Recaps

President Wilson and his cabinet decided to condemn Germany for its attacks on Island Nation, despite the risk of worsening relations. Their diplomatic pressure was rebuffed, while criticism from Britain and Crown Prince Karl exposed Germany’s growing isolation and the breakdown of its alliance with Austria-Hungary.

• President Wilson persuaded Bryan, Garrison, and Daniels to support an official condemnation of Germany and discussed the eventual conflict between the United States and Germany.
• On August 17, the US government issued a statement condemning Germany, and Bryan formally protested to the German Ambassador.
• The German Ambassador dismissed the protest and said the United States could declare war if it wanted to interfere.
• Churchill denounced Germany and called for nations to unite against it, but no country agreed to fight Germany.
• Crown Prince Karl criticized Germany’s actions at a banquet, while Emperor Franz Joseph I’s authority prevented Karl from changing Austria-Hungary’s policy yet.

Oscar convened his ministers to respond to protests and foreign condemnation of the German Empire’s military actions. He ordered a public counterattack against the United States and Britain and a formal warning to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, while dismissing concerns about international opinion.

• Protesters outside the palace demanded that Oscar recall the Expeditionary Fleet, and he summoned his ministers to discuss a response.
• Foreign Minister Wachth and Prime Minister Bülow described the international criticism, while Tirpitz and Falkenhayn cautioned against targeting private citizens or going to war with the United States.
• Oscar ordered the Empire to expose American atrocities against Native Americans and British crimes in their colonies as a public-opinion counterattack.
• Wachth reported Crown Prince Karl’s criticism, and Oscar ordered the German ambassador to lodge a stern protest with the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
• The German Empire and its critics exchanged accusations, and German citizens who had opposed the Empire’s actions fell silent.

Oscar approved the German Expeditionary Fleet’s plan to force its way through the Uraga Channel and bombard Tokyo in an effort to make the Island Nation surrender. Vice Admiral Spee’s fleet departed Sagami Bay before dawn to begin the dangerous operation.

• Grand Admiral Count Tirpitz reported that the Island Nation still refused to compromise despite the destruction of eight major cities, while Prime Minister Bülow warned that it was stripping resources from its Southeast Asian colonies to prepare for flight.
• Grand Admiral Count Tirpitz proposed the Expeditionary Fleet’s plan to enter Tokyo Bay and bombard the capital, and Oscar approved it while ordering the fleet to limit its losses.
• At Sagami Bay, Vice Admiral Spee and Rear Admiral Mauff discussed the mines, coastal artillery, and possible destroyer attacks threatening the passage through the Uraga Channel.
• Vice Admiral Spee ordered the fleet to launch the next morning and force its way into Tokyo Bay.
• At 4:00 a.m. on August 19, the German Expeditionary Fleet set out toward the Uraga Channel.

The German Expeditionary Fleet began forcing its way through the Uraga Channel toward Tokyo Bay, hoping to evade the Island Nation’s defenses and minefield. SMS Friedrich der Grosse struck a drifting Naval Mine, leaving the fleet’s passage exposed as Vice Admiral Spee ordered it to prepare for battle.

• At 4:55, Vice Admiral Spee ordered the German Expeditionary Fleet to enter the Uraga Channel, with SMS Friedrich der Grosse leading.
• The German warships navigated the poorly charted minefield while preparing to return fire if the Island Nation’s coastal fortifications opened fire.
• A Naval Mine drifting into the channel exploded against the bow of SMS Friedrich der Grosse and damaged its underwater armor.
• The captain of SMS Friedrich der Grosse learned that the breach was small and could soon be sealed, then reported the damage to the flagship.
• Vice Admiral Spee realized the explosion had ended any chance of a secret passage and ordered the fleet to prepare for battle.

The German Expeditionary Fleet forced its way through Uraga Channel under heavy fire from the Island Nation Coastal Defense Force. The five German Battlecruisers entered Tokyo Bay with little serious damage, and Vice Admiral Spee ordered the Light Cruisers and destroyers to follow at maximum speed.

