The First World War

[Ennath]

April 11, 1915
Western Front A German attack at Les Eparges is repulsed. There is heavy fighting near Albert.
Eastern Front The Russians capture Wysocko Nizhne, near Uzsok Pass. Brusilov assumes the defensive, although limited attacks continue.
Mesopotamia The Turks shell Qurna, taking the British by surprise, and mass for an attack.
Persia Turkish attacks on British outposts at Ahvaz are repulsed.
Germany In response to the British announcement that submarine crews cannot be treated as prisoners of war, the Germans retaliate by placing 39 British officer prisoners under arrest.
Diplomatic Relations Bulgaria agrees to a mixed Serbian-Bulgarian commission to investigate Macedonian border clashes.

April 11, 1916
Western Front, Verdun A German attack in the Vaux sector fails.

April 11, 1917
Western Front Three tanks assist the British attack at Monchy, but German fire knocks out two of them and British artillery inadvertently destroys the third. A combined infantry-cavalry attack fails. Other attacks are repulsed east of Bellincourt.
War in the Air Over Arras, Manfred von Richtofen achieves his 40th kill, equaling Boelcke’s record.
Diplomatic Relations In a meeting at Folkstone, Ribot shows Lloyd George the letter from Emperor Karl. They disagree about informing Italy, Ribot insisting on secrecy due to the extreme hostility between Italy and Austria-Hungary.
Mesopotamia The British defeat a Turkish attack at Ghaliya.

April 11, 1918
Western Front Both German armies continue to advance, with 6th Army driving toward Hazebrouck. British troops are forced back beyond Ploegsteert and Merville, but repulse attacks at Hollebeke and Messines. Alarmed, Haig issues this order in the evening: “Every position must be held to the last man…With our backs to the wall and believing in the justice of our cause each one must fight on to the end. The safety of our homes and the freedom of mankind alike depend upon the conduct of each one of us at this critical moment.” Strong attacks are repulsed south of Arras.
Palestine Turkish forces east of the Jordan attack near El Ghoraniye, but are repulsed; cavalry pursue 6 miles toward Es Salt. Other Turkish attacks on the Jericho-Shechem Road are also repulsed.
The Netherlands There are food riots, quelled by troops the following day.

April 11, 1919
World Affairs Geneva is selected as the headquarters of the League of Nations. Delegates at the Paris conference reject a Japanese measure to include a racial equality clause in the League covenant.
Austria Citizens of the Voralberg region vote for union with Switzerland, but the Swiss refuse the new region on the grounds that it might threaten future neutrality.

April 11, 1920
Turkey The Ottoman government dissolves the Nationalist-dominated parliament.

[palo5]

Originally Posted by scoundrel

... one poor devil was being made to report how he was in good spirits and looking forward to a parcel from home, when actually what he meant was please send me a parcel because I am dying of starvation. He died because no parcel came in time.

So his comrades didn't share their food and instead let him die? In that case, it was his comrades who starved him

But this can't be true, seriously it can't be true, unless they thought he was a traitor. And if that was the case, he'd be dead much sooner, so it still can't be true

Anyway, I thought we were asking about deliberate starvation of 12,5% of British PoWs, not one person

This question troubles me, because I believe it to be untrue

[scoundrel]

Originally Posted by palo5

So his comrades didn't share their food and instead let him die? In that case, it was his comrades who starved him

If you were captured alone, you had no comrades. No one would help you out. Bearing in mind that the people with food pacels were already sharing them with their oppos and they weren't living the life of Riley, they were living damn close to the bone with food parcels. I think your expectations are unrealistic and not fair, sorry. Responsibility for the welfare of prisoners lies with their captors.

Originally Posted by palo5

But this can't be true, seriously it can't be true, unless they thought he was a traitor. And if that was the case, he'd be dead much sooner, so it still can't be true

It is so and it was so. When men are denied the essentials of life, it comes down to survival of the fittest.

