Battle in Flanders 1914

1914 Front - reserve

Oct. 9 - The Belgian Army of 55,000 that evacuated Antwerp Oct. 6 reformed at Bruges, with Churchill's Royal Naval Divison, and with the new IV Corps that had arrived from England under the command of Henry Rawlinson, made up of the 7th Division from England reinforced by a cavalry division. These forces began to move west from Bruges Oct. 12 to join the BEF in Flanders, reaching the Yser north of Dixmude by Oct. 14. The British Naval Dover Patrol provided artillery support from 12-in naval guns.

Oct. 10 - Falkenhayn created the new 4th Army in Belgium made up of Beseler's reserves and six new reserve corps from German, mostly old men brought out of retirement, only 1 in 10 were the young students that were romanticized in German popular press.

Oct. 11 - Battle of Flanders began for control of the Channel ports until Nov. 22.

Oct. 13 - BEF occupied Ypres and around the town in a large circle 35 miles long.

Oct. 16 - Battle of Yser began when the German 4th Army attacked the Belgian army at Dixmude from the east, broke their line in the middle, and were stopped only when on Oct. 27 the Belgians opened the sea gates at Nieuport and flooded the coastal plain.

Oct. 19 - Battle of Ypres began with German attacks on British lines north and east and south of the city. The German 4th and 6th Armies also attacked west of Lille at La Bassee and Armentieres at the same time the main German attack developed further north at Ypres.

Oct. 24 - British riflemen in Polygon Woods used the cover of the forest to fire at the German line at long range, repelling several attacks.

Oct. 27 - Army Group Fabeck increased German strength by 6 divisions south of Menin Road but attacks failed against Messines and Hollebeke. New I Corps of Douglas Haig strengthens BEF line, and gains valuable intelligence by intercepting German plain language radio messages. Unknown to Allies, Germans fired 3000 shells of non-lethal tear gas at Neuve Chapelle and occupy the village.

Oct. 29 - Bavarian 6th Reserve Corps attack at Gheluvelt on Menin Road, but were repulsed. Another German attack at Gheluvelt on Oct. 31 almost broke through, but Douglas Haig rode to the front and ordered counterattack by the 350 men of the 2nd Worcester who drove 1200 Germans from Gheluvelt Chateau. Adolph Hitler was promoted to corporal Nov. 1. The bodies of 25,000 Germans would be buried at Langemarck and the German press mourned the "Massacre of the Innocents" in reference to the students who died with the reserve corps that fought at Ypres.

Oct. 31 - German artillery destroyed the Hooge Chateau and killed many British staff headquartered there. German artillery over the next week destroyed the Cloth Hall and the Cathedral in Ypres.

Nov. 4 - German attempt to pinch the Ypres salient at its bottom and top edges failed.

Nov. 11 - The Battle of Nuns' Wood by the regular troops of the German 6th Army failed, and the attack of the elite Prussian Guard and 1st Foot Guard near Hooge Chateau was stopped by the cooks and servants of the 5th Field Company of Royal Engineers, and this ended the German offensive at Ypres.

Nov. 15 - Foch relieves BEF in the Ypres salient with French troops. Falkenhayn began to transfer German troops to the eastern front.

Nov. 22 - Battle of Ypres ended with both armies entrenched and fixed in defensive lines from Nieuprt to La Bassee. The BEF began to copy German tactics and weapons, began to equip soldiers with grenades first used by Germany at Vimy Nov. 1, and created a Trench Mortar Service to use the Minenwerfers copied from the Germans.

Dec. 20 - Battle of Champagne began when French 4th Army atacked German 5th Army on the center of the German line that was entrenched from Nieuport to Verdun. The French made small gains at Givenchy and Perthes and Noyen. Joffre hoped to divert German forces from the eastern front due to Russian losses at Tannenberg and Warsaw and Galicia. After a winter pause in Feb., the battle continued to Mar. 17, 1915

Dec. 22 - French I Corps advanced at Beausejour Farm.

Dec. 24 - Christmas Truce in Flanders.

Links:

Sources:

   

revised 9/1/06 by Schoenherr | WWI Timeline | Links | Topics | Maps | Reserve