The battle of mons was the last of four battles of the frontiers that took place over as many days on the western front between allied and german forces in the opening month of world war i. The battles around mons between the british and germans in august 1914 are another case where popular belief is that the british won an important victory against the odds. Excerpted from world war i on wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. A reassessment of the battle, author terrance zuber examines british and german records to see if this is what happened.
Having spent 10 weary days marching through dusty france, 70,000 men. Then you can start reading kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer no kindle device required. It also contains information on the battle site in belgium today. World war one and the battle of mons layers of learning. From mons to the first battle of ypres is the war diary of a junior infantry officer in the british army. National war memorial, ottawa confederation square courtesy parks canadaphoto by b. Casteau to le cateau, the western front by car by bike and on foot battle lines kindle edition by cooksey, jon, murland, jerry. The battle of mons was fought august 23, 1914, during world war i 1914 1918 and was the british armys first engagement of the conflict. The outcomes of world war i would be important factors in the development of world war ii 21 years later.
Project gutenberg offers 61,760 free ebooks to download. Following the withdrawal of the bef ii corps during the night of 23 rd 24 th august 1914, following the german assault on the mons canal line, the bef occupied a line about 17 miles long facing north east about 3 miles south of mons the positions of the components of the bef were. The battles resolved the military strategies of the french chief of staff general joseph joffre with plan xvii and an offensive. Advance from mons 1914 by walter bloem overdrive rakuten. The epic of the french marines october 17november 10, 1914 bookicon. The battle of ypres in the autumn of 1914 will be a memorial to german heroism and selfsacrifice for all time, and will long remain a source of inspiration for the historian and the poet. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.
After his arrival in france, he witnessed the retreat from mons, the battle of the marne, the battle of the aisne, and the first battle of. It left millions dead and reshaped the modern world. To mark this milestone the book describes the arrival of the bef in mons in 1914, the battle of mons itself, the retreat from mons, the battle of le cateau, and the background to the angel of mons stories. Britain had not fought a major war for 99 years when its army went into action in belgium in 1914. Battle of mons 1914 in the great war the wartime memories. Mons 1914 by david lomas overdrive rakuten overdrive. You can use the timeline below to explore the whole scope of wwi then take a closer look at one of the first battles, the battle of mons. An ebook containing contemporary accounts of the first major battle fought by.
When the first world war broke out in august 1914 the imperial german army mistakenly assumed that the bef that conte. Originally published in 1997, an illustrated military history of the first world war battle of mons in 1914. When the first world war broke out in august 1914 the imperial german army mistakenly assumed that the bef that contemptible little army. At mons, the british army attempted to hold the line of the mons conde canal against the advancing german 1st army. Kevin coyne, author of marching home this is the starting point for metzs wideranging, original book. Dec 20, 2016 the history of the battle of mons 23nd augest 1914 for militaria. During the first monumental turn of the ww1, heavily outnumbered british troops set out to corner german soldiers at the battle of mons during 2223 august 1914. The nook book ebook of the from mons to the first battle of ypres illustrated edition by captain james g.
Britain declared war on germany on 4 august 1914 and on 9 august, the bef began. The british lost more than 1,500 soldiers in the offensive, while the german forces lost between 2000 and 5000 men, this number has been disputed. Before the war, the author was a novelist, and the advance from mons clearly shows this it is written with a great eye for detail, careful yet vivid descriptions abound and importantly, from a historical perspective, the book was penned whilst herr bloem convalesced from a wound he received at the battle of the aisne. Includes the first world war on the western front 19141915 illustrations pack with 101 maps, plans, and photos.
At mons, the british army attempted to hold the line of the monsconde canal against the advancing german 1st. The battle of mons was the first major action of the british expeditionary force bef in the first world war. The trigger for the great war, or first world war, was the murder of the heir to the austrian throne, archduke ferdinand, and his duchess in sarajevo on 28 th june 1914 by gavrilo princip, a member of a gang of serbian nationalists who objected to the annexation of bosniaherzegovina by austria. The next battle in the first world war is the battle of mons 2 nd day. The retreat from mons 1914 by jon cooksey overdrive. The battle of mons exploration is from unit 48 about world war one. The book actually looks at the entire first phase of fighting on the western front in 1914 as it affected the b. Ospreys examination of the battle of mons of world war i 1914 1918.
