#65: 5 August 1914 - 'This Frantic Stampede to Hell'
The world was at war, and there was much to do. In London, attention turned to the British Expeditionary Force. The BEF had been ruled out several times before, but that did not have to matter. How ma...
23 Juni 202545min
#64: 4 August 1914 IV - The Final Countdown
With only hours left until the ultimatum expired, the mood in London and Berlin was anxious and excited. Was this truly it? Was the Anglo-German relationship now destined to die in a war over Belgium?...
16 Juni 202536min
#63: 4 August 1914 III - A Mere Scrap of Paper
The 1839 Treaty on Belgian neutrality was a mere scrap of paper - that was the phrase which doomed Bethmann Hollweg, and Germany, to moral condemnation. It was the excuse which conquerors of all shape...
9 Juni 202543min
#62: 4 August 1914 II - The Last Ultimatum
No matter what Britain did, it was impossible for Germany to evacuate Belgium. War was inevitable. Why, then, did most of Britain not even realise it?The straightforward image we have in our minds of ...
2 Juni 202542min
#61: 4 August 1914 I - Into Belgium
Germany's invasion of Belgium had finally begun. After several anxious days of negotiations, warnings, and second guessing, Berlin was firmly set on its path. But what path was that? War had been decl...
26 Maj 202535min
#60: 3 August 1914 IV - Who Turned Out The Lights?
In the evening of 3 August, Germany finally declared war on France. The war, Berlin insisted, was caused by hostile French acts, but most knew better. The Italians certainly did. In a series of painfu...
19 Maj 202546min
#59: 3 August 1914 III - House on Fire
Finally, Sir Edward Grey was ready to make his case to the House of Commons. Parliament had been starved of news for a week, and the press had done their best to fill in the gaps, but the whole countr...
12 Maj 202552min
#58: 3 August 1914 II - Brussels Doubts
The German ultimatum to Belgium had roused the Brussels government and rallied the nation, but other than this, much was still unclear by the early afternoon of this Bank Holiday Monday. News of Belgi...
5 Maj 202532min
