100 Years Ago Today

[Sailor Steve]

July 9, 1916
German ace Max Ritter von Mulzer recieves the Pour le Merite. He is the fifth German pilot to receive the award.

1320 French pilot René Pierre Marie Dorme, flying a Neuport 11, shoots down an LVG two-seater for victory number 1.

1510 Australian RNAS pilot Roderic Dallas, in Niuport 11 3994, claims an eindecker for victory number 5.

French pilot Alfred Marie-Joseph Heurtaux, in a Nieuport 17, shoots down an LVG two-seater for victory number 1.

German pilot Gustav Leffers, in a Fokker E.III, wins a combat with FE.2b 6952 for kill number 8. 2nd Lt David Hamilton McIntyre is taken POW and Hayden Floyd KIA.

German pilot Hans Müller, in a Fokker E.III, destroys a French balloon for victory number 2.

German ace Otto Parschau, in a Fokker E.IV, also gets a balloon for number 8.

French pilot Paul Joannes Sauvage, in an unidentified Nieuport, shoots down an "Enemy Aircraft" for kill number 1.

Italian pilot Mario Stoppani, flying a Nieuport 11, brings down an "EA" for number 1.

German two-seater team of Franz Walz and Martin Gerlich also claim an "EA" for victory number 4.



Black Sea:
Max Valentiner, commanding U-38, torpedoes Russian passenger liner SS Vperied (Vperiod, according to Wrecksite), 859 tons, being used as a hospital ship. His score is now 85 ships and 176,775 tons.



German East Africa:
Battleship HMS Vengeance, cruisers HMS Talbot and Hyacinth, and monitor HMS Severn continue to watch the Tanga area, with seplanes flying reconnaissance.

[Jimbuna]

10th July 1916

Western Front

Germans regain footing in Trones Wood.

British gain ground east of Ovillers and in Bois de Mametz.

French advance further towards Peronne; take Hill 97 (south-east of Biaches) with La Maisonette Farm.

Eastern Front

Germans rally and offer strong resistance on west bank of the Stokhod.

Austrians concentrate troops for big offensive on south side of Lutsk salient.

Russians claim 300,000 prisoners to date.

Naval and Overseas Operations

Italian destroyer "Impetuoso" torpedoed and sunk by submarine in Lower Adriatic.


Political, etc.

Premier Asquith makes an appeal to the House of Commons, urging them to accept the Irish Home Rule plan.

Berlin opens municipal kitchens and eating houses, capable of feeding 7000 people daily, in order to combat food shortages.

Ship Losses:

Florida (Imperial Russian Navy) The transport ship was sunk in the Black Sea off Sukhumi (43°05′N 40°52′E) by SM U-38 ( Kaiserliche Marine).
Impetuoso (Regia Marina) The Indomito-class destroyer was torpedoed and sunk in the Strait of Otranto (40°10′N 18°50′E) by SM U-17 ( Austro-Hungarian Navy).
Kara (United Kingdom) The cargo ship struck a mine laid by UC 6 (Otto Ehrentraut) and was damaged in the North Sea off Pakefield, Suffolk. She was declared a constructive total loss.
Staffa (United Kingdom) The trawler was scuttled in the North Sea 45 nautical miles (83 km) east by north of the mouth of the River Tyne by SM UB-39 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.

[Sailor Steve]

July 10, 1916

Air War:
Scotish RFC pilot Phillip Prothero, flying Bristol Scout C5308, shoots down a German two-seater for victory number 2.

German ace Ernst von Althaus is lightly wounded and misses a few days' action. This may be connected with Roderic Dallas's victory claimed the previous day, for which the Germans had no corroborating pilot lost or injured.



North Sea:
Werner Fürbinger, commanding UB-39, stops and sinks British trawler Staffa, 176 tons. His score is now 12 ships and 1,550 tons.

British freighter SS Kara, 2,338 tons, travelling in ballast from Rouen to South Shields, hits a mine laid by Otto Ehrentraut in UC-6. His score is now 10 ships and 8,537 tons.



Bay of Biscay:
American freighter SS Goldshell, 5,614 tons, hits a mine laid by an unknown ship. There are no casualties.



Strait of Bosphorus:
Turkish ferry Sultaniye, 520 tons, listed as scuttled. Details lacking.



