted to surround the German army attacking in to separate two parts. The German army learned of this plan prior to the battle, additionally the Russian army had advanced faster than it could lay telegraph wire. It had to rely on radio broadcasts for the units to stay in communication. The Russian army did not have sufficient equipment to encrypt these messages so they were sent unencrypted. The German army could easily monitored these broadcasts and knew exactly where the Russian army was. The German army moved first to attack the southern wing of the Russian invasion, surrounding and smashing it in the forests of Tannenberg. By August 30, 1914  78,000 Russian soldiers were killed or wounded. and 92,000 were captured. German losses were minimal suffering only 13,800 total causalities. The General Alexander Samsonov commanding that portion Russian army committed suicide on the last day of the battle when it became apparent how utter the Russian defeat had been. This battle would be later known as the battle of Tannenberg.

August 25, 1914

One hundred years ago today the last of the fortresses at Namur were captured by the German army. Now the Germany could move troops and supplies unhindered from Germany to its armies in France.

In Belgium the German army had been engaged in a campaign of terror to punish the Belgian people for resisting the German invasion from the onset of the war. Some of the worst atrocities happened on the August 25, 1914 in the city of Leuven. Hundreds of civilians were killed, thousands were forced from their homes and thousands of structures were purposely were burned down. The university of Leuven's library was famed for its collection of medieval and renaissance era manuscripts and books. These were intentionally soaked in gasoline and set on fire. In total over 300,000 original medieval and renaissance work of literature were destroyed as the library burned. 

The Belgium army was trapped north in Antwerp were it could not assist, nor could it be assisted by the French and British armies. The German army begins to use Zeppelins to drop bombs on the city of Antwerp killing dozens of civilians with each attack.

In Asia, Japan declared war on Austria-Hungary.

The Rape of Belgium

Author's note: Some readers may wish to skip this post.  This topic delves into the nature and reasons of the war crimes and atrocities committed by the German army in Belgium in 1914. Discussion of these events are vital to understanding many facets of World War One. But at the same time the events are upsetting to anyone who values human dignity and the rule of law. I have attempted to write about this in such a way as not to be offensive or treat the subject lightly. But no matter how these events are discussed they are horrific even by the standards of war, which are already horrific. Also I must editorialize that the "The Rape of Belgium" was a propaganda term of the day and not a term of my own. It is also worth noting that atrocities occurred in many places and were committed by many different nations in the war and in some cases on a much larger scale. but the events in Belgium have been singled out at this time because these events began in August 1914 and had far reaching consequences throughout the war.

"The Rape of Belgium" was the term used in World War One to describe the mistreatment of Belgian civilians during the war. Though not the first war, nor the last, to see terrible atrocities, World War One the first major war in to be fought in an era with a concept of war crimes. No international laws existed regarding legal action during war until 1899 with the Hague Convention. Prior to World War One all of the major participants of the war had agreed to the Hague Conventions (there was a second convention in 1907) which outlined a legal frame work of how war was to be waged. Prior to the Hague Conventions there were no "rules" in warfare. Historically what was considered acceptable in war was set by unilateral decisions based on religiously and culturally accepted practices and there was no framework to enforce or even agree on what how a war would be fought.

The opening of the 20th century was hoped to be the dawn of a new era in international relations. It was believed that if all nations agreed to follow certain rules in warfare that the worst excesses of war could be minimized.

So at the outset of World War One all the nations involved had agreed to the same rules regarding war. Covering, among other issues, the conduct of legal war, the treatment of civilians, the wounded and prisoners of war. Now that these rules existed they could be broken and hence the era of the war crime began. By the end of the war every major combatant nation would break at least one of the agreements of Hague Conventions and would all be guilty of war crimes.

With this backdrop in place the actions of the German army in Belgium were all the more shocking to the international community which had expected, and hoped, that the world had moved into an era of "civilized" warfare. From the very start World War One very little about it could be called civilized.

The atrocities committed by the German army in Belgium can be put into two primary categories, systemic war crimes and individual war crimes. Both were prevalent and shocking in their effect.

In some ways the easiest, and at the same time the hardest, war crimes to understand are individual crimes. These were crimes committed with limited or no premeditation, independent of any command structure or military protocol. Acts of brutality by individuals or small groups of German soldiers was common in Belgium in the first three months of the war. Murder, rape and looting occurred on a regular basis.

The reason for this threefold. First, the German army was well trained, but not particularly disciplined at the onset of the war. All of Germany's soldiers were conscripts or reservist who had been called to up to fight. Many of the officers had little experience and this lack of experience made it difficult to keep men under control who were inclined to take advantage of the chaos and lawlessness of war. Secondly, there was a general feeling among the rank and file of German army that Belgium's resistance was unneeded. They had been told by their commanders that Belgium would let them pass through to the real war in France and many were not expecting more than token resistance from the Belgian army. But only a few days into the war the German army had lost thousands of men fighting the Belgians. Lives that were lost needlessly in the minds of many German soldiers and the loss of these lives, the live of their comrades, required revenge. Lastly, there was a fear among the German soldiers of the rise of Francs-tireurs (or free shooters) a term used for French guerilla snipers who fought against the Germans a generation earlier in the Franco-Prussian war. Early in World War One the Belgians did use snipers and German soldiers raised on stories of the havoc cause by French guerillas were terrified of this. This fear lead to the death and torment of many civilian. Belgian men were often shot on the spot if they were suspected of being a sniper. Homes and farms were burned as reprisals when the Germans thought that sniper fire had come from that direction. A sad tragedy of the war was the use of Belgian snipers had be rather limited and civilians had not been encouraged to take up arms against the Germans. Much of what was deemed sniper fire behind the front lines was actual friendly fire from other inexperienced German units who miss identified their target.   

