Operation Unicorn 63

New, daily updating edition

Operation Unicorn Part 63

by Tom B

“After crossing the Barrow at New Ross we continued marching until dusk when we arrived at the quaint little village of Clonroche. Nearby there was yet another of Ireland’s seemingly interminable mountain ranges; this one called the Blackstairs. We were all thoroughly exhausted from our grueling march. Some of us wondered if we were condemned for our sins to march across the face of the earth until the Second Coming just like the Wandering Jew. We had heard stories of the horrors of the mostly static trench warfare in France but had discovered the hard way that the open mobile mode of warfare was not without its own set of travails.”
----H.L. Mencken, Over There

------HQ British Ireland Command 0020 hrs Monday May 31, 1915

General Braithwaite terminated a telephone call. “So what is the latest news on the armored train?” General Hamilton asked his chief of staff.

“At least four more hours; five at the very most, sir.”

“Well finally it is going to be finished. When it was started we were hoping it would be ready by noon yesterday.”

“Yes, I recall that, sir, but I would hasten to point out that from the beginning that was an optimistic assessment and we have encountered several problems such as the shipments from England going to Londonderry instead of Belfast where the train is being constructed. The Admiralty unrealistically insisting that the Harland and Wollf shipyard do their utmost to continue working around the clock on warships created some contention for resources. However I would point out that by all accounts our train should be much better than those ramshackle contraptions the Germans hastily assembled.”

“Yes, I would tend to agree with that but I cannot help but recall what Voltaire said about perfection being the enemy of the good. It may have served us better if our armored train was a little less perfect but finished a day earlier.”

“I think that can be argued either way, sir, and it is getting a bit late in the evening to start a lengthy discussion about what now is a hypothetical matter.”

“You are quite right, of course. What is done is done. If our train is as good as we hope then we stand a good chance to prevail in Queen’s County buying us some time. Hopefully in that time London will wake up and send us the reinforcements we desperately need to seize the initiative.”

------Abbeville (Picardy) 0130 hrs

General von Fabeck, the commander of the Sixth Army, had been disappointed that yesterday he had not captured Abbeville even though he had made some limited progress. He had been sorely tempted to mount another full scale attack on the town today but had decided against it primarily because his stockpile of shells had dropped to what he considered to be low levels. OHL had promised to replenish his stockpile but it now looked like it would be Wednesday before he could make another full scale attack.

In the meantime General von Fabeck was unwilling to be completely passive. Instead of a full scale attack he ordered the III Bavarian Corps to make a very limited night attack without artillery support hoping to take the enemy by surprise. The enemy had been only able to lay a single strand of barbed wire in this sector which made this operation promising. Nevertheless this attack failed to grab any territory in the center. It did make small gains on its flanks. These gains were hotly contested by determined British counterattacks.

The fighting was highly localized but fierce. The British infantry in this sector only had a few jam tin bombs while the Germans were well supplied with hand grenades. This gave them enough of an edge that allowed them to hold on to most of their small gains but they were unable to advance any further.

------HQ French Eastern Army Group 0155 hrs

General Auguste Dubail, the commander of the French Eastern Army Group, enjoyed a good night’s sleep, but unlike his superior, General Joffre, he permitted his staff to waken him if there was an emergency. This was one of those nights. His aides notified him that General Pierre Roques, the commander of the First Army was on the telephone. General Dubail assumed that this must be about the German offensive in the Woëvre and upon reaching the telephone said, “This is General Dubail speaking. Has something happened in the Woëvre?”

“Yes, it has, general but not in the place where I expected it which was in the Forest de La Reine. Oh, to be clear there was an attack in that forest but we were prepared for that. What we were not prepared for was the enemy advancing due south in the gap they had created to the very outskirts of Toul.”

“Hmm Just how far south are we talking about?”

“The Boche have taken Bouvron, general.”

“Bouvron! That is disturbing. I have of late been worried that we have stripped our once great fortresses too much. This appears to confirm my fears. You had told me previously that you were moving the 7th Cavalry Division to Toul to take advantage of the gap. Why were they unable to check the German advance before they got as far as Bouvron?”

“The 7th Cavalry Division did not begin to reach Toul until well after dark, general. Their men and horses were resting well inside the fortress in preparation for an early morning mounted attack. They were not manning the perimeter. Perhaps some of them should have been.”

“Yes, I would say that is all too obvious now. Once it is dawn the cavalry should make a dismounted attack supported by the guns of the fort to move the Boche away from the fortress.”

“I have already given orders to that effect, general.”

------Eleşkirt Valley (Caucasia) 0200 hrs GMT

The Ottoman II Corps along with the 1st and 3rd Cavalry Brigades had been making good progress since it had seized the initiative north of Malazgirt back on May 18. At the prompting of Enver Paşa they had pressed on into the Eleşkirt Valley. As this was going on, General Yudenich decided to halt his main offensive which was aimed at Erzerum and had been unable to make any further progress against the Ottoman Third Army for some time. He pulled one of his infantry divisions out of line along with a cavalry brigade and rushed them south. These now launched a successful dawn counterattack against the exposed left flank of the Ottoman II Corps. The Ottoman commanders had once again made the mistake of committing nearly all their available strength to the attack and therefore had inadequate reserves with which to contain the Russian attack. The Ottoman 4th Division suffered badly losing a third of its artillery. Things might have been still worse for the Ottomans but for the fact that the Russian attackers had just come off a forced march and were very tired. The Ottoman II Corps was forced to fall back towards Malazgirt.

-------St. Magnus Bay Shetland Islands 0215 hrs

The sky was mostly cloudy with a few gaps. It was twilight with sunset more than a half hour away. The 5th Torpedoboat Flotilla had just arrived at St. Magnus Bay on the west side of the North Shetland Mainland and anchored in the bay. From 3 of the torpedoboats anchored closest to the northern shore storm boats were soon lowered. These carried a detachment of 31 Jägers that had been removed from the 10th Jäger Battalion at Queenstown as well as a half dozen strong signals section. These headed for the shore at Braewick Beach within Eshaness. After coming ashore at the beach in this very sparsely populated section of the Shetland Islands, they methodically worked their way east. Their mission was reconnaissance. It was the opinion of the Admiralstab that what weak defenses the Shetlands had would be concentrated in the vicinity of Lerwick which lay well to southeast on the eastern coast of the Shetland Mainland. However Admiral von Ingenohl did not want any surprises so he insisted on this scouting party which was soon augmented by some sailors armed with rifles.

While this was going on the 9th Torpedoboat Flotilla arrived at the northern portion of St. Magnus Bay along with the Kaiser Wilhelm II, Kronrprinz Wilhelm, Kaiserin Auguste Victoria, George Washington, Prinz Friedrich Wilhelm and Hohenzollern.The transports were being used as colliers. They anchored amidst the torpedoboats of the 5th and 9th Flotillas with coaling beginning just before sunrise.

The small cruisers of 2nd Scouting Group patrolled northwest of Eshaness while the 2nd Torpedoboat Flotilla patrolled between Papa Stour and Foula. Further south the battlecruisers of 1st Scouting Group were on station guarding against the possibility of an enemy force approaching from the south.

-------Galicia 0335 hrs

What was left of the 1st Finland Division had finally surrendered after putting up stubborn resistance in an impossible situation. General von Linsingen was glad to be able to eliminate a first rate enemy division with an elite reputation but as he had feared the Russian Eleventh and Third Armies has managed to close the gap and were now hard at work digging a new trench line. Center Army had been using its artillery heavily during the offensive and not only was it low on shells but some of its barrels were showing signs of wear and would need replacement soon.

------Templemore (Tipperary) 0350 hrs

The withdrawal of the 13th (Western) Division had not been hindered by any enemy action and proceeded fairly smoothly. The biggest drawback is that few of its soldiers got much sleep as their commander, General Shaw, ordered them to begin digging a new trench line as soon as they reached the new defensive line.

General von Gyssling had ordered the Bavarian Jäger Regiment to reconnoiter the outskirts of Templemore at first light. Accompanied by the 1st Kerry Battalion, the Jägers now discovered that the enemy had completely abandoned the town They did not find any ammunition but they did discover a modest amount of food, mostly bully beef, that the 13th (Western) Division had left behind in their hurried departure. The food situation in most of of Armee Abteilung François was somewhat deficient at this time so the Bavarian Jägers treasured their discovery, reluctantly sharing it with their Irish allies who were even hungrier. They did not want to share it with too many allies so when they made no mention of it when they sent messengers to notify the adjacent Erzherzog Karl Division.

------SMS Dresden west of Shetland Islands 0435 hrs

Admiral von Ingenohl had instructed 4th Scouting Group to conduct commerce raiding operations as well as reconnaissance this morning. The cruiser Dresden now took a prize. This was a 5,900 ton freighter out of Singapore hauling a cargo of rubber. Her original destination had been Liverpool but en route she had been ordered by the Admiralty to proceed to Inverness instead. The freighter had a wireless but it was weak and Dresden was able to jam its transmissions without much trouble. The Germans considered her cargo valuable enough to try to get her back to Germany.

----- St. Magnus Bay Shetland Islands 0455 hrs

The first of a half dozen Norwegian colliers hired by the Germans arrived off Eshaness where she was intercepted by 2nd Scouting Group and directed into the bay where another German flotilla had arrived only a few minutes earlier and were beginning to anchor inside the bay.

------near Bouvron (Woëvre) 0500 hrs

Fortress Toul commenced firing on the 37th Landwehr Brigade with all of its guns that could reach them as well as the horse artillery of the 7th Cavalry Division. The trench that the Landwehr had feverishly dug was narrow and shallow but against the French guns which were all low trajectory, it offered good protection. The bombardment did succeed in suppressing the two local batteries of German artillery.

The shelling lasted a half hour. After that 4 regiments of dismounted French cavalry plus a Territorial battalion emerged from behind Fort de Lucey, Fort de Bruley and the Fort du Vieux Canton. As there was now little chance that they would be mounting up at any point, the riding horses for these regiments were stabled inside Toul obviating the need for horse handlers. There was no German artillery fire but before long the Landwehr’s machineguns, which had not been neutralized by the shelling opened fire at long range. This was soon supplemented by very determined rifle fire.

The Landwehr had been able to lay down 2 strands of wire during the night which the French bombardment had cut only a little. This barrier was not enough to completely stop the attackers but it slowed them down while they were being steadily culled by a hail of lead. The commander of the Territorial battalion soon decided that the attack was hopeless and turned back. The dismounted cavalrymen were more resolute and pressed on. More than a few of them did make in fact make it to the trench and in places there was a few minutes of frantic trench fighting but they were too few in number to take and hold even a fraction of it.

------Shetland Islands 0620 hrs

The battle squadrons of the High Seas Fleet finally arrived at the Shetland Islands. They began to slowly steam around in loops to the west of St. Magnus Bay trying to stay out of sight from the islands. Accompanying the battleships were the slower ocean liners. These entered St. Magnus Bay to serve as colliers. Soon all of the High Seas Fleet’s five torpedoboat flotillas were coaling using either the liners or the Norwegian colliers. The only exceptions were the two destroyers in the 2nd Torpedoboat Flotilla with oil fired machinery. These had enough range to make it home without refueling and merely anchored by themselves in a corner of the bay.

------Camolin (Wexford) 0705 hrs

Pearse reluctantly left County Wicklow in the early morning. For his trip Rommel had provided him with 2 motor cars, one of which would carry additional guards. Pearse had protested that he needed only one motor car with a driver and only one bodyguard but Rommel was adamant. At Gorey Pearse stopped to confer with Count Tisza, who told him bluntly, “Ah, so you have finally come to your senses and are going to Cork. Well it is about time, my Irish friend. However I must warn you that that your journey is not going to be as safe as it should be.”

“Oh and why is that, Your Excellency?”

“For several days my regiment has been fighting a British force, which we now believe to be mostly or entirely the 8th Battalion Devonshire. Late Saturday we were able to defeat them when we were reinforced with two I.R.A. battalions arriving from the west.”

“Yes, I was informed of that wonderful development, Your Excellency. It is great that our units can work so well together.”

The count’s visage darkened and he roared, “No, no, no! Mr. Pearse we did not work well together! It was on account of sheer bumbling on the part of your Irish battalions that the enemy was able to escape annihilation.”

The count was as always an intimidating figure. Pearse anxiously hesitated before replying, “Your Excellency, surely you must know that the Irish Volunteers received a mere fraction of the military training they deserved. I have been told that the Germans have been augmenting that with some very intensive training but the plain fact of the matter is that my brave Irish lads are not yet the great warriors that they are destined to become one day soon. So there are bound to be a few shortcomings---“

“---shortcomings? Shortcomings you say? How about gross negligence and utter incompetence, not to mention insubordination on the part of the Irish commandant of the 3rd Tipperary Battalion, Captain McElroy. If I wasn’t preoccupied I would have challenged him to a duel!”

Pearse had been familiar only a few leaders of the Tipperary Volunteers, who had a bit of their own identity within the Irish Volunteers and tended to do what they wanted to do, regardless of what the leadership at Dublin wanted. Rommel had some experience with McElroy which he had shared with Pearse and the portrait he painted was mixed at best. “I am sure that this is all just an unfortunate misunderstanding, Your Excellency,” he answered disingenuously, “In time our forces will work together harmoniously. However I am curious why you feel this poses a problem to my travel plans?”

Tisza still looked upset, obviously not accepting Pearse’s rosy picture. “I had assumed that after escaping from our clutches, that the 8th Devonshires would hightail it back to Wexford town. Then last night one of my patrols discovered them at Ballymurn which is only 6 miles southeast of Enniscorthy. This has me worried that their commander means to attack Enniscorthy through which you must pass on your journey.”

“And so you have no forces whatsoever defending Enniscorthy right now, Your Excellency?”

“Oh, but I do. Unfortunately it happens to be the 3rd Tipperary Battalion so it is not much better than nothing.”

“With all due respect, Your Excellency, aren’t you being a wee bit harsh, eh?”

“A bit harsh, you say. I don’t think you want to find out the hard way just how incompetent that bunch truly is. Enniscorthy is on your route and if the British have taken it you could easily end up dead or captured.”

