The Great War (1914-1918) in real time

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lordroel
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The Great War (1914-1918) in real time Dec 6, 2021 3:44:13 GMT stevep and gillan1220 like this

Post by lordroel on Dec 6, 2021 3:44:13 GMT

Day 860 of the Great War, December 6th 1916

Western Front

Germans gain footing in salient, Hill 304 (Verdun).

Eastern Front

Fighting in Volhynia, west of Lutsk, round Tarnopol and Stanislau (Galicia) and round Dorna Vatra (Bukovina).

Italian Front

Enemy activity on the Carso checked.

Reciprocal air attacks on Trieste and Aquileia (Isonzo mouth).

Macedonian front

Greece: Royalists at Athens in control. British legation prepares to leave.

France: Inter-Allied Conference at Chantilly

Delegates and soldiers of the Entente powers convened at Chantilly, Paris, in December 1915 to discuss strategy for the next year. The French presented a memorandum calling for inter-allied co-operation on all fronts. The Russian representative agreed, arguing that in 1916 it would be required to coordinate major offensive, unlike in 1915, when Britain and France had not been prepared to act when the Gorlice-Tarnow Offensive rolled over Russian lines. Consensus was reached, and it was agreed that when any Entente nation came under threat, its allies would launch offensives of their own to draw off pressure.

However, two days before the Chantilly Conference, at a meeting in Calais, the British had insisted on withdrawing from Salonika. With Serbia defeated, the British saw no purpose in their expeditionary force there, which could be better used in Egypt or in France. France had bowed to the logic then; now the Serbians, the Russians, and the Italians argued that front must stay open. The Tsar himself sent a personal telegram to Briand and Asquith regretting the decision to leave. Pressured by their allies, as well as public opinion, which abhorred the decision to abandon the Serbs, France agreed to keep troops at Salonika. Britain went with the decision, reluctantly.

With the decision taken to keep troops in Greece and Serbia, the Allies focused on strategy for 1916. Joffre obtained British consent for a joint, simultaneous Anglo-French summer offensive, to be launched on a forty mile front on the length of the river Somme. Germany, asserted French army strategists, must be nearly out of reserves, while Kitchener’s New Armies of British volunteers were just arriving at the front. What Joffre described as the “brilliant tactical results” of the Champagne and Artois offensives would be repeated. With Britain’s New Armies and sufficient guns and ammunition for an overwhelming sustained bombardment, the Battle of the Somme would be a decisive victory from day one.

Romanian Campaign: The Fall of Bucharest

The last-ditch efforts by the Romanians to defend their capital had ended in defeat three days earlier; it was now clear that they could no longer prevent its fall. Neither Falkenhayn nor the Romanians were interested in a battle within the city, and Falkenhayn agreed to a brief 72-hour armistice to allow the Romanians to evacuate and leave it as an open city. Both sides were busy during the interim, however; Falkenhayn and Mackensen brought up their troops and pursued the Romanians on the outskirts, while the Romanians and British destroyed as much of military value as they could.

On December 6, Mackensen entered the city at the head of his army, riding in on a white charger. In Germany, there was celebration; the Kaiser even brought out champagne (an extravagance in wartime) for the occasion. This was the great victory they had been striving for all year. Chancellor Bethmann was particularly pleased, as now he could suggest peace terms to the Allies from a position of strength.

On the same day, the last Romanian troops cut off in western Wallachia by Mackensen’s push across the Danube surrendered. Together with the men caught up in the retreat to and from Bucharest, the Romanians would lose through mid-December 147,000 PoWs, along with 73,000 killed or wounded and 93,000 missing (presumably deserters). This left them with only 70,000 troops in the field, who were hastily falling back to Moldavia with the Central Powers directly behind them.

Photo: Mackensen enters Bucharest on a white charger; it was his 67th birthday

Photo: "A column of the Austro-Hungarian cavalry entering Bucharest, 6 December 1916

Aerial operations: Flight, Squadron or Wing?

The RNAS has bowed to the inevitable and finally adopted the same organisational structure as the RFC. Up to this point the RNAS has used the terms Wing, Squadron and Flight almost at random with a unit’s name giving little indication of its size or function. The RNAS has added to the confusion by often using the same name for completely different units serving in the different theatres. The recent cooperation with the RFC further added to the confusion as the two services used different terms to describe their formations.

Today, Wing Commander Charles Laverock Lambe’s proposals, a revision of nomenclature to bring the RNAS into line with the RFC, were approved. Under this scheme a unit of six pilots will be known as a Flight. A Squadron will be made up of two or three lights. A Wing will be a group of Squadrons with the number varying on circumstances.

An important side-effect of this change is that the RNAS can now make best use of Flight Commanders and Squadron Commanders which were in short supply.

Naval operations: Celtic Sea

Erich Platsch, commanding UB-29, stops and scuttles two Allied vessels near Bishop Rock:
Russian schooner ANS, 362 tons, travelling from Preston to Nantes.
Danish schooner MARIE, 325 tons, carrying a load of pitch from Liverpool to Charente.
Platsch's score is now 6 ships and 7,920 tons.

Heinrich Küstner, in UB-39, sinks Norwegian freighter SS AMICITIA, 1,111 tons, carrying a load of pyrites from Seville to Honfleur. His score is now 14 ships and 5,474 tons.

Reinhold Saltzwedel, in UC-21, sinks Spanish freighter SS GERONA, 1,328 tons, en route from Oporto to Cardiff with a general cargo, off the western entrance to the Channel. His score is now 18 ships and 16,580 tons.

Naval operations: English Channel

British freighter SS POONA, 7,626 tons, bound from London for Calcutta with a general cargo, is damaged by a mine laid by an unknown source. the ship makes it safely to port.

Paul Günther, in UB-37, captures Danish freighter SS HALFDAN, 1,305 tons, travelling from Newcastle to Livorno with a load of coke, and sinks her with a torpedo. His score is now 12 ships and 5,474 tons.

HMS ARIEL depth-charges and sinks UC-19. All 25 crew lost, including her captain Alfred Nitzsche, 0 survivors. In January two more ships will be sunk by mines from UC-19.

Photo: Photograph of destroyer HMS ARIEL.

Naval operations: North Sea

Hans Adam, in U-82, stops and scuttles two Danish sailing vessels.
Schooner CHRISTINE, 196 tons, carrying a load of pit props from Halmstad to West hartlepool.
Barque ROBERT, 353 tons, also out of Halmstad for West Hartlepool with a load of pit props.
Adam's score is now 4 ships and 1,675 tons.

Naval operations: Baltic Sea

Russian minesweeper SHCHIT, 248 tons, hits a mine laid by Johannes Feldkirchner in UC-25 between Hiiu and Saare (Dagö and Osel in German). His score is now 3 ships and 1,189 tons.

Naval operations: Tyrhennian Sea

Kurt Hartwig, in U-32, uses his deck gun to sink Italian freighter SS CAMPANIA, 4,297 tons, en route from Genoa to Karachi. His score is now 10 ships and 29,477 tons.

Naval operations: Atlantic Ocean

German raider SMS MOWE captures and scuttles British passenger/cargo ship SS MOUNT TEMPLE, 9,792 tons, travelling from Montreal, Canada to Brest and Liverpool with a cargo of 710 horses, 6,250 tons of goods including 3,000 tons of corn, 1,400 cases of eggs and 22 crates of dinosaur fossils. MOUNT TEMPLE'S captain, Alfred Henry Sargent, puts up a fight which results in the loss of 4 of the ship's 116 crew. The captain and surviving 112 crew are placed aboard the captured British freighter SS YARROWDALEand sent to Swinemünde (Świnoujście), Poland.

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lordroel
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The Great War (1914-1918) in real time Dec 7, 2021 3:46:20 GMT stevep and gillan1220 like this

Post by lordroel on Dec 7, 2021 3:46:20 GMT

Day 861 of the Great War, December 7th 1916

Western Front

French regain trenches lost on Hill 304.

Eastern Front

Russians attack in south-east Galicia.

Romanian Campaign

Fighting in Oitoz and Trotus valleys.

Romanian retreat east on all fronts; Wallachia in enemy's hands; latter checked on Moldavian frontier.

Macedonian front: Greece: the royalists’ revenge

Greece now has two governments. Eleftherios Venizelos leads a pro-Allied government in Salonika. Venizelos wants to bring Greece into the war on the Allied side. As Salonika is now under French and British occupation, many see Venizelos as little more than their puppet. Meanwhile in Athens another government is loyal to Greece’s King Constantine, who is determined to keep the country out of the war.

The recent French attempt to occupy Athens and force a change in Constantine’s line has been a fiasco, with royalist forces obliging French to beat a hasty retreat. Since then Athens has seen a brutal purge of Venizelos’ supporters. Many of his partisans have been arrested and their homes or businesses ransacked. There are reports of some Venizelists being roughly mistreated or even murdered. The Archbishop of Athens excommunicates Venizelos, with Constantine issuing a royal warrant for his arrest.

In Salonika meanwhile Venizelos formally declares war on the Central Powers. This however is an empty gesture as he lacks any serious military force of his own.

Sinai and Palestine campaign

Sir P. Chetwode assumes command of deser (Sinai) column.

United Kingdom: Lloyd George New British Prime Minister

After receiving PM Asquith’s rejection of his proposal to reform the War Council, Lloyd George met with Bonar Law, the head of the Conservative Party, who agreed to withdraw his support from Asquith. So armed, he resigned as War Secretary on the morning of December 5, promising in a letter to Asquith that he would fight him in the press. Around noon, the Conservative Balfour, head of the Admiralty, also tendered his resignation; although it was unclear whether this was in protest against Asquith, the Prime Minister took it that way. At meetings with both Liberal and Conservative members of his coalition, it became clear that he could no longer command support of a workable coalition, and he tendered his resignation to the King just after 7 PM.

