100 Years Ago Today

[Jimbuna]

24th September 1914

Western Front

The Aisne: The battle tends to stalemate.

Peronne occupied by the Germans.

Eastern Front

Russian forces begin first invasion of North Hungary.

Fortress town of Przemysl, held by 138,000 Austro-Hungarian troops, comes under siege by 300,000 Russian troops.

Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres

Tsing-tau: British force arrives at Laoshun to assist the Japanese.

Naval and Overseas Operations

U.S. decides to keep the armored cruisers Tennessee and North Carolina in European waters to safeguard American interests.

Kaiser Wilhelm's Land (New Guinea): Australians occupy town of Friedrich Wilhelm.

Political etc.

Senator Sheppard of Texas proposes cutting pay of the President, Senators, and Representatives to decrease expenditures.

[Sailor Steve]

September 24:

Donald Swain Lewis and Baron Trevenen James of No. 4 Squadron, RFC, make the first recorded use of airborne wireless to direct artillery during the First Battle of the Aisne. Their radio log runs for forty minutes.

Sources vary as to the exact date. That given here previously, the 22nd, is possibly the correct one, and at least one source lists the 14th.

[Jimbuna]

25th September 1914

Western Front

The Aisne: Reims again bombarded.

Battle of Albert begun by the Germans to prevent encirclement.

Noyon and Lassigny taken from the French.

Camp-des-Romains and St. Mihiel on the Meuse taken by the Germans.

Eastern Front

East Prussian Frontier: Russians driven across the Niemen, which they proceed to defend.

Naval Operations

HMS Stag, destroyer, D-class, probably Forth-based 8th Patrol Flotilla. On patrol when two torpedoes fired at her off Isle of May, Firth of Forth, torpedo also fired at another destroyer.

Political, etc.

Hindenburg placed in command of combined Austro-German offensive in Poland and Galicia.

Premier Asquith makes a speech at the Mansion House, Dublin, urging the Irish to help defend “our common cause.”

James Whitney, Premier of Ontario, dies while in office.

Ship Losses:

Bankfields ( United Kingdom): The cargo ship was shelled and sunk in the Gulf of Guayaquil by SMS Leipzig ( Kaiserliche Marine).
King Lud ( United Kingdom): The cargo ship was scuttled in the Indian Ocean 25 nautical miles (46 km) south south west of Point de Galle, Ceylon by SMS Emden ( Kaiserliche Marine).
Tymeric ( United Kingdom): The cargo ship was scuttled in the Indian Ocean 50 nautical miles (93 km) west by north of Colombo, Ceylon by SMS Emden ( Kaiserliche Marine).

[Sailor Steve]

September 25:

SMS Leipzig has left the Galapagos Islands and is again cruising the South American coast. On the 25th she is patrolling the coast of Ecuador and at 0800 hours runs into SS Bankfields, a British freighter registered at 3,768 tons and carrying 5,000 tons of sugar. By 0855 the boarding party has taken Bankfields. Her crew are transfered to Marie and the prize crew follows their cruiser further out to sea, where she is scuttled at 1530 hours. Leipzig and Marie then set course for the Lobos de Afuera Islands.


Cruising down the south-east coast of Ceylon, SMS Emden encounters SS King Lud, an English freighter, 3,650 tons, running in ballast. While carrying no cargo, the King Lud does have its own supply of stores, including grain and potatoes. Emden's stewards are sent over to supervise the transfer of the food stores. When this is done King Lud's seacocks are opened and scuttling charges are detonated. At 1600 hours, with the freighter mostly under the water, Emden takes her leave, setting a course westard toward the port city of Colombo.

At 2200 hours Emden is thirty miles south of Colombo. Avoiding the mistakes of Madras, Colombo has searchlights combing the sea. At 2100 the lookouts sight a merchant ship, lit up as if they had not heard of the German raider preying on their shipping lanes. Justifiably so, as it turns out to be the neutral Norwegian tanker SS Oceanis.

