The Standard History of The War, Vol 2 E-Book

Edgar Wallace

• Herausgeber: Al-Mashreq eBookstore
• Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024

Seitenzahl: 173

Beschreibung

The Standard History of The War, Vol 2 by Edgar Wallace is an in-depth and captivating account of the critical events that shaped the global conflict. With meticulous detail and vivid storytelling, Wallace brings to life the battles, strategies, and personalities that defined the war. This volume delves into the key turning points, uncovering behind-the-scenes political maneuvering, tactical decisions, and the human cost of warfare. A must-read for history buffs and military enthusiasts, this book offers a compelling perspective on one of the most tumultuous periods in history. Explore the strategies that changed the course of nations and the individuals who fought for survival in this gripping narrative.

Leseprobe

The Standard History of The War, Vol 2

COMPRISING THE OFFICIAL DESPATCHES FROM GENERAL FRENCH AND STAFF WITH DESCRIPTIVE NARRATIVE

Author: Edgar Wallace

Edited by: Seif Moawad

Copyright © 2024 by Al-Mashreq eBookstore

First published by George Newnes, Ltd., London, 1915

No part of this publication may be reproduced whole or in part in any form without the prior written permission of the author

All rights reserved.

Table of Contents

The Standard History of The War, Vol 2

INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER I. — THE MOVE TO THE NORTH

CHAPTER II. — THE STRUGGLE FOR THE COAST

CHAPTER III. — THE LONG THIN KHAKI LINE

CHAPTER IV. — GREAT DEEDS THAT MADE AN UNDYING STORY

APPENDIX. — THE NAVAL DIVISION AT ANTWERP

COMMANDER'S REPORT

Landmarks

Cover

INTRODUCTION

AFTER THE DEADLOCK ON THE AISNE

THE fourth despatch of Field-Marshal Sir John French, dealing with the operations of the army under his command from the time the British forces left the trenches on the Aisne, and took up new positions in Northern France and in Flanders, is necessarily a crowded one, filled with stories of surprising and absorbing interest. "The deeds of the troops in these days," Sir John French has said, "will furnish some of the most brilliant chapters which will be found in the military history of our time." For many days the left flank of the Armies was in an exceedingly critical condition, and it is easy to see from the despatches how near the Germans were to establishing themselves on the northern coast of France.

Such was the magnitude of the operations, however, that the Commander-in- Chief is obliged to dismiss in a few lines actions which in other times would have been given far more prominence.

As it is they will live in history as glorious and memorable achievements. "No more arduous task," Sir John French has testified "has ever been assigned to British soldiers, and in all their splendid history there is no instance of their having answered so magnificently to the desperate calls which of necessity were made upon them."

I propose in this volume to give in full the memorable despatch, and, because of the necessary brevity with which it deals with great and important events and heroic struggles, I shall devote the rest of the volume to setting out more fully the great story which is only outlined in Sir John French's despatch. From its official nature, the despatch omits, of necessity, a mass of information which has reached us in other ways in incomplete, fragmentary, and disconnected forms. In supplying this descriptive matter, in filling in the wonderful story of marches and counter marches, of strategical and tactical manoeuvres, in telling of the great combats which took place, and of the regimental and individual acts of heroism, I hope to get these great events into some kind of perspective, and to present a connected story of how the glorious work was accomplished.

It was a delicate operation to withdraw the British forces from their position on the Aisne (where we left them at the conclusion of the previous volume) and transfer them to new positions a long way off in Northern France and Flanders. The prolonged battle of Ypres-Armentières, or the battle for the coast, as it has sometimes been called, was a development of the continuous struggle which commenced on the Aisne after the Great German Retreat from Paris. After weeks of continual stalemate, when neither side could move the other from strong entrenched positions, the efforts of the Allies and Germans alike were directed to attempting to outflank each other. There came a time on the Aisne when General Sir John French made up his mind that he would force events elsewhere.

It was on October 3rd that Field-Marshal Sir John French began the series of operations which had for its object the moving of his army from the position it held on the Aisne to the northernmost part of France. The object of the German commander had become clear; from necessity he had to extend his line northward to preserve his right flank from the threatening Allies. They made a virtue of that necessity by moving large bodies of troops in the direction of the coast. General Joffre was endeavouring to bring his troops in order to outflank the enemy and to drive him in upon his own interior lines. It is at this point that the despatch of Sir John French, with the contents of which this volume deals, begins. The full text of the Commander-in-Chief's official account of events follows.

