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[caltrek]

Here is my latest installment. A lot of overlap with Yuli's, but my sources are different.

 

British troops move on Palestine from south, with forces under T.E. Lawrence emerging from the desert to take Aqaba.^[i]  Summer of 1917

The French break the German lines at Verdun on an 11-mile front.^[ii]  August 20, 1917 

The Germans drive the Russians out of the Baltic port of Riga.^[iii]  September 17, 1917 

Two German and two Austro-Hungarian corps under General Otto von Below surprise and route Italian forces at Caporetto, inflicting 600,000 casualties.^[iv]  October 24, 1917  

The Battle of Passchendaele is fought.^[v]  October 26 to November 10, 1917

German and Austrian armies are stopped at Piave where the Italians, stiffened by six French and five British divisions, rally^[vi]  November 7, 1917  

Russian Bolshevik “November Revolution” under Lenin’s leadership. Kerensky is ousted in a coup.^[vii] November 7, 1917

 

The first great tank attack in history along with the use of artillery without previous registration occurs at the Battle of Cabrai. British forces take the offensive, gain ground, but then lose much of that ground to a German counterattack.^[viii]  November 20 – December 7, 1917

The Bolsheviks open peace talks with Germany and Austria.^[ix]  December 22, 1917

 

A cut in the flour ration in Germany results in a strike of perhaps 200,000 workers.  The strikes end when the government places the armament factories in Berlin under martial law.^[x]  January 1918  

 

“All effective control over the native population of Turkestan has been removed…owing to the collapse of the central government in Russia” writes Secretary of State to the viceroy, Lord Chelmsford^[xi] at the start of 1918.

 

Following a breakdown of peace talks, the Germans resume attacks on the Russians.^[xii]  February 20, 1918 A.D

 

A Bolshevik government concludes a treaty at Brest-Litovsk that gives Germany hegemony in central Europe.^[xiii]  March 3, 1918  

[i] Frankopan

[ii] K&K

[iii] K&K

[iv] C&P

[v] Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary

[vi] C&P

[vii] NG.

[viii] C&P

[ix] K&K

[x] Moore

[xi] Frankopan

[xii] K&K

[xiii] C&P. See also Roberts.

[Yuli Ban]

[December 15th, 1917] Armistice between Russia and the Central Powers, to take effect on December 17.
  
[December 17th, 1917] Balkan Campaigns: After fighting for 11 months following the fall of Bucharest, the Romanian army signs an armistice with the Central Powers.

 

[December 17th, 1917] Rationing Begins (UK)

 

[December 17th, 1917] In a wartime extension of power, the US federal government takes over the railroads.

 

[December 18th, 1917] Italian Front: The Austrians capture Monte Asolone, two-and-a-half miles west of Monte Grappa, the linchpin in the Italian defensive system on the Piave. But Italian resistance stiffens, with part of Monte Asolone being recaptured.

 

[December 18th, 1917] A local nationalist group, the Alash Orda, established an autonomous government in Kazakhstan.

 

[December 18th- 19th, 1917] Smuts in Geneva for abortive secret peace talks with an Austrian emissary.

 

[December 19th, 1917] British officers throwing snowballs near Hesdin, 19 December, 1917.

 

[December 20th- 21st, 1917] Turkish Fronts: In Palestine the 52nd (Scottish) Division in a daring night attack crosses the river Auju, which flows into the sea some four miles north of Jaffa. The Jaffa-Jerusalem line has now been secured by Allenby's forces.

 

[December 20th, 1917] Brest-Litovsk, Russia. Representatives of the Central Powers and the Russian government meet at the headquarters of Prince Leopold of Bavaria to negotiate a peace settlement.

 

[December 20th, 1917] A soldier of the Machine Gun Corps in a sheepskin coat kissing a French farm-girl under a sprig of mistletoe, near Hesdin, 20 December 1917.

 

 

[December 21, 1917] ‘Putting up the Xmas decorations...Met Syd Tingby at No. 2 Canadian C.C.S. tonight. He was wounded last Monday & gave me a bit of news about the boys.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]. Hospitalised from tonsillitis. Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[December 22, 1917] ‘This morning after the M.O. had been around I went on the ½ hour route march with the crowd who are paraded daily at 11.30 a.m. There was nothing doing all day,’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]. In hospital - Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[December 22nd, 1917] Christmas at the front; a soldier with two turkeys walking through the snow. Photograph taken at Hesdin, 22 December 1917.

 

[December 23, 1917] The Sunday Oregonian, Dec. 23, 1917: US troops training in France.

 

[December 24, 1917] Christmas Eve. “I went to the Christmas Concert in the Recreation Hut tonight, it was very good too.” From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]. Still hospitalised - recovering from tonsillitis. Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[December 25th, 1917] British troops celebrating Christmas meal with staff at the free buffet on Euston station, probably 25 December 1917. Note a soldier pulling a Christmas cracker with a boy with a dog.

 

[December 26th, 1917] Destroyed DFW two-seat biplane, either German or Austro-Hungarian, one of three which fell on the British lines after a raid on Istrana aerodrome, 26 December 1917.

 

[December 26th, 1917] United States president Woodrow Wilson uses the Federal Possession and Control Act to place most U.S. railroads under the United States Railroad Administration, with the aim of transporting troops and materials for the war effort more efficiently.

 

[December 26, 1917] Two women wearing overalls as they work in a factory in Detroit, Michigan December 26, 1917.

 

[December 27th, 1917] British soldiers pose next to a mass grave for Ottoman soldiers killed during the Battle of Tel el-Ful, near Jerusalem, Palestine, 1917. Animated stereoview.

 

[December 27, 1917] ‘The day has been very cold again & I have spent most of the time in the Ward. We are having our meals in the Ward again now the Xmas festivities are over.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment,hospitalised Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[December 28th, 1917] The United States Railroad Administration officially takes control of American railroads.

 

[December 28th, 1917] Mobile anti-aircraft guns on Thornycroft lorries in action, Armentieres, 28 December 1917.