The other primary category of war crimes was systemic war crimes, or crimes committed with the full knowledge, encouragement and premeditation of the German command. The rational for the German leadership was very much the same as the individual German soldiers. Not only was the German leadership furious at Belgium for its refusing to let the German army pass its borders, but also that it was Belgium's appeal to Great Britain that brought Great Britain into the war, a nation Germany had hoped not to face. There was a sense among the German military at all levels that held the Belgian people collective responsibly for their government's actions and therefore that they deserved harsh treatment.  The German military leadership was also fearful of the rise of Francs-tireurs, just as the frontline soldiers were, and felt that a heavy hand was needed to prevent this kind of resistance.

The actions of the German military leadership against the Belgium people consisted first and foremost of a general encouragement by commanding officers for individual soldiers to be brutal. This encouraged the individual crimes noted above, and little effort was made to curtail such actions. Beyond that, the German Army used Zeppelins (airships) to drop bombs on Belgian cities indiscriminately killing civilians. On the ground it was common practice when German army units entered cities or villages to arrest the mayor and the local priest along with a number of random individuals (tp include men, woman and children). Locals were informed if any resistance was incurred the hostages would be killed. In town after town, after someone fought back against the Germans to resist a theft or rape, or if the German unit came under fire from the surrounding countryside (which often turned out to be friendly fire from other German units) the hostages would be executed, often publicly and sometimes in very cruel ways. Towns that the Belgium army had stationed units in to defend would often be burned after they were captured as punishment for harboring their own nation's soldiers. Individuals who resisted having their homes burned were killed.

This was the policy of the German army in the early months of the war. In this time it is estimated that over 6,000 Belgian civilians had were killed, over 25,000 buildings were burned down and over 800 villages and towns were destroyed. Millions of Belgians fled the advance of the German army when stories of the brutality spread. The international press reported these events which led to an general denouncement of Germany. This was the have the at great effect on public opinion in the United States which had been somewhat sympathetic to Germany at the start of the war. When the debates would began in the United States about whether or not to involve itself in the war, the atrocities in Belgium were a powerful argument as to why the Germans had to be defeated.  

To be certain not all German soldiers mistreated civilians. In fact many Germans and German soldiers discounted the stories of what was happening in Belgium as British propaganda. Which, to be fair, did fabricate stories of atrocities that did not happen. A common tale of the time (started by British intelligence services) was that the German army was cutting off the hands and feet children in the territory they occupied. In fact there are accounts of German soldiers be met by citizens on the outskirts of towns begging them not to harm the children, which the German soldiers were confused and appalled by. Exaggerated stories of cruelty actually ended up undermining the credibility of the reports coming out of Belgium and it would not be until after the war until the accounts of atrocities in Belgium were proven to be true. But enough reports came out during the war that it was understood that something terrible had happened.  

By October the German command started to realize that not only were the Belgian people not engaging in armed resistance but also the actions of the German army was alienating neutral nations who could be possibly become potential allies or supporters, in what was become a larger war than was initially anticipated. Discipline began to be enforced and random individual attacks on the Belgium people were curtailed. The systemic war crimes of executions ended, but systemic abuse would continue throughout the war. The goal would change from punishing the Belgium people to using them as a resource in the war. Belgium had had the sixth largest economy in the world before the war. During the war Germany dismantled much of Belgium's industrial equipment and moved it back to Germany to aid in the war effort, over 100,000 Belgians workers were forces to work on German military project or manufacture military materials. The damaging would be lasting and Belgium would never regain its place as world economic power after the war.

Germany's actions so diplomatically isolated itself that it gained few allies and by the end of the war the nations that had declared war on Germany represented of most of the world's population.

After the war no one would be held criminally responsible for the atrocities in Belgium

August 24, 1914

One hundred years ago today was the start of the "Great Retreat" on the Western Front. After the French suffering horrendous losses in failed attacks and the British were unable to halt the German advance, both armies had no choice but to retreat from Belgium into France or risk being surrounded and destroyed by the German army. The Allied armies had given up on the notion of a grand offensive into Germany and were now fighting to stop the German advance and for their own survival.   

August 23, 1914

One hundred years ago today Japan declared war on Germany.

The armies of Austria-Hungary began their first major battle with the invading Russian army at Krasnik (in modern day southeast Poland). It ended with the Russian army being forced to retreat. This battle would result in short lived optimism among the Austria-Hungarian military. In reality  the  would be a start of the larger Battle of Galicia that would result in over half a million causalities, on both sides, over the next three weeks and would end poorly for Austria-Hungary. 

In the west the army of Great Britain fought its first major battle of the war at Mons, in Belgium and its first battle with a European army in almost 60 years.  The German army had been advancing quickly through Belgium and did not expect much from the untried British army. The German Kaiser had joked that when the British army had arrived in Belgium that he would send the Berlin police force to go arrest them. The British government and public were nervous that their small untested army might be swept aside as had happened to the French and Belgians on many occasions.

To the surprise of all the British army performed remarkably well. Though out numbered 2 to 1 it was able to stop the German advance, at least for a little while, and the German army took heavy losses. But after a day of hard fighting the British army had to retreat, but did so good order.

Though the battle bought valuable time for the French and British army performed well, it was ultimately a defeat.  However the Battle of Mons would become, and still is, a matter of pride for the British people. At the time, the news that the army had fought well was a relief for so many in Great Britain who thought the army might be overrun by the Germans. The battle would become a mythical event with stories circulating that angles with flaming swords flew over the battlefield driving back the Germans and that ghost of the famed English Yeomen with longbows, heroes of the medieval battle of Agincourt, appeared to rally British troops.

