Chapter Summaries

After Moltke the Younger’s plan to lure Oscar into the Imperial Palace failed, Oscar ordered the Army and Marine Corps to storm it. The attackers captured the palace and arrested the rebellion’s masterminds, leaving Crown Prince Wilhelm to face Oscar’s fury over Wilhelm II’s death.

• Oscar had Moltke the Younger taken away after striking him, while his ministers urged him to restore order and focus on the war.
• General Hindenburg ordered the 101st Infantry Division, 9th Armored Division, and 1st Marine Division to attack the Imperial Palace.
• Crown Prince Wilhelm and his allies panicked when they learned that tanks and troops were assaulting the palace.
• The Army and Marine Corps broke through the palace walls, overwhelmed the Imperial Guard, and arrested the rebellion’s masterminds.
• Oscar entered the palace hall, accused Crown Prince Wilhelm of killing Wilhelm II, and punched him to the floor.

Oscar rejected pleas for mercy from Crown Prince Wilhelm, Prince Eitel Friedrich, and other rebellion leaders after Wilhelm II’s death. He arranged for the conspirators to be guarded and went to comfort Empress Victoria, who asked him to spare Wilhelm’s life.

• Crown Prince Wilhelm accused Oscar of stealing his position and killing their father, while Oscar vowed that the court would judge him fairly.
• Prince Eitel Friedrich and the Duke of Württemberg pleaded for mercy, but Oscar rejected their excuses and considered using the rebellion to weaken Württemberg’s royal family.
• Lieutenant General Prittwitz begged for his life, while Lieutenant General Graf faced certain death for leading troops in the rebellion.
• Oscar had the rebellion’s masterminds taken into strict custody and left the arrangements for Wilhelm II’s funeral to Chancellor Bülow and the others.
• Oscar visited Empress Victoria, comforted her over Wilhelm II’s death, and heard her ask him to spare Crown Prince Wilhelm.

Oscar rejected Empress Victoria’s plea to spare Crown Prince Wilhelm and ordered a harsh tribunal for the rebellion’s leaders. He also planned to send troops into Württemberg and abolish the kingdom’s autonomy if its royal family resisted.

• Empress Victoria begged Oscar to forgive Crown Prince Wilhelm, arguing that Wilhelm had acted in rage and would not kill Oscar.
• Oscar refused to spare Wilhelm, telling Empress Victoria that the law should judge his crimes impartially.
• Oscar returned to headquarters and told Chancellor Bülow and Foreign Minister Wacht that the Empress had asked him to spare Wilhelm.
• Oscar ordered every ringleader in the mutiny hanged and called for soldiers to be punished according to their crimes.
• Oscar ordered troops to march into Württemberg, declaring that the royal family must be removed and the kingdom made a province if it resisted.

After the rebellion was exposed, the people of the Empire largely supported Oscar, and he arranged Wilhelm II’s funeral for April 30. Oscar buried the emperor in the Royal Mausoleum and vowed to fulfill his ambitions for Germany.

• Oscar refused the government’s plan to conceal the rebellion and had propaganda vehicles explain that Crown Prince Wilhelm and his allies had plotted against the Empire and killed Wilhelm II.
• The people of the Empire blamed Crown Prince Wilhelm and the other rebels, while Oscar’s military victories strengthened public support for him.
• Oscar, the Cabinet, and the military ministers set Wilhelm II’s funeral for April 30 because the emperor had been dead for three days.
• Leaders, nobles, representatives, and more than a hundred thousand people attended Wilhelm II’s solemn funeral in Berlin.
• Oscar buried Wilhelm II in the Royal Mausoleum and silently vowed to make the German Empire the most powerful empire in the world.

After Wilhelm II’s funeral, the Special Tribunal tried the leaders of the mutiny and sentenced Crown Prince Wilhelm and Prince Eitel Friedrich to death by hanging. Their executions left five gallows for the remaining ringleaders.

• The Special Tribunal tried Crown Prince Wilhelm for mutiny and killing Wilhelm II, but he denied guilt and claimed the throne was rightfully his.
• The Chief Justice sentenced Crown Prince Wilhelm to hang, and bailiffs carried out the execution outside the courthouse.
• Prince Eitel Friedrich admitted his role in the mutiny but blamed Crown Prince Wilhelm for Wilhelm II’s death.
• The Chief Justice sentenced Prince Eitel Friedrich to hang, and bailiffs executed him beside Crown Prince Wilhelm.
• The remaining five gallows stood empty for the other mutiny ringleaders, in accordance with Oscar’s instructions.

