Belgium, and the day after Sir Edward Grey's speech, on August 4, the
German Army had penetrated Belgium on its way to France after a
peremptory notice to the Belgian Government to the effect that the
Imperial Government "will, deeply to their regret, be compelled to carry
out, if necessary, by force of arms, the measures considered
indispensable." Thus began the nightmare of German "Kultur," to which
unoffending Belgium was subjected, and against which she appealed to the
British Government: "Belgium appeals to Great Britain and France and
Russia to co-operate, as guarantors, in defence of her territory."[43]
On August 4 Great Britain asked Germany for a definite assurance by
midnight that she would not violate Belgian neutrality. Germany's
attitude is unmistakable in the following report of an interview by our
Ambassador in Berlin with the German Secretary of State:--
"Herr von Jagow at once replied that he was sorry to say that his
answer must be 'No,' as, in consequence of the German troops having
crossed the frontier that morning, Belgian neutrality had been
already violated. Herr von Jagow again went into the reasons why
the Imperial Government had been obliged to take this step, namely,
that they had to advance into France by the quickest and easiest
way, so as to be able to get well ahead with their operations and
endeavour to strike some decisive blow as early as possible.
"It was a matter of life and death for them, as if they had gone by
the more southern route they could not have hoped, in view of the
paucity of roads and the strength of the fortresses, to have got
through without formidable opposition entailing great loss of
time.
"This loss of time would have meant time gained by the Russians for
bringing up their troops to the German frontier. Rapidity of action
was the great German asset, while that of Russia was an
inexhaustible supply of troops....
"I then said that I should like to go and see the Chancellor, as it
might be, perhaps, the last time I should have an opportunity of
seeing him.... I found the Chancellor very agitated. His Excellency
at once began a harangue, which lasted for about twenty minutes. He
said that the step taken by His Majesty's Government was terrible
to a degree; just for a word--'neutrality,' a word which in war
time had so often been disregarded--just for a scrap of paper Great
Britain was going to make war on a kindred nation.... He held Great
Britain responsible for all the terrible events that might happen.
I protested strongly against that statement, and said that, in the
same way as he and Herr von Jagow wished me to understand that for
strategical reasons it was a matter of life and death to Germany to
advance through Belgium and violate the latter's neutrality, so I
would wish him to understand that it was, so to speak, a matter of
'life and death' for the honour of Great Britain that she should
keep her solemn engagement to do her utmost to defend Belgium's
neutrality if attacked. That solemn compact simply had to be kept,
or what confidence could anyone have in engagements given by Great
Britain in the future? The Chancellor said: 'But at what price will
that compact have been kept. Has the British Government thought of
that?' I hinted to His Excellency as plainly as I could that fear
of consequences could hardly be regarded as an excuse for breaking
solemn engagements, but His Excellency was so excited, so evidently
overcome by the news of our action, and so little disposed to hear
reason that I refrained from adding fuel to the flame by further
argument."[44]
Thus, when midnight struck on Tuesday, August 4, 1914, it found us at
war with Germany for tearing up the "scrap of paper" which was Britain's
bond.[45] And earlier in the same day the German Chancellor, Dr. von
Bethmann Hollweg, in the course of a remarkable speech in the Reichstag,
admitted the naked doctrine, that German "necessity" overrides every
consideration of right and wrong, in the following words:--
"=Gentlemen, we are now in a state of necessity, and necessity
knows no law! Our troops have occupied Luxemburg and perhaps" (as a
matter of fact the speaker knew that Belgium had been invaded that
morning) "are already on Belgian soil. Gentlemen, that is contrary
to the dictates of international law.... The wrong--I speak
openly--that we are committing we will endeavour to make good as
soon as our military goal has been reached. Anybody who is
threatened, as we are threatened, and is fighting for his highest
possessions can have only one thought--how he is to hack his way
through (wie er sich durchhaut)!="[46]
FOOTNOTES:
[42] _Great Britain and the European Crisis_, Part II.
[43] Statements by Prime Minister, House of Commons, August 4 and 5,
1914.
[44] _Great Britain and the European Crisis_, No. 160.
[45] See Appendix E.
[46] The _Times_, August 11, 1914.
WAR WITH AUSTRIA.
From now onwards we were definitely allied with France in defence of
Belgium's neutrality.
