Chapter Summaries

Lieutenant General Ludendorff persuaded Field Marshal Falkenhayn to send the 8th Army Corps to Britain to help destroy the British forces at Maidstone. The German landing at Eastbourne succeeded with little resistance, and an assault force advanced toward Maidstone.

• Lieutenant General Ludendorff proposed landing the 8th Army Corps at Eastbourne to join the 3rd Army Corps against the British forces at Maidstone, and Field Marshal Falkenhayn approved the plan.
• On the night of September 3rd, German troops boarded transport ships at Cretwell to cross the Channel.
• On the morning of September 4th, German battleships bombarded British defenses and barracks at Eastbourne.
• The 4th Marine Division defeated the British brigade and captured Eastbourne’s port intact.
• The 8th Armored Division and two Infantry Divisions set out toward Maidstone while the rest of the 8th Army Corps continued landing.

Germany’s 8th Armored Division captured Aylesford and helped encircle Britain’s 3rd and 8th Army Corps, while British attacks failed to dislodge it. As German forces pressed their assault, General Hamilton ordered the trapped troops to break out toward London.

• The German 8th Armored Division captured Crawley overnight and advanced with two Infantry Divisions to seize Aylesford by dawn.
• General Gough learned that Aylesford had fallen and ordered Britain’s 3rd Army Corps to attack and retake it while requesting reinforcements.
• German firepower and air support repelled Britain’s attacks on Aylesford as the German 3rd Army Corps attacked Maidstone.
• General Hamilton and General Haig concluded that Britain’s forces in the Southeast War Zone faced destruction, and General Benson urged a breakout.
• General Hamilton ordered the trapped British forces to break through toward London, and many escaped through gaps in the German lines.

After crushing the British Army at Canterbury, Field Marshal Falkenhayn delayed the advance to London so the German forces could rest and replenish supplies. A week later, on September 12, four German army corps began advancing toward London, where the remaining British forces had prepared extensive defenses.

• German forces defeated the British Army at Canterbury, leaving fewer than 200,000 of its more than 1.4 million soldiers to retreat to London.
• Field Marshal Falkenhayn and the German commanders celebrated the victory and discussed the coming attack on London.
• General Kluck urged an immediate assault, but Field Marshal Falkenhayn ordered a pause to rest the troops and replenish supplies.
• The German military spent a week reorganizing after the Battle of Canterbury.
• On September 12, four German army corps advanced toward London along four routes.

As German forces prepared to attack London, Churchill and Richard Haldane told King George V that Britain was unlikely to hold the city and urged him to flee to Canada. George V agreed to leave Britain so he could continue leading the Empire if the mainland fell.

• Churchill and Richard Haldane arrived at Buckingham Palace to meet King George V as London prepared for the German assault.
• George V asked whether British forces could defend London, and Richard Haldane admitted that holding the city would be extremely difficult.
• Churchill explained that the British government had arranged to continue the war from Canada with American support if Britain fell.
• Churchill urged George V to leave London for Canada, and George V ultimately agreed.

George V and Churchill discussed Britain’s dependence on the United States, the loss of British hegemony, and plans to rebuild in Canada. George V agreed to lend the Royal Family’s wealth to the government, and Churchill organized its secret transport to Canada.

• Churchill told George V that Britain needed American support to defeat Germany, though the United States would become the new world hegemon.
• Churchill said Britain could preserve most of its colonies and might someday rise again, and George V pledged his support for the Cabinet’s decision.
• Churchill warned that rebuilding Canada and rearming Britain would require vast funds, and George V offered the Royal Family’s wealth as interest-free loans to the government.
• Churchill established a Gold Transport Committee to move Royal Family and government wealth to Canada.
• British forces and intelligence agencies secretly carried gold and other valuables from warehouses to ports and shipped them to Canada aboard warships, submarines, and other vessels.

Emperor Oscar learned that Britain planned to abandon its mainland and transfer its accumulated wealth to Canada, and he ordered the Empire to intercept the treasure. He left the navy and intelligence service to coordinate patrols and gather information, determined to sink the wealth rather than let Britain keep it.