After the trials of the rebel leaders ended in executions, Oscar postponed his coronation to deal with the Kingdom of Württemberg, whose royal family was suspected of plotting against the Empire. He ordered General Hindenburg and the 9th Army Corps to secure the kingdom and protect its heavy industry.

• Moltke the Younger, Duke of Württemberg, Marshal Goltz, Lieutenant General Prittwitz, and Lieutenant General Graf were sentenced to death by hanging, and seven men were executed.
• The executed men’s families mourned and cursed Oscar while remaining under surveillance, and Oscar’s surviving elder brothers abandoned any thoughts of claiming the throne.
• Chancellor Bülow, Foreign Minister Wacht, and other ministers urged Oscar to take the throne, but he postponed his coronation until the situation in Württemberg was resolved.
• Oscar told Falkenhayn that Württemberg’s industrial importance made stability essential, then ordered General Hindenburg to advance with the 9th Army Corps and secure the kingdom and its heavy industry.

After his father’s execution, Albrecht Fortunatus pushed Württemberg’s leaders to demand greater autonomy from Berlin and threatened independence. When the Prime Minister and Home Secretary refused, Fortunatus arrested them and declared Württemberg independent, provoking a crisis across the Empire and drawing the world’s attention.

• Albrecht Fortunatus and Albrecht Gregor condemned Oskar for executing their father and urged Württemberg to resist Berlin.
• Fortunatus demanded greater autonomy, arguing that Württemberg’s industrial strength gave it leverage to threaten independence.
• The Prime Minister and Home Secretary warned that defying the Empire would bring disaster and rejected Fortunatus’s demands.
• Fortunatus ordered the guards to arrest the Prime Minister and other officials who opposed him.
• Fortunatus declared Württemberg independent from the German Empire.

After the Württemberg Royal Family declared independence, Oscar judged the rebellion weak and ordered the Empire to suppress it and abolish the kingdom’s autonomy. The 9th Army Corps was sent to secure Stuttgart and protect factories as the government called on the rebels to surrender.

• Prime Minister Bülow urged Oscar to suppress Württemberg’s declaration of independence before unrest threatened the Empire and its ongoing war.
• Oscar explained that the ministers had opposed independence and that the royal family controlled only a small guard force, while the 9th Army Corps was close to Stuttgart and Württemberg’s 4th Army Corps was under Imperial control.
• Foreign Minister Wachth proposed using the rebellion to remove the Württemberg Royal Family and transfer the kingdom’s powers to the central government, and Oscar ordered the Cabinet to make Württemberg a province after the rebellion was crushed.
• Field Marshal Falkenhayn warned that the royal family might destroy important factories, so Oscar ordered the 9th Army Corps to advance faster and send troops to protect them.
• Prime Minister Bülow issued a statement rejecting Württemberg’s independence and urging the guards and people to avoid resistance, while Oscar ordered the 9th Army Corps to secure the kingdom and uproot the royal family.

Fortunatus and Gregor’s bid to make Württemberg independent collapsed as Stuttgart’s residents rejected them and the 4th Army Corps refused to support them. With imperial troops approaching, the royal palace guards surrendered, leaving the brothers isolated inside the palace.

• Residents of Stuttgart protested outside the royal palace and demanded that the Württemberg Royal Family withdraw its declaration of independence.
• Fortunatus asked Gregor about the 4th Army Corps, but Gregor said von Fabek and Holmes had refused to accept their command.
• A guard officer reported that an army advance unit of roughly one regiment was nearing Stuttgart, and Fortunatus ordered the palace guards to seize factories and threaten to destroy them.
• Intelligence agents told the crowd that the guards were heading to attack the factories, and the residents blocked their way.
• The palace guards refused their Commander’s order to fire on the crowd, laid down their weapons, and surrendered, while the Commander retreated into the palace.

German troops suppressed the Württemberg rebellion, and Fortunatus and Gregor were sentenced to hang. With the kingdom’s conversion to a state postponed until after the war, Oscar was crowned Emperor Wilhelm III, while Gundelinde became Empress.

