December 23, 1914 The British and French winter offensive staggers to a halt in Flanders and Champagne, although the Belgians manage to force a crossing of the Yser River. General Joffre fires two dozen of his subordinate generals for various reasons, most of which are variations on disagreeing with Joffre or (in Joffres view) not trying hard enough. General Potiorek, architect of the recent invasion of Serbia and the very brief capture of Belgrade, is sacked and replaced by Archduke Eugen of Austria, a relative of the Emperor and an experienced (if peacetime) soldier who volunteered himself out of retirement at the outbreak of war. Rather surprisingly, the Archduke would eventually become respected as one of the most competent and successful Austro-Hungarian commanders. He spent much of his peacetime career attached to the General Staff and once given sufficient clout, was able to crowbar the empires creaking supply and logistics system into working order. He is also the last Grand Master of the Order of Teutonic Knights. The UK has pledged that each fighting man and sailor will have plum pudding at Christmas.
Posted on: Wed, 24 Dec 2014 06:39:27 +0000
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