Strategic Moves of the War-April 12Th, 1917 by Our Military Expert
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390 SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN April 21, 1917 Strategic Moves of the War-April 12th, 1917 By Our Military Expert THE present British operations in France-preceded just now the British are securing their present ad distance from the Persian border. The Diala River at first by a series of the greatest air combats the world vantages; and, until the German withdrawal passes the this point flows nearly parallel with the border from has ever seen and followed by a bombardment that has Lille-Cambrai-St. Quentin line, all that can be said is northeast to southwest, emptying into the Tigris just not been equalled even in this great war-have assumed that the Germans have been shortening their front. below Bagdad. Khanikin itself is on or very close to a scale which, though predicted, has even exceeded all Once that line is forced, the result of the spring oper the Persian-Turkish frontier, about ninety miles north previous anticipations, for their troops have swept ations on this front so far can be termed a German east of Bagdad and on the present caravan road from forward almost from La Bassee to St. Quentin, on more disaster. that city into Persia. The report of the junction of the than a fifty-mile front, and have practically driven a At last it can be said, the British army has found itself columns of troops shows that the Turks have been wedge into the German lines five miles beyond Arras. -the little army that was so looked down upon when the entirely driven out of southern and western Persia; the They have continued their advance all the way over war began has now grown to more than man size. The latest information reports their defeat at Dekke on the the greater part of the 12-mile front from Givenchy to British soldier has proved himself the equal, if not the Diala and their retreat to the town of Kifri west of that Henin-sur-Cojcul; especially at Monchy-le-Preux, south superior of the German. This army is a danger and a river in the highlands of the vilayet of Mosul and about of the Scarpe River, they are fully five miles within the very serious one to German supremacy-a fact now thirty miles northwest of Khanikin. old German lines, threatening the entire German front more than ever realized by German commanders. It is The junction of the Russian and British forces, viewed along the Arras-Cambrai railroad. In the north the an accomplishment by England, never deemed possible in both a tactical and a strategical light, marks a most British captured Fampoux and the works defending it by German officers. successful coordination in the combined military oper on both sides of the Scarpe. Violent artillery fire on the French front extending ations of the two columns. At the time of the British But the most violent fighting thus far reported has from St. Quentin past Rheims into the Champagne success at Kut-el-Amara the Russians were at or near taken place around the Vimy Ridge south of Lens, so country is reported; it seems evident that an offensive Hamadan, about two hundred and fifty miles from celebrated in the famous struggles that occurred there by the Entente Allies on a large scale in this region Khanikin; they immediately took advantage of the in 1915, where after days of fierce battle the Germans may be expected at any time. Turkish defeat on the Tigris and moved forward through retained the commanding positions with the Canadians On the eastern front the Russians claim to have Kermanshah and Kerind to Khanikin, a six week's lower down. The present British sweep east of Arras checked a German advance southwest of Riga, while march and a most remarkable one when the mountainous, has therefore turned the northern pivot or wrenched they have been forced to yield a bridgehead and crossing barren, and unsettled nature of the country passed loose the hinges of the famous Hindenburg line; British of the Stokhod River about thirty-five miles northeast through is considered. Another column of Russian troops in force are far beyond the limits of the line that of Kovel. The Germans claim to have captured here troops is coming southwest from Lake Urumiah and the Germans have so carefully prepared for months. Baneh, moving on Mosul. As the combined British . The success has been due to the artillery, which has , Russian troops in the south are forcing the Turks north certainly solved the problem of trench warfare; the long ward toward Mosul it looks as if the entire Turkish army � \..�'\"����£� continued hammering from hundreds of guns so I operating in eastern Mesopotamia will be captured at thoroughly demoralized the trench defenders that they I an early date by being taken as in a trap between the ! surrendered by thousands. The great aerial battles two hostile forces. This is the more probable as they � \.