• The Island Nation Coastal Defense Force sounded the alarm and opened fire as the German fleet bombarded its positions.
• The Coastal Defense Force Commander ordered the gun emplacements to fire and requested Navy support and preparations in Tokyo.
• German Battlecruisers endured hits while their return fire destroyed many Island Nation coastal guns and fortifications.
• SMS Friedrich der Grosse entered Tokyo Bay, followed by SMS Friedrich Karl, Derfflinger, SMS Lützow, and Hindenburg.
• Rear Admiral Mauff reported that all five Battlecruisers had passed through, and Vice Admiral Spee ordered the Light Cruisers and destroyers to cross at maximum speed.

The German Expeditionary Fleet overcame the Uraga Channel’s defenses and entered Tokyo Bay, leaving the Island Nation government fearing Tokyo’s imminent destruction. Prime Minister Okuma Shigenobu ordered the city evacuated and the Emperor and senior officials moved to safety.

• A coastal artillery shell struck and sank German Destroyer V40 as the fleet passed through the Uraga Channel.
• Vice Admiral Spee led the German light cruisers and destroyers into Tokyo Bay, confident the fleet had cleared its final obstacle.
• Admiral Yashiro Rokuro learned that the Germans had entered the channel and ordered Yokosuka to send out all destroyers to attack.
• Admiral Yashiro Rokuro warned Prime Minister Okuma Shigenobu that the German fleet was approaching Tokyo Bay.
• Okuma Shigenobu ordered Tokyo’s residents to evacuate, Emperor Taisho to shelter in the Imperial Palace bunker, and senior officials to assemble at his residence.

After German warships broke into Tokyo Bay, Japan’s Cabinet argued over whether to surrender its Pacific and Southeast Asian territories, while the Army refused to yield. Japan’s remaining destroyers then charged the German fleet, despite facing overwhelming firepower.

• Admiral Yashiro Rokuro explained that mines and coastal guns had failed to stop the German warship from forcing its way through the Uraga Channel.
• Prime Minister Okuma Shigenobu asked Army Minister Oka Ichinosuke to consider accepting Germany’s terms, but Oka refused to give up Southeast Asia.
• Admiral Yashiro Rokuro ordered the remaining destroyers to attack the German fleet, and an officer at Yokosuka Naval Base rallied the sailors to defend Tokyo and their families.
• A dozen or so Japanese destroyers sailed toward the Uraga Channel, where they found that the German battlecruisers and several light cruisers had already passed through.
• The Japanese destroyers charged the German Expeditionary Fleet despite the danger from its superior firepower.

The Island Nation Navy’s destroyers launched a desperate attack on the German Expeditionary Fleet but were all destroyed before they could threaten its capital ships. Vice Admiral Spee’s fleet reached waters near Tokyo and began bombarding the city.

• Captain Tsukamoto Katsukuma ordered Swift Wind to charge as the Island Nation Navy destroyers attacked the German fleet near the Uraga Channel.
• The German ships opened fire, and Swift Wind was struck, set ablaze, and sunk before its torpedoes could be launched.
• The German Expeditionary Fleet destroyed all the attacking destroyers, while the few torpedoes they fired failed to threaten its capital ships.
• Vice Admiral Spee ordered the fleet to advance on Tokyo, and Rear Admiral Mauff relayed the order.
• Admiral Yashiro Rokuro told the Cabinet that the destroyer squadron had been wiped out, while Oka Ichinosuke urged the ministers to find shelter.
• At seven in the morning, Vice Admiral Spee’s fleet reached waters less than ten kilometers from Tokyo and began bombarding the city.

The German Expeditionary Fleet bombarded Tokyo, killing fleeing residents and setting the city ablaze. As Cabinet leaders discussed ending the conflict, Emperor Taisho cowered in a shelter, powerless and terrified.

• Mackensen and the other German warships began shelling Tokyo, destroying buildings and killing residents who fled along crowded roads.
• Army Minister Okashi no Suke vowed revenge, while Yamagata Aritomo and Oyama Iwao regretted the decision that had brought the bombardment upon Tokyo.
• Yamagata Aritomo urged an end to the disaster, and Okuma Shigenobu sought support from Matsukata Masayoshi and Inoue Kaoru to oppose the army's occupation of Southeast Asia.
• Emperor Taisho was taken to a bomb shelter, where he panicked over the Germans reaching Tokyo Bay and blamed the Cabinet, though he had no power to act.