Pearse did not know what to make of this. Part of him was still unhappy with his decision to go to Cork. That part of him was actually happy to find a possible excuse for turning around and heading back to County Wicklow. “What are you suggesting, Your Excellency? You have me a bit confused right now. First you tell me that it is a good thing that I am going to Cork but now you warn me about the perils of passing through Enniscorthy.”

Count Tisza’s face softened a little as he responded, “I think it is best if you wait here as my guest for at least two hours. One of my squadrons is on its way to Enniscorthy but more importantly so are two more battalions, one of them consisting of some Americans who have volunteered to fight that Admiral von Spee brought back with him.”

“I have heard of this American Volunteer Brigade. I assume that it made up almost entirely of members of the Clan na Gael. What would we ever do without John Devoy?”

“I don’t know who that is. I would however hazard a guess that some Americans of German origin might be in this brigade as well.”

Pearse paused a few seconds then shrugged, “If they are here to help us in our sacred quest then so much the better We can certainly use all the help we can get!”

“So are you going to follow my advice and stay here until the situation at Enniscorthy is resolved or are you going to be yet another thick headed Irish fool?”

Pearse ignored the insult and thought this over. As he did faint thunder could be heard in the distance. It had threatened to rain all morning now it seemed that it was finally going to happen. Pearse did not find motoring in the rain very appealing. There was one other thought that occurred to him, “Yes, I think I will stay here a bit, Your Excellency. At least until the storm passes. If you don’t mind too much I would like to ask you some questions while I am your guest.”

The Count arched an eyebrow. “Questions about what?” he asked in a somewhat suspicious voice.

“Uh, well you see, Your Excellency, I am going to Cork to function as the head of a government. I think I could use some advise and who better to instruct me than someone who has until recently served as the head of a government. I do not know if you were aware of this but there have been some prominent Irishmen who see similarities between our situation and that of the Dual Monarchy. Of course, the events of the last month have altered this---“

Tisza interrupted waving his right hand, “Yes, yes. Casement went to great lengths telling me about an article someone named Arthur Griffith wrote about perceived similarities between Ireland and Hungary.”

“So will you share some of your Magyar wisdom with me?”

“Ah, you know how to flatter. So you have already learned at least one political skill.”

------Old Admiralty Building 0710 hrs

As soon as he arrived Carson did not like the looks he saw etched on the faces of the admirals. “Good Lord, gentlemen, don’t tell me that we still do not know where the German fleet is.”

“Oh, we know, First Lord,” replied Admiral Callaghan, “The High Seas Fleet is now at the Shetland Islands.”

Carson’s jaw plummeted and he was momentarily speechless. Finally he was able to say, “The Shetlands Islands! Am I hearing you correctly, admiral? What in blazes are the Germans doing in the Shetland Islands?”

“Coaling their flotillas as far as we can tell, First Lord.”

Carson remained dumbfounded. “Are you being cheeky with me, Admiral Callaghan?” he asked testily.

“That was not my intent, First Lord, far from it!” Admiral Callaghan replied guardedly, “If what you are asking is why the German fleet in there and not trying to pass through the Straits of Dover, well, all I can say is that we have been struggling to figure that out ourselves.”

Admiral Wilson felt a need to elaborate, “Let me try to explain, First Lord. A little more than 2 hours ago we received a transmission from the wireless station at Lerwick, saying only that German warships had been spotted in St. Magnus Bay. Since then there had been some further clarification. It now seems clear that a large number of German TBD’s have anchored in the bay and are coaling.”

“Coaling? Coaling from what?” asked Carson.

“As far as Lerwick station has been able to tell so far, First Lord, the coal is coming from the ocean liners they are using as transports. They were intended for transatlantic voyages and should have some excess coal for their TBD’s. Initial reports came from civilians and militia. However as we speak Lerwick station is moving naval observers into positions such as Ronas Hill where they should have a good view of the German warships.”

“Have they seen any German capital ships?” asked Carson.

“Uh, not yet, First Lord,” replied Admiral Callaghan.

“Assuming that the German capital ships were able to fill their bunkers from the coal at Haulbowline, there is no need for them to coal on the way home,” added Admiral Jackson, “They are probably circling around the Shetlands.”

Carson took a few seconds to compose his thoughts then asked, “Ah, but is there any chance that there is merely a German flotilla or two coaling at the Shetlands but the rest of the High Seas Fleet is elsewhere?”

“Such as in the English Channel?” replied Callaghan shaking his head slightly.

“Well that was my first thought though there could be other possibilities incl. the very disturbing one that the High Seas Fleet is still at Cork. The German TBD’s at the Shetlands might have some special mission. Come to think of it they may have steamed out the Jade Bay not Cork for all we know. Perhaps they are intended as a diversion to assist von Ingenohl’s return to Germany.”

The admirals at the table exchanged glances. Carson thought he could hear at least one of them was sighing. None of the admirals seemed to want to be the one to answer the First Lord. Finally Admiral Callaghan took a deep breath and spoke in a slow cautious voice, “We cannot categorically rule out any of the possibilities that you have brought up, First Lord. Nevertheless the consensus amongst us at this time is that the battleships of the High Seas Fleet are in close proximity to the Shetland Islands. We are less sure about the battle cruisers as they may well have a special mission at this time such as attacking the 10th Cruiser Squadron again. We have sent a wireless warning to the AMC’s of the blockade instructing them to move away from the Shetlands.”

“It is esp. unlikely that the High Seas Fleet is in the English Channel, First Lord, as we still have not detected them,” Admiral Wilson added.

Carson now felt a keen sense of disappointment. He had so intensely wanted this to be the day that High Seas Fleet was destroyed only to learn that they were nowhere near the submarines, mines and destroyers in and around the Straits of Dover as well as the Grand Fleet that lay off Suffolk ready to pounce. He felt annoyed, very annoyed. He felt angry. He stared at the admirals but then he focused on one in particular. “Admiral Oliver!” he bellowed, “You assured us that the German fleet was returning home through the English Channel. Now we find out otherwise. What do you have to say for yourself?”

Even though he had been trying to make himself inconspicuous since Carson arrived, Admiral Henry Oliver, chief of the Admiralty War Staff, had expected that he would get asked this difficult question sooner or later. He realized that his reputation and possibly his job was on the line. He decided to mount a defense by gong on offense. “First Lord, I have for several months now repeatedly warned that the precious intelligence coming out of Room 40 must be doled out parsimoniously lest the enemy become suspicious. Despite these warnings there has been an incessant series of demands for Room 40 intelligence as if it were the fabled philosopher’s stone which could cure any ailment and made miraculous transmutations. Today’s shocking revelation appears to have vindicated my cautiousness, though I can take no pleasure in this turn of events. Oh, not in the slightest as---”

“---You have missed your calling, Admiral Oliver,” interrupted Carson, “You should have been either a barrister or a politician. Is what you are trying to tell us that you believe that the German Navy knows that their ciphers have been broken---or at least strongly suspect that is the case---and have deliberately led us astray by sending wireless messages that they know we would intercept.”

“Why yes, First Lord, that was what I was about to say when you interrupted. It is the most probable explanation.”

“I concur with that hypothesis being the most likely explanation, First Lord,” commented Admiral Callaghan, “and that unfortunately raises some difficult questions. Do the Germans merely suspect or are they absolutely sure. And in either case how long have they suspected? They may have sent some other messages intended to deceive us.”

Carson continued to stare at Admiral Oliver, “So you are blaming everyone but yourself for this mess, Oliver? Frankly I find your attitude to be insufferably smug at times. Furthermore I am not fully persuaded by your argument. If the Germans suspect that we have broken their codes shouldn’t we be intercepting many messages encrypted in ciphers we have not encountered previously?”

“Yes, First Lord, we have in fact intercepted two short wireless messages we could not decipher recently,” replied Oliver, ”However I would point out that there has always been an occasional message we could not decipher. Captain Hall and I believe that is because we failed to receive the beginning of the message.”

“I never recall you mentioning these unintelligible wireless messages before. There is much on this topic that needs to be discussed but right now I am more interested in what we should do next,” said Carson, “If the Germans are in fact coaling their destroyers at the Shetland Islands how long before they leave?”

“We were debating that very question before you arrived, First Lord,” Admiral Callaghan, ”We are in agreement that the coaling will continue until at least midnight and barring very bad weather hitting the Shetlands, which our meteorological section believes to be highly unlikely, the Germans will definitely leave before dusk tomorrow. We may be able to be more precise in our estimate once our observers are in place and we can see if all the German flotillas are being coaled together or if it’s a staggered process. If it is the latter then it is fairly obvious that they will remain there well into tomorrow.”

“There must be some way we can take advantage of this!” Carson declared emphatically.”

“It would take nearly two days for the Grand Fleet to reach the Shetlands, First Lord,” remarked Admiral Wilson.

“And when they get there some of Admiral Bayly’s destroyers will be running low on fuel, putting him and not the Germans at a disadvantage,” added Admiral Jackson.

“So our opportunity to destroy the High Seas Fleet has completely evaporated?” asked Carson in exasperation.

“Hmm, not entirely, First Lord,” answered Admiral Callaghan, “Before you arrived we discussed sending Grand Fleet to the Humber where it can quickly refuel its destroyers and light cruisers. As you are already well aware one of the advantages of oil fired boilers is that refueling can be accomplished much quicker than with coal. So in a few hours the Grand Fleet can put out to sea again and try to intercept the Germans after they leave the Shetlands.”

Carson took some time to think this over then said, “My concern is this proposed strategy might decrease the chances of the Grand Fleet being able to intercept the enemy.”

The admirals once again exchanged glances then the First Sea Lord spoke, “What you say is true, First Lord, but I would point out that even if the Grand Fleet heads for the Shetlands immediately it is not certain that they will make contact with the enemy. Furthermore we were optimistic about the prospects of a fleet action were based on the assumption that we would be able to further weaken the German fleet in the eastern half of the Channel before the battle began. That assumption is no longer valid.”

“Is there nothing we can still do in that regard? Do we have any submarines near the Shetland Islands?” asked Carson.

“The closest is nearly 2 full days away, First Lord. We have already ordered her to proceed to St. Magnus Bay but it is extremely likely that the Germans will be gone by then.”

“What about the 9th Destroyer Flotilla? Could we send them to attack the High Seas Fleet tonight?”

“We have thought about that as well, First Lord. The 9th Destroyer Flotilla currently has 8 ‘E’ class destroyers, 3 ‘C’ class destroyers and 4 torpedoboats which are ready for action. They are all in the Firth of Forth as we have stopped sending any to patrol Moray Firth on account of the peril of mines.”

“The German mines in the Moray Firth are still not swept?”

“Uh, not to our complete satisfaction, First Lord. As we have discussed before our minesweepers have been overburdened of late,” said Admiral Jackson.

“But getting back to using Forth Patrol,” said Admiral Callaghan, “Steaming at maximum speed it will run out of coal before it reaches St. Magnus Bay. At slower more economical speeds it won’t reach there before dawn, when these obsolescent vessels would be very vulnerable.”

Carson sighed deeply in frustration. He had persuaded himself in the last few days that the destruction of the High Seas Fleet, an event he firmly believed would completely change the course of the war leading inevitably to Entente victory, was imminent. He became so sure of this that he could practically taste it, despite the admirals being much more guarded in their optimism. “There is still a chance that Forth Patrol can catch the High Seas Fleet without any screen whatsoever. Can we afford to pass it up?” he asked.

“First Lord, even if all the German flotillas are still coaling come dawn tomorrow, we are talking about old vessels armed with 18” torpedoes which have a shorter range and less powerful warhead. They would have to get close but they are not particularly fast while the German dreadnoughts possess a powerful secondary armament. The 9th Destroyer Flotilla would be cut to ribbons before they could get within an effective launch range, esp. if the German light cruisers enter the fray. It is for this reason we are in agreement that sending Forth Patrol to the attack the Shetlands is a bad idea.”

-------Paris 0805 hrs

The Council of Ministers was back in session. “Since we have last met, there have been several important development,” announced Premier Clemenceau, “I am not sure where to start. The German army has launched a medium offensive in the Woëvre Plain. General Joffre and I agree that this should be regard as a positive sign. It is quite obviously an act of desperation on their part intended to forestall the imminent triumph of our Grand Offensive. However the general sees it merely as a small diversion intended to get us to overreact while I believe that it is more serious and is intended to cut Verdun’s supply lines thereby disabling one of the Grand Offensive’s three components. The last I heard the Boche have taken more ground than I had expected which is extremely distasteful but they have been firmly stopped well short of the Meuse. A counterattack is underway while we speak. I am confident that we will reclaim all the lost territory in a few days. The German attack in the Woëvre shall have no perceptible impact on the Grand Offensive. If anything it may hasten its success.”

This provoked a brief round of applause from the ministers. Clemenceau smiled briefly then turned to M. Jean Augagneur, the Minister of the Marine, “What is the latest news from the Royal Navy? Are they still planning to engage the German fleet again?”

“Uh, they are a bit confused at this moment, premier,” Jean Augagneur responded cautiously.

“Why do you say ‘at this moment’? As far as I can tell they are nearly always confused.”

Jean Augagneur attempted an unenthusiastic grin, “Yes, it all too often seems that way, premier. However they do seem even more confused than usual right now. Apparently they were very sure that the German battle fleet was returning to Germany through the English Channel. Now they have concluded that German fleet is not doing that and they do not know what to do next.”

“Well, as a start they can resume their flow of supplies to us. Hopefully back to the level it was in early May.”

“Unfortunately all they are willing to consider for today, premier, is another limited shipment of coal but they did inform us less than two hours ago that larger shipments should be possible later in the week.”

“Our munitions plants are currently operating at less than half capacity while most of those that should be making weapons are nearly idle. We are on the verge of winning the war and the British admirals who are either stupid or cowardly, deny us what we need.”

------Portarlington (Queen’s) 0855 hrs

The 7th Cavalry Division was now beyond the area covered by German air patrols and so was forced to perform its own reconnaissance. General von Unger, the division’s commander, sent 4 squadrons out to do this. One of these now approached Portarlington and came under long range rifle from the outposts of the Royal Irish Riflemen guarding VI Army Corps HQ. The Uhlans soon determined that the enemy was too strong for them to take head on. They proceeded to probe the enemy’s flanks and learned that they were also well guarded. There was no sign that this time was an enemy force on the march though. The squadron commander dispatched messengers to ride back to Maryborough and inform General von Unger about their discoveries.

