The German light cruiser Königsberg on the Rufiji River, which flows to the Indian Ocean south of Dar es Salaam. In October 1914, the ship was a commerce raider hunting Allied ships in the Indian Ocean before hiding in the Rufiji to escape being taking by the British. Word of its discovery reached the Admiralty in London on October 30, 1914. The ship was finally sunk in July 1915.
Image text: Reverse:Der Kreuzer Königsberg im Rufidji-FlußAls der Krieg ausbrach befand sich der Kleine Kreuzer Königsberg auf der ostafrikanischen Station. Um 6 August versentte er bei der Insel Sokotru den englischen Dampfer City of Westminster; am 20 September 1914 auf der Rhede von Sansibar zerstörte er durch Geschützfeuer den englischen Kreuzer Pegasus, der den Hafen von Bugamojo bombardiert hatte. Am 30 October, nachdem er bis dahin den ihn verfolgenden englischen Schiffen, Linienschiff Goliath, den Kreuzern Chortam and Weymouth glücklich ausgewichen war, wurde ex beim Kohlen-übernehmen in der Nähe der Insel Mafia von ihnen überrascht, konnte sich aber noch rechtzeitig über die Barre in den Rufidji-fluß retten. Nach langem, hart-näctigem Widerstand wurde er dort von einem englischen, ihn blockierenden Geschwader am 1. u. 11. Juli 1915 völlig zusammengeschossen und von der überlebenden Besatzung verlassen, die sich dann erfolgreich an der Verteidigung der Kolonie Deutsch-Ost-Afrika beteiligte.Das Originalgemälde zu umstehendem Bilde befindet sich im Besitze S. Kaiserlichen Hoheit des Deutschen Kronprinzen.Serie IV Bild 5.Zu beziehen durch Feldgrau '1914/15'. Verein für Kriegswohlfahrt in Armee und Marine G. B. Berlin W.9.The cruiser Königsberg in the Rufiji River When the war broke out the light cruiser Königsberg was stationed in East Africa. At August 6 he sunk the English steamer City of Westminster at the Socotra Islands; on September 20, 1914, on the Zanzibar Roads, he destroyed by gunfire the British cruiser Pegasus, which had bombarded the port of Bugamojo. On October 30, after he had been pursued by English ships including the battleship Goliath and the cruisers Chatham and Weymouth, he fortunately dodged them, but was coaling near the island of Mafia when they surprised him, but he could escape over the bar into the Rufiji River. After a long, hard-fought resistance he was completely shot down by the English squadr
A Swiss postcard of 'The European War' in 1914. The Central Powers of Germany and Austria-Hungary face enemies to the east, west, and south. Germany is fighting the war it tried to avoid, battling Russia to the east and France to the west. Germany had also hoped to avoid fighting England which came to the aid of neutral (and prostrate) Belgium, and straddles the Channel. Austria-Hungary also fights on two fronts, against Russia to the east and Serbia and Montenegro to the south. Italy, the third member of the Triple Alliance with Germany and Austria-Hungary, declared neutrality, and looks on. Other neutral nations include Spain, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Switzerland, Romania, Bulgaria, and Albania. Japan enters from the east to battle Germany. The German Fleet stays close to port in the North and Baltic Seas while a German Zeppelin targets England. The Austro-Hungarian Fleet keeps watch in the Adriatic. Turkey is not represented, and entered the war at the end of October, 1914; Italy in late May, 1915.
Image text: Der Europäische KriegThe European WarReverse:Kriegskarte No. 61. Verlag K. Essig, BaselKunstanstalt (Art Institute) Frobenius A.G. Basel
Having stopped unrestricted submarine warfare after sinking the Lusitania in 1915, Germany resumed the policy on January 31, 1917. The campaign peaked in April 1917, and helped bring the United States into the war.
