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"The world grows dark
The world grows dark
The world grows ever darker

I cannot sleep
I dare not sleep

Oh dear Pallas, why, oh why?
Didst Thou choose to incarnate
In a great bog that so hates Daylight?

I cannot sleep
I dare not sleep
Lest I wake up mad
Or still worse a Shropshire lad."

---"Kilmainham IV" Ezra Pound 1915

------U.27 St. George's Channel 1705 hrs

When he had finally arrived at Haulbowline Thursday, Kapitänleutnant Bernd Wegener, the skipper of U.27, had been sorely disappointed to learn that there were no torpedoes available to replace those he had fired at Thunderer and London. He wondered how he was going to operate out of Ireland without torpedoes and was told torpedoes would be among the supplies that the High Seas Fleet would be escorting back to Ireland.

There was some diesel fuel currently available at Haulbowline and Wegener was at least able to top off his fuel tanks. He was also provided some food. He departed Cork at first light with orders to patrol St. George's Channel. The Germans did not know as yet that the Grand Fleet had moved from Devonport to the Isle of Mull but worried that British light forces might be massing in St. George's Channel in order to make a night torpedo attack on the High Seas Fleet. Admiral von Ingenohl was worried about British minelayers and submarines. Wegener saw no signs of any of these threats. In fact he found nothing whatsoever despite decent visibility for most of the day.

Meanwhile the small coastal submarine UB.17 patrolled off Bantry Bay where the British still held Berehaven naval base which Admiral von Ingenohl worried might be a base from which British light forces coud emerge to attempt a night torpedo attack. Her commanding officer, Kapitänleutnant Wenninger had spotted a British armed trawler in the early afternoon but did not feel it was worth a torpedo and draining much of his battery capacity to get into position. It was virtually certain that Berehaven would have defensive minefields and possibly antisubmarine nets as well so Wenninger did not try to sneak into the bay itself. While on this patrol she encountered one of the prize ships that was making her way to Cork.

------HQ British Second Army Toeufles (Picardy) 1715 hrs

It was now raining hard with occasional thunder and lightning. With German artillery within easy range of Abbeville, Gen. Plumer, the commander of Second Army, felt compelled to move his HQ further south to the small town of Toeufles. His new telephone lines were now working and he with some reluctance now took a call from Field Marshal French. "Just what in blazes are the Belgians up to?" French demanded to know.

"Field Marshal, King Albert and his generals concluded that their position had become too exposed to enfilading fire as a result of the recent German advance. The king decided to withdraw all the way south to St. Riquier. Compounding our problems he did not notify this HQ of his decision directly but instead routed the message through II Army Corps."

"Why all the insufferable gall! How badly did this irresponsible behavior of that royal brat hurt IV Army Corps?"

"Had the Germans made their effort just a wee bit more to east, sir, it could have unraveled my defenses completely. As it was it meant there was no pressure being applied to the left flank of the German advance this afternoon which made things easier for them."

"Are you still holding on the Scardon?"

"Yes, Field Marshal. The fighting has died down there though there is still some fighting going on just north of Caours. We are holding there as well, sir---at least for the time being."

"And just what is that last comment supposed to mean?"

"Well, sir, I expect the enemy to resume his attack in full force early tomorrow morning. If we do not receive any shells by then, I do not see how we can prevent them from reaching at least the outskirts of the city."

"I have some good news. The Royal Navy informed me about an hour ago that they are going to attempt another convoy across the Channel tonight. You should be receiving supplies including artillery shells tomorrow but it will be late in the day, possibly even after dark. I know that the Abbeville rail station cannot be used by day at this time. Is there any chance that it could be safely used by night?"

"No, field marshal, the Huns are too close to risk using it even on dark nights. The supplies are going to have to detrain further away which is going to delay their delivery to the front. Is there any way that we can persuade the Admiralty to send the transports sooner, sir? Three or four hours could make a big difference as to whether or not we will be able to hold on to Abbeville."

"The Admiralty is rather worried about mines they believe the Germans laid off the mouth of the Seine. They want as much time as possible to conduct sweeping operations and as an additional countermeasure the convoy is not going to take the most direct route to Le Havre. This will add some time to the transit."

"I do not pretend to know about naval warfare than the Admiralty but I get the distinct impression that they are still not fully aware of just how desperate our current situation really is and therefore are not weighing our needs properly against their own risks."

"If a mine blows up one of ammunition ships it will hurt us more than them, general. Instead of bleating about the Admiralty's decision, I would strongly suggest that your time would be better spent trying to devise the best way to hold on to Abbeville even with the delay. The French XXXVI Corps are not dependent on the Admiralty for their supplies and so are fairly well stocked with ammunition. I want you and General d'Oissel to do what is necessary tonight to shift his corps so it can used to attack the right flank of the German advance tomorrow."

Plumer sighed gently, which he hoped would be inaudible over the telephone. He had half expected Sir John French to make this suggestion as it was an option he himself had considered earlier but had ultimately rejected on account of very serious problems in the details. "Sir, I must remind you that while General d'Oissel has shown himself to be a man of good character, Joffre has provided him a rather weak unit to command. I would respectfully remind you, sir, that the XXXVI Army Corps has demonstrated very little effectiveness in offensive action so far. It has no heavy artillery---"

"---and one of its two divisions is territorial and we all know all too well how bleeding lousy French territorial divisions can be," interrupted French with obvious irritation, "Listen I am not expecting a miracle to happen tomorrow but if they can manage to distract the Huns for just a few hours it could end up saving Abbeville."

"But, sir, this will---"

"---but sir, nothing, general! No more of your arguments. I have given you an order and expect it to be carried out!"

------Zeppelin L.10 west of Dingle Peninsula 1720 hrs

The airship had finally repaired the problems with her steering gear which had kept her grounded at Killarney for two days. She now cruised at an uncomfortably low level off the coast of Kerry on account of the low cloud cover. This time she was not assisting the commerce raiders by locating merchantmen but rather she was on the lookout for British warships that might be heading to intercept the High Seas Fleet. Admiral von Ingenohl was particularly worried about possible night torpedo attack. She now spotted an armed trawler off Tralee Bay but that was it.

