Showing posts with label Belgian Army. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Belgian Army. Show all posts

Wednesday, January 11, 2023

Thursday, January 11, 1923. The French and Belgians Occupy the Ruhr

In one of the most condemned moves of 20th Century history, French and Belgium troops (the Belgians are often forgotten as having a role in this) started their occupation of the Ruhr by crossing into Essen into 0445.

French troops in Dortmund.

100,000 French soldiers were in the Ruhr by the end of the week.

Forgotten in this is that the French were a far more stable political entity at the time than the Germans, and the Germans had breached the Versailles Treaty.  If the French had shown similar backbone in 1936, they would have stopped Hitler cold, caused him to lose the chancellorship, and he'd have been luck to have not ended up in the ground that year.

The Germans get a lot of sympathy here they really don't deserve.

Hitler did use the occasion to attack, in a speech, the German republican government.

Secy. of Labor Davis delivering the opening address at first meeting of the Nat'l Industrial Women's Conference, Jan. 11, 1923, at the Nat'l Museum.

Greek King Constantine 1 died in Italy in exile at age 54.  He reigned, and abdicated, twice, losing his second regnum due to the war with Turkey.

Very oddly, his successor, two intervening kings in between, Constantine II died yesterday at age 82 in Athens.  He was Greek's last king.

Sunday, October 14, 2018

Countdown on the Great War. October 14, 1918. Saying no to the Boche, Sinkings in the Atlantic, Americans resume the offensive in the Meuse Argonne and the British in Flanders.

Camp Funston, Kansas, which some believe if the locus of the origin of the Spanish Flu.

1.  The Battle of Courtrai commences in which the Groupe d'Armees des Flanders, made up of twelve Belgian, ten British and six French divisions under the command of King Albert I of Belgian attacked German forces in the hopes of continuing the Allied advance as far as possible before the oncoming winter made further advances impossible.  It was still anticiapted at the time that the war would drag into 1919.

British forces found, to their expectation, that the Germans offered much reduced resistance and they had achived all of their objectives, reaching the Scheldt, by the 22nd.

The Germans were basically collapsing while still offering resistance.  The nearness to a complete German disaster was not apparent, but it was coming.

2. The U.S. resumes the offensive in the Meuse Argonne with assaults near Montfaucon.






Senencourt (Muese) France. "Kamerad," a figure by the soldiers in the yard of the American Red Cross Canteen at Senencourt. The Red Cross girls are, from left to right: Miss Louise Adams of 10 Arlington Place, Brooklyn, N.Y.; Miss Alice Birdall, of 310 Third Ave. Reselle Ave., N.J.; and Miss Gertrude Nichols, #849 West Galen Street, Butte, Montana; Capt. Beverly Rautoul of #17 Winter Street, Salem, Mass., and Private Geo. St. Clair Preston, both of the American Red Cross Evacuation Hospital #8, are on the extreme left

3.  The air wing of the United States Marine Corps engaged in its first all Marine air action by bombing Pitthem, Belgium.  Marines Ralph Talbot and gunner Robert Guy Robinson won the Medal of Honor for heroism associated with holding off German air attacks on their Airco bomber when they became separated and had to return to attempt to return to their base alone.

Airco DH4, which was used in the tactical role.

4.  The provisional government for Czechoslovakia formed.


5.  The U-139 attacked the Portoguese steamer Sao Miguel and its escort the Portuguese Navy trawler NRP Augusto de Castilho on the Action of 14 October 1918.  The trawler was lightly armed and while it fought for several hours, it was actually outgunned by the submarine and surrendered to it, and was thereafter scuttled by the German submariners.  The engagement is regarded as the only high seas naval battle of the Great War to take place in the North Atlantic.

On the same day, German submarines sank the Bayard, a French fishing vessel, the Stifinder, a Norwegian barque, which was scuttled due an engagement with the U-152 and the British passenger ship Dundalk, with the loss of 21 lives.  The German minsweeper SMS M22 was sunk by mines.


6.