Lord Kitchener of Khartoum, Secretary of State for War.

CHAPTER I. — THE MOVE TO THE NORTH

YPRES—ARMENTIÈRES

(From Field-Marshal Sir John French)

RECEIVED by the Secretary of State for War from the Field- Marshal Commanding- in-Chief British Forces in the Field:—

General Headquarters, November 20, 1914.

MY LORD,

1. I have the honour to submit a further despatch recounting the operations of the Field Force under my command throughout the battle of Ypres- Armentières.

Early in October a study of the general situation strongly impressed me with the necessity of bringing the greatest possible force to bear in support of the northern flank of the Allies, in order effectively to outflank the enemy and compel him to evacuate his positions.

At the same time the position on the Aisne, as described in the concluding paragraphs of my last despatch, appeared to me to warrant a withdrawal of the British Forces from the positions they then held.

The enemy had been weakened by continual abortive and futile attacks, while the fortification of the position had been much improved.

I represented these views to General Joffre, who fully agreed.

Arrangements for withdrawal and relief having been made by the French General Staff, the operation commenced on October 3; and the 2nd Cavalry Division, under General Gough, marched for Compiègne en route for the new theatre.

The Army Corps followed in succession at intervals of a few days, and the move was completed on October 19, when the 1st Corps, under Sir Douglas Haig, completed its detrainment at St. Omer.

That this delicate operation was carried out so successfully is in great measure due to the excellent feeling which exists between the French and British Armies; and I am deeply indebted to the Commander-in-Chief and the French General Staff for their cordial and most effective cooperation.

As General Foch* was appointed by the Commander-in-Chief to supervise the operations of all the French troops north of Noyon, I visited his headquarters at Doullens on October 8 and arranged joint plans of operations as follows:—

* General Foch, to whose co-operation Field-Marshal Sir John French refers in such cordial terms, was, with General Joffre, decorated with the Grand Cross of the Bath on the occasion of H.M. the King's visit to the firing- line in December, 1914.

The 2nd Corps to arrive on the line Aire-Bethune on October 11, to connect with the right of the French 10th Army and, pivoting on its left, to attack in flank the enemy who were opposing the 10th French Corps in front.

The Cavalry to move on the northern flank of the 2nd Corps and support its attack until the 3rd Corps, which was to detrain at St. Omer on the 12th, should come up. They were then to clear the front and act on the northern flank of the 3rd Corps in a similar manner, pending the arrival of the 1st Corps from the Aisne.

The 3rd Cavalry Division and 7th Division, under Sir Henry Rawlinson, which were then operating in support of the Belgian Army and assisting its withdrawal from Antwerp, to be ordered to co-operate as soon as circumstances would allow.

In the event of these movements so far overcoming the resistance of the enemy as to enable a forward movement to be made, all the Allied Forces to march in an easterly direction. The road running from Bethune to Lille was to be the dividing line between the British and French Forces, the right of the British Army being directed on Lille.

2. The great battle, which is mainly the subject of this despatch, may be said to have commenced on October 11, on which date the 2nd Cavalry Division, under General Gough, first came into contact with the enemy's cavalry who were holding some woods to the north of the Bethune-Aire Canal. These were cleared of the enemy by our cavalry, which then joined hands with the Divisional Cavalry of the 6th Division in the neighbourhood of Hazebrouck. On the same day the right of the 2nd Cavalry Division connected with the left of the 2nd Corps which was moving in a north-easterly direction after crossing the above- mentioned canal.

By October ii Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien had reached the line of the canal between Aire and Bethune. I directed him to continue his march on the 12th, bringing up his left in the direction of Merville. Then he was to move east to the Laventie-Lorgies, which would bring him on the immediate left of the French Army and threaten the German flank.*

* At this time the Germans were engaged in a fierce battle with the French at Arras, and there were, apparently, no considerable number of troops available for the extension of the enemy line. But leaving von Kluck to hold an extended line from Soissons almost to the Argonne, first von Buelow's, then the King of Wurtemburg's, and finally the Crown Prince of Bavaria's Armies were moved northward, and it was against these latter, strengthened by certain Prussian Corps, that the British found themselves fighting.

On the 12th this movement was commenced.