------Patrickswell (Limerick) 1800 hrs

The German 111^th Infantry Division now resumed its attack on the right wing of the Lowland Division in the vicinity of Patrickswell preceded by a rather short but spirited artillery duel. The artillery of the Lowland Division consisted of obsolescent 15 pounder field guns and 5" howitzers. Moreover its gun crews were not as experienced as those of the Germans which had a battery of 15cm howitzers at their disposal. The Germans prevailed in the artillery duel but the Scots held on stubbornly inside Patrickswell against a German direct assault which they drove off with fairly heavy losses. However when the Germans succeeded in turning their flank at Elm Park, General Egerton decided his position was untenable and pivoted his right flank back to the tiny hamlet of Ashfort while continuing to hold on to the village of Crecora so as to retain firm contact with the 11^th (Northern) Division to its east.

------northeast of Nish (Serbia) 1810 hrs

As part of Operation Tourniquet the weak German 90^th Infantry Division had made a diversionary attack crossing the Danube at Orşova just above the Iron Gates. This attack had encountered little resistance. It soon became apparent that the diversion was not fooling the Serbs who chose to ignore it. Kronprinz Rupprecht has been uncertain what to do with the division but eventually ordered it to join up with the Bulgarian First Army that was trying to secure the important vital railway junction at Nish, which was the sole remaining obstacle to finally opening a rail line to the Ottomans that did not pass through Romania. One reason that Rupprecht did this was that the 90^th Field Artillery Regiment was equipped with captured Russian 7.62 cm guns and 12.2 cm howitzers, for which the Bulgarians had suitable ammunition..

Arriving at the right wing of First Army the commander of the 90^th Infantry Division soon found his unit the object of derision from their Bulgarian ally. With only 6 battalions it was the same size as the reserve brigade of a Bulgarian division. The unit has been labeled a division primarily in the hope of deceiving the Serbs into thinking that the diversionary attack was stronger than it actually was. Despite their scorn at the unit's designation, the staff of the Bulgarian First Army was nonetheless glad to have some German assistance. They faced the Serbian Second Army on their left wing and a Serbian formation called Timok Army on their right wing. The rugged terrain combined with the dogged tenacity of the Serbs had made this a difficult campaign for the Bulgarian First Army. Rupprecht had repeatedly expressed disappointment with their rate of progress. The Bulgarians were now concentrating on trying to envelop the open left flank of Timok Army and committed the 90^th Infantry Division to this operation as soon as it arrived.

-----Galveston (Texas) 1845 hrs

An American tanker of 4,600 tons left Galveston harbor carrying diesel fuel bought by the Germans. Her destination was Cork.

------Claremorris (Mayo) 1905 hrs

The original armored train returned to the town of Claremorris. Aboard the train was a company of the 2^nd Athlone Battalion, whose commandant had orders to reinforce South Mayo Battalion. While the commandant of the South Mayo Battalion was glad to have reinforcements he was disappointed to learn that they did not bring any additional weapons with them. In fact a sixth of the men in the new company were armed with a shotgun instead of a rifle. Furthermore they had brought along very little ammunition.

The battalion commandant had tried to emphasize the positive when he met the company commandant, "I am glad to see that our friends at Athlone realize our importance out here. Now that I have your company added to my unit I can return to Castlebar. This time things will turn out differently."

The company commandant shook his head and produced a letter, "You will not be returning to Castlebar anytime soon, sir. I was told to deliver these orders to you."

------London 1915 hrs

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, David Lloyd-George, was having dinner with the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Sir Edward Grey. "I must confess that I never did like Bonar Law very much and feel decidedly uncomfortable serving under him," said Grey, "When he took over I seriously considered resigning my post and going into opposition. I did not do so because you and others in our party persuaded me that in a time of crisis such as we find ourselves, a true statesman must transcend normal political considerations. So I stayed on for King and Country but nearly every day now I wonder if I had made a serious mistake."

"Let me reassure you that you did the right thing, Sir Edward."

"That is easy for you to say, David. You and the prime minister have become rather chummy much to the amazement of many within the party, myself included."

"I find much to admire in Andrew and I am not ashamed to admit it. However he does have certain deficiencies. In particular his ardent Unionism has played into the hands of the Germans. It shall prove to be his undoing."

"Then you believe as I do that a vote of no confidence is not far off."

Lloyd-George nodded, "Very probably sometime this week. Andrew has only lasted this long on account of the Grand Fleet's narrow victory in the Celtic Sea. His only real hope to make it into June is that General Hamilton finally succeeds in retaking Limerick soon and that along with the addition of the 13^th Infantry Division and limited use of the U.V.F. will dramatically alter the course of the Irish campaign."

"Perhaps so, but I still have grave reservations about this limited employment of the U.V.F. It will surely incite still more of Redmond's followers into joining the rebels."

Lloyd-George shrugged slightly and shook his head, "I am not so sure about that. If both the Germans and the rebels soon suffer a series of defeats, the morale of the rising could collapse, esp. if Pearse is either killed or captured soon. I am unequivocally in agreement with the prime minister that things have so deteriorated that the use of the U.V.F. is now fully warranted. There were good reasons to hold off but the situation there has grown far too grave."

Grey took a few seconds to absorb this before responding, "Perhaps the decision on this matter should be postponed until we have a new prime minister."

Lloyd-George shook his head, "That would not be wise. Not at all. The new prime minister is almost certain to be Balfour, who unfortunately shares some of Asquith's shortcomings. One of them is a marked tendency towards excessive deliberation and with it a concomitant procrastination, which is a luxury we can ill afford at this critical juncture."

"Are you absolutely sure that it will end up being Balfour? Long has been garnering some attention of late. He has been vociferous in his support of Bonar Law's harsh policy towards the Irish rebels while just as strongly criticized the prime minister for not ordering still more dreadnoughts."

