Court of Justice of the Government-General of Brussels.
Present:
Dr. IVERS, Justice of Martial Law.
Secretary, REISENER.
NOYON, _September 27th, 1914_.
The General commanding IX. Reserve Army Corps, General of Infantry v.
Boehn, declared:
As to Person: My name is Max von Boehn, aged 66: Protestant.
It was made known to the witness that the Governor-General
Field-Marshal General Baron von der Goltz had ordered an inquiry by the
Court in order to establish whether a punishable offence in connection
with the burning of Louvain could be charged to the account of German
military persons, and, if so, to which persons; he states as follows:
As to Case: When the first échelon of the General Command entered
Louvain on August 25th, the orders received were first briefly talked
over, and the report to the Army Headquarters, dealing with the time
of arrival of the troops of the 9th Reserve Corps, was prepared. The
detraining had not yet been terminated when the report was received
from the 18th Reserve Division that the enemy was advancing to
the attack against Bueken, along the road Malines-Louvain. I went
immediately by motor to the battlefield with the Chief and a part of
the Staff. Here the action was principally sustained by the 18th
Reserve Division. Our losses were only small. While the different
portions of the 18th Reserve Division were advancing, the hussars and
one part of the infantry were furiously fired upon by the inhabitants
in Herent, as well as from the windows of the houses south of Bueken.
They lost heavily. People caught firing were shot and their houses set
on fire.
When I was on the point of returning to Louvain at midnight with the
officers of my Staff, I was warned by the 17th Landwehr Brigade, which
was resting to the north of the town, not to enter it, as infantry fire
had been heard there. But, as it was necessary for the whole Staff to
be in Louvain, I drove in my motor into the town, where we were very
soon fired upon. I ordered the above-mentioned Landwehr Brigade to
enter Louvain, and went with portions of it to the town hall, where
the Mayor and other hostages were arrested. Under the protection of a
detachment of infantry they were instructed to announce that if the
firing out of houses continued, the hostages would be shot and the
place set on fire by the artillery. It now also came to my knowledge
that the first échelon of the Staff, after having entered the town,
and being drawn up in the market-place, was suddenly assailed by a
murderous fire from the surrounding houses.
The officers and men present, of course, returned the fire;
nevertheless, apart from other officers, Captains of Cavalry v.
Harnier and v. Esmarch, Captain v. Raven, 1st Lieutenant v. Oertzen,
Lieutenant Risler, as well as several men, were wounded or killed.
Nearly all the saddle-horses were killed or wounded, or had stampeded
and could not be recaptured. The total loss of the Staff in dead,
wounded, and missing amounts to 5 officers, 2 officials, 23 men, and
95 horses fully harnessed. Different houses in the proximity of the
market-place had thereupon been set on fire. Shots had also been fired
out of the hotel into which the hand-baggage of the Staff had already
been taken. I therefore decided to move with the General Command to the
station, and to remain there. The station had to be held, as transport
trains were arriving at intervals of an hour. First of all, fresh
horses were put into the waggons, and the Staff was rearranged. Owing
to the foresight of the Commander of the Ammunition Column, Colonel
Stubenrauch, assisted by the 1st Adjutant, Captain v. Kretschmann,
the Staff was successfully reformed during the night in spite of the
greatest difficulties, and held in readiness at the station. A portion
of the Landwehr Brigade also remained here and one company of Infantry
Regiment No. 163, in order to guard the further unloading of trains
during the night. The heavy baggage of Reserve Regiment of Hussars No.
6 was fired on when moving out of the cavalry barracks, and was forced
to return. When, in the evening, the regiment of hussars had returned
to the barracks, shots were fired into the buildings from all the
surrounding houses. Peace was only restored when all the houses had
been set on fire and the inhabitants shot, in so far as they were found
with arms in their possession. Numerous explosions of stored cartridges
and explosives proved that the attack had been carefully planned and
prepared. The next morning the regiment of hussars was able to leave
the barracks without any losses, but a patrol of the 1st Squadron
in Rotselaer was fired on suddenly by about 50 civilians, and, as a
result, 2 hussars were wounded and 1 horse killed.
Whenever bodies of troops showed themselves in the town they were fired
at. Towards midnight an especially lively fire was suddenly directed
from the roofs of the houses opposite the station upon the troops and
the General Command encamped there. The proclamation of the Mayor
had consequently been fruitless. Therefore there was nothing else to
be done but to have the civilians found firing from the windows, of
whom several were discovered to be soldiers in disguise, shot, and
the houses set on fire. In spite of those measures, the troops of the
Reserve Corps, who had been fired at from all sides when coming into
the station, were obliged to fight when marching through the town on
the forenoon of the following day, and sustained some losses. On the
morning of August 25th I went with the officers of the Staff to the
field of battle. We were also fired at when driving out. The second
échelon of the Staff remained behind, as well as Staff Officer Captain
Albrecht, to whom I gave orders to collect the arms in the town. For
the execution of this order, the 2nd Battalion of Infantry Reserve
Regiment No. 75 and a company of Infantry Reserve Regiment No. 163
were placed at his disposal. A threat was made that, in the event
of a continuation of the attacks by the citizens, the town would be
bombarded. On Wednesday forenoon the fighting recommenced with renewed
violence. A systematic disarming of the town became impossible, also
the collection of a fine of twenty million francs levied on the town.
