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Volume XLIX

"May 19 Curragh One of the contributing factors to the crises in mid May was the repeated acts of sabotage committed during the night by small bands of rebels in areas we considered otherwise safe such as County Kildare. Some of these were directed against our railroads which hindered our ability to shuttle men, equipment and supplies to where they were needed the most. Even more aggravating was the nightly snipping of our communication wires. Nearly every night my HQ lost either the telegraph or telephone connection to VI Army Corps at Marychurch. Sometimes both forcing us to rely on wireless."

---Ireland Diary, Sir Ian Hamilton

------HQ Ireland Command Curragh (Kildare) 0010 hrs Wednesday May 18, 1915

The lieutenant in charge of the wireless section brought Gen. Hamilton the eagerly awaited wireless message from VI Army Corps, which had just been decoded. Hamilton’s chief of staff, Gen. Braithwaite was there as well; his face radiating frustration. Hamilton took the message and dismissed the lieutenant. He read the message aloud.

WEST RIDING DIVISION HAS NOT YET PENETRATED INTO LIMERICK BUT EXPECTS TO DO SO BEFORE DAWN REPEAT WEST RIDING DIVISION HAS NOT YET PENETRATED INTO LIMERICK BUT EXPECTS TO DO SO BEFORE DAWN STOP BOTH WELSH AND LOWLAND DIVISIONS ARE FORCED TO MAKE ORDERLY WITHDRAWALS TO THE NORTH REPEAT BOTH WELSH AND LOWLAND DIVISIONS ARE FORCED TO MAKE ORDERLY WITHDRAWALS TO THE NORTH STOP BELIEVE MOST OF TENTH DIVISION HAS BEEN ELIMINATED REPEAT BELIEVE MOST OF TENTH DIVISION HAS BEEN ELIMINATED STOP WILL FORM NEW LINE FROM BUTTEVANT TO MITCHELSTOWN TONIGHT REPEAT WILL FORM NEW LINE FROM BUTTEVANT TO MITCHELSTOWN TONIGHT STOP ALL DIVISIONS EXPERIENCING SEVERE SHORTAGE OF ARTILLERY SHELLS REPEAT ALL DIVISIONS EXPERIENCING SEVERE SHORTAGE OF ARTILLERY SHELLS STOP LOWLAND DIVISION SUFFERED HEAVY CASUALTIES IN FAILED ATTEMPT TO TAKE MALLOW REPEAT LOWLAND DIVISION SUFFERED HEAVY CASUALTIES IN FAILED ATTEMPT TO TAKE MALLOW STOP

Gen. Braithwaite shook his head and sighed deeply, "London is not going to like this, sir. Not in the slightest."

"That goes without saying but if we really do take Limerick tomorrow things will turn around quickly as we will then have 4 divisions to pit against the enemy in Cork."

"I would feel more confident if they were 4 divisions close to full strength, sir, but we both know that is far from being true. The Lowland and Welsh Division are both weak in artillery. The former came to us that way while the latter lost 3 of its artillery brigades at the Battle of Rathmore. The Welsh Division is weak in infantry as well. Really we should think of it as a reinforced brigade not a division. The other 3 divisions have been seriously weakened by our habit of detaching battalions from them for line of communications and other special missions. The more I think about it the more I believe that keeping the 34^th Brigade in Dublin for pacification is an unnecessary luxury we can ill afford at this time."

Hamilton smiled slightly and nodded, "I share your concern, general. However I would remind you that there are only 2 battalions of the 34^th Brigade inside Dublin. We detached one of its battalions and sent it off by rail to County Leitrim. Later Gen. Hammersley decided to send the 9^th Lancashire Fusiliers to clear out the rebel pocket at Navan, which he rightly thought posed a threat to completing our mission inside Dublin."

"The 6^th York and Lancaster should remain in Leitrim, sir. Heaven knows we have our work cut out for us in Sligo and Leitrim in the near future and we barely have enough forces in Connaught as is. On the other hand we should start the transfer of the 34^th Brigade by entraining 9^th Lancashire Fusiliers once the rest of the 11^th Infantry Division is on its way and a suitable train is available. After that the other two battalions should follow. Oh and the field artillery battery should go as well, sir. I do not see any further need for any artillery whatsoever in Dublin."

"Neither do I but we had hoped to send it along with 2 battalions to put an end to the rebel control of Waterford at some point."

"I recall that, sir but the most important objectives right now are Cork and Limerick. That is where we need to make a maximum effort now esp. in County Cork where we have completely lost the initiative along with greater part of the 10^th Infantry Division."

"Tsk, tsk. I have not completely given up hope on the 10^th Infantry Division. For one thing Gen. Wilson’s appraisal of that situation is badly distorted by his political sentiments."

Braithwaite shook his head, "Without a doubt Wilson was deeply prejudiced against the 10^th Infantry Division and willing to give up on its rescue too soon, general. Yet I think it highly unlikely that anything more than scattered remnants of it now remain."

"I prefer to be more optimistic. It was bad enough losing the 16^th Division."

"We would still have the 31^st Brigade and 5 batteries east of Limerick, sir."

"Yes but they are badly weakened as well are they not? London consistently fails to appreciate the extent of our losses plus the fact that we must detach battalions to guard our lines of communication and fight outbreaks of rebellion all over this blasted island. Add to that they provide our artillery with only a fraction of the ordnance that they need, constantly telling us that the "nature" the war in France is more artillery intensive than it is here in Ireland."

"Do you think the War Office will look to make scapegoats, sir?"

Sir Ian declined to answer but looked grim and nodded slightly.

------Fethard (Tiperrary) 0030 hrs

The 3^rd Tipperary Battalion was currently divided into 4 companies. Commandant McElroy decided to use 2 companies to attack the British cordon to the west of Fethard. From the top of the town’s defensive walls during the day the Tipperary Volunteers had observed 3 British machine gun nests—one each to the north, east and south but none to the west and this was the main reason McElroy decided to attack in that direction. He selected what he regarded as his two best companies for this attack. His objective was threefold. The most important was to try to capture some of the enemy’s supplies, esp. food. The second was to boost sagging morale amongst the Tipperary Volunteers. Lastly he hoped that this provocation might incite the British to make another assault on Fethard, though he prayed that if they did the British would not bring in any artillery to assist.

The clouds had thickened during the night and a light rain was now coming down. One of the companies selected for the attack left Fethard led by McElroy with the second company departing soon afterwards. Aware from past experience that shotguns were likely to be more effective in the darkness he equipped many of the men in these two companies with a shotgun plus a pistol. McElroy had emphasized how important it was for everyone involved in this operation to be as quiet as possible. He hoped to achieve total surprise. The British had one relatively feeble searchlight in this sector of the cordon. They used it cover the road and would sometimes swing it around to scan the road to the west looking for raiders or infiltrators coming up from behind. McElroy’s men began their charge when the searchlight was turned away from them. However the light returned quicker than expected and illuminated the Tipperary Volunteers well before they could close. A cry of alarm arose. The men of the 1/4^th Battalion Duke of Wellington Regiment who were sleeping were now awakened and grabbed their rifles. Flares were fired into the sky. This provided more light but it did not eliminate confusion.

