BATTLE OF CHARLEROI
Toward the end of the third week of August, 1914, the atmosphere of
every European capital became tense with the realization that a
momentous crisis was impending. It was known that the French-British
armies confronted German armies of equal, if not of superior strength.
In Paris and London the military critics wrote optimistically that the
Germans were marching into a trap.
The British army had arrived at the front in splendid fighting trim. It
was difficult to restrain the impetuous valor of the French soldiers.
The skies were bright and there was confidence that the Germans would
unquestionably meet with a crushing defeat. Let us glance at the line of
the French and British armies stretched along the Belgian frontier. It
ran from within touch of Namur up the right bank of the Sambre, through
Charleroi to Binche and Mons, thence by way of the coal barge canal just
within the French frontier to Conde. For the choice of a great battle
ground there was nothing particularly attractive about it in a military
sense.
There is evidence to show in an official communique from General Joffre
published on August 24, 1914, that it was intended to be merely the left
wing of a gigantic French battle offensive--on the adopted German
plan--from Conde to Belfort. "An army," runs the communique, "advancing
from the northern part of the Woevre and moving on Neufchateau is
attacking the German forces which have been going through the Duchy of
Luxemburg and are on the right bank of the Samoy. Another army from the
region of Sedan is traversing the Belgian Ardennes and attacking the
German forces marching between the Lesse and the Meuse. A third army
from the region of Chimay has attacked the German right between the
Sambre and the Meuse. It is supported by the English army from the
region of Mons."
These attacks comprised chiefly the battle of Dinant and cavalry
skirmishing, but the purpose of General Joffre was otherwise made plain
in throwing advance French troops across the Belgian frontier into Ligny
and Gembloux on the road to a recapture of Brussels. This we have
previously noted in another connection. The rout of the French army in
Lorraine, however, put an end to the grand Conde-Belfort offensive.
Thus the Namur-Conde line became a main defensive position instead of an
offensive left wing sweep through Belgium upon Germany. As such it was
well enough--if its pivot on the fortress of Namur held secure. Liege
had already proved its vulnerability, but it would seem that the French
General Staff joined with General Michel, the Commander of Namur, in
believing the Namur forts would give a better account. The French
General Staff were informed of the approximate strength of the advancing
armies of Von Kluck and Von Buelow, and had nothing to fear from
inferiority in numbers. The staff never gave out the strength of their
forces, but there is reason for believing the great armies were nearly
equally matched after mobilization--about 1,200,000 men.
Let us now see what was developing in the Ardennes away to the French
right. It has been established that woods, particularly in summer, form
the best cover from the observation or attacks of airmen. The spreading,
leafy boughs are difficult to penetrate visually from a height of even a
few hundred feet, at least to obtain accurate information of what is
transpiring beneath.
French air scouts brought in correct information that they had seen the
armies of the Duke of Wuerttemberg and crown prince massed along the
southern Luxemburg and Belgian forest region. But under the foliage
there was another army unseen--that of General von Hausen. The French
moved their Fifth Army up to position on the line of the Sambre. They
advanced their Third Army, commanded by General Ruffey, upon Luxemburg,
and their Fourth Army under General de Langle de Cary across the River
Semois to watch the Meuse left bank and gain touch with General
Lanzerac. General de Cary came from Sedan, throwing out detachments
upon the Meuse left bank. These operations were to confront the armies
of the Duke of Wuerttemberg and crown prince.
But the French apparently knew nothing of the movements of the army of
General von Hausen. Their air scouts either could not distinguish it
from the armies of the Duke of Wuerttemberg and the crown prince, amid
the forest of the Ardennes, or they did not observe it at all. To the
army of General von Hausen there clings a good deal of mystery. When
last noted by us, previous to the minor battle of Dinant, it had been
formed by forces drawn from the armies of the Duke of Wuerttemberg and
crown prince. Ostensibly at that time, it was destined to support, as a
separate field force, the armies of Von Kluck and Von Buelow.
Possibly the Germans had begun to doubt how long Liege could hold out.
Von Kluck was compelled to mark time in his impetuous march on Central
Belgium. His losses had been heavy. Support in strength seemed urgent.
But this need passed as the Liege forts fell one after the other under
the fire of the German siege guns. General von Hausen was released for
action elsewhere. Thus we may assume, he was ordered to follow the
armies of the Duke of Wuerttemberg and crown prince down through the
Ardennes to strike the Meuse south of Namur. By this time he had been
substantially reenforced. Now under his command were the complete
Twelfth and Nineteenth Corps, and the Eleventh Reserve Corps. Also a
cavalry division of the Prussian Guard, with some other detachments of
cavalry. His Eleventh Reserve Corps were Hessians, the Twelfth and
Nineteenth Corps were Saxons. The latter two corps were regarded as
among the best in the German army. In the Franco-Prussian War they
fought with conspicuous bravery through every battle in which they were
engaged. They won the battle for Prussia at Gravelotte by turning the
French right and capturing St. Privat. They marched to Sedan under the
crown prince--subsequently the Emperor Frederick--to occupy the first
line in the hard fighting of the Givonne Valley. During the siege of
Paris they occupied a part of the German northern line, finally to march
in triumph into Paris. This infantry and cavalry of the Prussian Guard
stiffened Von Hausen's force into an army of battle strength.