These stories were later all traced to poets and propagandist and not to eyewitness accounts. But the stories would have their effect and the assurance to the people of Great Britain that the British army proved that it could hold its own against the continental armies of Europe seared the Battle of Mons into British folklore.  

Despite the British resistance at Mons the German army was now 130 miles from Paris. 

August 22, 1914

One hundred years ago today the French army suffered the greatest loss of life in a single day in its history. A ghastly record that remains unbroken today. Over 27,000 French soldiers died in the fighting in twenty-four hours.     

Elsewhere in the world Great Britain would seize control of two battleships belonging to the Ottoman Empire, which would have long reaching consequences and Paul von Hindenburg (who the famous zeppelin would be named for) was brought out of retirement to command the German army in the east.

The German army is now 145 miles from Paris.

Four ships that changed history

The Ottoman Empire was economically, politically and militarily weak at the start of the 20th century. It had become known as the "sick old man of Europe." Though still the preeminent power in the Middle East its influence in Europe was all but gone. Even so Germany pushed hard to gain them as an ally, and France and Russia struggled to keep them out of the war. For all of the weakness of the Ottoman Empire could still play a crucial role in the conflict.

To begin with it had a population of about 20 million, so it could raise a sizable army if needed. But its population was less important that its geography. The Ottoman empire controlled the Turkish straits. Look at a map of Turkey and you will see a very narrow path of water leading from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean sea, these passages are the Turkish straits. In 1914 ninety percent of Russia's oceanic trade passed through these straits. If they could be closed, not only would it be a significant economic burden for Russia it would have severe military consequences for the Russian army. In 1914 Russia was not nearly as industrialized as most Western nations. It lacked the industrial capacity and technical expertise to manufacture many modern weapons on a large scale. So Russia imported much of its military hardware as it was cheaper then manufacturing it at home. If the Turkish straits could be closed, Russia would have a hard time keeping its massive armies supplied. Closing the straits would be simple enough. There where forts all along the strait and mines could be laid in water cheaply and easily. Any ship trying to pass would have to avoid mines while being shot at by the forts and since ships tend to sink faster than forts it would be a lopsided fight.

Furthermore the Ottoman Empire was in a position to threaten the Suez canal which could force supplies, troops and resources from British controlled India to go all the way around Africa to reach Europe, limiting India's role in the war.  

So the goal of Germany was to convince the Ottoman Empire join them in the war and close the straits to ships bound for Russia. In order to do this Germany promised the Ottoman Empire portions of Russian territory after the war was over, along with economic and technical assistance which the Ottoman Empire desperately needed. Additionally they were assured that the Ottoman Empire would be taken seriously in European affairs in a post-war Europe where German and Austria-Hungary, not France and Great Britain, were calling the shots.        

France, Great Britain and Russia work with the Ottoman Empire to convince them to stay neutral, but did not promise them much other than assurances that joining with German would be joining the losing side. The Ottoman Empire was slowly fading and plagued with many internal problem and it knew that German assists was really the only way to regain its standing as a world recognized power once again. Assists that would only if Germany won the war.

By mid August 1914 the Ottoman Empire was very much on the fence about joining with Germany. They had signed as secret agreement to assist Germany against Russia, but had been slow to honor it. In fact the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire had not signed the treaty, so even though the treaty was endorsed by the government so it was unclear to both the Ottomans and the Germans if the treaty was even binding on the Ottoman Empire.   

So the Ottoman Empire's entry into the war hung in the balance. Would stay out it out and play it safe excepting its decline as an international power? Or would it side with Germany to reap the rewards if Germany wins the war? In August 1914 the world and the Ottoman Empire did not know.

Then four ships come onto the stage. The first two ships are the German cruisers named the Goeben and the Breslau. These were two modern German warships that unfortunately found themselves in the Mediterranean at the outbreak of the war. Knowing it would be impossible to slip past both the French and the British navies and make it home to German ports, the two ships made a mad dash to the neutral Ottoman Empire. For days the ships played a cat and mouse game with the British navy. But on August 10, 1914 the ships successfully made it to Ottoman waters and in a clever move the German Empire gave these two ships to the Ottoman navy and on August 16, 1914 these two ships were handed over in a ceremony and renamed the Yavuz Sultan Selim and the Midilli. This raise the opinion of the German Empire among both the citizens and the government of the Ottoman Empire. This action was taken as a sign that Germany would keep its word in providing assistance in the future. At the same time Germany had saved its ships from destruction and bolstered the navy of its hoped for ally.

With Germany enjoying popularity in the Ottoman Empire two more ships come into the story. Great Britain was the largest producer of naval ships in the early 20th century. The Ottoman Empire ordered two battleships for purchase from Great Britain. Desperately needing modern ships the Ottoman Empire had financed  them with a specific public levy. The Ottoman Empire paid 6,000,000 British Pounds for the ships, over one billion US dollar in today's money. In August 1914 the Ottoman Empire was set to collect the newly finished ships, named the Reshadieh and Osman I. However, Great Britain had other plans. Worried about a conflict with the German navy and the possibility of the Ottoman Empire joining with Germany, Great Britain decide to keep the money and the ships, the British navy seized them on August 22, 1914, before they were turned over to Ottoman crews (already in England to crew the ships) and renaming them the Agincourt and the Erin. Great Britain offered the Ottoman Empire a small rental fee for the ships and promised to return them when the war ended (assuming they survived as they were to be used in combat). This infuriated the Ottoman government and cause a wave of anti-British sentiment in the nation.

In a period of eight days four modern warships had changed hands. Germany giving two to the Ottoman Empire and Great Britain taking two from the Ottoman Empire. The choice of if  Ottoman Empire should join with Germany had seemed so complex on August 15, 1914. It seemed much clearer on August 22, 1914. What a difference eight days and four ships can make.