Who would become the next Prime Minister was not clear. Convention dictated that the King would first invite Bonar Law, as the Conservatives held the most seats in Parliament (due to pre-war by-elections). Lloyd George and Bonar Law had agreed that the latter should become PM if he could convince Asquith to serve in the government (Asquith serving under Lloyd George now being essentially impossible). Asquith, after some deliberation, rejected the idea of serving under those who ousted him, and on the evening of December 6th, Bonar Law declined the King’s invitation to form a government and Lloyd George accepted.

On December 7, Lloyd George had enlisted the support of enough Liberals (though not a majority of them), the Labour Party, and most of the Conservatives, and had formed a stable and comfortable majority. His new Cabinet, formed over the next few days, was largely comprised of Conservatives; most of the prominent Liberal ministers from Asquith’s cabinet chose to remain loyal and follow him into opposition.

Aerial operations: War Cabinet

The poor weather on the Western Front has restricted flying for the third consecutive day.

However, back in England however there have been major developments on the political front. The Liberal Prime Minister Herbert Asquith has resigned and been replaced by David Lloyd George at the head of a coalition of Liberals and Conservatives.

One of Lloyd George’s first actions has been to replace the War Committee with a streamlined War Cabinet which it is hoped will make the business of conducting the war more efficient.

Of immediate interest to air power advocates is what difference this will make to the the strained relationship between the War Office and the Admiralty in relation to Air policy and supply.

The future of the Air Board, which has failed to date to manage this relationship satisfactorily, is also in question.

Naval operations: Celtic Sea

Erich Platsch, commanding UB-29, is credited with two attacks on Allied ships off the Scilly Isles:
Belgian freighter SS KELTIER, 2,360 tons, bound from Newcastle, New Brunswick, Canada for Calais with a load of timber. The damaged ship manages to make port safely.
Norwegian freighter SS METOR, 4,217 tons, carrying a general cargo from Philadelphia to London. The ship is captured and then sunk with a torpedo after the crew are allowed to take to the lifeboats.
Platsch's final score is 7 ships and 12,137 tons.

Heinrich Küstner, in UB-39, sinks Spanish freighter SS BRAVO, 1,214 tons, out of Cardiff for Bayonne with a load of coal, off Ushant. His score is now 15 ships and 22,536 tons.

Naval operations: English Channel

Paul Günther, in UB-37, stops and scuttles French barque MARGUERITE DOLLFUS, 1,948 tons, travelling in ballast from Le Havre to Fort de France. Crew allowe to abandon ship, sunk with scuttling charges. Crew rescued the same day by Norwegian freighter SS BALTIC.

Naval operations: North Sea

Wilhelm von Fircks, in U-59, sinks Swedish barquentine AUGUST, 341 tons, carrying a load of wood from Uddevalla to Tyne. This is von Fircks's first sinking.

Naval operations: Bay of Biscay

Reinhold Saltzwedel, in UC-21, sinks British freighter SS AVRISTAN, 3,818 tons, en route from Portland, Maine, USA to London with a load of wheat. His score is now 19 ships and 20,398 tons.

Naval operations: Black Sea

German submarine UB-46, commanded by Cäsar Bauer, hits a mine and sinks with the loss of all 20 crew.

Naval operations: Canary Islands

Heinrich Metzger, in U-47, sinks Greek freighter SS SPYROS, 3,357 tons, carrying a load of maize from Buenos Aires to Hull, south of Fuerteventura. His score is now 5 ships and 8,974 tons.

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lordroel
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The Great War (1914-1918) in real time Dec 8, 2021 3:47:46 GMT stevep and gillan1220 like this

Post by lordroel on Dec 8, 2021 3:47:46 GMT

Day 862 of the Great War, December 8th 1916

YouTube (The Fall of Bucharest - Political Turmoil in Russia)

Romanian Campaign

Heavy fighting in Galicia, in south of Bukovina, and on Moldavian frontier.

Romanian force retiring on Bucharest from Sinaia captured at Ploeshti.

Macedonian front

Greece: Allied Colonies leaving Athens.

Greece: Greek Blockade effective from 8 a.m. Allied countries impose a blockade on Greece, as King Constantine remains friendly with Germany.

East German Campaign

Portuguese retire from Nangadi (East Africa); Germans occupy it.

Russia: Murmansk Railway Completed

With mainland Europe and the Bosporus closed off by the Central Powers, Russia had few routes for trade with the outside world. The Trans-Siberian railroad linked Russia with the Pacific, but had limited capacity, not to mention the cost of rail shipment over thousands of miles. Transshipment via Sweden was possible, but was generally frowned upon by the neutral Swedish government, and then would require travel over the German-dominated Baltic. This left the route north of Norway, through the Barents Sea. This was open for less than half of the year due to ice, and was under increasing threat from German submarines, who were unlikely to greatly anger any neutrals (except Norway) by sinking shipping in the area.

The northern route was also quite long, with the only rail-connected port on Russia’s northern coast at Archangelsk, requiring a journey around the Kola Peninsula and into the White Sea. In an attempt to ease access to foreign trade, the Russians built a new port to the west of the Kola Peninsula, naming it Romanov-on-Murman [now Murmansk]. Unlike Archangelsk, Murmansk was ice-free year round due to the Gulf Stream. On December 8, the Russians finished the railway link to Petrograd [St. Petersburg], constructed over the last year and a half, mainly using labor from 70,000 German and Austro-Hungarian prisoners of war. Conditions were extremely difficult in the northern climate–combined with disease and inadequate food supplies, over 25,000 of the prisoners died during the construction of the railway.

Aerial operations: London Defences Reorganised

The Anti-Aircraft defences in London have finally been brought into line with those in the rest of the country. Up until now, there have been seven seven sub-commanders under the General Officer Commanding, London District for training, and under Lord French, the Field-Marshal Commanding-in-Chief, for operations.

In the rest of the country each Anti-Aircraft Defence Commander is responsible both for training and operations.
The War Office have now decided that this is no longer sustainable and have appointed Lieutenant-Colonel M. St. L. Simon, Royal Engineers as the overall commander for London. Simon had been brought home from France in February 1916 to supervise the construction of gun and light positions in the London area and so know s the area well. His official title is Anti-Aircraft Defence Commander, London.

He is under the orders of Lord French for training and operations, and of the GOC London District, for administration and discipline.

Simon has already started taking steps to simplify and to standardize both equipment and training. He is also proposing that the various searchlights should cooperate to provide an orderly ‘light’ patrol around London. He also issued orders that when airships approached, the searchlights and guns were to be used without hesitation even at long range with the aim of keeping the enemy away from the capital: The destruction of the hostile craft was to be secondary.

This may sound a bit counter-intuitive as the chances of hitting the Zeppelins at long distance was slim. However Simon had noted a trend in which other airships tended to abandon their missions if another airship was hit. He hoped that the ring of searchlights and guns might provide a deterrent effect.

Naval operations: English Channel

Heinz Ziemer, commanding UB-23, sinks British tanker SS CONCH, 5,620 tons, bound from Rangoon for the Thames with a load of benzine. His score is now 5 ships and 9,281 tons.

Heinrich Küstner, in UB-39, sinks 3 Allied vessels:
Norwegian freighter SS RAKIURA, 3,569 tons, carrying a load of coal from South Shields to Algiers.
Danish freighter SS ROLLO, 2,290 tons, en route from Tyne to Oran with a load of coal. Sunk by gunfire.
Norwegian coaster SS SAGA, 433 tons, travelling in ballast from St. Malo to Swansea.
Küstner's score is now 18 ships and 28,828 tons.

His Majesty's Trawler DAGON, 250 tons, hits a mine laid by Reinhold Saltzwedel in UC-21 off the Royal Sovereign light vessel. See 'Bay of Biscay' below.

Naval operations: North Sea

His Majesty's Drifter KENT COUNTY goes missing with all hands. It is presumed to have hit a mine near the Cross Sand Light Vessel.

Wilhelm von Fircks, in U-59, stops and scuttles Swedish sailing vessel HARRY, 81 tons, carrying 136 tons of wood from Barberg to Blyth. His score is now 2 ships and 422 tons.

Naval operations: Bay of Biscay

Reinhold Saltzwedel, in UC-21, sinks 3 ships off Penmarch:
Norwegian freighter SS FALK, 1,379 tons, bound from Swansea for Saint Nazaire with a load of coal.
French sailing vessel MARJORJOLAINE, 163 tons.
Norwegian freighter SS MODUM, 2,937 tons, carrying a load of coal from Sunderland to Bordeaux.
With the trawler DAGON listed above, Saltzwedel's score is now 23 ships and 27,127 tons.

Naval operations: Portugal

Max Valentiner, in U-38, sinks two ships off Cape St. Vincent:
Norwegian freighter SS BRASK, 1,464 tons, travelling from Glasgow to Gibraltar with a load of coal.
British freighter SS BRITANNIA, 1,814 tons, carrying a general cargo from London to Malaga.
Valentiner's score is now 117 ships and 253,854 tons.

Naval operations: Tyrrhenian Sea

Kurt Hartwig, in U-32, sinks Italian sailing vessel CARMALINA DOMINICI, 94 tons, raising his score to 11 ships and 29,571 tons.

Naval operations: Atlantic Ocean

German raider SMS MOWE sinks three ships in the North Atlantic:
British freighter SS CAMBRIAN RANGE, 4,234 tons.
Canadian schooner DUCHESS OF CORNWALL, 152 tons, sailing from Saint Johns, Newfoundland to Gibraltar with 224 tons of dried fish.
British freighter SS KING GEORGE, 3,852 tons, carrying 4,500 tons of pig iron, steel oil, nails and 685 tons of explosives from Philadelphia to Manchester.
The crews of all three ships are transferred to the captured freighter SS YARROWDALE and the vessels sunk with scuttling charges.

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lordroel
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The Great War (1914-1918) in real time Dec 9, 2021 3:48:09 GMT stevep, Zyobot, and 1 more like this

Post by lordroel on Dec 9, 2021 3:48:09 GMT

Day 863 of the Great War, December 9th 1916

Romanian Campaign

In the past week, German forces in Romania have captured 70,000 prisoners, 184 artillery guns, and 120 machine guns.

