MagnificentOne — Roleplayer Guild

The Great War: Early 1918

With British assaults coming in from both Persia and Egypt, and Armenia almost under total Russian occupation, the situation for the Ottoman Empire in 1918 seemed dire. Rather than collapse, however, the Empire carried on. It seemed as though such a struggle would not tear the Empire apart but instead reinvigorate it as it planned a series of grand offensives. The first was to liberate the people of Armenia from the Bolshevik menace by striking northwards and cutting them off from the rest of Russia. Although the new commander within Armenia, Stalin, could boast of an immense army so too could the Ottomans. Numbers alone would not prove to be the decisive factor in the battle, however, as it was a daring assault during the night which caught the Russians unprepared. Shocked at the suddenness of the Ottoman assault, the Russians scrambled to put on a defence. Although ultimately they would be unable to prevent the Ottoman thrust towards the Black Sea, they managed to ensure it was not a bloodless victory.
[-389 Regulars and -75,564 Conscripts to the Ottoman Empire, -41,957 Conscripts to the RSFSR]

The next incursion for the Ottomans to deal with would be the British in Palestine. A holy city of three religions lay within their grasp, and its downfall would be a devastating loss of prestige to the faltering Empire. Soldiers amassed at once in order to prevent the city’s seizure however, alongside soldiers gathering upon the path to Acre. Much like the northwards assault, the danger lay in the swiftness of the Ottoman assault – camel cavalry, well versed in the devastating heat of the Middle East, had a field day as they rushed behind British lines and brought a reign of chaos. Despite the Ottomans managing to push the British back, the trained veterans managed to mow down waves of conscripts during the battle.
[-14 Regulars and -15,160 Conscripts to the Ottoman Empire, -5,683 Regulars to Britain]

The Ottoman army takes a rest after their victories.

The recent string of Ottoman victories proved to be unsustainable during their next assault upon British lines at Kuwait. Possessing not only a larger amount of trained soldiers than the Ottomans, but also a largely defensible port, the planned quick assault upon Kuwait soon turned into a lengthy battle for the Turks. Indian riflemen mowed down the rampaging conscripts with ease, whose fearsome bravery quickly turned to a desire to survive as the battle soon simply became a massacre. With the attack repulsed, the Indians gathered up their finest weaponry and chased after the routing army. There they managed to not only break through the reserves guarding the path to the rest of Iraq, but reach as far as to the immense city of Baghdad itself. Tired from the lengthy march and wary of the garrison within, the Indians were forced to gather outside the city limits as they prepared for a siege.
[-62 Regulars and -20,111 Conscripts to the Ottoman Empire, -6,116 Regulars to India]

The Anglo-Ottoman war was fought not only with men and weaponry, but also through a propaganda war. On the one side was the Arab Bureau of Britain's Foreign Office, who pioneered an asymmetric type of warfare. They predicted that through an Arab revolt, revolutionary fervour would spread like wildfire across the centralised Ottoman Empire, which would quickly overwhelm the state and bring down its collapse. Alliances with states in the Arabian Peninsula were sought for this very effort, with British and French officers journeying towards the Saudi and Hashemite tribes in an attempt to gather their support. As much as they attempted to sway the Arabs to their sides, it was largely an unsuccessful effort with only a few hundred tribesmen willing to join their cause. At the same time, the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire aimed to inspire revolt across the Muslim population of the British Empire. A speech calling for a Jihad against the forces of British imperialism and Russian communism found itself as far as Bengal. Although reaction throughout British India was muted - if at all present - anti-British and anti-Russian feeling began to become apparent within Persia.

British officers attempting to recruit the Arabs.

Meanwhile on the Eastern Front, efforts to succeed where the Tsarist government had failed were undertaken. Commanded by the founder of the Red Army itself, masses of conscripts were directed towards an assault of the occupied Baltic States where a fresh attack upon the German line began. The Germans were of course unsurprised by neither the timing nor existence of such a battle – but what they were surprised by was the ferocity of the attack. Trotsky and his grandiose speeches of revolution had unleashed a great enemy upon the Germans. Despite the Germans’ best efforts in holding off the attack; it became an untenable situation with a retreat increasingly becoming the only solution by the moment. Eventually Hindenburg gave the order, and his army marched back towards southern Lithuania where they recuperated. What they did manage to show was that despite the lost land, it was at the cost of many lives to what he referred to as a ‘disorganised rabble.’
[7,222 Regulars and -45,501 Conscripts to Germany, -1,244 Regulars and -154,823 Conscripts to RSFSR]