• General Balaimin told Oscar that the British were secretly moving their wealth to Canada.
• Oscar ordered General Balaimin to monitor British movements and prevent the wealth from escaping.
• Grand Admiral Count Tirpitz warned Oscar that Britain’s coastline and the limits of the blockade made interception difficult.
• Oscar ordered the navy to seize as much wealth as possible, or sink it if capture failed.
• Oscar tasked General Balaimin with finding out when, how, and along which routes the British would transport their gold.
• Oscar suggested sending aircraft carriers into the Atlantic to patrol for suspicious vessels and help intercept them.

Captain John took the destroyer Lancaster out of Liverpool with one hundred tons of gold bound for Canada, unaware that German intelligence had revealed the secret mission. After a German seaplane spotted the ship in the Atlantic, John ordered Lancaster onward while preparing to flee from approaching German warships.

• A British official ordered Captain John to deliver Lancaster’s secret cargo safely to Canada, and the destroyer departed Liverpool late on September 8.
• German intelligence reported Lancaster’s departure time and route, prompting the German Navy to send Blücher and its escorts to intercept her.
• By dawn on September 9, Lancaster had entered the Atlantic, and Captain John kept the cargo’s identity secret from his crew.
• A German seaplane appeared near Lancaster, so the navigator summoned Captain John and turned the destroyer while keeping watch for enemy ships.
• Captain John ordered Lancaster to continue onward and turn if German ships appeared as the German fleet closed in after receiving the seaplane’s report.

Captain John’s destroyer, Lancaster, was trapped by a German fleet while carrying one hundred tons of British gold. Surrounded and threatened with destruction, he revealed the cargo’s purpose to his crew, leaving their mission and survival unresolved.

• Captain John ordered Lancaster to turn back after six German destroyers appeared around them.
• The battlecruiser Blücher opened fire as Lancaster tried to escape, and the light cruiser Magdeburg blocked its southwest route.
• A German signal demanded that Lancaster surrender the gold or be sunk, threatening to kill everyone aboard.
• Captain John told his crew that Lancaster carried one hundred tons of gold bound for Canada to preserve Britain’s wealth and continue resisting if the homeland fell.

Captain John surrendered the destroyer Lancaster to the German Navy, which seized its gold cargo. Britain continued sending wealth toward Canada by destroyer and submarine, and despite German interceptions, enough reached Canada to support the British government after its mainland fell.

• Captain John agreed to surrender the Lancaster after his sailors pleaded to be spared.
• German Marines took control of the Lancaster and transferred its one hundred tons of gold to the Battlecruiser Blücher.
• Rear Admiral Lübeck ordered the Blücher to return to Germany with the gold and sent the other warships onward.
• Churchill ordered the Gold Transport Committee to keep sending British wealth to Canada despite the loss of the Lancaster.
• German destroyers forced a British submarine carrying more than one hundred tons of gold to surface, and the Germans seized its cargo.
• Over a month, German forces intercepted or sank some of the twenty destroyers and thirty submarines Britain deployed, while the remaining wealth reached Canada.

As German forces advanced toward London, Richard Haldane and Churchill urged the British generals to prepare for the battle despite shortages, German air power, and their army’s recent defeats. The chapter ended with the generals facing the need to defend London and inflict heavy losses on Germany, since retreating to Canada would not guarantee safety.

• Richard Haldane told the military conference that four German corps and five Marine Divisions were approaching London, while Britain had seven corps defending the city.
• A British general warned that German air attacks and the Royal Air Force’s weakness would make London difficult to defend, and Haldane said the remaining British aircraft would join the battle.
• A British general demanded more anti-tank weapons, and Haldane said armories were working around the clock but lacked raw materials.
• Churchill warned the generals that relocating to Canada was only a last resort and that losing the mainland would leave Britain little hope of recovering it.
• Churchill reminded the generals that Germany could attack Canada across the Atlantic and urged them to inflict heavy losses on the Germans at London.

