FA+
Shop
King Albert's War Diary 3/5 • Tribute
2 years ago
21st September
Visit from General Joffre.
The Generalissimo displayed great confidence in the future. "The Somme offensive," he declared, "has succeeded. The Germans are being worn down; they are short of men; the 1917 class has been entirely enrolled. Prisoners' reports say that their supply depots are empty. our aviation has the upper hand and prevents the enemy from getting his range. The Germans' shells are inferior to ours. The enemy has tried to check our advance, but his counter-attacks- even those undertaken with two divisions- have failed." "Do you believe," I asked him, "in a general retirement of the lines?" General Joffre avoided making a pronouncement. "The struggle," he went on, "will still be a long one. It will last throughout the winter and throughout the whole of next spring. Even if peace pourparlers were started, we should have to remain very strong, to be in a position to resume operations. This war will be the last one, or at least there will be no more for a very long time." The General went on to say: "We learn from Munich that the Bavarians are displeased with the Prussians, who always send them into the difficult and the most murderous positions. They are the best soldiers, even better than the Prussian guards." I began to praise the French Army. "Discipline," replied the General, "is freely accepted, and the officers are obeyed because they are loved. our most remarkable achievement is the resistance at Verdun followed by the Somme offensive. We are strong and we have not yet enrolled the 1917 class. We have adequate material and we shall win." "I regret and deplore," I said, changing the subject, "the Allied air raids on our towns, which inevitably kill Belgian civilians. These attacks irritate the people and encourage them to lend an ear to German agitators. The French troops should appear to everyone as the forces of liberation animated by an ideal of gallantry and generosity." "I will attend to this question and I will also speak to General Sir Douglas Haig. We must give an example of moderation." Before leaving La Panne the General assured me again on several occasions of his optimism. "The offensive," he said, "will go on for another two months at least. We shall not leave the enemy in peace during the winter. Nevertheless, it is quite certain that you will spend another inclement season at La Panne."Reviewing the various theatres of war- the West, Italy, Russia and the Balkans- the King noticed that everywhere the fronts seemed static- a condition which was evidence of a general balance of forces. He also recorded his disillusionment.30th September
The great offensive continues on the Somme.
Obviously it has achieved successes. The Allies, it seems, enjoy superiority in the fields of artillery and aviation. Despite this, their progress is of relatively little importance. This is because their leaders, with immense resources at their disposal, do not possess the knowledge of how to put them into action. It is highly improbable that they will achieve a real break-through of the German Lines. In consequence, this offensive will peter out as all the others have done. At the moment French and British optimism is so high that they both entertain the most ambitious dreams and high-handedly repel any pacific moves. No one can put himself up as a mediator. This is a war of peoples; it is up to the peoples to put a term to it. They will stop when their exhaustion begins to be felt more acutely and when, despite the lies of their Governments, they are convinced that nothing good can be expected from a continuation of the carnage. Moral: the partisans of peace should enlighten the peoples, and the Germans, if the war is weighing on them, should give the other nations proofs of moderation.However, from furthest Africa, a message of victory meanwhile arrived. After six months of tough campaigning, General Tombeur's expedition had captured Tabora, the capital of German East Africa. Belgium thus brilliantly asserted her rights to her colonial empire. The King showed his satisfaction at this fortunate result:My dear General, I learn that after long and tough fighting, our brave African troops have captured Tabora, the citadel of the German East African defences. I would like to take advantage of this brilliant feat of arms to offer you, as well as the officers, non-commissioned