A Better Rifle at Halloween

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Father Maryland

kelgar04 said:
How old are we talking?
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Muzzle Loaders. Including a number of actual Coehorn mortars (Though I think that was more of a British thing until they'd brought enough Stokes mortars into service.).

For the French probably a sizable number of heavy muzzle loading coastal artillery pieces that predated the Little Bighorn.
 

steamboy

Interesting update! More rangefinder's for the fleet and training with them will surely be a good thing. Now if you could arrange for Beatty and his signalman to be involved in an unfortunate accident with a horse and carrage, a vat of honey and 12 hungry bears that would be lovely.
 

Peg Leg Pom

Father Maryland said:
Muzzle Loaders. Including a number of actual Coehorn mortars (Though I think that was more of a British thing until they'd brought enough Stokes mortars into service.).

For the French probably a sizable number of heavy muzzle loading coastal artillery pieces that predated the Little Bighorn.
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All mortars are muzzle loaders.
 
More industrial organisation
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    • diesal

    14th August 1914, London.

    Lloyd George was meeting with his purchasing commissioners again; they had started to get an understanding of the state of industrial production in the United Kingdom. They started the meeting with a run down on the state of Munitions, Armaments and Military stores production at that point, all of the manufacturers had received prompt orders from the War Office to continue production at the current rate whilst awaiting further orders. The Admiralty had also done the same, shipyards were ordered to continue building the ships on the blocks at the outbreak of war and to continue design and other work on upcoming construction.

    With that the meeting moved onto manpower, Lloyd George like all of them had be shocked by the surge in volunteering, his commissioners were less happy, they relayed the complaints of manufacturers the length and breadth of the country who were concerned about the loss of skilled workers and apprentices into the army. Already more than 50,000 men had volunteered for service, the army expected that hundreds of thousands more would join up.

    The military member of the commission raised the issue of training, he pointed out that they would not be able to train and equip anything like the number of volunteers expected. It would be better to take the oaths of these men but not send them for training until the training establishments were available and the equipment likewise. The other commissioners agreed, the Registration of Manpower Act was scheduled to go to the Lords for its third reading and then to the King for Royal Assent, this would help reduce the risk of skilled men being lost to the infantry, instead it would empower the local manpower boards which would be made up of the territorial association, local manufacturers’ representatives, and other local representatives to allocate personnel for the many conflicting needs of the war. Another feature of the Registration of Manpower Act was that it would allow the local boards to direct unemployed persons to work in war industries. It was also intended to facilitate the entry of women into unskilled war work of all kinds, this would include access to training necessary to undertake war work. The Act included a mechanism for recording individuals trades and education, and new training facilities were being established in industrial areas to the large number of industrial workers that would be needed.

    Local purchasing and regional purchasing commissions were also being formed to assist with industrial expansion, these commissions would undertake detailed surveys of all local businesses in their areas of operation, they would grade each business as being of one of 5 categories,

    A. Already making warlike materials

    B. Making essential civilian materials (this category includes equipment required for manufacturing, mining and agriculture)

    C. Businesses that can readily convert to A or B if required

    D. Businesses which are undertaking non-critical work not readily converted to war work

    E. Businesses undertaking work which generates significant foreign exchange.

    This categorisation was to be used for the allocation of contracts, workers and material, businesses in category A and B would be able to keep skilled workers rather than have them lost to the forces.

    It was anticipated that this huge plan would be highly disruptive to business and industry and the commissions included representatives of industry, the labour unions and the professional societies to try to ensure the process was as smooth as possible.
     
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    • Liege Besieged
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    • diesal

    2:00 pm 14th August 1914, Liege.

    The Fortresses at Fleron, Evengnee and Barchon had been demolished, but their ruined works had held up the German heavy guns for many days. Those guns were attempting to blast there way through Pontisse and Chaudfontaine, likely they would succeed within a few days.

    General Leman had already lost over 2000 men holding the forts and the entrenchments between them. Morale was patchy it was highest amongst the infantry, though they had taken the worst of the casualties. The fortress gunners held grimly but their spirits were lowered by the inability to fire back at the heavy guns bombarding them. The town was a problem, it ran the full gamut from those who wanted to join the line themselves and who even now laboured to clear rubble, and dig trenches. But for most of the townsfolk morale was worsening, they had been bombed every night by the German Zeppelins, the damage was significant and utterly indiscriminate, several thousand civilians had been killed wounded or made homeless. But the fortress and the town must hold, already Leman had had a pair of drumhead courts martial to deal with three looters within the town and a soldier who had attempted to desert to the Germans with a map showing the fortifications. The looters had been hung, the deserter was shot.

    The frenzy with which the German forces attacked was evidence of the importance of the position, they had pushed waves of infantry into the front line often unsupported by anything in the way of artillery. Three such attacks had been beaten off today, the German casualties lay out in the fields before the entrenchments some still screaming but most dead in the hot summer sun.

    Leman considered requesting a cease fire to allow the Germans to recover their wounded, perhaps in exchange they would allow him to evacuate the women and children. His last attempt two days ago had failed, he knew it would fail again, but it would let him tell the archbishop that he had tried. He would also make sure he mentioned the plight of the town when he next managed to communicate with headquarters, they must know of the suffering their orders to stand fast were causing. Leman just hoped it was worth the sacrifice, that the Army and the French would put all this to good use.
     