Some of the Irishmen were hit by the frantic last minute rifle fire of the defenders but the great majority within the first rebel company were able to close with the British where those armed with shotguns soon proved their worth. Those of the defenders who belonged to 1/4^th Duke of Wellington were able to put their bayonets to good use but few of the constables present were so inclined. The defenders were badly outnumbered and began to slowly fall back but soon reinforcements from the adjacent sections of the cordon began to arrive. The rain made the ground slippery. Even with the light from the flares the fighting became chaotic. There were incidents on both sides of men being hit by friendly fire.

McElroy had hoped for complete surprise and an easy victory but found his men struggling to reach the British supply wagons. He saw one of his men horribly eviscerated by a British bayonet. He also observed that the British were reinforcing the point of attack quicker than he had anticipated. McElroy was not sure how many men the British had in their cordon. His working assumption was that it was at least a complete battalion plus some constables while in fact it consisted of 3 companies little better than half strength as well as some R.I.C. McElroy suddenly realized that even if they did manage to capture a supply wagon getting it back inside the walls of Fethard while the British counterattacked was going to be difficult.

"Fall back! Fall back to Fethard!" yelled a disheartened McElroy just as his second company was beginning to enter the fray. Some of the rebels heard him but others did not. Those that heard him began to withdraw and this eventually caused the other rebels to realize that a retreat was underway. Any semblance of formation disappeared in the retreat. It was a mob of men running. A few armed with rifles would occasionally turn around to fire a round more out of frustration than anything else. British rifles felled some of them as they fled.

The staggering of the retreat confused the British defenders who just moments ago feared that they were in danger of being overrun. The darkness and the rain aggravated their confusion causing their officers not to order an immediate pursuit. When the order was finally given it was too late to do much more than capture 18 enemy wounded laying in the mud. Most of the rebels had made it back inside the walls of Fethard. They were relieved to be alive but they were still hungry.

------Manorhamilton (Leitrim) 0140 hrs

Lt. Col. Heinrici I.R.A. marched his two battalions at Sligo hard through the night despite a steady rain that started just before midnight and then proceeded to attack the British forces encircling Manorhamilton which consisted of the 6^th Battalion York and Lancaster plus 130 constables. Since the initial attack on Sunday there had been no daylight fighting between the British and the 2nd Northern Ireland Regiment. At night each side sent out small recon parties to probe each other which had resulted in some skirmishing. As at Fethard the British position was only very partially entrenched with only a few slit trench and 3 strongpoints. The rear of the cordon was moderately patrolled both day and night. These patrols were strongest to the west which was the direction from which the British thought a rebel attack was most likely. However Heinrici had decided to swing his 2 battalions around to the northeast of the town and attack the town from what the British thought to be the least likely threat axis.

The 1^st Northern Ireland Battalion led by Maj. Schirmer descended upon a York and Lancaster rifle company, which was struggling to wake itself. In a few minutes more than a third of the company was captured and most of the rest killed or wounded. A Vickers machinegun was taken along with 2 supply wagons, one loaded with ammunition the other with food, fodder and medical supplies. The adjacent companies of 6^th York and Lancaster soon entered the fray. Heinrici ordered Schirmer to pivot to his left while Heinrici himself led the 3^rd Northern Ireland Battalion to the right. He also sent a messenger into Manorhamilton with orders for the no longer isolated 2^nd Northern Ireland Battalion to join him with half of their strength.

The result was that the remainder of the British cordon hurled individual platoons or still smaller packets of constables one by one against entire rebel battalions and these were mowed down mercilessly. The two Russian Maxims that the Northern Ireland Regiment had at its disposal were set up and contributed to the slaughter. Eventually the British battalion was fatally wounded in one of these attacks and as he lay dying ordered the counterattacks halted with his last breath. This order took some time to reach all of the battalion and the R.I.C. By the time it did the battalion had lost nearly half of its effective strength and its acting commander decided to withdraw 4 miles to the west and regroup, taking what was left of the R.I.C. with him.

Upon learning that the enemy was retreating, Col. Heinrici was very tempted to pursue but reluctantly decided against it. The men he had brought from Sligo were very tired and soaked with rain. Furthermore the commandant of the 2^nd Northern Ireland Battalion erroneously believed that two enemy battalions had encircled him and passed this misperception on to Heinrici, who decided it was best to get his men out of the rain and to get some needed sleep. He instructed the 2^nd battalion in detail on how to perform an effective reconnaissance on the British. He also added the captured Vickers to his regimental machinegun section. Lastly he ordered that each of his battalion commanders try to find five men in their battalion with some knowledge of explosives. Two German pioneers fluent in English along with a half ton of explosives had landed with Heinrici and they would train these men to be pioneers as well.

------Sixmilebridge (Clare) 0200 hrs

The West Riding Division resumed its attack with inadequately rested soldiers though the German Marines it fought were somewhat less exhausted. During the night, Gen. von Jacobsen had reinforced this critical area with another half battalion of Marines pulled from defending the Shannon at O’Briensbridge. The defenders in and around Similebridge were able to hold their position and inflicted heavy losses on the British.

The fighting raged on and on with the men on both sides growing even more exhausted.

------near Shavli (Lithuania) 0400 hrs

The Russian XXXVII Corps resumed its attacks on the XXV Reserve Corps with a spirited artillery duel. The Russians still only thought they were facing a single infantry division at Shavli. Gen. von Scheffer-Boyadel was perfectly content to let his batteries duel with their Russian counterparts even though he still lacked foot artillery. The Russians were disappointed with the results of the duel and finally began to suspect that the Germans were in greater strength than they had been told by Fifth Army. They decided to postpone the infantry attack planned for later in the morning. Meanwhile two German cavalry divisions helped guard the flank of XXV Reserve Corps while the elite Guard Cavalry Division made hit and run feints against the Russians.

------Brigade Hell south of Buttevant (Cork) 0430 hrs

Gen. von François had ordered Oberst Hell to go on the offensive with his improvised brigade at first light. The purpose of this was to pin the Lowland Division---which apparently had escaped an attempted double envelopment yesterday evening---while the 6^th Bavarian Infantry Division on its right and most of the 111^th Infantry Division on its left tried again to envelop and destroy the Scots. Gen. von François informed Hell that his brigade now had a greater infantry strength that either the Bavarians or the portion of the 111^th Infantry Division on his right.

Hell worried about how best to use the four I.R.A. battalions now in his brigade. Even with German commandants he could still see them getting themselves butchered in foolish assaults or just as easily being thoroughly routed by a determined British counterattack. He decided to put each of the Irish battalions under the command of a German unit. He placed the 2^nd Kerry Battalion under the command of the Bavarian Jaeger Regiment, the 1^st Kerry Battalion under the 2^nd Seebattalion, the North Cork Battalion under the 1^st Seebattalion and the West Limerick Battalion under the Foot Guards. He gave all of them limited objectives and warned against a precipitous assault on the Buttevant army camp. The Bavarian Jaeger Regiment still had a pioneer company with minenwerfers attached to it and Hell’s immediate objective was to get those minenwerfers within range of the enemy’s defenses at Buttevant.

------Dessie Abyssinia 0435 hrs

"Have there been any further word about the enemy force, father?" eagerly asked Iyasu, "Are they really coming here to do battle with us?"

"Oh yes indeed there certainly is some important news, Your Majesty. Word has come back from our cavalry of an encounter with the British cavalry."

"Excellent news indeed! I take it that our fine Orome horseman routed the enemy."

"Unfortunately that is not the case, Your Majesty. The British cavalrymen---actually we believe most of them to be Indians in service to the British crown---decided against fighting the Orome on horseback but instead they dismounted and fought using their deadly rifles with great effectiveness. It was our cavalrymen---those that survived that is---that were forced to retreat."