August 21, 1914

One hundred years ago today the French army attacked the German army in western Belgium near the city of Charleroi and the Ardennes forest. The French Army high command insisted on launching attacks  against the German army even though these attacks were producing no measurable gains and costing the French army thousands of causalities each day.

A mere 20 miles east from where the French and Germany armies were locked in combat. The German army had surrounded the fortresses of Namur and started to fire its heavy siege artillery. The same guns that had smashed the fortresses of Liege just a few days earlier.     

August 20, 1914

One hundred years ago today the German army occupied Brussels the capital of Belgium without a fight. Three days earlier the Belgium government had fled north to the city of Antwerp where it could be better defended.

The German army also reached the fortified city of Namur in west Belgium. Namur was the last fortified position between the German army and Paris, now only 155 miles away.

Meanwhile in the east, the German army has been retreating from the Russian army for the past three days. Both armies have taken losses in the thousands and the German government started to panic. The German army in the east is outnumbered 4 to 1 and if it was defeated would nothing stand between the Russian army and the German capital Berlin. 

But one hundred years ago today on of those little things happened that change history. German troops find documents on the body of a Russian soldier showing that the Russian army is planning to split into two parts and try to attack the German army from two directions at once. This information will be crucial to the German army in the days ahead.   

August 18, 1914

One hundred years ago today in response the spreading and intensifying conflict the United States of America reaffirms its position of neutrality.

August 17, 1914

One hundred years ago today armies of the Russian Empire invaded the Germany Empire along its northern eastern border in East Prussia (today northern Poland). This action shocked the German army, which thought it would take several more weeks before the Russian army would be prepared for war, let alone an invasion. With most of the German army fighting against France and Belgium the situation was dire. In a matter of days 800,000 Russian soldiers entered into Germany with only 250,000 German soldiers in East Prussia to defend it.         

To the south the Russia also invaded the Austro-Hungarian region of Galicia (now part of modern day Poland). Over the next week 1.2 million Russian soldiers would invade Austria-Hungry. Austria-Hungry initially was better prepared for a Russian invasion than Germany but was still significantly outnumber with only 950,000 to soldiers in Galicia to oppose the Russian invasion.

August 16, 1914

One hundred years ago today the last of the Belgian fortresses at Liege were captured by the German army, after eleven days of fighting. With Liege captured no effective resistance to the German army remained in eastern Belgium. As the Belgian army retreated it destroyed  roads, bridges and rail lines to further slow the German advance.

August 15, 1914

One hundred years ago today Serbia and Austria-Hungary began their first major battle around Cer Mountain. The Austro-Hungarian army was undisciplined and intent on punishing the Serbian people, who in their perception, had started the war. Before battle began murder and rape of Serbian civilians living in the border villages was wide spread as the Austro-Hungarian army advanced.

The Serbian army had prepared a defensive position around Cer Mountain, about ten miles into Serbian territory from the Austro-Hungarian border. The clash lasted for nine days, and ended with the Austro-Hungarian army withdrawing from Serbia in defeat. The exact losses on both sides is unknown but it is estimated that Austria-Hungary suffered about 40,000 casualties (troops killed, wounded, missing or taken prisoner). The Serbian army losses were about half their Austro-Hungarian opponents, being around 20,000.            

The loss shocked the Austro-Hungarian army which was expecting an easy victory and though the battle was a victory for the Serbian army it was not a sustainable one. Serbia lost far fewer soldiers than Austria-Hungary, but Serbia's losses were still much greater than the small nation of Serbia could afford. Also the Serbian army was short on weapons and supplies before the war even began. Some Serbian soldiers were not only issued no rifles, but no boots either, and fought barefoot with scavenged weapons.  Though the battle of Cer Mountain was a success  for Serbia it depleted much of the already limited stores of the supplies and ammunition of Serbian army.    

This battle also was the start of a major shift in modern warfare. Military aircraft had been used by many nations for years prior to World War One. They were primarily used for scouting and spotting targets for artillery. Planes had been used by all nations involved in war up to this point. Until this point when two enemy aircraft passed near each other it was customary for the pilots to wave to one another and move along. At the battle of Cer Mountain an Austro-Hungarian pilot fired his revolver at a Serbian pilot as he pasted near. He proceeded to chase the Serbian pilot as he tried to escape, firing all the shots from his revolver before turning away. This was the first example of air to air combat in human history. Both sides would react to this event, and within a few weeks all Serbian and Austro-Hungarian planes would be mounted with machine guns. World War One aviators ceased to just be observers of the war, the era of the dogfight had begun.  

How did Serbia defeat the Austro-Hungarian army?

In 1914 Austria-Hungary was a large nation. It controlled what is today Austria, Hungary, The Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. In addition it controlled parts of what is now Italy, Serbia, Romania, Poland and Ukraine. In 1914 the Austro-Hungarian empire boasted a population of about 52 million (to put that in perspective in 1914 the United States had a population of about 99 million, France had a population of about 40 million and the Russian Empire had a population of about 167 million.      

Serbia had different borders than today but was roughly the same size and had a population of about 4.5 million, less than a tenth of Austria-Hungary.

Austria-Hungary was a much larger and more powerful nation than Serbia. On the surface it would seem that a rapid Serbian defeat would be inevitable. But there were several issues that tilted the war in Serbia's favor in 1914.

First the war was fought on Serbian territory so the Serbian army was more familiar with terrain that battles were fought on. But more importantly the Serbian army had fought in the 1st and 2nd Balkan Wars (from 1911 to 1913). Most of the Serbian soldiers, officers and generals had wartime experience, the Austro-Hungarian army did not.

