AUGUST 25 - SEPTEMBER 1, 1914
THE BATTLE OF BELGIUM
"Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of hell
Rode the six hundred..”
- The Charge of the Light Brigade by Alfred Tennyson, 1854 -
“They told him what exactly?”
“They told him to take charge of our company, sir.”
“You’re havin’ a bloody laugh.”
“Hand on me heart, sir, I ‘eard it with me own two ears.”
“I believe you, Grimsley. Go on.”
“Trotter was wi’ him. The bloke was flabbergasted. Said somethin’ ‘bout being down ‘ere on special assignment.”
“And?”
"And they would ‘ave none of it, sir.” Corporal Grimsley replied. “Won some sort o’ medal in Africa, and you know, whi’ Captain Jennings gone...”
“Lovely dovely, Grimsley,” Lieutenant Hammond moaned. “We’re all buggered.”
“With all due respect, sir. Captain Jennings was hardly capable of doing the job, sir. It’s a miracle you held the company together, as well as you did.”
“Thank you, Grimsley. Now we have to figure out how to survive another mad aristocrat.”
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“SOD OFF!” General Allenby shouted and threw his boot at the closing door. The assistant running for his health down the corridor.
“Sit down, Captain Robertson.”
“Ehm, yes, sir?” John grabbed a seat, weary of the location of the other boot.
“I swear, these assistants can’t get one bloody thing right.” He flipped through his papers.
"so Kitchener says you’re on special assignment?”
“Yes, sir”
“But Haig has assigned you a company in the 4th Infantry Division?”
“Yes, sir. There must have been a mistake.”
“Haha!” He slapped his hands on his leg.
“Well, I’m not going to get in the way of Haig’s blunders.
“Sir, I’m here to gather information on behalf of General Kitchener, not lead 50 men into battle.”
“Well, that’s entirely up to Haig. My task is simply to fill you in on the current situation at the front.
With the Belgians cut off, General von der Marwitz marched his men on Mons. They pushed the French forces out on 26 August.”
“Why didn’t British forces move in?”
“Oh?” General Allenby leaned forward.
“I did not take you as a Field Marshall, Robertson. Why didn’t we think of that?”
“Sir.”
BEF MOVES INTO BELGIUM:
“The French army in the south has been under fire for weeks. At this point, Kitchener, Haig, and French decided on a strategy for a counter-attack. General French moves into Brugge and Ghent, while General Haig maintains a defensive line here in Lille. Here’s the idea, chap: The Belgians are still holding a flanking line that stretches all the way to Hasselt. If we can reinforce Antwerp, and the flank, it will threaten the German rear. It might not be strong enough to surround them, but it is strong enough to force them to divert manpower. To carry out this plan, we require two things.
1. to slow down enemy movement, and
2. quicker troop movement.
28 August. The Belgian army in Ghent has now begun advancing towards Hasselt, and so General French sends the quick 1st Cavalry Division with them. To slow down enemy reactions—which have begun—French and Haig the launches full on attacks on both Mons, and Brussels.
29 August. Hasselt falls to the German army, but at this point we have entered and secured Antwerp. What follows is an attempt to regain the province using 3 Belgian Infantry divisions and the 1st Cavalry Division. It’s still being partially waged, but I believe the battle of Hasselt is lost.
THE SECOND BATTLE OF LONGWY:
And while all of this is transpiring. The second great push on Longwy begins. This must be the German plan. They have committed countless divisions into Argonne and Metz. The offensive is still ongoing. and we are looking at large casualties.
The neighboring province came under attack 3 days back. The French beat them back earlier this morning.
STORM HAULTS THE OFFENSIVE:
The primary objective was to ensure that we take Antwerp and that we have time to reinforce the Belgian flank. In this we succeeded. However, with this bloody storm roaring, our offensive slowed to a snail’s pace. We predict a casualty rate of around 10 000 men.
As you can see, Captain, we are reinforcing with fresh men. The Belgians won’t let Hasselt lie, and so, as they battle the Germans for it, we use our time more wisely to fortify Antwerp. 2 additional cavalry divisions are entering the city. The logic is that if, knock on wood, The Germans breach our defenses, our 3 cavalry divisions are plenty agile. Enough to withdraw to Brugges in time. As you also can see, in a matter of a few days, Longwy will be reinforced by large amounts of French troops. If the Germans believe they will break through, they are sorely mistaken.”
“And then what is the plan?”
“And then what?” General Allenby was flabbergasted.
“Then we crush every German helmet out there, you little shit.” He stood up.
“Now get the fuck back to your company, soldier!”
John ran out of the room and closed the door just in time to hear the other boot bounce off it.
=========================
Cincinnati, USA
“Well, she’s finally dead.” Lucy declared.
“Oh, no, not our beloved Martha.” Elanor replied.
“I hope it was a dignified passing.”
“Why do you care? It’s just a pigeon.” Lucy rolled her eyes and opened the curtains.
“She was so old, anyway.”
“Don’t be crude, darling.”
Elanor walked over to the window where Lucy stood, and they both looked out into the streets of Cincinnati.
“She was the last of her species, last of her kind. God put them on this earth, and now we will never see another like her.”
“Still just a pigeon.”
“It signifies the end of an era, Lucy. This 20th century, where God’s creatures pass into myth, where man wages war on himself. Who’s to say where we’ll be at the end of it. Will we too face extinction?
“How poetic of you.”
“You know what, Lucy? Sometimes you can be such an asshole.”