 

[December 29, 1917] The "Butter Bar" comes into existence. U.S. Army adopts the gold colored bar for the insignia for Second Lieutenants. 

 

[December 29th, 1917] Royal Engineers replacing telephone wires brought down by the weight of the snow, near Ypres, 29 December 1917.

 

[December 29, 1917] ‘Have not been too well again today. The weather has been cold but fine’. From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]. Still hospitalised - recovering from tonsillitis. Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[December 30th, 1917] WWI: Egyptian Expeditionary Force secures the victory at the Battle of Jerusalem by successfully defending Jerusalem from numerous Yildirim Army Group counterattacks.

 

[December 31st, 1917] Britain. Government wields draconian powers.

 

[December 31st, 1917] UK. World War I: British government imposes rationing of sugar (8 oz per person per week).

 

[Yuli Ban]

[January 1st, 1918] The Australian Corps is formed from the five AIF divisions on the Western Front.
 
[January 1st, 1918] UK. Food rationing on certain items introduced in Birmingham, soon followed by other major towns and cities.
 
[January 1st, 1918] German troops toasting the Happy New Year of 1918 in their billet. The message on the boards reads: "Kameraden trinkt im Osten schon für Frieden winkt - Comrades in the East already drink for peace".
 
[January 2nd, 1918] Popular British novelist Marie Corelli is convicted under wartime legislation for hoarding food.
 
[January 2, 1918] A cold snap like this has hit Boston only once before — a century ago - The Boston Globe
 
[January 2, 1918] ‘Still in bed & no better & still on milk diet, am getting very hungry’. From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment %5BNZEF%5D. Still hospitalised - recovering from tonsillitis. Ypres sector, Belgium.
 
[January 4th, 1918] A Royal Artillery FOO (Forward Observation Officer) observing from the fire step of a trench near Croisilles, 4 January 1918. His linesman stands by his side communicating by telephone with the battery. Note the notice-board marking a bomb store.
 
[January 4, 1918] Selling artificial flowers, Tokyo. January 4, 1918.
 

 
[January 5th, 1918] Lloyd George defines war aims in speech to trade union leaders: "self-government on true democratic principles"; "some international organization".
 
[January 6, 1918] ‘I am still in bed & on milk diet.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment %5BNZEF%5D. Still hospitalised - recovering from tonsillitis. Ypres sector, Belgium.
 
[Jan 6 1918] Big Future Ahead for Electric Cars; Easy and Economical in Operation, These Vehicles Are Doing Good Service All Over the World.
 
[January 7th, 1918] British troops drinking coffee supplied by the YMCA at an advanced dug-out near Ypres, 7 January 1918.

 

[January 7, 1918] ‘Monday 7-1-18 This morning on the Doctor’s examination he put me on ‘Light Diet’, & I had New Zealand rabbit for dinner.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]. Still hospitalised - recovering from tonsillitis. Ypres sector, Belgium.

[January 8th, 1918] President Woodrow Wilson delivers his Fourteen Points speech.

 

[January 8, 1918] ‘Tuesday 8-1-18. The day has been very cold & heavy snow has fallen but I have been in bed all day so have not notice the weather much’. From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]. Still hospitalised - recovering from tonsillitis. Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[January 8th, 1918] Two British soldiers helping to push a car back on to the road off after it skidded in the snow, Poperinghe, 8 January, 1918.

 

[January 9th, 1918] U.S troops engage Yaqui Indian warriors in the Battle of Bear Valley in Arizona, a minor skirmish and one of the last battles of the American Indian Wars between the United States and Native Americans.

 

[January 9, 1918] ‘Another very cold day & more snow. I have been in bed all day.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]. Still hospitalised - recovering from tonsillitis. Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[January 9th, 1918] An officer of the 12th Battalion, East Yorkshire Regiment, draws the gas curtain of a dug-out while on his rounds in a snow-covered support trench near Roclincourt, 9 January 1918.

 

 

[January 10, 1918] ‘Still in bed – no snow, but plenty of rain.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]. Still hospitalised - recovering from tonsillitis. Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[January 11, 1918] ‘The Doctor marked me ‘Up’ today so I got dressed just before dinner.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]. Evidently recovery from tonsillitis is gaining headway, Ypres sector, Belgium. [Flashback: 1 year ago he was surfing in South Africa.]

 

[January 12th, 1918] A photograph illustrating 'normal' trench routine on a quiet front. Men of the York and Lancashire Regiment, probably 2/4th Battalion York and Lancaster Regiment of the 187th Brigade, on the 62nd Division front between Oppy and Gavrelle, 12 January 1918.

 

[January 14, 1918] ‘I went for a walk down to the village again today.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF], well on the mend with his recovery from tonsillitis now in Convalescent Camp, Ypres sector Belgium.

 

[January 14th, 1918] France. The ex-prime minister Joseph Caillaux, who advocated a negotiated peace with Germany, is jailed for treason.

 

[January 15, 1918] ‘This morning I was put on ‘Ordinary Diet’. There has been nothing doing all day.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF], near full recovery from tonsillitis, Convalescent Camp, Ypres sector Belgium.

 

[January 16th, 1918] Washington: President Wilson orders all except food industries to shut down for five days and then every Monday until 25 March to save coal.

 

[January 17, 1918] ‘The day has been very wet & cold again & snow has fallen also.” From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF], Ypres sector, Belgium- marking time, waiting to be marked ‘Out’ from Convalescence Camp and a return to duty.

 

 

[Yuli Ban]

[January 18th, 1918] Ireland. Count Plunkett, Seán T. O'Kelly and others protest at the forcible feeding of Sinn Féin prisoners in Mountjoy Prison.

 

[January 18,1918]. British Army Lieutenant Alan Milne celebrates his 36th birthday. Serving in the secret propaganda unit MI7b, Milne wrote tales of British heroism and German dastardliness to build support for the war. Eight years later -1926 - playwright/author A.A. Milne writes “Winnie-the-Pooh”.