"The first point is a bit tricky. Long is clearly playing to those Unionists who suspect that Balfour will soften the current policy towards the rebels. I must confess that I initially backed the prime minister when we thought the rebellion was less than a thousand Irishmen working directly with the invaders. The situation has changed since then but Andrew stubbornly refuses to acknowledge the need to adjust our policy. I am very hopeful that Balfour does realize the need for a, shall we say, a more nuanced policy towards the rebels."

"But not Long."

"Ah yes, that goes without saying. Not that Long is incapable of changing his spots---he can be quite the chameleon when spurred on by ambition, but in the current context he has painted himself into a corner with the most anti-Catholic elements."

"Yes, I agree with that evaluation, but his speeches about the need to build a still stronger battleship class is appealing to even members of our own party."

Lloyd-George sighed deeply shaking his head, "His demagoguery on that issue is truly irresponsible though I must say it is hardly atypical of that man. Starting a whole new class of larger battleships is the last thing the Royal Navy needs right now. What is most important for us now is to repair our damaged capital ships with utmost speed and complete as quickly as possible those dreadnoughts which are already in the water. I know for a fact that our new construction is already interfering with that. Laying down still more new hulls will only serve to exacerbate that problem. And where do we have spare slips for these new superduperdreadnoughts that Long wants? Maybe--- I say maybe--- at Harland & Wolff but Belfast, esp. its heavy industry, is having some serious difficulties right now. Of course Long is telling any and all that he will solve Belfast's problem within a day or two. At best he is fooling three or four of the dumbest Unionists in Parliament on that score in the hope to persuade them to vote for him instead of Balfour."

"You seem very confident that Long's strategy will fail, chancellor, and that Balfour will be our next prime minister. I wished I could share your confidence. The thought of Walter Long possibly residing at 10 Downing fills me with unspeakable dread and not just because of his diehard Unionism."

"I heartily agree with your misgivings. Long possesses numerous defects not the least of which is compulsive deviousness. It am less worried about him than you though, as I see very little chance that he will succeed. All that he is accomplishing with his demagoguery and intrigue is to delay Andrew's downfall a few days and for that I am grateful."

"Why did you say that, David? I believe that I will regard Balfour as something of an improvement."

"Because I fear than many of the problems we had with Asquith will reappear with Balfour, who is even less decisive and prone to academic abstraction."

"I do not see a more deliberative process as necessarily a bad thing, chancellor. At the risk of sounding blunt, some of the decisions of the 'triumvirate' have to my mind and that of many other Liberal colleagues, come across as being hasty and impetuous bordering on downright reckless."

.Lloyd-George was irritated by this though he had half expected it, but took care to hide his annoyance. The word 'triumvirate' had come into wide usage as a disparaging term for the War Committee in its initial 3 member form. It had become a popular term with the Irish Nationalists and the Labour Party as well as many Liberals and even a few Tories such as Long. "I could argue that point, Sir Edward, but instead I shall point out that it has now become moot with the addition of Lord Kitchener and yourself to the War Committee. I have very recently spoken with Balfour and has told me that he intends to make very few changes to the Cabinet and intends to keep you, me, Carson and Kitchener in the War Committee. However he does intend to make Henderson a Minister without Portfolio and add him to the War Committee. As you well know Henderson has steadfastly refused to serve under Andrew but apparently is willing to do so with Balfour."

"Excellent. That should serve to take some of the foul wind out of MacDonald's sails."

"That is indubitably true, but it unfortunately it poses some problems as well. For one, I see the War Committee finding it more and more difficult to reach a consensus on important issues and Balfour will be very inclined to refer these matters to the entire Cabinet a la Asquith, resulting in an inability to reach timely decisions on urgent matters. It is for that reason I beseech you not to oppose the partial mobilization of the U.V.F. come Monday. If the matter is not resolved before Balfour becomes prime minister I fear it will never be approved but will only serve to bog down the Cabinet in endless debate."

Grey sighed deeply, "You are put me in a difficult spot, David. Many in our party will be shocked if we take this drastic step. Is this desperate action really necessary to achieve our ultimate victory in Ireland? If it is merely a matter of speeding things up the destruction of the rebellion by two or three days, I say it is definitely not worth the political price it would entail."

"The rebellion is not dissipating as rapidly as we had hoped after our costly victory at Dublin, Sir Edward. We do not know what has happened to Pearse. If he has escaped he might be able to rally the rebels esp. as the Germans clearly have the initiative in Munster right now."

"Which they will lose when the 13^th Infantry Division arrives at the front, even if the Germans hold out longer at Limerick than General Hamilton is anticipating."

Lloyd-George shook his head, "While I certainly hope that will happen I think it will merely counterbalance the additional reinforcements the Germans are bringing to Ireland in the next few hours. I do sincerely believe General Hamilton will ultimately prevail against the invaders but barring a small miracle I do not see that being accomplished before the end of the month. While our army concentrates on defeating the invasion force there is a very real danger of the Irish rebellion growing and spreading. Lord Kitchener does not come out and admit it but the plain fact is that most of Munster and Connaught is already in chaos."

Grey frowned deeply and took his time before answering, "I do not wish to be obstructive. You make a compelling argument but I am not yet completely persuaded. There is much that needs to be considered and I have until Monday morning to reach my decision. Perhaps we shall see a sharp turn of events in Ireland by then like the liberation of Limerick. In that case using the U.V.F. would be completely unnecessary and unwarranted."

"Perhaps, though I would still regard it as desirable. If you do find yourself opposed I do ask that you be content with going on record as being opposed but do not take the next step of insisting that we bring the matter before the full Cabinet as that would not only make it impossible for the policy to be implemented before Balfour takes the reins, but it will also waste huge amounts of time we need for other issues."

"So much for War Committee operating by consensus, eh chancellor? Still I may end up doing as you suggest just to avoid political paralysis."

------Laragh (Wicklow) 1920 hrs

After being notified by Commandant Sean Heuston of Barry's presence at 1^st Dublin Battalion, Major Rommel decided to interrogate him personally. "It is good to see that you are still alive, Mr. Barry," said Rommel though his tone of voice was devoid of any enthusiasm.