Macedonian front

Bulgarians cross Danube near Silistria and Tutrakan, capturing towns on left bank.

Fighting near Monastir.

Turks posts taken south of Seres.

Aerial operations: DH5

The latest product from designer Geoffrey de Havilland, the DH5, had begun service trials at the Central Flying School today. The aircraft is intended to replace the aging DH2. De Havilland has designed it to combine the superior performance of a tractor biplane with the excellent forward visibility of a “pusher” type.

The aircraft is of conventional construction, but has an unusual 27 inches of backward stagger on the upper Wing, placing the pilot just in front of the upper wing. This arrangement does indeed give a great forward view, but unfortunately shares with most pushers a blind spot to the rear. This is highly problematic as most attacks tend to come from this position.

The armament is a single Vickers gun fitted with the new improved Constantinesco gun synchronisation gear. This is a reliable system and is placed where the pilot can easily reach it to clear jams. However, given that the new German fighters are armed with two machine guns, the DH5 is clearly underarmed.

Photo: The prototype DH5

Naval operations: North Sea

Benno von Ditfurth began his career in UC-11 laying a minefield off the Shipwash light vessel. Today three British freighters are lost to mines in that field.
SS FORTH, 1,159 tons, bound from London for Leith with a general cargo.
SS HARLINGTON, 1,089 tons, carrying a load of coal from Sunderland to an unnamed destination.
SS HARLYN, 1,794 tons, travelling from Newcastle to London with a load of coal.
Von Ditfurth's opening score is 3 ships and 4,042 tons.

Naval operations: Portugal

Max Valentiner, in U-38, sinks Portuguese brigantine BRIZELLA, 282 tons, travelling from Lisbon to Madeira with an unspecified cargo. His score is now 118 ships and 254,136 tons.

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The Great War (1914-1918) in real time Dec 10, 2021 9:26:33 GMT stevep and gillan1220 like this

Post by lordroel on Dec 10, 2021 9:26:33 GMT

Day 864 of the Great War, December 10th 1916

Romanian Campaign

Stubborn fighting in Carpathians, south Bukovina and Trotus Valley.

Fighting north of Ploeshti.

Macedonian front

Bulgarian forces cross the Danube from the Dobruja, in an effort to cut off the retreating Romanian army’s retreat.

Bulgars capture bridgehead opposite Cerna-Voda.

Fighting north of Monastir.

German East Campaign

Photo: British soldiers heading towards the wreck of the German cruiser SMS KONINGSBERG in German East Africa

United Kingdom: Lloyd George Builds His Cabinet

Although Lloyd George had secured a majority in the Commons, he had made few friends among his Liberal colleagues while doing so. This was especially true for those who had served in Asquith’s cabinet, most of which followed him into opposition. As a result, the new Cabinet was primarily composed of Conservatives.

The foreign minister Edward Grey, who had served exactly eleven years in office (the longest such continuous tenure in British history), resigned on December 10, and was replaced by Arthur Balfour, a Conservative who had replaced Churchill at the Admiralty. He had been seen as quite loyal to the coalition headed by Asquith, and his siding with Lloyd George had been instrumental in securing Conservative support of Lloyd George. Grey was the last of the European Foreign Ministers from the July Crisis still in office, after von Jagow had been replaced by Arthur Zimmermann in Germany the previous month. Balfour was replaced at the Admiralty by staunch Lloyd George ally Edward Carson (previously leader of the non-coalition Conservative opposition in the Commons).

Lloyd George reduced the size of the War Committee (now the War Cabinet) to five members. It had its first meeting on December 9. In attendance were Lloyd George, the Labour leader Arthur Anderson, and three Conservatives: Lord Curzon, Lord Milner, and the Conservative leader Bonar Law, who also replaced Reginald McKenna as Chancellor of the Exchequer.

Naval operations: English Channel

British freighter SS STRATHALBYN, 4,331 tons, bound from New York for Le Havre with a general cargo, hits a mine laid off Cherbourg by Matthias von Schmettow in UC-26. His score is now 62 ships and 92,361 tons.

Naval operations: North Sea

Walter Remy, commanding U-24, sinks Norwegian coaster SS AGDER, 305 tons, carrying a load of canned fish from Stavanger to Newcastle, west of Utsira. His score is now 3 ships and 671 tons.

Hans Adam, in U-82, sinks Danish barque GERDA, 287 tons, travelling from Gothenburg to Tyne with a load of pit props. His score is now 5 ships and 1,962 tons.

Naval operations: Canary Islands

Heinrich Metzger, in U-47, captures Greek freighter SS SALAMIS, 3,638 tons, en route from Cardiff to Montevideo with an unspecified cargo. Metzger keeps the ship for three days before finally sinking her.

Hans Walther, in U-52, stops French barque EMMA LAURANS, 2,153 tons, travelling in ballast from Bordeaux to New York. After taking 4 tons of food and water Walther scuttles the sailing vessel. Her 21 crew are all taken aboard U-52 and remain there until dropped off two days later at Mas Palomas, Gran Canaria Island. According to EMMA LAURANS' captain Louis Garnier, Walther treated him and his men well and asked them to report that the Germans are not all barbarians. His score is now 18 ships and 39,857 tons.

Naval operations: Gulf of Cadiz

Max Valentiner, in U-38, sinks Italian freighter SS ESMPLARE, 2,595 tons, bringing his score to 119 ships and 256,731 tons.

Naval operations: German East Africa

British monitor HMS SEVERN makes a trip up the Rufiji River looking for possible German activity. Anchoring a mile above the wreck of SS SOMALI, sunk two years earlier by HMS CHATHAM, SEVERN sends two armed motorboats upriver to investigate. Finding nothing the boats return and SEVERN heads back down-river.

Naval operations: Canada

German raider SMS MOWE captures and scuttles British freighter SS GEORGIC, 10,077 tons, travelling from Philadelphia to Brest with a cargo consisting of 1,200 horses, 10,000 barrels of lubricating oil, 98,000 bushels of wheat, 4,040 bales of cotton, 130 cases of rifles and 36 armored cars.

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The Great War (1914-1918) in real time Dec 11, 2021 8:07:21 GMT stevep and gillan1220 like this

Post by lordroel on Dec 11, 2021 8:07:21 GMT

Day 865 of the Great War, December 11th 1916

Western Front

Violent artillery action on Somme front.

Preparatory French bombardment on Verdun front.

Photo: A French Saint-Chamond tank at Marly-le-Roi, December 1916

Photo: A Fench Schneider CA1 tank crossing a trench during training exercises at Marly-le-Roi, December 1916. Note the camouflage the tank is covered with

Photo: A French Schneider CA1 tank on the move ta Marly-le-Roi, December 1916. Note the camouflage the tank is covered with

Romanian Campaign

Enemy forces over the Jalomitsa River, north-east of Bucharest.

Aerial operations: “Everything that the Navy can afford to lend”

The Air Board met today to discuss Sir Douglas Haig’s letter of 20 November 1916 asking for the twenty extra squadrons. The seriousness of the situation was such that Major-General Trenchard attended in person.

He made it clear that the new military squadrons promised for the coming winter would not be enough and that there would be ani nsufficient supply of spares. He suggested it was essential that there should be a stocktaking of the air resources of the whole nation and that, in the meantime, he would like to get from the navy four fully-equipped squadrons.

He was not discussing the question of policy, he said, about whether it would have been better to have the whole air force at the front une’er the army. AT this point, was obligatory for the army to obtain everything that the navy could afford to lend.

He also asked, in addition to four complete naval squadrons, for one hundred Rolls-Royce and fifty Hispano engines which would ensure the equipment of six further squadrons.

The Air Board put the matter before the Admiralty, expressing the hope that the navy would find it possible, ‘at this moment of great emergency’, to come to the assistance of the army. The Admiralty agreed to place four additional squadrons at the disposal of the RFC. They could, however, only surrender fifty-five of the hundred Rolls-Royce engines asked and they proposed, further, that instead of giving up fifty Hispano engines, they should surrender to the Flying Corps sixty complete Spad aeroplanes from their contract of one hundred and twenty then in course of fulfilment. This was accepted.

Arab Revolt: The Turks rebuffed at Yanbu

Arabs supporting Sharif Hussein of Mecca are in revolt against their Turkish masters. Fahreddin Pasha however is seeking to crush the revolt. He has led a strong force against the rebel-held port of Yanbu. If Yanbu falls it will be harder for the British to supply the rebels with arms and gold.

The rebel forces opposing Fahreddin are commanded by Faisal, Sharif Hussein’s son. They are able to delay the Turks but are too weak to halt them. They retreat to Yanbu to make a last stand. Fahreddin advances, hoping that storming the port will be the first step towards victory over the rebels.

But a nasty surprise awaits Fahreddin when he reaches Yanbu. Five British warships are achored off Yanbu. Their guns outclass anything Fahreddin has at his disposal, forcing him to abandon his plans to assault the town. He accepts defeat and withdraws back towards Medina.

The British warships’ presence at Yanbu is no coincidence. Captain T. E. Lawrence, a British intelligence officer, had been with Faisal when he first confronted Fahreddin. Realising the rebels’ danger, Lawrence raced back to Yanbu and summoned the British ships, saving the Arab Revolt. Now the rebels make plans to go on the offensive.

Naval operations: English Channel

Danish freighter SS INGER, 786 tons, carrying a load of fruit from Gandia to London, hits a mine laid of Catherine's Point, Isle of Wight, by Wilhelm Kiel in UC-18. His score is now 15 ships and 11,566 tons.

Naval operations: North Sea

Danish freighter SS NORA, 772 tons, bound from Hernösand for Gijon with a load of timber, hits a mine laid off Withernsea by Werner Albrecht in UC-10. UC-10 was torpedoed by HMS E-54 last August 21st, so this sinking is posthumous. Albrecht's final score is 3 ships and 1,196 tons.