At 6 p.m. on August 6, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Russia.
On August 12 Sir Edward Grey was compelled to inform Count Mensdorff
(Austro-Hungarian Ambassador in London) at the request of the French
Government, that a complete rupture having occurred between France and
Austria, a state of war between Great Britain and Austria would be
declared from midnight of August 12.
JAPAN'S ULTIMATUM TO GERMANY.
On August 17 the text of an ultimatum by Japan to Germany was published
in the following terms:--
"We consider it highly important and necessary in the present
situation to take measures to remove the causes of all disturbance
of the peace in the Far East and to safeguard general interests as
contemplated in the agreement of alliance between Japan and Great
Britain.
"In order to secure firm and enduring peace in Eastern Asia, the
establishment of which is the aim of the said agreement, the
Imperial Japanese Government sincerely believes it to be its duty
to give advice to the Imperial German Government, to carry out the
following two propositions:--
"(1) To withdraw immediately from Japanese and Chinese waters
the German men-of-war and armed vessels of all kinds, and to
disarm at once those which cannot be withdrawn.
"(2) To deliver on a date not later than September 15 to the
Imperial Japanese authorities without condition or
compensation the entire leased territory of Kiao-chau with a
view to the eventual restoration of the same to China.
"The Imperial Japanese Government announces at the same time that
in the event of its not receiving by noon of August 23 an answer
from the Imperial German Government signifying unconditional
acceptance of the above advice offered by the Imperial Japanese
Government, Japan will be compelled to take such action as it may
deem necessary to meet the situation."[47]
FOOTNOTES:
[47] Under Art. II of the Anglo-Japanese Agreement, signed on July 13,
1911, it was agreed that if the two contracting parties should conduct a
war in common, they should make peace in mutual agreement, etc.
BRITISH APPROVAL.
The Official Press Bureau issued the following on August 17:--
"The Governments of Great Britain and Japan, having been in
communication with each other, are of opinion that it is necessary
for each to take action to protect the general interest in the Far
East contemplated by the Anglo-Japanese Alliance, keeping specially
in view the independence and integrity of China, and provided for
in that Agreement.
"It is understood that the action of Japan will not extend to the
Pacific Ocean beyond the China Seas, except in so far as it may be
necessary to protect Japanese shipping lines in the Pacific, nor
beyond Asiatic waters westward of the China Seas, nor to any
foreign territory except territory in German occupation on the
Continent of Eastern Asia."
_DECLARATION OF COMMON POLICY._
On September 5, 1914, the British Official Press Bureau issued the
following statement from the Foreign Office:--
DECLARATION.
The undersigned duly authorised thereto by the respective
Governments hereby declare as follows:--
The British, French, and Russian Governments mutually engage not to
conclude peace separately during the present war. The three
Governments agree that when terms of peace come to be discussed no
one of the Allies will demand terms of peace without the previous
agreement of each of the other Allies. In faith whereof the
undersigned have signed this Declaration and have affixed thereto
their seals.
Done at London in triplicate, the 5th day of September, 1914.
E. Grey, His Britannic Majesty's Secretary of
State for Foreign Affairs.
Paul Cambon, Ambassador Extraordinary and
Plenipotentiary of the French Republic.
Benckendorff, Ambassador Extraordinary and
Plenipotentiary of His Majesty the Emperor of
Russia.
TURKEY JOINS GERMANY.
Directly war broke out the Turkish Army was mobilised, under the supreme
command of Enver Pasha, who was entirely in German hands.[48] Although
the Turkish Government had declared their intention of preserving their
neutrality, they took no steps to ensure its maintenance. They forfeited
their ability to do so by the admission of the German warships, "Goeben"
and "Breslau," which, fleeing from the Allied Fleets, had entered the
Dardanelles on August 10.
Instead of interning these war vessels with their crews, as they were
repeatedly asked to do by the Allied Governments, the Turkish Government
allowed the German Admiral and his men to remain on board, and while
this was the case the German Government were in a position to force the
hand of the Turkish Government whenever it suited them to do so.