German warships devastated Tokyo and then bombarded the Imperial Palace, convincing Emperor Taisho and the Island Nation’s leaders that they could not continue the war. The chapter ended with Okuma Shigenobu and other officials accepting that defeat was necessary, even if they hoped to seek revenge later.

• Vice Admiral Spee ordered the fleet to destroy more of Tokyo and threatened to bombard the Island Nation’s coastal cities if its government refused Germany’s conditions.
• Rear Admiral Mauff suggested targeting the Imperial Palace, and Spee ordered the fleet to bombard Chiyoda Ward.
• German shells struck the Imperial Palace, killing several people and destroying its buildings while Emperor Taisho sheltered in a bomb shelter.
• Emperor Taisho demanded that the Cabinet negotiate peace and admit defeat, but his attendants reported his words to Prime Minister Okuma Shigenobu.
• Yamagata Aritomo and Oyama Iwao agreed that the Island Nation could not continue fighting, while Okuma Shigenobu said it should wait until it was stronger before seeking revenge.

After the German Expeditionary Fleet devastated Tokyo, Emperor Taisho and the Island Nation's leaders debated how to respond. Yamagata Aritomo chose to accept Germany's terms, ending the conflict for now as Germany turned its attention to Britain.

• The German Expeditionary Fleet bombarded Tokyo for more than half a day, leaving much of the city in ruins and causing hundreds of thousands of deaths across the Island Nation.
• The Island Nation Coastal Defense Force failed to stop the fleet from withdrawing through Sagami Bay.
• Emperor Taisho raged over the destruction of Tokyo and the imperial palace while his ministers apologized.
• Yamagata Aritomo and the leaders debated whether to resist Germany or give up Southeast Asia, and concluded that the Island Nation could not win.
• Yamagata ordered Foreign Minister Kato Takaaki to contact Germany, and the Island Nation accepted all of Germany's conditions.

After the Island Nation agreed to withdraw from Germany’s colonies and Southeast Asia, Oscar ordered the Expeditionary Fleet to supervise its retreat and warned that the United States was helping it rebuild. He urged Germany to strengthen its navy and Pacific defenses, leaving officials preparing for a future conflict while Germany focused on defeating Britain.

• Wachth reported that the Island Nation had backed down after Admiral Spee bombarded Tokyo, and Oscar said its compromise spared it further attacks.
• Oscar ordered the Expeditionary Fleet to remain in the Far East and ensure the Island Nation withdrew from Germany’s colonies and Southeast Asia without taking resources.
• Wachth reported that the United States had lent the Island Nation two hundred million dollars, and Oscar suspected the money would rebuild its military.
• Oscar told Tirpitz that Germany needed stronger aircraft carriers and carrier-based aircraft to face enemies across several oceans.
• Falkenhayn promised to reinforce Germany’s forces in Southeast Asia and the Pacific after the war so they could hold out until help arrived.

Oscar considered Germany’s victory over the Island Nation temporary and focused on defeating Britain to end the war. He planned to seize Britain’s colonies and divide the British Isles into smaller states, including an independent Ireland and Scotland.

• Oscar assessed Germany’s recovered Pacific colonies as strategically valuable and expected the Island Nation to rebuild and fight Germany again.
• Oscar set Britain as Germany’s immediate priority, since the Channel made an invasion difficult and the war could not end while Britain remained undefeated.
• Oscar argued that Britain’s colonies had financed its powerful navy and that a unified British mainland could threaten Germany in a future struggle with the United States.
• Oscar planned to seize Britain’s colonies and divide the British Isles, supporting Irish independence and anticipating that Scotland might also seek independence.

Oscar planned to divide Britain after Germany defeated it and promised Irish leaders German support for independence in exchange for an uprising and an alliance. Griffith and Patrick Pearse accepted his conditions, leaving Irish independence tied to cooperation with Germany.

• Oscar proposed dividing Britain into independent countries after its defeat, and his ministers supported the plan.
• Oscar ordered his officials to arrange a meeting with Irish leaders and encourage independence movements in Scotland and Wales.
• Oscar met Griffith and Patrick Pearse, leaders of Irish Sinn Féin and the Irish Republican Brotherhood, and promised to help Ireland become independent.
• Oscar required the Irish leaders to launch an uprising during Germany’s attack and make Ireland a German ally after independence.
• Griffith and Patrick Pearse hesitated but accepted Oscar’s conditions.

