Germany had a new plan that they were soon to implement, and it may well bring neutral
nations into the war as enemies.
One of those nations was the United States, but Germany wasn’t worried about them, and
this week they tell you why.
I’m Indy Neidell; welcome to the Great War.
Last week there was scattered action on the Western Front and the Italians front, an Allied
declaration from Rome promised to strive for the national rights of the many peoples of
the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and the German Foreign Minister offered German support of
Mexico if Mexico went to war with the US.
That was done to deflect American energy in case the US went to war against Germany.
Though that was not planned at the moment, and on January 22nd US President Woodrow Wilson
said that while the US would not have a voice in determining what terms of peace for the
World War should be, they would have a voice in seeing whether those terms would be lasting
as guaranteed.
Things the US would join in guaranteeing were: a) it must be a peace without victory, that
negotiations would be conducted between equals, b) nations, whether great or small, must have
equality of rights, c) government must be based on the consent of the governed, for
example, there must be a united, independent, autonomous Poland, d) the paths of the sea
must be free, which is “the most immediately and intensely practical question connected
with the future fortunes of nations and of mankind”.
But those paths of the sea were not going to be free for very long, Germany was planning
to re-introduce unrestricted submarine warfare, where all ships, neutral or otherwise, within
the war zone were subject to being sunk on sight without warning.
Now, everybody knew that this was going to be a big problem for the United States and
the drowning of American sailors and civilians might bring the US into the war, but was Germany
really worried about that possibility?
Well, on January 23rd, Count Bernstorff, German ambassador in Washington, asked Berlin for
$50,000 dollars to influence members of Congress to remain neutral.
That’s over a million dollars in today’s money, but here’s what the German High Command
thought: Admiral Eduard von Capelle, the German Secretary of State for the Navy, told the
budgetary committee of the Reichstag, “They (the Americans) will not even come because
our submarines will sink them.
Thus America from a military point of view means nothing, and again nothing, and for
a third time nothing.”
And, in terms of the American army, he kind of had a point.
The American army at this time numbered 107,641 men; it was only the 17th largest army in
the world (Keegan).
The Allies on just the Western Front had 40 times that- four million men, and the Germans
on the Western Front fielded two and a half million men, 25 times the size of the entire
American army.
And those guys had experience of modern war.
The US army had no experience of large-scale operations since the American Civil War 50
years ago.
The reserves, the National Guard, were larger- a whopping 132,000 men, but that was a part
time militia that was poorly trained.
The US did have one top-notch force, the Marines, but there were only 15,000 of them and they
were scattered around America’s overseas possessions and interests, so really, the
Germans wondered, why should we even worry about them at all?
They had another neutral nation to worry about that seemed more important at the time.
Greece.
Now, the Greek government formally apologized this week to the Allies for Greek actions
back on December 1st.
This is very interesting and I’ll tell you why.
King Constantine, in spite of his familial connections to the Kaiser, always publicly
affirmed his friendship with the Allies, but it seems he was playing a double game.
Later this year in Athens will be discovered telegrams between Constantine and Queen Sophia
on one hand and the Kaiser, her brother, on the other.
These illustrate a series of anti-Entente plots that have been going on for the past
couple of months.
On December 1st, a Greek force had attacked an Allied force in Athens, and this was why
Greece was being forced to apologize.
Sophia wrote to her brother about the splendid victory the Greeks had achieved.
In this telegram she demands a strong German and Austrian offensive that would relieve
Greece from foreign occupation.
The Kaiser wrote back urging Constantine to declare war on the allies and actively fight
the occupying Allied forces.
They weren’t in a position to do this though.
Here’s one telegram from Sophia to Wilhelm, from January 10th, courtesy of “The Story
of the Great War”, “...the shortage of ammunition and many other things compel us
unfortunately to abstain from such offensive action.
You can realize my position.
How I suffer.
Thanks you warmly for your welcome words.
May the infamous swine receive the punishment they deserve.
I embrace you heartily.
Your exiled and unhappy sister, who hopes for better times.
Sophia.”
Constantine had written to the Kaiser a few days earlier, “...it is probable that a
declaration of war might come before a mobilization might be affected.
Probably the Entente desire to involve Greece in immediate war so as to destroy her before
the German occupation could begin.
Already Greece is faced with a fresh Entente note demanding her complete disarmament.
The transport of the whole artillery and war materiel to the Peloponnesus is being maintained
by the pressure of the blockade.
The government and people are resisting with constancy, enduring all sorts of privations,
but the situation is growing worse from day to day.”
The Kaiser had been urging them to support and organize guerrilla bands in the Lake Okrida
region and even back in December, Georgios Theotokis, the Greek Minister in Berlin, had
written, “...it is of the greatest importance to develop as quickly as possible the question
of Caravitis’s (guerrilla) bands and matters relative thereto.
Pray inform me with all speed what assistance in the way of munitions, money, and provisions
you would want.
The object of Caravitis should be to cut the railroad from Monastir to Saloniki and harass
(Allied General) Sarrail’s rear.
One should not lose sight that even this unofficial action by the bands will powerfully help Greece...”
But this was a real big time for plans and preparations everywhere.
Here’s something I didn’t have time to mention last week.
French Commander in Chief Robert Nivelle had explained his plans for his big 1917 Offensive.
It would take place at Chemin des Dames.
It would be a multi-pronged attack on the German line west of Reims and Nivelle believed
it would decide the war in under 48 hours.
It would be a repeat tactically of what had worked so well in the final stages of the
Battle of Verdun, and the “death blow” would come from a strike force of 27 French
divisions of infantry and cavalry.
Nivelle also promised that this would not turn into another endless Verdun or Somme.
He promised that if- impossibly- it failed to succeed within two days, he would call
it off.
He had persuaded British Prime Minister Lloyd George of the plan’s merits, and on January
15th Nivelle met with the British war cabinet.
He won them over as well, though there was the question of timing.
Nivelle thought they could begin in February, Sir Douglas Haig suggested May and they compromised,
setting the date for April 1st.
And here are some notes to end the week.
In German East Africa, Jan Smuts relinquished his command of the British forces there, and
was succeeded by A.R.
Hoskins.
The British were currently advancing there and on the 24th captured a German force of
289 men at Likuju.
Forces of the Arab Revolt captured Al Wajh on the Red Sea, and on the 25th, the SS Laurentic
was sunk by German mines off the Irish Coast.
That was a White Star Ocean Liner headed for Canada with a secret cargo of gold to buy
war material.
354 of the 475 passengers lives were lost, many of them freezing to death in the lifeboats
in -13 degree weather.
And that was the week.
Wilson talking about peace plans, Nivelle making war plans, the Greeks talking about
guerrilla war plans, the Germans dismissing the Americans, and scattered action in Arabia,
Africa, and the Atlantic.
It’s true, you know, that the size of the American army was nothing compared to the
mighty armies of the European powers.
The US did have a large modern navy, but that might not help much in France.
One thing the US did have that Germany may want to not ignore was an enormous modern
arms industry, entirely built over the past two years with European money to supply the
war effort.
And a huge population that could conceivably become soldiers in the millions.
But that would take time, and Germany did not plan on wasting time.
They were about to take an unbelievably nasty war and make it a lot nastier.
If you want to find out more about the situation in the US before World War 1, you can click
right here for our special episode about that.
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