Naval operations: Skagerrak

Thorwald von Bothmer, in U-66, sinks two Allied ships:
Norwegian freighter SS BJOR, 1,090 tons, carrying a general cargo from Göteborg to Hull.
Swedish schooner PALANDER, 311 tons, en route from Holmestrand to West Hartlepool with a load of pit props.
Von Bothmer's score is now 12 ships and 24,862 tons.

Naval operations: Mediterranean Sea

Otto Schultze, in U-63, sinks two ships near Pantellaria:
French passenger ship SS MAGELLAN, 6,027 tons, en route from Shanghai to Marseille.
French freighter SS SINAI, 4,624 tons, route and cargo unknown.
Schultze's score is now 19 ships and 50,530 tons.

Ernst Kraft, in U-72, sinks Italian sailing vessel JEANNE, 534 tons, south of Sardinia. His score is now 11 ships and 19,794 tons.

Naval operations: Italian Commander in Albania Killed in Battleship Sinking

The Italians had occupied the port of Valona [Vlorë] since the autumn of 1914, before their entry into the war, to safeguard their own interests in the country after its government effectively collapsed. After the Austrians conquered the northern two-thirds of the country and the Greeks occupied the regions along their border, the Italians maintained their hold on Valona, using it as the eastern terminus of the Otranto Barrage, meant to keep the Austrian navy and submarines penned up in the Adriatic.

As Greece became more divided, the Italians slowly took control of most of the areas they had occupied in southern Albania. They eventually met up with the French-led forces from Salonika, resulting in a continuous Allied line running from the Aegean to the Adriatic. On December 10, the French, much to the consternation of the Italians, set up an autonomous Albanian republic in Korçë.

The next day, the Italian commander in Albania, General Bandini, was returning to Italy on the battleship REGINA MARGHERITA. A pre-dreadnought, she was the only ship remaining of her class; her sister ship BENEDETTO BRINN had been destroyed, presumably by Austrian sabotage, the previous year. In a demonstration of the futility of the Otranto Barrage, the REGINA MARGHERITA struck a submarine-laid mine on the night of December 11. The resulting explosion and sinking killed 670 of the 945 men aboard, including General Bandini.

Photo: REGINA MARGHERITA circa 1908

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The Great War (1914-1918) in real time Dec 12, 2021 7:51:40 GMT stevep and gillan1220 like this

Post by lordroel on Dec 12, 2021 7:51:40 GMT

Day 866 of the Great War, December 12th 1916

Western Front: Nivelle succeeds Joffre as France reshuffles its generals

France’s political leaders have had enough of Joseph Joffre, the army’s commander on the Western Front. Joffre’s calmness arguably saved France from defeat after the disastrous early battles of August 1914, but he appears unable to prosecute the war to victory. Now the politicians want a more vigorous approach to the fighting on the Western Front, so Prime Minister Briand has Joffre sacked. Or, rather, he has Joffre promoted to a meaningless position as general-in-chief (not commander-in-chief) of the French army and technical adviser to the government.

Joffre’s replacement as commander of the French armies on the Western Front is Robert Nivelle, the commander of the recent French counter-attacks at Verdun. Nivelle has leap-frogged over more senior commanders, including his own commanding officer, Philippe Pétain, who had commanded at Verdun during its desperate early stages. Unlike Pétain, Nivelle is an attacking general who has recaptured much ground from the Germans at Verdun, albeit at considerable cost. The politicians hope that his offensive vigour will now be applied to the French army as whole in their efforts to drive the Germans from France next year.

Eastern Front

Fighting continues round Tarnopol and Stanislau (Galicia) and in south Bukovina.

Romanian Campaign

With help of Russians, Romanians rally on the Jalomitsa and south-west of Buzeu.

Macedonian front

Fighting near Monsatir (Cherna bend).

Greece: Venizelist troops land at Syra which with other Cyclades comes under National Government.

Mesopotamia Campaign

British feint on Sanna-i-yat, and move on Shatt-el-Hai.

Germany: Germany Offers Peace

The political mood in the Reichstag was still strongly in favor of a resolution to the war that resulted in large territorial gains for Germany, to offset her losses (both of men and of money) in the war. However, there were elements that saw that the Central Powers were less likely to win as the war dragged on, due to the blockade and Allied superiority in manpower. Chief among these were the Austrians, whose independent capacity for waging war had been essentially destroyed in the last year, and Chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg, who was one of the more realistic about Germany’s prospects.

Bethmann and Austrian Foreign Minister Burián both pushed for offering peace to the Allies throughout the fall. Hindenburg & Ludendorff agreed to this, on the condition that it came after Romania was defeated; they wanted the proposal to come from a position of strength. They thought it was unlikely to be accepted but still thought it would prove advantageous; if the offer was rejected, it would reflect favorably on Germany in neutral countries, and would give them some cover to restart the unrestricted U-boat campaign. New Foreign Minister Arthur Zimmermann (installed by Hindenburg & Ludendorff last month) told the military that “intensified submarine war toward America would certainly be facilitated if we could refer to such an action.”

The fall of Bucharest on December 6 gave the Germans the victory they had been looking for. Bethmann knew he would have to act quickly, as he did not want to be preempted by any peace initiative started by the Americans, which he knew would be coming soon. Zimmermann even said to reporters off the record that “we would fix it so that [Mr. Wilson] would not have his finger in the pie.”

On December 12, the Chancellor met with the ambassadors from the neutral nations and then addressed the Reichstag. He announced that Germany would be willing to negotiate a peace with the Allies, and would meet with them in one of the neutral countries to do so. However, he did not offer any concrete peace terms, instead stressing Germany’s “invincible power.” Hinting at what would come if (as was likely) the Allies rejected the offer, he said that Germany would then “solemnly decline all responsibility therefore before Humanity and History.”

The Kaiser, although he had signed off on the peace offer, continued his warlike tone when speaking to his troops later in the day, saying that he was only proposing peace “in the conviction that we are the absolute conquerors.” The Allies, unsurprisingly, soon rejected the offer, but it did for the time being attract some interest in neutral countries and even among some opposition parties in Allied countries.

Photo: Bethmann-Hollweg (standing, center) announces his peace offer to the Reichstag on December 12

Aerial operations: 106

Back on 15 November 1916, Douglas Haig’s request for an expansion to the RFC to 56 squadrons was approved. The very next day, Haig made a request for a further 20 extra fighting squadrons.

The request was received by Sefton Brancker, the Director of Air Organization. Before agreeing he reviewed the full implications of this demand. The completion of the original expansion programme required 10,200 men and the additional twenty squadrons, together with an essential expansion of reserve squadrons, would require a further 13,560 men. This may seem like a large number but each squadron required a large support staff to manage and maintain the aircraft.

Also of concern was that the existing number of reserve squadrons had proven too low to keep up with the demand for pilots due to losses during the recent offensive. The problem is double edged, in that pilots sent to front are not as well trained as required, but to allow longer training would reduce the numbers being sent.

Brancker therefore put in a request for 35 additional training squadrons as well as 20 extra fighting squadrons. This will bring the total to 106 service squadrons and 95 reserve squadrons. Today the Army Council formally approved the expansion

Surprisingly or perhaps unsurprisingly given the current political machinations, the Air Board does not appear to have been consulted on this, despite the inevitable impact on the demand for additional aircraft and engines.

Naval operations: Mediterranean Sea

Vice-Admiral Gauchet succeeds Admiral Dartige du Fournet at Commander-in-Chief Mediterranean Fleet.

Kurt Hartwig, in U-32, torpedoes British freighter SS SAINT URSULA, 5,011 tons, travelling in ballast from Salonika to Newport News, south of Malta. His score is now 12 ships and 34,582 tons.

Naval operations: Netherlands

The Netherlands orders grain ships to only carry grain and to not mix cargo, in order to prevent them from being targeted by German submarines.

Naval operations: Norway

Norwegian trawler ORNEN, 107 tons, on a fishing trip out of Sulenhavet, hits a mine laid by an unknown ship. All 19 crew are lost with their ship.

Naval operations: Golfe du Lion

Italian barquentine AMODEA, 295 tons, carrying a load of staves from Vecchia to Seville, is wrecked off Toulon.

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The Great War (1914-1918) in real time Dec 13, 2021 3:50:43 GMT stevep likes this

Post by lordroel on Dec 13, 2021 3:50:43 GMT

Day 867 of the Great War, December 13th 1916

Western Front

Heavy bombardments on Somme front continue.

Romanian Campaign

Romanians again forced back from the Jalomitsa and the Ploeshti-Buzeu road.

Enemy advances towards Braila and Galatz.

Mesopotamia Campaign

British offensive on the Tigris; Sanna-i-Yat bombarded; British cross the Shatt-el-Hai and secure both banks.

United States

Photo: U.S.S. "SAMPSON," Hampton Roads, Virginia, Dec. 13, 1916

USS PENNSYLVANIA, the lead ship of her class commissioned at Hampton Roads.

Photo: PENNSYLVANIA in her original configuration, December 1916

Photo: USS BALTIMORE, Hampton Roads, (Virginia], Dec 13, 1916

Photo: USS Submarine K5, Hampton Roads, Dec. 13, 1916

Photo: The U.S. Navy submarine tender USS BUSHNELL (AS-2) at anchor in Hampton Roads, Virginia (USA), on 13 December 1916

Italian Front: Alpine Avalanches Kill Thousands

The front line between the Italians and Austrians stretched for hundreds of miles along their pre-war border. Although most of the large-scale action took place along the Isonzo and in South Tyrol, there were still bitter, hard-fought contests all along the border. As the Alps separated the two countries, this was a battle in harsh, mountainous terrain, the most rugged and unforgiving of the war.