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

The War Committee was back in session. “What is the latest news from the Admiralty?” Prime Minister Balfour eagerly asked Sir Edward Carson, “I assume that the German fleet has crossed the Straits of Dover by now. Has the Grand Fleet intercepted them yet? ”

Carson had expected this question but he had found it hard to prepare a response that was not embarrassing. What he said was, “The Grand Fleet has not intercepted the Germans, prime minister, nor will they be doing so later today.”

“Good heavens, why not?”

“Uh, it is on account of the German fleet currently being at the Shetland Islands, prime minister.”

Four jaws dropped in unison. When he was at the Admiralty Carson had debated with himself about informing the prime minister in advance of this development by telephone. He had nearly done that but had ultimately decided against it. Oddly he felt that if Bonar Law was still prime minister he would have called. Carson had a close familiarity with Andrew which he did not have with his successor who was a very different kettle of fish.

“The Shetland Islands? What are they doing there?” asked the usually imperturbable Arthur Balfour who was now clearly perturbed.

“They are coaling their destroyers, prime minister,” replied Carson, who then suddenly realized that he was repeating the very same answer that had struck him as cheeky when Admiral Callaghan had said it.

“That is very interesting, Sir Edward, but what I meant was how did they end up at the Shetland Islands when we were so sure that they were returning to Germany through the English Channel?”

“It now appears that our intelligence was faulty, prime minister.”

“I would say so! Is the basis for this defective intelligence decoded German wireless transmissions? I have wondered if we were placing too much trust in those.”

“Yes, prime minister, intercepted wireless messages decoded by Room 40 were the basis of our belief that the German fleet was returning via the Channel.”

“As I just said I have some uneasiness about our heavy reliance on that technique,” said Balfour, “Apparently my predecessor felt much the same way from what I’ve been told. Now it has clearly let us down.”

“This is a potentially lengthy topic of discussion, prime minister. Many of the senior admirals are currently leaning towards the theory that the Huns have grown suspicious and deliberately sent false wireless messages to deceive us.”

“I see but why would the Germans be suspicious?”

“Well for a start our fleet was on the scene at both Dogger Bank and Utsire.”

“For all the good it did us.”

“That is all too true, prime minister, but nevertheless the fact that were right there must surely have made some of the German admirals at least a little bit suspicious.”

“So are you trying to tell me that the Germans have suspected that their codes have been compromised soon after the Battle of Utsire?”

Carson shook his head slightly, “We do not think so, prime minister, though it would explain how their initial expedition to Ireland escaped discovery. However the first instance we know of the Germans sending a deliberatively deceptive wireless message is the recent one about their fleet returning home via the Channel. Mind you this is still supposition on our part. There is some remote possibility of an alternative explanation such as Admiral von Ingenohl changing his plans at the last minute.”

“But if he did that wouldn’t he notify Berlin of the change of plans?” asked Lloyd-George.

“Yes, that is what the admirals feel as well, chancellor. However Admiral Oliver theorizes that we probably fail to pickup an occasional wireless transmission so this theory cannot be ruled out completely. This situation is admittedly something of a mystery. I intend to get to the bottom of it eventually but at this moment I feel that we have more pressing concerns.”

“We certainly do. Is there still a good chance that the Grand Fleet can intercept and destroy the German fleet?”

“Yes, there is, prime minister, though the admirals are regrettably not as optimistic as I am.”

“Why so?” asked Balfour.

“Hmm There are multiple reasons including the likelihood that the battle will occur closer to the Bight than we wanted, though mostly because we had hoped to further weaken the German fleet with submarines, mines and maybe even night torpedo attacks en route before the main engagement.”

“That makes sense, First Lord. If the Sea Lords feel that Admiral Bayly should now exercise caution then I see no reason why we should interfere with that decision. One small naval victory has only begun to erase what two disasters have wrought. I understand all too well your burning desire to end the menace of the German Navy once and for all. However I also understand the need for caution while several of our most powerful warships are in the yards. You usually trust the judgment of your admirals, Sir Edward. Now is not the time to start second guessing them.”

Carson sighed, “I suppose you are right, prime minister, but it gnaws at my insides that we may be passing up an opportunity to win the war.”

“I commiserate with that sentiment, I really do, but I also worry that this could be also an opportunity for us to lose the war. I expect you to keep us apprised of all important developments while leaving the myriad of minor details to the admirals,” said Balfour who then turned to Lord Kitchener, “What is the latest news from Ireland, Lord Kitchener?”

“Prime Minister, General Hamilton remains incapable of seizing the initiative in Ireland despite having the invaluable assistance of the Ulster Volunteer Force. Furthermore in his most recent cables I have detected the foul stench of defeatism. I once held Sir Ian in high esteem so it saddens me to say this.”

Balfour momentarily gaped then asked, “As you already know I already had some serious concerns about General Hamilton’s competence even before I became prime minister. Are you now telling me that you are prepared to sack him?”

“Not yet, prime minister. I had a similar problem with Field Marshal French early in the war when he was intent on pulling the entire B.E.F. back to Boulogne. I traveled to France and confronted him clearing his muddled head. As soon as this meeting is adjourned I will go to Ireland and try to do the same with General Hamilton. You will have to make do without me tomorrow.”

“This is all very sudden, Lord Kitchener,” said Balfour, “But if you feel it is necessary by all means go. However before you leave I want us to decide whether or not to send another division to either France or Ireland. So tell us now what do you recommend.”

“I have thought long and hard about this, prime minister and have come to the following conclusions. The first is that until either the German fleet is annihilated or the 2nd Canadian Division makes it across the pond, we can spare one and only one infantry division from the home defenses. The division we have selected is the 14th Division, which is a New Army Division. While I would like very much to send this unit to Ireland, I have been forced to conclude that at this time it is needed the most in France, where the Huns threaten to destroy First Army and take Abbeville. Unpleasant as the current situation in Ireland happens be right now it should be painfully obvious to anyone with half a brain that in the long run the enemy is in a hopeless position. Unfortunately the same cannot be said about France. However one thought that has occurred to me is that currently cavalry is much more useful in Ireland where except for the siege of Limerick there has been an open war of maneuver. The Germans understand this as well which is why they recently sent a cavalry division to Ireland. I suggest that we do likewise by removing the 2nd Cavalry Division from France and sending it to Ireland.”

“I will leave the purely military considerations up to you, Field Marshal,” said Grey, the Foreign Secretary, “But surely you know as well as I do that Joffre and Clemenceau will both complain mightily if we withdraw any division even an unimportant cavalry division from France now.”

“Yes, I am well aware of that, Sir Edward. However if we make the removal of the 2nd Cavalry Division coincide with the landing of the 14th Division then it is my hope that the intensity of their protestation will be reduced to a tolerable level.”

“I sincerely hope that is true, Field Marshal. I must point out that there is more than dissent at stake here,” said Grey, “Clemenceau has repeatedly threatened to remove the divisions he sent to assist General Plumer.”

“I am well aware of that but even Clemenceau must realize that it is in his interest as well as ours to rescue First Army. He is not a complete fool even if he often sounds like one.”

“There is also his threat to remove his division from Herzegovina. Given his frequently expressed negative opinion of the Albanian expedition I do not consider this threat to be a bluff.”

“You may be right about that, Sir Edward, but that is a risk worth taking. Our Balkan expedition merely delayed the collapse of Serbia. We should consider withdrawing our own forces as well though admittedly that may prove difficult to do.”

------Orient Palace Madrid 0915 hrs

King Alphonso of Spain did not feel well rested this morning. Last night he another bitter fight with Ena, his consort, who demanded that he immediately resume trade with Britain and personally apologize to King George. He sincerely wished to find a peaceful way out of the current crisis. There were hints that Prime Minister Balfour being much less ornery than his predecessor, was amenable to a diplomatic solution but so far the new British government was largely ignoring the crisis with Spain while concentrating on dealing with what they regarded as more pressing issues. No real progress had been made so far but at least Balfour wasn’t aggravating the situation which was what Clemenceau was doing. If Spain really did go to war Alphonso wanted it to be limited to Great Britain. The Spanish Army would lay siege to Gibraltar and the Spanish Navy would cower in port. If the war involved Spain things would get messy. The great mountain ranges near the northern border starting with the Pyrenees would offer some defensive advantages but if the French made a concerted effort the king feared that they could eventually breakthrough.

Prime Minister Eduardo Dato e Iradier along with the Minister of War, General Ramón Echagüe and the Minister of State, Salvador Bermúdez de Castro had arrived to confer with their monarch. From the looks on their faces the king knew what the first topic of discussion would be. “What has the Tiger done now?” he anxiously asked.

“It concerns Llívia, Your Majesty. Premier Clemenceau---“ Dato began to answer.

Alphono’s heart missed a beat. If the French have dared to seize Llívia, then war is inevitable he thought with a chill running down his spine. He interrupted Dato, ”---What? Have the French seized Llívia?”

“Uh, no they have not done so, Your Majesty---at least not yet,” replied Dato, “But they are demanding that we do not attempt to bring any weapons, not so much as a revolver, into Llívia and since very early this morning they have begun searching our citizens on the way there.”

“It is an insult to our honor, Your Majesty!” remarked Echagüe angrily.

“Yes, it is but not so glaring a one that would make it impossible for us to overlook it if we have a good reason,” said the king.

“And what reason is that, Your Majesty?” asked Echagüe.

“Why keeping us out of a potentially disastrous war, of course!”

Echagüe was about to respond to that when Dato, who feared that the War Minister might provoke the sovereign still more, spoke first, “Your Majesty, you are quite right to worry about the consequences of rushing headlong into a war with an adversary as powerful as France. Yet can we truly consider ourselves to be the heirs of the Hidalgos if we let the French get away with this latest provocation?”

“We shall issue a formal complaint,” stated the king.

The War Minister rolled his eyes and shook his head slightly. The king noticed this and looked at him sternly asking him sternly, “Is there something you wish to say, general?”

The general noticed that prime minister Dato was staring at him almost as harshly as the king. He decided it was best to be cautious in his response, “With due respect, Your Majesty, I am wondering if words will be enough. Words have not persuaded the French to withdraw from Andorra.”

“Which is Andorra’s misfortune but the cold fact is that we rule Spain not Andorra. It is Spain’s interest not Andorra’s that concern us.”

“Ah, but Llívia is part of Spain, Your Majesty,” said Echagüe.

“Yes it is but the French have not occupied Llívia now have they? They have merely taken a defensive precaution, albeit a completely unnecessary one that borders on being silly.”

Echagüe was about to respond to this when Dato jumped in, “You are quite right, Your Majesty, the French do make themselves look silly. I agree that a public statement will do. All that I ask is that it be strongly worded.”

------Enniscorthy (Wexford) 1010 hrs

After more than a day of struggling just to survive, the commander of the 8th Battalion Devonshire Regiment bravely decided to go back on the offensive instead of holing up inside Wexford town with the Cameronians. He had been provided with badly needed supplies and reinforced with 80 R.I.C. He had some intelligence that the important communication center at Enniscorthy was held by only a single rebel battalion, the 3rd Tipperary. He felt that there was a good chance that he could badly hurt that battalion then fade away before the damn Hussars showed up in strength.

McElroy still commanded the 3rd Tipperary Battalion and he thought the 8th Battalion Devonshire was a thoroughly beaten opponent who no longer represented a threat. He had been instructed by Count Tisza to secure food as well as fodder for the Hussar’s mounts. While McElroy did not like Tisza he took this assignment to heart. He started by terrorizing the local Protestants, confiscating whatever food they possessed. Less enthusiastically he appealed to the generosity of the local Catholics. This yielded more than he expected because Enniscorthy had been the site of a spontaneous rebellion soon after the Germans landed, which the British eliminated in a bloodbath at Vinegar Hill. It was the memory of that incident that prompted many of the local Catholics to donate what they could to the cause. It also prompted four local men to join the 3rd Tipperary Battalion.

The attack of the 8th Battalion Devonshire now began using 3 of the battalion’s rifle companies with the 4th company held in reserve. These quickly overpowered a weak rebel outpost then poured into the town itself. They achieved a decent measure of surprise against an unprepared enemy. They quickly captured more than 50 prisoners and drove the rest out of the town in panic and disarray. As the Devonshires started to pursue a single squadron of Hussars arrived from the northeast. This disturbed the British commander who worried that they were the vanguard of the entire regiment which would be arriving earlier than expected. He therefore ordered his soldiers not to pursue. This allowed McElroy to rally his men who were heartened by the arrival of the Hussars, which they too mistakenly assumed were the vanguard of the entire regiment. McElroy knew better but he did not share that with his subordinates lest it ruin morale. He also knew that the 1st East Cork Battalion and the 3rd American Volunteer Battalion were approaching from the southwest and felt that once they arrived the battle would turn sharply in his favor. He sent a messenger to these two battalions to speed up their march. However the men in both battalions were so tired that their rate of march could be increased only slightly.

The commander of 8th Battalion Devonshire had sent out a patrol in several directions. When one in the southwest reported the approach of the new enemy force the battalion commander decided that discretion was indeed the better part of valor and ordered his unit to start withdrawing to the southeast. The 1st East Cork Battalion and the 4th American Volunteer Battalion indulged in a brief exchange of long range rifle fire with the Devonshires. There was confusion as to who was in charge. McElroy thought he should be but the other two commandants refused to acknowledge his authority. They had unexpectedly stumbled into a firefight leading tired men who had never heard a shot fired in anger before and so were extremely reluctant to mount the all out counterattack McElroy was demanding.

Meanwhile Pearse had arrived on the outskirts of Enniscorthy while this battle was underway. His two motor cars were stopped by the Hussar squadron whose commander politely but firmly informed him that it was too dangerous for him to enter the town. When they finally let him go he found the three battalion commandants yelling at each other. “Gentlemen please! Stop this senseless bickering! Save your hostility for the British!” shouted Pearse.

“And who might I ask are you?” asked the commandant of the 4th American Volunteer Battalion speaking with a German accent.

Pearse turned to American and smiled warmly, “I am Padraig Pearse, president of the provisional government of the Irish Republic.

“What? Are you shitting me?” asked the American commandant.

“If he is who he says he is then he is telling the truth,” commented McElroy, “Don’t you read the fuckin’ newspaper?”

