Tag: British Expeditionary Force (BEF)

The Evacuation of Dunkirk

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The Evacuation of Dunkirk

 

“So long as the English tongue survives, the word Dunkirk will be spoken with reverence. In that harbour, such a hell on earth as never blazed before, at the end of a lost battle, the rags and blemishes that had hidden the soul of democracy fell away. There, beaten but unconquered, in shining splendour, she faced the enemy, this shining thing in the souls of free men, which Hitler cannot command. It is in the great tradition of democracy. It is a future. It is victory.” ~ New York Times, 1 June 1940

“For us Germans the word “Dunkirchen” will stand for all time for victory in the greatest battle of annihilation in history. But, for the British and French who were there, it will remind them for the rest of their lives of a defeat that was heavier than any army had ever suffered before.” ~ Der Adler, 5 June 1940 (Source)

The Battle of Dunkirk. The Dunkirk Evacuation. Code Name: Operation Dynamo.

After declaring war on Germany, Britain sent the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) to help defend France. The problem, though, was that while France had the Maginot Line between them and Germany, they stupidly believed that the Ardennes forest was “impenetrable.”

So what did Germany do?

On May 10, 1940, the German army attacked Belgium, Holland, Luxembourg. Fighting continued for four days until the Allies were forced to push back when France and Belgium positions failed to hold. 

On May 12, though, Germany entered France through none other than the Ardennes forest.

“The Germans advanced in an arc westward from the Ardennes in Belgium, along France’s Somme River, and to the English Channel, cutting off communication between the Allies’ northern and southern forces” (Source). The Allies were quickly finding themselves surrounded and trapped against the northern coast of France. By the 19th, British commander, General Viscount John Gort, was considering a BEF withdrawal by sea. However, the Allies decided to launch a counterattack on the 21st. By the 24th, German army commander in chief, Walther von Brauchitsh was ready to take Dunkirk. It was actually Hitler who prevented the attack, having been convinced by Hermann Göring that the Luftwaffe “could destroy the Allied forces trapped on the beaches of Dunkirk” (Source). 

Evacuation Dynamo was initiated on May 26th. They expected to have 48 hours to evacuate what they hoped would be 45,000 troops. However, the following day, King Leopold III of Belgium surrendered to Germany. As a result, Germany “resumed the land attack on Dunkirk” (Source). The break in fighting had allowed Britain to fortify their defenses, but they did not last long under advancing Germans. “As there were not enough ships to transport the huge masses of men stranded at Dunkirk, the British Admiralty called on all British citizens in possession of sea-worthy vessels to lend their ships to the effort. Fishing boats, pleasure yachts, lifeboats, and other civilian ships raced to Dunkirk, braving mines, bombs, and torpedoes” (Source). Some 933 ships took part.

Between the Luftwaffe and the counterattacks (some 3,500 missions) from the RAF, the Dunkirk harbor was beyond use. “Small civilian vessels had to ferry the soldiers from the beaches to the warships waiting at sea. But for nine days, the evacuation continued, a miracle to the Allied commanders who had expected disaster” (Source).

The battle ended on June 4, with the German army closing in. “With Western Europe abandoned by its main defenders, the German army swept through the rest of France, and Paris fell on June 14” (Source). On May 22, the armistice at Compiegne was signed by Henri Petain. “Germany annexed half the country, leaving the other half in the hands of their puppet French rulers” (Source).

“The inability for the German army to move on the survivors of Dunkirk is noted by many historians as one of the most critical mistakes Hitler made, one that that Rundstedt even called ‘one of the great turning points of the war’” (Source).

Casualties & Losses:

British: 198,000 troops were rescued; 68,000 dead, even more ended up MIA or as POWs. French: 140,000 troops were rescued; 290,000 dead. Germans: 27,074 dead; 111,034 wounded. Additionally, Britain lost some six destroyers, five minesweepers, eight transport ships, and a further 200 vessels had been sunk or badly damaged. They also left behind hundreds of thousands of guns, vehicles, and ammunition in what was now German territory.

[Below: Troops awaiting evacuation.]

Нолан, может, и гений, но не в военной драме – мнение - Свежие ...

 

“Soldiers of the West Front! Dunkirk has fallen … with it has ended the greatest battle in world history. Soldiers! My confidence in you knows no bounds. You have not disappointed me” (Source). ~ Hitler, June W5, 1940

Back home, Prime Minister Churchill was equally as pleased with his own troops. Praising and warning his people: “We must be very careful not to assign to this the attributes of a victory. Wars are not won by evacuations” (Source). 