"It is good to see you as well, major, even though your poorly trained men went off half cocked and shot me before I had a chance to surrender. I insist that you conduct a thorough investigation and discipline whatever idiot is responsible."

"When I have some free time I might get around to doing that. In the meantime I consider this incident as a demonstration of some of the risks involved in impersonating the enemy---tactics I find deeply immoral."

"Oh, and wasn't it is just such deeply immoral tactics that resulted in your escape when you were captured at Bandon?"

Rommel ground his teeth then said, "Did you come all the way here just to rub that embarrassing fact in my face yet again?"

"Oh well maybe a little, major, but there are some other some things I really think you should know that you might not yet be aware of."

"Such as?"

Barry's expression grew more serious, "Have you heard that the Countess was executed early this morning?"

Rommel's jaw dropped and he shook his head slightly, "No, I have not. Are you sure about this? Could it be another of those wild rumors you Irish so relish?"

Barry started to shake his head but then he shrugged, "I don't think it is so, but can I rightfully say that I am absolutely certain? No, it wasn't like I saw it with me own two eyes. But I think I have developed a good ability to separate fact from fancy by now and this appears to be the former, supposedly based on an official announcement. The Irish Times resumed printing yesterday though under heavy government censorship. You can probably confirm her execution from their next edition but seeing as they dunna publish on Sundays you will have to wait for the Monday edition."

"Unfortunately the British for some obscure reason do not see fit to deliver their newspapers to us."

"Aye, but they do make their way to some communities in the northern portion of this county. If you send a reconnaissance party north Monday and you should be able to get a hold of a copy or two."

Rommel's expression changed from grumpy to melancholic, "I want so very much not to believe your story. The Countess was---how should I put it---an exceptional woman. While I do not agree with some of her bizarre ideas about the proper role for women, as well her radical socialism, the indisputable fact remains that she did save my life and for that I am deeply grateful. I do regret that she ended up being one of those who was left behind in Dublin. I hope and pray that you are wrong and she is still alive. We recently captured Sir Winston Churchill, who was not that long ago, a major political figure. Pearse had some hope that if he recovered from his wounds, which is far from certain as they are very serious, we might be able to arrange to exchange him for the Countess. That may be moot now."

Barry sighed, "Truth be told, I hope that it turns out that I am wrong about that as well. I grew to admire her as well despite all her eccentricities. However I have some other news that you might not be aware of. The British have greatly reduced their strength in Dublin after you sneaked out. According to the Irish Times there is a big battle being waged in the northernmost portion of County Cork. I bet you didn't know that there are now Austrian units in Ireland fighting beside the Germans."

Rommel snorted then grinned slightly, "Oh, that I did know. There are Hungarian Hussars in Arklow now, led by none other than Count Tisza."

"Uh, Count who?"

"Surely you must have heard of Count Tisza, who until recently was the forceful prime minister of Hungary."

Barry for a few seconds continued to look baffled then suddenly he said, "Oh, that Count Tisza, why of course, everyone knows him."

Rommel shook his head some more but realized whether or not Barry had previously heard of Tisza was unimportant. "How thorough is your knowledge of how much British strength remains in Dublin County?" he asked unsure about how reliable this was.

"I can't say anything about Fingal and I only briefly entered the eastern edge of Phoenix Park but as far as the rest of the city and all points south incl. Kingstown, I saw nary a sign of any British artillery. I am not going to pretend that I can give you an exact figure as to how much infantry they still have there but I am certain that it is at most a third of what it was right after you left. That's soldiers mind you, there looks to be about the same number of R.I.C. Minus the two constables I ambushed and killed yesterday that is."

Rommel had developed a deeply ambivalent opinion of Barry. He would have much preferred it if had been Barry who had been caught and executed instead of the Countess. Yet at times this undisciplined whelp had demonstrated some cleverness and even bravery. Rommel was unsure of what to make of this latest intelligence. "One of my patrols has reported another British force of some size marching quickly down the Military Road. They will reach us tonight if they don't stop to camp for the night. Do you know anything about this?"

Barry looked momentarily baffled, then answered with a feeble semblance of a grin, "Oh yeah, that bunch. I was getting around to that."

Rommel shook his head and snorted softly. "Heh, what's so fuckin' funny, major?" Barry protested, "I told you that I did them coming this way."

Rommel said nothing. It was plainly obvious that not everything Barry said was true. What else is new? he thought to himself cynically So maybe he is wrong after all about the Countess being executed. However I cannot discount the possibility that some of what he is saying is true as it hints of a possible opportunity we cannot afford to ignore.

------HQ Army of Dvina Shavli (Lithuania) 1930 hrs

General von Marwitz, the commander of the Army of the Dvina, was meeting with General Kosch the commander of the newly arrived I Army Corps and General von Scheffer-Boyadel, the commander of XXV Reserve Corps. "According to your latest reports you are holding your positions against the Russian attacks," declared von Marwitz.

"Yes we certainly are, Your Excellency," replied von Scheffer-Boyadel with confidence, "I strongly recommend that we switch over to the offensive tomorrow morning."

General von Marwitz shook his head, "No, general, I do not occur with your suggestion. Our airplanes have spotted additional enemy units, both cavalry and infantry, heading here rapidly. Some of them, incl. a few armored cars, should be here early tomorrow morning. We shall remain on the defensive for the time being."

"Your Excellency, I must respectfully ask you to reconsider," protested von Scheffer-Boyadel, "A well planned counterattack can further weaken the units we already face before the enemy reinforcements can arrive."

"Perhaps but as long as they continue to attack at their current intensity we can weaken them just as easily on defense as offense," replied von Marwitz, "My orders stand."

------OHL Valenciennes 1955 hrs

General von Falkenhayn had General von Fabeck, the commander of Sixth Army, on the telephone. "In two more days we shall be inside the city of Abbeville," von Fabeck predicted hoping to impress his superior.

He was quickly disappointed. "That is encouraging, but I would be much happier if you could finally finish cutting the line of communication of British First Army," replied von Falkenhayn, "that remains your primary objective."