“Watch your language, you dumb mick,” snarled the American commandant.

One of Pearse’s bodyguards stepped forward and testified, “This is indeed Padraig Pearse, president of the provisional government. We are escorting him to Cork to confer with General von François as instructed by Major Rommel, the commander of Dublin Brigade.”

“Rommel, eh? So the Green Fox is still alive?” McElroy asked with strong ambivalence.

“Yes, he is though he took a nasty wound during the Battle of Dublin from which he is still recovering. As for him being the commander of Dublin Brigade I must point out that he serves in that role at my sufferance. The same could be said of all the Irish Volunteer units.”

The commandant of the 1st East Cork Battalion was an unteroffizier that had joined the Irish Brigade and been assigned a temporary rank of captain in the I.R.A (there was a shortage of Irish Brigade officers so many battalions were now commanded by captains instead of majors). He had not liked the idea of the American commandant, even though he had come from Germany, acting as his superior. He had liked McElroy trying to give him orders even less. So he wasn’t enthralled by Pearse acting as if he was the real boss. “As far as I am concerned all the I.R.A. units come under the command of General von François,” he said, “Though it has become painfully obvious that the intermediate command structure needs some clarification. In the Irish Brigade we were told that we should report to the senior German commander in the area. That sounds simple but what if there is no German unit nearby? We get confusion like we have here and now.”

Pearse sighed deeply and shook his head, “I see that I have my work cut out for me.”

------north of Roscommon town 1045 hrs

The force of 4,000 Ulster Volunteers that had attacked Sligo and destroyed the 4th North Ireland Battalion had become spread out afterwards. Nearly 500 incl. the few that had been wounded remained behind in County Sligo where they were told to keep order which they interpreted as intimidating the local Catholic population as much as possible. Another 500 were detached and sent to Swinford in County Mayo in response to reports of rebel activity in parts of that county. The rest pursued the Sligo Support Company as it fled south. By the time they reached Boyle they were starting to become worried about their supply line and so they left more than 400 men behind at Boyle.

The U.V.F. then sent 500 men to Carrick-on-Shannon another place that had reported rebel activity and so might be a place where the Sligo Support Company would try to hole up. When these Orangemen reached Carrick-on-Shannon they tore the place up looking for rebels. Eventually they gave up on that and decided to continue on to Longford town which was another place purported to have a sizable rebel presence.

A force of 200 Ulster Volunteers was dispatched to Castlerea. This was in part because Castlerea was yet another place reported to have recent rebel activity. Another reason was to scrounge up food as the British were having trouble supplying them with a full ration ever since they had departed Sligo. So it was a force of roughly 1,900 UVF that approached Roscommon this morning. They were still looking to finally catch up with the Sligo Support Company, but they had also received orders late last night that they were to attack the rear of the rebel forces at Athlone. They were not marching in a compact formation.

Cornelius’ mission had two objectives. The first was reconnaissance. The second was to delay the British as long as possible. The Sligo Support Company and the Roscommon Support Company were retreating in the direction of Athlone. They were to be met halfway by the Roscommon Battalion and Cavan Battalion but it was important that the Orangemen not overtake them before then.

St. James tried to achieve both objectives by moving his forces around the columns of Ulster Volunteers as rapidly as possible. St. James was not afraid to ride his horses very hard when it was called for. He also had another ace to play. When he arrived at Roscommon the local rebels had 3 motor cars and 2 trucks he was able to add to his small motor pool. More importantly they had accumulated a decent supply of precious petrol. St. James’ tactics was to more his cavalry around rapidly by riding their mounts hard while shuttling his infantry around even faster. This caused the inexperienced Ulster Volunteers to constantly reorient themselves to face attacks that never materialized. Eventually this created a false impression amongst the Ulstermen that they were being surrounded by a force at least equal in size to themselves. This slowed their advance to a crawl. In the meantime Cornelius had determined the size of the enemy force to be around 2,000 men all of them U.V.F. He sent word of this back to Athlone.
^^^^
            “We had our first taste of combat at the large town of Enniscorthy in County Wexford. There we and the 1st East Cork Battalion came to the aid of another I.R.A. battalion, the 3rd Tipperary, which was under attack by some British infantry. For three maybe four minutes we fired our rifles at some British infantry who had briefly taken Ennisorthy before we arrived and were now clearly in retreat though they were doing so in a very methodical fashion with sections alternately laying cover fire then retreating. Our officers eventually decided that the enemy had moved too far away and ordered us to cease fire. One member of our battalion was killed and another was lightly wounded in his right arm. These were our first casualties. They would not be our last.
            At the end of this action there was considerable confusion about which of the three battalion commandants was in overall command. This confusion permitted the enemy to escape and produced a heated argument which was interrupted by the unexpected arrival of a distinguished visitor. This was none other than Mr. Patrick Pearse, .who boldly claimed to be the head of the provisional Irish government that had been proclaimed with great fanfare during the Battle of Dublin. He had escaped along with some elements of the Dublin Brigade into the mountains of County Wicklow. He was now on his way to Cork   He succeeded in reducing the rancor between the battalion commandants but could not resolve the issue of who should be in overall command. Pearse then delivered a separate impromptu speech to each of the three battalions. The one he delivered to our battalion was strange for several reasons. He was clearly laboring under a misconception that our battalion was overwhelmingly Irish-Americans, repeatedly referring to us as sons of Hibernia and his dear departed kinfolk. In point of fact there were at least as many German-Americans as Irish-Americans in the 4th American Volunteer Battalion. Yet I must confess that despite its shortcomings it was genuinely stirring in places. Yes, it shames me deeply to admit it but I found myself moved by the words of a politician.”
                                    ------H.L. Mencken Over There

------Room 40 Old Admiralty Building 1105 hrs

Captain Hall had called a meeting of all members of the Room 40 staff who were on duty. “There has been a development that you all need to be aware of,” he told them, “As I speak German warships are coaling at the Shetland Islands and it is extremely likely that their entire fleet is there as well. This is completely contrary to what we led to believe based a German wireless transmission this section recently decoded. Admiral Oliver and the Sea Lords have discussed this matter thoroughly and have concluded that this very strongly suggests that the enemy either knows or at least strongly suspects that we could read their codes and has used that to deceive us. Reinforcing that conclusion there have been some transmissions yesterday and today that we have been unable to decode suggesting that the German Navy has switched to new ciphers. We are in the process of reviewing all intercepted messages in the last week to see if any of those might also be German deceptions. In the meantime any new intercepts that we decode must be treated with suspicion but not ruled out entirely. There may be some German warships at sea that do not have recourse to the new codebooks and so are still using the old broken ciphers.”

Lieutenant Erskine Childers V.C. was one of those in attendance. He was sweating profusely and trembling a little despite his best efforts. They know! They know! He wailed silently It is only a matter of time before they realize that I am responsible! Maybe they suspect already and are toying with me. He felt as if he wore a sign saying TRAITOR. As Captain Hall continued speaking, Childers was convinced that he was staring right at him.

And in fact he was. “Childers! What is wrong?” he asked.

He knows, he knows! Childers’ palms were wet but his throat was dry. He could barely speak, “Begging your pardon, Captain, I do not know what you are referring to.”

“You look positively awful, Childers. Pale as sheet and you appear to be shivering. Do you have a fever, son?”

“Uh, no, sir,” Erskine replied then after thinking amended it, “Well maybe a small one, sir. It came on me all of a sudden, sir.”

Hall blinked and blinked some more, “Do you feel well enough to make it through this meeting?”

“Uh, why certainly, sir. After all this is very important information, sir. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

“That’s a right proper attitude, lieutenant, but when it’s over I want you to go see a physician.”

------Skibbereen (Cork) 1210 hrs

Skibbereen was one of the places in County Cork where there was a large Protestant AngloIish population. The last three weeks had been a fearful time for them as a growing number of the Catholic population had joined the rebellion. There was only a small R.I.C. contingent to guard Skibbereen. A local defense force was formed and they persuaded the constables to provide them with the paltry collection of firearms they had seized from the local Irish Volunteers and National Volunteers. This gave the local defense force enough firepower to help the R.I.C maintain order in the area but their leaders realized that they could not hope to defeat a large well armed rebel force. Being close to the sea they hoped and prayed that British warships would anchor offshore and land a company or more of Royal Marines to protect them. However their outposts on the coasts had seen only one warship recently and that turned out to be a lightly armed German ocean liner. That was definitely not reassuring.

Major Kurzbach knew in vague terms about the situation at Skibbereen. He considered it to be a potential threat to his line of communications. He did not rule out the possibility that Royal Marines might be landed there now that the High Seas Fleet was no longer at Haulbowline. He therefore decided to send the small Sealgair Battalion to Skibbereen. He was well aware of the reputation of the Sealgairs for being ruthless and unruly. Kurzbach wanted to keep them away from the other I.R.A. battalions in his regiment fearing that they would be a bad influence.

The Sealgairs now descended with bloodthirsty glee upon Skibbereen. There had been a split in the Sealgairs after the death of their controversial charismatic leader, Joe Flynn. The more extreme faction refused to accept the leadership of Liam Kerns, the battalion’s deputy commandant. These rallied behind Tom Barry, and went off with him on an adventure that ended badly in Dublin. Yet some of those who stayed with Kerns were less than happy with his more moderate views of what the Sealgairs should be. Many within his battalion griped that he was too subservient to the Germans. They also thought his wife Una who was a member of battalion along with 10 other women, was too much of an influence on him.

As the Sealgairs approached the town they encountered most of Protestant local defense force plus 10 constables behind barricades. The commandant of lead company made a hasty and poor organized attack on what they were sure would be easy pickings. He was soon proved wrong as his attack was repelled with serious losses. When Kerns arrived he prevented the commandant from repeating his prior mistake. Instead Kerns took his time and after gathering what information he could about the tactical situation found a way to outflank the defenders with one of his companies while the other created a distraction. The Sealgairs were angry about their earlier setbacks and took it out on the defenders. Despite Kerns’ orders only 10 prisoners were taken, 3 of which were constables whom the Sealgairs hated a little less. After that some of the Sealgairs began to terrorize the civilians of Skibbereen. Kerns was not bothered by the looting. Major Kurzbach had after all ordered him to acquire supplies. His men were acquiring with extreme prejudice. However some of the other things that were happening bothered him.

Una heard a woman screams coming from a farmhouse on the outskirts of town. The door was open and she ran inside and found one of the Sealgairs raping a woman while another helped hold her down. There were bruises on the woman’s face. The second soldier had his pants lowered to his knees in anticipation of being next. There was a dead man lying in a pool of blood on the floor. His throat had been cut. Lying on the floor on the floor was a bayonet covered in blood.

“Stop it! Get off her now!” she ordered. He had her rifle in her arms but it was lowered.

“Oh, come on, Una,” said the rapist raising himself up s little and only halfway tuning his head towards Una who was behind him the, “We are just having a wee bit of fun with this worthless Prot whore. What else is this bitch good for but a good ploughing? I’d invite you to join but you don’t have the proper equipment if you know what I mean.”

Una quickly raised her rifle. The man who was holding took notice of this at the last second and became alarmed. He was about to say something when fired hitting the rapist in the back of the skull just behind the right ear. It emerged hideously from his left eye and splattered blood and brains on both the woman beneath him and the Sealgair holding her. The body convulsed for a few seconds then stiffened and collapsed on top of the victim. The poor woman’s shrieks now became hideous with abject terror. Una quickly worked the bolt and chambered another round. She pointed the barrel at the other Sealgair. “Let go of her and move your friend’s body off of her. Do it now or so help me---”

“---alright, alright I’ll do it. Don’t shoot, don’t shoot.”

As he was doing that another Sealgair entered the building. When he saw what was going on he asked, “Christ Almighty, what the hell happened?”

“Longford was violating this woman when I arrived with some help from O’Connor here I told Longford to stop but he refused. So I made him stop.”

“Una has gone crazy. Don’t listen to her!” said O’Connor.

“If anyone has any doubt about what happened here they can ask this woman here about what happened. In the meantime go summon my husband.”

Liam Kerns arrived before long. The Anglo-Irish woman who had been raped was still nearly hysterical from what had happened but she eventually recovered her wits enough to verify most of Una’s account. Longford had murdered her husband and then with the assistance of O’Connor he raped her. Liam Kerns assembled most of the men and held a small trial. When it was over he sentenced O’Connor to be shot at dawn. After that he addressed the battalion, “I have seen some things today that make me sick and I am not just talking about what Longford and O’Connor have done. I have not been as forceful as I should’ve been and as a result discipline has broken down. The end result is chaos and barbarism, and for this I feel that I am responsible, which makes me feel guilty and ashamed.”

------OHL Valenciennes 1135 hrs

General von Falkenhayn was on the telephone with General von Strantz, who told him, “Last night’s attack by V Army Corps in the Forest de La Reine was unsuccessful, nor have they been able to advance any further towards Apremont this morning as the French have poured reinforcements into the main sector of our attack. Not only is V Army Corps unable to advance any further but it is heavily pressed by determined French counterattacks at this moment.”

General von Falkenhayn was disappointed with this news. The initial phase of von Strantz’s offensive has started so well but now it appeared to be stalled. The French had quickly realized that their primary objective was to cut the rail line leading into Verdun and had countered it. “I am curious about the gap that opened up between V Army Corps and Ersatz Corps. Does it still exist?”

“We used the 37th Landwehr Brigade to seal the gap last night. We were able to advance further south than expected during the night taking Bouvron on the northern edge of Toul’s defenses which it turns out lacks its own trench line. We had wanted to expand to the south getting within effective artillery range of Fort de Lucey but we never imagined that we could get that far south.”

“Yes that was clearly not foreseen. Have the Landwehr been able to hold on to Bouvron?”

“Yes, they have. They were attacked this morning by a force that consisted mostly of dismounted cavalry supported by the guns of the fortress. My suspicion is that had I not plugged the gap there would have been a mounted attack there this morning which could have caused very serious problems.”

“The gap was big enough to allow from an effective mounted attack?”

“In my estimation yes, which was why I thought it imperative that we fill it last night. Fortunately the Landwehr brigade was readily available. However committing that brigade means that except for a regiment of Landsturm I am out of reserves. Without further reinforcements I do not see how my army can realistically hope to reach the Meuse.”