Iyasu momentarily gaped at hearing this news, then said, "This is disgraceful, father! We will have no more retreats! It is bad enough that the bulk of my army sits here at Dessie instead of advancing against our enemies."

Ras Mikael gave his son a steely look, "Sometimes withdrawals are necessary, Your Majesty. And often it is much better to have your enemy come and fight you at a place of your choosing. Your grandfather, the great Menelik, understood these principles and used them wisely."

Iyasu rolled his eyes and shook his head a little, "These tactics do not seem very manly if you ask me father, but I trust your judgment, even though I know it does not always sound that way. And it looks that you were right about the enemy coming her to fight us just as you wanted. How soon will they arrive here?"

"Barring very heavy rain I would say two maybe three days, Your Majesty."

------Sally Gap (Wicklow) 0450 hrs

In the pass through the Wicklow Mountains known as the Sally Gap, Rommel was holding off the pursuing Scots with all of his forces except for the 4^th Dublin Battalion which he sent down the Military Road with orders for Commandant Brugha to try to make contact with the friendly forces rumored to be at Arklow. The Scottish attack had been repelled without too much trouble and it appeared that the pursuing force was not as large as he feared and moreover it lacked artillery. If he had an unlimited supply of ammunition and food Rommel thought he could hold off the enemy indefinitely but the reality of his situation was awful in regards to ammunition and only slightly better when it came to food. He had even sent some of his to fish in nearby Lough Tray despite the battle that was underway.

------near Przemysl (Galicia) 0500 hrs

The Russian Eleventh and Eighth Armies continued to experience a grave shortage of artillery shells. Gen. Brusilov had attempted to preempt the nearly inevitable attack of the Austro-Hungarian Second Army against his right wing with a night counterattack but while this had inflicted significant losses on the Austro-Hungarian soldiers inside the recently captured trenches with only a single strand of barbed wire, it did not dissuade the resolute Gen. Böhm-Ermolli from proceeding with his morning attack.

In daylight the battle was once again decided by superiority in artillery. The Austro-Hungarian Second Army was only able to advance slightly more than a kilometer due in part to the disruption caused by Brusilov’s night attack. The Center Army once did better advancing nearly 3 kilometers against a disintegrating Eleventh Army taking a considerable haul of prisoners in the process. However it again experienced problems on the wings of its advance esp. on the left wing where the Russian Third Army was able to enfilade the growing salient. This prompted Gen. von Linsingen to send telegrams to Conrad strongly recommending that the Austro-Hungarian Fourth Army on his immediate left come into action against the Russian Third Army as soon as possible.

------German Sixth Army HQ (Picardy) 0545 hrs

Gen. von Fabeck had placed a telephone call to Gen. von Falkenhayn to discuss recent developments, "There was some intelligence coming in from I Bavarian Army Corps during the night that suggested that the British were withdrawing to the south, general. This has been confirmed by early morning air patrols. It does not appear to be a complete collapse but rather a preplanned evacuation. There looks to be a new defensive line being prepared west of Domvast. This defensive line looks to be incomplete and comparatively weak. I have therefore ordered Gen. von Xylander to pursue the enemy as quickly as possible and then make a determined effort to breach the new line of entrenchments. I have also ordered the III Bavarian Corps to join in this attack."

"Interesting. While this all sounds very promising but what exactly do you hope to accomplish?" asked Falkenhayn.

"If we can punch through the unfinished new defensive line today I believe we have a realistic chance to maintain some momentum and reach Abbeville in another day or two, general."

"Abbeville is admittedly an important communications center, but I have doubts that you can accomplish this with such a narrow salient. Artillery fire from the flanks of the salient always presents a serious problem if the salient is too narrow."

"Yes it does, general, but only if the enemy has shells for their cannons. We have some intelligence which suggests that the artillery of the British Second Army is running low on ammunition and what ammunition it does have is being carefully husbanded for the batteries guarding their dangerously narrow line of communications with First Army. So I believe that under these circumstances it is possible to take Abbeville without having to expand the breach in order to capture St. Riquier first."

"Hmm Yes there is something to that. By all means proceed with your plans. Even if you fail to take Abbeville this will function nicely as a diversion that the British cannot afford to ignore. This should help you to achieve what remains as your primary objective namely to sever the line of communications for the British First Army."

"I understand that, general, and plan to make another attack on the line of communications once we finish emplacing all of the gas canisters and get a favorable wind. Are we going to be receiving the additional canisters you said might be available?"

"No. I have decided that they are to be used in another operation as you have more than enough already."

"But general given the importance---"

"---please do not whine and complain, general, it will do you no good and is very unbecoming in an officer. My mind is made up on the matter. Instead of additional chlorine I am going to provide you soon with some of the improved T-shells in the next day or two."

"Thank you, general. I have read the paper written by Gen. von Mudra on how best to use that weapon and will strive follow the tactics he outlines."

"Good. It should prove useful and is much less dependent on the weather than the chlorinecanisters. There is one other development that I should warn you about. The 900 Bavarian replacement troops you were expecting tomorrow morning will not be coming as they are urgently needed elsewhere. I know all too well that you have used most of your Bavarian divisions hard and some of them should receive replacements but you will just have to make do."

------Ober Ost 0605 hrs

"Good morning, general," Oberst Hoffman greeted Gen. von Seeckt, the chief of staff of Ober Ost.

"Good morning," replied von Seeckt, "I have been thinking about your suggestion last night that we assign the mission to Gen. von Mackensen and transfer command of the units at Kovno to his Eleventh Army and leave Gen. von Marwitz only to control the rest of his army detachment."

"Yes, general, it seemed obvious that Army Detachment Marwitz was becoming spread out over too wide an area for a commander to control effectively and it will only get worse as we lunge for Vilna."

"I have accepted that, but it has occurred to me that now that Kovno has fallen, the importance of Gen. von Below’s attack on the Russian Tenth Army has become less compelling. After all its main objective was to prevent their Tenth Army from interfering with the siege."

"Agreed, general, though I do not think Gen. von Below is going to see it that way, yes?"

"You are right on that point. He has told me more than once that with two more infantry divisions he can encircle and destroy the Russian Tenth Army. In fact the last he said that he was willing to settle for infantry division and a cavalry division. He foolishly dismisses the possibility of an attack against his right flank by the Twelfth Army if he should try this. The more I think about it the more I am convinced he can now spare I Army Corps which I want to move to Shavli by hard march. Combined with the XXV Reserve Corps, 11^th Landwehr and 4 cavalry divisions it will form a small army that will not only be able to rebuff the Russian attack but could even seize the initiative before long."

"That will depend on how much strength the Russians will commit to the attack in the next few days, general. I know we defeated yesterday’s attack with ease but that is just the beginning."

"What you say is very likely. Nevertheless I still feel that with 2 more first rate infantry divisions and some foot artillery we can do more than hold on there."

"So are you thinking longingly about Riga in the near future, general? That is not going to be easy."

"I am well aware of that but there is just enough of chance we should be prepared to exploit it. And if not there are other options to consider though they will take more time to reach fruition. It is for this reason I want to call this new formation the Army of the Dvina."

------B.E.F. HQ (Picardy) 0700 hrs

Field Marshal Sir John French had a distinguished visitor. It was none other than King Albert of Belgium. French tried to avoid having to deal with the monarch pleading that he was too preoccupied with the German attack on the VI Army Corps which was at least partially true and that whatever the king wanted to communicate could be accomplished just as well through his staff. Albert however insisted on speaking to the field marshal alone. The only concession the king was willing to make was to promise to be brief.

