The Great War (1914-1918) in real time

Day 474 of the Great War, November 15th 1915

Italian Front: Fourth Battle of the Isonzo

On the western slope of Heights #184 west of Görz an Austro-Hungarian trench has been the scene of particularly desperate fighting in the first days of the 4th Battle of the Isonzo, with the position changing hands almost hourly. As a result, the Austro-Hungarians have constructed a new trench line two hundred yards to the east at the crest of Heights #184, and over the past two nights have withdrawn to this new position. The old trench line is conceded to the Italians, and the ground thus gained is both significant (in terms of overall Italian gains in the offensive) and meaningless (the trench line has been thoroughly ruined by artillery fire and does not open up the enemy line). As such, the 'concession' by the Austro-Hungarians west of Heights #184 is entirely emblematic of the 4th Battle of the Isonzo.

To the south, the Italians make yet another effort today to seize Mt. San Michele, with infantry assaults at 7am following a heavy artillery bombardment. The focal point of the morning's fighting is a stretch of trench on the northern slope of the mountain, which changes hands several times despite artillery fire having largely obliterated the trench. Into the evening hours the Italians feed fresh reserves into the fight, and at nightfall the Austro-Hungarians concede a hundred yards of the 'trench'. The loss, however, is inconsequential.

To date the 4th Battle of the Isonzo has played out as the third - the Italians have made inconsequential gains for heavy losses. The Austro-Hungarians, however, have also suffered terribly in the fight, and 5th Army is increasingly concerned that its forces are wearing out, and in particular that the army's reserves are units that have not yet recovered from lengthy stints on the front lines. Concerned with the ability to hold off an Italian offensive that they appear to aim to continue for some time, Conrad orders 9th Division, stationed on the Eastern Front behind Südarmee, to redeploy to the Italian Front.

Persian Campaign: German military attaché attempts to convince the Persian Cossack Brigade

In an effort to resolve the crisis in Teheran, the German military attaché attempts to convince the Persian Cossack Brigade, nominally under the control of the Persian government but officered by Russians, to turn against its Russian officers and rally to the shah. The Russians, however, had gotten wind of the plan, and the brigade was paraded and declared that its loyalty was foremost to the tsar. Moreover, the Russians threaten to depose Shah Ahmad and replace him with his father Muhammed Ali, who had been deposed as shah in 1909 and found refuge in Russia. Shah Ahmad is faced with the choice of acquiescence with Entente dominance or side with Germany, and in such a situation the fact that Russian forces are nearby while Germans are not is significant - to side with the Germans would necessitate fighting the Russians with minimal German aid. By this morning the German embassy and pro-German liberals and nationalists in the Maljis have left Teheran for Qum en route to Isfahan, and Ambassador Reuss has encouraged the shah to follow and establish a government there in alliance with Germany. Shah Ahmad is to depart Teheran at 9am this morning, but with the Germans and their Persian allies having already departed his resolve is weakened by the Russian and British ambassadors, and at the last moment he decides to remain in Teheran. This action destroys German influence in the Persian government and police, most of whom remain loyal to the shah, while the departure of the German embassy and their pro-German allies in the Maljis from Teheran effectively removes their ability to influence Persian affairs. Henceforth, the Entente will have the upper hand in Persia.

Naval operations: Mediterranean Sea

Claus Rücker, Commanding U-34, sinks British freighter SS ORANGE PRINCE, 3,583 tons, bound from Alexandria to Mudros with a general cargo. His score is now 13 ships and 34,017 tons.

Day 476 of the Great War, November 17th 1915

Serbian campaign: elements of the German 103rd Division capture the town of Kuršumlija on the Toplica River

Today elements of the German 103rd Division capture the town of Kuršumlija on the Toplica River. However, it is clear that the Serbs have successfully evacuated their forces from the north bank, withdrawing south. Further, overnight the first major snowstorm has struck, swelling the Ibar and Toplica Rivers while making aerial reconnaissance almost impossible.