 

[January 20, 1918] Battle of Imbros

 

[January 21st, 1918] Chinese Labour Corps men working in a saw mill, 21 January 1918.

 

[January 21, 1918] ‘This afternoon I succeeded in drawing 30 francs & then went over to the canteen & Y.M.C.A. to commemorate the occasion. Am feeling quite rich as this is the 1st pay since last November.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF] Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[January 22, 1918] ‘ I have been on fatigue about the camp all day again. The weather has been showery. Went down to the village again tonight.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF] Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[January 23rd, 1918] Trans-Jordan. Turkish troops arrive from Karak, attack the Bedouin outposts at Tafila, and drive the Arabs off. Lawrence organizes a defensive position on the plain to the northeast of Tafila.

 

 

[January 26th, 1918] A trench message dog of the 5th Battalion, Manchester Regiment stands on a sandbagged wall as he waits for an officer (left) to complete the note he is writing, Cuinchy. One soldier (centre) pats the dog and holds him steady. 26 January 1918.

 

[January 26, 1917] ‘Day has been misty so there has been no observation. Frank & I went along to the Y.M. tonight. I was detailed tonight to go up to “Dead Mule Gully” in the morning on a six day fatigue.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF], Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[January 27th, 1918] Mesopotamia. General Dunsterville sets out from Baghdad with eleven officers and four NCOs and their batmen in cars and vans bound for Baku.

 

[January 27th, 1918] The Finnish Civil War begins with the Battle of Kämärä.

 

[January 28, 1918] ‘The day has been lovely & our aeroplanes very active’. From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF], Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[January 29th, 1918] Wales. The steamship "Ethelinda" is torpedoed by a U-boat off the Skerries. Twenty-six crew are killed.

 

[January 29, 1918] Battle of Kruty

 

[January 29th, 1918] Worst Air Raid Incident (UK).

 

[January 30, 1918] Return to “Dead Mule Gully” - ‘we are engaged with the Canadian Tunnellers making dugouts that will accommodate two companies or more of men’. From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF], Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[January 31st, 1918] Berlin: Martial law is declared following a series of strikes led by socialist Spartacists.

 

[January 31st, 1918] The "Battle" Of May Island.

 

[January 31st, 1918] A tank taking a steep bank. 1918-01-31

 

[February 1st, 1918] The Cattaro Mutiny sees Austrian sailors in the Gulf of Cattaro (Kotor), led by two Czech Socialists, mutiny.

 

 

[February 3rd, 1918] Berlin. Under threats of violent enforcement of a return to work, strike leaders call off the strike. Germans workers do not yet embrace revolution, but the strike impels the government to secure a peace settlement at Brest-Litovsk soon.

 

[February 3, 1918] “My job was in the tunnel filling sandbags”. From my grandfather’s war diary. Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF], Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[February 4, 1918] ‘I went on duty again at 1 p.m. filling sand bags in the tunnel & came off at 7. Just after I came off duty our guns opened up heavily again on the Passchendaele front.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF], Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[February 4th, 1918] A 12 inch howitzer mounted on a railway carriage near Arras, 4 February 1918. Note the distinctive camouflage pattern.

 

[February 5, 1918] Emily Murphy, the first applicant at the Women's War Bureau. Duluth Herald, February 5, 1918.

 

[February 5th, 1918] Second Lieutenant Stephen W. Thompson achieves the first aerial victory by the U.S. military.

 

[February 5, 1918] Sgt. Stubby enters combat.

[Yuli Ban]

 

[February 8th, 1918] French troops manning a bomb thrower in the trench in front of La Ville-aux-Bois, 8 February 1918.

 

[February 9th, 1918] Members of the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAACs) tending the graves of fallen British soldiers in a cemetery at Abbeville, 9 February, 1918.

 

[February 11th, 1918] Washington: Wilson tells Congress there can be no peace with Germany and Austria based on the fundamentals of Prussian autocracy.

 

[February 11, 1918] A canteen at an aviation camp of the American Army somewhere in France. Line of American soldiers waiting to get hot drinks on a cold. This under the auspices of the American Red Cross. February 11, 1918. 

 

[February 11th, 1918] Chinese labourers celebrate Chinese New Year in a labour camp at Noyelles, 11 February, 1918.

 

[February 12th, 1918] Turkish forces reopen hostilities against Russian forces in Transcaucasia, advancing toward Erzincan and Trabzon (Trebizond).

 

[February 12, 1918] King George V's speech of February 12, 1918.

 

[February 12th, 1918] Men of the Black Watch regiment outside the postal dug-out receiving mail, Morchies, 12 February 1918.

 

[February 13, 1918] "Under the trees of Sicily, women work at cobbling instead of taking five o'clock tea." February 13, 1918.

 

[February 14,1918] ‘Went on shift at 1 a.m. & came off at 7. Had breakfast then & then packed up my gear & at 10 to 8 left Polygon Wood, on arrival of our relief party.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF], Polygon Dugouts (under construction)Ypres sector - Belgium.

 

[February 15th- 16th, 1918] Battle of Rarancza.

 

[February 15th, 1918] Petrograd: Russia cuts loose from its former Entente Allies.

 

[February 16th, 1918] Persia. Dunsterville reaches Rasht, where the British and Russian consuls advise him that Bandar-e-Pahlavi (Enzeli), his next destination, is under Bolshevik control.

 

 

 

[February 17th-18th, 1918] German forces reopen operations against Russia: "Operation Thunderbolt" captures virtually the entire Baltic region and much of Belorussia within a week.

 

[February 17th-18th, 1918] (overnight) A single German "Riesenflugzeug" bomber attacks England. It hits St. Pancras station in London, killing 21 people and injuring 32.

 

[February 18th- March 3rd, 1918] Operation Faustschlag, last offensive on Eastern Front.

 

[February 19th, 1918] British begin their assault on Jericho.