The bulk of the British army had been rescued. This meant that Britain still had hope. A number of miracles and extraordinary factors helped make it possible. “The decision of Gort (the commander of the BEF) to ignore Churchill and the French commanders and head to the coast, the halt order, the weather, the survival of the Eastern Mole (the pier from which the majority of troops were evacuated), and the incredible determination of the Royal Navy, all combined to save the BEF” (Source).

Had the evacuation been unsuccessful, with a quarter of a million British troops held in captivity, Churchill would not have much other choice but to surrender – and sign Hitler’s peace treaty, as France had done. Had the evacuation been unsuccessful, the German army would have been left with additional provisions on their side, “including the 40 divisions which Britain’s continued hostility required in Africa and on the Atlantic Wall, as well as the 1,882 aircraft, and their experienced pilots and bomber crews, which were lost over Britain in the coming months” (Source).

“Hitler never wished to enter into war with Britain. He admired the country whose Empire he believed powerfully reinforced his ideas of racial domination, commenting that ‘To maintain their Empire they need a strong continental power at their side. Only Germany can be that power.’ After Dunkirk, however, he was stunned to find that his ‘sensible peace arrangements’ were continuously and categorically rejected. Even as late as 6 July, Hitler insisted that the invasion of Britain would only be tried as a last resort ‘if it cannot be made to sue for peace any other way’” (Source).

Dunkirk aroused America’s sentiment and caused them to realize the importance of aiding Britain. “It is a matter of inestimable importance to our own security that we should instantly remove all restrictions on the rendering of realistic, material aid to the Allies,” the Washington Evening Star declared (Source). By mid-June, America shipped roughly half a million rifles to their aid. The American support boosted both countries’ resolved and Churchill promised that “Britain would preserve ‘the whole world, including the United States’ from sinking ‘into the abyss of a new Dark Age’” (Source).

In June of 1940, Britain stood alone against Germany, Italy, & the Soviet Union.

[Below: Operation Dynamo]

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Battle of Calais

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Battle of Calais

The Battle of Calais started after the Germans had split the Allied armies in half at Sedan on May 14th and 15th, 1940. From there, the British had been cut off from their supplies. Eight days later, the Battle of Calais had begun. Dunkirk, Boulogne, and Calais had become vitally important. So, British troops were sent to Calais to establish a new line to the BEF, who were still fighting around Lille and Arras.

The defense of Calais would be carried out by Calais Force. This force contained one battalion each from the King’s Royal Rifle Corps (60th Rifles), the Queen Victoria Rifles and the Rifle Brigade, the 229th anti-tank battery of the Royal Artillery and a battalion from the Royal Tank Regiment, equipped with 21 light and 27 cruiser forces. 

Under the command of Brigadier Claude Nicholson, they would be aided by a Searchlight Regiment as well as an anti-aircraft regiment. Additionally, some 800 French soldiers helped to defend the citadel. In all, this gave Nicholson a total of 4,000 men.

The Germans reached the coast on May 20th, then stopped for a day. On the 22nd, they continued their drive north. The 10th Panzer Division was given the responsibility of taking Calais and the 1st Panzer Division of driving on towards Dunkirk, but of stopping to capture Calais on their way. Both divisions were at “full strength,” meaning that each division had roughly 15,000 men and 300 tanks.

At the time, Calais had a border of “bastions and ramparts” (Source). However, Nicholson realized that even this wouldn’t help him hold the perimeter for very long. So, he made the decision to move further north, along an inner perimeter. This line was protected by water lines, in the canals, as well as in the docks.

By midmorning on May 23rd, the Germans tanks had begun rolling into Calais from the south west. Later that morning, three more squadrons of tanks, these under the command of Lt. Col. Keller, left Calais for Omer, some twenty minutes south east. Five miles south of Calais, at Guines, they ran into the German tanks. A short battle followed.

[Below: Calais in ruins]

Photo] Destroyed houses and church in Calais, France, afternoon of ...

 

The British tanks eventually retreated back north to Coquelles, which was south west of Calais. However, the Germans had also been repulsed. I Panzer Division continued on, leaving the X Panzer Division to defend Calais. At Calais, itself, the King’s Royal Rifle Corps (60th Rifles) saw battle with the Rifle Brigade on the dunes east of Calais.

