YSER BATTLES--ATTACK ON YPRES
A large part of the Belgian forces with some of the English marines
were forced across the Dutch border, where they were promptly disarmed
and interned, while the remnants of these forces retreated toward
the west by way of St. Nicolas and reached Ostend on October 11
and 12, 1914, with greatly reduced numbers. Many were cut off and
captured by the German forces, which entered Ghent on October 12,
and pressed on to Ypres in one direction and to Lille in another.
Next day, the thirteenth, they approached Ostend, forcing these
Belgians who had managed to get through, to evacuate.
Bruges was occupied by the German forces on October 14, 1914, and
other detachments appeared in Thielt, Daume, and Esschen on the
same day, thus getting under their control the entire Kingdom of
Belgium, with the exception of the northwestern corner, north of
Ypres, to the coast of the channel. For Ostend, too, had fallen into
their hands by October 15, after the English and Belgian troops had
been taken away by an English fleet; the Belgians were transported
to France where they were re-formed while the English marines were
sent back to England.
In the meantime the Germans were drawing on reenforcements from
the Vosges and the Champagne districts and every day their numbers
increased. West Flanders was swarming with German cavalry, and
about this time they were as far west as Hazebrouck and Cassel,
and only twenty-five miles distant from Dunkirk.
By October 20, 1914, the allied line was in position from Albert
to the sea, a little short of 100 miles, eighty as the crow flies.
From south to north the allied front was commanded by General Maud'huy
from Albert to Vermelles; General Smith-Dorrien from Vermelles
to Laventie, opposite Lille; General Poultney, from Laventie to
Messines; General Haig from Messines to Bixschoote; General de
Mitry had French and Belgian mixed troops defending the line from
Bixschoote to Nieuport and the sea, supported by an English and
French fleet.
For days this fleet under the British Admiral Hood had shelled the
coast defenses under General von Beseler's command. As the naval
guns had a far better range than General von Beseler's artillery,
it was an easy matter to hold the coast at Nieuport Bains, and even
six miles inland without subjecting any of the ships to the fire
of the German guns.
On the German side General von Bülow held the front against General
Maud'huy, the Bavarian Crown Prince against General Smith-Dorrien,
while the Duke of Württemberg commanded the forces on the balance
of the line to the sea. It is estimated that upward of thirty army
corps covered the German front.
Throughout the balance of October, 1914, and well into November,
1914, a great many different actions and some of the heaviest fighting
of this period took place all along this line. On the 21st the new
German formations pressed forward in great force all along the
line. On the south of the Lys the Germans assaulted Violaines.
On the north of the Lys in the English center a fiercely contested
action took place near La Gheir, which village the Germans captured
in the morning. The German Twenty-sixth Reserve Corps pressed on
to Passchendale, where they met with stout resistance from the
English-Belgian forces.
On October 22, 1914, the Germans attacked from the La Bassée region
and gained several small villages. Both Allies and Germans suffered
immense lasses. Much of the slaughter was due to the point-blank
magazine fire and the intermittent shrapnel explosions from bath
sides.
The mast savage fighting was kept up all along the line, but no
advantage accrued ta either side until Friday, October 28, 1914,
when the Germans succeeded in crossing the Yser at St. George and
forcing their way two miles to Ramscapelle; retaken on the 30th by
General Grossetti. This was accomplished by General von Beseler's
troops, opposing the mixed troops of the Belgian and French. On
that night fourteen separate attacks were made by the Germans on
Dixmude and they were repulsed each time.
On October 24, 1914, about 5,000 German troops crossed the canal
at Schoorbakke and next day there were more to come, so for the
moment it looked as though the allied line on the Yser had been
broken. The struggle at this point continued until October 28,
during which time the Allies contested every inch of ground. The
kaiser was with the Duke of Württemberg on this day, expecting
every moment that his great design to break through the lines and
drive his forces to Dunkirk and Calais would be accomplished.
At the crisis the Belgians broke dawn the dykes and flooded the
country for miles around. Heavy rains during the last weeks had
swelled the Yser. The Belgians had dammed the lower reaches of
the canal; the Yser lipped over its brim and spread lagoons over
the flat meadows. Soon the German forces on the west bank were
floundering in a foot of water, while their guns were waterlogged
and deep in mud. The Germans did not abandon their efforts. The
kaiser called for volunteers to carry Ramscapelle--two Württemberg
brigades responded--and gained the place, but at terrible loss.
On the 30th of October, 1914, again the Württembergers advanced to
the attack. They waded through sloppy fields from the bridgeheads
at St. George and Schoorbakke, and by means of table taps, boards,
planks and other devices crossed the deeper dykes. So furious was
the attack pressed home that they won the railway line and held
their ground. They were to do some severe fighting, however, for
next day French-Belgian and African mixed troops fought fiercely
to drive the Germans back but failed.