But more importantly the Austro-Hungarian army had severe internal issues. About a quarter of its troops were illiterate (which made reading maps difficult and limited the usefulness of written orders). This literacy rate was not shocking for the time in eastern Europe, but it did make managing a modern military difficult. More damaging than the issue of literacy was the issue of language. In Austria-Hungary the official languages were German and Hungarian, but there were a total of 11 officially recognized languages spoken, in addition to dozens of other languages and dialects that were not officially recognized (if you consider the list of modern nations that Austria-Hungary covered you can see how this would be). Many Austro-Hungarian troops fought with fellow soldiers that did not share a common native language. It was common for Austro-Hungarian officers to know how to issue basic commands in all 11 officially recognized languages, which may have worked managing an army in peace time, but in a time of war it had severe consequences.  The Austria-Hungarian army did take steps to try to recertify this problem. It developed an artificial language called "Army Slavic." It was a language that consisted of about 80 words that all members of the Austro-Hungarian army were expected to learn (think basic words like go, stop, left and right). Use of the language was functional but it did not lend itself to a highly efficient military action.

The Serbian army was not without its flaws. Serbia's equipment was not a modern as their Austria-Hungarian opponents. Shortages of supplies and ammunition were common and the Balkan Wars that had gained the Serbian army valuable experience also cost them the lives of many soldiers. The small population of Serbia could never hope to raise an army as large as the Austro-Hungarian army and the casualties suffered from 1911 to 1913 only exacerbated the problem.

In one way the Austro-Hungarian and Serbian armies had something in common. At the start of the war both armies had very high moral. Serbians rallied to protect their homeland and the multicultural Austro-Hungarian Empire, which had been plagued with internal strife, was unified by a desire to avenge the death of Archduke Ferdinand and defeat Serbia, who in the minds of most in Austro-Hungarian people, had threatened their nation and started the war.

The stunning Serbian victories early in the war would fail keep Serbia safe and would only underscore the nature of the industrial warfare that would define World War One. As the war dragged on, victory would not come to the nation with the most brilliant strategies or bravest soldiers, but to the nation that could continue to funnel lives and equipment into the unfillable sieve the war would become. World War One would not end as one set of armies bested an another on the battlefield. It would end as nations collapsed under the strain of industrial war.     

 

August 13, 1914

One hundred years ago today France and declared war on Austria-Hungary. Shortly after the French Navy would blockage Austro-Hungarian ports along the Adriatic. With the British blocked to the north and the French blockade to the south both Germany and Austro-Hungarian are completely cut off from oceanic trade and transport. All of Germany oversees colonies are effectively on their own for the remainder of the war.   

August 12, 1914

One hundred years ago today, after days artillery bombardment to provide cover, the Austro-Hungarian army completed construction of pontoon bridges across the Sava and Drina rivers, which formed the border between Austro-Hungary and Serbia. Upon completion of the bridges the Austro-Hungarian army crossed the border and launch a major invasion into Serbia.

Britain respond that day by declaring war on Austria-Hungary.   

The Battle of the Frontiers

When we think of World War I we usually think of the endless battles in trenches. It is true that much of the war was fought from armies facing off in trenches but for the first month and a half of the war the armies moved very fast and fighting was moving through the villages, countryside and cities of Europe. In fact when Germany invaded France again in World War II using the infamous blitzkrieg tactics and panzers (tanks) it did not move significant faster than the German invasion of World War I.

Speed was essential to the German invasion in the Battle of the Frontiers (See "Why Belgium"). But just as Germany had the Schlieffen Plan, France had a plan of its own. It was known as "Plan XVII." While not as detailed as the Schlieffen Plan it was the guiding force behind the French army for the first few weeks of the war. Plan XVII was to be a reaction to a war with Germany, it called for a rapid mobilization of the French army and to have it quickly positioned on the border with Belgium and Germany. With most of the Army position on the border with Germany (the exact opposite of the German Schlieffen Plan).

France was not caught off guard by a German invasion through Belgium, in fact the French army was expecting it (French spies had even acquired some (but not all) of German plans before the war). The French plan was to take advantage of the weakly protected German border. France could invade Germany, retaking its lost territory along the border and turn north moving up though Germany into Belgium. The Germany army would then be trapped in Belgium unable to move past the Belgian fortresses when supported by a combined French and Belgian army. With the main French army south of them and a combined Belgian and French army to the west. Being attack on two sides at once German army would be crushed and the war would be over in a matter of weeks, months at the most.   

In many ways the Germans and the French had the same plan: bypass the main enemy force, turn around and it attack from behind or the side. When war broke the race was on, France trying to rush east and Germany trying to rush west. Both sides were confident of victory and both would fail to encircle the other. But the German assault would initially be much more successful. Pushing through Belgium and deep into France. The French armies initially were successful in entering into German territory and forcing back the German army. But within a few days the German army counter attacked and the French invasion of Germany started to fall apart.

The primary reason that the French invasion failed and the German invasion succeeded was the German army was better prepared for a modern war than the French army. The last major wars to be fought in Europe prior to World War One were fought in the 1870's. These wars were fought with weapons and equipment not all that different from the American Civil War. No nation on earth had much experience fighting against an enemy who had machine guns, heavy artillery, telephones, telegraphs, airplanes and railroads. The European military minds had nothing but past experience and intuition (with a heavy dose of guesswork) on how a modern army should function. For example at the start of the war none of the nations involved issued metal helmets to their troops. Troops were issued hats or caps, even the famous spiked helm of the German army was actually made of polished leather and was intended to be more decorative then offer any real protection.

The German army put its faith in it massive industrial capacity. It built an army around the use of heavy artillery and machine guns. All of the major European armies had both artillery and machine guns in abundance, but they used them differently then Germany. They did not concentrate them one place but tended to spread them out over large areas. Germany would gather its artillery and machine guns into specific locations were they could have a decisive impact.