Churchill inspected Britain’s coastal defenses at Dover and urged the generals to resist a German landing, hoping to preserve the homeland and strengthen Britain’s prospects in a future war. The generals pledged to fight, though whether their defenses could stop Germany remained uncertain.

• Churchill visited Dover with Richard Haldane, Ian Hamilton, and senior officers to inspect the coastal fortifications.
• Hamilton identified the coastline from Eastbourne to Margate as the likely focus of a German landing and described the British forces concentrated to defend it.
• Churchill declared that Britain would keep fighting and inflict heavy losses on Germany in hopes of forcing a favorable peace.
• Churchill considered preserving the homeland essential to Britain’s strength, while also preparing for retreat to Canada and an alliance with the United States if necessary.
• The generals pledged to give everything they had to resist the German attack.

On August 20, Field Marshal von Falkenhayn gathered the army and navy commanders in Calais to oversee the invasion of Britain. The German forces reported their readiness, and the chapter ended with the operation poised to begin.

• Field Marshal von Falkenhayn arrived at the operations headquarters in Calais and found the senior army and navy commanders assembled.
• Field Marshal von Falkenhayn asked whether the forces were ready, and the generals answered that they were.
• General Kluck, General Bülow, and General Hutier reported that their army corps, totaling 350,000, 280,000, and 200,000 men respectively, were ready to attack.
• Lieutenant General Ludendorff declared the 8th Army Corps ready, while Lieutenant General Seeckt reported that the Army Air Corps had deployed 1,200 fighters and 800 bombers.
• General Reinhard Scheer reported that the Imperial Navy and Marine Corps were ready, with a bombardment fleet and 100,000 marines prepared to support the invasion.

Field Marshal Falkenhayn outlined Germany’s plan to invade Britain, beginning with naval and air bombardments of the landing sites. The German Battleships opened fire on the British coast, formally starting the attack.

• Field Marshal Falkenhayn told the generals that the attack on the British mainland would begin that day and reviewed the invasion plan.
• Lieutenant General Seeckt and Major General Richter Fiers confirmed that the Army Air Corps and Navy bombardment formations would support the landings.
• Field Marshal Falkenhayn assigned the Marine Corps to land at Margate, Dover, and Folkestone, while the 8th Army Corps would land at Bournemouth and cut British supply lines.
• The three German Bombardment Groups reached their assigned waters and aimed their guns at British Army positions.
• The German Battleships opened fire on the British coast, beginning the attack.

German warships and bombers devastated British coastal defenses at Margate, Dover, and Folkestone ahead of the invasion. General Ian Hamilton warned London and ordered the front lines to stop the Germans from landing, while British morale collapsed under the bombardment.

• German Bavaria-class and Deutschland-class battleships bombarded British positions at Margate, destroying trenches, strongpoints, barbed wire, and mines.
• German warships also struck British defenses at Dover and Folkestone, leaving nearly all exposed fortifications destroyed.
• General Ian Hamilton received reports of the bombardment at Canterbury and ordered his adjutant to inform London that the German offensive had begun.
• General Ian Hamilton told frontline commanders to watch for the German attack and prevent the enemy from completing a landing.
• Six hundred German bombers joined the naval bombardment, and British commanders and soldiers watched their defenses being wiped out as morale fell.

The German Navy’s bombardment devastated British defenses along the coast while Ian Hamilton kept British artillery concealed. On the morning of the 21st, Falkenhayn ordered the German Marines to begin landing at Margate, Dover, and Folkestone.

• Ian Hamilton refused to expose British artillery in a futile exchange with the German Navy and kept the concealed guns in reserve to attack landing forces.
• After a day of bombardment, Churchill and Richard Haldane discussed the destruction of the coastal defenses and the need to stop the German invasion.
• Ian Hamilton ordered British troops to repair their positions overnight, but the German Navy began shelling them again at seven o’clock the next morning.
• Falkenhayn confirmed that the Marine Corps was ready and ordered the landing operation to begin.
• The German Navy shifted its fire deeper inland as the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Marine Divisions landed at Margate, Dover, and Folkestone respectively.

The German Marine Corps launched a landing near Margate, but British artillery inflicted heavy casualties before naval guns began suppressing the shore defenses. The landing force continued toward the coast as the British guns were gradually silenced.