Seeing their success in partially flooding the battle field, the
Belgians made more breaches in the dams, and, opening the sluices
in the canal, threw a flood of water greater still over the area
occupied by the Germans. In seething brown waves the water rose
up to the high ground at the railway near Ramscapelle. The Germans
were caught in this tide and scores of them were drowned. Many
escaped, some struggled to land on the Allies front and were made
prisoners.
Sir John French summarized part of the fighting in Flanders, after
the capture of Antwerp, in the following official report: "The Second
Corps under General Smith-Dorrien was opposed by overpowering forces
of Germans, but nevertheless advanced until October 18, 1914, when
the German opposition compelled a reenforcement. Six days later
the Lahore Division of the Indian Army was sent to support the
Second Corps. On October 16, Sir Henry Rawlinson, who had covered
the retreat of the Belgian army from Antwerp, with two divisions of
English cavalry and two divisions of French infantry, was stationed
on the line east of Ypres under orders to operate over a wide front
and to keep possession of all the ground held by the Allies until
the First Army Corps could reach Ypres.
"General Rawlinson was opposed by superior forces and was unable
to prevent the Germans from getting large reenforcements. With
four divisions holding a much wider front than their size justified
he faced a rather awkward situation, as the enemy was massed from
the Lys.
"The shattered Belgian army and the weary French troops advanced
to check the Germans--but in vain. Sir Douglas Haig with the First
Army Corps was sent to recapture Bruges on October 19, 1914, while
the Belgian army intrenched along the Yser Canal. General Haig
failed--owing to bad roads. October 21 brought the most severe
attack made on the First Corps at Ypres, in the checking of which
the Worcestershire Regiment did good work. This day marked the
most critical period in the battle which resulted in the recapture
of the village of Gheluvelt."
South of Dixmude is one of the most historic and quaintly attractive
cities of Belgium, Ypres. It is situated on a tributary of the Yser
called the Yperlee, and a railway runs through it from Roulers
to the main Lille-St. Ower line at Hazebrouck and a very important
canal runs from the Yser in the north to the Lys at Comines.
The allied lines were held by the British First and Third Corps
and several cavalry divisions, at this point all under the chief
command of General Haig, while the Bavarian Crown Prince directed
the movements of the German forces. On October 20, 1914, the allied
line stretched--a few miles to the northeast of Ypres--from Bixschoote
to the crossroads a mile and a half northwest of Zonnebeke. The
cavalry only were kept busy during this day, while the other forces
were making elaborate preparations for the main drive. The great
attack was delivered October 21 against the point of the salient
between Zonnebeke and Besselaere. The allied line on the left was
so much exposed that the Twenty-second Brigade was enfiladed by the
Germans at the very beginning, and in the center the Germans pierced
the line held by the Royal Scots Fusiliers, with the Yorkshires on
the extreme right. The fierce assaults from both sides ended in
a draw for this day.
On October 22, 1914, the fighting was most severe all day; but
later in the day the most violent assault of all was made by the
Germans upon the First Brigade on the left. There the trenches were
held by the Camerons, north of Pilkem on the Langemarck--Bixschoote
road. Here the Germans broke the line and succeeded in capturing
part of the Camerons--the famous Red Tartans. Further south, the
Royal Scots Fusiliers were obliged to give way. The Germans pressed
hard in the vicinity of Hollebeke which point opened a clear road
to Ypres; but here the allied forces stood their ground. Still
farther south the Essex Regiment and the Lancashire Fusiliers fought
savagely, but were driven back upon Armentierre when night fell.
[Illustration: BATTLE FRONT IN FLANDERS]
Early Friday morning, October 23, 1914, the Allies made a desperate
assault upon the trenches lost by the Camerons on the previous day.
The fighting culminated in a savage bayonet attack which resulted
in the recapture of these trenches by the British composed of the
King's Royal Rifles, the Royal West Surrey Regiment and the
Northamptons.
On October 24, 1914, the Germans advanced upon the allied extreme
left; but were successfully repulsed between Zonnebeke and Poelcapelle.
Later in the day the Germans renewed their attack and compelled
the allied troops to retire some distance.
The advance on the allied left was continued on Sunday, October
25, 1914. Repeatedly the Germans succeeded in piercing the allied
lines; but at one time, even though they had broken through, a
momentary lack of reserves compelled them to retreat to avoid capture.
A savage enveloping attack was made during the night, north of
Zandvoorde, where again the Germans broke through the allied lines,
but were unable to maintain their advantage through failure of
reenforcements to come up in time. The Leicester Brigade were shelled
out of their trenches and were obliged to fall back to the south
of the River Lys.
During the following three days--October 26, 27, 28, 1914--artillery
fire was resorted to and desultory fighting and skirmishes along
the entire line resulted in no noteworthy advantage to either
belligerent.
Thursday, October 29, 1914, opened with clear and bracing weather
which promised to continue throughout the day. The German attack
which had been preparing for the past three days now broke like
an irresistible wave upon the salient of the Gheluvelt crossroads,
where the British First Corps was stationed. The first division
was driven back from its trenches and after that the line swayed
forward and backward for hours, but by two o'clock in the afternoon
the position remained unchanged.