Black Sea:
Max Valentiner, in U-38, sinks Russian freighter SS Florida, 3,238 tons, bringing his score to 86 ships and 180,013 tons.



Strait of Otranto (Between the Adriatic and Ionian Seas):
Zdenko Hudecek, in Austrian U-17, torpedoes Italian destroyer Impetuoso, 680 tons, with the loss of 37 lives.

[Jimbuna]

11th July 1916

Western Front

Contalmaison won and held against counter-attacks; British also take parts of Mametz and Trones Woods.

Total prisoners in 10 days fighting 7,500, and 26 field guns.

At Verdun Germans gain footing in Damloup battery and east of Firmin and Chenois Woods.

Eastern Front

Germans receive reinforcements and heavy artillery to defend passage of the Stokhod.

Russia claims to have captured 271,000 prisoners since the Brusilov Offensive’s start. Heavy fighting continues around the Stokhid River.

Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres

Russians begin a fresh offensive in Armenia.

General Maude succeeds General Gorringe in command of Tigris column.

Naval and Overseas Operations

A German submarine shells Seaham Harbour. One man killed. Three armed trawlers sunk off Scottish coasts, in action with German submarines.

Ship Losses:

Calypso (United Kingdom) The cargo ship was torpedoed and sunk in the North Sea off Listafjord, Norway by SM U-53 ( Kaiserliche Marine) with the loss of all 30 crew.
HMT Era (Royal Navy) The naval trawler was shelled and sunk in the North Sea off Aberdeen (57°09′N 2°00′W) by SM U-69 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived and were taken as prisoners of war by SM U-52 ( Kaiserliche Marine).
Inger (Norway) The barque ran aground on Langley Island, Saint-Pierre and Miquelon and was wrecked.
HMT Nellie Nutten (Royal Navy) The naval trawler was shelled and sunk in the North Sea off Aberdeen (57°06′N 0°58′E) by SM U-24 ( Kaiserliche Marine) with the loss of two crew. A third crew member was taken as a prisoner of war.
HMT Onward (Royal Navy) The naval trawler was shelled and sunk in the North Sea off Aberdeen (57°09′N 2°00′W) by SM U-52 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her fourteen crew survived but were taken as prisoners of war.

[Sailor Steve]

July 11, 1916

Air War:
French ace Georges Guynemer claims an LVG C.II, but it is unconfirmed.

German pilot Stefan Kirmaier, flying a Fokker E.III, destroys a French balloon for victory number 2.

French pilot Joseph Marie Xavier de Sevin, in an unspecified Nieuport, claims an "Avion", or Enemy Aircraft, for his first victory.

German two-seater team of Renatus Theiller and Otto Schmidt down a balloon for victory number 2.



North Sea:
An unusual day, in which three of His Majesty's trawlers are sunk by the gunfire of three different u-boats.

Walter Remy, new captain of U-24, sinks HMT Nellie Nutten, 174 tons, with his deck gun. Two casualties and one crewmwmber taken prisoner.

Hans Walther, commanding U-52, sinks HMT Onward, 266 tons, with his deck gun. All 14 crewmembers are taken prisoner aboard the U-boat. Walther's score is now 12 ships and 15,941 tons.

Ernst Wilhelms, in U-69, sinks HMT Era, 168 tons, with his deck gun. The trawler's 12-man crew are taken prisoner aboard U-52, along with Onward's 14. The trawler's captain, George Noel, dies two days later while a prisoner.

Hans Rose, in U-53, scores his first sinking with British freighter SS Calypso, 2,876 tons, bound from London to Christiania with a general cargo. The British listed the ship as missing, and all 30 crew perished.



Black Sea:
Freighter SS Ida, 1,681 tons, (nationality unknown), is sunk by gunfire (source unknown) at Ereğli, Turkey.



Canada:
Norwegian barque Inger, 1,450 tons, carrying a load of timber from Pugwash, Nova Scotia to Sharpness, Gloustershire, England, is wrecked of Pointe du uest, Miquelon, Newfoundland.



Argentina:
Chilean freighter SS Ludovico, 650 tons, travelling from Buenos Aires to Punta Arenas, runs aground near the Rio Negro.

[Jimbuna]

12th July 1916


Western Front

British gain Mametz Wood and make progress in Trones Wood.

Successful raids in Loos salient.

