A SUMMER OF SLAUGHTER
_Submarine Activities--Horrors in Serbia--Bloody Battles East and
West--Italy Enters the War and Invades Austria--Russians Pushed Back in
Galicia._
The Lusitania was the twenty-ninth vessel to be sunk or damaged in the
first week of May, 1915, in the war zone established by Germany about
the British isles. Most of these vessels were torpedoed by German
submarines, although in some cases it has not been established whether
the damage was inflicted by mines or underwater boats.
Sixteen of the twenty-nine vessels were British trawlers. There were
four British and one French merchantman in the list. The others were
vessels of neutral nations.
One of them was the American steamer Gulflight, torpedoed off Scilly
islands on May 1, with the loss of three lives. There were three
Norwegian, two Swedish, and one Danish merchant vessel sunk.
BLOODY BATTLES EAST AND WEST.
The second week in May saw minor German successes on the western front,
but these were immediately succeeded by determined efforts on the part
of the Allies to retrieve lost ground. The week of May 10 to 15 was
marked by fierce assaults by the British and French upon the German
positions in Flanders and northern France. Thousands of lives were
sacrificed on both sides. At one point on the Yser where the Germans
were beaten back, they left 2,000 dead on the field, but this was only a
small percentage of the total losses during this series of engagements
in May. Around Ypres early in the month the Canadians lost heavily, but
made a splendid record for gallantry and endurance in the face of odds.
The Germans began at this time the use of asphyxiating gases in their
attacks. The results were horrifying in the extreme, and as these
inhuman assaults with gas were continued, the Allies prepared to adopt
the use of similar noxious gases by way of retaliation.
BRITISH WARSHIP TORPEDOED.
On May 12 the British warship Goliath was sunk by a Turkish torpedo
during the continued attack by the Allies on the Dardanelles. Twenty
officers and 160 men of the crew were saved and over 500 lives were
lost. The Goliath was one of the older British battleships of the
pre-dreadnaught type. She was built in 1898, was 400 feet long and
feet wide, with a displacement of 12,950 tons. Her armament consisted of
four twelve-inch and twelve six-inch guns, twelve twelve-pounders, six
three-pounders, and two machine guns.
In the determined attack on the Dardanelles, land forces of British and
French troops co-operated with the combined fleets. The Turks made a
stubborn resistance, but were compelled to give way gradually before the
terrific bombardment of the warships and the persistent attacks by land.
In the fighting on the Gallipoli peninsula the British colonial troops
from New Zealand covered themselves with glory, fighting like veterans
and breaking down Turkish opposition with the bayonet. On May 19 one of
the most important forts at the Narrows, guarding the entrance to the
Sea of Marmora, was silenced by the warships' fire, and this was an
important step on the Allies' way to Constantinople.
Meanwhile an immense German army, said to number 1,600,000 men, had been
forcing the Russians back in Galicia to the San River and the gates of
Przemysl. A German bombardment of this fortress seemed imminent on May
20.
ITALY ENTERS THE WAR.
On Sunday, May 23, Italy finally plunged into the great conflict with a
declaration of war against Austria. The formal declaration, presented to
the Austro-Hungarian foreign minister, Baron von Burian, by the Duke of
Avarna, Italian ambassador at Vienna, asserted that Italy had "grave
motives" for annulling her treaty of alliance with Austria and
"confident in her good right," resumed her liberty of action. The
declaration of war continued as follows:
"The government of the King, firmly resolved to provide by all means at
its disposal for safeguarding Italian rights and interests, cannot fail
in its duty to take, against every existing and future menace, the
measures which events impose upon it for the fulfillment of national
aspirations.
"His majesty, the King, declares that he considers himself from tomorrow
(May 24, 1915), in a state of war with Austria-Hungary."