An hour later they come upon yet another ship, sailing out of Colombo and though darkened herself she is clearly marked out by the city's searchlights. At 2300 hours Emden intercepts SS Tymeric, a 3,500-ton English freighter carrying 4,000 tons of sugar. The ship is forced to follow Emden further out into the ocean, so she will be sunk far away from Colombo. No sooner is a prize crew on board than the English captain begins cursing his captors. Leutnant Lauterbach sends a boat back to the cruiser asking for permission to sink the freighter immediately. Permission is granted, and the scuttling crew is sent over. The British crew are forced to leave with minimal possession, leaving behind all the recently purchased Japanese souvenirs. The crew blamed their own captain for this, rather than the Germans, and some of them swore that they would get even with him later.

Before Tymeric could be scuttled lights were sighted approaching from a distance. This was almost certainly the Dutch mail packet Konigin Emma, which had already radioed the port requesting a pilot. The Germans waited quitely in the dark until she had passed, then set about sinking their captive freighter. It was shortly past midnight.

A side-note: The crew of the Emden had been lucky again. As they travelled down the east coast of Ceylon the Japanese cruiser Chikuma was proceeding up the west coast, on her way to join the hunt.

[Jimbuna]

26th September 1914

Western Front

The Aisne: Local combats only.

Battle of Albert: Fierce fight from Oise to Somme.

First Battle of Picardy ends inconclusively as the French fail to outflank the German forces.

Bapaume occupied by German forces.

St. Mihiel: Vain German efforts to cross the Meuse.

Siege of Antwerp begun by the Germans.

Indian troops land at Marseilles.

Eastern Front

East Prussian Frontier: Battle of the Niemen (26-28 September): Vain German efforts to cross.

Siege of Osovyets: Vain German assaults.

Galicia: Russians occupy Rzeszov.



Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres

Tsing-tau: German outposts driven in.

Naval and Overseas Operations

Cheerful, destroyer, C-class, with patrol or local defence flotilla. On patrol when two torpedoes fired at her 3 miles W of Fidra island, in Firth of Forth.

South Africa: British reverse at Sandfontein.

Political etc.

U.S. Navy Secretary Daniels calls for more submarines and for the U.S. to “learn the lesson now being taught by the war in Europe.”

[Sailor Steve]

September 26:

Graf Spee and his armored cruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau reach Nuku Hiva in the Marqesas, where they rejoin Nurnberg and their four supply ships. French authorities there can do nothing, as they have no defenses and no radio.


In the Indian Ocean the crew of SMS Emden are still up, enjoying the latest newspapers captured from SS Tymeric. Among the articles are the story of U-9 and the sinking of the three British armored cruisers. They also read the story of their own cruise, including a detailed account of the shelling of Madras.

"The Emden has had a momentous cruise. The ship's company have proved their gallantry. We admire the sportsmanship shown in their exploits as much as we heartily wish that the ship may be soon taken."
-London Daily Chronicle

Most entertaining of all is this advertisement: "There is no doubt that the cruiser Emden had knowledge that the Indus was carrying 150 cases of North-West Soap Company's celebrated Elysium Soap, and hence the pursuit. The men on the Emden and their clothes are now clean and sweet, thanks to Elysium Soap. Try It!"

At about 0100 hours another ship is sighted. Emden closes and a boarding party is sent over, led by Lt. Lauterbach and Lt. Zimmermann. The ship is SS Gryfevale, 4,437 tons, travelling in ballast. Captain von Müller decides to use this ship as his latest "dump", or holding place for his prisoners, since Markomannia is nearly out of coal and he needs to send her to Simeulue to get more from Pontoporos.

At dawn another ship is sighted. Even from a distance they can see the Dutch flag, so they watch her sail away. Some time later Emden picks up a radio exchange. A British ship asks the Dutchman if they've seen any sign of the German raider. The Dutch ship replies "For reasons of neutrality, answer refused." The crew of Emden are not sure if the ship had seen them. If so, then at least one neutral captain acted as he should.

[Jimbuna]

27th September 1914

Western Front

The Aisne: Battle dying down.

Battle of Albert: Heavy fighting continued.

Malines occupied by the Germans.