Although the germans were thrown back, british soldiers sustained fatal wounds. Stirring reconstruction of the british armys arrival in france and the desperate retreat of exhausted troops from mons. George, the angel of mons, appears out of an unfurling cloud over the monsconde canal, saving lt. Apr 16, 2015 the battle of mons was the first major battle of world war one. This book recounts the truly amazing battle of mons in 1914, of the heroic british rearguard actions against the german invasion of belgium and of the devastating effectiveness of the british fifteen rounds a minute rapid fire, which was mistaken for machine guns by the germans. From mons to the first battle of ypres illustrated edition. Having spent 10 weary days marching through dusty france, 70,000 men of the british expeditionary force, or bef, reached the belgian mining town of mons on august 22.
German troops advancing through belgium german troops invaded belgium on august 3rd. The story of the great war, 1914 to 1918, blackstone audio, inc may 24, 2012 music. In august 1914 and november 1918, the region was the scene of clashes between commonwealth troops and german soldiers. The german victory forced the bef into a retreat that was not checked until the first battle of the marne. We are heavily outnumbered, however, we do have the advantage of better trained units. The battle of mons was the first major action of the british expeditionary force bef in the first.
The british expeditionary force begins the lengthy retreat from mons which only ends in early september. The battle of mons, august 1914 kindle edition by manchee, julian. When the first world war broke out in august 1914 the imperial german army mistakenly assumed that the bef that contemptible little army would be easily defeated. Operating at the extreme left of the allied line, the british assumed a position near mons, belgium in an attempt to stop the german advance in that area.
Read mons 1914 the befs tactical triumph by david lomas available from rakuten kobo. A reenactment of the 1914 world war i battle, mons features some of the surviving veterans playing themselves. They were stopped in their tracks by the numerically inferior british force, whose excellent marksmanship cost the closed packed german ranks dear. The year 2008 sees the 90th anniversary of the liberation of mons. Mons was the agincourt of 1914, another heroic stand against the odds. At mons, nine and a half british battalions held four german divisions at bay for an entire day. On 23rd august 1914 the british expeditionary force began what would be its first significant action in. Why the british army was so effective in 1914 learning lessons from boer war. In total, mons was under occupation for over four years. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets.
This stirring staging of the british armys desperate retreat from mons in 1914 makes it easy to see why british instructionals battle reconstruction films were so popular with the public in the decade after wwi. Advance from mons 1914 the experiences of a german infantry officer. In less than three minutes dan snow describes the british armys first battle of world war one. The angel of mons is a meditative and transcendent journey into a war we can never learn too much about, or from. It was the first battle fought by the british expeditionary force since its arrival in france during the second week of august. The allied success at the battle of amiens august 811, 1918 led to an aggressive. An ebook containing contemporary accounts of the first major battle fought by british troops in the first world war at mons in 1914. World war i, also known as wwi abbreviation, the first world war, the great war, and the war to end all wars, was a global military conflict that took place mostly in europe between 1914 and 1918. Starting with a brief background to the british army in 1914, some historical context and visitors information, the bulk of the book covers four main tours looking at different aspects of the mons battlefields. Numerous and frequentlyupdated resource results are available from this search. The real story of the british army in 1914 general.
The german victory forced the bef into a retreat that was not checked until the first battle. The town of mons will be the first time our army meets the germans. The battle of mons 1914 annotated illustrated eyewitness. Battle of mons newspaper archives newspaperarchive. Taking place on august 23 rd, 1914 the battle of mons was a clash between the british army and the advancing german army in mons, belgium. Mons 19141918 the beginning and the end epub don farr. Minutes after this photo was taken the company moved into position at nimy on the bank of the monsconde canal. Grenzschlachten was a series of battles fought along the eastern frontier of france and in southern belgium, shortly after the outbreak of the first world war. Walter bloem was a captain in the german 12th grenadier regiment royal pru.