"I have not lost sight of that objective, sir," protested von Fabeck, "In the last two nights I have been moving the 42^nd Infantry Division into place to reinforce the Guard Corps. That deployment will be completed tonight. Meanwhile the last of the chlorine canisters are scheduled to be sited before midnight. After that we wait for a favorable wind. That is unfortunately one of the more serious shortcomings of this new weapon."

"I am well aware of that. My comments are not intended to make you do anything hasty, far from it. It is merely that I want to make it clear that taking Abbeville is a secondary objective which can wait until June if need be."

"I understand completely what you are saying."

"Good. In that case you must be worried that the British will finally realize their vulnerability and withdraw all of First Army across the Somme."

"Well yes, my staff and I have considered that possibility even going so far as to wonder why they have not done so already. We have concluded that they realize that cannot withdraw all of First Army in a single night and worry too much about the vulnerability of the last division that will move across the Somme."

"Good. In that case there is nothing further that I feel that needs discussing. Is there anything else you wish to talk about?"

"No, Your Excellency."

"In that case, auf wiederhören," said von Falkenhayn as he hung up the telephone and gazed at the clock in his office. He had rushed that telephone call for a reason. In about half a minute Oberst Tappen, chief of the Operations Section and Major Nicolai the chief of Section III B, which handled military intelligence, showed up as scheduled.

"I just got off the telephone with General von Fabeck," von Falkenhayn told them, "I once again emphasized the importance of finishing off the British First Army before the month is over. That is the necessary first step if we are to have any chance of rolling up the enemy line in June. He stared at Tappen as he said this. While von Falkenhayn was in general reasonably satisfied with his operations chief he had reluctantly concluded that Tappen still did not fully understand the difficulties involved in carrying out successful offensive campaigns against a well entrenched enemy.

"The British have repeatedly proven to be tenacious fighters with a morale as strong as our own, Your Excellency, but I am confident that the portion of First Army north of the Somme is doomed," commented Tappen, "it is merely a matter of time."

"Your optimism is uh, commendable," stated von Falkenhayn with an undertone of ambivalence, "but I am a bit more guarded. What we had once thought would be a relatively straightforward endgame has proven to be much more complicated. It would behoove us to anticipate further complications which could delay or even deny our satisfaction. In either case we need to consider what we are going to do about the French. The British are holding their merchantmen in port right now and the French are being deprived of key imports needed by their war industry, esp. coal. Even their own newspapers freely admit this! Which gives us reason to believe that there soon be a sharp reduction in the quantity of munitions and weapons reaching the French divisions. This should present us with an opportunity to launch an attack of some size against the French as well as the B.E.F. This operation could serve to make it more difficult for the French to come to the aid of General Haig or if General von Fabeck should end up disappointing me again, then it could lay the foundation for an alternative strategy on the Western Front. The key question therefore becomes which sector of the line would be best suited for our attack. Major Nicolai please summarize what is currently known about where the French Army is currently concentrated."

"Your Excellency, the greatest French concentration is with their Second Army which is continuing the offensive against our First Army begun at Compiegne. There is every indication that Premier Clemenceau is obsessed with driving us as far away as possible from Paris. This is therefore the schwerpunkt of what is now being called the Clemenceau Offensive. However there are two secondary French attacks currently underway as well. The first is directed against our Third Army in the Montagne de Rheims region. At this time it appears to be more than a feint but whether its ultimate objective is to take Rheims is not yet clear to my section. The other current French offensive is by their Third Army attacking out of Verdun. There too it seems that the French have more than a feint in mind."

"Yes, the Kronprinz and von Knobelsdorf have been worried about this eventuality for some time now," replied von Falkenhayn, "but for the time being they seem to be limiting the French to very small gains while enjoying a very favorable ratio in casualties."

"Your Excellency, it is the opinion of General. von Kluck that with 2 more divisions and 3 more battalions of foot artillery he can seize the initiative and at a minimum retake Compiegne," volunteered Tappen.

General von Falkenhayn briefly rolled his eyes, then answered, "Such a counterattack into the teeth of the enemy's strength is dangerously premature at this time. Before long it would require us to commit much more than von Kluck is currently requesting and therefore rob us of the strength we will need to roll up the front. My objective is the exact reverse. I want to sharply prick the French somewhere where Clemenceau and Joffre will feel obliged to respond with sizable reinforcements but where we can then quickly assume a strong defensive position. What other options do we have?"

The general looked at Major Nicolai who answered, "Your Excellency, back in March the French Tenth Army made another unsuccessful attempt to take Amiens. We believe that while some of their heavy artillery has been moved to Second Army as part of the Clemenceau Offensive they still retain some strength. Further east the French had been showing signs in April of preparing for a renewed offensive in the Champagne, but these efforts were halted soon after Clemenceau took over not only as premier but the War Minister as well. We have good intelligence from several sources that Clemenceau is not intimidated by General Joffre and has in fact overruled him on occasion."

"So you think Clemenceau cancelled an offensive in Champagne being planned by Joffre?" asked von Falkenhayn.

Nicolai nodded, "Yes, Your Excellency, but it is only an educated guess on my part."

"Understood but I regard it as a reasonable guess. The more pertinent question is how strong are the French in Champagne right now," inquired von Falkenhayn.

"Our airplane reconnaissance does not see the quantity and quality of artillery indicative of an imminent enemy attack, Your Excellency."

The general was not satisfied with that answer, "That only partially answers my question, major. Do we have an idea as to how many divisions we face there?"

"I am afraid not, Your Excellency. Except for the incomplete preparations I have mentioned it has been an inactive sector the last few months."

"That is not a satisfactory response. We need to know more. Order Fourth Army to conduct trench multiple raids each of the next three nights."

"Jawohl, Euer Exzellenz."

"You are thinking about trying to retake Suippes, Your Excellency?" asked Tappen.

"That is one fairly obvious possibility. Another more ambitious objective could be Ste. Menehould, which would surely grab the attention of Joffre and Clemenceau. But let us move on to consider other possibilities. Do we know whether the French are still concentrated near Aubreville?"