The German army recovered and prepared to attack the British defensive line south of London, while British leaders hoped to delay the advance and weaken Germany before the fight for the capital. Field Marshal Falkenhayn assigned four corps to break through the line and encircle London, where the Germans intended to destroy Britain’s remaining forces.

• The German army restored its fighting strength after resting and replenishing weapons and ammunition.
• Richard Haldane put General Haig in command of three corps defending the southern line and asked him to hold it for more than a month; Haig warned that his troops were weak and might surrender.
• Haig deployed the 1st Army Corps as a reserve and stationed the 12th and 13th Army Corps along the forty-kilometer line defended by six hundred thousand British troops.
• Field Marshal Falkenhayn ordered the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 8th Army Corps to attack Dartford, Bromley, Croydon, and Epsom, respectively.
• Falkenhayn planned for the German corps to enter London from the south, west, and north after destroying the British forces outside the city.

The German 8th Army Corps subjected Epsom and the British southern defensive line to an all-day artillery bombardment, destroying defenses and inflicting heavy losses. British soldiers endured the shelling in shelters as their officer acknowledged the Empire’s desperate position, and the bombardment continued to clear the way for a German infantry assault.

• The German 8th Army Corps began saturating Epsom and nearby British positions with its powerful artillery.
• British soldiers sheltering from the bombardment discussed Germany’s firepower and Britain’s shortage of resources and ammunition.
• German heavy artillery collapsed a British bomb shelter, burying most of the soldiers inside.
• The German artillerymen continued their bombardment to destroy British defenses and reduce losses for the coming infantry attack.
• British artillery remained silent because it could not match the Germans and risked attacks by German aircraft.

German forces launched a massive assault on the British southern front, shattered their defenses, and drove them back into the ruined cities. By September 14, all four German corps had won their battles, leaving the British 12th and 13th Army Corps struggling to hold on in urban areas.

• After the German bombardment devastated the British positions, the British Commander ordered the exhausted troops to repair the defenses overnight.
• At eight in the morning, German soldiers from two Infantry Divisions attacked with aircraft and tanks, destroying British weapons and suppressing the defenders.
• German infantry broke into the British positions, while British reinforcements suffered heavy losses from German aircraft and ground fire before retreating.
• The German 8th Army Corps broke through the British lines at Epsom and entered the ruined urban area that afternoon to clear out the remaining British troops.
• On September 14, all four German corps defeated the British southern front, forcing the British 12th Army Corps and 13th Army Corps to retreat into urban areas.

British forces collapsed under the German offensive as General Haig sent reinforcements that could not stop their retreat. German artillery devastated British positions, and the 8th Army Corps captured Epsom in three days, triggering the collapse of the southern defensive line.

• Generals Robert and George told General Haig their corps had suffered heavy losses and asked for reinforcements, so Haig promised troops from the 1st Army Corps.
• On September 15, German forces renewed their attack and drove the reinforced British troops back through the ruined city.
• A German company withdrew from a British machine-gun bunker before German artillery destroyed the position and the surrounding defenders.
• A German soldier questioned how easily the battle was going, and a veteran explained that artillery reduced German casualties.
• The German 8th Army Corps captured Epsom in three days and advanced northeast, causing the British southern front to collapse.

After the British southern defensive line collapsed, the German military routed its defenders and captured most of the troops stationed there. Field Marshal Falkenhayn then prepared to encircle London and destroy the remaining British forces.

• General Haig learned that the 13th Army Corps had collapsed and ordered a retreat after General George fled to London.
• The retreat became a rout as German forces pursued the British troops, who surrendered in large numbers.
• The German military reached London's outskirts, with only a little over one hundred thousand of the more than six hundred thousand British troops escaping back to London.
• Field Marshal Falkenhayn and Lieutenant General Ludendorff discussed taking London by the end of the month while minimizing German casualties.
• Field Marshal Falkenhayn ordered the 8th Army Corps to set out the next day and circle north of London across the River Thames as the 1st and 2nd Army Corps attacked.