The 5th Division connected up with the left of the French Army north of Annequin. They moved to the attack of the Germans who were engaged at this point with the French; but the enemy once more extended his right in some strength to meet the threat against his flank. The 3rd Division, having crossed the canal, deployed on the left of the 5th; and the whole 2nd Corps again advanced to the attack, but were unable to make much headway owing to the difficult character of the ground upon which they were operating, which was similar to that usually found in manufacturing districts and was covered with mining works, factories, buildings, etc. The ground throughout this country is remarkably flat, rendering effective artillery support very difficult.

Before nightfall, however, they had made some advance and had successfully driven back hostile counter-attacks with great loss to the enemy and destruction of some of his machine guns.

On and after October 13 the object of the General Officer Commanding the 2nd Corps was to wheel to his right, pivoting on Givenchy to get astride the La Bassée-Lille Road in the neighbourhood of Fournes, so as to threaten the right flank and rear of the enemy's position on the high ground south of La Bassée.

This position of La Bassée has throughout the battle defied all attempts at capture, either by the French or the British.

On this day Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien could make but little progress. He particularly mentions the fine fighting of the Dorsets, whose Commanding Officer, Major Roper, was killed* They suffered no fewer than 400 casualties, 130 of them being killed, but maintained all day their hold on Pont Fixe. He also refers to the gallantry of the Artillery.*

* A reference to the work of the Dorsets will be found in the accompanying narrative. The artillery has been so consistently good that there is a danger from the very level of its excellence we may be overlooking its superlative merit. From the moment the first gun was fired at Mons up to the end of the battle for the coast the Royal Regiment of Artillery accomplished marvels.

The fighting of the 2nd Corps continued throughout the 14th in the same direction. On this day the Army suffered a great loss, in that the Commander of the 3rd Division, General Hubert Hamilton, was killed.

On the 15th the 3rd Division fought splendidly, crossing the dykes, with which this country is intersected, with planks; and driving the enemy from one entrenched position to another in loop-holed villages, till at night they pushed the Germans off the Estaires-La Bassée Road and established themselves on the line Pont de Ham-Croix Barbie.

On the 16th the move was continued until the left flank of the Corps was in front of the village of Aubers, which was strongly held. This village was captured on the 17th by the 9th Infantry Brigade, and at dark on the same day the Lincolns and Royal Fusiliers carried the village of Herlies at the point of the bayonet after a fine attack, the Brigade being handled with great dash by Brigadier General Shaw.*

* A thrilling description of this fight will be found in the accompanying narrative, page 78.

At this time, to the best of our information, the 2nd Corps was believed to be opposed by the 2nd, 4th, 7th, and 9th German Cavalry Divisions, supported by several battalions of Jaegers and a part of the 14th German Corps.

On the 18th powerful counter-attacks were made by the enemy all along the front of the 2nd Corps, and were most gallantly repulsed; but only slight progress could be made.

From October 19 to October 31 the 2nd Corps carried on a most gallant fight in defence of their position against very superior numbers, the enemy having being reinforced during that time by at least one Division of the 7th Corps, a brigade of the 3rd Corps, and the whole of the 14th Corps, which had moved north from in front of the French 21st Corps.

On the 19th the Royal Irish Regiment, under Major Daniell, stormed and carried the village of Le Pilly, which they held and entrenched. On the 20th, however, they were cut off and surrounded, suffering heavy losses.

On the morning of the 22nd the enemy made a very determined attack on the 5th Division, who were driven out of the village of Violaines, but they were sharply counter-attacked by the Worcesters and Manchesters, and prevented from coming on.*

* The work of these two regiments has been uniformly excellent, and a further exploit of the Worcesters will be found on page 138.

The left of the 2nd Corps being now somewhat exposed, Sir Horace Smith- Dorrien withdrew the line during the night to a position he had previously prepared, running generally from the eastern side of Givenchy, east of Neuve Chapelle to Fauquissart.

On October 24 the Lahore Division of the Indian Army Corps, under Major- General Watkis, having arrived, I sent them to the neighbourhood of Lacon to support the 2nd Corps.

Very early on this morning the enemy commenced a heavy attack, but owing to the skilful manner in which the artillery was handled and the targets presented by the enemy's infantry as it approached, they were unable to come to close quarters. Towards the evening a heavy attack developed against the 7th Brigade, which was repulsed, with very heavy loss to the enemy, by the Wiltshires and the Royal West Kents.* Later a determined attack on the 18th Infantry Brigade drove the Gordon Highlanders out of their trenches, which were retaken by the Middlesex Regiment, gallantly led by Lieutenant-Colonel Hull.

* See page 125.

The 8th Infantry Brigade (which had come into line on the left of the 2nd Corps) was also heavily attacked, but the enemy was driven off.