In pursuance of a long-prepared policy, the greatest pressure was
exercised by Germany to force Turkey into hostilities. German success in
the European War was said to be assured; the perpetual menace to Turkey
from Russia might, it was suggested, be averted by an alliance with
Germany and Austria; Egypt might be recovered for the Empire; India and
other Moslem countries would rise against Christian rule, to the great
advantage of the Caliphate of Constantinople; Turkey would emerge from
the War the one great power of the East, even as Germany would be the
one great power of the West. Such was the substance of German
misrepresentations.
Enver Pasha, dominated by a quasi-Napoleonic ideal, and by the
conviction of the superiority of German arms, proved a most active agent
on behalf of Germany.
A strong German element was imported into the remainder of the Turkish
Fleet, even before the British Naval Mission, which had been reduced to
impotence by order of the Minister of Marine, was recalled by His
Majesty's Government. Large numbers of Germans were imported from
Germany to be employed in the forts of the Dardanelles and Bosphorus,
and at other crucial points.
Numerous German merchant vessels served as bases of communication, and
as auxiliaries to what had become in effect the German Black Sea Fleet.
Secret communications with the German General Staff were established by
means of the "Corcovado," which was anchored opposite the German Embassy
at Therapia. The German Military Mission in Turkey acted in closest
touch with the Turkish Militarist Party. They were the main organisers
of those military preparations in Syria which directly menaced Egypt.
Emissaries of Enver Pasha bribed and organised the Bedouins on the
frontier; the Syrian towns were full of German officers, who provided
large sums of money for suborning the local chiefs. The Khedive of
Egypt, who was in Constantinople, was himself a party to the conspiracy,
and arrangements were actually made with the German Embassy for his
presence with a military expedition across the frontier. All the Turkish
newspapers in Constantinople and most of the provincial papers became
German organs; they glorified every real or imaginary success of Germany
or Austria, and minimised everything favourable to the Allies.
Millions of money were consigned from Germany to the German Embassy in
Constantinople, and delivered under military guard at the Deutsche Bank.
At one time these sums amounted to L4,000,000. A definite arrangement
was arrived at between the Germans and a group of Turkish Ministers,
including Enver Pasha, Talaat Bey and Djemal Pasha, that Turkey should
declare war as soon as the financial provision should have attained a
stated figure.
The final point was reached when Odessa and other Russian ports in the
Black Sea were attacked by the Turkish Fleet on October 29, 1914. It is
now certain that the actual orders for these attacks were given by the
German Admiral on the evening of October 27.
On October 30 the Russian Ambassador asked for his passports and there
was nothing left but for the British and French Ambassadors to demand
theirs on the same day. The Russian Ambassador left Constantinople on
October 31, while the British and French Ambassadors left the following
evening.[49]
Thenceforward the Turks, at the instigation of the Germans,
unsuccessfully endeavoured to raise Mahomedans in all countries against
Great Britain and her Allies. The Sultan of Turkey, misusing his
position as Padishah and Titular Head of the Moslems, gave a perverted
history of the events and proclaimed a Holy War. The Sultan, in his
speech from the Throne on December 14, 1914 (at which ceremony the
ex-Khedive of Egypt was present), said:--
"We were just in the best way to give reforms in the interior a
fresh impetus when suddenly the great crisis broke out. While our
Government was firmly resolved to observe the strictest neutrality,
our Fleet was attacked in the Black Sea by the Russian Fleet.
England and France then began actual hostilities by sending troops
to our frontiers. Therefore I declared a state of war. These
Powers, as a necessity, compelled us to resist by armed force the
policy of destruction which at all times was pursued against the
Islamic world by England, Russia, and France, and assumed the
character of a religious persecution. In conformity with the Fetwas
I called all Moslems to a Holy War against these Powers and those
who would help them."[50]
What the Moslems of India thought of the situation is succinctly shown
by a speech delivered on October 1, 1914, by the Agha Khan, the
spiritual head of the Khoja community of Mahomedans and President of the
All-India Moslem League.[51] He said he had always been convinced that
Germany was the most dangerous enemy of Turkey and other Moslem
countries, for she was the Power most anxious to enter by "peaceful
penetration" Asia Minor and Southern Persia. But she had been posing for
years past as a sort of protector of Islam--_though Heaven forbid that
they should have such an immoral protector_.
FOOTNOTES:
[48] Cd. 7716.
[49] Cd. 7628 and Cd. 7716.