Thus the ninety-sixth anniversary of the birth of Queen Victoria, of
England, found eleven of the countries of Europe at war, their rulers
including three of her grandsons, two arrayed in a bitter struggle
against the third. The Triple Alliance on this date became the Quadruple
Alliance, when Italy joined the Allies. Austria was of course supported
by Germany. Italy was expected to put 3,000,000 men in the field. WHY
ITALY WANTED WAR
The reasons why Italy entered the great conflict were succinctly stated
on May 19 by Signor Enrico Corradini, nationalist leader, as follows:
"1. The necessity for Italy to take advantage of the present revolution
in European affairs to settle her national irredentist problem at the
expense of Austria. Our right to the Trentino, Trieste and Istria, now
held by Austria, is not questioned by reasonable people anywhere in
Europe.
"2. The necessity for Italy to arrive at a secure and definite
settlement of her military frontiers on the north and east.
"3. The necessity for Italy to create for herself by her intervention
a new moral and political position in the new European order of the
future, to replace that which she had, thanks to her alliance with the
central empires, a position which was liquidated at the outbreak of the
war.
"4. The necessity for Italy to contribute to repelling the danger of
a German hegemony which would flourish at the expense of the various
individual cultures and civilizations."
INVASION OF AUSTRIA
Italy promptly threw an army across the Austrian frontier and began
active operations in the direction of Trent and Trieste. The fortified
city of Luzerne soon fell into Italian hands and continued successes
marked the progress of the invaders all through the month of June.
The Austrian strategy at first appeared to provide for a series of
withdrawals after skirmishing; but late in the month a more determined
resistance developed, the defenses of the Austrian troops being
skilfully prepared. The loss of life during the month was comparatively
light on both sides, but on June 26 the Italians--already masters of
Plava on the left bank of the Isonzo river, and the heights dominating
that town--were massing heavy bodies of troops before Gorizia and
Tolmino for crucial battles at those two points, both of which blocked
the way to the coveted Austrian seaport of Trieste.
STRUGGLE FOR THE DARDANELLES
All through the month of June the Allies continued their desperate
struggle for the possession of the Dardanelles, the gateway to
Constantinople. Under the direction of German officers and engineers,
the Turkish troops and gunners offered determined resistance and the
British, Colonial and French troops co-operating with the allied fleets,
gained headway but slowly and at tremendous cost. But it was declared
that the Allies were bent upon forcing a passage through the straits
regardless of cost and that every effort would be made to complete the
operation during the summer. Several German submarines appeared in the
Gulf of Saros during the month and effectively interfered with the
activity of the British and French fleets. The results of the operations
on the Gallipoli peninsula during the month indicated that the
Dardanelles would prove a veritable slaughter pen before the Allies
succeeded in winning their way to Stamboul.
LEMBERG IS RECAPTURED
On June 22 the city of Lemberg, capital of the Austrian province of
Galicia, was recaptured from the Russians, who had held it for nearly
ten months, by combined German-Austrian forces, under General Mackensen.
This marked the culmination of a successful Teuton campaign in Galicia,
including the recapture of the strong fortress of Przemysl, as well
as Lemberg, and the driving of the Russian invaders back to their own
borders.
The eastern battle front in June extended for 680 miles north and south,
and while the German drive through Galicia was entirely successful,
the Russians gained some victories in the north. They were sorely
handicapped by the lack of supplies and ammunition for their forces,
and at the end of June the Russian authorities were organizing every
possible industry for the production of ammunition.
The fiercest fighting of the war, as far as the Baltic provinces of
Russia are concerned, occurred in a battle for the mastery of the Dubysa
River early in June. The river changed hands five times in one day,
and at nightfall the stream was completely choked with the bodies of
thousands of dead, so that a plank roadway for artillery was laid by the
Russians across a solid bridge of bodies.
HEROIC FEAT OF A CANADIAN
A thrilling and unprecedented feat was performed by Lieut. R. A. J.
Warneford, a Canadian aviator, when alone in an aeroplane, he destroyed
a Zeppelin airship with its crew of twenty-eight men in Belgium. He
received the Victoria Cross for his exploit, but a few days later was
killed while testing a new aeroplane near Paris. He was buried with
naval honors in London, June 23.