Italian Front: Fourth Battle of the Isonzo

Though heavy snow continues on the Italian Front, Cadorna orders a resumption of offensive operations tomorrow along the Isonzo River, leaving it to his army commanders to decide on particular objectives.

Naval operations: North Sea

Norwegian freighter SS ULRIKEN, 2,379 tons, bound from New York to Rotterdam with a cargo of wheat, runs on a mine laid by UC-3 under Irwin Waßner. His score is now 6 ships and 8,176 tons.

British Hospital ship ANGLIA, 1,862 tons, and freighter Lusitania, 1,834 tons, carrying a general cargo from London to Cadiz, both run into a minefield laid by Herbert Pustkuchen in UC-5. His score is now 15 ships and 20,015 tons.

Artist: Artist’s impression of ANGLIA’s final plunge. Note the inaccuracies – HMS URE is shown too large (r) while the LUSITANIA, sinking in right background, went down later. Good propaganda but bad history!

Day 478 of the Great War, November 19th 1915

YouTube (The Forgotten Front - World War 1 in Libya)



Italian Front: Fourth Battle of the Isonzo

On the Italian Front the Italians attack Austro-Hungarian lines on the southern slope of Mt. San Michele again, but are no more successful today than they were yesterday.

Naval operations: English Channel

His Majesty's Trawler FALMOUTH III hits a mine laid by Herbert Pustkuchen in UC-5, bringing his score to 16 ships and 20,213 tons.

Naval operations: Mediterranean Sea

Konrad Gansser, commanding U-33, sinks Japanese freighter SENJU MARU, 4,340 tons, bound from Philadelphia to Vladivostok with a cargo of railway supplies. The cause of the sinking is not immediately known to the Allies and the ship is listed as missing with all hands. Gansser's score is now 28 ships and 76,609 tons.

Claus Rücker, in U-34, sinks British freighter SS HALLAMSHIRE, 4,420 tons, carrying a cargo of coal from Cardiff to Milos. His score is now 14 ships and 38,437 tons.

Day 480 of the Great War, November 21st 1915

Italian Front: Fourth Battle of the Isonzo

Italian attacks continue along the Isonzo today. North of Oslavija, the Italians attack out of the trench seized yesterday, but when they are repulsed an Austro-Hungarian counterattack hits them while they are disorganized and they abandon most of the ground won yesterday. To the south further assaults are launched today against the heights at Podgora, and again they are defeated in hand-to-hand fighting. On the front of the Italian 3rd Army, another assault south of Mt. San Michele manages to secure a small stretch of the line at St. Martino, and are able to hold most of the ground in the face of heavy Austro-Hungarian counterattacks.

Given the continued Italian attacks, the commander of the Austro-Hungarian 5th Army orders the recently-arrived 9th Division to replace 28th Division on the southern end of the Isonzo front, pulling the latter out to serve as the army's reserve.

Germany/Greece relations: Germany Threatens to Invade Greece

Greece was stuck between a rock and a hard place towards the end of 1915. The Entente had placed a “pacific blockade” on Greece, preventing any ships from entering or leaving its ports and harassing Greek-flagged vessels, in an effort to force them into joining their alliance. Germany responded with intimidation tactics of its own, threatening to invade unless the Greeks disarmed retreated Serbian troops.

In a note to the Greek government, Berlin made known that if Greece failed to disarm Serbian soldiers, then the German and Bulgarian armies would be forced to violate Greek neutrality to pursue the fleeing Serbs. Britain and France sent another note afterwards, demanding that Greece guarantee not to intervene against Allied troops in the Balkans, in return for the restoration of occupied Greek territory at the end of the war.

Arial operations: Senator René Besnard, undersecretary of state of aviation in the War Ministry, publishes today a revised plan for aircraft production

Senator René Besnard, undersecretary of state of aviation in the War Ministry, publishes today a revised plan for aircraft production, which calls for an air arm of 128 squadrons by spring 1916. In addition to expanding the French air force, Besnard, proposes significant changes to its composition - fewer bomber units to allow for additional fighter squadrons, and halting production of outdated observation planes and 80-hp to 100-hp engines. Most significantly, and most controversially, he proposes to construct eight hundred all-purpose twin-engine three-seat aircraft, which to some parliamentary deputies appears to run counter to the trend in aviation towards specialization.