• The 9th Army Corps surrounded the Württemberg Royal Palace, and Fortunatus, Gregor, and the remaining guards surrendered.
• The Special Tribunal sentenced Fortunatus and Gregor to hang, and the weakened Württemberg Royal Family could not resist plans to abolish the kingdom after the war.
• Oscar agreed with Chancellor Bülow to postpone that change until Germany won the war and to hold a simple coronation promptly.
• On May 6, 1015, the Archbishop declared Oscar Emperor, and Oscar placed the crown on his own head.
• Oscar crowned Princess Gundelinde Empress and took the name Emperor Wilhelm III, or Great Emperor Oskar.

Oscar’s accession as Emperor Wilhelm III confirmed Germany’s growing dominance, while President Wilson and Secretary of State Bryan recognized that the United States could no longer rely on the war to overtake it. Wilson concluded that America’s national policy would have to change.

• Oscar was crowned Emperor Wilhelm III in a hurried ceremony attended by foreign envoys offering insincere congratulations.
• Wilson and Bryan discussed Oscar’s youth and the German Empire’s rise to power.
• Bryan recounted how Oscar’s businesses funded Germany’s military expansion and how his leadership helped secure victories at sea and on the Western Front.
• Wilson lamented that the Allied Powers had failed to exploit Germany’s rebellion before Oscar suppressed it.
• Wilson and Bryan agreed that Germany would dominate the world for years, and Wilson recognized that America’s national policy needed to change.

Prime Minister Asquith and his Cabinet discussed how Britain could turn the war around, with Churchill presenting a plan to restore the Royal Navy using twelve battleships bought from the United States. The chapter ended with Britain preparing for a decisive naval battle against Germany and its leaders praying for victory.

• Asquith remained Prime Minister because no one wanted to inherit Britain’s worsening crisis.
• Churchill told the Cabinet that Royal Navy officers and sailors were training in the United States to crew the twelve purchased battleships, which were expected to return within half a month.
• Asquith praised Churchill and said a victory over Germany would make him Britain’s greatest hero.
• Churchill reported that the French and Italian fleets had secretly arrived in Britain for joint training ahead of a decisive battle.
• Grey and Churchill discussed how Emperor Wilhelm III had swiftly crushed Germany’s rebellion and strengthened his hold over the country.
• Asquith and the Cabinet prayed that Britain would defeat Germany in the coming naval battle.

At Le Havre, Sir French and General Haig faced the collapse of the British Expeditionary Force as German forces closed in, but the British government had not authorized a retreat. The German 1st and 8th Army Corps prepared to attack the trapped British troops, aiming to clear the way for a later landing in Britain.

• General Haig urged Sir French to withdraw the British troops to Britain before the German advance trapped them.
• Sir French said he would seek orders from home and placed all British forces at Le Havre under Haig's command, ordering him to hold out as long as possible.
• The German 1st and 8th Army Corps assembled at Le Havre after Germany put down the Württemberg rebellion.
• On May 6, General Kluck and Lieutenant General Ludendorff planned an attack on Le Havre to celebrate Wilhelm III's coronation and destroy the British Expeditionary Force.

German commanders planned to attack Le Havre, relying on the Navy to counter any British warships, and began a massive bombardment on May 7. The British Expeditionary Force’s defenses were devastated while its concealed artillery remained silent.

• Ludendorff and Kluck judged their forces superior but worried British naval guns could inflict heavy losses, so Kluck requested naval support.
• Kluck ordered the attack to begin the next day, with German troops to stop if British warships appeared.
• On May 7, German artillery opened fire on Le Havre after reconnaissance aircraft found no British warships nearby.
• German shells destroyed British defensive works and frightened the British Expeditionary Force, whose commanders kept its guns concealed.

As German artillery devastated Le Havre, General Haig urged Sir French to seek naval gunfire support rather than risk the British Expeditionary Force’s limited artillery. He proposed sending obsolete Pre-dreadnoughts or Armored Cruisers to bombard German forces, and Sir French agreed.

• German guns destroyed the British defensive lines and heavily bombarded Le Havre, inflicting mounting casualties on the troops inside.
• General Haig warned that continued shelling would devastate the British Expeditionary Force before the battle began.
• Sir French said the British artillery could not safely counter the Germans’ superior guns.
• General Haig proposed asking the navy to send old Pre-dreadnoughts or Armored Cruisers to support the defense with their main guns.
• Sir French nodded in agreement with Haig’s proposal.