Siege of Antwerp begins:
After the fall of Liège on 16th August the Belgian King, Albert I, had ordered his 65,000 Belgian troops in the field to withdraw to Antwerp, where they joined with the 80,000 strong garrison holding the fortified city. During the late August battles in southern Belgium and northern France, as the French and the British Expeditionary Force were being pushed towards the Marne by the Imperial German armies, the Belgian troops in Antwerp had posed a threat to the German First Army of General von Kluck by attacking his rear columns. The Germans decided to take Antwerp to dispel this threat.

First Battle of Artois begins 'Race to the Sea':
Over the next few weeks from late September to the end of November 1914 the Allied and German Armies attempted to outflank one another, responding to each other manoeuvring their armies to make a stand or cover their exposed northern flank. Operationally it was not an intentional race to reach the French or Belgian coast before the other. However, the fight to capture the unoccupied ground on each other's northern flank, the German attempt to capture more French ground and reach Paris, against the French determination to hold up their enemy's advance resulted in the movement of the armies in a north-westerly direction towards the coast. Battles took place as the armies sidestepped one another towards the French-Belgian coast and the Channel ports of Calais, Dunkirk, Ostend and Zeebrugge. This period of fighting has become known as “The Race to the Sea”.


Eastern Front

Galicia: Russians press on towards Cracow and the Carpathian Passes.

Naval and Overseas Operations

Attentive, scout cruiser, Adventure-class, 6th DF leader, Dover Patrol. U.18, the first ever U-boat to pass through the Dover Straits, spotted Attentive off Dover and fired a torpedo which was narrowly avoided.

Admiralty collier (and two British steamships) captured by Emden, most of the crews transferred to SS Gryfevale :
BURESK, Admiralty collier, 4,337/1914, Buresk SS Co, London-reg, Mr Frederick Taylor, Port Said for Hong Kong with 6,000t high-grade Welsh coal. Captured 180 miles W by N¾N true from Colombo (L - in 07.55N, 76.50E; kp - 07.24N, 76.41E), retained as prison ship and collier under command of Lt-Cdr R Kloepper, coaled Emden in Nicobar Islands on 26 October, approached Keeling Island to coal her again, chased by HMAS Sydney after Emden was destroyed on 9 November and overhauled, but German prize crew were already scuttling her, boarding party found inlet valves opened and damaged (L - sunk by HMAS Sydney at Keeling Island).

Japanese forces advance in Tsingtao after a 14 hour battle with German forces.

Allied forces captured Duala, Cameroons; light cruiser Challenger, gunboat Dwarf, Niger Flotilla gunboats Ivy, Porpoise, Remus took part.

Ship Losses:

Foyle ( United Kingdom): The cargo ship was scuttled in the Indian Ocean 300 nautical miles (560 km) west by north of Colombo, Ceylon by SMS Emden ( Kaiserliche Marine).
Lacouna ( United Kingdom): The cargo ship was driven ashore on Ferryland Head, Newfoundland and was wrecked. Her crew were rescued.
Ribera ( United Kingdom): The cargo ship was shelled and sunk in the Indian Ocean 210 nautical miles (390 km) west by north of Colombo by SMS Emden ( Kaiserliche Marine).

[Sailor Steve]

September 27:

Group de Bombardment No. 1, the world's first bomb group, is organized in France under Major Louis de Goÿs.


In Africa HMS Chatham arrives at Mombasa, and Captain Drury-Lowe is relieved to find the city still under British control. On the other hand he is amazed to find German citizens roaming freely in the town, and he telegraphs the Governor of British East India to arrest all Germans in the colony, and have them interred at Nairobi. Before departing he sets up defenses with barbed wire and machine guns, and mines the entrance to the harbor.


In the Indian Ocean, at about 0300 hours lookouts aboard SMS Emden sight the lights of yet another ship apparently believing itself to be safe. Behind is another ship, blacked out. Captain von Müller immediately orders Emden cleared for action on the assumption that they are facing a warship. Upon approach it turns out that the second "ship" is actually a large cloud of smoke thrown out of the real ship while cleaning the fireboxes. Leutnants Levetzow and Gyssling go aboard and report that the ship is SS Buresk, 4,350 tons, chartered by the Admiralty and carrying 6,600 tons of prime Cardiff coal from England to Hong Kong. This is more coal than Markomannia carried when they departed Tsingtao on August 6, and it is the best in the world. Emden is now set for a good long time.