�)O& last week are now shown to have been undertaken for the I have already lost so heavily in guns, equipment and purpose of obtaining full information by photographs " o\..�'(\�-- supplies. and otherwise of conditions behind the German lines. I The latest reports show that the British forces are cI\:"\\lI:�'<:'''� R.,Scarpe Once more the great need of such aerial service is shown; now more than fifty miles north of Bagdad on the ,,0 \I',,-n,,!! for, if aerial supremacy is once established, an opponent , Bagdad-Samara-Tekrit railroad and have captured the , has but little opportunity of carrying out offensive , Balad railway station. The Russians acting in concert , operations with any knowledge of conditions. As the , from Kizil Robat have already begun operations to cut advance now stands, the front runs from La Bassee, \}.,(,'I'o.l> 0 \"'0.",,,,0"',, the Turkish communications. Meanwhile, the Turks almost north of Loos, to the east of and just outside of � lJ\o",,,"� seem to be endeavoring to put a wedge between the two Lens, just east of the Vimy Ridge that the Canadians , columns by a converging movement on the British lines , now hold throughout, through Farbus, Athies and I between the Diala and Adhem Rivers and were in I Monchy-le-Preux and along and around the Scarpe River � �""'O\�\\\'t� contact with British patrols at Garfah and Deli Abbas five miles or more to the south of Arras. Here a junction between the two rivers. There seems, however, but is made with the northern end of the British advance '''',"'''' ��''t�\ little prospect of any marked Turkish success there in towards the Arras-Cambrai road,. which advance extends view of the apparently demoralized condition of their in front of Cambrai and St. Quentin; here too it is going \ forces. I forward as rapidly as practicable. From prisoners' The longest front on any of theaters of war is now o \')�h\'(\t.ow(" statements, the Germans seem to be as much surprised , established here in Asia; the line begins at the advanced " by the far reaching succcss of the British drive as the .... Russian position on the Black Sea west of Trebizond, " British themselves are; the latter by aeroplanes, artillery thence to the west of Erzerum and Lake Van to the " fire, and the steady push of their men have exceeded all Persian frontier and down the Tigris to the Persian Gulf; , 0 expectations. \ a distance of thirteen hundred miles or more. The , \..�co.\ ... \ ... , The capture of the Vimy Ridge is most notable for it 10 Russian troops in Armenia have heretofore been supplied l\\o.'I'�\C:o\>''I'' has been a history making battlefield in this war. The , over mountain roads from Kars and Erivan in Georgia; country in all directions around is one great graveyard \ now such supplies can be brought through the Persian as the French casualties here in 1915 were 100,000 while \ Gulf and up the Tigris River. Such an arrangement , the British lost 66,000 men in trying to take Lens during places military operations upon an entirely different o \\e\.mo.nd. the battle of Loos to the north. This ridge has been one , basis and it would seem certain that all the Turkish of the boasted German field fortresses; dominating as it ��\Q\.\�'(\'\n, 0 troops that have been operating in the area between did, by its elevation of four hundred to five hundred Mosul and Tekrit on the Tigris and Khanikin and feet, the surrounding country, it was truly a strategic Urumiah on the borders of Persia must soon surrender. position; with the ridge firmly held, the Germans could The British advance about Arras, up to April 12th After that happens the campaign can be conducted swing slowly back in almost any direction, thus covering along well defined limits and over well travelled routes. the rich French industrial districts upon which they about nine thousand men and a number of guns. N oth A glance at any good map of this region will show the depended so much for supplies. But with the ridge ing of importance except artillery duels has occurred on routes that would naturally be followed, if necessary. captured, the defense of the districts cannot be carried the other fronts. From Bagdad in a northwesterly direction there is a out, the pivot of the Hindenburg retirement again shifts Italy, however, is at present greatly disturbed in view caravan route that goes up the Euphrates to Aleppo, and the latter's line is in danger of being broken. of the reported assembling in the Trentino by Austria 500 miles away. Near Aleppo the Bagdad railway From what has been accomplished so far there seems of a large force, given as possibly one million of men, forms a junction with the Damascus-Medina-Mecca line to be one thing that is inevitable, the early evacuation of for the invasion of that country.