General von Falkenhayn drummed his fingers on his desk and sighed. This attack in the Woëvre had started so promisingly but was now faltering. At one time his instinctive response would have been to demand that General von Strantz make do with what he had and press on with his attack. Since then he had glumly concluded that Germany would not prevail in this war by wasting the lives of its soldiers. Senior officers were now admonished if they suffered needless casualties in an operation. Von Falkenhayn was now wondering if he should order von Strantz to shutdown his offensive. He had gained an impressive amount of territory at a reasonable cost in casualties so far. He had taken the key butte at Montsec and moved to within easy artillery range of Toul. It was also clear that he drawing off some of Joffre’s very limited reserves. Might going on over on the defensive be the best course of action esp. as the French were likely to launch frantic counterattacks to regain what they had lost?

General von Falkenhayn was unsure. “A thrust to Commercy could be an alternative to going through Apremont,” he speculated aloud.

“Commercy is below the railroad junction. Taking it will not cut the flow of supplies into Verdun.”

“I am well aware of that,” von Falkenhayn replied testily, “I am thinking of the long term benefits of taking Commercy. From there we could either move northwest or southeast allowing us to attack Toul from two directions.”

“You are thinking of making a full scale effort to take Toul?”

“It is an option to be considered though it was not my original objective. It might not be as hard as it sounds as we do have some intelligence that suggests that Clemenceau has stripped his fortresses to support his Grand Offensive. Looking at the map in front of me if we can hold Bouvron our heavy artillery can hit all of the northern forts of Toul and even the city itself.”

“That is correct but at the risk of sounding negative, it is my professional judgment that without substantial reinforcements, taking either Commercy or Toul much less both is not possible.”

Von Falkenhayn sighed some more. Everyone wanted reinforcements. Von Hindenburg want a lot of reinforcements for multiple reasons though the one that upset him the most was the continued presence of the Russian Twelfth Army in East Prussia. If Ludendorff was still at his side von Falkenhayn was sure that the demands would be even larger and louder. General von Fabeck was more subtle but still he was always asking for one more division and two more batteries of foot artillery claiming that was all he needed to simultaneously destroy the British First Army and take Abbeville after which he could begin rolling up the entire enemy line. Likewise General von Kluck was always clamoring for additional reinforcements warning that he if failed to receive them, First Army would be unable to hold back the nearly incessant attack of the French Second Army. General von Falkenhayn strongly suspected that the real reason von Kluck wanted reinforcements so badly is he that secretly planned to launch a full scale counterattack. The only silver lining in this mess was that it looked like it would be a long while if ever before OKW would be hoping to send any more reinforcements to Ireland.

He realized that he had been silent for nearly a minute and said, “Reinforcement is a complicated topic. It is too lengthy to discuss in detail. I will mention in passing that the Serbian campaign appears to be in its final phase and so some of our units there will soon become available for use elsewhere. Until then there is not much I can spare. Another independent Landwehr Brigade perhaps, and some more Landsturm battalions. Maybe a battery or two of foot artillery but that is about it.”

------SMS Kolberg ESE of Wick 1210 hrs

For the last few hours the High Seas Fleet was picking up British wireless transmissions, some in the clear and others in low level codes that the Kaiserlich Marine had broken, warning British merchantmen to avoid the area around the Orkney Islands and the Shetlands. Ships with destinations on Britain’s east coast were being rerouted to Glasgow. Despite this the German cruisers had already captured two small coastal steamers with cargoes of no great value as well as 3 fishing boats all of which they sank without a second thought. Kolberg now captured a 4,900 ton freighter out of Quebec hauling a cargo of nickel bound for Inverness. To reduce the chances of being captured by von Spee’s Atlantic Squadron she had taken a northern route across the Atlantic Ocean swinging well to the north of the Faeroe Islands then turning south towards the Moray Firth. She possessed a wireless but her captain had decided that his vessel was too close to his destination to turn back to Glasgow. When he was overtaken by Kolberg he tried to send off a wireless message to the Royal Navy but his wireless was weak and the Germans were able to jam the transmission.

When they discovered what the cargo was the Germans were keen to get their prize back to Germany and instructed the prize crew to head straight for it at the vessel’s maximum speed of 9 knots. There was some concern because a crude calculation showed that the vessel’s coal bunker could become exhausted before she reached Germany. It may become necessary to tow her the last 100 or so miles.

------northwest of Roscrea (Tipperary) 1300 hrs

General Sontag had redeployed the 111th Infantry Division and the units attached to it. He wanted his attack against the 39th Brigade at Roscrea to begin at noon but to his disgust his division was still not ready by then and so he postponed the attack by one hour. The attack now commenced with a 15 minute bombardment by all of the division’s batteries. The 39th Brigade had dug a single shallow trench line just under 5 miles long curving around Roscrea. There was only a single strand of barbed wire in front of the trench as that precious commodity was currently in very short supply in the VI Army Corps.

The 18 pounders of the LXVII Artillery Brigade which had been supporting the 39th Brigade tried to duel with their German batteries but were soon overpowered. The RGA battery armed with 60 pounders assigned to the neighboring Welsh Division may have been able to help but procedures had not been worked out to coordinate the artillery of Welsh Division with that of the 39th Brigade. The left and central sectors of the British trench line was hurt but not completely devastated by the German howitzers. Fortunately for the British defenders the pioneer company of the 111th Infantry Division was not able to get its minenwerfers within range.

Two battalions of the 76th Infantry Regiment were selected to make the assault. The regiment’s third battalion and the 1st American Volunteer Battalion were ready to act as a reserve if needed. The British guns remained silent as the German infantry crossed a wide no man’s land. As they drew closer though they found that while the shelling had hurt the British units in the trench they had not completely eliminated them. Vickers machineguns opened fire at long range and when the Germans advanced further there were supplemented by riflemen including some moved in from the right flank once the shelling stopped. The commander of the 76th Infantry Regiment had instructed the battalion commanders to withdraw if they encountered heavy resistance and this was what they now did. .

------New Ross (Wexford) 1310 hrs

Rommel had very little petrol left so he had not provided Pearse with enough to reach Cork. Pearse had hoped that there might be some available at either Gorey or Enniscorthy but that was not the case. Before leaving Enniscorthy someone managed to affix an Irish flag to the chassis of his motor car.

A detachment of 16 Irish Volunteers guarded the important bridge over the Barrow River at New Ross. They now stopped Pearse’s two motor cars. The guards were soon persuaded that Pearse was who he claimed to be and agreed to let him cross over the bridge, but Pearse nevertheless asked to speak with sergeant in charge of the detachment. “Do you have any petrol?” he asked, “We do not have enough to make it all the way to Cork.”

“I am sorry, Mr. President, but I do not have any petrol,” answered the sergeant.

Pearse chortled softly at being addressed that way and realized that he had best get used to it. “I see. Well then do you know if there is any we can get at Waterford town?”

“There might be, Mr. President, but then again there might not. I really dunna know one way or the other.”

“Thank you for being frank, sergeant. By any chance do you know if there is regular rail service out of Waterford?”

“Mr. President, I have been told that the Germans have been running some trains to Kilkenny since Saturday. There is a small I.R.A. detachment at Mullinavat station which is 13 maybe 14 miles west of here. If you go there and identify yourself, I would think there is an excellent chance that you could get passage back to Cork on one of those trains.”

“So either our forces or the Germans have taken Kilkenny? That is quite interesting. Do you have any idea when the next train coming back from Kilkenny will arrive at Mullinavat?”

‘I dunna know that either, Mr. President. I doubt that they are on anything resembling a regular schedule. T’is much more likely that the Germans send a train when they bloody feel like it, sir. You could be waiting for some time at Mullinavat.”

Pearse nodded slightly, “I understand that but nevertheless I think that is what I am going to do. My second motor car carries some extra bodyguards. From what you’ve told me I don’t think I will need them from here on. I shall send them back to Enniscorthy to join the Irish Volunteers there.” After saying that Pearse second guessed himself Am I taking the train because it will take longer? Am I deliberately trying to postpone my arrival at Cork? The orders from General von François said that I was to go to Waterford town first---but I do not take orders from General von François!

The sergeant shook his head, “I would take them with you all the way to Mullinavat, Mr. President. There have been reports of banditry throughout County Kilkenny.”

“Banditry you say?” replied Pearse with a heavy sigh. With sadness and shame he recalled the looting that had occurred during the Battle of Dublin.

“Yes, Mr. President, the banditry in Kilkenny is part and parcel of a much bigger problem, namely the general breakdown of order in much of the occupied territory.”

The occupied territory Pearse rolled that phrase over and over in his mind. He did not like the way it sounded even though he understood why it would strike many people as a rather obvious description of the situation. “What if anything is anybody doing about it?” he asked.

“Not enough if you ask me, Mr. President. The Germans tell us to keep order but they also tell us to gather supplies. Much of what we do strikes me as bordering on banditry.”

“Ah, but the bandits do it for themselves. You are doing it for a very noble cause.”

“I repeatedly tell myself that, Mr. President but I don’t always believe it.”

------HQ British VI Army Corps Portarlington (Queen’s) 1335 hrs

General Henry Wilson, the commander of the VI Army Corps, was inspecting the armored train made in Belfast that had arrived at the train station a few minutes ago. He decided to bring the three remaining journalists he had attached to his staff plus the photographer from the Daily Sketch. Wilson occasionally wondered what happened to the annoying American reporter C.P. Connolly. He hoped it was something horrible like being disemboweled or skinned alive by the Pope worshipping Irish savages. To the chagrin of his intelligence officer, Wilson permitted nay demanded that the newspaper photographer take several pictures of the train, half of which included the general as well. The train had passed through the Curragh on its way here and had been inspected by both General Hamilton and General Braithwaite. Wilson was virtually certain they also had their pictures taken beside her as well.

“This impressive machine, so meticulously constructed by the master craftsmen of Belfast, will be the instrument that seals the fate of the Papist traitors,” the general boasted to the reporters, “Now I will confess that I did give some thought to using it against the German cavalry at Maryborough but that is not necessary as the 11th Division is more than capable of doing that without assistance. So it is off to Athlone that this rolling fortress will go.”

General Wilson had been both outraged and embarrassed by the obvious lack of success that the U.V.F. was having at Athlone. He felt the prestige of Ulster and the Anglo-Irish was at stake. Confident that the 11th (Northern) Division would overwhelm the German cavalry at Maryborough he saw Athlone as the best use of the armored train.

------Glengariff (Cork) 1405 hrs

When the West Riding Division was sent to Ireland, the 1/5th Battalion York and Lancaster Regiment had been detached from it and sent to protect Berehaven naval base. In early May it had engaged the Bavarian Jäger Regiment in the Beara Peninsula during the disastrous German attempt to seize the naval base by coup de main. After that they harried the Jägers who were making a hurried withdrawal from the peninsula. The battalion commander was disappointed when he was ordered to remain behind inside the Beara Peninsula in the vicinity of Glengariff to guard against another German attempt to seize that very important naval base. He was soon shocked to learn that the 1st South Western Mounted Brigade had failed to smash the rebel force at Bantry but his superiors denied his request to come the aid of the yeomanry. He was permitted to send out some strong patrols and these sometimes clashed with the patrols of the West Cork Battalion. Initially the York and Lancaster men whipped the rebels in these engagements but of late the enemy had become more experienced and made good use of their superior knowledge of the local terrain so the results were not as lopsided. Both sides refrained from making an all out attack on the other.

With the arrival of the High Seas Fleet and the German second wave at Queenstown, the Royal Navy became concerned that the Germans would make another attempt to seize Berehaven this time by sea. To counter this threat the two Irish reserve battalions on the peninsula were stationed on Bere Island along with a company of Royal Marines. The 1/5th Battalion York and Lancaster was ordered to move 2 of its rifle companies plus 2 of its 4 machineguns to the tiny village of Adrigole where they could more quickly reinforce Berehaven. Some of these soldiers manned an observation post on Hungry Hill the tallest peak in the Caha Mountains. This left only half of the battalion at Glengariff. The battalion commander did not consider the rebels at Bantry to be much of a threat so he had not entrenched and only established a lone strong point and laid a single strand of barbed wire at the edge of town.

The 1st South Western Mounted Brigade had been raiding in both western Cork and southern Kerry. It had recently concentrated southeast of Lough Leane in an attempt to free the British prisoners held there and destroy the Zeppelin shed at Killarney. Despite having a battery of horse artillery, the yeomen had been effectively blocked by the 4th Kerry Battalion. One drawback of this operation was that the commander of 1/5th York and Lancaster was forced to send a platoon plus all 30 of the R.I.C. he had at his disposal to Kenmare to guard the yeomanry’s line of communication.

The British had no airplanes in this sector. The Admiralty had repeatedly debated stationing a seaplane in Bantry Bay but never approved it. The commander of the 1/5th York and Lancaster had made only half hearted attempts at using local AngloIrish Protestants as a source of intelligence. A report did reach him just before noon of German soldiers being seen in Bantry but the commander was not sure if he believed it and even if it was true, thought it could be no more than a single company as the main fighting in Ireland had long since moved very far from the Beara Peninsula. Soon after that he received word that the German fleet was no longer in Ireland so there was no longer any risk of a seaborne attack on Berehaven. The Admiralty had waited until the late morning to notify the base commander and he in turn took his own sweet time before passing it on. Using a telegraph the commander of the 1/5th York and Lancaster ordered the half of his battalion at Adrigole to rejoin the rest of the battalion at Glengariff but did not order them to hurry.

Near Reenmeen East a York and Lancaster patrol now encountered the South Cork Battalion. They very quickly realized that they were too badly outnumbered and fell back towards Glengariff sending a messenger to warn the battalion commander. The South Cork Battalion was the vanguard of Regiment Kurzbach. When the regiment reached Reenmeen West, Oberst Kurzbach sent the West Cork Battalion, the 10th Jäger Battalion and his Uhlan troop north on a narrow trail towards Carrigrour as a flanking maneuver. Meanwhile the West Cork Battalion closely followed by the 3rd American Volunteer Battalion pressed on west towards Glengariff. On the outskirts of the town where the dense woodlands thinned out they received a hot reception from the 1/5th York and Lancaster which while not entrenched were still behind good cover. Their two machineguns were well positioned and protected by sandbags. They were able to drive the South Cork Battalion back into the woods without much trouble.