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    • Paulo the Limey

    Horrible position for that commander to be in, knowing and seeing the suffering his stand is inflicting on his own side and being uncertain of its value.
     
    New York Times
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    • diesal

    9:00am 15th August 1914, New York.

    Bombed, Shelled, Starved Liege holds. New York Times.

    Under the cover of darkness, the German invaders have attempted to assault Fort Pontisse, whose heavy gunfire throughout the siege has proven to be damaging to the Germans. The garrison detected the attempt when the attacking force was hung up on the surrounding barbed wire, the attack carried forward to the outworks of the fortress before being driven off with heavy fire from the fortress assisted by the dug-in infantry of the garrison. Star shells were fired to illuminate the attacking columns, learning from the Russo-Japanese war they came on carrying steel shields to protect themselves, with sandbags and shovels to fortify any ground captured. Fort Pontisse is vital to be Belgian defences, protecting both the railroad line to Visa and the Maestricht Canal, important communications links for the invading army.

    Not satisfied with attacking the military positions preventing their invasion, the Germans have also been making war on the civilians of Liege, artillery when it is switched from attempting to destroy the fortresses falls indiscriminately on the town. Night offers no respite with the German Zeppelins bombing the unfortunates with even less accuracy than the shells which fall during the day. Another attempt was made by the Heroic General Leman to seek a ceasefire to enable the Germans to recover their wounded from the battlefield whilst also allowing the evacuation of the trapped and starving women and children, but the German Commander refused. He would let hungry children push for surrender even if his men and guns could not force it by direct action.

    A King among his people.
    The King of the Belgians has been travelling amongst his soldiers since the Germans violated a neutrality they were pledged to uphold, he goes about in a plain uniform, without pomp or ceremony. He has vowed to perish at the head of his army rather than bow the knee to Germany.

    As the king goes so do the local priesthood, a veritable holy war has been declared against the invaders, the Belgian soldiery are exhorted to go forth and die for God and their native land.
     
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    • Rickshaw

    diesal said:
    9:00am 15th August 1914, New York.

    Bombed, Shelled, Starved Liege holds. New York Times.

    Under the cover of darkness, the German invaders have attempted to assault Fort Pontisse, whose heavy gunfire throughout the siege has proven to be damaging to the Germans. The garrison detected the attempt when the attacking force was hung up on the surrounding barbed wire, the attack carried forward to the outworks of the fortress before being driven off with heavy fire from the fortress assisted by the dug-in infantry of the garrison. Star shells were fired to illuminate the attacking columns, learning from the Russo-Japanese war they came on carrying steel shields to protect themselves, with sandbags and shovels to fortify any ground captured. Fort Pontisse is vital to be Belgian defences, protecting both the railroad line to Visa and the Maestricht Canal, important communications links for the invading army.

    Not satisfied with attacking the military positions preventing their invasion, the Germans have also been making war on the civilians of Liege, artillery when it is switched from attempting to destroy the fortresses falls indiscriminately on the town. Night offers no respite with the German Zeppelins bombing the unfortunates with even less accuracy than the shells which fall during the day. Another attempt was made by the Heroic General Leman to seek a ceasefire to enable the Germans to recover their wounded from the battlefield whilst also allowing the evacuation of the trapped and starving women and children, but the German Commander
    Click to expand...
    "But the German Commander..." What?
     

    Peg Leg Pom

    diesal said:
    Another attempt was made by the Heroic General Leman to seek a ceasefire to enable the Germans to recover their wounded from the battlefield whilst also allowing the evacuation of the trapped and starving women and children, but the German Commander refused. He would let hungry children push for surrender even if his men and guns could not force it by direct action.
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    From a purely military point of view and ignoring the morality of it, this was the right choice by the German general. His duty is to take the town with the minimum casualties to his own troops. It is not his duty to preserve enemy lives at the cost of his own troops. Caesar did the same thing to the Gauls at Alesia.
     
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    CB13

    Peg Leg Pom said:
    From a purely military point of view and ignoring the morality of it, this was the right choice by the German general. His duty is to take the town with the minimum casualties to his own troops. It is not his duty to preserve enemy lives at the cost of his own troops. Caesar did the same thing to the Gauls at Alesia.
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    Whether he reduces his own casualties are not, it's a war crime....which his military objectives should not override.
     

    Cryhavoc101

    Peg Leg Pom said:
    Not by the standards of the day, and not if Germany wins the war.
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    It was still happening in the next war.

    The British assault on Le Harve for example in Sept 10-12 1944 - just as the attack was about to commence the German Commander (in response to the last minute request for the garrison to surrender) asked for a cease fire to allow the civilians to evacuate - which was seen perhaps correctly as a desperate attempt to delay the assault.

    Sadly 2000 French civilians were killed mostly by the preparatory NGS, Artillery and Bombing attacks
     

    Sam R.

    By habitual law of war and last time I checked by (my remembrance of) formal law of war there’s no civvies in sieges: residents are combatants. My recollection of formal law of war may be off, but this was certainly customary law of war.
     

    diesal

    The Hague Convention of 1907 outlawed the destruction of some civilian property during a siege, however they did not outlaw sieges nor did it require that humanitarian supplies be provided to besieged civilians. Civilians are not considered combatants and pillage is outlawed, but not all of the modern protections are present.
     
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