France put its faith in the speed and fighting spirit of its men. It was the French belief that the army with greatest confidence and fighting spirit would win, and that the best defense was a good offence. This philosophy seemed sound in theory, but would prove disastrous.

For example on the onset of the war British troops wore dark khaki, the German troops wore dark green or grey, Austro-Hungarian troops wore grey-blue or green and the Russian troops wore green or brown. But the French dismissed the use of dark colors that could provide some camouflage. The French army went to war in much the same uniforms it had in the nineteenth century. Infantry wore bright red caps with a red shirt and trousers, covered by a brilliant blue overcoat with large decorative buttons. The cavalry wore polished steel breastplate and leather helmets with great plumes. There had been those in the French army that wanted to modernize the uniforms but this idea was met with great resistance as the French uniform was seen as symbol of national pride. Despite the resistance the French army was in the process of replacing these older uniform. But there would be months of war before the new uniforms reached the troops. It was believed that men in drab uniforms would not have the same confidence as a man in a dashing traditional uniform and camouflage would only encourage men to take cover when they should be on the attack. Even the new modern uniforms reflected this thinking. They were colored blue-grey, so a man would blend into the sky of the horizon but would be of little use hiding in foliage or trenches.

Another shortcoming of the French army was the philosophy of "always attack." In the Battle of the Frontiers French troops heading into battle were only issue a small number of machine guns and only lighter artillery. The idea being that heavy machine guns (at this time machine guns usually required two or three men to carry and fire them) and artillery would slow the troops down too much. In the French philosophy it was speed and not firepower that would carry the day. As it turned out this was not be the case. Additionally this philosophy was problematic because if an initial French attack failed the French troops were poorly equipped and trained for how to deal with a counter attack. The philosophy of "always attack" did not hold up on modern battlefield where battles would rage for weeks (as opposed to days in 19th century wars) and consist of a series of attacks and counter attacks.

Finally the French army suffered from the same problem that all the nations fighting the war suffered. All the troops, officers and generals had been trained in the thinking of warfare in the 19th century. The world had never seen a conflict like World War One and no nation was truly prepared for it. An example of this thinking is that troops in World War One did not fight in small teams like soldiers today. They fought like in the American Civil War in groups of one hundred or even more. By 1914 troops did not generally march in lines in battle but they did move in large groups in combat that were easily seen and fired upon.

Now let us look at the factors of the German and French army to see why the French invasion of Germany failed.

Imagine this hypothetical (but historically likely) scenario of a battle between German and French forces. A French force of one thousand troops are advancing into Germany. A scout reports that the about one hundred German troops are in a position at the top of a nearby hill with no artillery. Conventional wisdom of the military training at the time would be for the French to rush and attack (taking advantage of their numerical superiority) the German troops on hill before they could be reinforced or haul artillery into position. This was how battles in the 19th century were fought and won; speed, aggression and bravery.

But this was 1914. The hundred German troops on the top of the hill had ten machine guns. In 1914 most infantry carried bolt-action single shot rifles. A well trained solider could fire 30 aimed shots in minute. A World War One machine gunner could fire 400 to 600 shot in a minute. Both the rifles the machine guns could hit a target at the range at 1000 yards. The advancing French troops would rush forward in a great mass with their easily seen brightly colored uniforms. They would need to run though 1000 yards (ten football fields) of fire, facing about over 6000 bullets being fired at them every minute. As if that was not bad enough the German commander on the hill had a telephone. Though there was no artillery on the hill, there was a German artillery battery a few miles away (far out of sight). The telephone had wire laid down the hill to a communication post with runners to carry a messages. In a matter of minutes the German artillery battery, who could not even see the French troops, could fire their guns at the positions the German commander on the hill relayed to them (Something impossible only a few decades earlier). Facing a hail of bullets and artillery shells raining down on them the French troop would be massacred before they could hope to reach the hill.

This scenario played out over and over during the Battle of the Frontiers, with every nation involved being on the losing side of it at times. It was not uncommon for thousands to soldiers to die every day. For example August 22, 1914 was (and still is) the deadliest day in French army history. In that 24 hour period approximately  27,000 French soldiers died.  It was these kind of losses that resulted in the iconic trench warfare that World War One would become infamous for. The trenches came as a necessity to prevent these types of horrendous losses and it was these same trenches that would deadlock the conflict between France and Great Britain against Germany for the next four years.                

August 7, 1914

One hundred years ago today Russia declared war on Germany (Germany had declared war on Russia six days earlier on the first of August).

The first British troops started to arrive in France (In an army known as the British Expeditionary Force, or BEF). Britain, which relied on volunteer for its army, calls for 100,000 more men to enlist.   

The French army invade German territory along the Franco-German boarder and is initially successful at defeating German forces.  Additionally French troops start to enter Belgium in large numbers to assist the Belgian army. The Germany army is still bogged down at the fortresses of Liege.

This day was considered the start of the campaign which would later become known as "The Battle of the Frontiers." Is would consist of series of battles that took place between the city of Liege in east central Belgium to the city of Mulhouse near the border with Switzerland in what was then Germany and is today France (over two hundred miles away). The Battle of the Frontiers would last until September 13th. Over the next forty-three days it is estimated that approximately 660,000 Belgium, French and German soldiers would be reported killed, wounded or missing. That comes to about eleven casualties every minute over the entire course of the forty-three days.

The Belgian fortress

After the Franco-Prussian War in 1870 relations between France and Germany were very tense. Both sides fortified their shared border. If either side were to try to invade the other nation by attacking through the border it would be a difficult prospect. The best option for either country would be to go around the fortified Franco-German border by crossing to the north though Belgium (Going round to the south would be too difficult through mountainous Switzerland). This fact was not lost on the small nation of Belgium which did not have an army large enough to hope to resist the German or French armies.