officers and soldiers under your command, my warmest congratulations on the constant successes won in this far-off campaign which has demanded so much effort to organise. Be so good as to convey to them the expression of my deep gratitude for the brilliant way in which they have upheld the honour and the reputation of our arms on African soil.While the Sovereign was busy with these considerations, grievous news began to reach him from occupied Belgium. The enemy was subjecting all able-bodied Belgian workers to forced labour and that at a distance from their domicile. Workers, unemployed or employed, were torn from their homes. Deportations begun in the battle zone spread throughout the country. They already amounted to 100,000 persons and threatened to reach two or three times this number. Incidentally, the behaviour of the victims was admirable. Despite their sufferings and the lure of heavy wages, they almost unanimously refused to sign an engagement. On the other hand, in spite of the zeal of the Belgo-American Red Cross, the food supply of the population left much to be desired. Very affected by this news, the King approached the Pope, the President of the United States and the king of Spain, soliciting their intervention to allay if possible the distress of his subjects. He found herein support for his view that it was not inopportune to try and put a term to these calamities. Actually, during the first days of October, through the offices of Mr. Philipson on the one hand and of Messrs. Hoover and Heineman on the other, the British and Belgian Governments were the object of an official overture on the part of Germany, who offered, as a basis for negotiation, the complete restoration of Belgian independence with indemnity and the surrender of Lorraine to France. The British Cabinet was hesitant to refuse, but Mr. Lloyd George, supported by The Times, proclaimed quite plainly that England did not intend to negotiate at a moment when the weight of her effort was just beginning to turn the scales. As a result of this, the Belgian Government judged it prudent not to compromise itself and dispatched the Minister for Foreign Affairs to La Panne to ensure that the Sovereign did not receive Mr. Philipson. After hearing the minister, the King wrote:10th October
We know the tone taken recently in Paris by Lloyd George. We also know that M. Briand insisted that access to La Panne should be forbidden to Mr. Philipson. In any case, the latter has not come and probably will not come. It is quite certain that the moment is not favourable for such a step. The Governments believe in the possibility of pushing back the German lines and they believe firmly in victory. We must let the Somme offensive exhaust itself and then, with the aid of winter, people will perhaps start to reflect.The mere idea that the King might not give a categorical refusal to possible enemy approaches aroused in ministerial circles in Le Havre a tempest of criticisms and protests of both a political and constitutional nature. As a result of this, the Sovereign received in succession the Minister for Finance, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, and the Premier.18th October
I find the Minister for Finance very moderate in his views on the war. He declares that as far as the German peace proposals and the possible visit of Mr. Philipson are concerned the Cabinet above all feels scruples of a constitutional nature; it is opposed to his having access to the Sovereign.19th October
The Minister for Foreign Affairs seems very upset by the meeting, where he was the object of some lively observations on the part of his colleagues. It is now more than the question of peace. He is irritated by the irresponsibility of the French and even minds that M. Cambon has lost his sense of proportion. "Everyone," he declared to me, "is blinded by objectives which exceed the military possibilities. No one can see that war is incapable of putting a stop to war; that this gigantic butchery is useless and that those who organise it are the culprits." The minster complains bitterly of the exaggerated optimism to be found among the majority of his colleagues. At the Cabinet meeting they went so far as to speak of treachery on my part. The Premier declared that the Sovereign was already suspect in France!20th October
The Premier violently attacked the Minister for Foreign Affairs...