In both these cases the Germans lost very heavily, and left large numbers of dead and prisoners behind them.

The 2nd Corps was now becoming exhausted, owing to the constant reinforcements of the enemy, the length of line which it had to defend, and the enormous losses which it had suffered.

By the evening of October 11 the 3rd Corps had practically completed its detrainment at St. Omer, and was moved east to Hazebrouck, where the Corps remained throughout the 12th.

On the morning of the 13th the advanced guard of the Corps, consisting of the 19th Infantry Brigade and a Brigade of Field Artillery, occupied the position of the line Strazeele Station-Caestre-St. Sylvestre.

On this day I directed General Pulteney to move towards the line Armentières-Wytschaete; warning him, however, that should the 2nd Corps require his aid he must be prepared to move south-east to support it.

A French Cavalry Corps under General Conneau was operating between the 2nd and 3rd Corps.

The 4th German Cavalry Corps, supported by some Jaeger Battalions,* was known to be occupying the position in the neighbourhood of Meteren; and they were believed to be further supported by the advanced guard of another German Army Corps.

* Light Infantry Regiments.

In pursuance of his orders, General Pulteney proceeded to attack the enemy in his front.

The rain and fog which prevailed prevented full advantage being derived from our much superior artillery. The country was very much enclosed and rendered difficult by heavy rain.

The enemy were, however, routed and the position taken at dark, several prisoners being captured.

During the night the 3rd Corps made good the attacked position and entrenched it.

As Bailleul was known to be occupied by the enemy, arrangements were made during the night to attack it, but reconnaissances sent out on the morning of the 14th showed that they had withdrawn, and the town was taken by our troops at 10 a.m. on that day, many wounded Germans being found and taken in it.

The Corps then occupied the line St. Jans Cappel-Bailleul.

On the morning of the 15th the 3rd Corps were ordered to make good the line of the Lys from Armentières to Sailly, which, in the face of considerable opposition and very foggy weather, they succeeded in doing, the 6th Division at Sailly-Bac St. Maur and the 4th Division at Nieppe.

The enemy in its front having retired, the 3rd Corps on the night of the 17th occupied the line Bois Grenier-Le Gheir.

On the 18th the enemy were holding a line from Radinghem on the south, through Perenchies and Frelinghien on the north, whence the German troops which were opposing the Cavalry Corps occupied the east bank of the river as far as Wervick.

On this day I directed the 3rd Corps to move down the valley of the Lys and endeavour to assist the Cavalry Corps in making good its position on the right bank. To do this it was necessary first to drive the enemy eastward towards Lille. A vigorous offensive in the direction of Lille was assumed, but the enemy was found to have been considerably reinforced, and but little progress was made.

The situation of the 3rd Corps on the night of the 18th was as follows:—

The 6th Division was holding the line Radinghem-La Vallée- Armentières- Capinghem-Premesques Railway Line 300 yards east of Halte. The 4th Division were holding the line from L'Epinette to the river at a point 400 yards south of Frelinghien, and thence to a point half a mile south-east of Le Gheir. The Corps Reserve was at Armentières Station, with right and left flanks of Corps in close touch with French Cavalry and the Cavalry Corps.

Since the advance from Bailleul the enemy's forces in front of the Cavalry and 3rd Corps had been strongly reinforced, and on the night of the 17th they were opposed by three or four divisions of the enemy's cavalry, the 19th Saxon Corps and at least one division of the 7th Corps. Reinforcements for the enemy were known to be coming up from the direction of Lille.

Following the movements completed on October 11, the 2nd Cavalry Division pushed the enemy back through Flêtre and Le Coq de Paille, and took Mont des Cats, just before dark, after stiff fighting.*

* The Mont des Cats is one of the few eminences in this somewhat featureless country. Only the most meagre description of this fight has been placed on record. The enemy had entrenched the slopes and held both flanks of the hill# and its capture by cavalry was a notable achievement.

On the 14th the 1st Cavalry Division joined up, and the whole Cavalry Corps under General Allenby, moving north, secured the high ground above Berthen, overcoming considerable opposition.

With a view to a further advance east, I ordered General Allenby, on the 15th, to reconnoitre the line of the River Lys, and endeavour to secure the passages on the opposite bank, pending the arrival of the 3rd and 4th Corps.

During the 15th and 16th this reconnaissance was most skilfully and energetically carried out in the face of great opposition, especially along the lower line of the river.