"Field Marshal French, as your time is understandably limited I will get straight to the point," said King Albert, "Yesterday you personally berated two of my best generals over the telephone concerning the behavior of our 17^th Regiment yesterday morning. We feel that we must protest this outrage in the strongest possible terms. Let us make ourselves clear for what is hopefully going to be the last time---the Belgian Army is under our authority not yours. We have agreed to a degree of coordination that often makes it appear that our units are under the command of certain high ranking British officers such as yourself. However this activity, which should rightfully be regarded by you and your subordinates as merely practicality mixed with traditional Belgian courtesy and nothing more."

French never did care much for King Albert whom he regarded as a dilletante but both the Foreign Office and War Office and stressed the importance of treating the Belgians with tact and respect so he did not say what he very much wanted to say, "I, uh, may have gone a little too far yesterday, Your Majesty, but these last four weeks have proven to be a series of crises for the B.E.F. and if we are to pull through this and go on to liberate the Pas de Calais and then your great nation we shall require your complete cooperation which is not what we got from the 17^th Regiment. Not even close, Your Majesty, and as a result our defensive position was severely compromised."

"On the contrary, Field Marshal, the 17^th Regiment did what was necessary in its grave tactical situation and promptly notified Gen. Lomax at II Army Corps of its intentions in accord with the protocols we have established. Unfortunately Gen. Lomax went beyond what is permitted under those protocols and tried to order the 17^th Regiment as if it were a subordinate unit which most assuredly it is not."

The insufferable arrogance of the Belgies just gets worse and worse thought French grinding his teeth. He tried to force his face to conceal what he was thinking, "I am afraid that I have a somewhat different interpretation of the protocols than you do, Your Majesty. The withdrawal of that regiment left the flanks of two of my divisions exposed."

"Only slightly and it could have been avoid altogether by some small pivoting of their flanks, field marshal."

Like he knows what he’s talking about "Uh, that tactic is not as easy as you make it sound, Your Majesty, esp. on short notice."

"Perhaps a little but I refuse to believe that the correct tactical option yesterday was for my men to remain crowded in their forward trench only to be slaughtered like sheep by the dreadful German howitzers. My army cannot afford to waste men the way you British generals do."

How dare he! "We do not ‘waste’ men, Your Majesty but the cold fact remains that war requires sacrifices and that applies to this infernal war most of all. Yes, I realize that the paucity of Belgian replacements makes you reluctant to sustain losses, but sometimes they are necessary."

"And when they are truly necessary I have not hesitated. Surely you have not forgotten that it was the attack of my division that prevented the Germans from completely cutting First Army’s line of communications."

"That was what Gen. Smith-Dorrien told you, Your Majesty. He was wrong about a great many things and that was one of them."

"I do not see how you have arrived at that strange opinion, field marshal. It is obvious that our attack combined with that of Second Army of course put pressure on the supply line of the Guard Corps which in turn saved Nolette."

"As I said before this meeting began, Your Majesty, my free time is very limited and I am not going to spend it rehashing what is now almost ancient history. If you will excuse me I have a battle to fight and a war to win."

------HQ Lowland Division Buttevant (Cork) 0715 hrs

Gen. Egerton, the commander of the Lowland Division, held a message in each hand. In his left hand he held a telegram from Gen. Wilson, the commander of VI Army Corps, that had arrived 10 minutes earlier. It read

PERMISSION IS HEREBYGRANTED TO MAKE ORDERLY WITHDRAWAL TO LINE FROM LISCAROLL TO BALLYHOURA REPEAT PERMISSION IS HEREBY GRANTED TO MAKE ORDERLY WITHDRAWAL TO LINE FROM LISCAROLL TO BALLYHOURA STOP

Gen. Egerton remained convinced that his withdrawal to Buttevant yesterday had prevented the encirclement of his division by the Germans. However in the early morning the enemy retained the initiative and was making a renewed attempt to encircle him while going on the offensive against his center as well. The gap with the Welsh Division had become so large the Welsh Division was essentially fighting a separate battle. The trains carrying the 11^th Infantry Division were steadily unloading at Ballyshakkin just outside the market town of Charleville 8 miles to the north. Gen. Hammersley the commander of the 11^th Infantry Division was insisting that he needed to assemble his division at Charleville before he could give the Lowland Division any more assistance than the two battalions and one field artillery battery that had been loaned to the Lowland Division yesterday.

Gen. Egerton had warned Wilson two hours earlier that the Lowland Division risked becoming encircled if it remained at Buttevant. He asked for permission to withdraw the division north to a line extending from the town of Liscarroll east to the hamlet of Ballyhoura. This line the general regarded as a defensible position. Liscaroll held a centuries old fort that could still prove useful while Ballyhoura was shielded from an enemy envelopment by the Ballyhoura Mountains that lay immediately east of it. Initially Wilson refused to grant permission and insisted that Egerton hold on to Buttevant. So far he had been able to hold off the attempt by the German 111^th Division to envelop his right but in doing so his batteries had fired off nearly all of their ammunition. Meanwhile in center the Bavarian Jaegers had managed to bring powerful 17cm mortars within range of the camp’s outer defenses.

The most disturbing news of all was what a messenger had just delivered. Gen. Egerton held it in his right hand and slowly read it a second time:

"Our supporting battery has completely exhausted its ammunition. After a heavy bombardment the Germans have broken through our defenses and a strong force is now proceeding unimpeded towards Ballyhoura."

This meant that these Germans, which Egerton correctly guessed as belonging to the 6^th Bavarian Division, were now not only enveloping his left flank but if they succeeded in establishing themselves at Ballyhoura would seriously undermine the new defensive line he had finally received grudging permission to fall back on. If this line was breached he saw his next option to be to fall back almost all the way to Charleville where he could call upon the 11^th (Northern) Infantry Division for assistance. He expected that even mentioning this possibility was likely to draw the wrath of Gen. Wilson, so for the time being he would try to rectify the problem at Ballyhoura. If that did not work he would then begin his withdrawal back towards Charleville and only after it was well underway would he notify VI Army Corps.

------Old Admiralty Building 0720 hrs

Sir Edward Carson, the First Lord of the Admiralty, was meeting with Adm. Callaghan, Adm. Oliver, Adm. Jackson and Adm. Wilson. "Did N.I.D. acquire any more useful intelligence during the night, Adm. Oliver?" asked Sir Edward.

"Yes we did, First Lord. Adm. von Ingenohl sent a wireless message to Berlin and Adm. von Hipper that he had departed Cork and was on his way to rendezvous with the battle cruisers. About an hour ago we decoded a reply from Hipper establishing a rendezvous point west of Dingle."

"Is there anything useful we can do with this information, Adm. Callaghan?"

"Yes, First Lord. We resumed sea traffic with Ulster. The first wave of transports, a group of five Isle of Man packet ships out of Stranraer should be arriving at the Larne as we speak."

Carson frowned slightly and sighed, "Yes that is very welcome news indeed. But what I was really trying to ask is whether there is any tactical use for this information, such as directing our submarines towards the rendezvous point?"

"Neither of the two submarines we currently have stationed in the Celtic Sea could reach the point in time, First Lord," replied the First Sea Lord, who decided not to mention the fact that one of those submarines was also experiencing severe difficulty receiving with her wireless.

