The German Army at Ypres 1914 and The Battle for Flanders by Jack Sheldon

Author:Jack Sheldon [Sheldon, Jack]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Armed Services, Battles, Campaigns, World War I
Goodreads: 10208634
Publisher: Pen & Sword
Published: 2010-11-18T05:00:00+00:00

“Once patrols had established that the trenches, which the enemy had been occupying the previous evening, had apparently been evacuated, these companies, too, received the order to move forward at about 3.30 am. A dark night and fog facilitated the conduct [of the move] and, by 8.00 am, it was possible to report to the regiment that the battalion had moved forward to within two hundred metres of the enemy and dug in. As it became light it was possible clearly to make out two lines of enemy trenches, one behind the other and equipped with loopholes. Valiantly supported by the engineers, our men went to work with a will; the construction of communication trenches to the rear went on despite harassing fire.”

The garrison opposing the forthcoming attack was somewhat reduced and worn down compared with that which countered the original attacks. On 10 November, it comprised two battalions of Fusilier-Marins, one battalion from Senegal, whose solders had suffered particularly badly from the cold, wet conditions, and one Belgian battalion. All of these units were well below strength and the defending artillery was down to about thirty percent of its original strength. The odds had shifted significantly in favour of the attackers for the first time and, as dawn broke, the assaulting troops were able to lift their heads above the parapets of their trenches and consider the prospect of Diksmuide to their front with rather more equanimity than had been possible two weeks earlier. The fog was still too dense to enable them to see the outlines of the houses and other buildings to their front, but it provided useful cover as final preparations went ahead.

All concerned had worked hard to get ready but, as has been noted, for some the time was rather short, so maximum use was made of the limited visibility and although there was some desultory small arms fire, it was effectively unaimed and caused the attacking force no problems at all for the time being. At 10.45 am, Generalmajor von Seydewitz issued the confirmatory attack orders. The operation was to be conducted on a fairly narrow front to improve concentration of force. To the north of the town, 4th Ersatz Division was to launch an attack in strength to divert the attention and resources of the defenders, Reserve Jäger Battalion 15 was directed to bring pressure to bear from the northeast but, once again, the main effort was to be made by Reserve Infantry Regiment 201 right and Reserve Infantry Regiment 202 left. The right hand limit of this attack sector was from a point 400 metres north of the railway embankment south to the inter-regimental boundary, which ran along the Diksmuide – Kapelhoek road. To the south, the Reserve Infantry Regiment 202 frontage ran southwest, following the line of the railway to the cemetery about three hundred metres south of the town on the Woumen road and, due to the width involved, all three of its battalions were in line in the order north to south of 2nd, 3rd,and 1st.

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