 

[February 19th, 1918] WWI: Capture of Jericho by the Egyptian Expeditionary Force begins the British occupation of the Jordan Valley.

 

[February 19th, 1918] Remains of a German Friedrichshafen G.III bomber, which crashed upside down near Ytres, 19 February 1918.

 

[February 20th, 1918] Russia. On the breakdown of peace talks, the Germans resume attacks on the Russians.

 

[February 20, 1918] - Alabama Senator Underwood warns of "autocracy" in US as government's wartime powers expand

[Yuli Ban]

 

[February 22, 1918] ‘Some of the boys went up the line this morning at 5.30 but I did not have to go as only a portion of the Company went up. I have had nothing to do all day.’ From my grandfather’s diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF], near Dranoutre - Ypres sector, Belgium. 

 

[February 23rd, 1918] Estonian Declaration of Independence.

 

[February 24th, 1918] The Red Army retreated from Estonia in the face of the German armed forces.

 

[February 24th, 1918] Estonia declares its independence from Russia after seven centuries of foreign rule. German forces capture Tallinn on the next day.

 

[February 25, 1918] ‘The day has been very wet and cold. We paraded at 3 p.m. & I was warned for duty at “Anzac” on the carrying party in the morning.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]. Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[February 26th, 1918] Britain. The Labour Party adopts a constitution aiming for common ownership and state control.

 

[February 26th, 1918] British soldiers helping Father Leon Peulmeule, the temporary curate of Armentieres, to remove statues and relics from the Church of Saint Vaast which has been damaged by shell fire. Armentieres, 26 February 1918.

 

[February 27, 1918] Children in Alsace, France, wearing their gas masks

 

[February 28, 1918] Lowell Thomas' first photograph of T. E. Lawrence.

 

[February 28, 1918] ‘Enemy shelled us heavily & dropped one 5.9 about 5 yards in front.... I was on the pump at the time & was covered with mud & dirt. Knocked off at 1 p.m. .., had dinner & went to bed.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF], Ypres sector, Belgium.

 

[March 1st, 1918] UK. armed merchant cruiser HMS "Calgarian" (1913) is torpedoed and sunk off Rathlin Island, Ireland, by Imperial German Navy U-boat SM "U-19" with the loss of 49 lives.

 

[March 1st, 1918] Brazil. Brazilian general election, 1918: Former president Rodrigues Alves receives 99.1% of the vote.

 

[March 1, 1918] Dugout tunnelling continues - ‘On the way over Fritz started shelling the supports just a few yards on the left of the duckwalk track... He was making things very merry.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF], Ypres sector, Belgium. 

 

 

[March 2nd, 1918] British soldiers writing on slabs of fallen stone in Arras Cathedral. 2 March 1918. The soldier kneeling on the right is a serviceman of the Scots Guards.

 

[March 3rd, 1918] Turkey: The entire male population of the Armenian town of Samsun is massacred by Moslems.

[Yuli Ban]

 

[March 4th, 1918] First known case of what will later be called Spanish Flu: Private Albert Gitchell at Camp Funston, Fort Riley, Kansas.

 

[March 4, 1918]. Awaiting Blighty leave. 'This morning I cleaned & polished all my gear as we expected to leave today for the Port but owing to rough weather in the channel, leave boats have been cancelled.' From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]

 

[March 6th, 1918] The first pilotless drone, the Hewitt-Sperry Automatic Airplane developed by Elmer Sperry and Peter Cooper Hewitt, is test-flown in Long Island, New York, but development is scrapped in 1925 after its guidance system proves unreliable.

 

[March 6, 1918] American wounded, March 6, 1918.

 

[March 7th, 1918] German artillery bombard the Americans at Rouge Bouquet.

 

[March 7th, 1918] WWI: Finland forms an alliance with Germany.

 

[March 7, 1918] Private John J. Haspel of Elmhurst, Queens who was a soldier in Company E of the 165th Infantry of the U.S. Army. He was killed on March 7, 1918 in France.

 

[March 8th-12th, 1918] Battle of Tell 'Asur.

 

[March 8th-13th, 1918] Battle of Bakhmach.

 

 

[March 9th, 1918] London: New Military Service Bill raises maximum conscription age to 50 and introduces conscription for Ireland.

 

[March 9, 1918] Mass meeting held in Union Square on March 9, 1918 to protest the conviction of labor leader Thomas Joseph "Tom" Mooney in the 1916 Preparedness Day bombing in San Francisco.

 

[March 10th, 1918] German ace Hans-Joachim Buddecke is shot down and killed over Lens, France, in combat with Sopwith Camels of the Royal Naval Air Service's No. 3 Naval Squadron. He has 13 victories at the time of his death.

 

[March 11th, 1918] Paris. German bombing raid causes a panic in the Bolivar Métro station, killing 71 persons.

 

[March 11th, 1918] The first regular international airmail service begins, with Hansa-Brandenburg C.I aircraft linking Vienna, Lviv, Proskurov, and Kiev.

 

[March 11th, 1918] Over 100 sick from Spanish Flu in Fort Riley; first known case outside in Queens, New York.

 

[March 12th, 1918] Mesopotamia. General Marshall receives orders to support military efforts to prevent the Turks from moving through north-west Persia, and Dunsterville is named commander under his own authority.

 

[March 12, 1918] Blighty on leave. From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]. England.

 

[March 13, 1918] ‘My mate & I went to the Queen’s Theatre tonight to see “Brewster’s Millions” which was very good. We went with a crowd from the Y.M., it only cost us 3/- for usual 12/- seats.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF], in London on leave.

 

[March 14th, 1918] Russia. German troops take control of Odessa and the part of the Russian fleet harboured there, giving Germany effective control of the Black Sea.

 

[March 14th, 1918] Sweden. Eva Andén is elected the first female member of the Swedish Bar Association.

 

[March 14th, 1918] Somme River. British commanders, relying on information gleaned from reconnaissance and interrogation of prisoners, are convinced that 21 March is the date for the German offensive.