After the British Army’s defeat on the southern defensive line, Churchill and Richard Haldane accepted that London could not be held and that Britain’s forces were badly outmatched by Germany. Churchill secretly fled to Canada with King George V and senior officials, while Haldane stayed to command London’s defense.

• Richard Haldane told Churchill that London could probably hold out for no more than half a month and warned that German forces were advancing toward the Thames to encircle the city.
• Haldane urged Churchill and King George V to leave for Canada, but Churchill initially wanted to remain in London and take responsibility for the defeat.
• Churchill agreed to flee after Haldane argued that Canada still needed his leadership.
• The next day, Churchill secretly left London for Liverpool with King George V, senior Cabinet officials, and members of the royal family, planning to travel to Canada by sea in separate groups.
• Richard Haldane stayed behind, appointed himself London Defense Commander, and took charge of the city’s forces for the fight against Germany.

German forces began their assault on London after a day of bombardment had devastated the city and its defenses. The Germans pushed into street battles, where they captured a British barricade but lost a tank and several infantrymen to a concealed anti-tank gun and machine guns.

• German artillery and aircraft bombarded southern London, destroying landmarks, defensive works, and inflicting heavy British casualties.
• German 1st Army Corps, 2nd Army Corps, and 3rd Army Corps sent Infantry Divisions into London from the south and west.
• German troops advanced in small groups and used mortars, grenade launchers, machine guns, and a sniper to overwhelm a British barricade.
• German infantry stormed the barricade and cleared out its defenders after the British officer was shot dead.
• A concealed British Anti-tank Gun destroyed a German tank, and British machine-gun fire inflicted heavy casualties on the infantry following it.

German forces used heavy aerial bombardment to destroy British defenses in a London park and capture it, then continued their urban advance. The chapter leaves German infantry facing British tank ambushes in the streets, though German anti-tank guns soon destroyed one Hound tank.

• A German battalion commander requested air support after British fortifications in a London park repelled repeated attacks.
• German aircraft dropped 500-kilogram bombs on the park, demolishing British defenses and inflicting heavy casualties.
• German troops attacked and captured the park in less than half an hour.
• A British Hound tank ambushed a German Mark I tank in the street, destroying it and killing two German soldiers with a second shot.
• German anti-tank guns moved up and destroyed the Hound tank with one shot.

The German military tightened its encirclement of London as British forces lost ground and morale. With his division surrounded and unable to restore contact with the 45th Infantry Division, Major General Ricky surrendered the British 43rd Infantry Division as an intact formation.

• The German military captured more than 20 percent of southern London on September 21 and another 20 percent on September 22, squeezing British forces toward the River Thames.
• The German 8th Army Corps attacked north of London to block a British withdrawal, while Field Marshal Falkenhayn, General Kluck, and General Bülow discussed the city’s impending capture.
• President Wilson demanded that the United States expand its military strength after Germany’s rapid victories in London heightened American concern.
• The British 43rd Infantry Division was surrounded after German forces cut its contact with the 45th Infantry Division, and Major General Ricky agreed to surrender rather than keep fighting under Richard Haldane’s orders.
• The next day, the entire British 43rd Infantry Division surrendered to the German military as the first intact formation to do so in the battle.

Richard Haldane ordered British forces to keep fighting in London despite General Haig’s warnings that the defenses could not hold for long. After the 43rd Infantry Division surrendered, other units followed, and German forces occupied northern London by October 3, leaving the War Ministry as the last area still resisting.

• Richard Haldane rejected British generals’ requests to retreat across the Thames and ordered them to fight to the death.
• General Haig estimated that London could hold out for at most ten days, but Haldane said continued resistance would give Churchill and others time to evacuate people and wealth to Canada.
• A staff officer reported that the entire 43rd Infantry Division had surrendered, and Haldane threatened to punish its commander, Major General Ricky.
• British units across southern London surrendered one after another, allowing German forces to occupy the area without further fighting.
• German forces crossed the Thames and advanced into northern London as more British troops surrendered.
• On October 3, German forces occupied northern London except for the War Ministry, where fighting continued.