_Prussia joined in a Guarantee of Belgian Neutrality._
The neutrality of Belgium was guaranteed by a treaty signed in 1839 to
which France, Prussia and Great Britain were parties.
_Recent German Assurances._
In 1913 the German Secretary of State, at a meeting of a Budget
Committee of the Reichstag, declared that "Belgian neutrality is
provided for by international conventions, and Germany is determined to
respect those conventions."
On July 31st, 1914, when the danger of war between Germany and France
seemed imminent, Herr von Below, the German Minister in Brussels, being
interrogated by the Belgian Foreign Department, replied that he knew of
the assurances given by the German Chancellor in 1911 (that Germany had
no intention of violating Belgian neutrality) and that he "was certain
that the sentiments expressed at that time had not changed."
_Passage through Belgium Demanded by Germany._
Nevertheless, on August 2nd, the same Minister presented a note to the
Belgian Government demanding a passage through Belgium for the German
Army on pain of an instant declaration of war.
_Passage Refused by Belgian King and Government._
Startled as they were by the suddenness with which this terrific war
cloud had risen on the eastern horizon, the leaders of the nation
rallied round the King of Belgium in his resolution to refuse the
demand and to prepare for resistance.
_Invasion._
On the evening of August 3rd, the German troops crossed the frontier.
_Early Outbreak of Atrocities._
No sooner had the Germans violated Belgian territory, than statements
of atrocities committed by German soldiers against civilians--men,
women and children--found their way into the newspapers of this
country. The public could hardly believe the record of cruelty that
rapidly accumulated, but the persistence with which reports from one
district tallied in general outline with reports from other localities
left little doubt in the public mind as to the truth of the alleged
atrocities. But it became necessary to make absolutely certain of the
facts.
_Home Office Collected Evidence._
The Home Office, in the autumn of 1914, wisely decided to collect
evidence of the truth, and, during the concluding months of 1914, a
great number of statements taken in writing were collected from Belgian
witnesses (mostly civilians), and from British officers and soldiers.
The statements were taken by the staff of the Director of Public
Prosecutions and a number of barristers who assisted the Home Office.
_Government Appointed a Committee to Investigate--Terms of Reference._
On December 15th, 1914, the Government took the important step of
appointing a Committee:--
"To consider and advise on the evidence collected on behalf
of His Majesty's Government, as to outrages alleged to have been
committed by German troops during the present war, cases of alleged
maltreatment of civilians in the invaded territories, and breaches
of the laws and established usages of war; and to prepare a report
for His Majesty's Government showing the conclusion at which they
arrive on the evidence now available."=
_Careful Selection of Members of Committee._
In order that the findings of the Committee should command the
confidence of the public, the Government was careful to appoint upon
it men whose judicial outlook, training and experience for their
responsible task could not be questioned.
The Right Hon. Viscount Bryce, O.M., the distinguished British
Ambassador at Washington from 1907 to 1912, was appointed
Chairman, and the other members of the Committee were:--
The Right Hon. Sir Frederick Pollock, Bart., who was Corpus
Professor of Jurisprudence at Oxford University, 1883-1903,
and is Judge of the Admiralty Court of Cinque Ports. He is one of
the leading authorities on the laws of this country;
The Right Hon. Sir Edward Clarke, K.C., was Member of Parliament for
Plymouth (20 years) and London City (1906); was Solicitor-General
from 1886 to 1902;
Sir Kenelm Digby, G.C.B., K.C., who was a County Court Judge from
1892 to 1894, and Permanent Under-Secretary of the Home Office from
1895 to 1903;
Sir Alfred Hopkinson, K.C., LL.D., represented Manchester and North
Wiltshire in the House of Commons; was Principal of Owens College,
Manchester, from 1898 to 1904; and Vice-Chancellor of Victoria
University, Manchester, from 1900 to 1913;
Mr. H. A. L. Fisher, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Sheffield;
Mr. Harold Cox, the well-known Journalist and Editor of the
"Edinburgh Review," who represented Preston in the House of
Commons from 1906 to 1910.
_How the Committee Worked._
The Committee laboured for three months, examining the evidence, and
more than 1,200 statements made by witnesses were considered. These
depositions were in all cases taken down in this country by gentlemen
of legal knowledge and experience, and the greatest care was exercised
in the task.
_Doubt Removed as Work Proceeded._
The Committee approached their responsible task in a spirit of doubt,
but, to use their own words, "the further we went and the more
evidence we examined, so much the more was our scepticism reduced....
When we found that things which had at first seemed improbable were
testified to by many witnesses coming from different places, having
had no communication with one another, and knowing nothing of one
another's statements, the points in which they all agreed became more
and more evidently true. And when this concurrence of testimony, this
convergence upon what were substantially the same broad facts, showed
itself in hundreds of depositions, =the truth of those broad facts
stood out beyond question=."
_Fairness of Witnesses' Evidence._
The Committee expected "to find much of the evidence coloured by
passion, or prompted by an excited fancy. But they were impressed by
the general moderation and matter-of-fact level-headedness of the
witnesses."
_No desire to "Make a Case."_
Nor could the Committee, in examining the depositions, "detect the
trace of any desire to 'make a case' against the German Army." "In
one respect, the most weighty part of the evidence," according to
the Committee, consisted of the diaries kept by the German soldiers
themselves.
_A Terrible Record._
The Report of the Committee, with the Appendix, covers 240 foolscap
pages. These 240 pages of cold, judicial print make a terrible
indictment against a so-called Civilised Power--and one, moreover,
whose home is not in "Darkest Africa," but in the very heart of
enlightened Europe.
In this pamphlet space will only permit of the insertion of the
Findings of the Committee, and of some examples taken from the Report.
_Those who seek fuller information should obtain one or other edition
of the official Report and Appendix, particulars of which are given on
the cover of this pamphlet._
It should be borne in mind that this terrible record embraces a part
only of the area in the occupation of German troops, and is based
mainly on the statements of Belgian refugees _in this country_. If
it had been possible to extend the enquiry, and to get evidence from
the Belgians and the French now inhabiting the districts occupied by
Germany, there is no doubt that the volume of evidence would have been
much greater.
* * * * *
Note.--_For the purpose of this short pamphlet, the methodical
arrangement in geographical areas followed in the Report has been
abandoned, and a simpler grouping adopted. The whole of the language,
however, in the following pages (apart from the headings) is the
official language of the Report. In no instance has it been altered,
except where an explanation is required, in which case the explanation
is put in brackets. The references in the margin are to the pages in
the report from which the statements have been taken. When taken from
the Appendix, the letter "A" is prefixed._