 

[March 14, 1918] ‘I went along to sick Parade at the N.Z. Soldier’s Club at 9.30 & the Doctor ordered me to Walton-on-Thames Hospital.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF], suffering from bad tonsillitis - while on leave in London.

 

[March 15, 1918] Medical Officer, Dr. Fenwick: ‘...says my tonsils have to come out but he is not going to operate for about a week as he says my throat is in too bad a state.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]. Walton-on-Thames Hospital, England.

 

[March 15th, 1918] A general scene showing men of 1/7th Battalion, King's Liverpool Regiment (part of the 165th Brigade, 55th Division) in the line in the La Bassee Sector. One man is eating from a mess tin, and one soldier is holding a Lewis gun, whilst others chat in the background of the trench.

 

[March 16, 1918] ‘Another beautiful day. I obtained a piece of fancy work to amuse myself with. This afternoon I had a visit from Miss E. Bradley & Miss G. Stubbins.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]. Awaiting his tonsillectomy, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey, England.

 

[Yuli Ban]

[March 16th, 1918] British and French troops conversing outside a dug out on newly dug part of the British line at Bernagousse, south of Barisis, 16 March 1918.

 

[March 17th, 1918] Ireland: Police and Sinn Fein supporters clash in Belfast as Eamon de Valera attempts to hold a public meeting in defiance of a military proclamation.

 

[March 17th, 1918] American assault troops going into action near Badonviller, 17 March 1918. Note their bags filled with hand grenades. 

 

[March 19th, 1918] The United States Congress establishes time zones and approves daylight saving time (DST goes into effect on March 31). The United States Congress adopts Standard or "Railroad" time, in use since 1884, as the national standard.

 

[March 19th, 1918] Preparations for the Spring Offensive. German troops concentrating in the wrecked streets of St. Quentin, immediately prior to the Spring Offensive, 19 March 1918.

 

[March 20th, 1918] London: Government announces rationing of coal, gas and electricity; theatres are told to close at 10.30 pm, restaurants at 10.00 pm.

 

[March 20, 1918] My grandfather - a top-trained, battle-hardened veteran - in hospital awaiting his tonsillectomy: ‘I have been in the ward most of the day & finished my first piece of fancy work. It has been a glorious day.’ From his war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF] Walton, England.

 

[March 21, 1918] Operation 'Michael’ begins. With the first of the Spring offensives, German forces achieve unprecedented gains measured in miles. Tactically successful, they were strategic failures, with few goals other than to punch through the Allied line and primarily target the British.

 

[March 21st- July 18th, 1918] WWI: Spring Offensive by the German Army along the Western Front fails to make a breakthrough despite large losses on each side, including nearly 20,000 British Army dead on the first day, Operation Michael.

 

[March 21 1918] This day was the Imperial German Army's worst single day. 10,851 Killed In Action (KIA), 28,778 WIA, 300 taken POW for a total of 39,929 Casualties

 

[March 22, 1918] - Recovery begins. From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF] - ‘I have been in bed all day today, throat very sore & unable to swallow without great pain. Have been on milk diet. Been doing my fancy work & writing a letter. The day has been beautiful.’ 

 

 

[March 23rd, 1918] WWI: The giant German cannon, the 'Paris Gun' ("Kaiser Wilhelm Geschütz"), begins to shell Paris from 114 km (71 mi) away.

 

[March 24th, 1918] Laon. At 6:45 a.m., the great gun resumes shelling Paris, whose residents have assumed that the gun was destroyed the previous day. The bombardment continues at shorter intervals than the day before, with twenty-two shells falling on the city and its suburbs.

 

[March 25th, 1918] US: The new Browning light machine gun with 1,000 yard range is tested successfully at Camp Dix, New Jersey.

 

[March 25th, 1918] Debussy, one of the great innovators of music, has died

 

[March 26th, 1918] Western Front. Ferdinand Foch is appointed commander-in-chief of the allied forces in France. 

 

[March 27th, 1918] WWI: First Battle of Amman launched by units of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force during the First Transjordan attack on Amman, ends with their withdrawal on 31 March back to the Jordan Valley.

 

[March 27th, 1918] Eight typical British prisoners taken in the fighting which resulted in the capture of Albert on the 27 March 1918.

[Yuli Ban]

[March 27th, 1918] The Germans redesignate their "Shutzstafffeln" (escort squadrons) as "Schlachtstaffeln" (attack squadrons) in recognition of their close air support achievements during Operation Michael.

 

[March 27, 1918] ‘For years Jackson had flirted with death: he had laughed at shells: scoffed at bullets. Yet in the train going down to the Somme, the gay and debonair "Jacko" was quiet and thoughtful. He made no secret of it; he felt he would be killed.’

 

[March 27th, 1918] "Victory Or Death!" (Western Mail cartoon)

 

 

[March 28th, 1918] Third Battle of Arras (also known as First Battle of Arras (1918)), a phase of Operation Michael.

 

[March 28, 1918] Guiscard, Oise department, northern France. March 28, 1918.

 

 

[March 28th- April 1st, 1918] Canada. In the Easter Riots in Quebec City, the Militia suppress anti-conscription protesters. Four civilians are killed.

 

[March 28th, 1918] A French soldier, followed by a British soldier, carrying fowls to his mess. Amiens, 28 March 1918.

 

 

[March 28, 1918] ‘I drew my pack and khaki at 7 o’clock this morning ... I left Walton Hospital at 8.45 by motor for the station & caught the 9.10 train for Waterloo.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF] - cleared out to free up beds - free to toddle off to London. 

[Yuli Ban]

[March 28th, 1918] 'Lawrence of Arabia' writes a letter to his family in a pessimistic mood, claiming "This is a job too big for me."

 

[March 29, 1918] German Paris Guns hit the St-Gervais-et-St-Protais Church, killing 91 people and wounding 68.