[50] A Reuter's Amsterdam telegram of December 15, 1914.
[51] _Times_, October 2, 1914,
MORE GERMAN INTRIGUES.
The vastness of German intrigues throughout the world in preparation for
a great war have come out piece by piece.
=The Near East.=--Taking the Near East first, we find that Germany,
having suborned the ex-Khedive of Egypt, Abbas Hilmi, proceeded weeks
before the rupture with Turkey to give orders, through the Ottoman
Empire, to Shukri, the acting Chief of the Turkish Special Mission, to
prepare public opinion in Egypt for Turkish invasion and to await the
coming of the German Mors, whose trial was attended by such startling
disclosures.[52]
Mors had been introduced to Enver Pasha by Dr. Pruefer (Secretary to
Prince Hatzfeldt when he was German Agent in Egypt) and had held long
conferences with Omar Fauzi Bey, of the Turkish General Staff, who on
September 6, 1914, worked out a scheme for disturbances in Egypt by
bands of criminals led by Turkish officers and for an attack on the Suez
Canal.
In 1908 Prince Hatzfeldt succeeded Count Bernstorff, as German Agent in
Egypt, and he at once established close relations with the Egyptian
disloyalists of the extreme faction. In this he appears to have been
aided by Baron von Oppenheim, and by Dr. Pruefer, the Oriental Secretary
of the Agency, who was a fine Arabic scholar, and who had travelled a
great deal in Syria and the Near East. The leaders of the disloyal
section in Egypt were kept in the closest touch, and visited Prince
Hatzfeldt at the German Agency, and were in constant communication with
Dr. Pruefer, who, in Oriental disguise, often visited them, and other
Panislamic Agents.[53]
=The Far East.=--In India the German merchants joined our Chambers of
Commerce and were elected as representatives of commercial life, and as
trustees of port trusts, which gave them a knowledge of our local
defences. In some instances they appear to have become volunteers, and
so to have gained knowledge of our forts and armouries. Small German
merchants and traders in the Punjab and other districts constantly
endeavoured to undermine the British Raj, and preached sedition wherever
they went. Such were the agents and spies of the German Government.
Since the Mutiny at Singapore it has been proved that the Germans were
calling home their reserves from Singapore and the East in May, 1914,
and even as early as April of last year.[54] The first thing the
mutineers did was to go to the German Encampment, open the doors, and
supply those inside with rifles. Sir Evelyn Ellis, member of the
Singapore Legislative Council, who was President of the Commission
appointed by the Governor to collect evidence with reference to the
Mutiny, which took place on February 15, 1915, stated that:--
"They were not to think that they had been engaged in suppressing a
small local disturbance. On the contrary, there was evidence to
show that they had assisted in defeating one of the aims of the
destroyer of Europe. They had been dealing with work that had been
engineered by the agents of our common foes, and they had
contributed to the suppression of a most diabolical plot. What had
taken place in Singapore was only part of a scheme for the murder
of women and children such as they had had instances of on the East
Coast of England."[55]
The head of a big German firm in Singapore, after being released on
parole, was found with a wireless installation in his house, with which
he was stated to have kept the "Emden" supplied with news.[56]
In Persia and Arabia there is abundant proof of German intrigues, while
in China few opportunities have been lost by German agents of impugning
British good faith, and German money appears to have been used for years
in keeping the Chinese press--in Peking more particularly--as
anti-British as possible. Since the declaration of war an attempt has
been made by Captain Pappenheim, Military Attache of the German Legation
in Peking, to organise an expedition into Russian Siberia to damage the
Trans-Siberian railway. His action was, of course, a gross abuse of his
diplomatic position, and has been disclaimed by the Chinese
Government.[57]
=West Africa.=--In West Africa the report of Colonel F. C. Bryant on
operation in Togoland shows how well the Germans were prepared for war
in that region.[58]
=South Africa.=--In South Africa[59] it has been proved that so far back
as 1912 the Germans were in communication with Lieut.-Colonel Maritz
with a view to a rebellion. The latter appears to have brooded over
schemes for the establishment of a Republic in South Africa. As the Blue
Book, published in Cape Town on April 28, 1915, states: "One witness,
Captain Leipold, of the Government Intelligence Department, who was sent
to find out how things stood with Maritz, describes how the rebel leader
dramatically threw his cards on the table in the shape of a bundle of
correspondence with the German Administration at Windhuk, dating as far
back as August, 1912."[60]
In a speech to his troops on August 9, 1914, Maritz declared that he had
6,000 Germans ready to help him, and he further stated that Beyers and
De Wet had been fully informed of his plans long before the war.[61]
Evidence was also given during the trial of De Wet that the rebellion in
South Africa "was planned a couple of years ago when General Hertzog
left the Ministry."[62] The Germans, either directly or indirectly,
suborned, amongst others, Maritz, De Wet, De La Rey, Beyers, Kemp, and
Kock. But the magnificent services of General Botha and the loyalists
of South Africa--both British and Dutch--rendered nugatory the
machinations of the German Government.