"Uh, yes they are, Your Excellency," replied Nicolai, "General von Mudra reported repelling a modest French attack on his position north of the town just last Monday."

"In which case it may have been a feint meant to deceive us into believing that they are stronger than they really are."

"That would be most unlike the French, Your Excellency," Major Nicolai started to say but when von Falkenhayn gave him a sharp look he added, "but just in case we shall instruct General von Mudra to conduct more trench raids as well."

Falkenhayn nodded slightly but he resisted the urge to grin, "Moving further east I already know about Knobeldorf's suggestion about trying to pinch off the northwest corner of Verdun taking a key piece of high ground. I am not ruling that out but with the recent strengthening of the French Third Army I worry that plan could run into some trouble. How about a renewed offensive by Army Detachment Strantz in the Woevre instead?"

"Operations are already underway to take Les Eparges, Your Excellency," said Tappen.

"Yes, I am well aware of that, oberst, thank you very much," replied von Falkenhayn testily, "I was thinking instead of trying to advance southwest again with the objective of cutting the rail line to Verdun. That would go a long way towards making Knobeldorf's plan less risky. I do know that General von Strantz has taken some steps towards improving the inadequate roads inside the Woevre."

"The ongoing fighting at Les Eparges has drawn considerable French strength there, Your Excellency," replied Nicolai, "Further south though there are signs that the French defenses remain relatively weak."

"The enemy may be assuming that they can fall back on protection of the Meuse forts if need be," speculated Tappen.

The general nodded, "That is quite possible. For our purposes it may be sufficient merely to seriously threaten those key forts. I want you two to work out with General von Strantz in the next 48 hours what our realistic options are there. What about the Vosges and the Belfort Gap?"

"Your Excellency, there is some intelligence that the French are building up for an eventual attack in the southern portion of the Vosges," replied Nicolai.

"Do you any idea of how soon and where it will fall?" asked von Falkenhayn.

The head of intelligence shrugged slightly, "Most likely it would be directed towards Münster though a secondary operation attempting to retake Hartmannswillerkopf cannot be ruled out. As to when it we do not think it is imminent. In fact once the shortage of munitions is felt it is very likely to be cancelled."

"Yes, that would make sense, but the implication is that the French will likely be stronger than usual in that sector in the near future. This could also complicate any attack we make to drive the French out of Alsace and then threaten Belfort, which would certainly force Clemenceau to respond," spoke von Falkenhayn, who paused a few seconds then continued, "As you both already know, General Krafft von Dellmensingen, the second ranking Army officer at OKW since General von Françis was dispatched to Ireland, is paying us a visit Monday. It is of course another sign that von Moltke wants to continue meddling in operational matters. At first I thought I would politely avoid meeting von Dellmensingen altogether and let you two handle him. This would be a way of expressing my displeasure with OKW. Now I wonder if that would be counterproductive. He is very knowledgeable about mountain warfare, which is unfortunately a rare skill amongst our senior officers. I think I would like to hear his opinions about the Vosges and in particular how they would impact an offensive into the Belfort Gap. There is also the matter of the winding down of Operation Tourniquet, which after giving us a scare for a while is now making some progress. How soon the divisions of Ninth Army can be released and where they are sent is something where OKW is unfortunately going to have a voice, because it involves coordination with our allies."

------Dessie (Abyssinia) 2005 hrs

The rain continued to pour. Inside a tent General Lee briefed Sir Ronald Graham on the day's battle. "For one thing the enemy force is larger than expected, Sir Ronald," reported the general as he tried to dry himself off with towels, "The expeditions out of Kenya and Somaliland have not drawn off their strength as we had planned."

The diplomat was unhappy with what he was hearing, "I told General Maxwell from the very beginning that a single battery of field guns plus another of mountain guns was completely inadequate for this mission. It seems that I have been fully vindicated in my protests. How bad are our losses?"

"Hapte Giorgis has not yet provided us with even a rough estimate of his losses. My staff believes that they are serious but far from catastrophic. As for our own casualties they are a little less than 800. "

"And what do you intend to do next, general? Mount another attack or retreat all the way back to Gondar?"

The general shook his head, "When the weather clears I am going to pull back but not too rapidly. I am hoping that if Iyasu thinks we are beaten he will abandon his defenses on the high ground to chase us. We can then turn around and meet him on something close to open ground. I still believe that enemy morale is poor even if it as not as completely brittle as we had been counting on."

Graham looked somewhat skeptical, "I don't know about that, general, but I suppose it is at least worth a try. What do you intend to do if this plan fails as well?"

General Lee spent a few seconds looking uncomfortable, before replying, "I must warn you, Sir Ronald, that it may take some time tomorrow before we know if it is successful, esp. if the weather again interferes."

"I can understand that but please stop evading my question, general. What if it does not work?"

"In that case we must make an orderly withdrawal most of the way back to Gondar while requesting reinforcements from General Maxwell. Hopefully Iyasu's concentrating his efforts here will mean easy success for the other two expeditions."

------SMS Nautilus off Cork 2045 hrs

While the I.R.N. minesweepers continued to hunt for British mines without finding any, the German minelayer Nautilus carefully laid another defensive minefield outside the mouth of Cork harbor.

------HQ Army Detachment François Buttevant (Cork) 2105 hrs

Oberst Hell continued to lead his ad hoc mixed German and Irish temporary brigade, with Major von Rundstedt still filling in for him as General von François' chief of staff. The general had been disappointed with the lack of progress made by General von Gyssling at Ballyneety but otherwise was in a good mood. A motor car was now waiting for him to take him to Haulbowline. The general gave detailed instructions to von Rundstedt as to what needed to be done in his absence. When he was done the major asked, "Your Excellency, what are the odds that Admiral von Ingenohl will like our plan?"

"Oh about one in a thousand," replied von François.

"In that case, it sounds like you are going to have your hands full. I wish you luck."