At 2 a.m. the next morning, on the way to Dunkirk, Brigadier Nicholson’s tanks met the Rifle Brigade. Unfortunately, the British were forced to retreat back to Calais. By 6 that evening, the Germans had also broken through the British outer perimeter at Calais, forcing Nicholson to move his headquarters back from “Boulevard Léon Gambetta to the Gare Maritime, on the waterfront” (Source).

The Royal Navy was able to provide artillery defense with the help of the Polish warship, Burza. Later, HMS Wolfhound and HMS Verity were able to bring in supplies, ammunition, and Admiral J. F. Somerville. However, the battle also saw the sinking of HMS Wessex as well as heavy damage to HMS Vimiera and the Polish Burza. But the Royal Navy had to keep up the good fight, for it meant they were giving the BEF the extra time they needed to reach Dunkirk safely.

On the morning of the 25th, the X Panzer division attacked the inner perimeter. At 9 that evening, Prime Minister Churchill sent a communiqué:

“Every hour you continue to exist is of the greatest help to the BEF. Government has therefore decided you must continue to fight. Have greatest possible admiration for your splendid stand. Evacuation will not (repeat not) take place, and craft required for above purpose are to return to Dover” (Source).

That night, a small flotilla of ships began rescuing the survivors of the Royal Marine.

Fighting continued most of the next day with yet another German attack. They were able to gradually push the British back. Later, the French surrendered. Around 11 am, “Bastion 11 was forced to surrender with barely a man unwounded” (Source). Their defenses were beginning to collapse. But the British refused to give in. They were pushed back as far as Courgain, where they held on until 9 that evening.

Shortly thereafter, soldiers were rounded up. Many of them would be in captivity of five years. Nicholson died in captivity in 1943. Overall, some 20,000 men were taken prisoner, some 3,000-4,000 of them being British. The rest were French, Belgian, and Dutch.

[Below: Captured British forces]

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The September Campaign

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The September Campaign

 

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On September 1, 1939, the Axis Powers launched the September Campaign – their invasion of Poland. Over a million and a half troops, from 3 different sides – Germany from the West, East Prussia from the North, and Slovakia from the South. The size of the attack was never seen before.

Germany, alone, came with 2,600 tanks and 2,000 aircraft. While Poland only had some 180 tanks and 420 aircraft.

The thing is, Poland hand long-known the attack was coming. In fact, with the threat hanging over their heads, Poland signed an agreement with Britain and France – the Agreement of Mutual Assistance, in which both countries agreed to come to Poland’s aid when Germany invaded.

Poland did prepare itself for Hitler’s inevitable invasion by digging trenches, setting up blockades, and arming themselves. However, “Poland’s French and British allies bullied the Poles into delaying mobilization out of fear of ‘provoking’ Hitler. As a result, only part of the Polish army was ready when the attack came” (Source).

But first, some important background:  It may seem like a simple “Hitler invaded Poland,” but as is always the case with Hitler, there is more to the story.

See, in 1934, only a year after Hitler had come to power, he played a similar game with Poland we saw him play with the Soviet Union by signing the German-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact. He proposed a “treaty” with Poland, The German-Polish Non-Aggression Pact, in which “both countries pledged to resolve their problems by bilateral negotiations and to forgo armed conflict for a period of 10 years” (Source). Or make that 4 ½ years.

But again, like with the Soviet Union, Hitler was already, of course, we’re all sure, planning to break the pact.

For example, Hitler had been trying to break the ties between Poland and France. He also tried maneuvering Poland into the Anti-Communist Pact, “forming a cooperative front against the Soviet Union” (Source). Despite his pact with the Soviet Union.

Hitler made Poland great promises if they agreed to cooperate – such as territory in Ukraine and Belarus. However, this agreement would also, technically, make Poland “largely dependent” on Germany. Sounds a bit like a trap.

Additionally, Poland held a piece of land known as the “Polish Corridor” as well as Danzig – land that had became part of Poland after the Treaty of Versailles. Land that Germany desperately wanted back. Land that Hitler saw as the perfect reason for war.

The story, unsurprisingly, continues.

After “several German-staged incidents,” (to be discussed in a later post. Promise.) Hitler attacked, claiming he was doing it in self-defense (Source). There you have it. Hitler used propaganda to “excuse” his absurd desire for war.

[Below: German armies marching  into Poland.]