Richard Haldane asked Churchill to send older Royal Navy warships to support the British Expeditionary Force trapped in Le Havre. Churchill agreed to dispatch a fleet from Portsmouth, which was expected to join the bombardment the following morning.

• Richard Haldane went to the Admiralty to ask Churchill for naval support for the Expeditionary Force at Le Havre.
• Haldane explained that German artillery was inflicting heavy losses and that the British troops needed naval firepower to hold out.
• Churchill worried that the Royal Navy could not spare capital ships committed to the coming decisive battle against the German Navy.
• Haldane requested Pre-dreadnoughts and Armored Cruisers, and Churchill agreed they could support Le Havre without risking the main fleet.
• Churchill ordered Portsmouth Naval Base to dispatch a fleet, which he said would join the bombardment by the following morning.

Vice Admiral Cavisson received orders from Churchill to take Portsmouth’s aging fleet to reinforce the British Expeditionary Force at Le Havre, where German forces were attacking. The fleet left Portsmouth and crossed the English Channel to bombard German troops.

• Vice Admiral Cavisson received a telegram from the Naval Minister and ordered Portsmouth Naval Base to sound the alarm.
• Cavisson ordered twenty-one Battleships and thirteen Armored Cruisers to prepare to sail, while dismissing the idea of a decisive battle against the German Navy.
• Cavisson explained that Churchill had ordered the fleet to reinforce Le Havre and use its guns against the German forces attacking the British Expeditionary Force.
• At four o’clock on May 7, Cavisson’s fleet left Portsmouth and headed across the English Channel toward Le Havre.

After German artillery devastated Le Havre, British Expeditionary Force leaders welcomed a powerful Royal Navy fleet that arrived to support the coming battle. They planned to conceal the warships offshore and unleash their guns after the German attack began, leaving the British newly confident as the fleet withdrew to wait.

• German artillerymen ended a bombardment that had reduced Le Havre to ruins and inflicted heavy casualties on the British Expeditionary Force.
• Ludendorff and Kluck believed the bombardment had nearly broken British morale and expected an easier attack the next day.
• French, Haig, and Gough welcomed Vice Admiral Cavisson and the Royal Navy fleet, including twenty-one Pre-dreadnoughts and thirteen Armored Cruisers.
• Haig and Cavisson agreed that the fleet should remain hidden offshore until German forces attacked, then bombard them by surprise.
• Cavisson led the fleet to waters dozens of kilometers off the coast, while Haig and French expressed confidence in the British defense.

German forces launched a major assault on Le Havre, expecting to capture the city quickly, while General Haig prepared a Royal Navy intervention. The German attack broke through the outer defenses, but the Royal Navy arrived and began shelling the German troops.

• Lieutenant General Ludendorff inspected the German artillery positions and ordered the guns to destroy British defenses before the infantry attack.
• After reconnaissance found no nearby problems, General Kluck approved the plan and Ludendorff ordered the bombardment to begin.
• General Haig sent a Telegram to General Cavisson, and Vice Admiral Cavisson sailed the fleet toward Le Havre aboard the Edward VII.
• The German 1st Army Corps and 8th Army Corps sent six Infantry Divisions into the assault and drove the British Expeditionary Force from its outer defensive lines.
• When the Royal Navy fleet arrived, General Haig ordered the British troops to break contact, and the warships began bombarding the German forces.

The British Navy’s heavy ships bombarded German forces attacking Le Havre, inflicting devastating losses and forcing the German troops and artillery to retreat. General Kluck ordered a withdrawal and reconnaissance to discover what British fleet had appeared.

• The British Navy’s pre-dreadnoughts and armored cruisers opened fire on German positions along the coast, devastating troops in Le Havre.
• German officers ordered their soldiers to retreat as shells tore through the streets and shattered their morale.
• Lieutenant General Ludendorff urged General Kluck to withdraw the frontline troops and investigate the bombardment.
• General Kluck ordered an immediate retreat and sent for reconnaissance aircraft to identify the British force.
• The German infantry withdrew in panic, and the British Navy continued shelling German artillery positions until their crews retreated beyond range.