Early December had seen massive snowfalls in the Dolomites, upwards of six feet in the last week. This was followed by a sudden thaw and a foehn wind drawing in warmer air from the Mediterranean. Combined with continual shelling from mountain guns, this resulted in the perfect conditions for avalanches. Chaplain Marin Metschik recalled:

I was in the company of my good friend Hercules in a shelter near the cliff…Around 5:30 AM, we heard the growling sound of an avalanche. It surprised our men in their sleep inside the huts on the slope of the Gran Poz. The cries of the injured made us realize that a drama had taken place. The first shelter we got to, that of our commander, Rudolf Schmid, the one directly against the cliff, was covered by a thick layer of pressed snow hard as concrete. It took seven hours to dig him out. Yet he was one of the lucky ones. Nothing was left of the huts of the 2nd Company, only a swathe of raw ice showed where the avalanche had passed its destructive way. The air pressure had turned another series of huts, just off the direct path of the monster avalanche, into a mass of splintered, crushed rubble that stuck from the mountains of snow mixed with lumps of ice and big rocks. We worked for four days, shoveling and digging, always in danger of more avalanches. We found only broken bones with blue faces. On the fourth day, we dug one last hole and ended up in a natural ice cave where seven soldiers had found refuge; one was dead, one was half frozen, but five were well. But they had lost all measure of time. One told me he thought that he had been under the snow for only twenty-four hours.

The avalanches did not spare the Italians, either. Lt. Tullion Minghetti recalled:

We were thirteen in a lean-to that housed the motor for our cablelift. As fortune had it, I found myself on the south side of the narrow hut, which was anchored by two steel cables in the solid rock of the precipice that dropped vertically into the Val Ciampi d’Arei. Suddenly, I felt a terrible pressure in my ears and I thought my head would burst. The candles went out. Next came a hellish crash which shook the hut and I clearly heard one anchor cable snap. “It’s all over, now we’re falling,” was my first thought. But we didn’t. Snow filled the room and my back was pushed against the wall. Air – I was frantic for air. I dug with my hands until they were raw, but I still managed to open a small passage. I managed to stick my head out when, to my shock, I discovered that half our our hut was missing, and it was dangling at a crazy angle over the abyss. Far below, where the monster avalanche had ended its devilish ride, I noticed a great mound of piled-up snow, the tomb of my company…

In a series of avalanches all across the front that day, 10,000 soldiers from both sides were killed.

Aerial operations: Goggle Mask Flying and fug boots

Up to this point in the war most flying officers have had to buy their own flying gear. This is not unusual for the time as most commissioned officers are expected to provide their own clothing.

Many of the famous outdoor clothing companies such as Burberry stepped into the breach to produce and develop suitable flying gear.

At the same time, many crew members have improvised solutions in the field particularly to deal with the intense cold as the aircraft get more powerful and can reach higher altitudes. Fur coats and fur lined boots are not uncommon. For example, Lanoe Hawker had designed his own “fug” boots and had them made at Harrods. Official versions of these known as “Boots, Thigh” have now started to appear.

Early in the war pilots typically wore motoring goggles such as the Triplex A3 model. However these do not have laminated glass, and are dangerous if broken.

The Triplex company subsequently produced an aircraft model of the goggles with laminated safety glass and fur lined frames for warmth called the Triplex AB Aero Mask. This has now been adopted as standard issue by the RFC and is known as the Goggle Mask Flying Mark I.

Naval operations: Scotland

Russian passenger ship KURSK, 7,869 tons, bound from Archangelsk for New York with a general cargo, hits a mine laid by Otto Dröscher in U-78, west of Skerryvore Rock. The damaged ship makes it safely to port.

Naval operations: North Sea

British destroyer HMS LANDRAILdrops two depth charges and sinks UB-29 (Erich Platsch) with all hands; east of Dover.

Naval operations: Skagerrak

Hugo Schmidt, commanding U-71, sinks Danish schooner SOLON, 137 tons, carrying a load of wood from Göteborg to Tyne.

Naval operations: Kattegat

Swedish freighter SS VALA, 2,129 tons, travelling in ballast from Malmö to Blyth, hits a mine laid by an unknown ship.

Naval operations: Alboran Sea

Max Valentiner, in U-38, sinks two ships off the east coast of Spain:
Italian freighter SS ANGELO PARODI, 3,825 tons, course and cargo unknown; off Cabo Tinoso.
Norwegian freighter SS KAUPANGER, 3,354 tons, carrying a load of coal from Cardiff to La Spezia; off Cartagena.
Valentiner's score is now 121 ships and 263,910 tons.

Naval operations: Mediterranean Sea

Hans von Mellenthin, in UB-43, sinks British freighter SS BRETWALDA, 4,037 tons, carrying a load of jute from Calcutta to Boulogne; 220 miles east of Malta. His score is now 11 ships and 50,046 tons.

Naval operations: Canary Islands

Heinrich Metzger, in U-47, sinks SS SALAMIS, which he had captured three days earlier.

Last Edit: Dec 13, 2021 3:51:14 GMT by lordroel

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The Great War (1914-1918) in real time Dec 14, 2021 3:49:51 GMT stevep and gillan1220 like this

Post by lordroel on Dec 14, 2021 3:49:51 GMT

Day 868 of the Great War, December 14th 1916

Western Front

Heavy reciprocal raiding near Ypres.

Romanian Campaign

Russians again in Carpathian struggle, and along Moldavian frontier.

Falkenhayn's forces enter Buzeu; Danube army over the Jalomitsa.

All Wallachia cleared of Allied troops south of Bucharest-Cerna Voda line.

Macedonian front

Fighting near Monastir.

Strong artillery action in Lake Doiran zone.

Mesopotamia Campaign: British Begin New Mesopotamia Offensive

After the British surrender at Kut in April, the British were understandably unenthusiastic about resuming offensive operations in Mesopotamia, the site of their biggest defeat in the war. General Robertson, Chief of the Imperial General Staff, proposed a withdrawal down the Tigris to Amarah. Although this was rejected by the War Committee, the new commander in the area, General Maude, was told that “no fresh advance on Baghdad can at present be contemplated” and that he should only “maintain as forward a position as the state of his communications will allow, and as can be made secure tactically without incurring heavy loss.”

Despite this, Maude still began planning for a new offensive up the Tigris. He had multiple reasons for optimism; he now had four divisions at his disposal and better supply capacity than had been available during the failed attempts to break the siege of Kut. The Turks, on the other hand, had received no reinforcements since Kut fell, and had had to deal with a new threat from Russian forces in Persia. Although they had beaten the Russians back over the summer, pushing into Persia as far as Hamadan by the end of August, this did disperse their forces.

On December 13, Maude opened his offensive with a diversionary attack on the Turkish lines at Sannaiyat. These had resisted repeated attacks during the Kut relief expedition, and unsurprisingly again repulsed the British, inflicting heavy casualties on them. The real advance came in the early hours of December 14, on the south side of the Tigris. The 13th Division (chosen, along with the day of the first attack, as it was Maude’s lucky number) moved largely unopposed to and across the Shatt al-Hayy, a waterway connecting the Tigris at Kut to the Euphrates at Nasiriyah. Meanwhile, aerial attacks dispersed the Turkish pontoon bridge across the Tigris, preventing Turkish reinforcements from crossing the river.

The men of the 13th Division could now see Kut across the Tigris, the town that had remained so elusive in early 1916. It was “a dilapidated looking village,” wrote one soldier. However, Actually capturing Kut and forcing the Turks out of their lines at Sannaiyat would require them to make a difficult crossing of the Tigris.

Naval operations: North Sea

British freighter SS BURNHOPE, 1,941 tons, bound from Hartlepool for London with a load of coal, hits a mine laid by Herbert Breyer in UC-32. This is Breyer's first sinking.

Naval operations: Skagerrak

Walter Roehr, in U-84, takes British freighter SS AAMOT, 1,362 tons, travelling from Skien to somewhere in the UK with a load of nitrate, as a prize. This is Roehr's first score.

Norwegian ketch LYN, 45 tons, carrying a load of quartz from Kragerø to Eydehavn, runs aground off Måkholmen.

Naval operations: Bay of Biscay

Wilhelm Kiel, in UC-18, attacks two ships near the Ile de Noirmoutier.
Portuguese freighter SS LECA, 1,911 tons, carrying 3,200 tons of coal from Cardiff to Saint Nazaire. Sunk with 14 rounds from the deck gun.
British freighter SS GLENCEO, 2,560 tons, travelling from Glasgow to Bordeaux with a load of coal. Attacked with the deck gun, finally sunk with a torpedo.
Kiel's score is now 17 ships and 16,037 tons.

Naval operations: Golfe du Lion

British passenger ship SS CALEDONIA, 7,572 tons, en route from Bombay to London, hits a mine laid by Ernst Krafft in U-72. The damaged ship makes it safely into Marseilles.

Naval operations: Mediterranean Sea

Hans von Mellenthin, in U-43, sinks two British freighters southeast of Malta:
SS RUSSIAN, 8,825 tons, travelling in ballast fro Salonika to Newport.
SS WESTMINSTER, 4,342 tons, also in ballast from Torre Annun

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The Great War (1914-1918) in real time Dec 15, 2021 3:47:04 GMT stevep and gillan1220 like this

Post by lordroel on Dec 15, 2021 3:47:04 GMT

Day 869 of the Great War, December 15th 1916

YouTube (The Mesopotamian Front Awakens - Joseph Joffre Gets Sacked)

Western Front: Last French Attack at Verdun (Largely) Recaptures Original Lines

Although the Germans had long since stopped actively threatening Verdun, the French continued to methodically attack the Germans and retake lost ground, often at great cost. In part, this was to ensure that the Germans would not threaten Verdun again next year, but largely it was for symbolic and political reasons. General Nivelle hoped that recapturing the areas lost in February would give France a much-needed victory, as well as furthering his own career. The latter, at least, certainly worked, as Nivelle had been tapped to essentially replace Joffre as overall commander on the Western Front. Before he left, however, he wanted one more success.

At 10 AM on December 15, the French launched an attack with four divisions (with four more in reserve), striking north from Fort Douaumont. They had a great superiority in artillery, and the demoralized German defenders were not willing to oppose the French vigorously. In the first day, the French took 3500 prisoners and advanced over two miles. By the 18th, when offensive operations ceased for the year, they had taken over 11,000 prisoners and had largely returned the front line east of the Meuse to where it had been before the battle began in February. This was not entirely true, of course, but the French claimed that they had for propaganda purposes; of course, this meant that they couldn’t claim so again next year when they actually did retake the original lines.