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At 4:40, the Luftwaffe attacked Wieluń, “destroying 75% of the city and killing close to 1,200 people” (Source). Five minutes later, the German pre-dreadnaught battleship Schleswig-Holstein opened fire on Westerplatte. At 5:00, the German army attacked Mokra. All three assaults (German, Prussian, and Slovakian) converged in Warsaw.

“Warsaw everywhere was burning.  Huge billowing columns of smoke filled the sky with thick massive clouds as red as blood. Railway tracks were so heavily bombed that they became like twisted pretzels. Huge craters where 
bombs had been dropped lined every street in Warsaw, and other cities. Enormous hills of rubble marked areas where buildings used to stand, and protruding from the rubble were scattered the bodies of people who had been crushed beneath the collapsed buildings.  Military posts, as well as residential areas were bombed and strafed.  Defenseless civilians were gunned down as they ran from burning buildings. Peasants were massacred as they worked in the fields in the countryside. Men, women, and children were slaughtered. Churches, schools, hospitals, monuments, museums – all were targets for destruction.  The Polish people, their culture, and the very existence of the Polish nation were targeted by Hitler for annihilation. Warsaw, the Paris of the east was transformed into a wasteland – an open grave” (Source).

It wasn’t until September 3rd that Britain and France declared war on the Axis – thus beginning WWII. However, they failed to provide the support Poland really needed. Prime Minister Chamberlain merely dispatched the RAF to drop leaflets over German armies! Meanwhile, the British Expeditionary Force joined French forces along the Maginot Line. This “farce” became known as the Phoney War because Britain and France mainly kept themselves busy over the next several months with pointless raids into No-Man’s Land and bombings over the Siegfried Line.

The Polish military saw some minor victories, but ultimately, they were pushed back from their own borders towards Warsaw and Lwów.

Thanks to their destroying Polish communications, coupled with the approximately 98 airman who retreated to the then-neutral Romania, the Luftwaffe easily opposed the Polish Air Force.

  • September 9: Warsaw is attacked
  • September 9-19: The Battle of Bzura takes place, the largest battle during the campaign.
  • September 10: Commander-in-Chief Marshal Edward Rydz-Śmigły orders a general retreat to the southeast. The Germans are “penetrating deeply into Eastern Poland”
  • September 13: Warsaw is under siege. Also, German armies reach Lwów.
  • September 17: The Soviet Union joins forces with Germany – attacking from the east
  • September 24: Warsaw is bombed by 1,150 German aircraft

The Soviet joined the battle at over 800,000 strong, breaking, of course, the Soviet-Polish Non-Aggression Pact. It was at the time that the Soviets attacked that Poland realized their defeat.

“The campaign against Poland was conducted with a cruelty previously unknown in modern European warfare. Polish civilians and prisoners of war were systematically shot by German and Soviet forces. Although the Nazi SS and Einsatzgruppen and the Soviet NKVD committed the worst crimes, regular army and air forces of both totalitarian states were full and willing participants in the slaughter. The German use of Einsatzgruppen or special action units in Poland was a test run. The death and destruction carried out deliberately by the Wehrmacht and the police during the period of military control of the country between September 1 and October 25, 1939 was merciless and systematic” (Source).

From September 17-20, Poland fought the 2nd largest battle, the Battle of Tomaszów Lubelski at Kraków and Lublin. On September 22, Lwów fell to the Soviets, having suffered from German attack just days prior. Warsaw held out until the 28th, falling on the 29th to the Germans.

On October 6th, General Franciszek Kleebergy surrendered near Lublin.

531 towns and villages were burned. “714 executions took place with over 16,000 civilian victims, most of them Christian Poles” (Source).

[Below: Warsaw Burning]

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Up Next: 

Battle of the Atlantic

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First Battle Of The Aisne

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First Battle Of The Aisne

Thanks to the Great War channel on youtube, I discovered that I missed a battle in my attempt to chronologically cover WWI. Apparently, WWI timelines and history.com don’t cover every single battle. Too bad. And on that note, don’t be surprised if I find others that I missed, I still have a month to go before I’m caught up.

Anyways, better late than never.

The first battle of Aisne took place from September 13 to September 28. It was a follow up offensive after the first battle of the Marne. It was also the beginning of trench warfare.

After being defeated at the first battle of the Marne on September 11th, German Chief of General Staff, Hermuth von Moltke, “issued orders to retreat to the line of the Aisne and to fortify the high ground north of the river” (Source). The battle of the Aisne began the next evening.