Then there is the story of the angels of mons going strong through the 2nd corps, of how the angel of the lord on the traditional white horse, and clad all in white with flaming sword, faced the advancing germans at mons and forbade their further progress. The previous battle in the first world war is the british expeditionary force bef. Already a cultural and educational center, the city of mons also came to be a hub of the coal trade. By the 29th fieldmarshal french had realised the importance of the attacks developing from the southeast against ypres. Reliable information about the coronavirus covid19 is available from the world health organization current situation, international travel. This takes in the mons area itself but also the early stage of the retreat from mons down to the battlefield at le cateau. British troops from the bef british expeditionary force had crossed to mainland europe on august. If blenheim and leipzig have taught us one thing, its that oneday battles can fill hundreds of pages. Mons was a battle of movement unlike the battles that followed which involved trench warfare. Second lieutenant james hyndson went to france in august 1914 with the british expeditionary force. The battle of mons was one of the battles apart of the eleadged battles on the frontier that had taken place during the month of august.
The piecemeal withdrawal from the slagheaps on 23 august 1914 however, is so ospreysized mons 1914. Wwi the battle of mons was miraclous british heroic effort. Battle of mons, november 11, 1918, engagement fought on the last day of world war i, in which canadian forces captured the belgian town of mons, liberating an area that had been under german occupation since 1914. The british expeditionary stress had only been on the mainland of europe forjust over a week while troops below the command of prevalent sir john french encountered the brandenberg branch, below prevalent gluck, advancing unhindered in direction of the mons canal. Kindle ebooks can be read on any device with the free kindle app. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the steelmen. Despite its title this book isnt really about the battle of mons, which only occupies one of the books ten chapters. Main article primary sources 1 brigadiergeneral john charteris, the chief intelligence officer at ghq 5th september, 1914. The battle of the mons started on the 23rd of august 1914 and i think it ended three days later asked in ww1 trench warfare what happened on august 2630 in 1914 in the battle of togoland. Layers of learning has handson learning in every unit of this family friendly curriculum. The battle of mons, 23 august 1914, was part of the wider battle of the frontiers of france first world war.
Phases of the british armys involvement in the first world war. Free access ebook available for uoit via canadiana online. It was a subsidiary action of the battle of the frontiers, in which the allies clashed with germany on the french borders. On 11 november 1918, the last day of the first world war, canadian forces captured the belgian town of mons liberating a place that had been under german occupation since 1914. Battle of mons ebooks read ebooks online free ebooks. The battle of mons, the first clash between the british. Mons 1914 ebook by david lomas 9781782004448 rakuten kobo. This book examines not just the battle of mons itself but also the ensuing british retreat including the actions at le cateau and villerscotterets. Read from mons to the first battle of ypres illustrated edition by captain james g. Battle of mons, august 23, 1914 engagement between the british expeditionary force and the german army at mons, belgium, during the battle of the frontiers in the opening weeks of world war i. A company of the 4th battalion, royal fusiliers 9th brigade, 3rd division on 22 august, 1914, resting in the square at mons, belgium, the day before the battle of mons. It is the essential companion for every visitor who is keen to retrace the path taken by the british expeditionary force immediately after the outbreak of the conflict all the important battle sites of.
From project gutenberg, the first producer of free ebooks. I have always been disappointed by the lack of material on the battle of mons. The french were planning an attack across the sambre river, when the germans attacked first, forced back the french from the river and nearly cut off the french retreat by crossing the. The battle is surrounded by the infamous legend of the angels of mons, where bowmen from. The history of the battle of mons 23nd august 1914 youtube. Ordered to hold the mons conde canal, the tommies dug in along the treelined. This is an outstanding personal memoir penned by a german infantry officer recalling his experiences during the initial days and weeks of the war in the west, julyseptember 1914. Enter your mobile number or email address below and well send you a link to download the free kindle app. The project gutenberg ebook of ypres, 1914, by otto schwink. Exhausted, sunburnt and footsore from the long route march, they rested breifly in the suburb of nimy then crossed the railway line and began to dig in, refusing assistance offered by the locals, but gratefully accepting offers of food and drink.