On July 3, 1915, when the twelfth month of the Great War began, it was
conservatively estimated that the total losses on all sides, including
killed, wounded and missing, had exceeded six millions of men. Over
vessels had been destroyed, including 120 ships of war.
DEADLOCK IN THE WEST
During July and August there were no general engagements of importance
in the Western theatre of war. The deadlock continued. The troops along
the Western battle lines were, however, subjected almost daily to
violent artillery bombardment.
By August 22 the British line in northern France and Flanders had been
lengthened from 40 miles to over 100 miles, with over 800,000 troops
on the firing line. German submarines were very active in the war zone
during the month of August, over 170 merchant steamships of more than
500 tons displacement and nearly 2,000 noncombatant lives being the
awful toll to date of this new method of warfare.
The British transport Royal Edward was torpedoed and sunk August 14 by
a German submarine in the Aegean Sea. Nearly 1,000 lives were lost. The
transport had on board a force of 32 officers and 1,350 men, in addition
to the ship's crew of 220 officers and men. The troops consisted mainly
of reinforcements for the 29th Division and details of the Royal Army
Medical Corps.
FALL OF WARSAW
Warsaw, the capital of Poland, was taken by the Germans August 5.
Bavarian troops under the command of Prince Leopold carried the forts of
the outer and inner lines of the city's defenses, where the rear guards
of the Russian troops made a tenacious resistance.
The German armies under Gen. von Scholz and Gen. von Gallwitz advanced
in the direction of the road between Lomza, Ostrov and Vyszkoy and
fought a number of violent engagements. The brave and desperate
resistance of the Russians on both sides of the road between Ostrov and
Rozan was without success.
Twenty-two Russian officers and 4,840 soldiers were taken prisoners. The
Germans also captured seventeen machine guns.
The fall of Warsaw marked the culmination of the greatest sustained
offensive movement of the war. Thrice before Teutonic armies had knocked
at its gates, only to be denied by the strength of its defenses and the
resistance of the forces holding it.
Warsaw lies on the Vistula, 625 miles southwest of Petrograd and
miles east of Berlin. It is an important industrial center and its
population is estimated at not far from 900,000.
The great Russian fortress of Kovno was captured by the Germans August
17. More than 400 cannon were taken. The fortress was stormed in spite
of the most stubborn Russian resistance.
The capture of Kovno was the most important German victory in the East
after the taking of Warsaw.
Kovno fell under the eye of General von Hindenburg. The capture of the
fortress was the first personal triumph of the "old man of the
Mazurian lakes" since the great Austro-German campaign in the East was
inaugurated. The six great forts defending the city from the west and
southwest were simply blown to pieces by the incessant pounding of
Germany's great 42-centimeter guns and a host of minor pieces.
The forts were under direct attack for scarcely a week, demonstrating
again the superiority of modern artillery over fort structures built by
man.
Kovno, capital of the Russian province of that name, is on the right
bank of the Niemen. It is a fortress of the first class. The civilian
population of the city is more than 75,000.
The important Russian fortress of Novo Georgievsk, the last halting
place of the Russians in Poland, fell into the hands of the Germans on
August 19, after a most stubborn resistance. The garrison consisted
of 85,000 men and of these over 20,000 were taken prisoners. Over
cannon were captured and a large amount of war ammunition seized.
BATTLE OF THE BAY OF RIGA
Russian naval forces aided by British submarines, in the Gulf of Riga
won a decided victory August 18 over the German fleet which penetrated
the gulf on August 13.
The great German battle cruiser Moltke, one of the finest ships of
its kind afloat, was destroyed in the engagement. The cruiser had
a displacement of 23,000 tons and carried a crew of 1,107 men and
officers. Its main battery consisted of ten 11-inch guns, mounted in
pairs in five turrets. Its secondary battery contained twelve 6-inch
guns. Twelve 24-pounders and four torpedo tubes completed its armament.