It will be evident that this allowance, particularly when most of the food was unpalatable and indigestible, was not enough to keep us from starvation. For a time we were in a very bad way indeed. Later, when our parcels began to arrive, this condition was much relieved but for a good while we saw nothing of a parcel of any kind. The French prisoners in our block who had been there long enough to have had regular communication established with their Red Cross and who were in consequence getting more or less regular supplies of food often took advantage of this to get hold of our great coats, boots, or anything else they fancied, in return for a pittance of food, biscuits, cigarettes, or tobacco. I actually saw one half-starved Canadian boy trade off his great coat for one cigarette and the Frenchman went back to his barracks with his prize, laughing heartily.
~ The Kaiser's Guest by Private Frank C MacDonald of the First Canadian Mounted Rifles, captured at Sanctuary Wood on 2nd June 1916..

We are dealing with human nature here, palo.

Originally Posted by palo5

Anyway, I thought we were asking about deliberate starvation of 12,5% of British PoWs, not one person

MacDonald again:

For breakfast we were given a bowl of coffee or cocoa (so-called) or a sort of soup made from bones ground into a fine dust. The "coffee" was merely acorns, burned and ground. The "cocoa" likewise a very poor substitute was made from the bark of some tree and was tasteless and devoid of nourishment. No solids were allowed at breakfast, though one was supposed to have saved some of the bread ration handed out the night before.

For the noon "repast" we were usually given a bowl of soup made from ground and dried vegetables. Later I had the opportunity of finding out how this stuff was made. It came to us as a gritty, dirty mess about as thick as gruel, thinner when the supply was not large.

About four o'clock the daily bread ration was served. This was a chunk of vegetable concoction a little less than a third of a pound, supposed to provide solid food for twenty-four hours. The vegetable flour which from this so-called bread was made was mixed with just enough wheat or rye flour to make the mass stick together. The loaves came out of the oven the same size they went in and the stuff was heavy, sour, black, and bitter so vile and strong that it seemed to burn our stomachs.

Sometimes we found bits of strong, odorous meat in the soup and this the French cooks told us was dog meat. We usually knew when this was coming for we could see the cooks with white towels tied over their faces to keep out the odour while the stew was being prepared. One day Wallie and I, who had managed to stick together, picked all the bones out of a potful of soup and, sorting them out carefully, managed to piece together the skeleton of a German dachshund. We kept this and brought it out every time "Soup up" was called, hoping to drive some other prisoners away from the soup but with little success.

Supper consisted usually of another bowl of soup made from something resembling cornmeal but with scarcely any body in it, and which, like the rest, was thin and lacking in any nourishing qualities. The Tommies had, for some reason or other, probably because it resembled sand more than anything else, dubbed this "sandstorm." In addition to this we were given half a salt herring once or twice a week. These, too, were often putrid but they were never thrown away.

I would describe this as deliberate starvation; don't forget these men were also doing hard labour as slaves, totally illegal even back then under the Hague Convention. MacDonald was, ironically, working in a salt mine. I think Ivan Denisovich was better treated than this; I sincerely hope he was.

Originally Posted by palo5

This question troubles me, because I believe it to be untrue

I can't help that, palo; I can only try to be as accurate as I can.

[rotobott]

I wonder why the Germans didn't nick the Red Cross parcels, are some things unthinkable in war, or did the Red Cross have ways of dealing with it ?

http://www.awm.gov.au/exhibitions/st...s/ww1/germany/

[squigg58]

Originally Posted by rotobott

I wonder why the Germans didn't nick the Red Cross parcels, are some things unthinkable in war, or did the Red Cross have ways of dealing with it ?

I'm sure a lot were stolen but strange things happen in war, and while people are going around killing each other, there are certain other things which are frowned upon.

There are many aspects of WWI which seem odd by today's standards. For example, the Germans considered leaflet dropping to be outside the scope of war, and were enraged when the Allies used this tactic. Strange, as dropping a leaflet does seem relatively innocuous considering the alternative was a bomb!

In one famous case, two British pilots, Captain E. Scholtz and Lieutenant H.C. Wookey (shot down and captured near Cambrai on 17 October 1917) were charged with "the distribution of pamphlets detrimental to German troops." They were tried, found guilty of treason, and sentenced to 10 years at hard labour. The British government threatened severe reprisals against German officers, so in April 1918 the pilots were pardoned by the Kaiser and sent to a regular POW camp.

The use of bombs, bullets, bayonets and poisonous gas was, of course, perfectly acceptable!

