The Childrens' Story of the War, Volume 2 (of 10) From the Battle of Mons to the Fall of Antwerp.

In the first few days of the war there were rumours that a big naval battle had been fought in the North Sea, and that the bulk of the German fleet had been sent to the bottom....

The first and worst part of the Battle of the Aisne may be said to have ended on 18th September 1914. By this date it was clear to all that the fighting for weeks to come would...

The Battle of the Aisne was a "soldiers' battle." It was, you will remember, a series of attempts to drive the enemy out of strong positions by attacks along his front. In this...

and follow the fortunes of our sailors during the first two months of the war. In Chapter II., Volume I., you learnt that our first line of defence was fully prepared for active...

Believing that the Russians would be unable to attack them for several weeks, the Germans had left but three army corps to defend East Prussia. Imagine their surprise when, as e...

Here is the story of a plucky boy who did his country good service in Lorraine. Look at the map on page 130, and find Metz. At this town the river Seille,[115] which forms part...

The main bodies of the Germans swept through Belgium into France in the last week of August 1914, and the Belgian army, overwhelmed but undismayed, retired on its great national...

A story of heroism which ought not to be forgotten is told by a drummer of the 1st Battalion Royal Berks Regiment. The British were attacking a canal bridge held by the Germans...

The account of the Battle of Mons which you have just read has been built up from two main sources of information. First, and most important, is the dispatch of Sir John French....

When the army of von Kluck was sweeping through Northern France like a roaring flood, most people thought that he was aiming at Paris, the heart and centre of the country. In Ch...

While I have been telling you about the course of events in the eastern theatre of war, you have, I am sure, been eager to know how our brave fellows were faring at Mons. At the...

Now that the British were across the Marne and on the flank of the Germans defending the Ourcq, von Kluck's forces were bound to retreat without a moment's loss of time. The All...

The stories which you have read in these pages have been told by British soldiers. I am sure you would now like to read some French stories of various incidents which occurred d...

When Sir John French came to think over the operations of the day, he was uncertain in his own mind as to the intention of the enemy. Did they mean to make a great stand on the...

In Chapter XXIII. of Volume I. I told you that the French began their raid upon Alsace on August 7, 1914. At this time some of the Liége forts were still holding out, and the gr...

On page 59 you will see a map of Eastern Germany and Western Prussia. I want you to examine this map very carefully, because it shows the region in which the bulk of the fightin...

Now dawned the fateful morning of 26th August 1914. The rain had ceased; the bright sun shone out; thin mists rose from the wet fields and gave promise of a sultry day. At sunri...

In Chapter IX. of this volume you learned something of the first clash of arms in Eastern Europe. I told you how two Russian armies beat a German army in East Prussia, and overr...

It is a peaceful Sunday morning; the sun is shining and the bells are ringing. The Belgians in Mons and the surrounding mining villages are flocking towards their churches; but...

Now let us look more closely at the position which the British were to hold.[14] Find the town of Mons, which stands to the west of Charleroi,[15] on the highroad running northw...

Now we must learn what happened on the east side of the British line of retreat. Look carefully at the map on page 130. On 22nd August von Buelow crossed the Sambre, and defeate...

From what you have read in the two previous chapters you will gather that, during the four days' battle which was fought between Mons and St. Quentin, incident crowded upon inci...

The retiral of the British army from the La Fère-Noyon line was the signal for the Germans to advance. Small rearguard actions were continually fought, and on 1st September ther...

There was now a deadlock on the Aisne. The rival armies faced each other in trenches that had become almost as strong as fortresses, and both sides were powerless to advance. Ev...

On Saturday, September 12, 1914, the 6th French Army managed to secure several good artillery positions on the south bank of the river, and all day long there was a long-range d...

Late in March 1915 General Joffre told an interviewer that his army was not crushed in Belgium by overwhelming numbers. "That," he said, "is quite wrong; our army was numerous....

The position to which the British were now slowly retiring was in the neighbourhood of Le Cateau,[48] to the south-east of Cambrai.[49] Your geography book tells you that Cambra...

While our hard-pressed troops are retreating from Mons before overwhelming numbers of the enemy, we must turn to what is called the Eastern theatre of war and see what is happen...

Early on Monday morning, 7th September 1914, the guns of friend and foe began to thunder in the river valleys of the Ourcq, Marne, and Petit and Grand Morin. As the sun rose hig...

While the British and French were retreating from Belgium to the Seine, they were passing through country which had been untrodden by the foot of the enemy. Now that they were p...

I wonder whether you have ever met with the word _dinanderie_. You will find it in an English dictionary, though it is an old word which has almost gone out of use. _Dinanderie_...

In Chapter XVII, I described the undulating chalk plateau known as the Heights of Champagne. You will remember that this ground was chosen by the French in 1874 as the best plac...

In the first half of the sixteenth century Antwerp was the commercial capital of the world. The great historian of the Dutch Republic[156] says, "Venice, Nuremberg,[157] Augsbur...

While our sorely-tried army is halting for a brief rest at St. Quentin, let us follow the fortunes of the French on the west and the east of the British line of retirement. We h...

One very interesting Russian people must now engage our attention. North of the Black Sea we find what are called the Steppes. They are fertile towards the north, but in the sou...

Russian soldiers have long been famous for the contempt with which they regard wounds and death. The few stories which have been told of their exploits in the battles described...