According to the statement of Captain Albrecht, he was obliged to
assemble the whole garrison at the station, in order to hold it under
any circumstances for the coming reinforcements. He was especially
menaced from the houses situated to the east, and from a factory which
had been prepared for defence, and had therefore to be levelled to the
ground. But even from the remaining outer walls, which had escaped
destruction, the fire was reopened. The occupants who had fled into
the cellars procured ladders, from which they renewed the firing.
Several armed persons, remarkable because of their robust and still
comparatively young appearance, were discovered in the trees of the
Boulevard and arrested. Many of them were ascertained to be soldiers
in disguise by their identification discs and parts of their uniform
they were wearing underneath the civilian clothes. Numerous and violent
explosions resounded from the burning houses, due to explosives and
cartridges stored there. On the following day also the troops were
continually fired upon. Captain Albrecht had the people once more
exhorted by two priests to keep the peace, but this attempt also was in
vain. As the revolt again extended a detachment of artillery was sent
into the town on August 27th, and several houses were destroyed. This
detachment of artillery was put at the disposal of Lieutenant-Colonel
Schweder, Commander of the Landsturm Battalion Neuss. On August 28th,
2nd Infantry Reserve Battalion, Regiment No. 75, was replaced by
Landwehr Regiment No. 53, and the detachment of artillery was replaced
by a Landsturm battery. On the same day a detachment of pioneers made
a breach in the convent, situated at the exit leading to Herent, from
which building the military road was fired upon with special intensity.
In spite of these measures, the firing upon columns and troops
continued without interruption until August 28th.
After the preceding evidence, His Excellency v. Boehn also gave the
following legal opinion about the burning down of Louvain before Dr.
Ivers, Councillor of the War-Field Court of Justice, leading the
inquiry:
The progress and the fury of these fights already prove that we are
here dealing with a planned organisation. It is proved beyond doubt by
the following facts:
1. In a church in Louvain 300 rifles were found, and in Herent numerous
rifles, pistols, and a great quantity of ammunition were discovered by
the 18th Division.
2. A large number of the civilians, who took part in the rising and
were shot, were ascertained to be soldiers.
3. In the haversacks of fallen soldiers civilian clothes, especially
garments of priests, were found. The priests themselves led and incited
the population. In Bueken, for instance, the signal to fire was given
by the priest leaving the church. In spite of his assurance that no
armed men were in the church, five were caught. They fired from the
roof of the church. All these people were shot.
Acting-Sergeant-Major Predöhl, Reserve Regiment of Hussars No. 6,
reported that he was fired at by twelve priests while on patrol duty.
After they had been arrested with the help of the field-battery column
of the III. Reserve Corps, which was close by, they were taken to
the III. Reserve Corps to be tried, but they were liberated by the
court-martial, as it could not be proved who had fired. These people
had identification discs and wore military boots and under-garments.
4. During the fights a uniform was often found close to the empty
haversack, but no corpse; the owner had no doubt disappeared in
civilian dress.
5. Amongst those persons caught red-handed and shot immediately were
quite a number in very disarranged workmen's clothes. By their delicate
hands, their exceptionally fine and superior underclothes, one could
recognise with certainty that the garb of a workman was not their
usual one. Inhabitants of the place declared they did not know these
people and had never seen them there before. The Garde Civique formed
the nucleus of these bands of francs-tireurs, at the head of which was
evidently the Commandant of Louvain, whose baggage was taken as booty
to the Hôtel Métropole. It is obvious how easy it is for bodies like
the Garde Civique, who usually wear civilian clothing, to continue to
wear it or put it on again, as best suits their purpose. Louvain was
obviously the centre of this organisation, which was most effectively
made use of here because the Commandant was on the spot.
The sortie from Antwerp on August 25th was evidently the signal for the
commencement of activities.
Consequently the whole population had to be removed from the district;
to as large an extent as possible they were taken as prisoners to
Germany. For as Antwerp is not completely shut off, they could always
rise again, and would do it with the courage of despair. Their removal
to Antwerp would therefore be no real remedy.
Read over, approved, signed.
Signed: VON BOEHN.
The witness was then sworn. Apart from that, he had taken the oath on
his opinion given in to-day's report of the proceedings.
Proceedings closed.
Signed: Dr. IVERS. Signed: REISENER.