One Hundred Years Ago Today: World War One a century later : August 20, 1914

Wednesday, August 20, 2014

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.

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The size of armies in World War One:

In 1914/Total from 1914 to 1918

The "Allied Powers"

Russia 6,000,000/12,000,000
France 4,000,000/8,400,000
Great Britain 975,000/8,900,000
Italy 1,250,000/5,600,000
United States 200,000/4,300,000
Japan 800,000/800,000
Romania 290,000/750,000
Serbia 200,000/700,000
Belgium 110,000/260,000
Greece 230,000/230,000
Portugal 40,000/100,000
Montenegro 50,000/50,000

The "Center Powers"

Germany 4,500,000/11,000,000
Austria-Hungary 3,000,000/7,800,000
Ottoman Empire 210,000/2,800,000
Bulgaria 280,000/1,200,000

Note: These Numbers varied quite a bit by source. These number are rough averages of the reported numbers to give a general idea. But they are not exact statistic.

Glossary of helpful terms:

The Allied (or Entente) Powers: The name of the of the alliance of nations allied with France, Great Britain and Russia. By the end of the war there would be over 20 allied nations but the primary combatants of the Allied Powers would be France, Great Britain, Russia, Italy, Japan, the United States and Serbia.

Casualty: A broad term for military losses. It encompasses those who are wounded severely enough (or are so sick) they are incapacitated, those who go missing (though desertion, captured or missing and presumed dead) and those who died due to combat, illness or accident.

The Central Powers:
The name of the of the alliance of nations allied with Germany during the war. By the end of the war it would consist of Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria.
Conscript: A soldier who was brought into an army by means other than volunteering.

Flank: The "side" of an army relative to the direction it is facing or moving. The action of "flanking" or a "flank attack" was to attack an army from two, or more, directions at the same time so the defending army could not face each attacks with its full force at the same time.

The Front: In military terms "the front" is the front line, or in other words the location were to the controlled territory of two opposing armies border.

The Eastern Front: The front ran from the Baltic sea in the north all the way to the Black sea in the south. The primary participants on this front were Russia and eventually Romania on the Allied side and Germany and Austria-Hungary on the side of the Center Powers. The eastern front would move back and forth a considerable amount during the war but mostly took part in what is modern day Poland, Ukraine, Moldova, Lithuania and Latvia.

The Western Front: The front ran from the English channel near were France and Belgium border each other down to the Swiss border near were France and Germany border each other. The primary participants on this front where Belgium, Great Britain, France on the Allied side and Germany on the side of the Center Powers. This front would be largely static for much of the war.

Mobilization: When a nation prepares it armies for war.

About

Welcome to the "One Hundred Years Ago Today" Project. A century ago this year the world plunged into World War One. I plan on posting about major events within that conflict on the day of their one hundredth year anniversary from now until at least the end of September (as July, August and September of 1914 were very pivotal in the conflict).

I am doing this for two reasons. First, I love to study history and I will enjoy the researching the project. Secondly, many people today know very little about World War One, even though the conflict was not that long ago (the last World War One veteran died only a few years ago) and it is extremely relevant for anyone who wants to understand why the world is the way it is today. It is my hope that this project might prompt someone's interest to learn more about this chapter in human history.

Please feel free to post questions you have about the events I will do my best to answer them.