Image text: U-Bootswirkung im Mittelmeer.12 Monate uneingeschränktenU-Bootskrieges auf dem Mittelmeer-KriegsschauplatzAlle durch Minen und vor dem 1. Februar 1917 vernichteten Schiffe sind in dieser Karte nicht enthalten.[symbol] bedeutet ein durch die Tätigkeit unserer U-Boote versenktes Schiff ohne Berücksichtigung seiner Größe.Die Eintragungen der Schiffe entsprechen dem Versenkungsort."Die wichtigste unmitteilbare militärische Ursache der Italienischen Niederlage wird unwidersprchen in dem Mangel an Munition und schweren Kanonen erblickt: den die Unterseeboote haben die Erz- und Kohlenzufuhr unterbunden." - (New York Times, 4.11.17)Monatsergebnisse der GesamtversenkungenFebruar, 1917, 785,000 Br.-Reg.-T.Marz, 890,000April, 1,100,000Mai, 870,000Juni, 1,020,000 Br.-Reg.-T.Juli, 815,000August, 810,000September, 675,000Oktober, 675,000 Br.-Reg.-T.November, 610,000Dezember, 705,000Januar, 635,000Insgesamt 9,590,000 Br.-Reg.-T.Submarine action in the Mediterranean.Full 12 monthsU-Boat War in the Mediterranean theater of warAll ships destroyed by mines or before February 1, 1917 are not included in this map.[symbol] indicates a ship sunk by the activity of our submarines regardless of its size.The entries of the vessels meet the Versenkungsort."The most important cause of the indescribable Italian military defeat is indisputably due to the lack of ammunition and heavy guns. The submarines have prevented the supply of ore and coal." - (New York Times, 4:11:17)Monthly breakdown of the total sinkings:February, 1917, 785,000 imperial tonsMarch, 890,000April, 1,100,000May, 870,000June, 1,020,000 imperial tonsJuly, 815,000August, 810,000September, 675,000October, 675,000 imperial tonnesNovember, 610,000December, 705,000January, 635,000A total of 9,590,000 imperial tonnesReverse:Auf Anregung Sr. Majestät des Kaisersi. Auftr. des Admiralstabes d. Rais. Marine zu Gunsten der S
'Warmest regards from the Somme . . . ' from Robert Künger, September 21, 1916, presumably pictured with his machine gun crew. Translation couresy of Thomas Faust, ebay's Urfaust.
Image text: 'Warmest regards from the Somme . . . ' from Robert Künger, September 21, 1916. Translation couresy of Thomas Faust, ebay's Urfaust.
Retouched and marked-up photograph of Austrian Warships, June 9, 1915. A penciled note on the back says, 'Photo by amateur'. The Austro-Hungarian Empire's primary port was Pola on the Adriatic Sea.
Image text: Reverse:Pencil: Austrian warships. Photo by amateur, reproduced by permission.Stamped: Jun-9 1915
"The strain upon British naval resources in the outer seas, apart from the main theatre of naval operations, was now at its maximum and may be partially appreciated from the following approximate enumerations:Combination against von Spee, 30 ships.In search of the Emden and Königsberg, 8 ships.General protection of trade by vessels other than the above, 40 ships.Convoy duty in the Indian Ocean, 8 ships.Blockade of the Turco-German Fleet at the Dardanelles, 3 ships.Defence of Egypt, 2 ships.Miscellaneous minor tasks, 11 ships.Total, 102 ships of all classes.. . .Already on October 30 news had reached us that the Königsberg had been discovered hiding in the Rufigi River in German East Africa, and it was instantly possible to mark her down with two ships of equal value and liberate the others." ((1), more)
". . . a single shelter for all of us. It had been dug by the Germans, who started digging a mine there. Unfortunately our advance had interrupted their work, and all that was left was a staircase with about forty steps dug into the earth. At the bottom was a shallow, narrow corridor, where, because so little air got down that far, candles wouldn't stay lit.There was so little room that we had to leave our weapons, rifles, and packs outside on the firing step, at the mercy of the rains and any larcenous souls.Those who find their bedrooms not spacious or comfortable enough should consider whether forty men were comfortable on this narrow, muddy, slippery staircase, where every moment someone was either going up or coming down, and there wasn't room for two slightly overweight men to pass each other. Luckily we were all pretty thin." ((2), more)
"The Allies for most of 1916 responded to this steady hemorrhage of their shipping with antisubmarine tactics that were more of the same, adding whatever craft they could to the ineffective patrols on the patrolled routes while the admirals consistently overestimated the very few losses they were inflicting on the submarines. The submarine danger was so acute that in October the Admiralty prevailed on the War Office to agree to send troops going to or returning from Salonika and Egypt overland via Marseilles, which had the advantage of eliminating the long sea journey through the Bay of Biscay and western Mediterranean." ((3), more)