Nine months of nearly-constant warfare had killed around 150,000 men on each side, for no significant gains. Nivelle, however, was confident that the tactical lessons learned at Verdun would win the war in 1917. Leaving to assume command at GQG, he told his troops: “The experiment has been conclusive….I can assure you that victory is certain.”

Photo: French military photographers pose next to the wreck of a reconnaissance plane shot down over the new front lines on December 15

France: Robert Nivelle Replaces Joseph Joffre as French Commander-in-Chief

1916 had not been a good year for France. The initial defeats at Verdun, followed by the heavy casualties required to defend what remained there, had decreased confidence in Joffre’s handling of the war. Later in the year, the Somme offensive, conceived by Joffre, produced only marginal results for heavy French and British losses.

By early December, with the Somme offensive having failed and Romania having fallen, the French political scene was in crisis mode, with PM Briand’s majority in parliament diminishing daily. On December 13, Briand formed a new government, which survived a vote of confidence by only 30 votes. Joffre was convinced to accept the new post of “general-in-chief” and technical military advisor to the government. While this may have seemed to be a promotion, he quickly realized that he was essentially being removed from command.

This became obvious on December 14, when it was announced that General Nivelle would be assuming overall command of French forces on the Western Front. Nivelle had received much of the political credit for the successful French counteroffensive at Verdun in the fall, having especially impressed PM Briand. Nivelle had risen very quickly through the ranks during the war, having only been a colonel at the outset. His background was in the artillery, and he was convinced that his new artillery tactics, especially the creeping barrage, would result in the long-awaited victories on the Western Front.

This was not the only shakeup in French command around this time; Foch, long a Joffre loyalist, was replaced as commander of the Northern Army Group (on the Somme) by Franchet d’Esperey. Foch would be sent off on the relatively thankless job of coordinating with the Italians.

Joffre himself soon realized he had no authority, and resigned from his new sinecure on December 26, after receiving a final promotion to Marshal. He would mainly serve in diplomatic and ceremonial roles for the rest of the war.

Eastern Front

Enemy success on Tarnopol Railway, west of Lutsk.

Romanian Campaign

Romanian and Russians still resisting north of Buzeu, but retiring from Jalomitsa.

Strong Russian defence on Moldavian frontier.

Macedonian front

Enemy bombarding Monastir.

Fighting on the Struma; repulse of Bulgars.

Naval aeroplanes bomb Razlovci, 37 miles east of Istip (Serbia).

British warships shell enemy at head of Gulf of Orfano (south-west of Kavalla).

East African Campaign

In East Africa, fighting still proceeding round Kibata.

Aerial operations: Return to Kut

In Mesopotamia, the British forces began their long awaited offensive towards Kut on 13 December. The plan is to hold the enemy to the Sanniyat position while a surprise march is made on the right bank of the Tigris to secure a footing on the River Hai . The RFC carried out patrols to determine whether Turkish reinforcements were within thirty miles of Kut, and also to prevent enemy airmen from observing the British advance.

No enemy troops were spotted, but two Martinsyde Scouts, which had been held back to attack enemy aeroplanes were called into action. A German aeroplane which approached the front was attacked at close range and damaged, before rapidly retreating to its aerodrome.

At 6am yesterday the Hai was crossed without opposition at two points. Three aircraft attempted to bomb the bridge of boats which spanned the Tigris at Shumran but failed.

30 Squadron carried out a series of contact patrols to keep GHQ informed of progress, helped by a preplanned system of signals of white calico, with numbers to indicate the identity of the brigade or battalion,

Overnight Captain Justin Howard Herring, was making a moonlight reconnaissance to look for Turkish troop movements when he spotted that the bridge of boats, which had spanned the Tigris east of Shumran, had been dismantled and was being towed upstream in sections. Captain Herring, attacked the towing steamer and the boats with eight bombs and twice returned to his base for another 16 bombs. He disrupted the line of boats that they were out of control for six hours, and cut enemy communications between his forces on the left and right banks of the river all day.

At dawn this morning, the RFC carried out additional air reconnaissances to check the location of the Turkish forces. On receipt of the air reports, which showed that there was little movement but that the enemy was in some strength south of the Shumran Bend, Major-General Maude in command of British forces, issued his orders for operations to begin at 0900.

Naval operations: Celtic Sea

Wilhelm Amberger, commanding UB-38, stops British sailing ship NAIAD, 1,907 tons, bound from London for Buenos Aires with a load of cement and pipes. Amberger's score is now 3 ships and 3,046 tons.

Naval operations: English Channel

Ralph Wenninger, in UC-17, scuttles British schooner CONSTANCE MARY, travelling from Caen to Swansea with a load of iron ore. His score is now 25 ships and 12,339 tons.

Naval operations: North Sea

Ulrich Meier, in UB-17, starts his career with the capture of Norwegian coaster SS BIRGIT, 316 tons, off the Dutch coast near Hoofden.

Naval operations: Bay of Biscay

Wilhelm Kiel, in UC-18, sinks Norwegian freighter SS ROGN, 1,028 tons, en route from Liverpool to Nantes with a load of coal and machinery, off the Isle of Groix. His score is now 18 ships and 17,065 tons.

Naval operations: Mediterranean Sea

Max Valentiner, in U-38, sinks Italian freighter EMMANUELE ACAME, 3,242 tons, carrying a load of wheat from Baltimore to Messina off Cape Bengut, near Algiers. His score is now 122 ships and 267,152 tons.

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The Great War (1914-1918) in real time Dec 16, 2021 3:47:19 GMT stevep likes this

Post by lordroel on Dec 16, 2021 3:47:19 GMT

Day 870 of the Great War, December 16th 1916

Western Front

French take Bezonvaux and Hardaumont. 11,000 prisoners and much war material captured.

Creation of the Portuguese Expeditionary Corps to serve in France alongside the rest of the Allies is announced.

Photo: Unidentified men of the 5th Division partaking in cigarettes and resting by the side of the Montauban road, near Mametz, while en route to the trenches. Most of the men are wearing sheepskin jackets and woollen gloves and are carrying full kit and .303 Lee Enfield rifles

Eastern Front

Russian positions between Kovel and Lutsk captured.

Romanian Campaign

Romanian front enemy continues advance east and north-east.

In the Dobruja, Russians retire northwards.

Macedonian front

Greece: Military evacuation of northern Greece begun under supervision of Allies.

Photo: Regimental war flag presentation to the Serres Division by Panagiotis Danglis, Eleftherios Venizelos, and Pavlos Kountouriotis

Mesopotamian campaign

Continued bombardment of enemy positions near Kut.

Arab Revolt

British Government recognizes "King of the Arabs" as King of the Hejaz.

Anglo-Egyptian Darfur Expedition

General Cunliffe's Nigerian brigade reaches Dar-es-Salaam.

Austria-Hungary

Photo: visit of Kaiser Karl in Ober Drauburg

Mexican Border War: Pancho Villa Offers Peace

Offers of peace were the trend in December 1916 as Pancho Villa took a cue from the Germans and proposed peace to the US military. The emissary came by word of John J. Hawes, a slick American businessman who claimed to represent the revolutionary Mexican warlord. In exchange for the end of the US Army’s Mexican manhunt, Villa proposed (accord to Hawes) to leave foreigners in Mexico alone. Villa’s cynical olive branch met with the same fate as the German one, and the American military continued its (equally fruitless) Mexican expedition.

Aerial operations: Some knowledge of Operational Activities

Following on from the changes in observer training announced on 14 December, the RFC has also made some changes the regulations on pilot training issued in March 1916, to try and improve the survival rate of new pilots arriving at the front. In order to qualify for their wings, pilots will now have to meet new standards aimed at both increasing flying time and improving knowledge of operational procedures and techniques.

First of all the minimum hours solo flying has been increased from 15 to 20 and at least 28 for those being allocated specific aircraft such as Moranes and Sopwiths. In addition, this must include at least 5 hours on the type of aircraft which the pilot will be flying at the front (eight for the Moranes and Sopwiths).

In a belated recognition that pilots arriving at the front ought to have some knowledge of actual operational activities, pilots are also now required to pass auxiliary tests in gunnery, artillery observation, bomb-dropping, and photography.

That said, This is required regardless of the unit they will be working in. This is in contrast to the German approach which has been to handpick and specially train pilots specifically for fighter squadrons.

Naval operations: Bay of Biscay

Alfred Saalwächter begins his career in U-46 with the sinking of two Allied ships and the capture of a third:
Danish freighter SS CHASSIE MAERSK, 1,387 tons, bound from Barry for Lisbon with a load of coal.
Japanese freighter TAKI MARU, 3,208 tons, travelling from Cardiff to Livorno with an unspecified cargo.
Danish freighter SS GERDA, 775 tons, carrying a general cargo from Seville to London. Gerda is kept to carry the crews of the other two ships.
Saalwächter's opening score is 2 ships and 4,595 tons.

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The Great War (1914-1918) in real time Dec 17, 2021 9:06:06 GMT stevep likes this

Post by lordroel on Dec 17, 2021 9:06:06 GMT

Day 871 of the Great War, December 17th 1916

Western Front

German counter-attack near Verdun; they recover Les Chambrettes.

Eastern Front

Fighting continues in the Tarnopol region.

Romanian Campaign

Romanians and Russians continue to fall back.

Mesopotamian campaign

Strong enemy cavalry attacks checked south of Falahiya (Kut).

East African campaign

Fighting at Kibata continues.

Kaocen revolt: Tuareg Besiege French in Niger

Although the Senussi invasion of Egypt had been defeated, they still were essentially unmolested in Libya, as the Italians did not have the resources to defeat them and fight Austria simultaneously. To prevent the situation from growing worse the Italians requested that the French halt all caravan activity from their colonies, which they reluctantly agreed to. Unfortunately, this just made the residents of their colonies angry, especially the nomadic Tuareg in the southern Sahara, many of whom had never recognized French rule in the first place.