 

[March 29th, 1918] Laon. After a three-day silence, "Big Bertha" opens up again. Although only four shells land on the city, one does the greatest damage yet, hitting the crowded Church of Saint-Gervais and killing seventy-five while wounding ninety others.

 

[March 29th, 1918] Washington, D.C.: 1.4 million women in wartime work force

 

[March 30, 1918] First Battle of Villers-Bretonneux

 

[March 30, 1918] Allied troops halt Germans at Moreuil Wood - Mar 30, 1918

 

[March 31, 1918] ‘The two girls came out this morning & we went for a walk. This afternoon I went to Rye End & stayed to tea with the girls at old Mr. Levey’s.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF], in London on leave & recuperating from having his tonsils removed.

 

[March 31st, 1918] Men of the South African Scottish Brigade with a pet baboon holding a rifle, during their march from action at Dernancourt to rest at Condas, 31st March 1918.

 

[April 1st, 1918] A "Vizefeldwebel" Weimar becomes the first person to use a parachute in combat, when he successfully bails out of a German Albatros D.Va fighter.

 

[April 1st, 1918] The Royal Flying Corps and Royal Naval Air Service combine to form the Royal Air Force, the world's first independent air force, with Sir Hugh Trenchard as the first Chief of the Air Staff. The Women's Royal Air Force is formed at the same time.

 

 

[April 2, 1918] Men run from an exploding balloon at Post Field, Fort Sill, Oklahoma - U.S. National Archives

 

[April 3, 1918] American gunners battle through the Argonne Forest (NARA, 111-SC-95980)

 

[April 3rd, 1918] The body of a British soldier by the roadside awaiting burial. The wooden cross is already prepared. Near Domart, 3 April 1918.

 

[April 3, 1918] E F Barker, Voluntary Aid Detachments. Died of illness contracted on duty 03 April 1918.

 

[April 4th-5th, 1918] Battle of the Avre, final phase of Operation Michael.

 

[April 4, 1918] ‘I met the 2 girls at Oxford Circus at midday & went to dinner with them. In the afternoon I went along to N.Z. H.Q’ers & drew my rifle & equipment ready to proceed overseas in the morning.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]. Shipping out tomorrow.

 

[April 5, 1918] Return to France, ‘...now everyone is quiet & dull thinking only of the good times of the past fortnight & wondering of the future - how many on board would never see Blighty again?’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF].

 

[April 5, 1918] German immigrant Robert Prager is lynched by a patriotic American crowd for falsely being accused as a spy in Collinsville, Illinois

 

[April 5th, 1918] Artillerymen resting in a hollow behind their guns in the fighting area, near Boues, 5th April 1918. One of the soldiers is reading.

 

[April 6th, 1918] Front page of the "Washington Times"

 

[April 7th- 29th, 1918] Second phase of the Spring Offensive, Operation Georgette (also known as Battle of the Lys). The results are disappointing for the Germans.

[Yuli Ban]

[April 7th, 1918] Wales. The steamship "Boscastle" is torpedoed by a U-boat off Strumble Head. Eighteen crew are killed.

 

[April 7th, 1918] Fatigue party of the Royal Garrison Artillery having a dinner. Ransart, 7 April 1918.

 

[April 8, 1918] Moving up to the Front. ‘I have had a very happy 21st birthday I *don’t* think.’ From my grandfather’s war diary, Wellington Infantry Regiment [NZEF]. “Somewhere” on the Somme.

 

[April 9th, 1918] London. Lloyd George, assessing the demoralizing British failure at the Battle of the Lys, tells the House of Commons: "We have entered the most critical phase of this most terrible war. There is a lull in the storm, but the hurricane is not over."

 

[April 9 1918] German 6th Army, around 100,000 soldiers, crashed into the Portuguese 2nd Division of around 14,000 active soldiers killing around 500 Portuguese. This makes April 9, 1918, the worst single day for the Portuguese army

 

[April 9th, 1918] British prime minister David Lloyd George introduces a bill extending military conscription to Ireland, provoking a storm of nationalist protest. The extension of conscription will later be dropped (20 June), along with the plan for Irish Home Rule.

 

[April 9th, 1918] Battle of Estaires. British lightly wounded of the 50th and 51st Divisions awaiting evacuation by lorries. Bethune, 9 April 1918.

 

[April 10th- 11th, 1918] Third Battle of Messines, a phase of Operation Georgette.

 

[April 10th, 1918] Battle of Estaires. A line of British troops blinded by tear gas at an Advanced Dressing Station near Bethune, 10 April 1918. Each man has his hand on the shoulder of the man in front of him.

 

[April 11th, 1918] Vienna: Emperor Karl, in a peace offer to France, supports French claims on Alsace-Lorraine

 

 

[April 11, 1918] ‘The trenches we are building are emergency ones for the troops to occupy in the event of Fritz making a further advance which is not likely.‘ From my grandfather’s war diary, "C” Company, 1st N.Z. Entrenching Battalion [NZEF], the Somme, France.

 

[April 12th, 1918] The final Zeppelin raid on England takes place.

[Yuli Ban]

[April 14th, 1918] Somme River. Conceding him still more power needed to impose unity on the Allied military effort, British and French leaders name Marshal Ferdinand Foch as Allied commander in chief.

 

[April 14th, 1918] Ottokar Czernin resigns as Austria-Hungary's Foreign Minister over the Sixtus Affair.

 

 

[April 15 1918] French soldiers around a toppled German A7V tank near Villers-Bretonneux

 

[April 16, 1918] ‘I went out with the Company this morning & passed through Authie. We were engaged today in wiring in front of new trenches'. From my grandfather’s war diary, "C” Company, 1st N.Z. Entrenching Battalion [NZEF], the Somme, France.

 

[April 16th, 1918] Onsite headquarters of the 1st Battalion, Middlesex Regiment, whilst carrying out an attack near Meteren during the Battle of Bailleul. The commanding Officer is shown writing a report, 16 April 1918.