The Moltke was 610 feet long over all, with a beam of 96-3/4 feet, and
cost $12,000,000.
With the Moltke three German cruisers and seven torpedo boats, all
unnamed, were destroyed.
The Russians lost the destroyer Novik of 1,260 tons, largest in the
navy, and the gunboats Sivutch and Koriets, of 875 tons displacement.
The Russian victory did not end with the defeat of the German naval
forces. The invading fleet was accompanied by four enormous transports,
all crammed with troops. These soldiers attempted to make a landing on
Pernau bay, on the northeastern shoulder of the Gulf of Riga. They were
permitted to land and were then attacked and exterminated by the Russian
forces at that point. The loss was estimated at 6,000 men.
WHITE STAB LINER ARABIC SUNK
The White Star liner Arabic, which sailed August 18 from Liverpool for
New York, was sent to the bottom by a German torpedo August 19 off
Fastnet on the south coast of Ireland, not far from the point at which
the Lusitania was sunk by a German submarine.
Out of 429 persons aboard including crew, 39 lost their lives. Two
Americans perished--Mrs. Josephine Bruguière, widow of Emil Bruguière,
California millionaire banker, and Dr. E. F. Wood, of Janesville, Wis.
Capt. Finch, who commanded the steamer, gave the following graphic
account of the disaster: "We were forty-seven miles south of Galley
Head at 9:30 in the morning when I perceived the steamer Dunsley in
difficulty. Going toward her, I observed a torpedo coming for my ship,
but could not discern a submarine. The torpedo struck 100 feet from the
stern, making terrible havoc of the hull. The vessel began to settle
immediately and sank in about eight minutes.
"My order from the bridge about getting the boats launched was promptly
obeyed. Two boats capsized. We had taken every precaution while in the
danger zone. There were plenty of life-belts on deck and the boats were
ready for immediate launching. The officers and crew behaved excellently
and did everything possible in the circumstances, getting people into
the boats and picking up those in the sea.
"I was the last to leave, taking the plunge into the sea as the ship
was going down. After being in the water some time I was taken aboard a
raft, to which I had assisted two men and women.
"If the submarine had given me a little more time, I am satisfied I
could have saved everybody."
The Arabic's tonnage was 15,201 gross. It was 600 feet long, 65 feet
beam and 47 feet in depth. It was built at Belfast in 1903 by Harland &
Wolff.
On September 4 the German forces under General von Beseler stormed and
captured the bridgehead at Friedrichstradt, the most important defense
of Riga. The furiousness of the attacks in this region led military
critics to believe that the fall of the city of Riga was imminent.
Everywhere as Russians retreated they left a trail of utter devastation,
causing the Teutons to march around burning cities, finding the country
devoid of food or shelter. This destructive policy, however, resulted in
saving the Czar's army and rendering futile the hope of the Kaiser that
the military forces of Russia could be crushed.
With the Russian armies in full retreat and their double line of
fortresses all fallen to the invader, the apparent calm on the Western
front continued to be the marvel of the European campaign, as up to
September 7 no development on the Western front indicated that any
effort was being made to distract the Kaiser's attention from his
victorious expedition into the territory of the Czar.
THE DARDANELLES CAMPAIGN.
The struggle of combined land and sea forces of the Allies to gain
control of the Dardanelles, and thus open the way for the British and
French fleets to Constantinople and the Black Sea, continued through the
autumn of 1915 and furnished some of the most sanguinary battles of the
war. From the day of the landing of British troops on the Grallipoli
peninsula up to the end of November the fighting was continuous and
bloody. The British losses were tremendous, while the Turkish defenders
of the supposedly impregnable straits also suffered heavily, but with
Mohammedan stoicism.
A terrible picture of the slaughter at Seddul-Bahr, where the British
troops landed from transports under the guns of their fleet, in the face
of an awful Turkish bombardment, was painted on his return to England in
November by Lieutenant-Commander Josiah Wedgwood, a Liberal member of
Parliament, who had received special mention for bravery at the front,
and the coveted stripes of the Distinguished Service order.