Germans attack strongly at Verdun; gain some ground at Chapelle St. Fine, at intersection of Fleury-Vaux roads.

Eastern Front

Furious fighting continues on the Stokhod, with no decisive results.

Southern Front

An Austrian attack on the Adige driven back.

Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres

Russians under General Yudenich advance west of Erzerum on the Erzingan road and recapture Mamakhatun.

Political, etc.

Americans offer up to $50,000 (today $1.1 million) to travel in a submarine to Germany. North German Lloyd Line refuses the offers.

President Wilson meets with a delegation of Polish organizations and promises aid to relieve the “tragical” situation in Poland.

Foreign Secretary Sir Edward Grey again refuses to allow American Red Cross aid to reach Germany and Austria-Hungary.

Ship Losses:

Ramos (United States) The cargo ship foundered in the Atlantic Ocean 600 nautical miles (1,100 km) north of Watling Island, Bermuda.

[Sailor Steve]

July 12, 1916

American armored cruiser USS North Carolina is the first ship to launch an aircraft with a catapult while underway. There is some confusion over this launch, with a much earlier date of November 5, 1915 being given. Some digging leads to the conclusion that November 5 was the date of the first catapult launch, but the ship was anchored at the time. This is the first launch while underway.

North Carolina with catapult.


The launch.




Air War:
0830 French pilot Noël de Rochefort, flying Nieuport 11 1374, shoots down an LVG C.II for victory number 4.

French ace André Chainat, in an unnamed Nieuport, downs an "Enemy Aircraft" for kill number 7. (According to The Aerodrome. Another site has this taking place one day earlier, on the 11th.



Atlantic Ocean:
American freighter SS Ramos, 843 tons, bound from Philadelphia for Cartagena with a load of coal, founders in a hurricane northwest of Watling Island (Modern San Salvador). Sources differ concerning the fate of the crew. One source says the Captain and 14 crew (out of 25) were rescued, but another cites the first mate as saying the captain was one of those attacked by sharks.
http://www.sharkattackfile.net/sprea...hman-Ramos.pdf

[Jimbuna]

13th July 1916

Western Front

German raids west of Wytschaete and south of La Bassee Canal repulsed.

Somme, British capture German howitzers and munitions.

French make successful raid in Champagne.

Eastern Front

Sharp fighting in Austrian centre, north-west of Buczacz, on the Strypa.

No decisive results on the Stokhod.

Naval and Overseas Operations

German submarine sinks two trawlers and two fishing boats off Whitby.

Political, etc.

Finance ministers of Britain, France, Russia and Italy meet in London to discuss the coordination of finances for the war.

Ship Losses:

Alfa (Denmark) The cargo ship ran aground at Bempton, Yorkshire, United Kingdom. She broke her back and was a total loss.
Dalhousie (United Kingdom) The drifter was scuttled in the North Sea 10 nautical miles (19 km) north north east of Whitby, North Riding of Yorkshire by SM UB-39 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.
Florence (United Kingdom) The trawler was scuttled in the North Sea 13 nautical miles (24 km) north by east of Whitby by SM UB-39 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.
Mary Ann (United Kingdom) The fishing vessel was scuttled in the North Sea 13 nautical miles (24 km) north by east of Whitby by SM UB-39 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.
Silverton (United Kingdom) The collier was torpedoed and sunk in the Mediterranean Sea 14 nautical miles (26 km) north east of the Canai Rocks, Tunisia (37°27′N 10°05′E) by SM U-39 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.
Success (United Kingdom) The fishing vessel was scuttled in the North Sea 13 nautical miles (24 km) north by east of Whitby by SM UB-39 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.

[Sailor Steve]

July 13, 1916

North Sea:
Werner Fürbinger, commanding UB-39, stops a small fishing fleet off the Tyne River, scuttling trawler Florence, 149 tons; drifter Dalhousie, 89 tons; and small fishing boats Mary Anne, 5 tons, and Success, 6 tons. His score is now 16 vessels and 1,799 tons.

Danish freighter SS Alfa, 1,369 tons, bound from Hudidsvall, Sweden for London with a load of timber, is wrecked at Bempton Cliffs, Yorkshire.



