Chapter Summaries

Wilhelm II and the German naval officers discussed whether Germany should seek a decisive battle against the British fleet, but they concluded that commerce warfare was the better way to weaken Britain. Oscar then discussed submarine operations and the need to develop anti-submarine weapons.

• Tirpitz told Wilhelm II that Germany had surpassed Britain in modern capital ships, though the two navies would soon be more evenly matched in numbers.
• Wilhelm II asked whether Germany should force a decisive battle, but Tirpitz warned that Britain would avoid fighting and shelter behind its coastal defenses.
• Oscar urged Germany to keep up commerce warfare until Britain could no longer sustain its fleet or resist a decisive battle, and Scheer agreed.
• Wilhelm II ordered the navy to continue its blockade and sink British merchant ships.
• Tirpitz reported that German submarines had sunk more British merchant ships than the Commerce Raiding Fleet and had also sunk small British warships.
• Oscar urged the navy to expand submarine development and create anti-submarine weapons.

On the train back to Berlin, Oscar warned Wilhelm II and the German admirals that the United States could decide the war if it joined the Allies. He left them with no solution beyond defeating their European enemies before America entered the conflict.

• Wilhelm II, Oscar, Tirpitz, and von Pohl left Wilhelmshaven by special train, while Oscar planned to return to East Prussia and lead the 8th Army Corps into Poland.
• Wilhelm II praised the German Army’s progress in the Battle of the Marne and predicted that victory there could force France out of the war.
• Oscar cautioned Wilhelm II that the battle’s outcome remained uncertain because the Western Front armies were not properly following Moltke the Younger’s orders.
• Oscar warned that American intervention would threaten Germany, explaining that the United States could rapidly mobilize its industry and population to raise a huge army.
• Wilhelm II asked Oscar for a solution, and Oscar said Germany had to win before the United States decided to enter the war.

After Britain’s devastating naval defeat, the British Ambassador asked US Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan for loans, shipping support, and American entry into the war. Bryan learned the scale of the Royal Navy’s losses and hurried to tell President Wilson, leaving America’s decision pending.

• The British Ambassador asked Bryan to hire American merchant ships to carry supplies and sought a US loan for British war purchases.
• The Ambassador urged the United States to join the war, warning that a German victory would threaten American interests.
• The Ambassador revealed that Britain had lost the battlecruiser Lion in an earlier naval battle.
• The Ambassador reported that the Royal Navy had lost seven battleships and three battlecruisers in the Mid-Atlantic battle, with two more ships heavily damaged.
• Bryan promised to report the losses and Britain’s request to President Wilson, then went to the White House after notifying the Cabinet.

President Wilson and his Cabinet debated how to respond after Britain reported a devastating naval defeat by Germany and asked for American support. They feared a German victory but were unwilling to enter the war while the situation remained uncertain.

• Secretary of State Bryan told President Wilson that the Royal Navy had lost more than ten capital ships to Germany and that Britain had requested American support.
• Vice President Thomas R. Marshall and other Cabinet members laughed at Britain’s plea, but President Wilson warned that a German victory threatened America’s ambitions.
• Secretary of War Garrison and Secretary of the Treasury William Gibbs McAdoo said a prolonged war would benefit the United States, though events were moving against that hope.
• Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels said America’s fleet could not reliably defeat Germany, but argued Britain still had strength and might be overstating its desperation.
• President Wilson asked whether America should join the war, and Garrison advised against entering while the situation remained unclear.

President Wilson’s cabinet agreed to secretly support Britain with ships, weapons, and loans while avoiding direct entry into the war and keeping relations with Germany open. Wilson also ordered the Navy to prepare a stronger shipbuilding plan, leaving the United States poised to profit from the conflict and build its military strength.

• Vice President Marshall and Secretary Daniels advised Wilson against entering the war while American isolationism remained strong.
• Secretary Redfield urged the cabinet to help Britain, warning that a German victory could threaten American influence in South America.
• Minister Garrison proposed secretly supporting Britain, and Secretary Bryan argued that aid could be presented as ordinary neutral trade.
• Wilson approved leasing merchant ships, selling weapons at higher prices, and offering loans in exchange for gold or colonial collateral.
• Wilson warned the cabinet to avoid antagonizing Germany and to side with the eventual victor.
• Vice President Marshall called for a stronger Navy, and Wilson ordered Daniels to submit a new warship construction plan.