In December 1916, one of the leaders of the Aïr Tuareg, Mohammed ben Khaosan, with support from the Senussi and Turkish and German advisers, moved south from Libya into Niger. On December 17, he and 1200 men, armed with captured Italian artillery and machine guns, besieged the city of Agades [Agadez], the capital of Aïr. The French defenders numbered only 90 and had no artillery, as well as over a hundred civilians to provide for.

The move threatened French control of the Sahara, and at the time they had no way to break the siege. French forces in West Africa were busy handling rebellions there, caused by increased French recruitment for African troops to serve in Europe.

Aerial operations: Jasta Boelcke

The weather on the Western Front has curtailed flying almost completely. The Germans took the time to make an important announcement.

Jasta 2, formerly commanded by Hauptmann Oswald Boelcke who was killed on 28 October 1916, has been renamed.

In honour of their former commander, the unit has been renamed Jasta Boelcke.

Oberleutnant Stefan Kirmaier took brief control following Boelcke’s death but was killed under a month later on 22 November.

Following Kirmaier’s death, Hauptmann Franz Walz transferred over from Jasta 29 and is now in command.

Naval operations: Celtic Sea

Wilhelm Amberger, commanding UB-38, captures and then torpedoes Spanish freighter SS ASON, 2,083 tons, bound from Santander for Glasgow with a load of copper ore. His score is now 4 ships and 5,084 tons.

Naval operations: English Channel

Otto Wünsche, in U-70, sinks British freighter SS PASCAL, 5,587 tons, en route from Halifax to Cherbourg with an unspecicified. His score is now 28 ships and 34,474 tons.

Ralph Wenninger, in UC-17, scuttles French schooner ALERTE, 176 tons, carrying a load of asphalt from Morlaix to Tréport. His score is now 26 vessels and 12,515 tons.

British drifter MARGERAT, 54 tons, hits a mine laid by Reinhold Saltzwedel in UC-21. His score is now 24 ships and 27,181 tons.

Naval operations: North Sea

British trawler ATHOLE, 112 tons, is fishing in a prohibited area off Tod Head when it hits a British mine.

Hugo Schmidt, in U-71, sinks Norwegian freighter SS SJOFNA, 528 tons, travelling from Arendal to West Hartlepool with a load of pit props. His score is now 6 ships and 5,419 tons.

Bruno Hoppe, in U-83, stops and scuttles Swedish barquentine NIORD, 123 tons, carrying a load of pit props from Kristiania to West Hartlepool. His score is now 11 ships and 23,915 tons.

Danish freighter SS MICHAIL ONTCHOUKOFF, 2,118 tons, carrying a load of maize from Rosario to Aarhus, hits a mine laid by Benno von Ditfurth in UC-11. Von Ditfurth now has 4 ships and 6,160 tons.

Naval operations: Bay of Biscay

Alfred Saalwächter, in U-46, sinks British freighter SS BAYHALL, 3,898 tons, carrying a load of sugar from Port Louis, Mauritius to Bordeaux, off Cape Ortegal. The crew are transferred to SS Gerda, captured the day before. Saalwächter's score is now 3 ships and 8,493 tons.

Wilhelm Kiel, in UC-18, sinks 5 ships:
Portuguese freighter SS CCASCAIS, 835 tons, bound from La Pallice for Boucau; torpedoed of the Ile d'Oleron.
French fishing vessel PROSPER LEON, 42 tons; scuttled off Ile d'Oleron.
French schooner IMMACULEE CONCEPTION, 246 tons; scuttled off La Coubre lighthouse.
French schooner SAINT YVES, 325 tons, travelling in ballast from Bordeaux to Saint Malo; scuttled off La Coubre lighthouse.
Norwegian freighter SS PRIMA, 1,233 tons, carrying a load of coal from Port Talbot to Bordeaux; scuttled off La Coubre lighthouse.

Naval operations: Tyrrhenian Sea

Max Valentiner, in U-38, sinks Italian sailing vessel TRIPOLI, 56 tons, off Cape Carbonara, Sicily, raisiing his score to 123 ships and 267,208 tons.

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The Great War (1914-1918) in real time Dec 18, 2021 8:01:46 GMT stevep likes this

Post by lordroel on Dec 18, 2021 8:01:46 GMT

Day 872 of the Great War, December 18th 1916

Western Front: The Battle of Verdun Ends

Nine months, three weeks, and six days after it began, the Battle of Verdun ended. General Falkenhayn’s master plan to bleed France dry had cost both nations horribly. Between 350,000 to 540,000 Frenchmen fell at Verdun, with at least 150,000 of them dead. The Germans had been sucked into the meat-grinder just as much: they lost 450,000 men in the battle. It was one of the costliest battles in human history.

Had there been a winner after such carnage? British historian Alistair Horne writes that “Neither side ‘won’ at Verdun. It was the indecisive battle in an indecisive war; the unnecessary battle in an unnecessary war; the battle that had no victors in a war that had no victors.” Published in the 60s, Horne wrote against the backdrop of an anti-military mood in academia. Today it is harder to discount that Verdun was a French victory: it had resisted Germany’s great plan to knock it out of the war. The word “Verdun” to this day conjures up in an image of military sacrifice and courage that can never be rivaled. Yet some scars never fade. Just as the Verdun battlefield remains littered with craters and rubble, and infested with unexplored bombs, the post-war French psyche had been traumatized by its national experience. In 1940, many French people could not stomach the idea of another Verdun.

Eastern Front

Russian position between Kovel and Lutsk restored.

Romanian Campaign

Romanians and Russians retreat towards Sereth line.

Braila and Galatz threatened.

Mesopotamian campaign

British move round Sanna-i-Yat and reach Tigris above Kut, severing enemy's lateral communications and commanding river upstream of Khadairi Bend.

United States: Wilson Attempts to Elicit Peace Feelers

With his re-election secure, President Wilson could once more turn his thoughts to Europe, where he hoped, as a powerful neutral actor, to be able to arrange peace on the continent. Hoping for some sign that the Allies were willing to negotiate, he waited several weeks; in the meantime, the Germans made their own peace offer, after a fashion.

On December 18, Wilson issued his note to the belligerent powers. He announced himself as “the friend of all nations engaged in the present struggle.” In order to aid further negotiations, he asked all of the powers for a statement of their war aims, and hoped after that to bring them to the negotiating table–though he pointedly did not offer to serve as a mediator. He stated that future peace could be secured by “the formation of a league of nations to insure peace and justice throughout the world.”

He made his neutrality quite clear, dismissing the grand language that the Allies often used to describe their cause: “The objects which the statesmen of the belligerents on both sides have in mind in this war are virtually the same, as stated in general terms to their own peoples and the world.” This line struck a nerve with many Allied leaders, even leaving King George in tears.

Although high-minded, Wilson’s note served to exasperate many, even in his own government. The State Department and even Col. House opposed the move, and tried to downplay its importance in their own discussions with European leaders. Allied governments were annoyed with the move, while the German government, with its own peace initiative, was divided. Only the neutral countries, eager for an end to the war at this point, were truly receptive.

Aerial operations: Minister for the Air?

Today in Parliament the New MInisters and Secretaries Bill was introduced as a means of giving parliamentary approval to changes in the new Government.

Clause 7 of the Bill makes provision for the appointment of additional under secretaries to the War Office, Foreign Office, and Board of Trade to deal with issues such as the blockade of Germany

The Clause, also provides that His Majesty may appoint a Parliamentary Secretary to any special authority or Board constituted in connection with the supply of aircraft for the present War – in other words the Air Board. This is not quite the Air Minister that so many have been demanding but may may provide some of the answers. The Home Secretary had this ti say about the relationship between the Air Board and the two fighting ministries – the War Office and the Admiralty:

“…I want to make this observation about the Air Board. We propose by the Bill to appoint a Parliamentary Secretary to that Board. The Government desire to go somewhat further than that. This matter is, of course, of great and pressing importance, and I think many of us would desire to have a decision as to the position which the Air Board is to take. I am authorised by the Prime Minister to say: In the pressure of work involved in the formation of the Government, it has not been possible to decide to-day all matters connected with the Air Board. The work of President is still being carried on temporarily by Lord Curzon, and the Government have satisfied themselves that the service is not suffering in the interim. But I am glad to be able to say that the two fighting Departments (the War Office and the Admiralty) have arranged to utilise to the full the services of the Air Board, and I hope in the Committee stage to be able to introduce Amendments to give effect to that decision.”

Naval operations: Irish Sea

Alfred von Glasenapp, commanding U-80, sinks British freighter SS OPAL, 599 tons, bound from Llanulas for Belfast and Glasgow with a load of limestone, off the Isle of Man. His score is now 2 ships and 4,877 tons.

Naval operations: English Channel

Otto Wünsche, in U-70, stops and scuttles 3 ships north of Ushant:
French brig EUGENE GASTON, 184 tons, travelling from Vannes to Swansea with a load of pit props.
French schooner HIRONDELLE, 148 tons, carrying a load of coal from Britton Ferry to Nantes.
British freighter SS FLIMSTON, 5,751 tons, en route from Buenos Aires to London with a load of maize.
Wünsche's score is now 31 ships and 40,557 tons.

Ralph Wenninger, in UC-17, captures and scuttles 3 French schooners near the west end of the Channel:
Maria Louis, 108 tons, bound from Vannes for Cardiff with a load of pit props.
Quo Vadis, 110 tons, carrying a load of coal from Swansea to Mortagne sur Gironde.
Vague (or Le Vague), 167 tons, route and cargo unknown.
Wenninger's score is now 29 vessels and 12,900 tons.

Naval operations: North Sea

Hugo Schmidt, in U-71, sinks 2 ships:
Norwegian freighter SS HERO, 1,106 tons, travelling from Fredrikstad to London with a load of timber.
Dutch sailing vessel SS SIEKA, 119 tons, carrying a load of pit props from Christiana to West Hartlepool.
Schmidt's score is now 8 ships and 6,644 tons.
This is Schmidt's last sinking. He will command U-97 from May until October 1917, stay in the navy after the war, be promoted to Korvettenkapitän in 1924 and Fregattenkapitän in 1929, and live until 1964.