Mediterranean Sea:
Leading U-boat ace Walter Forstmann begins his eighth war patrol in U-39 with the sinking of British freighter SS Silverton, 2,682 tons, carrying a load of coal from Cardiff to Alexandria. Forstmann stops the freighter and allows her crew to abandon ship, then sinks her with a torpedo. His score is now 77 ships and 185,296 tons.



German East Africa:
British monitor HMS Severn spends part of the day firing at houses on Karange Island. Later in the day Severn anchors off Kitange Island alongside light cruiser HMS Talbot, tender Manica and whaler Styx. Manica sends up a seaplane to inspect the area and at 0230 to 0430 the monitor and cruiser resume the shelling of houses.

[Catfish]

...
German East Africa:
British monitor HMS Severn spends part of the day firing at houses on Karange Island. ...Manica sends up a seaplane to inspect the area and at 0230 to 0430 the monitor and cruiser resume the shelling of houses.

What purpose did this "shelling of houses" serve? Zanzibar and the islands were already in "british" hands in 1916. I thought the sinking of the Pegasus had been the last action of german naval resistance in the region. Or were there still german soldiers on those islands?

[Sailor Steve]

Originally Posted by Catfish

What purpose did this "shelling of houses" serve? Zanzibar and the islands were already in "british" hands in 1916. I thought the sinking of the Pegasus had been the last action of german naval resistance in the region. Or were there still german soldiers on those islands?

The German army was still operating in the area. Zanzibar and Mafia Island were held by the British, but a large part of the shoreline was not. I'm not sure of the exact purpose of this attack, having no reference to command decisions in the area. What I do have are the ships' logs, describing their actions, and not all of them agree with each other as to specifics, and sometimes one log or another will not even mention being there, even though another ship mentions them. It is definitely confusing sometimes.

[Catfish]

^ thanks, up to now i thought german resistance was only existent on the mainland at that point, not on islands.

What Lettow-Vorbeck did and what Schnee wanted 'differred' a bit, but L.-Vorbeck's actions were afaik limited to inland fighting, the only resistance to speak of "near the shore" at all was in the Rufiji delta, inland again.

It interests me because there are two "stories" that could have met but did not, regarding distant ancestry. One is the 1st officer and later captain in the german "Woermann-Linie" on a ship that took the plane of Mr. Bruno Buechner to Dar es Salaam, for an english-german fair that then did not happen due to the outbreak of the war.

The other was Obermaschinenmaat on the L 59 Zeppelin that was sent to meet Lettow-Vorbeck on the Mahenge tableland, but had to turn around due to a false report outh of Khartoum, but would have had difficulties anyway because Vorbeck was at another place at that time. (in the fictitious story "The ghosts of Africa" the captain of the L 59 manages to crash-land the L 59 on the flanks of the Kilima n'jaro, and the germans are able to defend the region).

The german steamer tried to go back to Germany, but it was assaulted during coaling by an english warship's boarding party in a neutral port in Mozambique. Despite resistance the civilian crew had no chance and the survivors were detained in a POW camp. Crew and 1st officer managed to flee and break through to the Rufiji delta, and this is why i am interested here.. part of this journey was done by boat, so there may be a faint chance there could ne some more information.. ?

Would be nice to get more information, so if anyone hears of this...

[Sailor Steve]

I don't know, and it is interesting, but it's also getting way off topic.

I'll ask again: Please put questions and speculations like these into the World War 1 thread and confine discussions here to things that happened 100 Years Ago Today.

[Jimbuna]

14th July 1916

Western Front

British attack German second line; capture Longueval and Bazentin-le-Petit, and the whole of Trones Wood.

20th Deccan Horse, Indian Army, prepare to attack in case a breakthrough occurs at the Somme.


German prisoners captured by the British during the Battle of Bazentin Ridge.


End of first phase of Battle of the Somme.

Eastern Front

End of Battle of Baranovichi.

Naval and Overseas Operations

British force under General Sir C. Crewe captures Mwanza, on Lake Victoria Nyanza.

General van Deventer takes Mpondi (on Central Railway).

Political, etc.

Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria-Hungary falls ill, and his family is summoned to Schönbrunn Palace.

France celebrates Bastille Day today, as heavy fighting continues at Verdun and the Somme.