"Our school books told us," said Commander Wedgwood, "that the bloodiest
battle in history was that between the confederates and federals at
Sharpsburg during the American civil war, when one-third of all the men
engaged were left on the field. But Sharpsburg was a joy ride compared
with Seddul-Bahr."
Paying a tribute to the enemy, he said: "The Turks are the finest
fighters in the world, save only the Canadians and Australians. And they
proved to be humane. They could easily have killed all those who went
to succor the wounded, but I found them extraordinarily merciful as
compared with the enemy in Flanders."
Commander Wedgwood's first view of fighting at the Dardanelles was at
the so-called V beach, where a steamship, the "River Clyde," was run
aground to furnish cover for the landing of the British troops.
"This modern 'wooden horse of Troy,'" said Commander Wedgwood, "was run
ashore on a beautiful Sunday morning, 400 yards from the medieval castle
of Seddul-Bahr. I was on the vessel, but never noticed her grounding for
the horrors ahead of us in the shallow waters on the beach. Five tows of
five boats each, loaded with men, were going ashore alongside of us.
One moment it had been early morning in a peaceful country, with rustic
sights and sounds and smells; the next moment, while the boats were just
twenty yards from shore, the blue sea around each boat was turning red.
It was truly horrible. Of all those brave men two-thirds died, and
hardly a dozen reached unwounded the shelter of the five-foot sand dune.
"About 9 o'clock a dash across the row of lighters from the Wooden Horse
was led by Gen. Napier and his brigade major. Would they ever get to the
end of the lighters and jump into the sheltering water? No; side by side
they were seen to sit down. For one moment one thought they might be
taking cover; then their legs slid out and they rolled over.
"It was the Munsters that charged first, with a sprig of shamrock on
their caps; then the Dublins, the Worcesters, the Hampshires. Lying on
the beach, on the rocks, on the lighters, they cried on the Mother of
God. There, now, was Midshipman Drury swimming to a lighter which had
broken loose, with a line in his mouth and a wound in his head. If ever
a boy deserved his Victoria Cross, that lad did. And there was the
captain of the River Clyde, now no longer a ship to be stuck to but a
part forever of Gallipoli, alone with a boat by the spit of rock, trying
to lift in the wounded under fire.
"All these things I saw as in a dream. Columns of smoke rose from the
castle and town of Seddul-Bahr as the great shells from the fleet passed
over our heads and burst, and in every lull we heard the wounded.
"At 1 o'clock the Lancashires were appearing over the ridge to the left
from 'Lancashire landing.' "We saw fifteen men in a window in the
castle on the right by the water. They signaled that they were all that
remained of the Dublins who had landed at the Camber at Seddul-Bahr. At
3 o'clock we got 150 men alive to shore. We watched our men working
to the right and up into the castle ruins--at each corner the officer
crouching in front with revolver in rest.
"When night came a house in Seddul-Bahr was burning brightly and there
was a full moon. We disembarked men at once. All around the wounded
cried for help and shelter against the bullets, but there was no room on
boats or gang-way for anything but the men to come to shore.
"For two nights no one had slept and then another day dawned. We were
firmly ashore at Lancashire landing, and at Du Toit's battery to the
northeast, and the Australians were dug in at Anzac. An end had to be
made of V beach. The whole fleet collected and all morning blew the
ridge and castle and town to pieces.
"And all the time that wonderful infantry went forward up the hill and
through the ruined town. The troops that went in that attack had already
lost half their strength; the officers that led up those narrow streets
were nearly all killed. Dead beat, at 1 o'clock, before the final rush,
they hesitated. Then our last colonel, a staff man, Col. Doughty Wylie,
ran ashore with a cane, ran right up the hill, ran through the last
handful of men sheltering under the crest, took them with a rush into
the Turkish trench, and fell with a bullet through his head. But the
Turks ran and the ridge was ours."