"— the ground was impassable and so powerless were the troops to manoeuvre that they were shot down whilst stuck in the mud.— the Barrage was ineffective and the troops were unable to keep up with it.— oblique hostile M.G. fire was very effective.— the only Lewis Gun which succeeded in getting into action was useless in three minutes [because of the mud].— all uncovered rifles were useless, all covered rifles ditto within ten minutes.— power of manoeuvre was nil.— to sum up the situation, neither FIRE NOR MOVEMENT was possible, and any prospects of success under these conditions was nil." ((4), more)
"Then the 30th of October dawns.By the order of His Majesty the Emperor and King, the navy is informed in sparse language: the entire navy, the vessels and floating fleet installations, and all construction on land passes into ownership of the new Yugoslavian state. The non-South Slavs are free to continue serving under the new flag. Everyone else is granted permanent leave.In the Bocche we are to continue normal duty until the final surrender order has been accomplished per instructions.Rumor has it that the Yugoslavs took over three war loans in exchange. No one knows whether or not the South Slavs will be a state in the framework of the monarchy.The surrender order is from the Emperor, and so the ships and boats are not sunk." ((5), more)
(1) Winston Churchill's summary of the disposition of the British Fleet at the end of October 1914 from his history of World War I. German Vice-Admiral von Spee was in command of the German East Asia Squadron in the South Pacific. The Königsberg and particularly the Emden had been sinking Allied shipping in the Indian Ocean, and fear for the lives of the British Empire troops from Australia, New Zealand, and India crossing the Ocean was high. The German battleships Goeben and Breslau were now part of the Turkish Fleet and had been renamed Yavuz Sultan Selim and the Midilli. The Allies were afraid they would re-enter the Mediterranean Sea. The Königsberg was not sunk until 1915, but it could not escape the Rufiji River, and no longer threatened Allied shipping.
The World Crisis 1911-1918 by Winston Churchill, 241, 242, copyright © by Charles Scribner's Sons 1931, renewed by Winston S. Churchill 1959, publisher: Penguin Books, publication date: 1931, 2007
(2) Extract from the notebooks of French Corporal Louis Barthas serving with a reserve unit near Neuville-Saint-Vaast, in Artois, France, on October 30, 1915, an area that was mined extensively by both sides. The men had taken part in the Third Battle of Artois, part of the great autumn Anglo-French offensive of 1915.
Poilu: The World War I Notebooks of Corporal Louis Barthas, Barrelmaker, 1914-1918 by Louis Barthas, page 131, copyright © 2014 by Yale University, publisher: Yale University Press, publication date: 2014
(3) The Greek port of Salonika was the gateway for Allied troops fighting the Bulgarian and other Central Power forces on the Salonika Front, as Egypt was for British forces fighting the Turks on the Syria/Palestine Front. Using the French port of Marseilles in the western Mediterranean Sea cut the exposure of troops and supplies being transported by sea.
A Naval History of World War I by Paul G. Halpern, page 389, copyright © 1994 by the United States Naval Institute, publisher: UCL Press, publication date: 1994
(4) Excerpt from the report of the commanding officer of the British 58 (London) Division on the October 30, 1917 attack on the village of Passchendaele in the Third Battle of Ypres. 'M.G.' is 'machine gun.' The Lewis gun was a British M.G. The officer also reported on the utter failure of communications with runners shot after being stuck in mud, pigeons too mud-encrusted to fly, and aircraft not flying. Brackets in source.
Passchendaele The Untold Story by Robin Prior and Trevor Wilson, page 177, copyright © 1996 Robin Prior and Trevor Wilson, publisher: Yale University Press, publication date: 2002
(5) Excerpt from the memoir of Austro-Hungarian Captain Georg von Trapp, the Empire's most successful submariner. The Emperor, Karl, was also King of Hungary. The Bocche was the Bay of Cattaro, an Austro-Hungarian port and naval base. Yugoslavia, a union of South Slavs incorporating Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, was the dream of Gavrilo Princip and his co-conspirators when he assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophia on June 28, 1914.
To the Last Salute: Memories of an Austrian U-Boat Commander by Georg von Trapp, page 185, copyright © 2007, publisher: University of Nebraska Press, publication date: 2007