------north of Laragh (Wicklow) 2125 hrs

The 8^th Battalion Royal Irish Rifles had been dispatched by General Lowe, commander of the Eastern Region, to try to reestablish contact with the missing 1/5^th Battalion Royal Scots Fusiliers. They had marched hard all day and in the last few hours had been thoroughly by a hard rain. On the way down the Military Road they had been spotted by patrols of Dublin Brigade.

In complete darkness their lead company now encountered the 1^st Dublin Battalion, the 3^rd Kerry Battalion and the 5^th Dublin Battalion on the Military Road north of Laragh. Rommel was there in person to direct the ambush. Dublin Brigade had a small number of flare pistols which suddenly blossomed to illuminate the sky. Three machineguns erupted along with his riflemen. The fighting was one sided and brief. The lead company realized they were in serious trouble and beat a hasty retreat. The combination of the rain and fog fortunately allowed a little more than half of its men to escape unharmed.

The commander of the 8^th Royal Irish Rifles did not immediately give up. He sent out vigorous patrols which skirmished with the rebels. Those who made it back finally convinced him that further fighting was too risky. He ordered the battalion to pull back to the north and make camp so his men could get some badly needed sleep. He also sent a messenger back to Dublin to inform General Lowe of this setback with its ominous implications as to the fate of the 1/5^th Royal Scots Fusiliers.

------Ballyneety (Limerick) 2200 hrs

Brigade Hell and the 6^th Bavarian Infantry Division had spent the late afternoon trying to blast and pry the 11^th (Northern) Infantry Division out of the town of Ballyneety. The commander of the 6^th Bavarian Infantry Division, General von Gyssling, was very worried about the weakness of his rifle battalions and had erred on the side of caution in pressing home his attacks. He had hoped that his British counterpart could be persuaded to withdraw by a combination of 15cm howitzer fire and Austrian pressure on his left flank. However the British once again demonstrated their stubborn streak which from a certain point of view could be regarded as heroic and refused to budge despite the losses they were suffering from the German shelling. In truth General Hammersley, the commander of the 11^th (Northern) Division, had wanted to withdraw from Ballyneety but his superior, General Wilson had adamantly denied his request.

General von Gyssling conferred with Oberst Hell at dusk and they decided to use Brigade Hell in a night attack to try to bust through the British line west of Ballyneety. In patchy fog and pouring rain the assault was made by the Bavarian Jäger Reserve Battalion and the 2^nd Kerry Battalion. The former tried to attack along 2 small dirt roads that had been turned into rivulets of mud and soon came under heavy fire from the machinegun section of the 6^th Battalion Border Regiment. The Irish attack had struck further east where there were no roads whatsoever. Having no wagons only a single cart per company due to the shortage of horses, the 2^nd Kerry Battalion was less tied down to roads than the Bavarians. The battle hardened Kerrymen, a fifth of whom were armed with shotguns instead f rifles, emerged out of the fog and overwhelmed a weakly held position of the 6^th Border which was unprotected by any wire. The German commandant of the 2^nd Kerry Battalion was pleased by his success. He dispatched a messenger back to the HQ of the Bavarian Jäger Regiment. Meanwhile he expanded his breach of the British position while bringing up his own machinegun section which was also carried in carts not wagons and took some time. Only one was in place when the first counterattack arrived but together with the Irish rifle fire it was more than enough.

------Dessie (Abyssinia) 2205 hrs

It was pouring rain at Dessie as well. "The enemy has demonstrated their pathetic weakness today, father!" ranted Lij Iyasu, who was meeting with Ras Mikael, "We must go on the attack early tomorrow and crush them completely."

"Your Majesty, the forces of nature are more powerful than either side right now. If the rain stops or at least tapers off tomorrow then we can see about launching a counterattack," replied Mikael.

As if to validate what had just been said, there was a very loud peal of thunder. Iyasu was not impressed. "I respect you, father, but I must insist that you attack soon. I do not hate the British but I cannot begin to express my contempt for my treacherous relative, Zauditu. We must make an example of her and that cunning Shoan viper Hapte Giorgis!"

------Kinsale (Cork) 2215 hrs

The fire aboard the Kronprinzessin Cecilie was eventually extinguished but she was experiencing some progressive flooding from her torpedo hit despite her supposedly watertight compartments. She was even more down the bow now and had developed a modest list to starboard. This caused Admiral von Ingenohl to worry about her becoming a block ship if she foundered inside Cork harbor. He therefore ordered her to proceed to Kinsale instead along with one of his torpedoboat flotillas which was to begin coaling there immediately. The wounded liner now began to transfer the cavalrymen, starting with the 9^th Hussar Regiment, to small boats which then ferried the men ashore. Meanwhile the 1^st Torpedoboat Flotilla which had remained behind at Cork, now emerged to reinforce the screen of the High Seas Fleet.

------'County' Kilburn (London) 2250 hrs

Once again gangs of inebriated youths from the lower classes gathered in the predominantly Irish neighborhoods of London. Once again they taunted the local inhabitants and vandalized the businesses. This time there was a more rapid response by the Bobbies who arrived in force long before the property damage could reach last week's level. However before they arrived another difference manifested itself. Bands of Irish Catholic youth had assembled to challenge the hooligans. These were armed mostly with blunt instruments, which they liked to call shillelaghs no matter the size or shape but some of them carried knives as well. Fights broke out between the marauders and them, which the police then had to quell. There were more than 40 serious injuries resulting from the melee. Two stab wounds and a crushed windpipe resulted in deaths. When it was over the Irish vigilantes felt with some justification that the police had come down harder on them than the vandals.

------Broadford (Clare) 2300 hrs

General Wilson, the commander of VI Army Corps, continued to pressure General Baldock, the commander of the West Riding Division to find a way into Limerick. Baldock realized that the most direct route through the area around Sixmilebridge had become too heavily entrenched for him to breach esp. since the German batteries had received additional ammunition. He decided to attack instead through the Glenomra Valley in the Broadford Gap between the Slieve Brenagh Mountains and the rolling hills to the southwest. This attack could not be made or even assembled during the day on account of the battalion of German 10cm guns positioned in the Slieve Brenagh Mountains overlooking the valley. So he waited until nightfall to shift his forces at a quick march and was glad to see a thick cloud cover completely blocking out the moon even though it was steadily raining.