Many weeks of bloody fighting followed and while there was talk early in
November of a possible abandonment of the Dardanelles campaign, the end
of the month found the struggle still in progress, with no end in sight.
Official figures made public October 15, show that the British
casualties at the Dardanelles up to October 9 were 96,899, of whom
1,185 were officers. The casualties among the Australian troops on the
Gallipoli peninsula up to the same date amounted to 29,121 officers and
men.
THE ATTITUDE OF GREECE.
On September 23, acting upon the advice of Premier Venizelos, King
Constantine of Greece ordered a general mobilization of the Greek army,
"as a measure of elementary prudence in view of the mobilization of
Bulgaria." Ten days later Premier Venizelos resigned upon official
notice that the King could not support his war policy, which was
believed to reflect the sentiments of the Greek people and to support
the Allies. King Constantine then endeavored to form a coalition
ministry. The great point at issue was whether Greece should support or
oppose the passage of the Allies through Greek territory to the aid of
Serbia. British and French troops to the number of 70,000 had meanwhile
been landed at Saloniki, the great Greek seaport, and were being hurried
to the support of the Serbians in their central territory, to oppose the
incursion of the Austro-Germans and the Bulgarians. In November King
Constantine and his military chiefs were visited by Field-Marshal Earl
Kitchener, the British Secretary of War, who made such demands upon them
in the interest of the Allies, backed by a temporary blockade of the
Greek coasts by the British and French fleets, that on November 25 it
was announced that cordial relations between Greece and the entente
powers had been established. The Greek government gave assurances that
no attempt would be made to interfere with the Allies' troops should
they under any contingency be forced to cross the Greek frontier,
but that railway and other facilities would be afforded them. It was
understood that the Allies also promised Greece a monetary indemnity
after the war for any damage that might be done through the occupation
of Greek territory.
With the question of Grecian intervention out of the way, the Allies
then occupied themselves with the attitude of Rumania and the
intervention of Russia in behalf of Serbia, in order that the latter
country might be saved from the fate of Belgium. It was generally
understood that Rumania could not afford to incur the enmity of Germany
by active interference in behalf of Serbia, even though the Serbians and
Rumanians were natural allies against Bulgaria.
On November 26, M. Pachitch, the Serbian premier, received a personal
telegram from the Russian emperor, in which the latter promised
the early appearance in Bulgaria of Russian troops and the Italian
government also promised the Serbians to send to their aid an
expeditionary force of 40,000 men. It was believed possible that the
Russian forces might seek to advance through Rumania, instead of forcing
a landing on the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria--in which case the crossing
of Rumanian territory by Russian troops would bring Rumania into a
serious situation both economically and politically, and render it
difficult if not impossible for her to preserve her neutrality. At this
time Russia had concentrated a great army near the Rumanian frontier,
and it was understood that a large number of heavy guns had arrived at
Odessa for its use. The direction in which this Russian army would move
depended entirely upon the policy adopted by the Rumanian government.
AMERICAN LOAN TO THE ALLIES.
On September 28, formal announcement was made in New York of the
terms of an American loan to Great Britain and France, arranged by a
commission of British and French financial authorities after conferences
with American bankers; a bond issue of $500,000,000 was soon floated,
drawing 5 per cent interest and issued to the syndicate at 96; the
money to remain in the United States and to be used only in payment for
commodities.
Late in November the French people were called upon to subscribe to a
"loan of victory." The response from the people of Paris alone in one
day amounted to $5,000,000,000, thus exceeding the records of all former
popular war loans, including British and German issues, and typifying
the patriotic ardor of the French people and their determination to
continue the war to an issue successful to allied arms.
THE WESTERN CAMPAIGN.