The situation changed dramatically when a tiny British outpost north of the town was overwhelmed by the West Cork Battalion and the cyclist company of the 10th Jäger Battalion. One of the Tommies managed to escape to warn the battalion commander. Soon after this the South Cork Battalion renewed its attack reinforced by the 3rd American Volunteer Battalion. Realizing that he was outflanked by a force that included Germans as well as rebels the commander of the 1/5th York and Lancaster was forced to order an immediate retreat. This order was well executed allowing nearly all of the soldiers to escape but they did lose one of their machineguns and a third of their supplies. It might have been worse for them had the entire 10th Jäger Battalion and not just their bicycle company had kept up with the West Cork Battalion but the narrow trail they used had become muddy from protracted showers in the morning. The battalions heavily loaded wagons were greatly slowed and the except for their cyclists the Jägers did not move too far ahead of their wagons. The West Cork Battalion had carts instead of wagons and were slowed less. The Irishmen were also more willing to get further ahead of their supplies than the Jägers and they possessed better knowledge of the terrain.

They also took too long to notify the Jäger commander who to his profound disappointment arrived on the battlefield too late to participate. Major Kurzbach was upset as well when he learned of this though he was not completely surprised. While the I.R.A. often performed better than the low expectations of the Germans at the battalion level, handling them in larger formations was clearly problematic. Compounding that issue the Jägers tardy arrival was a bit embarrassing. The major did not have as much time as he would like to yell at as many people as he would like. The enemy had been defeated but was clearly not destroyed. A pursuit was necessary but there were risks to be considered. One concern was that Kurzbach had no idea how strong the enemy was to his north. An enemy counterattack from that direction could be very dangerous. He therefore sent his Uhlan troop and the West Cork Battalion back north with orders to try to liberate Kenmare. If they encountered weak enemy forces in the northeast corner they were to eliminate them. If the enemy forces were too strong to be eliminated they should try to contain them. And if the enemy proved too strong to be contained then they must at least slow them as much as possible while warning regiment HQ.

------Nealstown (Queen’s) 1430 hrs

General Sontag had thought that while his direct attack on Roscrea might succeed he did regard that outcome as probable. However even if it was repelled it would still serve as a pinning attack thereby enhancing the prospects for a flanking attack by the 73rd Fusilier Regiment. This attack now emerged from the hamlet of Nealstown on the border between County Tipperary and Queen’s County in some wooded foothills of the Slieve Bloom Mountains. From there they proceeded mostly downhill towards the right terminus of 39th Brigade’s trench line. A battery of 18 pounders was turned around at the last minute and inflicted some losses on the attackers but the Germans were too close to their objective by then and were soon rolling up the British trench line. The British guns soon withheld their fire for fear of hitting their own men.

The fighting in the trench was fierce. The British defenders were both stubborn and desperate but once again the Germans put their hand grenades to good use while all the defenders had were a few jam tin bombs.

------SMS Dresden north of Kirkwall 1435 hrs

Late yesterday an AMC of the British 10th Cruiser Squadron had stopped the Queen of Sheba, a 3,900 ton American freighter out of Baltimore bound for Hamburg with a cargo of pork bellies. The British had not yet declared food to be contraband so if that had been her only cargo they would have been forced to let her continue on her way. However one of the members of the boarding party discovered that the Queen of Sheba was also hauling some copper ingots which the crew had tried to hide. They had nearly gotten away with it but the experienced blue jackets of the boarding party could sense that the Americans were very nervous and so took longer than usual searching. Upon discovering the copper they decided to send the Queen of Sheba into Kirkwall to be impounded.

Dresden now stopped the Queen of Sheba to verify her identity. Their boarding party captured the blue jackets whose leader had considered putting up a fight but at the last minute decided to surrender. The American captain then resumed steaming towards Hamburg.

------Curraghboy (Roscommon) 1455 hrs

The Sligo and Roscommon Support Companies had been able to rendezvous with the Roscommon and Cavan Battalions just north of the village of Curraghboy due in large part to the Black Sheep Squadron harassing and distracting the pursuing Ulster Volunteers. The commandants of those two battalions had wanted to then return to Athlone straightaway but St. James persuaded them to fight a holding action against the Orangemen at Curraghboy which lay between two large lakes that made it more difficult to for the enemy to outflank them.

The Ulster Volunteers had become spread out as a result of St. James’ feints. About 500 of them in the lead encountered a company of the Roscommon Battalion northwest of Curraghboy. The rebels fled at the approach of the enemy who pursued. The fleeing company led them back to where the rest of their battalion as well as the Cavan Battalion lay behind relatively good cover. The men and women of the two support companies were there as well. Usually the support companies were not supposed to engage in combat. However the commandant of the Sligo Support Company had practically begged for his company to be included in order to avenge the massacre of the 4th North Ireland Battalion at Sligo. This put pressure on the commandant of the Roscommon Support Company to make a similar request. The commandants of the combat battalions who feared that they could be outnumbered more than two to one reluctantly accepted this offer. For a similar reason they permitted the infantry component of the Black Sheep Squadron to fight beside them when St. James offered it.

It was this combined force that opened fire on the Ulstermen as they chased after their prey. They did not immediately retreat but instead their decided that he could overrun the rebel defences. Only when this attempt ended badly did he order a retreat. When additional Ulster Volunteers arrived another charge was attempted and once again it was repelled. After that the Ulster Volunteers tried to assemble their entire force for one massed assault.

As they were massing Cornelius had his cavalry troop with him. What he was most interested in the wagons and carts in which the Ulster Volunteers hauled their supplies. As the Ulstermen massed the contingent guarding the supplies grew smaller and smaller. When it dropped to about 150 men he decided that his moment of truth had come. In addition to his cavalry men he had Dr. Goddard and his rockets. There were also two Irish Volunteers that the doctor had trained to assist him with his weapons. They had set up more than a third of his rockets behind a small rise that was in range of the supply wagons. The doctor and his assistants began firing off the rockets towards where the wagons were. This startled the Ulstermen who were guarding them but they were relieved when the rockets fell short. Soon after hitting ground most of the rockets emanated a billowing cloud of white smoke. This was because the warhead of the rockets contained Fenian fire, which was white phosphorous in carbon disulfide solution. When exposed to air the carbon disulfide quickly evaporated and then the white phosphorus ignited causing the disulfide fumes to burn as well.

Scratching their heads the Orangemen stared at the white cloud of smoke. Out of the cloud there emerged dark skinned men on horseback galloping down on them. Cornelius was in the lead. He had his rifle on his shoulder. He alone had a lance, one of those metal lances that German cavalrymen use. However after spearing one Ulstermen he switched to using his saber, though at one point he also used the sawed off shotgun he carried. Even though the Ulster Volunteers outnumbered their attackers more than three to one the presence of horsemen in their midst spawned panic amongst these inexperienced troops.

Some of St. James’ men wanted to chase after the fleeing Ulstermen some of whom had dropped their rifles, which turned out be Mausers to Cornelius’ amusement. He forbade the pursuit feeling that there was too much risk that the enemy might rally and become dangerous. Instead he told his men to make off with the wagons. The carts ended up being too difficult for his troop to handle quickly so Cornelius ordered them left behind. His men then scurried off with their prizes.

------Mountrath (Queen’s) 1540 hrs

The 11th (Northern) Division had marched hard towards Maryborough. The 34th Brigade on the division’s left wing had ejected the 26th Dragoon Regiment from the town of Mountrath. Its left flank now came under attack from the 183rd Infantry Brigade which had done as General von François had strongly suggested and hid itself whenever possible in the dense woodlands of the Slieve Bloom Mountains from which it now emerged. Being ordered to attack a cavalry division, General Sitwell, the acting commander of the 11th (Northern) realized at a mounted counterattack against his flanks was highly probable and established what he thought was an adequate guard on each flank. However the 9th Battalion Lancashire Fusiliers which guarded his left flank was insufficient to handle an entire brigade of infantry and was soon forced to retreat. This forced the 34th Brigade to make a hurried pivot in order to prevent the complete collapse of the division’s left flank. This caused them to leave Mountrath occupied by only half of the 5th Battalion Dorsetshire.

The 34th Brigade slowed the advance of the 183rd Infantry Brigade but was only able to stop it when the 18 pounders of the LIX Artillery Brigade were rushed into action. The 183rd Infantry Brigade only had its lone battery of 7.7cm field guns to counter them which proved inadequate. The attack of the 183rd Infantry Brigade was stopped by the British artillery. However it had succeeded in making General Sitwell extremely apprehensive. He did not have many artillery shells and the LIX Artillery Brigade had fired off all of its shells. He did not know the strength of the enemy forces on his left flank and feared that it could be an entire division. He therefore halted the 11th (Northern Division) at Mountrath until he could get a clearer picture of his tactical situation.

------Athlone (Westmeath) 1605 hrs

While Athlone was officially under the jurisdiction of the Northern Region and not VI Army Corps, General Wilson did not cable their HQ that he was sending the armored train there until long after it departed Portarlington. Communications between Northern Region and the mostly U.V.F. forces near Athlone were not good due to the nightly cutting of communication wires by small cells of rebels operating in Leinster and Ulster. The wires were once again cut and so messengers were needed.

The train now arrived at Athlone before the messengers. Initially the British flags it waved were ignored by both sides. Previously the armored train had been German and so it was assumed that this one was German as well even though it came from the southeast. The Ulster Volunteers assumed it was hostile and were afraid. The Irish Volunteers assumed it was friendly and some of them even waved at it when it pulled up to the train station. Then the machineguns opened fire along with rifles poking out of firing slits in certain armored boxcars. These massacred the Irish Volunteers except for one who managed to escape with only a shoulder wound. At that quick victory a period of confusion ensued as the I.R.A. learned that the train was not their friend.

It was a while before the armored train’s cannons first fired. While it had seized one of Athlone’s two train stations with ease it had not made contact with friendly forces. From a distance its crew had troubling distinguishing the I.R.A. from the U.V.F. as except for the officers few of the men on either side wore true uniforms, often just armbands with either IRA or UVF written in large letters. The train’s crew had been told that the rebels controlled the West Bank and much of the East Bank with the U.V.F. in a rough arc east and south. Eventually the train fired a few rounds into one section near the bridge that it was nearly sure was controlled by the rebels.

The tactical situation slowly came together for the Ulster Volunteers buoyed by the presence of a friendly amored train once they mounted a renewed attack. This time they were able to push the rebels back with the help of the train, though their own casualties remained heavy. Before sunset the Ulstermen had captured the other rail station and had pushed most of the rebels over to the west bank of the Shannon, though the some of the rebels continued to hold out immediately in front of the bridges.

------Rathdowney (Queen’s) 1635 hrs

In the early morning the 6th Bavarian Infantry Division and the Erzherzog Karl Division had almost simultaneously discovered that the British had abandoned Templemore. When General von François discovered this he instructed General von Gyssling to take over Templemore and the area immediately to its east. Feldmarschalleutnant Krauss was ordered to swing around wide to the east and proceed to the town of Rathdowney in Queen’s County. One of the Czech battalions closely accompanied by the 1st Tipperary Battalion now entered the town after easily eliminating 10 constables. There was a small Irish Volunteers ‘company’ in Rathdowney. In the next 2 hours 39 men and 2 women were absorbed into the 1st Tipperary Battalion.

------al-Fashir (Darfur) 1655 hrs

Ali Dinar, the Sultan of Darfur, had never been very fond of the British. Back in 1898 when the British had crushed the Mahdists at Omdurman, their intent had been to include Darfur in the sphere of the British-Egyptian Condominium government that would administer the Sudan. However Ali Dinar had deposed a British puppet here at the capital and proclaimed himself Sultan of a resurrected Fur Kingdom. The British decided to negotiate with Ali Dinar, who agreed to pay an annual tribute and recognize the suzerainty of the Sudanese government, though Ali Dinar thought he owed his true allegiance to the Caliph in Istanbul. Since then Ali Dinar gained the impression that the British regarded the black skinned Furs as being inferior to the Arabs.

There were a series of problems with the Arab tribes within Darfur. To counter this problem, Sultan Ali-Dinar put Khalil Abd ar-Rahman, one of his most trusted lieutenants in charge of policing the border region. In1913 Khalil crossed the border with Sudan in hot pursuit of a large party of Zaiyadia Arabs. This incident was viewed by many within the British bureaucracy as a brazen challenge to their own authority. While the Inspector General of the Sudan government, Rudolf von Slatin Pasha continued to counsel a conciliatory policy towards Ali Dinar, he was unable to prevent Wingate the Governor General at Khartoum from making a shift in policy towards using the Arab tribes to undermine Ali Dinar’s authority.

Then came the war in Europe. The Ottoman Sultan, Muhammad Rashad V acting in his role as the Caliph declared a jihad against the Entente Because Ali Dinar was known to regard the Ottoman Sultan as his true ruler, General Wingate provided his inspectors at Kordofan with ample funds to conduct espionage activities. Meanwhile the Austrian born von Slatin had been dismissed at the onset of the Great War and forced to leave the Sudan as a possible security risk despite having served in the Egyptian Army since 1879. His absence accentuated the trend towards the British officials at Khartoum and Kordofan siding more and more with the local Arabs. In early 1915 the Kababish Arabs which were based out of Kordofan raided Darfur’s eastern frontier. Ali Dinar appealed to the government at Khartoum for assistance. At first they turned down his request completely as they felt that the Kababish as being more important to British interests than the Furs. When Ali Dinar continued to press for assistance the British made the token gesture of support by sending him a mere 1,000 rounds of ammunition which the Sultan regarded as a personal insult.

The news about the war that eventually reached al-Fashir caused the sultan to believe things were going badly for the Entente and esp. the British, whose vaunted navy had suffered two crippling defeats. Then there had come word that Abyssinia had joined the Central Powers and seized French Somaliland with some assistance from the Ottoman Empire. Ali Dinar had his own sources of intelligence inside the Sudan which informed him of the arrival of reinforcements brought down from Egypt. At first he worried that these units were intended to be used to invade his kingdom and depose him. He later learned that their mission was instead to bolster Zauditu’s forces in an attempt to .overthrow Iyasu. He also recently learned from Ottoman agents that an AngloIndian expedition to Mesopotamia had been largely destroyed with only a few remnants hurriedly evacuated by sea leaving their weapons and stores behind. Despite repeated British attempts to obfuscate the matter as being only a minor setback, this stunning Ottoman success greatly enhanced the prestige of the Ottoman Empire amongst most Muslims.