"Then perhaps we should station them along the most likely German route to the Channel from the rendezvous point."

"We are already doing that, First Lord, though the exact route is mere guess work on our part."

There was uneasy silence after this which inspired Adm. Jackson to shift the topic of conversation, "We now have some estimates on the anticipated repair times for the major units of the Grand Fleet, First Lord. Repairs on the Queen Elizabeth are not expected to be completed before the first week of August. We so believe that we can return both Marlborough and Thunderer to the Grand Fleet in the middle of July. The damage to Neptune’s machinery is going to require at least 3 months in the yards though. Vanguard can be repaired in about two months once we get her to Portsmouth where there are available dry docks."

"Yes this is roughly what I had been expecting. Might I ask when do you intend to move Vanguard, Africa and Black Prince to Portsmouth?" asked Carson.

"Midmorning Friday, First Lord," replied Callaghan, "By that time the High Seas Fleet should be well beyond the Straits of Dover and will no longer pose a threat."

"And how long do we expect repairs to take on Dominion and Africa?"

"In both instances we expect the necessary repairs to take close to 4 months, First Lord. Dominion has very serious machinery damage while much of Africa’s superstructure has severe fire damage."

"Hmm. Repairing our damaged capital ships and completing Canada and Barham as quickly as possible remain our highest priority. However there are voices in Parliament clamoring for us to order still more warships. The prime minister remains under a great deal of pressure and may try to appease his critics by ordering two more capital ships even though Lloyd-George has repeatedly made the point that our resources are stretched enough as it is. The last time we discussed this topic---back in April shortly before the Germans landed in Ireland and we became sorely distracted---you were leaning towards ordering more battlecruisers. Is that still the case?"

"That is correct, First Lord. While we are still in the process of analyzing the recent Battle of Celtic Sea one thing that it obviously confirms is our worry that our scouting forces are very vulnerable without battlecruisers. Those should definitely be what we build next," replied Callaghan.

"Ah but what design? As I recall your analyses of Utsire led you to conclude that the design of the new Hood class needed more armor and a stronger secondary battery. I heard talk back then about trying to combine the best features of Tiger and Hood into a design for a new class. Has this design been finalized?"

"It is very close to being finished, First Lord," replied Admiral Jackson, "We would like to analyze the lessons of Celtic Sea further and based on what they tell us we make minor modifications."

"Are you still leery of using small tube boilers in this class, admiral?" asked Carson.

"I am afraid so, First Lord, though we are comfortable with equipping them with geared turbines. Since we have decided to increase the maximum thick of both the belt and the upper barbette armor to 10" the maximum speed of this new class is only expected to be 29 knots."

"So we have finally given up on my illustrious predecessor’s idea of speed as armor?"

"We have come to that conclusion based on our analysis of Utsire and Celtic Sea, First Lord," replied Jackson.

"I will pass this on to the War Committee. How many of these vessels do you think we should order?"

Callaghan answered, "At least three maybe four, First Lord."

"As I have said before the Chancellor will be opposed to starting any new projects while we are experiencing a shortage of high grade steel which is only going to get worse in the next few weeks due to the partial disruption of our iron ore imports. We will be lucky if we can get the lead ship of this class laid down in early August."

-----HMS King Orry off the Larne 0730 hrs

The King Orry was an Isle of Man packet ship completed back in 1913. She was the first Isle of Man packet ship to be equipped with geared turbines. She had been requisitioned by the Royal Navy back in 1914 to be converted into an armed boarding vessel. Since the Battle of Utsire the Admiralty had been reluctant to use her in her intended role. After Ireland was invaded back in April she found herself being used instead to ferry men and supplies across the Irish Sea.

Along with 4 other packet ships she had set out from Stanraer at first light. She carried some replacement troops for the Lowland Division as well as ammunition and other supplies in her cargo hold. The night before she sailed her captain had a disturbingly vivid dream. In it he could see a long row of battleships behind his vessel. Suddenly he realized they were German battleships! The entire High Seas Fleet was sailing behind his weakly armed boarding vessel! He had awakened from this dream soaked in sweat.

Now as his vessel steamed towards Larne he worried that somehow his dream was prophetic. The Admiralty had claimed that the Irish Sea was now free of enemy vessels but nevertheless he kept pestering his lookouts if they saw anything suspicious behind him. The early morning visibility had been very limited with patchy fog and haze. It could easily hide the dreaded German battle fleet. The fog was slowly burning off. He felt as if any minute the billowing white curtain be swept away by a gust of wind to reveal the dreaded nemesis.

"Wumph!"

The entire packet ship shuddered greatly as a geyser of water erupted on the starboard side near the bow. The ship had struck one of the mines Kohlberg had laid off Belfast and the Larne. Her bow was almost blown off and her boilers soon flooded. She stayed afloat long enough for two thirds of the men aboard her to make it off incl. the skipper who finally forgot about his strange dream.

------Mitchelstown (Cork) 0735 hrs

The Welsh Division halted its retreat at Mitchelstown and administered a sharp check to the Czechs in the vanguard of the Erzherzog Karl Division which were forced to fall back a kilometer. The Welshmen then counterattacked. Feldmlt Krauss personally rallied his men and for a while there was spirited fire fight. Gen. Friend however wisely realized that his division was too weak to retain the initiative and ordered his men merely to hold the line.

Krauss spent the rest of the morning skillfully probing the defenses of the Welsh Division while carefully positioning his artillery and minenwerfers. His division was still short on draught animals, which was impeding his ability to move his guns and supplies rapidly, but he had been promised most of the horses being taken from the encircled British 10^th Division. Krauss looked at the possibility of turning the enemy flank. The enemy right flank was essentially hanging the air so large was the gap between it and Lowland Division. Gen. Friend was doing his best to cover that gap with a regiment of yeomanry that had been placed at his disposal. Krauss was more intrigued by the enemy left flank. The foothills of the Galty Mountains appeared to offer natural protection but some of the men of the Cork Ersatz Company pointed out that there was a path through the mountains at Kilbeheny that could possibly be exploited.

------HMS Iron Duke off the Isle of Man 0815 hrs

Adm. Bayly stared again at the wireless message he had just been handed.

A PACKET SHIP IS SINKING OFF LARNE FROM EITHER MINE OR TORPEDO REPEAT A PACKET SHIP SINKING OFF LARNE FROM EITHER MINE OR TORPEDO STOP

"Just as I feared," Adm. Bayly said in a ‘I told you so voice’ as he handed it to Adm. Madden.

"You were right, sir. There must be either a minefield or a submarine in North Channel."

"Or both."

"Yes both certainly is possible, admiral, but only one sank this poor packet ship so we should not jump to any conclusion. If it is a minefield there is a question as to whether it was laid parallel to the coast off the Larne or perpendicular across the breadth of North Channel."

"Or both."

"Again that is certainly a distinct possibility, admiral. However would the Germans consider our transit through North Channel to be probable?"

"I don’t know. It may be the primary reason they raided off Glasgow was to compel the Admiralty to move us there."

"The enemy would not have enough mines to lay a thick perpendicular minefield, sir. If we were to transit North Channel in line instead of cruising formation I think the odds of striking even one mine would be low."