The second assault by the Red Army was enacted almost as soon as the Baltic offensive had begun. This time it was a crossing of the River Dnieper, in an attempt to evict the Austrians from the Ukraine. To assist his soldiers in such a campaign, another air bombing campaign was called upon not only the German supply lines but also the Austrian. Despite its notable successes in delaying German reconstruction, in all it wasn’t as successful as the initial bombing in the years before. Nevertheless, the mastermind behind the battle, Mikhail Frunze, decided to push onwards. Due to his careful timing his forces narrowly avoided the patrolling Austrian gunboats during the crossing where they met the resting K.u.k. army. Owing to a fearless mentality, he led the Russians onwards despite being outnumbered by the Austrians. The Habsburg army, having expected safety in numbers to pay off, were soon overwhelmed by the bold attack despite their determined defence. The Russian advance soon came to a stop having pushed the Austrians away from the Dnieper, and they took time to recuperate in time for future assaults.
[-1,154 Regulars and -99,751 Conscripts to RSFSR, -4,259 Regulars and -116,445 Conscripts to Austria]

Punch Magazine's view of the recent Russian successes.

At the same time, a joint assault was planned by the Central Powers not upon Belarus but also upon the Dnieper. The difference was that whereas the Russians aimed to liberate the south, the Central Powers aimed to cross at the north. Although a few officers initially protested that under the threat of Russian sky power the logistics would not allow for it, a plan had been put into action to allow the logistical system to operate. Utilising the vast river of the Danube, the Austrian navy took to forming a supply chain by taking advantage of Bulgaria’s transport rights to sail through the Djneper. From there on they would link up with the already operating supply lines in the Vistula, allowing for supplies to reach the Eastern Front once again. This adaptation of the Anaconda Plan proved to be useful, as the crossing of the river was easier than expected – no thanks to Austrian gunboats quickly dissipating any initial Russian resistance via coastal bombardment. With the army upon the other side, both the Austrians and Germans were free to march onwards – but first; the Russian army had to be taken care of. The conscripted forces of Tukhachevsky were numerous and dwarfed the Central Powers in comparison – but invader’s advantage came down to both soldiers who actually knew how to operate a gun and canny strategy. Under such circumstances the battle soon turned into a slaughter, with the Russians fleeing no matter how hard their commanders yearned for them to resist.
[-1,185 Regulars and -291,515 Conscripts to Austria, -4,063 Regulars and -25,599 Conscripts to Germany, -349,900 Conscripts to RSFSR]

In the occupied Ukraine, Austro-Hungarian commanders would ensure that there were veterans to staff the most notable cities - namely Kiev - as reserves, and also to ensure local order. Much like in Serbia, wages and bearable conditions were on offer to the Ukrainians willing to work for the Austrian industrial effort - however as a result of being so close to the frontlines, the Austrians were naturally wary.

Back on the Western Front, a plan was concocted by Joffre in order to annihilate the German forces by placing an enormous strain upon their logistics – namely cutting them off. Gathering some of France’s finest veterans and most patriotic men, Joffre proceeded to give the grand order to rush out of the trenches immediately after a creeping barrage near the town of Nancy, en route to Luxembourg. The countryside was wrecked by bombardment and whatever defences the Germans had begun to show cracks, and this was enough for the French to take advantage of. Although the Germans managed to resist the French at first, the pressure brought on became too much. With the defences beginning to splinter and the patriotic fervour not about to die out any time soon, the Germans took to a strategic withdrawal. Despite this small victory, Joffre was unable to reach the borders of Luxembourg. At the very least, it was a grave threat to the German supply lines.
[-6,726 Regulars and -209,266 Conscripts to France, -10,567 Regulars and -106,815 Conscripts to Germany]

French soldiers rushing towards the German lines.