Naval operations: German submarine U38 becomes on paper a Austro-Hungarian submarine

Given the ongoing diplomatic dispute with the American government regarding the sinking of the Italian liner ANCONA on the 7th, the German submarine U38, along with its crew, is entered into the Austro-Hungarian navy's List of Warships. If the issue does of arbitration, the Austro-Hungarian government can point to the list to show that U38 is in fact Austro-Hungarian, though of course it is German.

Day 482 of the Great War, November 23rd 1915

Serbian campaign: Russians deployed the new 7th Army on the Black Sea Coast, intended for amphibious operations against the Black Sea coast

- As the German 11th Army was overrunning Serbia, the Russian high command had struggled to do something to aid its ally, General Alexeiev being cognizant that having complained of French and British inaction during the Great Retreat of the summer, the Russian army could hardly do nothing when the situation was reversed. Prompted by officials at the foreign ministry, he had deployed a new 7th Army on the Black Sea Coast, intended for amphibious operations against the Black Sea coast. The Russian navy, however, had vetoed the project, and so today Alexeiev orders 7th Army redeployed to eastern Galicia and begin planning, with 9th Army, for an offensive against the Austro-Hungarian armies opposite. In addition to 'doing something', there is a vague confidence at Stavka that the Austro-Hungarian army, having shown its inability repeatedly during the war, will collapse, and perhaps a victory here will convince the Romanians to join the war on the side of the Entente.

- Given the lack of reinforcements, General Sarrail feels that his position in southern Serbia is not tenable, given that the Bulgarians significantly outnumber his force. Further, the ongoing collapse and retreat of the Serbian army negates the rationale behind his operations in the Vardar River valley. As such, today he issues orders to the three French divisions in southern Serbia to withdraw south.

Italian Front: Fourth Battle of the Isonzo

Overnight elements of the Austro-Hungarian 4th Mountain Brigade launch an attack to regain the small stretch of the line that remains in Italian hands after their capture of it on the 20th. Their assault, however, runs smack into an Italian advance of their own; the two attacking forces mutually repulse each other, both falling back to their starting positions.

Arial operations: head of the Directorate of Military Aviation at the War Office in London today authorizes the expansion of the Royal Flying Corps

The head of the Directorate of Military Aviation at the War Office in London today authorizes the expansion of the Royal Flying Corps, which currently stands at thirty-one (fourteen in France) squadrons, to sixty, with squadron strength increasing from twelve to eighteen. In France these squadrons are to be formed into brigades, with the ultimate aim of having one brigade tied to each army of the British Expeditionary Force.

Mesopotamian campaign: British assault blunted at Ctesiphon

Fighting on the same battlefield as the Emperor Julian some 1,500 years before, General Townshend’s British and Indian soldiers met with a similar lack of success. With their initial attack a failure, the British soldiers endured a ferocious counter-attack by the Ottoman defenders on the 23rd. Though the Turkish attack was stalled by fierce firepower, Townshend’s men incurred over 40% losses, cutting an already small command almost in half.

The flying column sent to flank the Ottoman lines became bogged down in skirmishing with Bedouin cavalry, and even when the British troops managed to take the first line of enemy trenches, the Turks fell back to the second line they had wisely constructed. Meanwhile, the Ottoman commander, Colonel Nureddin, had mined the River Tigris, preventing Townshend’s two gunboats from sailing up and providing close range artillery support.

Townshend decided to cut his losses, having lost almost half of the 8,500 troops he sent into battle. Though the Turkish had lost over twice as many, they had not panicked or fled as expected, and not only had they resisted stoutly, they counter-attacked as well. Four hundred miles form the sea, the British could not bring up any reinforcements, while back-up awaited the Ottomans in Baghdad only twenty two miles away. As more Turks arrived to help their comrades, Townshend had to make the humiliating choice to retreat.