• Lieutenant General Alexander? Linsingen ordered the 1st Regiment, 1st Marine Division to cross the sea in hundreds of landing craft.
• General Haig ordered the British 1st and 6th Army Corps and coastal-defense guns to bombard the German landing force.
• British shells destroyed landing craft and killed or wounded German Marines before they reached shore.
• Lieutenant General Alexander? Linsingen demanded that the British guns be suppressed, and his adjutant reported that German warships were already firing on them.
• German naval guns wrecked British artillery positions and gradually suppressed the bombardment, though the Marines had already suffered substantial casualties.

German forces launched a brutal landing against British defenses, with naval guns and aircraft suppressing British positions as Marine Corps troops fought to establish a beachhead. The Germans gained a foothold on the beach, but the battle remained fierce and the landing’s success was still uncertain.

• German naval guns and British artillery exchanged fire, sinking landing craft and inflicting casualties on both sides as Lieutenant General Alexander Linsingen watched the Marine Corps losses mount.
• The Imperial Army Air Corps attacked British artillery and strafed troops moving toward the front, pinning the defenders down and causing devastating casualties.
• The first German landing craft reached the beach, where British fire killed several soldiers and destroyed the empty craft with a mortar shell.
• More German landing craft came ashore, and Marine Corps troops used their squad automatic weapons to exchange fire with British soldiers while artillery continued to strike the beach.
• German forces gained a firm foothold, but they still needed to drive back the British and secure the beachhead for the troops following them.

Lieutenant General Alexander Linsingen’s German Marines broke through the British defenses at Margate with naval and air support, then established a beachhead despite heavy casualties. With the position secured, German Army corps began landing to reinforce it.

• Lieutenant General Alexander Linsingen requested stronger naval support as the 1st Regiment faced heavy British attacks.
• Major General Richter Fiers sent two light cruisers and five destroyers close to shore to bombard the British positions.
• The 1st Regiment breached the British first line of defense, and Linsingen ordered the rest of the 1st Marine Division to land.
• German amphibious tanks helped drive the British back, and the 1st Marine Division established a beachhead at Margate four kilometers long and two kilometers deep.
• The other two Marine Divisions achieved similar results, and the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Army Corps began landing to reinforce the beachheads.

After German forces secured beachheads at Margate, Dover, and Folkestone, General Hamilton and his commanders discussed Britain’s worsening position. Hamilton decided to launch a night counterattack to drive the Germans into the sea.

• German forces established beachheads at Margate, Dover, and Folkestone and began landing more troops.
• General Haig and General Benson described the heavy British losses and the Germans’ advantages in artillery, tanks, and aircraft.
• Hamilton said he would request tank support from London and ask the air force to send fighters.
• Hamilton proposed a night counterattack, arguing that darkness would limit German air support.
• Haig and the other generals agreed to attempt the counterattack despite expecting heavy casualties.

Field Marshal Falkenhayn and the German commanders prepared to hold their beachheads in Britain against a decisive British counterattack overnight. The British attack began in darkness, leaving the outcome of the landing uncertain.

• Field Marshal Falkenhayn learned that the Marine Corps had secured beachheads at Margate, Dover, and Folkestone, while German army divisions began landing.
• General Kluck and the other commanders planned to hold the beachheads until dawn, with Admiral Reinhard Scheer promising naval fire support.
• The German corps commanders ordered their troops to defend their positions as the soldiers built fortifications, planted landmines, and prepared flares.
• At ten o'clock, General Haig ordered more than fifty thousand British soldiers from three elite Infantry Divisions to attack the German line.
• The British Army's 2nd Army Corps and 3rd Army Corps launched attacks at the same time.

British forces launched a night raid to drive the German landing force back into the sea, but German mines exposed the attack and triggered a devastating response. The British pressed on in a frontal assault under overwhelming German land and naval fire.

• General Hamilton sent elite British divisions forward for a night raid against the German positions.
• A British soldier stepped on a German mine, and further explosions exposed the British attack.
• German troops fired flares to illuminate the attackers and opened up with machine guns, mortars, and grenade launchers.
• British officers ordered their soldiers to charge despite the German fire.
• German field artillery and naval warships joined the bombardment of the advancing British forces.