The British attack consisted of 3 battalions, all barely half strength as a result of cumulative casualties. They fell upon a single battalion of German Marines also roughly half strength and not as well entrenched as the Marines around Sixmilebridge. The attackers were able to overpower the defenders suffering acceptable losses and for a few minutes had a relatively open albeit muddy route leading into Limerick city. However the attackers had become confused and disorganized in the darkness. As the senior officers tried to restore order and cohesion they were engaged by a company of the East Clare Battalion emerging from the mountains with which they were very familiar. Their attack was eventually driven off but it caused the British battalions in Glenomra Valley to fret about a threat to their flank. Then one of the batteries of 10cm guns in the mountains to the east began firing star shells and after that a few rounds of shrapnel shells, despite worries about hitting friendly forces.

Meanwhile Gen. Jacobsen, the commander of the Naval Division learned of this threat. What was left of his battalion which had been overpowered at Broadford had been rallied by its commander and reinforced with another battalion and a machinegun company equipped with the somewhat lighter and more mobile MG 08/15. The Naval Division had been provided 2 companies armed with this new weapon for Operation Unicorn because of the need to capture Limerick quickly. When the British finally attempted to resume their advance the Matrosen were ready for them and the lead battalion, the 1/5^th Duke of Wellington was handled roughly. After that the British probed in the dark for a while. Worried about being badly exposed to the 10cm batteries come dawn the British started to withdraw around midnight

------IRT Eion MacNeill 2305 hrs

The former British armed trawler which had been captured at Haulbowline, was now with a mostly Irish crew and flying a green flag with emblazoned with a gold harp. She now slowly steamed out of Cork harbor. Ultimately her mission would be commerce raiding but for the next 12 hours her orders were to act as a picket ship off Cork. As such she would be guarding the minesweeping trawlers which flew the same flag.

------Dromore (Tyrone) 2310 hrs

New recruits continued to arrive at Dromore. Colonel Heinrici was pleased that 213 men and 8 women had joined the Northern Ireland Brigade so far this day. They brought very little in the way of firearms with them, only 3 rifles, 8 shotguns and 19 pistols. About half carried machetes, sledgehammers, pitchforks or an improvised pike. Heinrici assigned them all to the 2^nd Northern Ireland Battalion with the sole exception being one man who arrived at Dromore riding atop a fine horse. He quickly demonstrated equestrian skills and upon being provided a captured Lee-Enfield decent marksmanship as well so Heinrici assigned him to the cavalry troop. Most of the new arrivals did have the foresight to bring some food with them. A dozen even brought carts laden with food drawn by either a mule or a pony.

The British forces to his north and southwest had sent out strong patrols during the night but as far as Heinrici could tell neither were making another full scale attack. Heinrici worried about the possibility of yet another British force might come at him from the east and so sent out 3 patrols deep in that direction but so far they reported nothing. He knew that he could not stay at Dromore too long but decided against marching out before dawn. He had established a reasonably good defensive position and was cutting the important rail line between Omagh and Enniskillen. He thought he could goad the British into another costly attack while absorbing more new members.

------Thurles (Tipperary) 2330 hrs

The new armored train had arrived at Thurles five hrs ago and thoroughly intimidated the local constables. After two were killed a few surrendered while the rest skedaddled in motor vehicles. The railroad station was quickly secured by the 1^st Tipperary Battalion. Inside the abandoned R.I.C. stationhouse the Tipperary Volunteers captured 2,700 rounds of .303 as well as some food and petrol. They also found the hodgepodge collection of firearms the constables had confiscated from the local Irish Volunteers and National Volunteers companies. However as the rebels had brought 700 Moisin-Nagant rifles with them in the armored train, these weapons did not seem important. In the local jail they found and released 3 incarcerated Tipperary Volunteers leaders who immediately joined the 1^st Tipperary Battalion and assisted in rousing and collecting the local Tipperary Volunteers.

So far 78 men and 3 women had come forward to join them, roughly half of them of Tipperary Volunteers who had not answered the previous call to arms in late April. Most of the rest were disaffected National Volunteers. In either case the new arrivals were assigned to the battalion's 3^rd company where they would begin receiving intensive training at first light.

The armored train remained at Thurles for the night as it was more difficult to spot problems on the tracks in the darkness.

------SMS Friedrich der Grosse 2350 hrs

Grossadmiral von Ingenohl continued to worry about British mines even though none had been discovered so far by the three I.R.N. minesweeping trawlers. However he also fretted about a possible night torpedo attack and so did not want to linger off the mouth of Cork harbor too long. He had already ordered 4^th Scouting Group and a torpedoboat flotilla to enter the harbor and none of them encountered mines which together with vessels leaving without incident relieved most but not all of his worries. He now sent orders to Admiral von Hipper by searchlight to send the remaining troopships into Cork and if they did not strike mines to enter with 1^st Scouting Group. If there were still no mine strikes the German battle squadrons would follow them in single file followed by 5^th Scouting Group and the remaining flotillas.

I almost made that same slip in an earlier post and caught it at the last minute before posting.

Thanks Borys, will make edis tomorrow or Tuesday.

The Danube is clear up to the Iron Gates but not past it. The 90th Infantry Division is not a historical WWI German division BTW. However some historical German divisions don't exist either like Alpenkorps.

The German warships in the Shannon would not have any observation for fire into the Glenomra Valley.

Sir John French is usually fun to write.

Tom

I seem to recall in Halpern that opening up the Iron Gates was not easy. Maybe I should read them. Also in OTL opening up the Danube and the rail line was the #1 priority because of Gallipoli. In OU there is no Gallipoli and so getting arms to the Ottomans is desirable but not urgent. OTOH the CP want to finish off the Serbs completely and quickly.

You hve a very good map of Ireland to locate the Glenomra Valley.

I am a little surprised that you are the first person to comment on the Falkenhayn scene and German options against the French.

An update on von Spee should be in next post.

Tom