HIST363: Global Perspectives on Industrialization

Africa and Pacific

Some of the first hostilities of the war occurred in Africa and in the Pacific Ocean, in the colonies and territories of the European powers. In August 1914 French and British Empire forces invaded the German protectorate of Togoland in West Africa. Shortly thereafter, on August 10, German forces based in Namibia (South-West Africa) attacked South Africa, which was then part of the British Empire. New Zealand occupied German Samoa (later Western Samoa) on August 30. On September 11, the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force landed on the island of Neu Pommern (later New Britain), which formed part of German New Guinea. Japan seized Germany's Micronesian colonies and the German coaling port of Qingdao in the Chinese Shandong peninsula. Within a few months, the Allied forces had seized all the German territories in the Pacific. Sporadic and fierce fighting, however, continued in Africa for the remainder of the war.

Europe

European military alliances in 1915. The Central Powers are depicted in puce, the Allies or Entente Powers in grey and neutral countries in yellow.

In Europe, the Central Powers - the German Empire and the Austro-Hungarian Empire - suffered from mutual miscommunication and lack of intelligence regarding the intentions of each other's army. Germany had originally guaranteed to support Austria-Hungary's invasion of Serbia but practical interpretation of this idea differed. Austro-Hungarian leaders believed Germany would cover the northern flank against Russia. Germany, however, had planned for Austria-Hungary to focus the majority of its troops on Russia while Germany dealt with France on the Western Front. This confusion forced the Austro-Hungarian army to split its troop concentrations. Somewhat more than half of the army went to fight the Russians on their border, and the remainder was allocated to invade and conquer Serbia.

Serbian Campaign

The Serbian army fought a defensive battle against the invading Austrian army (called the Battle of Cer) starting on August 12. The Serbians occupied defensive positions on the south side of the Drina and Save Rivers. Over the next two weeks Austrian attacks were thrown back with heavy losses. This marked the first major Allied victory of the war. Austrian expectations of a swift victory over Serbia were not realized and as a result, Austria had to keep a very sizable force on the Serbian front, which weakened their armies facing Russia.

Germany in Belgium and France

Haut-Rhin, France 1917. [4]

After entering Belgian territory, the German army soon encountered resistance at the fortified city of Liège. Although the army as a whole continued to make rapid progress into France, it was Britain's decision to honor a dated protection pact with Belgium and to declare war on Germany that left the German government in disbelief and seriously hindered their military plans. Britain sent an army to France (the British Expeditionary Force, or BEF) which advanced into Belgium and slowed the Germans. The first British soldier killed in the war was John Parr, on August 21, 1914, near Mons.

Initially, the Germans had great successes in the Battle of the Frontiers (August 14–24, 1914). However, Russia attacked in East Prussia and diverted German forces which were intended for the Western Front. Germany defeated Russia in a series of battles collectively known as the Second Battle of Tannenberg (August 17–September 2). This diversion exacerbated problems of insufficient speed of advance from railheads not allowed for by the German General Staff. It also allowed French and British forces to finally halt the German advance on Paris at the First Battle of the Marne (September 1914) and the Entente forced the Central Powers to fight a war on two fronts.

The German army had fought its way into a good defensive position inside France and had permanently incapacitated 230,000 more French and British troops than it had lost itself in the months of August and September. Yet staff incompetence and leadership timidity (such as Moltke the Younger needlessly transferring troops from the right to protect Sedan) cost Germany the chance for an early victory over France with its very ambitious war plan.