The solution that Belgium came up with was to build a ring of fortresses around the city of Liege, near the German border, and the city of Namur, near the French border. The reason for this was if a large army wanted to cross from France into Germany, or vice versa, it would have to pass through or near Liege and Namur. So from 1881 to 1891 Belgium build about twenty fortress in total around each city.

The idea behind these fortresses were not to stop a French or Germany army, but to the make the prospect of crossing through Belgium impractical in a war between France and Germany, as it would take too long to deal with the Belgian fortresses.

When you read "fortress" you might picture high walls with tall towers of brick or stone. But the Belgian fortresses had no resemblance of a medieval castles. They were state of the art when they were build and made of modern concrete. Most of the structure of these fortresses was underground (the parts that housed supplies, ammunition and soldiers) the only visible structures on the surface were low rising concrete domes that housed artillery and machineguns in mechanical turrets. These domes would be behind but deep and wide concrete trenches (that functioned like a moat) arranged in a triangle with the domes and turrets protected in the middle. The soldiers in these types of fortresses were often protected by ten to fifteen feet of concrete.

These fortresses were that they were built on elevated positions and their purpose was to fire artillery at any army that tried to bypass them. They could not be ignored because the guns in these fortresses could hit targets miles away and even if an army could move past them intact, these fortresses housed tens of thousands of soldiers who could cut off any invading army of from supplies from home if they just passed them by without capturing them.

Based on Belgium's estimates it would take an invading army a month to capture the fortresses around each city. The fortresses were thought to be a strong deterrent for invasion, as France or Germany would need a month to capture Liege, a month to capture Namur and a few days to cross the country in between. This would give the invading army's opponent (be it France or Germany) too much time to prepare for an invasion for a route through Belgium to be a practical, or at least that was the idea.

Ironically it was a battle on the other side the world that would change the fate of Belgium. It was not France or Germany the doomed the Belgian fortresses, but Japan. In 1904 and 1905 Japan and Russia fought a war. During the war Japan attacked Russian troops in a fortress at Port Arthur (in what is today China). The Japanese soldiers took very large guns from battleships and moved them overland to positions that could smash the inland fort and forced the Russians to surrender. Both Germany and Austria-Hungry took noted of these events. At the start of World War One most nations thought the largest land based artillery piece would be and still be practical was a 20 centimeter gun (20 centimeters being the diameter of the barrel). Any larger and the gun would be too heavy to move over land was the conventional wisdom of the day. But the Japanese showed that larger guns (as navel guns were bigger as they did not have to be hauled anywhere once on board ship) could be moved in a reasonable amount of time over land. So both nations built massive land based siege guns that could quickly destroy a fortress. Thus making an invasion of France though Belgium possible even with the Belgium fortresses in the way.

The Belgian fortresses were build to withstand shots from 20 centimeter guns. The siege guns the Germans had designed and built were 42 centimeter guns (the projectile the gun fired was 16 and a half inches wide and contained almost a ton of explosives in a single shot that could hit a target 7.8 miles away). When the Belgian fortresses resisted the German invasion the German army moved these massive guns into position. Each of these guns were forty-three tons, when fully assembled, they were loaded in pieces on to trains shipped to the Belgian border and then loaded on to specially designed carriages and pulled the remaining miles by teams of dozens of work horses to their firing positions and then reassembled. These guns were known as "Big Berthas" named for Bertha Krupp (affectionately it is believed) the daughter of  Friedrich Krupp the owner of the Krupp armament manufacturer which built these guns.   

The German army had expected it would only take two or three days to capture the fortresses at Liege if they resisted, without even using the Big Berthas and the other super-heavy artillery (as they were known at the time), which would only slow the army down due to their massive weight. But by the 11th of August after six days of fighting some fortresses had been captured but the majority of the fortresses at Liege fought on. Once the these massive guns were brought to bear against the Belgian fortresses at Liege on the 12th of August the fortresses were quickly smashed. The last of the Liege fortresses were captured on the 16th after only four days of facing the German super-heavy guns.

This development shocked all parties involved. The Germans were surprised because the fortresses at Liege took nine days longer to capture than expected. Giving the French army time to prepare for the German invasion. This was lost time that the German army could not afford. The French and Belgians were shocked by the use of German super-heavy artillery as fortresses at Liege fell 20 days earlier than they had hoped.  

With the fall of Liege Germany was able to quickly advance its armies to the fortresses at Namur. With the experience gained at Liege and having the super heavy guns at the ready from the start of the attack Namur fell quickly. The attack started on the 20th of August and the fortresses only lasted five days, having all been captured by the 25th of August. Surrendering twenty five days earlier than French and Belgian prewar estimates of how long the fortresses could resist, but two days longer than German army had hoped.

The resistance of these fortresses were relatively small battles compared to later battles in the war. But they were among the most pivotal. Had the Belgians not have stalled the German army for roughly twenty days, the French very well could have caught unprepared, and France may have lost the war in 1914. Additionally, because Belgium resisted so successfully the Germany invasion, Germany would respond by taking punitive measures against the Belgian people that would shock the world and be instrumental in turning the public opinion of many nations against Germany. Making it easier for France, Russia and Britain to recruit allies against the Germany.
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August 6, 1914

One hundred years ago today Austria-Hungry declared war on Russia. Serbia Declared war on Germany.

Germany launched the first Zeppelin attack on the Belgian city of Liege resulting in nine deaths  (Zeppelins were large airships, similar to a blimp, that could drop bombs from a very high altitude). This was the first time in history that an aircraft would attack a European city and this act shocked the European community.  On the ground German forces continued to be stalled trying to capture the fortresses of Liege.

In west Africa the German colony of Togo was invaded by French and English forces. The colony would surrender on August 26, 1914.