We have thus two factors to bear in mind with regard to the French
defensive position at Charleroi--the resisting power of the Namur forts,
and the unknown, to the French, proximity of Von Hausen's army.
However substantial was the measure of reliance that the French General
Staff and General Michel placed on the Namur forts, evidently General
von Buelow regarded them as little more than passing targets for his
siege guns. He seemed to have made a comparatively simple mathematical
calculation of almost the number of shells necessary to fire, and the
hours to be consumed in reducing the Namur forts to masses of debris.
We can picture General von Buelow as he sat in the motor car with Marshal
von der Goltz--the old gentleman with an overcoat buttoned up to his
nose in August, and huge spectacles. Doubtless discussion ran mainly
upon the impending attack of their Second Army on the French right.
Emphasis would have been laid on the positions of the armies of the Duke
of Wuerttemberg and crown prince advancing away to their left upon the
forces of the French Generals Ruffey and de Cary. But there was
apparently a German gap here between Von Buelow's army and the armies of
the Duke of Wuerttemberg and crown prince, though we noticed previously
Von Buelow's army came in touch with Saxon troops half way between Huy
and Namur, when a detachment of Von Buelow's left wing was thrown across
the Meuse at Ardenne. This gap was faced by the French extreme right
resting on the southward Namur bend of the Meuse. It was possibly the
"trap" military critics of the moment foresaw for the Germans. Quite
likely the two German generals Von Buelow and Von der Goltz, chatting in
their motor car, referred to this gap, and it is hardly a stretch of
imagination to suggest a twinkle in the huge glasses of the old
gentleman in the August overcoat, when now and then the name of Von
Hausen was mentioned.
The German attack on the French right began early in the morning of
Friday, August 21, 1914. A party of German hussars crossed the Meuse,
rode through Charleroi, and trotted on toward the Sambre. At first they
were mistaken for a British cavalry patrol. Probably the populace in
Charleroi were not sufficiently familiar at that time with the British
hussar uniform to distinguish it from the German. In all armies hussar
uniforms bear a close resemblance. A French officer, however, presently
detected the situation. After a skirmish the German hussars were driven
off with the loss of a few killed and wounded. But the raid evidently
came out of the gap as a surprise to the French. The citizens were
promptly ordered to their homes. Barricades were raised in the streets,
and mitrailleuses were placed in sweeping positions. An artillery
engagement began at Jemappe, nine miles above Namur on the left bank of
the Sambre, between Von Buelow's vanguard and the main French right.
Later in the day Von Buelow's vanguard artillery had advanced to open
fire on Charleroi and Thuin, seven miles beyond.
On Saturday, August 22, 1914, Von Buelow attacked Charleroi in full
strength. As we have seen, he had already practically settled with
Namur. Their main assault on Saturday was delivered on the Sambre
bridges at Chatelet and Thuin, below and above Charleroi, respectively.
Sometime on Saturday they succeeded in crossing to turn Charleroi into
one of the most frightful street battle grounds in history. The conflict
raged for the possession of iron foundries, glass works, and other
factories. The thoroughfares were swept by storms of machine-gun fire.
Tall chimneys toppled over and crashed to the ground, burying defenders
grouped near under piles of debris. Desperate hand-to-hand encounters
took place in workshops, electric-power stations, and manufacturing
plants. The normal whir of machinery, now silent, was succeeded by the
crack and spitting of continuous rifle fire.
The French-Turco and Zouave troops fought with savage ferocity, with
gleaming eyes, using bayonets and knives to contest alleys and
passageways. House doors were battered in to reach those firing from
upper windows. Roofs and yard walls were scaled in chase of fleeing
parties. The Germans were driven out of Charleroi several times, only to
return in stronger force. Similarly with the French. With each change
of victors, the losing side turned to bombard with a torrent of
artillery shells the war-engulfed city.
At nightfall on August 22, 1914, Charleroi burst into flames. A dread
and significant glow fell upon the sky. Absent were the usual
intermittent flare of blast furnaces. The greater part of Charleroi had
become a heap of ruins. Those of its citizens still alive cowered in
holes or corners for shelter.
The battle of Charleroi went on throughout the night. Early on the
morning of Sunday, August 23, 1914, Von Hausen swept down through the
gap between the armies of Von Buelow and the Duke of Wuerttemberg. He
crossed the Meuse, drove from before him the French detachments watching
it, and advanced to attack the rear of the French right.
Von Hausen took the French at Charleroi completely by surprise. At the
moment they could comprehend neither where he came from nor the measure
of his strength. But he was in army force.
The French were compelled to withdraw their right from Charleroi. Von
Hausen seized the advantage to hurl his forces upon their rear, while
Von Buelow thundered in assault more vigorously than ever on the French
front. A powerful force was hurled upon them from an unexpected
direction. Presently the retreat of the French Fifth Army was threatened
by the two Saxon corps of Von Hausen's army, pressing on the French
right flank and rear. In this emergency the retirement of the French
Fifth Army appears to have been undertaken with spontaneous realization
of utmost danger. It gave way before the attacks of Von Buelow and Von
Hausen to move southward, leaving their British left wing without
information of defeat.