Oscar returned to Königsberg and learned that the 8th Army Corps was advancing toward Warsaw with little resistance. After discussing Russian reinforcements and the possibility of drawing the Guard 1st Army Corps away from St. Petersburg, he and his generals set out for the front.

• Oscar arrived at the 8th Army Corps Staff Department and learned that its forces were advancing toward Warsaw and expected to reach it in five days.
• General Hindenburg said Russia had ordered the 9th Army Corps and Guard 2nd Army Corps to reinforce Poland, but both were still at least a week away.
• Major General Ludendorff explained that the 9th Army Corps had been freed to move north because the Austro-Hungarian Army had suffered defeats against Russia.
• Oscar suggested exploiting the possible withdrawal of the Guard 1st Army Corps from St. Petersburg and ordered the command headquarters moved closer to Warsaw.
• Oscar, General Hindenburg, and Major General Ludendorff left Königsberg by train to continue toward the front by automobile.

Oscar and the German 8th Army Corps chose to leave Warsaw under siege and use it to draw in Russian reinforcements, aiming to encircle and annihilate the Russian 9th Army Corps and Guard 2nd Army Corps. The Germans prepared for battle as the Russian advance slowed, then feigned an attack on Warsaw to hurry them along.

• Colonel Manstein reported that the 11th Corps vanguard had reached Warsaw and requested permission to attack.
• Brigadier General Hofmann presented a plan to leave Warsaw mostly alone and use it as bait for the two Russian army corps approaching the city.
• Oscar approved the plan and ordered the Germans to surround and annihilate the Russian forces rather than merely defeat them.
• The 8th Army Corps surrounded Warsaw, rested, reorganized, and received supplies while the Russian 9th Army Corps and Guard 2nd Army Corps advanced slowly.
• The German military feigned an attack on Warsaw to urge the Russian reinforcements to advance faster.

General Ivan Gylinski remained in command of the Russian Northwestern Front Army and waited anxiously for reinforcements as German artillery began bombarding Warsaw. He threatened the delayed commanders with punishment and relied on the promised arrival of two army corps to defend the city.

• Nicholas II reprimanded General Ivan Gylinski but kept him in command and sent two army corps to reinforce the Kingdom of Poland.
• General Ivan Gylinski learned that the 9th Army Corps was still in Lublin and the Guard 2nd Army Corps had only just left Białystok.
• A Russian officer warned General Ivan Gylinski that German artillery was preparing to bombard Warsaw, and the bombardment began soon afterward.
• General Ivan Gylinski ordered the 9th Army Corps and the Guard 2nd Army Corps to reach Warsaw within three days or face a report to the Tsar.
• General Samsonov reassured General Ivan Gylinski that the Guard 2nd Army Corps could help turn Warsaw into a fortress.

General Krapovitch and General Letsky accelerated their advance toward Warsaw after General Gylinski threatened to report their delays to the Tsar. The German 8th Army Corps learned of their movements and planned to attack the Guard 2nd Army Corps near Ostrov.

• General Krapovitch received General Gylinski’s warning and ordered a telegram sent to General Letsky.
• General Letsky and General Krapovitch accelerated their forces’ march toward Warsaw.
• General Hindenburg reported that the Russian 9th Army Corps and Guard 2nd Army Corps had sped up their advance.
• Brigadier General Hofmann presented a plan for the 8th Army Corps to attack the Guard 2nd Army Corps near Ostrov with the 8th Armored Division, the 11th Corps, and the 17th Corps.
• Oscar approved the plan, and Major General Ludendorff said the German forces could defeat the Russian Guard 2nd Army Corps.

The Russian Guard 2nd Army Corps reached Rustruw and found German forces blocking its advance and threatening to encircle it. General Krapovitch ordered the corps to dig in and called on the nearby 9th Army Corps for rescue, while General Letsky halted his advance and prepared to respond.