"Not low enough as far as I am concerned. Even one mine strike could prove fatal esp. to our predreadnoughts. I am not going through North Channel until I know what the situation is and am not afraid to tell the Admiralty that. In the meantime we are going to cruise around the Isle of Man making frequent zigzags. If the Admiralty feels that we must go through North Channel it will be after nightfall and as you have suggested it will be in a line ahead formation. In the meantime we should recommend that they go back to using Kingstown again as it is now comparatively safe compared to Belfast and the Larne esp. since we are going to be remaining in the Irish Sea for a while."

-----Paris 0830 hrs

The Council of Ministers was again in session. "There is some excellent news, premier," reported Jean Augagneur, the Minister of Marine, "We received word from the British last night that they will resume their sea traffic with us on Friday, first with merchantmen heading to our Atlantic ports put then later in the day to all our ports incl. Rouen."

"Why Friday and not today? After all the Royal Navy claims to have won a great victory last Saturday. If that is indeed true then why are they hesitating in shipping to us the supplies they know that we desperately need to wage war?" asked Clemenceau.

"The British did not elaborate, premier."

"Of course not. Why should they tell us anything? We are merely their ally. Meanwhile some of our munitions factories are now completely idle and the rest are working at half of their capacity or less. And it is still worse at the plants making weapons! By tomorrow I expect nearly all of our war industry to be idle around noontime. Even if the British resume sea traffic Friday morning as they promise it is unlikely that we can resume full scale production before Monday at the earliest. Don’t they realize that we are in the middle of the offensive that can win the war? Do they want to win the war? I am beginning to have some serious doubts about that."

"The British have told us that the Germans are going to limp their way home to lick their wounds, premier. They understand that the disruption of trade is having an impact on our economy esp. our war industry but the British who rely heavily on imports are suffering as well. They say that things will get better for both our nations very soon."

"If the Germans are in fact limping back to Germany then why isn’t the Royal Navy planning to finish them off and be done with it."

"Uh, they are not discussing that topic or anything concerning the operations of their battle fleet with us, premier."

"I do not expect our ally to reveal their plans in the finest detail with us. It is true that we do not reveal too many details of our own plans to them but we still give them some inkling of what we are up to, but with the British and esp. their navy we are given only a fraction of what we deserve, n’est ce pas?"

"That is all too true, premier."

"Of course it is true. Since the German fleet is now expected to return to Germany soon do you and the admirals still favor moving one or two Danton class semidreadnoughts to the Atlantic?"

"Uh, we now think that redeployment to be unnecessary, premier."

"Because the German fleet is believed to be heading home?"

"Yes, precisely so, premier."

Clemenceau thought that over but made no reply to Augagneur. Instead he turned to M. Pierre Colliard, his Minister of Labor and Social Security, "M. Colliard I am hearing rumors that certain unions are unhappy with the resource allocation scheme M. Thomson devised."

"Uh, that is unfortunately correct, premier. Several factories not connected to the war effort have been idle since the middle of yesterday because they are lacking in imported raw materials. The workers in those factories believed they are unfairly being singled out."

"That is partially correct---they are in fact being singled out but that is because they are not essential to the war so it is by no means unfair."

"We can see that, premier but it is eluding many of the workers, who are not going to receive wages for days when their plants are idle."

Clemenceau shook his head, "I once had great admiration for the French working man but in recent years I have come to see them for what they are and I often do not like what I see. France is in great peril and they are whining over losing a few days wages? Unbelievable and completely despicable! Ah but are they going to do? Going on strike would be supremely irrelevant."

"Idle workers can cause unrest, premier," warned Steeg, the Minister of Interior, "surely you must be well aware of that by now."

"But yes I am all too aware of it, monsieur. It is the manifestation of the subtle and sometimes not so subtle acts of treason that are stabbing France in the back right now. It is time for us to take some definitive steps to let the French people know that treason in any form will no longer be tolerated!"

"Do you have anything specific in mind, premier?" asked Steeg with a hint of worry in his voice.

"Yes, I do. Several things in fact, but for the time being let me mention one. There is a certain Irish agent provocateur that the Germans sent to stir up trouble in Spain just before they invaded Ireland. His name is Eamon de Valera---apparently his father was Spanish---and he has performed his dastardly mission all too well. In order to appease the British who were most upset by this, King Alphonso wisely had M. de Valera arrested and after a few days decided to turn him over to the British. However with all this naval action off of Ireland the British were leery of sending a ship to pick up the prisoner in Spain. So the Spanish are sending him by rail to Paris. He will be arriving here late tonight. The British want us to take care of him for a few days then ship him across the Channel once they feel it is safe to do so."

"What are you planning to do, premier?" asked Briand, the Justice Minister, who like Steeg sounded worried.

"I plan to ‘take care’ of M. de Valera once and for all. As the War Minister I have arranged for a special military tribunal to try M. de Valera tomorrow. He will be publicly beheaded Saturday morning. That should send a clear signal to the traitors here in France but just in case there are other steps we can and will take."

------SMS Straßburg west of Ireland 0850 hrs

The early morning hunting of the 4^th Scouting Group was disappointing. This was due in part to a squall that sharply reduced visibility. The L.10 had experienced some trouble with her steering late yesterday and so she remained docked at Killarney today trying to rectify the problem. The cruisers had moved out of the squall and Straßburg did manage to find a worthy prize, a 3,400 ton freighter out of New Orleans with a cargo of grain bound for Belfast. After a brief discussion this prize was deemed worth keeping and the prize crew was told to make for Queenstown.

------10 Downing St. 0905 hrs

The War Committee was again in session. "Lord Kitchener, can you kindly give us an update on Ireland? Let us start with Limerick. Has it fallen as you had predicted?"

Kitchener hesitated while clearing his throat, "Not yet, prime minister. Gen. Hamilton reports intense fighting going on just north of Limerick. He believes the enemy resistance there is collapsing and once that happens we will be inside the city itself."

"Which could easily hold for at least two or three days, Field Marshal," remarked Lloyd-George, ‘Haven’t we learned the hard way from our experience in Dublin that fighting in an urban area can be difficult?"

Kitchener tried to respond with only the barest acknowledge of Lloyd-George’s existence, "Limerick is considerably smaller than Dublin, Chancellor. Once they lose their artillery the Germans will realize the hopelessness of their situation and surrender in a heartbeat."

Bonar Law pounded his fist on his desk in frustration, "You assured us yesterday that the Union Jack would be flying over King John’s Castle today, Lord Kitchener. Now you tell us that we still have not even made it into the city of Limerick?"

"Yes, I spoke too soon, prime minister, but nevertheless very important progress is being made on the outskirts of the city. It is only a matter of time."

"I would like very much to believe that Lord Kitchener but we have heard that the liberation of Limerick was imminent more times than we can count and it is beginning to resemble the torment of Tantalus!"

Kitchener remained silent with an attitude more defiantly stoic than chastened. "And what of the battle in County Cork, field marshal?" asked Carson, "As far as the Admiralty is concerned that is the critical battle."

"The enemy has the initiative for the time being. We withdrew to a line extending from Buttevant to Mitchelstown. When the redeployment of the 11^th Infantry Division is complete we will counterattack."

Bonar Law did not like that either and to confirm his suspicions stared at the detailed map of Ireland open on his desk. "So the Germans captured Fermoy? How did they get so far north, field marshal? Gen. Hamilton was supposed to keep them penned up inside Cork while reinforcements were brought in from Dublin and Limerick."

"It was the Austrian division that captured Fermoy, prime minister. I would hasten to point out that that there have been several problems, not the least of which is the Royal Navy permitting the Germans to cut the line of communication between Ireland and Britain."