Now a messenger from one of his spies arrived on a near dead horse requesting an immediate audience with the sultan saying that he had important news. “Your Majesty, the British expedition into Abyssinia together with Zauditu’s forces were defeated by Iyasu’s army at Dessie and are now retreating back towards Gondar. General Wingate has begun to dispatch reinforcements to Gondar.”

“Hmm well this is excellent news. Do you know if the Abyssinian army is pursuing them?”

“I was not told anything about that, Your Majesty. In fact I know nothing more than what I have already told you.”

The sultan stared at the messenger for a few seconds then shrugged saying, “It would be better if we knew more, but then again isn’t that always the case? Still what you do know is excellent news and you have done your very best to bring it to me as quickly as possible. Leave now and return to your master telling him that I am pleased but eager to learn more. My clerks will reward you on the way out.”

The messenger departed. The sultan then summoned his ministers and told them, “I have received word that the British have stumbled badly in Abyssinia. We have been waiting for the right time. I say that the time is now.”

------ HQ Army Group Crown Prince Rupprecht, Kragujevac (Serbia) 1705 hrs

General Conrad Krafft von Dellmensingen had arrived at Tenth Army HQ nearly two hours earlier. He had been Kronprinz Rupprecht’s chief of staff back at Sixth Army and they had a good relationship. They were now having dinner together.

“You cannot begin to imagine how difficult it was working with Ludendorff,” said Rupprecht, “That man was completely insufferable.”

Since coming to work at OKW von Dellmensingen knew that von Moltke regarded Ludendorff with a complicated ambivalence. At one level he still admired Ludendorff’s dedication, strategic insight and organizational prowess but he also despised what he regarded as the man’s disloyalty, crassness and budding megalomania. Ludendorff’s deep seated antipathy towards von François was also well known at OKW. “Your Royal Highness, at OKW we were constantly trying to repair the ill will he was stirring up with the Austrians. The Feldmarschal had many a difficult telephone call with Conrad on account of Operation Tourniquet.”

Rupprecht imbibed some wine then grinned slightly and said, “From what I’ve heard nearly all telephone calls with Conrad are difficult.”

His former chief of staff grinned in return, “All too true, Your Royal Highness but some telephone calls are more difficult than others.”

“I can imagine though I would prefer not to. To be fair, our problems with the Austrian Third Army were not all due to Ludendorff. General Tersztyánsky has not been easy to work with.”

“You will get no argument from me about that, Your Royal Highness. For some reason that eludes us at OKW he seems to be one of Conrad’s favorites.”

“He is not completely incompetent,” the Kronprinz conceded with a modicum of sarcasm, “And I readily admit that my headstrong chief of staff made matters worse. However despite the setbacks some avoidable some not, the campaign is now wrapping up satisfactorily, yes?”

“Yes, it is, Your Royal Highness. Now that Nish has been taken and the rail line to the Ottoman Empire opened, it seems that the major strategic objectives have been achieved.”

Rupprecht sipped a little more wine. He raised his left forefinger and replied, “One still remains. The elimination of the Serbian Army.”

“You are of course, quite correct, Your Royal Highness. However the Serbian Army has been soundly thrashed and on the run. Surely their government will see the handwriting on the wall and negotiate surrender terms.”

“You would think so but the Serbs are a remarkably stubborn people,” said the prince. He turned to his food and ate some spätzle, while von Dellmensingen cut another piece of his own veal. As he started to chew Rupprecht asked almost coyly, “So which of my corps is OKW interested in and what do they intend to do with it?”

General von Dellmensingen momentarily choked on his meat. As he did his former superior taunted, “Well? Please do not deny that is why you are here. I know you too well Conrad.”

“Uh, I was instructed to make inquiries about the availability of XIV Army Corps---“

“---which just happens to be my strongest corps,” Rupprecht interrupted.

“Yes, it is, Your Excellency. We would be willing to consider the XXXIX Reserve Corps as a possible alternative.”

To von Dellmensingen’s relief, the prince seemed more cynically bemused than offended. “Well then we are finally getting somewhere, but assuming that I give you either of those units, you haven’t answered my question about what you intend to do with it.”

Von Dellmensingen hesitated before answering that, drinking some of his wine. He finally decided that there was no strong reason to hold back. “You know about Conrad’s Galician offensive, yes?”

Rupprecht nodded and answered, “Yes, but only vaguely. It is making some progress, yes?”

“That is correct, Your Royal Highness, though not as quickly as Conrad had predicted.”

“And OKW is surprised by that?”

“Not really, Your Royal Highness. If anything it is exceeding our expectations. We feel that the modest success it is enjoying is due to Center Army and General von Linsingen, its capable commander.”

“So you want XIV Army Corps in order to reinforce von Linsingen’s Center Army?”

“No, Your Royal Highness, what we intend to do is form a new mixed Austrian and German formation called South Army to attack the juncture between the Russian Eighth and Ninth Armies. This will greatly aid Conrad’s Galician campaign and completely disrupt the Russian offensive in the Bukovina which should help us persuade the Rumanians to become our allies. You should be delighted to learn that Prince Leopold has agreed to come out of retirement to command South Army.”

Rupprecht’s right eyebrow arched at this and he grinned, “Yes, this is very interesting. I would love to see him in action. It would greatly enhance Bavarian prestige. However is what you are trying to tell me that this plan is contingent on the availability of either XIV Army Corps or XXXIX Reserve Corps?”

“I am afraid so, Your Royal Highness. The Heer is rather stretched at this time.”

“So I have been told. I must confess that I am bit confused about the correct chain of command in this situation though. I send reports to both von Moltke and von Falkenhayn but as I understand it the only reason your organization is involved is because it is an operation where we are fighting alongside our allies.”

“That is correct, Your Royal Highness, which is why OKW is in charge. As the new South Army is also a formation that also includes allies there is no need to involve OHL,” von Dellmensingen stated firmly as if it was a fact of common knowledge. He was very well aware that there were many German generals starting with von Falkenhayn who would see things very differently. He knew that his former superior continued to feel enmity towards von Falkenhayn at being removed from the command of Sixth Army because he refused to use poison gas. He hoped that enmity along with their friendship would make Rupprecht see things his way.

For nearly a minute the prince stared hard at his friend while sipping his wine. Von Dellmensingen tried his best to look sincere. Finally Rupprecht asked, “OKW still controls the railroads, yes?”

This surprised von Dellmensingen a little but then realized that Rupprecht was not completely fooled. “Yes, that is correct, Your Royal Highness.”

After a few seconds Rupprecht chortled, “Really my good friend, you know that von Falkenhayn will find out about this little subterfuge you are attempting sooner or later. Probably sooner. That man has his shortcomings but stupidity is not one of them.”

“If presented with a fait accompli it will be difficult for him to back out of an operation that involves our allies, Your Royal Highness.”

“Difficult but not impossible. The Kaiser still backs him. He may use this as an excuse to remove control of the railroads from OKW.”

“We do not think he will do that, Your Royal Highness,” replied von Dellmensingen even though he was not completely sure. After a few seconds he added, “If the operation achieves the quick success we expect it to, his hands will be tied.”

Rupprecht carefully cut a sizable piece of his veal. He speared it with his knife instead of his fork and instead of eating it right away raised it up in front of his face. Looking at the tasty morsel he said, “So it behooves us both to ensure that it does succeed quickly, which means I should give Prince Leopold XIV Army Corps not XXXIX Reserve Corps.”

“Our sentiments exactly, Your Royal Highness.”

“I will give this topic some thought. Perhaps I will decide that this conversation never took place. Or perhaps I will reach another decision.”

Rupprecht then devoured the veal on the tip of his knife.

------Ballybrophy (Queen’s) 1845 hrs

While the 73rd Fusilier Regiment was busy rolling up the British trench line near Roscrea, the 1st Seebattalion and 2nd American Volunteer Battalion were ordered by General Sontag to advance from Nealstown through Borris-in-Ossory. If they did not encounter heavy resistance they were to try to take the key railroad junction at Ballybrophy, which they now attacked There were 30 constables at Ballybrophy. Usually when badly outnumbered esp. by Germans, the R.I.C. would fire a few shots and then flee if they could in their motor vehicles. This time they were out of petrol and fought hard for more than an hour. Then some who had fired off all their ammunition surrendered and this inspired those who still had ammunition to surrender as well.

------Maryborough (Queen’s) 1955 hrs

Pearse had arrived at Mullinavat without incident. He contacted the small local I.R.A. detachment and persuaded their leader that he was who he claimed to be. Pearse learned that southbound trains did not stop at Mullinavit. Northbound trains did stop there. This was because the Germans had assigned the Mullinavit Company the job of rounding up draught animals and supplies like food. What they collected was loaded aboard the train. Ironically they had some petrol at one time but had sent that it all off on a morning train. Pearse decided he would donate his two motor cars to the German as a gesture of good faith. He ended up waiting a little more than three hours before a train arrived. Only then did he learn that their destination was Maryborough not Kilkenny. Pearse realized that this would delay his arrival in Cork still more but he accepted that. So far he had experienced the Irish campaign only in Dublin and Wicklow. He knew little of what was going on in the rest of Ireland and had only the vague impression that the British had the Germans bottled up inside Munster.

Pearse decided to bring his drivers and bodyguards with him to Maryborough. The train trip was uneventful. There was only one passenger car. Besides Pearse and his entourage there were only 4 passengers. Three of them were military, a leutnant accompanied by a unteroffizier and a gefreiter. The fourth was a civilian but when Pearse tried to engage him in conversation it soon became obvious that he too was a German. None of the Germans knew more than a few words of English. Rommel had started to teach Pearse some German but he still did feel comfortable conversing in it esp. with a stranger. One of his bodyguards had a better knowledge of German and tried to talk with the German officer but did not find him very friendly. In fact he seemed a bit suspicious of the Irishmen and when told that Pearse was the acting president of the provisional Irish government was unimpressed. The leutnant refused to discuss details of the Irish campaign bluntly telling the Irishmen that he did need to know those things. He did reveal that he was some sort of staff officer who needed to discuss logistics with the German unit at Maryborough, which he took pains not to identify. The leutnant did say that the German civilian was an official who was being assigned administrative responsibilities at Maryborough.

The train seemed to be going slower than Pearse remembered Irish trains normally going. He discussed this oddity with his entourage. One of his drivers speculated that it might be to conserve coal which struck Pearse as an interesting hypothesis as Ireland was not even close to being self sufficient in coal.

The train now pulled into Maryborough station. Pearse learned that it would be leaving at 2215 hrs. He was finally told that the German unit here was the 7th Cavalry Division and that its current headquarters was set up in an office building a short walk from the station. With his entourage in tow, Pearse walked over to the divisional headquarters hoping to be able to talk to the division’s commander. When he entered the lobby of the building a unteroffizier who spoke English but with a very thick accent, did not care much one way or another if Pearse really was the provisional Irish president. In very blunt terms he informed Pearse that General von Unger was too busy to see him. He suggested instead that Pearse speak with Peter Clancy, the commander of the Maryborough Company who also had a small office in the building. Pearse decided to do just that.

He left his entourage in the lobby and went to the room as instructed by the unteroffizier. The door was half open. Pearse could hear two men talking. He poked his head inside. He could see two men. One was seated behind a small desk and wore an I.R.A. officer’s tunic with lieutenant’s insignia. The other man was seated in a chair. He had no uniform but wore armbands marked IRA.

“Excuse me for interrupting, gentleman, but I am looking for Lieutenant Peter Clancy,” said Pearse.

“Y’er lookin’ at him,” replied the lieutenant, “And who are you? You wear a uniform that is not the standard issue.”

“I am Padraig Pearse. I do hope that name means something to you.”

Clancy’s jaw dropped and he nearly fell out of his chair. After a few seconds he stammered, “You, I mean you are---“

“---Yes, yes, I am he. Among other things I claim to be the head of the provisional Irish Republic.”

“We had heard that you were dead!” said the other soldier in the office who was just as flabbergasted as the lieutenant.

“The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated,” said Pearse.

The others chuckled at that. “I’m afraid that I can’t take credit for that quip,” said Pearse, “The late American author Mark Twain came up it.”

“Well it is wonderful that you are alive, Mr. Pearse,” said Clancy, “Heaven knows we have lost so many of our leaders in Dublin. Why may I ask are you here?”

Pearse grinned slightly then shrugged, “I was on my way to Cork to set up an Irish government and to confer with General von François. My being here is something of a detour on account of the odd way the Germans have the trains running. My train won’t be leaving for another two hours. I thought I would try to familiarize myself with the strategic situation at the front line. I was really hoping to speak with General von Unger, but that doesn’t look like it is going to happen anytime soon.”

“The general is in fact very busy right now. There has been heavy fighting in the last few hours west of here near Mountrath. The Germans have warned us to be prepared to withdraw to either Abbeyleix, Castlecomer or even Carlow on a moment’s notice. For a while today they were very seriously considering not sending trains up here due to the danger posed by enemy artillery. It is very possible that you arrived on the last train that is going to make it here for some time. For your sake let us hope the train going back does not have any trouble.”

“I hope so too. Has your company seen any action?”

“Well that depends on what you mean by action, Mr. Pearse. We were thoroughly disarmed soon after the Germans landed and the situation wasn’t rectified until yesterday afternoon when the German cavalry showed up. None of my men has fired a single round from their rifles yet---well at least that I know of. The Germans are not keen on throwing my boys into combat right away and quite frankly neither am I. As we speak 2 of my 3 platoons are working hard helping the Germans dig a trench line about midway between Mountrath and here. However I must point out that even when we lacked for arms, we did what we could to hamper the British. By night we would disobey the curfew and go out and cut telegraph and telephone wires with considerable success. We also tried to damage the railroad tracks which proved very hard to do without explosives of which we had none, though on occasion we made them unusable for a few hours. More than a dozen were killed or captured trying to damage the tracks.”