In central Africa the German colony of Cameroon was invaded by Belgian, French and English forces. Fighting would go on until March 1915 before German forces surrendered.

Both colonies of Cameroon and Togo would be taken from the German Empire and each territory was divided by the British and French and claimed as colonies of their own.

August 5, 1914

One hundred years ago today German armies moved deeper into Belgium. They experienced stronger resistance from the Belgium army then was expected. The Germans reached the outskirt of the fortresses surround the city of Liege, about 30 miles from the German border. Upon the German request for the first fortress to surrender the Belgian commander replied "You must fight your way through." The Battle of Liege then began.

The German army at this point is about 190 miles from its goal of Paris.   

In Africa British forces in Uganda (a colony of Great Britain) attacked the German colony of German East Africa (what is Tanzania today). The broke the treaty known as the "Congo Act of 1885" which stated that European colonies were to remain neutral in war between European powers. This would change the dynamic of the war from past European as conflicts would erupt around the globe.

August 4, 1914

One hundred years ago today Great Britain declared war on Germany. Great Britain immediately used its powerful navy (the largest in the world at this time) to blockade Germany, forbidding all ocean trade with the rest of the world that would assist Germany in waging war. Among the trade goods forbidden in the blockade was food. Germany was a self-sufficient food producer in 1914. But as the war would drag on and more and more farmers would become soldiers, food would begin to become scares. By the time the blockade was lifted, after the war was over, approximately 424,000 people in the German Empire would die of starvation and malnutrition.    

Also on this day Germany invaded Belgium expecting little resistance but was surprised by determined defense of the Belgium army and the garrisons of the fortresses of Liege (a city in Belgium near the German border). The German army would be forced to stop its advance toward France and capture these fortresses before it could move on.   

In the western hemisphere the United States of America declared itself neutral as hostilities begin in Europe.

August 3, 1914

One hundred years ago today the German Empire declared war on the Republic of France. France responds in kind and declares war on Germany.

Belgium responded to the German ultimatum demanding its armies have free passage though its territory by refusing and declaring its neutrality.

German armies start to assemble on the German-Belgian boarder. Belgium appeals to its ally Great Britain to uphold its neutrality. Great Britain sends an ultimatum to Germany demanding that it respect Belgium's borders and neutrality. 

Italy declares itself neutral in the growing conflict.   

On this day Sir Edward Grey, the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs of Great Britain famously and prophetically remarks: "The lamps are going out all over Europe, we shall not see them lit again in our lifetime."

August 2, 1914

One hundred years ago today Germany invaded and occupied the tiny nation of Luxemburg (which borders Belgium, France and Germany).

Germany also signed a secret alliance with the Ottoman Empire (a nation that ruled what is modern day Turkey, Lebanon, Israel, The Palestinian Territories, Syria, Iraq, Kuwait and parts of Saudi Arabia and Yemen). The Ottoman Empire agreed to declare war on Russia if Russia invaded Germany.

Great Britain starts to mobilize its army. In the evening Germany sent an ultimatum to Belgium demanding that it allow the German army to cross its borders unhindered as it crosses the nation to attack France. Germany gave Belgium twelve hours to responded.

Why Belgium?

In August of 1870  Germany (at that time known as the North German Confederation) invaded France. By January 1871 Germany had captured the French capital Paris and a ceasefire was soon declared, by May the war was officially over and the German army withdrew from France. The victory of this war allowed the formation of the German Empire, and an expansion of its territory (as France had to surrender some of its eastern territory to Germany), causing Germany to rise to both political and economic power in Europe. This quick victory would have a lasting effect on military thinking in Europe and particularly in Germany. Wars were to be won quickly (and thus cheaper both in money and lives) by rapid mobilization, aggressive movement and large decisive battles.

In 1905 the German military developed what would known as the Schlieffen Plan (named for one of its architects of the plan Alfred Graf von Schlieffen. The Schlieffen Plan was a the strategy that Germany would rely on in case of war with France.

The basics of the plan were that if war broke out with France, Germany would lightly defend the border with France, placing the bulk of its army on the border with Belgium. Germany would count on France attacking Germany along their mutual border.

Germany could rely on this happening for two reasons. First the lightly defended border would be a tempting target. Second France would jump at the chance to regain the territory along the Franco-German border that it lost to Germany in 1871.  The German forces defending the German border would be just enough to slow the French armies as it slowly retreated into Germany.

With the majority of the French army focused on the invading Germany, the majority of the German army would move through Belgium (either peaceably or by defeating the small Belgian army). It would cross into lightly defended northern France, rapidly moving to capture Paris, then turning south and looping around to attack from behind the French army fighting in Germany. With Paris captured and the French army surrounded and cut off from support, France would have no choice but to surrender and sue for peace.

In 1914 this plan was very appealing. France had a large army and the border of France and Germany was heavily fortified on the French side. An attack on France through the German-French border would be costly and time consuming. With Russia threatening Germany from the east, Germany could not afford a long war with France. The Schlieffen Plan offered a solution. Russian infrastructure was not nearly as developed as in France or Germany. With the lack of a large scale railroad system, Germany believed it would take Russia weeks to move enough troops to the border with Germany to pose a serious threat. German military planners believed they could use the Schlieffen Plan to quickly defeat France. Then turn all of its armies to face Russia, which Germany believed it could defeat in a one-on-one war as the German army, though smaller, was better equipped and trained.

Germany was confident that it could defeat France or Russia. What the German military planners feared was a war with France and Russia at the same time, which would stretch its armies too thin. But as France and Russia were allies they would somehow have to be fought at the same time. The Schlieffen Plan offered a strategy offered the solution to a victory over Russia and France in a single war, but it would have to deal with Belgium first.