Friday, September 28, 2018

The 100 Days: Fifth Battle of Ypres. September 28 to October 2, 1918.

On this day in 1918 the Groupe d'Armees des Flanders, a combined British, Belgian and French command, launched an assault at 05:30 after a three hour artillery bombardment, oer a wide front near Ypres.

The assault yielded immediate successes.  Many well known locations that featured heavy fighting earlier in the war, such as Passchendaele, were regained.  The advance continued on through October 2 when the Germans brought up reinforcements and the Allies outran their supplies, and therefore halted.

Showing the direction of things to come, the British and Belgian forces received 15,000 rations by air. That is, air drop.  They were parachuted in.

The battle, like the earlier one at Passchendaele, freakishly featured a lot of rain.

Tuesday, May 22, 2018

Today In Wyoming's History: May 22, 1918

Today In Wyoming's History: May 22:  1918  Four hundred Belgian soldiers passed through Wyoming over the Union Pacific Railroad on their way to the war in Europe.  The men had been assigned to fight with the Russians and were evacuated from Russia to the United States across the Pacific. Their train trip across the United States was to send them to an Atlantic port so they could return to service in Europe.

They received warm welcomes in Wyoming as they passed through the state.  Their compliment included several wives of soldiers, likely Russian brides, and one infant.

Thursday, October 16, 2014

Friday, October 16, 1914. Kiwis depart.

Belgian and French troops held back the Germans at the Yser.

The British took Aubers at the cost of 1,000 casualties.

The New Zealand Expeditionary Force left New Zealand for Australia.

Last edition:

Wednesday, October 14, 1914. Border tensions.

Saturday, September 27, 2014

Sunday, September 27, 1914. Cossack barbarity.

German forces forced back the French around the River Somme near Albert.

Belgian volunteers encountered German troops at Buggenhout, but retreated in the end to Mol.

The Russians forced back the Germans at Osowiec Fortress.

Cossacks attacked Jewish residents in Lwów, causing 40 civilian casualties.

Last edition:

Saturday, September 26, 1914. FTC created.


Friday, September 26, 2014

Saturday, September 26, 1914. FTC created.

The Federal Trade Commission was established by the Federal Trade Commission Act. 

Modern populists probably regard it as government overreach, as they seemingly think everything is in their ignorance.

Belgian infantry and cavalry attempted to cut off the retreating German Landwehr but failed to do so at Buggenhout.

German South West African troops defeated troops of the Union of South Africa at the Battle of Sandfontein in Namibia.

Last edition:

Friday, September 25, 1914. Battle of Buggenhout.

Thursday, September 25, 2014

Wednesday, August 27, 2014

Thursday, August 27, 1914. Russians advance, and start to crumble.

The Russians advanced, but reconnaissance failures prevented General Alexander Samsonov from becoming knowing that his flanks were breaking down.

An oddity, too, given the heavy prevalence of Russian cavalry.

The 2nd Royal Munster Fusiliers of the British Expeditionary Force held up the Germans for fourteen hours,  allowing the rest of the BEF to retreat. They would ultimately be forced to surrender.

The Belgian army ordered its troops to Péronne in France.

Last edition:

Wednesday, August 26, 1914. Tannenberg begins.

Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Wednesday, August 12, 1914. The United Kingdom and France declare war on Austro Hungaria.

The United Kingdom and her Dominions declared war on Austro Hungaria.

So did France.

Belgian troops repulsed  German cavalry at the Battle of Halen.



Karl von Müller, commander of the German light cruiser SMS Emden, met with Imperial German Navy Admiral Maximilian von Spee at Pagan, Mariana Islands.  In the meeting he learned that Impertial Japan was gravitating towards the United Kingdom and tracking down German squadrons in the Pacific.  The Emden was ordered to remain in the Pacific as a raider.

Interim Mexican president Francisco Carvajal formally left Mexico City for Veracruz, allowing the Constitutional Army to enter the city.

Last edition:

Monday, August 10, 1914. Austro Hungaria takes the field against Imperial Russia.