With the coming of the dawn on October 30, 1914, the fighting was
resumed with even more savage determination on both sides. The
hottest engagement centered about the ridge of Zandvoorde. German
artillery fire cleared the allied trenches, burying many of the
British soldiers alive under mountains of earth and débris. This
forced the line to retreat a full mile to Klein Zillebeke to the
north. The kaiser witnessed this engagement and by his presence
cheered the German soldiers on to the most desperate fighting.
On the following day October 31, 1914, the crisis came. The fighting
began along the Menin-Ypres road early in the morning and advanced
with great violence upon the village of Gheluvelt. The First and
Third Brigades or the First Division were swept back and the First
Coldstream Guards were wiped out as a unit. The whole division
was driven back from Gheluvelt to the woods between Veldhoek and
Hooge. The allied headquarters at Hooge were shelled. General Lomas
was wounded and six or the staff officers were killed.
The Royal Fusiliers who desperately stuck to their trenches fighting
savagely were cut off and destroyed. Out of a thousand but seventy
soldiers remained. Between two and three o'clock there occurred
the most desperate fighting seen in the battle of Ypres. At 2:30
o'clock in the afternoon the Allies recaptured Gheluvelt at the
point of the bayonet and by evening the Allies had regained their
position. Ypres had not been captured by the Germans by this time,
but they had secured their position in all the suburbs of Ypres
and had that city at their mercy, provided allied reenforcements
ordered up did not obstruct their path.
The fighting still continued for part of November, 1914, but for
the month of October no definite result was to be recorded.
At Ypres, on November 2, 1914, the Germans captured 2,300 English
troops and many machine guns. Dixmude was stormed by the Germans
on the 10th of November, and they crossed the Yser Canal, capturing
the Allies position west of Langemark, also driving them out of
St. Eloi. Snow and floods interfered with the fighting along the
battle front. Ypres was bombarded on several occasions and was
repeatedly set on fire.
November 11, 1914, was another day of severe fighting. At daybreak
the Germans opened fire on the allied trenches to the north and
south of the road from Menin to Ypres. After a furious artillery
fire the Germans drove their men forward in full force. This attack
was carried out by the First and Fourth brigades of the Prussian
Guard Corps which had been especially selected to capture Ypres if
possible, since that task had proved too heavy for the infantry of
the line. As the Germans surged forward they were met by a frontal
fire from the allied lines, and as they were moving diagonally across
part of the allied front, they were also attacked on the flank by the
English artillery. Though the casualties of the Germans were enormous
before they reached the English lines, such was their resolution and
the momentum of the mass that, in spite of the splendid resistance
of the English troops, the Germans succeeded in breaking through
the allied lines in several places near the road. They penetrated
some distance into the woods behind the English trenches, where
some of the bloodiest fighting of the entire war took place.
On November 12, 1914, comparative quiet reigned and with the exception
of artillery duels and some desultory fighting no results were
obtained on either side. The British report makes this comment on
this attempt upon Ypres: "Their (the Prussian Guard Corps') dogged
perseverance in pursuance of their objective claims wholehearted
admiration.
"The failure of one great attack, heralded as it was by an impassioned
appeal to the troops made in the presence of the emperor himself,
but carried out by partially trained men, has been only the signal
for another desperate effort in which the place of honor was assigned
to the corps d'élite of the German army.
"It must be admitted that the Guard Corps has retained that reputation
for courage and contempt of death which it earned in 1870, when
Emperor William I, after the battle of Gravelotte, wrote: 'My Guard
has formed its grave in front of St. Privat,' and the swarms of
men who came up bravely to the British rifles in the woods around
Ypres repeated the tactics of forty-four years ago, when their
dense columns, toiling up the slopes of St. Privat, melted away
under the fire of the French."
Ypres was now but a name. Nothing but a mass of ruins reminded
the world of its previous quaint splendor. For Ypres had been rich
in historic buildings and monuments of past days.
With the fall of Antwerp the Germans had made every effort to push
forward strong forces toward the west and had hastened to bring up
new army corps which had been hurriedly organized, their object
being to drive the Allies out of Belgium and break through to Dunkirk
and Calais. Altogether they collected 250,000 fresh men. Eventually
the Germans had north of La Bassée about fourteen corps and eight
cavalry divisions, a force of 750,000 men, with which to attempt
to drive the Allies into the sea. In addition there was immensely
powerful armament and heavy siege artillery, which also had been
brought up from around Antwerp. But in spite of these strong forces
it became clearly evident by the middle of November that the attempt
to break through to Calais had failed for the time being. The flooding
of the Yser marks the end of the main struggle for Calais. The battle
fronts had shifted. Between them there was a mile or two of mud and
water. The Belgians had lost a quarter of their effectives. The
Germans had evacuated the west bank of the Yser and were obliged
to return to the point from which they had started.
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