 

[April 16, 1918] French wounded soldier at Grand Palais. April 16, 1918.

 

[April 17th, 1918] A Lewis gun post of the Tank Corps near Robecq, 17 April 1918. One of the soldiers is having a shave while the other is manning the gun. Note Lewis gun magazine box carriers.

 

[April 17, 1918] Naval Funeral for Goat - 2000 soldiers attend last rites for "Eli" the pet of the Pelham Bay Naval Training Station

 

[April 18th, 1918] Extension of Military Conscription (UK)

 

[April 18th, 1918] Troops of the American 4th Infantry Division disembarking at Brest, 18 April 1918.

 

[April 19th, 1918] Rome: Italy tells the Allies that it has sent troops to fight at the Western Front.

 

[April 19, 1918] U.S. Secret Service agent testifies to Senate committee that 20,000 spies infest New York City — New York Times

 

[April 19, 1918] Buffalo auditorium is filled with 3,600 people during farewell party for the all-black 367th Infantry Regiment — New York Times

 

[April 20th, 1918] Ireland. the Irish Parliamentary Party holds a meeting in Dublin to oppose conscription.

 

[April 21st, 1918] Paris: The French Ministry of Provisions encourages people to eat horse meat.

[Yuli Ban]

[April 21, 1918]. Renowned German Ace - with 80 enemy aircraft downed - Manfred Freiherr von Richthofen, “le Diable Rouge” (Red Devil), pursues a British aircraft into Allied territory. The Red Baron, flying low, is hit in the chest and his aircraft plunges into a field. KIA - age 25.

 

[April 21st, 1918] WWI: Manfred von Richthofen, "The Red Baron", the war's most successful fighter pilot, dies in combat at Morlancourt Ridge near the Somme River.

 

[April 21st, 1918] Wales. The steamship "Landonia" is torpedoed by a U-boat off Strumble Head. Twenty-one crew are killed.

 

[April 21st, 1918] A British gunner visits some trench gunners at their gun position near Amiens, 21 April 1918.

 

[April 21, 1918] Australian Infantry Brigade Intell. Report: “Description of the shooting down of Calvary Captain BARON von RICHTHOFEN, the famous German aviatior at 10.45 a.m. on 21st April 1918”

 

[April 22nd, 1918] Soviet Decree on the Nationalization of External Trade. Decree on Establishing Compulsory Military Training for Workers and Peasants of Age 18 to 40

 

[April 22nd, 1918] An RAF Chaplain leads the coffin of Rittmeister Manfred von Richthofen past the saluting party as it enters the cemetery at Bertangles. The coffin is carried by six pilots of No. 3 Squadron, Australian Flying Corps. The funeral service was held on 22 April 1918.

 

[April 22, 1918] Two men were tarred and feathered for refusing to buy Liberty Bonds in Frontier, Wyoming

 

[April 22, 1918] New Jersey man attempts to avoid draft by claiming he is not a human being — New York Times

 

[April 23rd, 1918] Dublin. A one-day general strike in Ireland against conscription is widely supported, except in Ulster.

 

[April 23rd, 1918] Guatemala declares war on Germany.

 

[April 23, 1918] Munitions Worker Mary Lyns, Ministry of Munitions, accidentally killed on Duty, April 23, 1918.

 

[April 24th, 1918] Lys River. With a six-day lull in the fighting, Plumer is able to relieve more of his troops on the front lines, and Foch sends two more divisions into the Flanders sector.

 

[April 24th- 27th, 1918] Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux, a phase of Operation Georgette.

[Yuli Ban]

[April 25th- 27th, 1918] Turkish forces occupy Kars.

 

April 27, 1918] Taking the tea up to the chaps - ‘Bullets were thudding into the ground in an almost continuous stream. I counted on a ‘Blighty’ for sure but somehow managed to dodge. [From my grandfather’s war diary, now in No.13 Platoon, Ruahine Coy., 2nd W’gtn Battalion [NZEF], Somme, France.]

 

[April 27th, 1918] American black soldiers, cooks of the hospital train No. 54, at Horreville, 27 April 1918.

 

[April 28th, 1918] WWI: Gavrilo Princip, assassin of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, dies in Terezin, Austria-Hungary, after three years in prison.

 

 

[April 29th, 1918] Mesopotamia. Marshall's troops capture Tuz Khurmatu and Daquq. The first action costs 194 casualties but secures 1,300 prisoners and 12 guns.

 

[April 29th, 1918] A British soldier wears a greatcoat as he stands amidst a dump of empty shell cases near Domart, 29 April 1918.

 

[May 1st, 1918] The Battle of the Lys (Operation Georgette). A Machine Gun Corps post in a barn near Haverskerque, 1 May 1918.

 

[May 3, 1918] American Secretary of the Navy says his nation is ready to draft up to 12 million men — New York Times

 

[May 3, 1918] British cabinet is preparing measure that would grant home rule to Ireland — New York Times

 

[May 4, 1918] Guatemala Declares War on the Central Powers

 

[May 4, 1918] Emperor Charles of Austria dismisses parliament and forbids it from meeting again — New York Times

 

[May 7th, 1918] Mesopotamia. Marshall's troops, having taken Taza on 3 May, enter Kirkuk, discovering six hundred ill or wounded Turks.

 

[May 7th, 1918] U.S. Military: At the end of the first week in May, American casualties in the war surpass 5,000 men, or about one-fiftieth of estimated British losses since Germany began her massive effort to win the war on March 21, 1918.

 

[May 8th, 1918] Nicaragua declares war on Germany and Austria-Hungary.

 

[May 9th, 1918] An Army Service Corps private talking to a French farm girl. Rollencourt, 9 May 1918.

 

[May 10th, 1918] W. Front: Reported that Amiens has been completely destroyed and that thousands have died from German mustard gas.

 

[May 11th, 1918] American Labour representatives looking at a British soldier presenting his Lee Enfield rifle. Cassel Hill, 11 May 1918. Note two wound stripes on his left sleeve.