Von Müller now plans to use Markomannia's last coal reserves and abandon her. To this end Kapitanleutnant Klopper is made captain of Buresk, with Leutnants Schmidt and Gyssling as watch officers and Torpedomaschinist Wittkopf as Chief Engineer. Two machinist's mates, two sailors and three stokers are also sent over, with the bulk of Buresk's original arab crew being retained. The captain, Chief Engineer, Second Engineer, a Steward, and the Norwegian Cook all ask permission to remain with their ship. Von Müller finds this an odd request, since if they go aboard Gryfevale they will soon be free and remaining on Buresk means they will be prisoners for as long as their ship is needed. Still, a sailor's ship is his home and the request is granted.

Prince Franz Joseph of Hohenzollern gives a nice description of the ship's Sunday services. Protestant services are conducted by the senior Protestant officer, in this case the Captain himself, on the aft middle deck. Catholic services are held in the forecastle and conducted by the senior officer of that faith, the ship's adjutant Leutnant von Guerard. On this day he is on duty in the wireless room, and the worship service is run by Leutnant Hohenzollern. He describes the ship's band playing hymns and gives details of each service. Captain von Müller places great importance on these proceedings, since they break up the monotony of the weekdays. Afterward the crew are allowed as much freedom of activity as is possible in wartime.

On this particular Sunday the afternoon is interrupted by a message from Lt. Lauterbach aboard Gryfevale: "The captured ships' companies are making trouble through drunkenness. Some fighting. Have put a number of men in irons. Urgently request reinforcement." Apparently it started when an English sailor insulted a Chinese cook, and recieved a tureen of soup on his head in return. Von Müller takes Emden alongside the prison ship and hails Lauterbach with a megaphone. He orders the leutnant to confiscate the liquor, which is almost gone anyway. The English captains apologize for their men's behavior and get everything calmed down.

Emden's officers are eating their lunch of soup, corned beef with rice, and stewed fruit when they notice the ship is picking up speed. They rush to advantageous viewpoints and are rewarded with the sight of a smoke column far ahead. The search party and prize crew are organized under Oberleutnant Geerdes and Leutnant Schall. When they are close enough the new ship is ordered to stop and the prize crew sent across. The ship is English, SS Ribera, 3,500 tons, travelling in ballast. The Emden takes aboard as much of the provisions as she can hold, sending the rest to Gryfevale along with Ribera's crew. Kapitanleutnant von Gaede gets to use his guns again, and Ribera sinks quickly.

From Ribera's signal book it is discovered that she recently passed a British troop convoy consisting of around seventy ships and escorted by the battleship Swiftsure and the Russian armored cruiser Askold. The Emden's officers start thinking that maybe it's time to disappear again.

At nightfall they encounter yet another British merchant, this time SS Foyle, 4,147 tons, again travelling without cargo. As they are preparing to sink her another set of lights is spotted. Emden runs this new ship down, but it turns out to be the Dutch mail packet Djocja. Before letting her go Geerdes and Schall manage to buy some cigarettes from them. After the Dutch ship is out of sight Foyle is scuttled and left to sink.

[Jimbuna]

28th September 1914

Western Front

Yser: Germans retake Lobartzyde.

Neuve-Chapelle retaken by the British.

Malines taken by German forces.

Eastern Front

Russian counterattack at the Battle of the Niemen forces Germany to retreat back to the Prussian border.

Poland: Russians recover Lodz.

Galicia: Austrians defeated at Sambor.

Naval and Overseas Operations

Falcon, destroyer, C-class, 420t, 1-12pdr/5-6pdr/2-18in tt, 6th DF Dover Patrol, Lt Hubert Wauton, on anti-submarine patrol with destroyer Syren off Westende in NE Channel. Came under heavy, accurate shore-fire from Westende battery at c1230, returned fire and stayed on station, at 1400 between Nieuport and Ostend hit by 8in shell on port forward 6pdr muzzle, ship completely out of action and brought into Dunkirk by Acting Sub-Lt du Boulay; captain and 7 ratings killed, 2 ratings DOW, gunner and about 12 more ratings wounded.