I spoke to him about the letter destined for M. Hymans. He suggested informing Mr. Philipson through Mr. Hoover that his step was inopportune and nothing more. I remarked that it would be preferable for this statement to be made through a Belgian in order that we might not appear to be in tow of the foreigner. The minister accepted this point of view without hesitation. He promised me he would notify the Cabinet. In insisted that he should use his influence to make the XX Siecle keep silent on the question of Luxemburg and the Escaut.About the 15th November, when the Somme offensive collapsed from exhaustion on the part of the attackers hardly a few kilometres from where it started, the Germans replied in Transylvania by forcing the barrier of the Carpathians and streaming down into the Rumanian plains.26th November
Rumania is under even greater threat of invasion. The Government is said to have left Bucharest. In Belgium the deportations of unemployed, and even, it is reported, of other persons, grow more and more widespread. In France and England the problem of supplies has taken on a serious aspect. The Somme offensive is dying slowly, without the General Staff daring to admit it. The submarines are becoming increasingly active. The prospects of peace are more and more remote, but the speeches remain just as impassioned.5th December
Times become more and more troubled. In France, secret meetings of the Chamber, distrust of the Government and the High Command; in England, the ministerial crisis- these are so many indications of the growing anxiety and of the popular emotions aroused by the diplomatic and military setbacks in the East and the slowness and indecisiveness of the offensive actions in France. We shall see the arrival of more violent, less reflective men who will give the public an illusion of strength. Fifteen changes of ministers will not produce a leader; it is the absence of a capable soldier which is causing all the harm and the stagnation in the lines. The general conduct of the war has been entrusted to incompetent men- there the trouble lies. Lloyd George will galvanise the crowds, but he cannot inspire in the Staffs the proper methods without which the armies mark time in costly indecision. In the meantime, the new British Government intends to prepare a crushing offensive for the spring. They would like to include our Army in the enterprise, or rather be able to draw upon it; they will try to attach our divisions to the British Army, which is now our neighbour. This must be resisted. Our war aim is not the same as Great Britain's; we are not under arms to destroy Germany. We will not take part in unrealisable undertakings. For these offensives do not succeed, as experience has shown. I do not intend to sacrifice my men in operations in whose success I have absolutely no faith. At G.H.Q. they seem to share my feelings. On talking with Colonel Maglinse I insisted upon the opposition we should make to an offensive starting from Ypres and deploying through our richest provinces. There are regions adjacent to Germany much more favourable for attack and from where, if they succeed, the war could be carried into enemy territory.The Sovereign also decided to put the Government on its guard. After a consultation with the Ministers Van de Vijvere and Poullet, whose moderate views he appreciated, he wrote to the Premier:The sufferings our people endure and the march of political and military events inspire the gravest fears in me, and I consider it my duty to communicate them to the members of my Government. The liberty and the property of our compatriots are more and more threatened. The latest news shows that the invader is not hampered by legal scruples in forcing Belgians to perform work which will contribute to his military effort, and gradually mulcting the country of its resources and the means of its prosperity. We have exhausted our methods of protest against these abuses. So far our interventions do not seem to have given any results... At a moment when this vast war has settled into an appalling indecision, and when the hour of extreme or compromise solutions may sound from one moment to the next, what do we find in high quarters?- Belgium was not admitted to the last Allied conference in Paris. To speak frankly, this means that we are excluded from deliberations on the conduct of a war, from the effects of which our Army and our people suffer so harshly. Decisions upon which perhaps the conditions of our liberation and our future existence depend, are taken without us being in a position to discuss them. I urge my Government to make our policy and our place in the Councils of the Allies the immediate and essential objects of its deliberations.Taking into account the debates resulting from this message, Minister Van de Vijvere wrote His Majesty a letter, dated the 10th December: "The spirit of my colleagues has greatly changed during the past two months... "Two considerations have made a great impression on the Cabinet." "The first, of a military nature, is the assurance given by the Premier after a recent conversation with Sir Douglas Haig, that the Allies are planning an offensive to chase the enemy from Belgium, which, if successful, would completely devastate our unfortunate country." "The second, based on the increasingly intolerable situation of Belgium with regard to the deportations and the demands to which she is subjected. We must hasten the end of this martyrdom, which the representations made to Berlin by the neutral powers will not do..." "In conclusion, unanimity was reached on a motion put forward by M. Poullet 'proclaiming' the necessity of participating in the Allies' discussions upon war aims and policy and, furthermore, to obtain information with all necessary prudence about the views of the enemy powers in order to work in all loyalty for peace as soon as circumstances permit."
Strengthened by these ministerial views, the king proposed to intervene in person to sound the feelings of the British Government. He considered that the extreme military efforts deployed on both sides of the trenches having resulted in a state of equilibrium, the moment was at hand- helped by the winter- when all reasonable governments would try by direct or indirect means to equate the aims of the belligerents so as to strike a balance between the advantages or disadvantages of an end to hostilities. In his opinion, the hour for negotiations had arrived. Three events followed in quick succession to prove that this point of view was shared in other circles.