 

[May 13, 1918] Governor of New York signs bill requiring all men between 18 and 50 to work for the duration of the war — New York Times

[Yuli Ban]

[May 13, 1918] U.S. Army sergeant sentenced to 30 years in prison for criticizing President Wilson — New York Times

 

[May 13th, 1918] British soldiers with their rabbits and fowls and the improvised pen in which they are kept. Near Albert, 13 May 1918. Note a pot full of eggs laid by the hens.

 

[May 14th, 1918] African-American soldier Henry Johnson single-handedly fights off 24 German soldiers, killing 4

 

[May 15, 1918] ‘Another lovely day & the war goes on just the same. ...enemy put over a few 5.9’s this morning close to our bivvie. Fritz shelled us with “Minnie’s” tonight. Auckland Battalion carried out a daylight raid this evening & secured three prisoners.’ From my grandfather’s war diary.

 

 

[May 16th, 1918] The Battle of the Lys. Sentry of the 2nd Battalion, Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) in Lievin by a notice saying that no one is allowed past this point in daylight, 16 May 1918.

 

[May 17th, 1918] London: Government abolishes compulsory meatless days.

 

[May 17th, 1918] Australian troops and RFC mechanics towing the fuselage of a wrecked German AEG G.IV bomber by a lorry through Amiens, 17 May 1918.

 

[May 18th, 1918] Ireland: 500 Sinn Fein members are arrested and imprisoned, including Eamon de Valera.

 

[May 18th, 1918] Adolf Hitler receives the Wound Badge in Black.

 

[May 19th, 1918] The "Whitsun Raid" the largest and last of 17 bomber aeroplane raids on London; 49 civilians are killed in London and Essex. The total number of civilian casualties from air raids since 1915 within London's Metropolitan Police District was 668 killed and 1,938 injured.

 

[May 19th, 1918] Largest WW1 heavier-than-air raid against the United Kingdom with 38 Gotha and three Riesenfkugzeug bombers killing 49 people, injuring 177, and inflicting £117,317 in damage. Painting by Marii Chernev

 

[May 21st- 29th, 1918] Battle of Sardarabad, a phase of the invasion of Armenia. Battle of Abaran, a phase of the invasion of Armenia. The Ottoman World War I defeat at the Battle of Sardarabad is seen as saving the Armenian nation from destruction.

 

[May 21st 1918] General "Pershing praises brave negroes" Pershing has praised the bravery of two African-American privates, Johnson and Roberts, who engaged in hand-to-hand combat with up to 20 German raiders.

[Yuli Ban]

[May 22, 1918] Australian mystery aeroplane panic of 1918.

 

[May 23rd, 1918] Costa Rica declares war on Germany.

 

[May 23, 1918] Two soldiers having amputations to which artificial legs are being fitted at the American Red Cross factory for artificial limbs at St. Maurice. Between them is small boy whose leg was blown off by a hand grenade. May 23, 1918.

 

[May 24th, 1918] Mesopotamia. Too far removed from their supply sources, Marshall's troops leave Kirkuk and reestablish bases at Tuz and Kifri from which to watch over the Persian border.

 

[May 24th, 1918] New York: Reported that shortage of conscription age white men means hotels could take on black waiters.

 

[May 25th, 1918] Germany: Two troops of Bavarian cavalry are hanged for refusing to go to the Western Front.

 

[May 26th, 1918] Chinese actors entertaining an audience of British and American soldiers, local inhabitants and Chinese workers at their camp at Samer, 26 May 1918. Two dragon processions ready for the fight.

 

[May 27th, 1918] The Third Battle of the Aisne. Men of the Worcestershire Regiment holding the southern bank of the River Aisne at Maizy, 27 May 1918.

 

[May 28th, 1918] Battle of Cantigny.

 

[May 28th, 1918] The Armenian Congress of Eastern Armenians declares the first Republic of Armenia.

 

[May 29th, 1918] Battle of Skra di Legen: the Greek Army of National Defense defeats the Bulgarians.

 

[May 29th, 1918] The Third Battle of the Aisne. French and British troops awaiting the enemy in the open. North of Courville, 29 May 1918. Note a Hotchkiss machine gun ready to use.

 

[May 30th, 1918] The Third Battle of the Aisne. A French woman refugee with her dog in her cart. Dormans, 30 May 1918.

 

[May 31st, 1918] John Monash takes command of the Australia Corps.

 

[June 1st, 1918] Air mechanics with a large bomb to be carried by a Handley Page Type 0/400 bomber of No. 14 Squadron RNAS. Dunkirk Aerodrome, 1 June 1918.

 

[June 2, 1918] "We wore our masks several hours. I wore my English respiratory for a while and then changed for the French mask which is more comfortable." Great uncle's letter, E Co 117th Engineers, France.

 

[June 3 1918] 700 Dead in Spain due to new plague. Over 100,000 people struck by mysterious disease now spreading to Morocco probably from the movement of Spanish

 

 

[June 4th, 1918] Armenia. The First Republic of Armenia signs its first treaty, the Treaty of Batum. The other signatories are the Ottoman Empire, the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic and the Democratic Republic of Georgia.

 

[June 5th, 1918] Private Halsie Grant of the 'E' Company, 2nd Battalion, 128th Infantry Regiment (32nd Division) in observation post in frontline trench at Austerlitz (Alsace), 5 June 1918. 

 

[June 6th, 1918] Taiwan. Akashi Motojiro was promoted to general and appointed by Prime Minister Terauchi as the Governor-General of Taiwan.

 

[June 6, 1918] 2 time Medal of Honor recipient, Sergeant Major Daniel Joseph 'Dan' Daly, yelled at the men of the 73rd Machine Gun Company “Come on you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?”

 

[June 7th, 1918] A Hotchkiss 1914 machine gun position of the 9th Machine Gun Battalion, American 3rd Division in a railway work shop at Chateau-Thierry, 7 June 1918.