The two battles came so close together because the Allies did not properly exploit their win at the Marne by continuing to attack the German First and Second armies as they retreated. Additionally, the Allied retreat was extremely slow due mostly to fatigue and caution.

At this stage, the British were still heavily dependent on the Royal Flying Corps for reconnaissance. However, throughout September 10 & 11, the low clouds and mist “severely hindered aerial reconnaissance” (Source). This made it extraordinarily difficult for the Allies to know exactly where the Germans were or what they were up to.

[Below: British BE2 Biplane]

The Germans, for their own part, intended “to halt their retreat at the Aisne” (Source). Thus, the 1st and 2nd German armies, joined by the 7th army, entrenched themselves along the north bank of the Aisne. This bank, known as the Chemin des Dames Ridge, provided them with the perfect defensive position. Reconnaissance also showed German troops moving east from Soissons. It was apparent that these troops were intending to join the German troops currently opposing BEF crossing of the Aisne.

By the evening of the 12th, the 1st and 2nd German armies and completely finished their retreat and were now getting into formation to defend the Aisne against the Allies. The Germans, fully practiced at “entrenching maneuvers,” were quick at digging themselves in – Alexander von Kluck’s 1st Army to the west and Karl von Bülow’s second to the east (Source).

With help from the French Fifth and Sixth Armies (under General d’Esperey and General Maunoury, respectively), the British launched a frontal infanty attack on September 13th. Their assault continued on into the 14th, after establishing a bridgehead to the north of the river. This point allowed them to shoot the Germans from above.

Until, that is, the German counter-attacked forced them back. Well, initially, “General Allenby’s Cavalry Division began an attack on the BEF’s right against the German positions along the Aisne in the area of Villers and Bourg, but found that all the bridges across the Aisne, as opposed to the canal, were destroyed” (Source).

The Germans accomplished this through the use of machine gun fire, just one of the many areas of warfare that Germany could claim superiority. “Small advances were achieved by the Allies, but these could not be consolidated” (Source). Their positions were held . . . until help came to the Allies in the from of the 1st Division of the BEF’s I Corps. They assisted in the crossing of the Aisne at Bourg, where the Allies took up positions along the north edge of the river.

What resulted was, essentially, each side trying to outflank the other, while making sure that their opponents stayed in place. Of course, it probably helped that, thanks to the battle, any number of the bridges were destroyed. Remember, that both sides were already partaking in the Race for the Sea and the longer the armies stayed put, well, the longer it would take them to bring help to those further along.  However, this would not be the last battle at the Aisne.

[Below: Demolished bridge at Bourg]

The demolished bridge at Bourg (photo by Captain Harry Baird, ADC to General Haig): Battle of the Aisne, 10th to 13th September 1914 in the First World War

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First Battle of Ypres

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First Battle of Ypres

On October 19, 1914 the Allies and Germans fought the 1st of 3 battles that took place in Ypres, Belgium. The purpose of these battles was to gain control of the city and “its advantageous positions on the north coast of Belgium” (Source).

After the Allied victory at the Battle of the Marne, the “Race to the Sea” had begun.

The race ended at the North Sea coast, at Flanders. Flanders was described as “the last gap through which either side could launch a decisive thrust” (Source).

Prior to reaching Ypres, the Germans had successfully captured Antwerp, pushing the Belgians back to Nieuport, near Ypres. Likewise, the BEF (British Expeditionary Force) also retreated to Ypres to “bolster the Belgian and French defense” (Source). The Allied position at Ypres was taking shape.

They got busy building trenches because “it could best be defended from the low ridge of high ground to the east, but it was vulnerable to superior German artillery” (Source). With this arrangement, the British held a 35-mile-long line with the French manning the borders to the south. They were confident that their coordinated attack would enable them to recapture Lille, Belgium, and Brussles, all important industrial cities.

Their plans would not succeed.

The Flander’s Offensive began the next day, led by General Erich von Falkenhayn, who had led the offensive that ran the Belgians out of Antwerp. Falkenhayn ordered an advance to capture the Dunkirk, Calais, and Boulogne ports. They struck the Yser River between Dixmude and Nieuport.

The Belgians once again fought valiantly.

