Retreat of I Corps 1914

by Jerry Murland

Overview

On 23 August 1914 it was only the two divisions of General Smith-Dorrien's II Corps that were directly engaged with the German First Army along the line of the Mons-Conde Canal. As the British Expeditionary Force withdrew from Mons and bivouacked around Bavay on 25 August, Sir John French and his GHQ advisors unsure of the condition of the routes through the Fort de Mormal - ordered the British Expeditionary Force to continue their retirement the next day and to avoid the 35 square miles of forest roads.Consequently II Corps used the roads to the west of the Fort de Mormal and Sir Douglas Haig's I Corps those to the east with the intention that the four divisions should meet again at Le Cateau. It was an intention that was ambushed by circumstance as I Corps encountered units of the German 7th Division at Landrecies on 25/26 August. Unsure of the weight of the German attack at Landrecies, Douglas Haig hurriedly left for Grand Fayt and ordered his two divisions to immediately begin their retirement along a route that would take them west of Le Cateau. It was this decision that kept the by now five divisions of the BEF apart until 1 September and is the subject of this book. I Corps was now coming under attack from the German Second Army and the resulting rearguard actions that Haig's men were involved in are covered in this volume:

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781473841192
Publisher:	Pen & Sword Books Limited
Publication date:	09/30/2014
Series:	Battleground Early Battles 1914
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	176
File size:	26 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Jerry Murland served in the Parachute Regiment. He is the author of Departed Warriors and Aristocrats Go To War (Pen and Sword Military). He lives near Coventry.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements 6

Introduction by Series Editor 7

Introduction 11

The Retreat from Mons 16

Stage 1 Mons to Le Grand Fayt

Landrecies 31

Maroilles 41

Le Grand Fayt 46

Stage 2 Étreux to Cerizy

Étreux 61

5 Cavalry Brigade at Cerizy 69

Stage 3 Villers-Cotterêts to the Marne

Villers-Cotterêts 77

The move over the Marne 86

Following Haig's Retreat 90

Maps 90

Getting there 90

Where to stay 91

Stage 1 Tour - Landrecies to Le Grand Fayt 94

Stage Two Tour - Chapeau Rouge Crossroads to Cerizy 107

Stage Three Tour - Puiseux-en-Retz Crossroads to the Marne 119

Appendix I Approximate Daily March Statistics 132

Appendix II I Corps Order of Battle and German First and Second Army Order of Battle 133

Select Bibliography 135

Index 136