"So Gen. Hamilton and the War Office are trying to blame the Royal Navy for an unending series of disappointments in Ireland?" Carson interjected.

"Well I would point out that it was the Royal Navy that allowed the Germans to land not one but two waves of invaders, First Lord," Kitchener retorted.

"That is true, Lord Kitchener, but I am still appalled that by the fact the seven British infantry divisions employed to date in Ireland have not been able to do better," commented Bonar Law, "And unfortunately all too many in Parliament agree with me. If they knew the full details of what has happened there instead of the sugar coated half truths we release to the press this government would have collapsed in early May. As it is it is still teetering. Though the back to back victories at Celtic Sea and Dublin have helped some if Limerick does not fall soon then this government will."

------west of Domvast (Picardy) 0930 hrs

The German Sixth Army had moved most of its artillery forward and now commenced a fierce 30 minute shelling of the new British defensive line. The British batteries were soon suppressed. The shallow forward trench was hit hard by howitzers firing HE shells. The even more incomplete second trench was hit as well. A few minenwerfers joined in as well in the last 10 minutes of the shelling. When the bombardment was over the German infantry attacked. The new trench line had only a single strand of wire in front of it and it was now cut in several places. The British forward trench had been seriously weakened but not completely neutralized by the German bombardment. The Bavarians held a large advantage in numbers but the defenders still inflicted fairly large losses and were only overcome through a copious use of hand grenades followed by the usual savage close quarter melee inside the shallow trench.

The stubborn British defense of the forward trench left the incomplete second trench vulnerable and after another 10 minutes of shelling the Bavarians pressed on and were able to take that as well in the center but began to experience problems on their flanks. Nevertheless the 2^nd Bavarian Infantry Division captured the hamlet of Canchy and was able to slowly continue its advance towards Neuilly-L’Hôpital despite determined resistance by the British 7^th Infantry Division.

------Castlebar (Mayo) 0940 hrs

Yesterday the armored train had finished its maintenance and returned to Athlone. Soon after it departed the South Mayo Battalion advanced at a leisurely pace northwest towards the town of Castlebar. They now numbered over 600 men. They had already absorbed most of the Irish Volunteers company at Castlebar but their commandant felt he persuade the Westport and Foxford companies to join him if he took Castlebar. He also hoped to gather more food as they had scavenged most of the area around Caremorris pretty thoroughly.

The South Mayo battalion was weakly armed. Each of its 3 companies had 50 Moisin Nagant rifles brought from Athlone aboard the armored train. Two small R.I.C. stations had been captured night yielding them seven of the precious Lee-Enfield rifles plus nearly 2,400 rounds of .303. Each rifleman was allowed to practice with a mere 10 rounds as ammunition was also a concern. Other than that the rebels had 37 single shot rifles if one counted the 11 of .22 caliber plus 81 shotguns and 140 pistols. The remainder of the battalion lacked any sort of firearm and were armed with improvised pikes, sledgehammers or machetes. There were even two brothers sporting longbows. As usual the best marksmen had been provided rifles. There were three dozen improvised bombs with a dangerously dubious reliability.

The battalion doubted that his ragtag battalion could stand up to a company of British soldiers in an open field engagement. Against small bands of the R.I.C. though they were adequate though definitely in need of some additional training. This was demonstrated when they reached the outskirts of Castlebar where they were engaged by 45 constables. After a handful of casualties on both sides the R.I.C. decided that the rebels were better armed than expected and withdrew to the town. When the rebels reached Castlebar they found half of the R.I.C. plus most of the weakly armed local militia were guarding the train station. The commandant of the South Mayo Battalion had no interest in the train station having torn up a section of track on the way. He concentrated instead on the barracks of the R.I.C. which was currently held by only 9 constables but his attempt to capture that prize by coup de main failed miserably. After that the rebels decided to wait until dark before making another attack and cordoned off the barracks. Meanwhile 20 additional constables had arrived in motor vehicles from the north but the rebels were able to pin them down and prevent them from linking with the other constables. For the rest of the day the action consisted mostly of sniping by both sides.

------SMS Prinz Heinrich 1005 hrs

With Yorck badly damaged from the Battle of Celtic Sea, Adm. von Ingenohl temporarily disbanded the 3^rd Scouting Group and sent the less damaged Prinz Heinrich off by herself soon after nightfall yesterday on a mission into the Western Approaches that combined scouting and commerce raiding. She now took her first prize, a 2,800 ton freighter out of Alexandria bound for Plymouth with a cargo of cotton cloth. After considerable discussion the prize crew was ordered to bring her back to Queenstown.

------west of Manorhamilton (Leitrim) 1035 hrs

With intelligence that the British forces that had cordoned off Manorhamilton were really just a single battalion after all Col. Heinrici decided to try to eliminate it altogether. He sent the 2^nd battalion of Northern Ireland Regiment to envelop the 6^th York and Lancaster from the north and the 1^st battalion from the south and he took personal command of the 3^rd battalion along all of the regiment’s 5 machineguns to cautiously engage the enemy frontally.

The 6^th York and Lancaster had not entrenched and only established a single strong point. They were patrolling vigorously though. Heinrici sent one of 3^rd battalion’s companies out ahead and it drew the attention of a British patrol. This lead to skirmishing which escalated into a brisk firefight and most of what remained of the 6^th York and Lancaster was soon drawn in. The rebels suddenly withdrew apparently in panic. The British pursued energetically only to run into a hurricane of lead from the remainder of the 3^rd battalion incl. the machineguns. As this was going on the enveloping battalions began to run into British patrols but it was too late for 6^th York and Lancaster to escape the double envelopment though a few constables did effectuate an escape in motor vehicles.

The soldiers of the 6^th York and Lancaster fought with great heroism in an impossible situation. For a while their heroism inspired the constables to fight as well but as the pocket was reduced to a mass of dead and dying bodies they began to surrender and eventually so did some of the soldiers. The 6^th York and Lancaster was eliminated completely before noon. All of their supply wagons were captured along with 3 more Vickers machineguns. In addition 4 motor vehicles that had been used by the R.I.C. were captured. The casualties of the North Ireland Regiment had been 59 men killed and 107 wounded which Col. Heinrici found very satisfactory for all that they had accomplished. Contrary to what many German officers involved in the preparations of Operation Unicorn believed they had been able to function together in a formation larger than a battalion. He marched the North Ireland Regiment back to Manorhamilton and put the medical supplies in the captured supply wagons to good use while he contemplated his next move.

------south of Prichtina (Serbia) 1045 hrs

The Serbs had scraped the bottom of the barrel to make a final effort to halt the Ottoman III Corps 3 miles south of the key city of Prichtina. They were even employing some companies of women soldiers in this battle which shocked their opponents. The Ottoman vanguard was halted in its tracks by Serbian firepower. Esat Paşa had been half expecting that this would happen. He decided against a hasty assault on the Serbian defenses so he carefully positioned his artillery, conducted a thorough reconnaissance and methodically prepared his attack. The III Ottoman Corps had begun to outrun its supply train in the last 24 hours and that was another reason to take some time so as to let the stores catch up with them.

^^^

------Dublin Castle 1105 hrs

Lord Curzon, the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, decided to meet with Augustine Birrell, the Chief Secretary of Ireland. He was somewhat surprised that the War Committee had not yet replaced Birrell as it was common knowledge that Bonar Law and Carson blamed Birrell for the revolt inside Dublin as well as other shortcomings. It struck Curzon that like the fall of Limerick the sacking of Birrell was an event that was always going to happen very soon and yet never materialized. "I am glad to see that you are unharmed, Mr. Birrell," said Curzon, "I was told that the rebels attempted to seize the castle at one point."

