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Tsar Nicholas II of Russia and his wife Tsaritsa Alexandra, a detail from a portrait of the Russian imperial family in 'An Ambassador's Memoirs' by Maurice Paléologue, the last French Ambassador to the Russian Court.
A Russian Cossack and his mount jump the border into Germany, his lance aimed squarely at Berlin. This French fantasy of its Russian ally sharply contrasted with the slow advance into East Prussia of the Russian First Army and the disastrous offensive of the Russian Second Army that ended in its destruction at Tannenberg. Germany then turned back to the Russian First Army in the First Battle of the Masurian Lakes, and drove it from Russia. Illustration by Kunder (?).
England's Distress: Postcard map of England and Ireland with the restricted zone Germany proclaimed around the islands, showing the ships destroyed by submarine in the 12 months beginning February 1, 1917.
French folding postcard map of Verdun and the Meuse River, number 9 from the series Les Cartes du Front. Montfaucon is in the upper left and St. Mihiel at the bottom.
Parted red curtains; in the center, in a trench, a German soldier, eyes closed, hands in overcoat pockets, leans against one side of a trench, smoking a pipe, his rifle resting on the other side of the trench. To the right, a Red soldier, red from red fur hat to red boots, holds two rifles. To the left, a Russian soldier casts away his his hat, backpack, and rifle. Across the bottom of the stage it reads, 1918. Operett: "Trockij", Operetta Trotsky. A watercolor postcard by Schima Martos.
"'Take the Emperor, for example,' she continued. 'Isn't he patently predestined to ruin Russia? Aren't you struck by his ill-luck? Could any reign have been richer in miscalculations, failures and calamities? Everything he has undertaken, his best ideas and noblest inspirations, have gone wrong or actually reacted against him. As a matter of logic, what must his end be? As to the Empress, do you know any figure more baleful and accursed even in classical tragedy? And that other, the loathsome ruffian whose name I won't utter! Isn't the brand of Fate on him clearly enough? How can you explain the fact that at such a crisis in history these three incongruous and dull-witted beings hold the destinies of the world's largest empire in their hands? Don't you recognize the action of Fate in that? Come, tell me honestly!'" ((1), more)
"— It is only fair to note that at the Reichstag sitting on the 23rd March [1916] there were some Socialists, like Haase, who made such remarks as 'the massacre of the people'; 'there will be neither conquerors nor conquered' (that remark aroused shouts of execration, according to the reports); 'we Socialists who denounce the war.' Still, that is the first Parliament among the warring nations which has heard the echo of such brave utterances." ((2), more)
"What was the German U-boat strength as they prepared to embark on a second submarine campaign? In March 1916 there were 52 operational boats, compared to 29 to 30 at the start of the first campaign. There were 16 U-boats in the North Sea, 20 in the Flanders Flotilla (8 UB.I, 4 UB.II, and 8 UC.I), 4 in the Baltic, 7 in the Adriatic, and 5 at Constantinople. The Germans could reasonably expect 38 of the U-boats under construction to enter service in the period between April and August of 1916." ((3), more)
"Sunday, March 26, 1916.The frightful struggle at Verdun is still continuing.Notwithstanding the extreme cold and heavy snowfalls the Russians are trying to help us by attacks on the Dvina front. Yesterday they gained substantial successes in the Jacobstadt sector and west of Lake Narotch." ((4), more)
"Beuvry came next to Béthune in the men's favour as a billet. Besides being near Béthune it was large enough to have a choice of estaminets, from the quiet to 'cabaret.' At one of the latter the Battalion Conjuror used to bill himself at the window. He could do a few tricks, and he sang unprintable songs with indescribable pantomime. His worth as a draw was said to be rated by the owner at free drinks and 10 francs." ((5), more)
(1) Excerpt from the entry for March 23, 1916, from the memoirs of Maurice Paléologue, French Ambassador to Russia who hosted, that night, a dinner at the embassy with 'a score or so of Russians, . . . a few Poles, . . . and a few English people.' The quotation is from the Ambassador's private conversation with Princess V——, whom he considered 'very high-minded, quick-witted and clever.' She is downhearted about Russia's prospects, and discusses Fate, which she describes as a mysterious power, intervening at random in the world's affairs, and taking 'a malicious delight in making us the instruments of its own caprices.' Ruling Russia are autocratic Tsar Nicholas II, also supreme commander of the Army, the Empress who encourages his autocracy and urges replacements for high officials upon him, and Rasputin, 'our friend' to the royal couple, who presses the Empress to appoint his favorites to positions in the church, the army, and the government.
An Ambassador's Memoirs Vol. II by Maurice Paléologue, page 219, publisher: George H. Doran Company
(2) Undated entry from late March, 1916 from the diary of Michel Corday, a senior civil servant in the French government. Corday was highly critical of the frequent attacks on French opponents of the war and advocates for peace, who were tarred with the brush of being in the employ of Germany. He would have liked to hear this German Socialist's sentiments spoken in the French Chamber of Deputies.
The Paris Front: an Unpublished Diary: 1914-1918 by Michel Corday, page 153, copyright © 1934, by E.P. Dutton & Co., Inc., publisher: E.P. Dutton & Co., Inc., publication date: 1934
(3) The UC submarines were smaller, mine-laying vessels.
A Naval History of World War I by Paul G. Halpern, page 306, copyright © 1994 by the United States Naval Institute, publisher: UCL Press, publication date: 1994
(4) Entry for March 23, 1916, from the memoirs of Maurice Paléologue, French Ambassador to Russia. The German assault on and siege of Verdun had been underway for over a month. The Russian offensive at Lake Narotch, begun in unsuitable weather and at the French request for support, was foundering. The 'successes' were less than the Ambassador had been led to believe.
An Ambassador's Memoirs Vol. II by Maurice Paléologue, page 220, publisher: George H. Doran Company
(5) Part of the entry from March 21-27, 1916 from the writings — diaries, letters, and memoirs — of Captain J.C. Dunn, Medical Officer of the Second Battalion His Majesty's Twenty-Third Foot, The Royal Welch Fusiliers and dozens of his comrades. An estaminet is a tavern or small café.
The War the Infantry Knew 1914-1919 by Captain J.C. Dunn, pp. 186, 187, copyright © The Royal Welch Fusiliers 1987, publisher: Abacus (Little, Brown and Company, UK), publication date: 1994
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