Pearse preferred direct action to guerilla tactics, but nonetheless he knew he should be grateful that the Irish Volunteers of Maryborough Company had been able to do what they could to help the cause. “Your men have done what they could but be warned that in the days ahead more, perhaps much more, will be required of them.”

Clancy sighed, “The Germans tell me pretty much the same thing.”

“So do you everything the Germans tell you to do?”

“Yes, I do, sir. They are supposed to be the experts when it comes to warfare, right? We are just a bunch of amateurs.”

That response left a sour taste in Pearse’s mouth. He wasn’t sure about how he should reply. Finally he said, “I think you are being too harsh on yourself. I have seen with my own eyes what the Irish Volunteers are capable of both during the Battle of Dublin and our subsequent campaign in the Wicklow Mountains.”

“Ah, but you had the Green Fox helping you.”

“The Green Fox?” asked Pearse though in the back of his mind he quickly formed a guess.

“Why Major Rommel of course. That’s what most of Ireland likes to call him,” replied Clancy. The other soldier then asked, “Is Rommel still alive? There have been rumors that he died as well.”

“Oh, he’s alive and kicking,” Pearse answered, “Though he did take a nasty wound soon after he arrived in Dublin.”

“We’d love to hear what you have to say about Rommel,” said Clancy. This annoyed Pearse a little as these Irish Volunteers seemed more interested in a German officer than their fellow Irishmen. But before he could speak Clancy turned to the other soldier and said, “I betcha that American reporter Connolly would love to meet the acting head of the Irish Republic and listen to his Rommel stories. Why don’t you be a good lad and go fetch him.”

As the soldier left, Pearse asked, “An American reporter, eh? I guess he must have come over with that American Volunteer Brigade I heard about. I ran into some of those brave Sons of Hibernia when I passed through Enniscorthy.”

Clancy shook his head, “You guess wrong, sir. C.P. as he prefers to be called was in Dublin when the Germans first landed writing a story about James Connolly for a magazine called Colliers which he claims is very popular with Irish-Americans. Of the American reporters in Ireland at that time, the British felt that he was the most worthy to cover the Irish campaign. Before too long he ended up at General Wilson’s headquarters which is called VI Corps. After a while C.P. became upset with the information the British were feeding him, which he rightly suspected was very distorted. When Wilson abruptly moved his headquarters from here to Portarlington, Mr. Connolly hid himself in a stable. Afterwards he revealed himself to some of my men who thought he might be a horse thief. They brought him to the Germans who thought he might be spying for the British. They left him in my custody and told me to keep an eye on him. At first I was a bit suspicious myself but as I’ve gotten to know him better I find myself more and more inclined to accept his story.”

A minute later the Irish Volunteer returned with Connolly and made the introduction, “Mr. C.P. Connolly this is Mr. Patrick Pearse, the head of the provisional government of the Irish Republic. He is on his way to Cork.”

Connolly stepped forward and extended his right hand, “Glad to meet you, Mr. Pearse---or should I call you, Mr. President?”

“You can call Padraig if you’d like, Mr. Connolly. Like many an Irishmen, I am not a stickler for formality.”

“Was that ‘Patrick’ you just said? My hearing seems to be a wee bit off. And you can call me C.P. if you like.”

Pearse smiled slightly, “Padraig is the proper Irish form of ‘Patrick’, C.P. The Irish language is an important part of our struggle for our own cultural identity.”

“OK. Well then Padraig, I understand that you have a train to catch Shall we get started?’

“Fire away, C.P.”

------Windau (Courland) 2135 hrs

After the capture of Goldingen General von Marwitz ordered the 2nd Cavalry Division to try to take the Baltic port of Windau by coup de main. The defenders consisted of 2 opolchenie battalions, a Cossack cavalry squadron and a small detachment of Russian naval shore personnel. The lead squadron now approached the city and in the dark encountered a patrol from one of the opolchenie battalions. Both sides were surprised but the more experienced German cavalrymen recovered from it faster than the minimally trained opolchenie whom they outnumbered. In a short period of time during which they made good use of their lances and sabers they killed most of the enemy. A few were captured and three managed to escape into the darkness. One of these ran as hard as he could and warned the city minutes before the German squadron arrived and it soon became evident that it could not take the city by itself.

The rest of the division began to arrive in the next hour. Less than half of the opolchenie had a rifle and those rifles they had were Berdan single shot weapons. They had not had time to prepare defenses but they did have the advantage of defending an urban area. When the dismounted cavalry pressed forward in strength in the dark they defeated a band of opolchenie at the entrance to the city but then had trouble making progress in the alleyways and we soon forced into house to house combat. The cavalrymen were fatigued after a grueling ride from Goldingen so before long General Brecht, the commander of the 2nd Cavalry Division, reluctantly concluded that he would not be able to complete the capture of the port before dawn. He therefore ordered a halt to the attack while cordoning off the city to prevent Russian reinforcements from arriving.

------Mountrath (Queen’s) 2200 hrs

General Schußler, the commander of the 183rd Infantry Brigade, decided that with the enemy being much stronger than him in artillery his only hope was to attack by night. The 11th (Northern) Division had remained fairly static in the late afternoon as General Sitwell, its acting commander continued to be deeply worried about his left flank He had permitted 2 battalions from his right wing to probe towards Maryborough. These encountered determined resistance from dismounted German cavalry. The infantry were able to slowly drive the enemy back but by dusk they were still too far from Maryborough to bring their artillery to bear on the town.

Late in the afternoon General Sitwell ordered his left flank to begin to entrench. He decided against using up the little bit of barbed wire he had left. Moonrise was hours away and there was enough cloud cover to obscure the stars. Parachute flares were soon fired into the air and almost immediately British machineguns and then riflemen opened fire. In the darkness and without any wire an appreciable number of the German attackers did get close enough to the British trenches to hurl grenades. A few even managed to get inside a trench and indulge in the wonderful bludgeoning and stabbing of trench warfare. The German 183rd Infantry Brigade only had a modest superiority in numbers over the British 34th Brigade and that was not enough to prevail under these circumstances. However their attack did cause the commander of the 34th Brigade some tense moments esp. as reports tend to become even more distorted at night than during the day. These concerns were relayed to General Sitwell who became even more apprehensive. .

------Le Crotoy (Picardy) 2210 hrs

The threat of the High Seas Fleet returning to the English Channel had caused the nighttime flow of supplies using trawlers to the small fishing port of Le Crotoy to be suspended the last two nights. The British First Army had been underfed for more than a month. They were now close to outright starvation. Desertions were starting to become noticeable esp. amongst the Indian battalions. To Haig’s discomfort more horses were being slaughtered for food though nearly all of these had been reduced to skin and bones as well. In the past Haig had insisted that at least half of the supplies landed at Le Crotoy be ammunition but this time it was only about a fifth of the cargo and that was mostly .303 rounds as Second Army was hoarding artillery shells.

In the past the most that had been landed at Le Crotoy had been only slightly more than 100 tons. The British and the French on this occasion were ordered to do their utmost to land at least 150 tons. As usual long range German artillery began pummeling Le Crotoy at dusk and continued shelling through the night. The B.E.F. remained very short on shells and so could not afford to try to suppress the German batteries. Even though most of the seamen manning the trawlers have become accustomed to the shelling and so were no longer completely terrified, they had also seen what a shell to do when it bursts nearby and so it still intimidated them to some degree.

The organization of the landing of the trawlers had slowly improved in the last two weeks. What was not improving but getting worse was the distribution of supplies once the supplies were offloaded. This was due to the famished state of First Army’s remaining draught animals. The fact that the soldiers of the A.S.C. companies were in only slightly better shape did not help either. Supplies started to pile up on the shore and this eventually interfered with the unloading process. A trawler was hit a German shell and set ablaze creating a hazard the other fishing vessels and providing some light that helped the German gunners improve their aim. When the night was over maybe 120 tons had been landed.

------Skibbereen (Cork) 2240 hrs

Liam Kerns was alone with his wife, Una. “The Germans were always uncomfortable with having women in combat units. In fact they would prefer to have no women in the I.R.A. at all but as a compromise they’ve been willing assign women to those units filling support duties,” he told her, “So Rommel and the other Krauts were always pestering Flynn to send you and the other women to one of the support companies. Joe wouldn’t do it and after he died I refused as well. Oddly this was one of the few issues were Barry agreed with Rommel instead of Joe. Now I think maybe Rommel was right after all.”

Una was completely surprised by this and replied, “What has come over you, Liam? Is it something I did in battle today that makes you think that I cannot function in battle? Or is it the other women in the---“

“---It has nothing to do with what happened during the battle. It has to do with what happened afterwards.”

“I don’t understand what you be tellin’ me, Liam,” Una started to say. Then her voice trailed off and after a few seconds she added, “Unless you are referring to---“

“---Yes, that is exactly what I am referring to.”

“But, but I still don’t understand what you mean, my love.”

“We both made enemies today, Una, and I’m not talking about the local Prots, though heaven knows many of them will hate us as well. Some of them with good reason. No I am talking about some of the men in this unit. I had hoped that the worst apples, those who worshipped Flynn not for what he did right but for the evil he spawned, had all run off with Barry. But deep in my heart we still have some left and from what I’ve seen today it’s worse than I feared. I am sure that right there are those who are telling their friends that I am wrong to sentence O’Connor to death because he didn’t kill that woman’s husband and hadn’t had his turn at raping her. They will say that I should have let O’Connor off with a whipping. In my mind I can hear this conversation going on. It is for this reason I think you should leave this unit.’

Una shook her red hair vigorously, “You start off making some good points me darlin’. If you be askin’ me to leave because you think you are in danger and fear that I might be as well then we need each other more than ever. We have stood side by side facing danger from the damn Brits more than once. I will not abandon you now just because there is a possible threat from our own men.”

------east of Vilna (Lithuania) 2300 hrs

The Russian Second Army was reinforced with another second line division in the late afternoon along with a very modest shipment of supplies. Northwestern Front was continuing to pressure General Smirnov, the commander of the Second Army to make a maximum effort to rescue the trapped garrison at Vilna. He assigned the new reserve division to the XXXV Army Corps and ordered that corps to make another night attack, which was to include the new division. The commander of the XXXV Army Corps protested that the men of this division were badly fatigued after a hard march and should be allowed more rest before being thrown into an assault but Smirnov refused to alter his orders.

Since yesterday’s predawn attack had been repelled the German VIII Army Corps and XXXV Army Corps along with the 5th and 9th Cavalry Divisions had been working continuously to improve their entrenchments and had laid down another strand of barbed wire. Until Vilna fell their own supply line was a bit awkward so their batteries had remained quiet but alert. There was no moonlight this time but the parties of engineers that the Russians sent out soon after last light to open up lanes through the wire barrier warned the Germans that something was afoot. For the most part these teams of Russian engineers were either driven off or killed before they could fulfill their mission.

It was now time for the infantry assault. Once again the Russians battalions committed to the assault attacked as blind horde stumbling their way forward in a narrow corridor as General Smirnov stubbornly clung to the notion that concentration was the key to success. Without moonlight the German artillery did not open up as early as it had yesterday morning but eventually star shells light up the sky and this was soon followed by shells spraying the attackers with shrapnel. Soon after this parachute flares and searchlights added their own unearthly illumination. German machineguns opened up and before long German rifles were firing as well. Meanwhile the poor trained Russian infantry struggled to get through the largely uncut wire. The bodies piled up. Some lay still on the ground while others were entangled in the wire as if it were the web of some monstrous spider. Here and there a Russian infantryman made it through the wire somehow. Those that had a grenade---which were only about half---caused some mischief. The rest attacked clumsily with their bayonet having very little training in its proper use.

The attack was yet another colossal failure of the Russian Second Army.

------HQ German 7th Cavalry Division Maryborough (Queen’s) 2315 hrs

General von Unger, the commander of the 7th Cavalry Division, was in communication with the 183rd Infantry Brigade over which he had temporary command. He wondered how the night attack was going. He knew that it would probably be after midnight before he knew for sure. If it failed von Unger doubted that his division could hold out until noon at Maryborough. The general was now approached by the head of his wireless station.

“We have just decrypted this wireless message from General von François, Your Excellency.”

The general took the paper and read:

LEAVE MARYBOROUGH AND PROCEED TO RATHDOWNEY DURING THE NIGHT REPEAT LEAVE MARYBOROUGH AND PROCEED TO RATHDOWNEY DURING THE NIGHT STOP SEND 183RD BRIGADE TO BORRIS IN OSSORY DURING THE NIGHT AS WELL REPEAT SEND 183RD BRIGADE TO BORRIS IN OSSORY DURING THE NIGHT AS WELL STOP

------Kingstown (Dublin) 2325 hrs

It was raining. Underneath an umbrella Lord Curzon forced himself to say the words, “Welcome to Ireland, Lord Kitchener.”

Kitchener had not arrived in Ireland as quickly as he wished. Having failed to notify the Admiralty of his intention to travel to Ireland before the War Committee meeting it took longer than the Field Marshal expected for them to arrange transportation. He ended up coming over in the HMS Desperate, an old ‘D’ class destroyer. Because they feared that the Germans may have left some raiders behind in Irish waters the Desperate had been escorted by 3 more old destroyers and arranging for this had caused a small but still annoying delay. The Admiralty seemed overly cautious to Kitchener. On the trip over the destroyer’s first officer expressed some worries about German mines off Kingstown. .

“Good evening, Your Excellency,” replied Kitchener who had just come ashore. For a few tense seconds the two men who had hated each other for so long exchanged glares while struggling to observe protocol.

A brigadier was standing next to Curzon, who introduced him, “Lord Kitchener this is Brigadier Lowe. He is the commander of the Eastern Region.”

Lowe extended his hand. “It is such an honor to meet you, Field Marshal. I hope you sea voyage was tolerable.”

Kitchener shook hands but continued to glare at his old nemesis. “I have experienced worse,” was his answer.

“Do you want to go to the Curragh straight away, Lord Kitchener?” asked Curzon, “We have a motor car standing by if you do. Or you can come inside out of the rain and have some piping hot tea and pastry if you prefer. Maybe some brandy to warm you up?”

Kitchener thought that over for a few seconds. He turned to Lowe and said, “Though I need to see General Hamilton as soon as possible, while I am here it might be useful if you and I spent a few minutes going over the situation in Eastern Region.”

To be continued...

To be continued

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