Ship Losses:

Antigua (United Kingdom) The cargo ship was scuttled in the Mediterranean Sea 20 nautical miles (37 km) east by north of Djidjelli, Algeria (36°57′N 6°11′E) by SM U-39 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.
Ben Aden (United Kingdom) The fishing vessel was scuttled in the North Sea 15 nautical miles (28 km) north east of Hartlepool, County Durham by SM UB-39 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.
Bute (United Kingdom) The fishing vessel was scuttled in the North Sea 25 nautical miles (46 km) south east of the mouth of the River Tyne by SM UB-39 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.
Ecclesia (United Kingdom) The cargo ship was shelled and sunk in the Mediterranean Sea 11 nautical miles (20 km) off Cape Bougaroni, Algeria (37°12′N 5°57′E) by SM U-39 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.
Girl's Friend (United Kingdom) The drifter was scuttled in the North Sea 21 nautical miles (39 km) east of Hartlepool by SM UB-39 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.
USS Hector (united States Navy) The collier ran aground in the Atlantic Ocean 10 nautical miles (19 km) off Charleston, South Carolina and subsequently sank. All 142 people on board were rescued.
Langley Castle (United Kingdom) The drifter was scuttled in the North Sea 18 nautical miles (33 km) north east by east of the mouth of the River Tyne by SM UB-39 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.
Recorder (United Kingdom) The trawler was scuttled in the North sea 16 nautical miles (30 km) north east by east of the mouth of the River Tyne by SM UB-39 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.
SM U-51 (Kaiserliche Marine) The Type U 51 submarine was torpedoed and sunk at the mouth of the Ems by HMS H5 ( Royal Navy) with the loss of 34 of her 38 crew.

[Sailor Steve]

July 14, 1916

Air War:
1940 English pilot Charles Chapman, flying DH.2 5992, claims a Fokker eindecker for victory number 2. There are no German reports of losing a fighter this day, but as always planes that land safely after losing an engine aren't usually reported.



North Sea:
British submarine H-5 torpedoes U-51 off the Ems River estuary. U-51 is just departing for her first war patrol. Kptlt Walter Rumpel and 33 crew lost, 4 survivors.

Werner Fürbinger, in UB-39, finds another fishing fleet and sinks British trawlers Ben Aden, 176 tons; Bute, 176 tons; Recorder, 149 tons; and drifters Girls Friend, 55 tons and Langley Castle, 93 tons. His score is now 21 vessels and 2,448 tons.



Mediterranean Sea:
Walter Forstmann, in U-39, moving westward from Tunisia along the Algerian coastline, sinking British freighters SS Antigua, 2,876 tons, carrying a load of iron ore from La Goulette to Middlesbrough; and SS Ecclesia, 3,714 tons, travelling from Norfolk, Virginia, USA to Taranto, Italy. Forstmann's score is now 79 ships and 191,886 tons.



Adriatic Sea:
Austro-Hungaria torpedo boats A65 and A66 sink Italian submarine RM Balilla, 728 tons, off Lissa Island. According to Itialian Wikipedia the sumbarine had been sighted earlier by railway signalmen at Lissa. Balilla is surfaced and recharging her batteries when she sights A65 (or T65) towing a mine. Captain Paul Tolosetto Farinata degle Uberti fires two torpedoes. The torpedo boat sees and evades them, but the sudden action sets the mine off, severely damaging the boat. Balilla surfaces and launches a third torpedo, but apparently doesn't see A66. The two boats open fire on Balilla, rendering her unable to dive. A66 fires two torpedoes at the now-helpless submarine which sinks along with all her crew.
https://translate.google.com/transla...5)&prev=search



Gulf of Aden:
French coaster SS Binger, 346 tons, is wrecked at Djibouti, at the mouth of the Red Sea.



German East Africa:
British monitor HMS Severn continues shelling of houses in the Tanga area, supported by a seaplane and balloon from HMS Manica.



United States:
American schooner Rover, 120 tons, sets out from Baltimore, Maryland, bound for Tampa, Florida, and is not heard from again.

American naval cargo ship USS Hector (AC-7) is wrecked off the Outer Banks, South Carolina. The wreck is hung up on the sand bars and sinks three days later, the 17th.

American tug Wellington is towing barges North West, 570 tons, and South West, 835 tons, when severe waves force Wellington to cut the tow ropes. North West founders off Charleston, South Carolina. The crew are saved by Cape Romain lighthouse keeper August Wichmann. South West washes ashore further up the coast at Bulls Bay, but all eight of her crew are lost.