Just going back to the Red Cross parcels, it seems that the British and French parcels weren't actually from the Red Cross.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Cross_parcel

[scoundrel]

Originally Posted by rotobott

I wonder why the Germans didn't nick the Red Cross parcels, are some things unthinkable in war, or did the Red Cross have ways of dealing with it ?

http://www.awm.gov.au/exhibitions/st...s/ww1/germany/

I can only speculate that the neutrality of the Red Cross was respected on both sides because both sides had a substantial body of prisoners in enemy custody and needed the Red Cross. If the Germans had systematically stolen the parcels, the possibility was that parcels would be withheld from German POWs, and this could have endangered their lives too.

[otokonomidori]

When this thread is finished will it be the Last Post?

[haroldeye]

Originally Posted by fleetwood77

When this thread is finished will it be the Last Post?

Been on the 'Bucky' Fleets?

[palo5]

Originally Posted by scoundrel

...these men were also doing hard labour as slaves, totally illegal even back then under the Hague Convention...

I think all sides did that. Not heard of 'salt mines', but it is known that Germans made PoWs work in coal mines. Obviously they used incentives or disincentives. The PoWs said the mines were much safer and more modern than what they knew at home

It is also known that German PoWs were used by the British/French to carry ammunition close to the front line, which is a worse crime. How they forced them to do it is not clear to me, but it can't have been pleasant

[Ennath]

April 12, 1915
Western Front A French attack fails near Hartmannsweilerkopf. New attacks at St. Mihiel fail.
Eastern Front A Russian attack is checked east of Uzsok Pass.
Mesopotamia The Turks increase the pressure at Qurna. Other troops threaten Basra from the west. British canoe-born troops drive off these attacks, but fighting continues at nearby Shaibah.
Persia The fighting at Ahvaz continues.
Diplomatic Relations A note from the Pope to President Wilson affirms Papal willingness to cooperate for the restoration of peace.
Russia An explosion destroys the Okhta Munitions Plant near Petrograd, seriously affecting supply of the front.

April 12, 1916
Eastern Front A German attack near Dvinsk fails.
Austrian Air Operations Seven bombers set out to bomb the Tsar’s review of troops at Khotin. They are intercepted by seven Russian fighters and two bombers are shot down. The raid is aborted.
Mesopotamia The Turkish right at Sannaiyat is forced back one and a half miles. The Tigris floods are increasing.
Persia Dyer and 200 British in eastern Persia defeat a force of 2000 Sarhud tribesmen.
United States Authorities uncover an ongoing operation by German agents to smuggle explosive charges aboard Allied ships carrying munitions, with timers set to explode in mid-ocean. Several ships have been lost to this scheme.
Mexico A detachment of Pershing’s force enters Parral to buy supplies. As they leave, Carranza’s troops fire on them, generating a skirmish that leaves 40 Mexicans and 2 Americans dead. Public outrage forces Carranza to protest to Washington.

April 12, 1917
Western Front The British progress north of Vimy Ridge, now fully under Canadian control,, taking “the Pimple”. South of Arras, they take Wancourt.
Russia As order and authority have virtually disappeared in the countryside following the collapse of the monarchy and its local police officials, Prince Lvov declares authorization by the Provisional Government for officials in the provinces to use troops to impose order. The first All-Russian Conference of Soviets calls on the government to begin negotiations with the Allies for an agreement that disclaims annexations or indemnities as part of a peace settlement – a rejection of Allied goals.
Mesopotamia The Turks retreat toward Deli Abbas.
Diplomatic Relations Costa Rica places its waters and ports at American disposal.

April 12, 1918
Western Front Though florid and rather trite, Haig’s “Backs to the Wall” order does help rally the troops. Although the Germans force Horne’s army back, making penetrations at Neuve Eglise and Messines, resistance along the line stiffens.
War in the Air A Zeppelin raid on the Midlands kills 7.
Adriatic Italian Grillos, torpedo boats with tank track like chains for climbing over harbor booms, make an unsuccessful attempt to penetrate Pola harbor; two boats are lost.
Portuguese East Africa Near Medo, a column of KAR clashes with a German force in jungle terrain choked with bamboo and elephant grass. After a day of bloody combat, the Germans withdraw.

April 12, 1919
Germany A rightist revolt in Munich is suppressed.
Russia Soviet troops occupy Yalta.