[Below: British soldiers in Ypres]

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But, the German actions forced Belgium’s King Albert to open the sluices that held back the sea.  On October 27th, the Belgians flooded the land between their positions and the Germans’ along the twenty-mile strip of land between Dixmude and Nieuport, creating a two-mile wide water barrier that forced Falkenhayn to halt and reconsider his plans.

Looks like the Germans fighting the Belgians worked in the Allies’s favor not the Germans’s.

Thus began the second phase. This phase consisted predominately of assaults on the city of Ypres. The second phase became known as the Battle of Langemarck. “The British IV Corps was situated to the south, with the corps ready to come into line. The French commander thought that only one German corps was at Ypres” (Source). Falkenhayn had the newly assembled Fourth Army, commanded by the Duke of Wurttemberg, launch the attack on October 31st.

First, the Germans drove the British calvary from its position on the Messines Ridge, located at on the southern edge of the salient. Then, they attacked General Douglas Haig’s 1st Corps further north. However, a vicious British counterattack repelled the Germans, thanks to their superior rifle fire.

On November 11th, the Germans attacked the British again, this time “just north of the Menin Road in the Nuns’ Woods only four miles from Ypres itself. The Prussian Guards and the 4th Division sought the town of Hooge” (Source). The offensive lasted all day.

The Germans were successful, but also slow in exploiting what they had gained. This allowed the British to once again gain the upper hand. They assembled a collection of soldiers (cooks, clerks, medical orderlies, officer’s servants, etc.) who managed to stem the advance and drive the Germans back.

Nevertheless, the fighting in Ypres lasted until November 22nd. When “the arrival of winter weather forced the battle to halt” (Source). Three more battles would take place at Ypres, but this first battle was one of the most significant. It would also foreshadowing how the fighting would play out throughout the rest of the war.

The British saw 7,960 BEF killed and 29,562 wounded. The French saw 85,000 killed, the Belgians some 21,562 killed, and the Germans some 19,530 killed and another 83,520 wounded.

[Below: British trenches at Ypres]

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 Up Next:

Battle of Coronel

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The Siege of Antwerp

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The Siege of Antwerp 

After the Allied victory at the Battle of the Marne, the “Race to the Sea” had begun. Both sides were racing across France and Belgium, digging trenches and looking for the location of the next battle. During this time, the Belgian army, consisting of some 80,000 garrisoned troops, along with “a ring of 48 outer and inner forts” busied themselves by taking up defensive positions along the Yser River (Source). Their job was to distract the Germans.

The first to arrive were the Germans. On October 7, 1914, they bombarded Antwerp.

Now, initially, the Germans had no plans to even go through Antwerp, but all of the troops were proving to make their march through Belgium into France much more difficult. So, being forced to send four different divisions out to repel attacks from Antwerp, on September 9, the German Chief of Staff Helmuth von Moltke, sent his men to capture Antwerp.

On September 28, five German divisions, commanded by General Hans von Bessler, began bombing Antwerp’s southeastern corner. The British War Office was alerted, and, fearful that Germany’s capturing of Antwerp might mean a further conquest to take over the Channel ports, decided to send the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) troops in France to Antwerp.

[Below: Belgian Prisoners being marched away]

By October 2nd, word reached the likes of the First Lord of the Admiralty, Winston Churchill, that the Belgian forces under siege were planning to evacuate, leaving the city completely defenseless. Immediately, Churchill planned to get word to the Belgians that backup was on it’s way and then crossed the Channel himself.

In Antwerp, Churchill found the Belgians in terrible conditions. He reported back to Britain that “the Belgian troops were ‘weary and disheartened’ and that the city’s ground was so waterlogged that it was impossible for the Belgians to dig trenches for its protection” (Source).

By October 4th, the British had dispatched 6,000 Royal Navy troops. The following day, they sent another 2,000 and an additional 4,000 on the 6th. This on top of a division 22,000 strong that was already en route for Ostend.

“On October 7, before the British 7th Division had even set off, the Belgians transferred their forces from Antwerp to Ostend to continue the fight in open terrain” (Source). On the same day, the German onslaught began. The British were not able to withstand the bombardment.

The next day, Antwerp was evacuated; General Victor Deguise, Antwerp’s military governor, formally surrended to the German army on October 10. “German forces would occupy Antwerp for the duration of the war; it was finally liberated in late 1918” (Source).

Losses: The Allies suffered 30,000 casualties (most of which were captured). It is unknown how many German lives were lost.

[Below: Bombed Antwerp]

Up Next: 

First Battle of Ypres

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