Photo: A firing line of Turkish soldiers, wearing their distinct keffiyehs



Naval operations: Strait of Otranto

An Austro-Hungarian squadron of the light cruisers HELOLAND and SAIDA plus escorting destroyers sortied towards the Straits of Otranto overnight, aiming to interrupt the Entente transport of supplies across the Adriatic Sea to the Serbs via northern Albania. They intercept two Italian ships - the motor schooner GALLINARA and the small steamer PALATINO - carrying flour and sink both.

Naval operations: Black Sea

The Russian dreadnought IMPERATRITSA MARIA, escorted by the cruiser PAMIAT MERKURIYA and ten destroyers, bombards the Ottoman port of Zonguldak, the first occasion in which the new Russian warship fires its guns in anger.

Photo: in IMPERATRITSA MARIA Sevastopol



Johannes Kirchner, commanding UC-16, sinks Russian sailing vessel MARUSJA RAFA, 200 tons, with his 3.7 cm machine gun. His final score is 3 ships and 387 tons.

Naval operations: Mediterranean Sea

Konrad Gansser, in U-33, attacks French freighter SS TAFNA, 1,444 tons, with his deck gun. The damaged ship escapes.

Day 484 of the Great War, November 25th 1915

Serbian campaign: Serbian high command publishes what is going to happen next

As the Serbian army begins the most arduous stage of its retreat, the high command publishes the following:

The only way out of this grave situation is a retreat to the Adriatic coast. There our army will be reorganized, furnished with food, arms, munitions, clothing, and all other necessities which our allies will send us, and we shall again be a fact with which our allies must reckon. The nation has not lost its being, it will continue to exist even though on foreign soil, so long as the ruler, the government, and the army are there, no matter what the strength of the army may be.

The retreating columns of the Serbian army are accompanied by thousands of civilians, including most parliamentary deputies, political party members, and university. The retreat of the Serbian is far more than a military exercise - in many respects, it is the political and intellectual heart of the Serbian nation that is making its way into the mountains of Albania towards the Adriatic Sea.

Photo: A Serbian column crossing a bridge in Albania during the retreat to the Adriatic coast



Italian Front: Fourth Battle of the Isonzo

On the Italian Front an Austro-Hungarian counterattack early this morning regains the trench on the northern slope of Mt. San Michele lost yesterday, though heavy artillery fire forces the Austro-Hungarian infantry to abandon much of the position in the course of the day.

Mesopotamian campaign: British retreat to Kut

Realizing he could not break through the Ottoman defenses at Ctesiphon, Charles Townshend made the decision to begin an agonzing and humiliating retreat back to Kut. A Turkish gun batter managed to immobllize the two British gunboats in the Tigris, leaving the demoralized and exhausted men without protection from the river.

For the wounded who could still walk, the march was a torment. Those that made it back to Kut boarded ships bound south to Basra, but Arab brigands gathered on both sides of the river bank to take potshots at the helpless wounded men exposed on the deck. In Kut, the British worked to strengthen their defenses, aware that German General von der Goltz and 30,000 Ottoman reinforcements were on their way.

Naval operations: French naval attaché in Rome reports to his government

The French naval attaché in Rome reports to his government today that, given the recent sinking of the schooner Gallinara and the steamer Palatino and the proximity of northern Albania to the Austro-Hungarian naval base at Cattaro, the Italian minister of marine has decided that supply convoys crossing the Adriatic Sea should be routed to Valona in southern Albania. This route will be farther from Austro-Hungarian naval bases and thus convoys here will be less likely to be intercepted.

Naval operations: Mediterranean Sea

Konrad Gansser, commanding U-33, sinks French freighter SS ALGERIAN, 1,703 tons, bound from Marseille to Tunis with a general cargo. One lifeboat lands safely, eight of its occupants surviving and one not. The other 29 crew members are lost. Gansser's score is now 32 ships and 85,321 tons.