"Yes there was some excitement here on the first day of the rising, Your Excellency. I had heard that you were evacuated to the Curragh. That was a prudent precaution."

Curzon snorted, "Yes, indeed I was most disagreeably ordered to leave. And just as disagreeably ordered to return yesterday morning. It would seem that Gen. Hamilton fears that I might learn too much by being in close proximity to his headquarters."

"I have been right here in Dublin Castle, Your Excellency and I have learned only a fraction of what I would like. I have some hazy information about what is happening here in Dublin but only confusing bits and pieces about what is happening elsewhere. Do you know if Limerick been taken as I had been told it would be?"

"Not yet to the best of my knowledge."

Birrell shook his head vigorously, "The imminent fall of Limerick has become something of a running joke between Sir Matthew and myself, Your Excellency."

Curzon grinned slightly, "I often feel much the same way but I derive very little in the way of solace from sardonic humor."

"Did you say ‘solace’, Your Excellency? I once knew well the meaning of that word but now I have forgotten its meaning."

Curzon wagged a finger disapprovingly, "We cannot afford the luxury of self pity right now, tempting as it may be. Have you heard anything about the portion of Dublin Brigade that escaped to the south? Has Pearse been killed or captured?"

"Uh, I have been told that two Scottish battalions were sent to pursue the escapees and that there is some fighting currently going on in the Wicklow Mountains, Your Excellency. Oh and it might interest you to know that none other that Sir Winston Churchill been placed in charge of the pursuing force."

"Churchill! What a curious twist of fate brings him of all people here to Ireland. Of course this is all of his own making. Without his abominable decision to send only a single battle squadron of the Grand Fleet to the Dogger Bank last December we would not find ourselves in our current predicament. I sure hope he does not underestimate the enemy this time around. Mountain fighting is not easy, esp. if the enemy knows the terrain better than you do. Anyone who doubts this should spend some time fighting the infernal Afghans! So this operation may well take considerably longer than Gen. Lowe is anticipating. Did anyone tell you how many rebels escaped from Dublin?"

"Less than a thousand is what I keep hearing, Your Excellency."

"If it is close to a thousand then two battalions may not be enough to ensure a rapid resolution."

"There are several hundred constables involved as well, Your Excellency."

"That is good but I still worry it may not be enough. Does Sir Winston have any artillery at his disposal?"

"I do not think he has any, Your Excellency. However I may well be mistaken as I only know what they tell me and that is not all that much."

"Yes, yes, I have been experiencing much the same problem. What do you know about what is going on outside Dublin and its bordering counties? I have some knowledge that the main action between our army and the Germans right now is taking place in counties Cork and Clare."

"That is pretty much all that I know as well, Your Excellency. The further that events are from Dublin the less I am told."

Curzon shook his head cynically, "Everyone keeps telling me that now that Dublin has been pacified, that the Irish rebellion has become tertiary and all that matters is defeating the Germans. Perhaps I should say the Germans and Austrians. Yet I know that the rebellion is not just Dublin. The rebels are in Waterford and up in some of the northern counties as well. Do the rebels still hold Athlone? I have been reading up on Irish history, esp. its wars. Both Limerick and Athlone are key points for controlling central Ireland."

"I have not heard anything about Athlone being retaken, Your Excellency, but as I keep saying I am being told very little. Though there is a prevailing assumption that now that the center of the rebellion has been crushed here in Dublin it will fall apart once the Germans are defeated."

"Which we both suspect is going to take longer than London is being told."

"Quite so, Your Excellency. Oh there is one relevant topic of discussion amongst the generals that I am privy to. While Gen. Hamilton and Gen. Braithwaite both feel that the rebellion will disintegrate once the Germans are defeated, they still feel that they need a better command structure to counter it. There are now rebel elements scattered over much of Ireland and they are better armed and organized than the early outbreaks in Galway and Wexford which were handled without too much trouble. Gen. Hamilton feels that neither his own HQ nor that of VI Army Corps should be directly handling most of these operations. He wants to limit the jurisdiction VI Army Corps to Munster. BGen. Lowe is to take command of all forces in Leinster except for Counties Longford and Westmeath. Those counties along with all of Connaught and Ulster Gen. Hamilton wants to place under the command of another brigadier, but he has yet to decide on who that will be. Gen. Braithwaite sees a need for this brigadier to have a large staff at his disposal and they are already short on staff officers so they are asking Lord Kitchener to send more of those."

"Well then, this at least is some sound reasoning on Gen. Hamilton’s part. My only criticism shall be to ask why he did not think of this sooner?"

"The excuse that I keep hearing, Your Excellency, is that they did not anticipate a German second wave nor that it would take so long to quash the Dublin rising."

"Hmm. I do wonder how much longer London will take these excuses. I have been told that the military trials of rebels will resume soon. Do you have idea how soon?"

"Tomorrow, Your Excellency, with executions to resume Friday. I have protested that is too soon but have been told that London intends for these executions to make an unambiguous statement."

------SMS Moltke 11˚ 30’ W 52˚ 10’ N 1120 hrs

Adm. von Hipper puffed heartily on his cigar as he gazed through his binoculars. To the SSW a large mass of smoke darkened the sky. He was sure that was the High Seas Fleet even though he could not yet see the dreadnoughts. What he did see was Stuttgart and Hamburg which had just arrived at the rendezvous point. The rest of the 5^th Scouting Group was off doing some commerce raiding.

Signals were being transmitted to Stuttgart by searchlight while the wireless aboard Moltke was in contact with Adm. von Ingenohl aboard Friedrich der Grosse using the short range bands. There was no need for the flagships to come in sight of each other. 1^st Scouting Group would swing around to the west of the High Seas Fleet which would leisurely reverse course and fall in behind the battlecruisers.

The lookouts now reported seeing additional vessels SSW. "I can see them admiral," Raeder commented, "it is the liners."

"Remind them that they will be travelling with us until we reach the Straits," commanded von Hipper.

------Bélem (Brazil) 1125 hrs

Not all that long ago rubber had made the port of Bélem very rich. At great cost incl. the loss of 6,000 lives the Madeira-Mamoré Railroad had been constructed to facilitate the transport of rubber from the depths of the Amazon. Unfortunately by the time the railroad was completed in 1912 the price of latex had plummeted due to stiff competition from high productive Asian fields controlled by the British Empire. The prosperity that rubber had brought to the ports of Bélem and Maunas had faded rapidly in recent years. However in the last week a buyer had come forward who was very interested in buying Brazilian rubber. That buyer was Germany. The 6,100 ton Brazilian steamer Uberaba now departed Bélem with a cargo of Amazonian rubber. Her captain was surprised to learn to learn that his destination was Cork not a German port.

------SMS Wörth Shannon 1130 hrs

As the attacks by the West Riding Division continued in the vicinity of Sixmilebridge the venerable old predreadnaught Wörth was again called to help. This time she fired her amidships turret with its 28 cm 35 cal. guns. She now had her own cable linking her fire directors with spotting stations on the land. Her rate of fire while finding the range though it was not as ponderously slow as the day before but it was still very slow nonetheless, esp. as she was trying hard not to hit friendly forces. This shelling did manage to inflict a few casualties but its main impact was more psychological than physical, disrupting the latest British attack.