• The Russian Guard 2nd Army Corps arrived at Rustruw and discovered German forces blocking its way.
• General Krapovitch rejected retreat, then learned German forces had also appeared to the east and that the corps risked encirclement.
• General Krapovitch ordered the Guard 2nd Army Corps to fortify its positions and sent a Telegram asking General Letsky and the 9th Army Corps for help.
• Russian troops began digging trenches across the exposed plain as the corps prepared for a German attack.
• General Letsky halted the 9th Army Corps' advance, searched for nearby Germans, and recognized that rescuing Krapovitch's corps could bring a German attack on his own forces.

General Letsky turned the Russian 9th Army Corps north to rescue the encircled Guard 2nd Army Corps, which renewed its resolve as German forces prepared an assault. The German 11th Corps began a heavy artillery bombardment of the Russian positions.

• General Letsky rejected retreat and ordered the 9th Army Corps north to reinforce the Guard 2nd Army Corps.
• General Krapovitch told his officers that reinforcements were coming and urged them to hold their defensive lines.
• The German 11th Corps and 8th Armored Division prepared to attack the encircled Russians.
• At nine o’clock, the German 11th Corps opened fire with heavy artillery, devastating Russian positions and killing soldiers.

German artillery devastated the Russian Guard 2nd Army Corps’ positions, and the Russian guns were quickly silenced. After the bombardment shifted to the rear, the 8th Armored Division launched its attack.

• German shells tore apart Russian trenches and machine-gun bunkers, causing heavy casualties among the frontline troops.
• General Krapovitch ordered the Russian artillery to counterattack despite concerns that its 76.2mm guns were outmatched.
• German heavy artillery, guided by Observation Balloons, suppressed the Russian guns within twenty minutes and resumed pounding the Russian positions.
• Lieutenant General François received a report that the Russian positions had been largely destroyed and told Colonel Guderian to take over.
• After an hour, German artillery shifted its fire toward the Russian rear, and the 8th Armored Division began its attack.

Colonel Guderian ordered the 8th Armored Division to attack the Russian Guard 2nd Army Corps, whose shattered defenses had few weapons capable of stopping German tanks. The tanks advanced under artillery and machine-gun fire, leaving the Russian defenders terrified and unable to mount an effective counterattack.

• Guderian ordered the 8th Armored Division to launch its planned attack after five minutes.
• More than two hundred tanks advanced in three regimental formations, followed by three infantry regiments ready to exploit a breakthrough.
• Russian soldiers and officers were stunned by the tanks, and a general ordered the remaining artillery to fire.
• The German tanks destroyed Russian machine-gun positions with cannon fire as German artillery wiped out the Russian mortars.
• The 8th Armored Division neared the Russian line and swept it with machine-gun fire, pinning down the defenders and causing panic.

The German 8th Armored Division attacked the Russian Guard 2nd Army Corps, whose soldiers could not damage the tanks and began to lose morale. General Krapovitch refused the front line’s request to retreat and said he had no reinforcements to send as the German tanks continued their assault.

• Russian machine-gun fire failed to penetrate the German tanks, and frightened soldiers called them weapons of the devil.
• A German machine-gun killed a Russian officer, worsening the disorder among his men.
• General Krapovitch learned that the German tanks were overrunning the forward positions and ordered the troops not to retreat, while offering no reinforcements.
• The German 8th Armored Division pressed its attack, and a Russian soldier continued firing a heavy machine gun at a tank despite being unable to harm it.

The German 8th Armored Division broke through the Russian Guard 2nd Army Corps’ forward positions and pressed on toward its second line while Russian defenses crumbled. General Krapovitch watched the Russian forces suffer heavy losses and realized they could not stop the German tanks.

• German tanks and infantry overran Russian positions, killing soldiers who tried to attack the tanks with Cluster Grenades.
• Lieutenant General François ordered two Infantry Divisions to reinforce the attack and told the 8th Armored Division to keep advancing.
• The 8th Armored Division broke through the Russian forward positions in less than an hour and continued toward the rear defenses despite some tank breakdowns.
• The Russian Guard 2nd Army Corps headquarters received reports that the Germans were attacking its second-line positions and that Russian forces had no effective way to stop their tanks.
• General Krapovitch lamented the Russian Empire’s inability to resist and recognized that his corps was suffering a defeat like a mountain collapse.