After a week's heavy bombardment of the German lines, an important
offensive movement was undertaken on September 25 by the French and
British against the German lines on the western front. The forward
movement occurred simultaneously in the Champagne district, between
Rheims and Verdun, by the French and in the Artois district, between
Ypres and Arras, by combined British and French forces. While the Allies
did not succeed in gaining much ground, and both sides suffered heavy
losses, it was claimed by the French war office on September 29 that
as a result of the four days' assaults of the Anglo-French forces the
Germans suffered losses amounting to the effective strength of 120,
men, while 23,000 men and 120 cannon were captured from the Teutonic
enemy. This constituted the result of what was described as the great
Anglo-French drive of the autumn, and the situation on the western
front then settled down once more into a state of siege. The first-line
trenches of the opposing forces along a wide-flung front were within a
short distance of each other. A new method of warfare had been developed
and the world began to realize that all historic conditions of war had
been revolutionized by the use of scientific weapons of destruction like
the machine gun, which mowed down men like hay, and the high explosive
shell that destroyed protective works as if they were made of cardboard
and filled the trenches with dead and dying bodies. Such was the
situation on the western front in the beginning of December. No let-up
in the determination of either side; no advance seemingly possible, no
attack that was not followed by a counter-attack; no gain of any
consequence anywhere; no possibility seemingly of any decisive battle;
nothing in sight but an absolute deadlock.
ON THE EASTERN FRONT.
Late in September the German campaign against Russia appeared to lose
most of its force. Continued attempts were made by Field Marshal von
Hindenburg to fight his way to Riga, but without avail, and Russian
successes at various points along the eastern battle front were numerous
in October and November. The Russians declared on November 15 that they
deemed the city of Riga safe, and by November 26 it was apparent that
the Germans were engaged in a general retirement all along the River
Dvina. The Allies then became interested in the Kaiser's probable choice
of a line of defense for the winter on the northern section of his
Russian front. The breakdown of the German offensive was attributed
by the Allies to three things--the increase in the Russian ammunition
supply, a German shortage of munitions, and the weakening of the German
line for the Balkan campaign.
BULGARIA ENTERS THE WAR.
On October 1, 1915, it was evident that Bulgarian forces would shortly
be employed on the side of the central powers. Bulgarian troops from
Sofia were moving on to the Serbian frontier. King Ferdinand had ordered
the mobilization of all men under sixty-five years of age and martial
law was proclaimed, no citizen under forty-five being allowed to leave
the country. On October 4 Russia sent an ultimatum to Bulgaria and the
Russian minister was ordered to leave Sofia if by 4 p.m., October 5,
Bulgaria did not definitely break with Germany, Austria and Turkey. All
the allied powers supported Russia in this demand. Bulgaria did not
reply within the time specified and the Russian minister was reported
too ill to move from Sofia, thus indicating that the diplomats of the
great contending powers were still at work in an effort to secure the
important support of Bulgaria in the Balkan campaign which was imminent.
On October 6, when Bulgaria was said to have sent an ultimatum to Serbia
demanding the territory ceded after the recent Balkan wars, the envoys
of the Allies at Sofia requested their passports, and Bulgaria became
an active participant in the war. The Bulgarian minister at Nish, the
Serbian capital, received his passports on October 8, and on the same
day the Bulgarian minister at Paris was handed his passports. On the
following day, October 9, Belgrade, the former Serbian capital, was
occupied by Austro-German forces and the invasion of Serbia by Austria
and Germany from the north and by Bulgaria from the east began in
earnest. The Serbian capital was removed the same day to Ishtib, in the
south.
THE SERBIAN CAMPAIGN.
When the great army of Germans and Austrians entered Serbia at Belgrade
and other points along the Danube and began to drive the Serbian forces
to the south, they met with immediate and continued successes. Bulgarian
troops meanwhile pressed the Serbians on the west and by the end of
November it seemed as if the entire territory of Serbia was doomed to
the fate of Belgium. But on the south, allied troops, including a great
body of French who had been landed at Saloniki in Greece and made their
way northward, disputed the advance of the invaders and at several
points drove back the Bulgarians, thus holding the southern territory of
Serbia for their ally in the same manner that Flanders was being held by
the Allies for Belgium.