The history of German intrigues, both before and since the war, in
British and French colonies, and in neutral countries throughout the
world, which are now known and proved to the hilt, may be gauged from
the examples given in the foregoing brief notes. The German newspaper
_Der Tag_, which, during the first month of the war, declared: "Herr
Gott, sind diese Tage schoen" (O Lord, how beautiful are these days),
subsequently summarised the German outlook when it naively
declared:--[63]
"So many of our calculations have deceived us. We expected that
British India would rise when the first shot was fired in Europe,
but in reality thousands of Indians came to fight with the British
against us. We anticipated that the whole British Empire would be
torn to pieces, but the Colonies appear to be closer than ever
united with the Mother Country. We expected a triumphant rebellion
in South Africa, yet it turned out nothing but a failure. We
expected trouble in Ireland, but instead, she sent her best
soldiers against us. We anticipated that the party of 'peace at any
price' would be dominant in England, but it melted away in the
ardour to fight against Germany. We reckoned that England was
degenerate and incapable of placing any weight in the scale, yet
she seems to be our principal enemy.
"The same has been the case with France and Russia. We thought that
France was depraved and divided and we find that they are
formidable opponents. We believed that the Russian people were far
too discontented to fight for their Government, and we made our
plans on the supposition of a rapid collapse of Russia, but,
instead, she mobilised her millions quickly and well, and her
people are full of enthusiasm and their power is crushing. Those
who led us into all those mistakes and miscalculations have laid
upon themselves a heavy responsibility."
FOOTNOTES:
[52] _Times_, April 28, 1915.
[53] _Times_, January 6, 1915.
[54] _Times_, April 24, 1915. (Speech by the Bishop of Singapore.)
[55] _Daily News and Leader_, April 27, 1915.
[56] _Morning Post_, March 27, 1915.
[57] Letter from the Chinese Legation to the _Times_, March 13 and 20,
1915.
[58] _Daily News and Leader_, April 22, 1915.
[59] Cd. 7874.
[60] _Times_, April 30, 1915.
[61] _Times_, March 17, 1915.
[62] _Times_, February 19, 1915.
[63] _Times_, April 26, 1915.
HOW THE GERMANS MAKE WAR.
It has often been asked what would happen if savages were armed with the
products of modern science and with the intelligence to use them.
Germany has answered the question. Every resource of science lies at the
German command; the chemist, the physicist, the metallurgist, have all
worked in this war to place the most effective tools of destruction in
the Germans' hands, and to satisfy their ambitions they have shut the
gates of mercy on mankind. The Official Handbook of Instructions issued
to Officers of the German Army by the German General Staff urges the
"exploitation of the crimes of third parties (assassination,
incendiarism, robbery and the like) to the prejudice of the enemy."
This Official Handbook says:--
"A war conducted with energy cannot be directed merely against the
combatants of the Enemy State and the positions they occupy, but it
will and must in like manner seek to destroy the total intellectual
and material resources of the latter."[64]
The German Emperor, addressing the troops which he sent to take part in
the International Expedition in China in 1900, said:--
"When you come into contact with the enemy strike him down.
_Quarter is not to be given. Prisoners are not to be made._ Whoever
falls into your hands is into your hands delivered. Just as a
thousand years ago the Huns, under their King Attila, made for
themselves a name which still appears imposing in tradition, so may
the name of German become known in China in such a way that never
again will a Chinaman dare to look askance at a German. The
blessing of the Lord be with you. Give proof of your courage and
the Divine blessing will be attached to your colours."