Venerable, battleship, London-class, 5th BS Channel Fleet, Brilliant, old cruiser, Apollo-class (expended at Zeebrugge in 1918), Wildfire, old composite sloop, Nymphe-class, Rinaldo, old sloop, Condor-class, together with gunboat Bustard and three monitors, bombarding targets between Westende and Lombartzyde. Serious damage only avoided by continual course alterations although Wildfire badly hit on the waterline and sent home for repairs. In the afternoon Venerable ran aground but was helped off on rising tide by Brilliant with no damage, Brilliant (Rn/dp - one man killed, several wounded) and Rinaldo (Rn - 8 wounded) hit; only confirmed life lost was 1 rating in Rinaldo on 29th.

Lieut.-General Sir A. Barrett appointed Commander-designate of Indian Expeditionary Force "D" for Mesopotamia.

Aviation

Distinctive markings on German aircraft first reported.

Political, etc.

Great Britain: Resignation of Prince Louis Battenberg from office of First Sea Lord.

Trial of Archduke's murderers at Sarajevo.

Marconi Wireless Company sues the U.S. government for closing down a wireless station for not complying with censorship laws.

Ship Losses:

Anglo-Norman ( Norway): The barque was driven ashore at Kaipara Harbour, North Island, New Zealand and was wrecked. Her crew were rescued.
Agda ( Netherlands): The auxiliary schooner struck a submerged object and foundered in the Atlantic Ocean off Cabo da Roca, Portugal. Her crew were rescued by Khiva ( United Kingdom).
SMS Cormoran ( Kaiserliche Marine): The Bussard-class cruiser was scuttled at Tsingtao, China.
SMS T50 ( Kaiserliche Marine): The S7-class torpedo boat was wrecked in the Baltic Sea.
SMS Taku ( Kaiserliche Marine): The Taku-class torpedo boat was scuttled at Tsingtao.

British, Allied and Neutral ships lost to enemy submarines, mines and cruisers etc in the month - 37 ships of 99,000 tons gross (Lloyd's War Losses)

[Sailor Steve]

September 28:

The Italian ship SS Ascaro, which had encountered SMS Karlsruhe off the coast of Brazil on the 22nd, arrives at St. Vincent in the Cape Verde Islands. Her captain breaks neutrality and immediately reports his encounter. This is the first real news of the German cruiser in more than three weeks.


HMS Chatham arrives in Zanzibar. Captain Ingles of the Pegasus has used his sunken ship's guns to fortify the city. There has been no news of SMS Königsberg since the attack. There are many rumors flying about, most of them conflicting. Captain Drury-Lowe decides to proceed southward along the East African coast to see what he can find.


Aboard SMS Emden plans are made for another prisoner release. The troublemaking captain and engineer from Tymeric are released from their confinement and transferred to Gryfevale with the rest of the prisoners. To the surprise of the Emden's crew the English prisoners give them nine cheers - three for the captain, three for the officers and three for the crew. Once Gryfevale is out of sight Emden heads south-west for the Maldive Islands, far out in the Indian Ocean.

[Jimbuna]

29th September 1914

Western Front

Yser: Germans take Ramscapelle.

The Belgians open the sluices of the canal.

Heavy fighting round Festubert (La Bassee).

Eastern Front

German offensive on the Niemen abandoned.

Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres

Egypt: Bedouin tribes raid the frontier.

Naval and Overseas Operations

Japanese troops occupy Enewetak Atoll, part of German New Guinea.

Political, etc.

Great Britain: Lord Fisher appointed First Sea Lord.

Turkey enters the war on the German side.

Total Shipping losses so far:

British mercantile losses number 94 vessels at 232,310 tons; German mercantile losses number 387 vessels at 1.14 million tons.