General Letsky led the Russian 9th Army Corps north to try to relieve the beleaguered Guard 2nd Army Corps, but German forces blocked their route at Siedlce. On September 12, the Russians began a major assault, and German and Russian artillery exchanged fire.

• General Letsky decided to march toward Rustruw and aid the Guard 2nd Army Corps despite his officers' fears of the German offensive.
• The Russian 9th Army Corps reached Siedlce and found it held by the German 20th Corps, so Letsky ordered his exhausted troops to rest before attacking.
• Lieutenant General Mackensen learned the Russians had halted nearby and lamented that the 8th Armored Division was not there to help crush them.
• On September 12, Letsky sent the Russian 9th Army Corps' main force against Siedlce and ordered more than four hundred field guns to bombard German positions.
• German artillery began suppressing the Russian guns, while Russian shells caused little damage to the sturdy German defenses.

Russian forces launched an attack on German positions after accurate German artillery forced their bombardment to stop early. German artillery, mortars, and machine guns devastated the advancing Russians, who continued charging toward the defensive line.

• German artillery, guided by Observation Balloons, inflicted heavy losses on Russian guns and forced General Letsky to order an early infantry assault.
• More than thirty thousand Russian soldiers advanced toward the German positions, and Lieutenant General Mackensen ordered his troops to wipe them out.
• German 75mm field guns and mortars shelled the Russian ranks, causing severe casualties as General Letsky watched the attack falter.
• Russian troops reached within a few hundred meters of the German line, where General Purpose Machine Guns and Squad Automatic Weapons cut them down.
• Lieutenant General Mackensen and his officers watched the slaughter and let the Russian attack break against their defenses.

The German military repelled repeated Russian assaults with overwhelming defensive firepower, inflicting massive casualties on the Russian 9th Army Corps. General Letsky ordered another attack despite the losses, and the Russian offensive continued until sunset without breaking the German line.

• German infantry squads coordinated machine guns, grenade launchers, snipers, and rifles to stop Russian soldiers from reaching their positions.
• After more than half the Russian attackers were killed within half an hour, the survivors retreated, and General Letsky called the fighting a massacre.
• General Letsky rejected suggestions to retreat and ordered his troops to keep attacking at any cost.
• An hour later, Russian soldiers launched another assault, but the German line held through repeated attacks until sunset, leaving the battlefield covered in Russian corpses.

The German 8th Armored Division shattered the Russian Guard 2nd Army Corps’ defenses, steadily inflicting heavy losses and capturing thousands of soldiers. General Krapovitch struggled to command the disorganized battlefield as the corps neared collapse.

• Lieutenant General François told Colonel Guderian to keep attacking, and Guderian warned that the tanks were breaking down rapidly before learning replacements awaited at the border.
• German tanks and infantry overwhelmed a Russian position, capturing more than two thousand soldiers and killing at least a thousand.
• German infantrymen praised Oscar and envied the tank crews as the 8th Armored Division continued supporting attacks across the battlefield.
• General Krapovitch received a report that the German forces had swallowed the Guard 18th Infantry Division’s subordinate units.
• General Krapovitch ordered subordinate units to gather, but the German attacks and battlefield confusion made it nearly impossible.

The German 8th Army Corps continued to break up and capture the Russian Guard 2nd Army Corps, while Oscar planned how to prevent the Russian 9th Army Corps from escaping. He ordered trucks and the 8th Air Corps prepared to pursue and slow the Russians, leaving the Eastern Front campaign poised for another major encirclement.

• A Russian infantry battalion surrendered to the Germans after tanks and the promise of safety left it unable to resist.
• General Hindenburg reported that the Russian Guard 2nd Army Corps had lost half its forces in two days and was being encircled.
• Oscar asked about the Russian 9th Army Corps, and Ludendorff reported that its attacks had put little pressure on the 20th Corps.
• Oscar ordered the Germans to gather trucks to transport troops and catch the retreating Russians.
• Oscar told Hindenburg to alert the 8th Air Corps to attack and slow the Russian 9th Army Corps if it fled.