Field Marshal Haig of the British Expeditionary Force sought to not only alleviate French forces stationed within Paris from any assault, but to also push back the German lines from the Belgian border. Despite Joffre’s failure to entirely cut off the German supply lines, it was a known fact that German logistics had began to strain as a result of the Russian bombing campaigns. It was under this conception that Haig believed he could overwhelm said logistics and bring about a grand victory. To realise his plans, he ordered the grandest artillery bombardment in history. Over eight million artillery shells rained down upon the German lines, and to those on the front it seemed as though the Germans had been annihilated by the artillery alone. The self-assured British believed the German line to have been entirely shattered through this ruthless bombardment, and with this they thought it would be as simple as strolling across no man’s land and occupying the enemy’s ground. With “Kitchener’s Mob” being composed of mostly conscripts, however, Haig worried that his men may only become panicked in a rush attack. Therefore the decision to walk in straight lines across the frontlines was made. Surely, it would be harmless enough given the brutal artillery bombardment? The German machine gunners disagreed. The artillery never was enough to entirely devastate the line, and the Germans simply lay in wait. The massacre of innocents that followed was said to be so bloody that Germans cried over the sheer amount of killing. Haig’s only reaction was not to call off the attack, but to wonder if anything could boost what he saw as faltering morale – the answer he received was “Your resignation and suicide is the obvious suggestion.” Needless to say, it failed to gain any ground.
[-7,668 Regulars and -69,999 Conscripts to Germany, -10,250 Regulars and -179,382 Conscripts to Britain]

The third of the Entente’s offence was planned to assault the German forces bordering Paris, in an attempt to not only draw their men towards them to wear them out in a war of attrition but also if lucky to dislodge their entrenched position. With a force larger than either Joffre or Haig, the French began their advance, co-ordinating their attack through the entire line. It succeeded in bringing Germans towards the front – but perhaps it succeeded a little too well. The German Empire, in an attempt to boost their forces against the French in preparation for a quick knock-out had amassed over 60% of their forces in France, with only 40% serving in the Eastern Front. Despite this weakness in the east it ensured that there were more than enough men to repel the Entente’s attack, no matter how determined. It was with the last wave that the Germans decided enough was enough, and to turn their own defence into an offensive. Their artillery bombarded the retreating French before the Germans rushed onwards, with a target in mind – Paris itself. As Foch manned the fortifications of Paris, he proclaimed to his men "I will fight in front of Paris, I will fight in Paris, I will fight behind Paris”. The finest artwork of not only France but the world was hastily evacuated from the Louvre alongside the city's industry and a flood of refugees – but many Parisians choose to take up arms. Prime Minister Clemenceau himself famously refused to retreat in advance, and rallied Frenchman at the front. With the Thiers Wall and 198 fortifications, it was to be a tough battle for the Germans. It all began with a grand bombardment of the capital, but the French remained strong. The first skirmish to the outside of the city walls with successfully repulsed, but it was only one of many – and not all of which were so easy to defeat. A bloodbath soon took place along the wide streets of Paris, with gunfire exchanged from as many buildings as the French could fortify. It seemed as though every street was a siege of its own, with horrifying casualties piling up for both sides. One of the strongest fortifications the French soon found was not their blockades, but rather a sea of bodies of Germans and French alike. Under such ruthless circumstances would close quarter combat arise, with bitter fighting raging on for every inch of Paris. Whether boulevards, monuments, houses, or even staircases and sewers – bloody fights were present. The Germans however managed to make slow but steady progress during the violent onslaught, marching over the bodies of fallen comrades. They met one last stand of defiance by the French - Victor, Prince Napoléon, and a battalion of patriotic soldiers held off a German assault by the River Seine, allowing for the successful escape of thousands of refugees. The battle was ultimately won by the Germans, but with the torturous battle having brought extreme losses to their army, a few officers questioned if it was ever worth it.
[-13,725 Regulars and -426,993 Conscripts to France, -26,618 Regulars and -695,688 Conscripts to Germany]

A German postal stamp commemorates the victory in Paris.

Elsewhere in Africa, the forces of Paul Von Lettow-Vorbeck were up for a second fight as the South Africans enacted a second campaign to end his free reign in Namibia. Despite the initial effectiveness of his guerrilla campaigns in devastating South African lines, officers began to take note and develop counter-insurgency tactics which would prove useful in driving back von Lettow-Vorbeck’s assaults. Now under safer circumstances, the South Africans were able to freely occupy the remaining towns of Namibia bringing a final end to the last African colony of Germany.
[-1,540 Regulars to South Africa, -1,561 Reservists to Germany]

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