The 12th December, on the announcement of the fall of Bucharest, the German Government handed to the representatives of the United States, Spain and Switzerland a note addressed to the Allied Powers to propose that peace talks should be opened. On the 18th December the United States Government invited the belligerents to state their war aims with a view to examining the practical possibilities of putting an end to the conflict... and measures to prevent a recurrence of a similar calamity. The note specified that it was merely proposing sounding how far away humanity as a whole was from the goal of peace for which it increasingly longed. Finally, at Rome, the Pope proposed to our minister that he should mediate on the basis of the recognition of the total independence of Belgium, the integrity of the Congo and just reparations. The German note, dictated in a naughty and clumsy tone, met with a hostile reception in London and Paris. With a unanimity which in fact sounded the keynote of policy, the AAllied Press declared it "insincere and without significance." Advised by the Philipson incident and the papal proposal, however, that it implicitly conceded the restoration of our independence, the integrity of the colony and an indemnity, the King considered that it was in Belgium's interest to reject purely and simply the prospect of realising our war aims. He summoned the ministers to La Panne and for two days, the 19th and 20th December, discussed the matter with them after setting out the problems in this preliminary speech:The Government must give thought to the national interests in the light of recent events. I owe it to you to give you my opinion, which is born of my deep attachment to our country. Whatever procedure may be adopted for the reply to the German note, we cannot identify our reply with that of the Great Powers. The Belgian point of view is not the same. Our country is almost entirely overrun. on the other hand, the experience of recent offensives shows that the conquest of Belgium by the Allied armies would expose her to total destruction. What judgment would history pronounce on a policy which had been unable to conceive any other means of liberating the country than a war of attrition, bringing in its wake the ruin and depopulation of our finest provinces? Far be it from me to suggest a dishonourable peace. I would prefer to fight to my last breath rather than return to a Belgium enslaved or with contracted frontiers. But I declare that the Government in the present circumstances cannot stand aside or bow to fate. It is also important that we should maintain in face of the neutrals and of the civilised world the strong position which the cause for which we entered the war has gained for us. Furthermore, if we are forced to continue the war, we must be able to justify our future action. It is to our interest to know the conditions which the enemy offers and to see if they accord with our legitimate and reasonable aims.At the close of the debate the King wrote:20th December
Three Cabinet meetings. I read them a note in which I drew their attention to the dangers Belgium is running. Her liberation by arms is tantamount to her destruction. But she is towed in the wake of the Great Powers, confused with other small countries who have not the same rights. The moment has come to defend our point of view before the Allies, and, without requiring an impossible separate peace, at least to define our war aims so that Belgium, after having played a great role in the struggle, may play one in the preparations for peace. The Cabinet was unanimous in declaring it impossible and inadmissible that Belgium should be reconquered foot by foot and destroyed. The ministers decided unanimously on the utility of a separate reply to Germany, defending our aims and reasons and affirming our point of view. Several ministers are haunted by fear of the Allies. They think that our alliance could not survive the least discussion, even though the Allies need us and we represent an invaluable moral strength for them.The Cabinet further agreed that we should send a note to the United States, stating our war aims, in reply to the question asked by that Government on the 18th. The diplomatic documents were therefore drafted. The Premier and the Minister for Foreign Affairs undertook to take them to Paris. The Sovereign had every reason to think that in future Belgium's position would appear to be clearly defined in everyone's eyes. He was utterly amazed to learn by a short telegram that no sooner were they faced with the Allied statesmen than our envoys wavered, agreed to renounce the despatch of a separate reply to Germany, accepted the incorporation of our reply in that of the Allies, reducing it to the vague, almost tendentious formula: "Belgium desires a peace which will ensure her legitimate reparations, security and guarantees for the future." It is true that Belgium's inclination to make her voice heard independently provoked such anxiety among the Franco-British that they sent in all haste to La Panne M. Berthelot, of the political branch of the French Foreign Office, a notorious partisan of carrying on the war to its bitter end. The King wrote:
Part 4