Walter Roehr, in U-84, sinks Swedish freighter SS MALCOM, 2,100 tons, bound from Sandesund for Grimsby with a load of pit props. His score is now 2 ships and 3,562 tons.

Theodor Schultz, in UB-34, scuttles British trawler Arran, 176 tons, raising his score to 5 vessels and 2,468 tons.

Naval operations: Gulf of Finland

Russian freighter SS BUKI, 3,879 tons, hits a mine laid by Karl Vesper in UC-27 near the island of Naissar (German Nargen). His score is now 5 ships and 11,504 tons.

Naval operations: Bay of Biscay

American freighter SS KANSAN, 7,913 tons, carrying horses and a general cargo from Boston to Saint Nazaire, hits a mine laid by Wilhelm Kiel in UC-18 off Saint Nazaire. The damaged ship makes port safely.

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The Great War (1914-1918) in real time Dec 19, 2021 8:04:22 GMT stevep likes this

Post by lordroel on Dec 19, 2021 8:04:22 GMT

Day 873 of the Great War, December 19th 1916

Eastern Front

Enemy's advance from the west checked 30 miles from Braila.

Russians in the Dobruja fall back towards Braila.

United States

U.S. War Department orders 4000 Vickers machine guns for the cost of $5.5 million ($121 million today).

United Kingdom

Mr. Lloyd George's first speech as Premier on Government control of Shipping, National Service, etc.

Lloyd George rejects German peace offer, stating there will be no peace until Germany atones for wrongs and ceases to be a menace.

British Government prepared to recognise agents of Venizelist (National) Government.

Greece: Allies Recognize Legitimacy of Venizelos’ Greek Government

Since the Noemvriana, the fractures both within Greek society and between the Greek government and the Allies had become increasingly evident. Coming after the arrests of his leading supporters, a warrant was issued for Venizelos himself on the charge of high treason on December 17. The Allies began a blockade of Greece, and landed troops on the islands of the Cyclades. On December 14, they issued a threatening ultimatum, demanding that Greece stop sending men and materiel north to Thessaly (on the southern flank of the Allied army in Macedonia), which the Greek government quickly accepted. There was no sign that the blockade would be swiftly lifted, however, until restitution was made for the attacks on Allied soldiers in Athens, and believable assurances were made that there would be no similar incidents in the future.

On December 19, the British and French formally recognized Venizelos’ government in Salonika. However, they did not completely cut ties with the government in Athens, as they maintained their embassies and continued negotiations with the government there. Although they had lost all patience with King Constantine, the Allies decidedly did not want to get involved in a civil war in Greece, making sure that Thessaly remained free of Venizelos’ forces, as well.

United Kingdom/Austria-Hungary relations

British safe conduct granted to Austria-Hungary Ambassador (Count Tarnowski) from U.S.A.

Aerial operations: Relatively quiet on the Western Front

Poor weather has curtailed most flying for the last couple of days. A few aircraft got up today on observation patrols.

2nd Lieutenant William Kerr Magill Britton from 29 Squadron RFC was up on patrol over In his DH2 (A2614) when he was set upon by an enemy aircraft. He was shot up but managed to give them the slip and got back to his aerodrome.

Naval operations: Irish Sea

British freighter SS LIVERPOOL, 686 tons, bound from Liverpool for Sligo eith a general cargo, hits a mine laid by Alfred von Glasenapp in U-80. His score is now 3 ships and 5,563 tons.

Naval operations: English Channel

Wilhelm Amberger, commanding UB-38, scuttles French schooner OCEAN, 339 tons, off Ushant. His score is now 5 ships and 5,423 tons.

Naval operations: North Sea

Raimund Weisbach, in U-81, sinks Norwegian freighter SS NAYSTRAND, 1,397 tons, travelling from Uddevalla to Hartlepool with a load of pit props. His score is now 8 ships and 21,854 tons.

Theodor Schultz, in UB-34, sinks two ships and captures a third:
Norwegian sailing ship ANSGER, 926 tons, en route from Kambo to West Hartlepool with a load of pit props; sunk.
Norwegian barque KORNMO, 591 tons, carrying a load of pit props from Langesund to Middlesbrough; sunk.
Danish freighter SS BRETLAND, 1,229 tons, is taken as a prize, but later released by the prize court.
Schultz's score is now 7 ships and 3,985 tons.

Naval operations: Spain

Alfred Saalwächter, in U-46, sinks Norwegian freighter SS falk, 948 tons, carrying a load of coal from Cardiff to Oporto, off Cabo Fisterra (Cape Finisterre). The crew are transferred to SS gerda. Later in the day the captured crews are all landed ashore and gerda, captured on the 16th, is scuttled. Saalwächter's score is now 5 ships and 10,216 tons.

Naval operations: Alboran Sea

Heinrich Metzger, in U-47, sinks Norwegian freighter SS sno, 1,823 tons, en route from Cardif to Oran with a load of coal. His score is now 7 ships and 14,435 tons.

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The Great War (1914-1918) in real time Dec 20, 2021 3:52:55 GMT

Post by lordroel on Dec 20, 2021 3:52:55 GMT

Day 874 of the Great War, December 20th 1916

Eastern Front

Severe fighting west of Brody (Galicia).

German advance on Braila.

Macedonian front

Fierce local encounters Cherna bend (Monastir).

Sinai and Palestine campaign

Turks evacuate El Arish (northern Sinai) and fall back 20 miles south-east of Magdhaba.

East Africa campaign

Germans retire from Nangadi (East Africa).

Mesopotamian campaign: British Fail In Attempt to Cross the Tigris

The new British advance in Mesopotamia had by now progressed well beyond Kut on the south bank of the Tigris. On the north bank, however, the Turkish position at Sannaiyat was still as strong as ever. This mismatch gave the British an opportunity; if they could cross the river, they could cut off the bulk of the Turkish forces in the area. General Maude ordered a crossing for December 20 by two brigades, but with only one day’s notice, hoping to achieve complete surprise. The hasty nature of the operation has led many, including Maude’s subordinates, to wonder whether he actually expected it to work, or whether it he viewed it as a feint or a longshot gamble. One would even tell Maude that “you didn’t really mean them to cross.”

The short notice meant that there was no adequate engineering reconnaissance of the river in the area, and the bridging detail had great difficulty getting to the area in time. Ultimately, the effort to cross the river did not work at all, and the British suffered 54 casualties in the process. One upside of the complete failure of the operation is that the Turks dismissed a river crossing as a threat to their positions on the north bank, with many on both sides saying that “none but a fool would attempt it.”

Photo: A later, successfully constructed bridge across the Tigris, four miles downstream of the attempt on December 20. The Tigris posed a formidable barrier to the British

Aerial operations: Close to the front

On the days when flying has been possible this month, German pilots have been unusually active and aggressive and have been engaging British pilots over the front, rather than behind the lines.

Today, 29 Squadron was on the end of this new approach when they were jumped by 5 Albatrosses from Jasta 2 led by Manfred Von Richthofen. Captain Arthur George Knight DSO MC was shot dead and his DH2 (7927) was seen going down in a spinning nosedive east of Adinfer Wood. Knight had been under attack when Oswald Boelcke was killed back in October

2nd Lieutenants OMC Ball in DH2 (A5228) and Arthur Norman Benge in DH2 (5956) were both forced down damaged but got back to their aerodrome. HB Hurst suffered the same fate but crashed on landing back at the aerodrome in his DH2 (A2552).

18 Squadron, in their FE2b’s also suffered a beating losing three aircraft from a patrol. 2nd Lieutenant Lionel George D’Arcy and Sub Lieutenant Reginald Cuthbert Whiteside in A5446 Were last seen recrossing the lines over Le Transloy. They were later reported shot down and killed. Lieutenant Reginald Smith and 2nd Lieutenant Herbert Guy Ffiske in 4884 were shot down in flames by two enemy aircraft. Both were killed. Lieutenants CYril Hugh Windrum and John Augustus Hollis in A5452 Were hit in the engine and forced to land behind enemy lines near Gommecourt. They were both taken prisoner.

Naval operations: North Sea

Theordo Schultz, in UB-34, sinks two Allied ships off Hartlepool:
Danish schooner EVA, 109 tons, travelling from Frederiksvaerk to West Hartlepool with a load of timber.
Swedish freighter SS MEREDDIO, 1,372 tons, carrying a load of timber from Norrsundet to Bulougne.
Schultz's score is now 9 ships and 5,466 tons.

British freighter SS HILLDAWELL, 2,494 tons, bound from Bilbao for Middlesbrough, hits a mine laid by Herbert Breyer in UC-32 off Sunderland. His score is now 2 ships and 4,435 tons.

Norwegian freighter SS MAURANGER, 1,024 tons, departs Pomaron for Goole and is not heard from again. Sixteen lives lost.

Naval operations: Bay of Biscay

Ralph Wenninger, in UC-17, sinks two French fishing vessels:
Trawler OTARIE II, 109 tons, on a fishing trip; shelled with deck gun off the moouth of the Gironde River.
Fishing vessel SAINT ANTOINE DE PADOUE, 32 tons, sunk off Bordeaux.
Wenninger's score is now 31 ships and 13,041 tons.

Naval operations: Mediterranean Sea

Max Valentiner, in U-38, sinks British freighter SS ITONUS, 5,340 tons, carrying a load of tiles from Marseille to Sydney; west of Malta. The ship's master is taken prisoner. Valentiner's score is now 124 ships and 272,548 tons.

Naval operations: Simonstown, South Africa

After 32 days of cleaning, painting and repairs, light cruiser HMS HYACINTH enters drydock.

Naval operations: Atlantic Ocean

German raider MOWE stops and scuttles French barque NANTES, 2,785 tons, en route from Iquique to London with 3,350 tons of saltpeter.

Last Edit: Dec 21, 2021 15:01:56 GMT by lordroel

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