[Sailor Steve]

September 29:

Off the coast of Peru SMS Leipzig is having no luck. British ships all along the South American coasts are being ordered to stay in port while the German raiders are operating in the area. Captain Haun sends his supply ship Marie to Callao to drop off her prisoners. The crew of Bankfields immediately report Leipzig's last known position. By this time the marooned crew of Elsinore have escaped from Galapagos and have also reported their capture.


At 0800 hours in the Indian Ocean SMS Emden comes within sight of the Maldives. By 1100 they are navigating the narrow channels which separate the 1,200 islands. the bay at Minicoy is the chosen spot, and the coaling lasts from noon until about 2300. Emden leaves her supply ships at their quiet anchorage and spends the night patrolling the channels.

[Jimbuna]

30th September 1914

Western Front

Battle extends northwards round Roye and Arras.

Arras reoccupied by French forces.

New French army concentrated round Amiens and Lens.

French occupy Lille.

Antwerp: Waterworks destroyed. Preparations to evacuate the Belgian army from Antwerp to Ostend begins as German bombardment continues.

Eastern Front

Germans entrench south of Kyeltsi (south-west Poland).

Russian general Paul von Rennenkampf boasts that, “We’ll spend Christmas in Berlin.”

Political, etc.

Great Britain: Reply of British theologians to German published.

Naval

HMS Caroline, a C-class light cruiser of the Royal Navy, is launched (she is decommissioned in 2011).

[Sailor Steve]

September 30:

At Tsingtao, China, IJNS Wakamiya is damaged by a mine and forced to return to Japan for repairs. Her three Henri Farman biplanes and their support crew are transferred to a shore base at Shazikou, in Laoshan Harbor.


Cruising down the coast of German East Africa HMS Chatham is passing Koma Island when her lookouts spot a party of white men in khaki uniforms, accompanied by armed natives. Captain Drury-Lowe anchors his ship nearby and fires a few rounds from the cruiser's three-pounder guns. The men ashore all run into the woods. Drury-Lowe sends a landing party, which destroys the wireless station they find there and capture the small sailing craft used for supply runs to the shore.

One German does not run away. He claims to be a planter, but his papers reveal that he is a German intelligence officer. Among the items abandoned by the fleeing Germans is a diary containing information on the signalling system used by Königsberg for advanced warning of British activity in the area. This involves the use of white flags, which Drury-Lowe has already seen along the shore from time to time. He telegraphs the governor at Dar es Salaam that any party seen using the white flags should be fired at without warning.

Drury-Lowe is now convinced that Königsberg is hiding somewhere in the area.


At Minicoy in the Maldives SMS Emden says goodbye to her long-time companion SS Markomannia. At dawn SS Buresk ties up alongside Markomannia and starts taking on all the spare oil and water needed for Emden's operation. At 1400 Emden starts taking in the last of Markomannia's coal supply. The men of Emden are allowed to write letters home, which will travel on the collier. At 1930 the coaling is done, and at 2030 Markomannia is sent on her way. The plan is for the collier to rendezvous with Pontoporos and take the last of her coal and pay off her captain, finally freeing the Greek ship to be on her way; then proceed to some neutral port to take on provisions, and finally meet up with Emden again around the first of November.

After Markomannia is out of sight Emden and Buresk set a course for the Chagos Archipelago, roughly 300 miles south of the Maldives.

[Jimbuna]

1st October 1914

Western Front

First Battle of Arras begins.

Battle round Roye: Vain German efforts to break French line.

St. Mihiel: French destroy bridge made over Meuse.

Antwerp: Fort Waelhem silenced.

B.E.F. begins to leave the Aisne and move west and the north.

Eastern Front

East Prussian Frontier: Russians recover Augustovo and begin a nine-days' attack (Battle of Augustovo) on the retreating Germans.

Political, etc.

Italy: Protest against Austrian mine-laying. Austria agrees to stop the usage of floating mines in the Adriatic.

Turkey: Closing of the Dardanelles.

Naval Operations

Baltic Operations - Submarines E.1 and E.9 broke through into the Baltic, known as the Baltic Flotilla.

Ship Losses:

Westland ( Norway): The cargo ship sank in the Kalmar Strait off Öland, Sweden with the loss of a crew member.