August 7, 1914
August 7, 1914There was no allowance for signal troops of any kind to be assigned to establish and maintain communication between Emmich and his higher HQs. As the commander of…
August 6, 1914
August 6,1914 Luftschiff ZVI supported of the ground forces. By 0300 hours on August 6, it was over Liège. There, the crew dropped a load of 15- and 21-centimeter…
August 5, 1914
August 5, 1914When the Germans sent an emissary to ask for their surrender, the Belgians responded, “Force your way through the gap.” The actual fight for the city and fortress…
August 4, 1914
August 4, 1914 The Army of the Meuse crossed the border into Belgium on a forty-kilometer front: six brigades of infantry and all of HKK 2—approximately twenty-five thousand soldiers and…
August 3, 1914
August 3, 1914 The plan to seize a contested Liège was developed in 1911, a requirement created by avoiding Holland. The plan was known as the Handstreich. The very existence…
August 2, 1914
August 2, 1914We are going to make use of the month of August as an anniversary. Similar to the book, we are going to follow some of the events day…
Marksmanship Training – part two
Marksmanship Training - part twoEight exercises. (Hauptübungen), again in all three aiming positions (prone (some free-handed, some with rifle resting on a sandbag), kneeling, and standing positions) were fired at…
Marksmanship Training – part one
Marksmanship Training - part oneMarksmanship training took a major role in military training. First, soldiers had to be drilled in weapons handling followed by theoretical lessons about ballistics, bullet trajectory,…
The Development of Infantry Doctrine – part four
The Development of Infantry Doctrine – part four Regiments attacking first broke up into their battalions, one next to another, and then again into company columns. A company forming an…
The Development of Infantry Doctrine – part three
The Development of Infantry Doctrine – part threeTraditionally, the German military had always distinguished between geleitetem Feuerand Schützenfeuer. Geleitetes Feuer or directed fire was where officers controlled distance, target, and…