Haig's Intelligence

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Cambridge University Press 978-1-107-03961-2 - Haig’s Intelligence: GHQ and the German Army, 1916–1918 Jim Beach Frontmatter More information

Haig’s Intelligence

Haig’s Intelligence is an important new study of Douglas Haig’s contro- versial command during the First World War. Based on extensive new research, it addresses a perennial question about the British army on the Western Front between 1916 and 1918: why did they think they were winning? Jim Beach reveals how the British perceived the German army through a study of the development of the British intelligence system, its personnel and the ways in which intelligence was gathered. He also examines how intelligence shaped strategy and operations by exploring the influence of intelligence in creating perceptions of the enemy. He shows for the first time exactly what the British knew about their opponent, when and how, and, in so doing, sheds significant new light on continuing controversies about the British army’s conduct of operations in France and Belgium and the relationship between Haig and his chief intelligence officer, John Charteris.

jim beach is Senior Lecturer in Twentieth-Century History at the University of Northampton. He is also Secretary of the Army Records Society.

© in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-1-107-03961-2 - Haig’s Intelligence: GHQ and the German Army, 1916–1918 Jim Beach Frontmatter More information

Cambridge Military Histories

Edited by HEW STRACHAN Chichele Professor of the History of War, University of Oxford, and Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford GEOFFREY WAWRO Professor of Military History, and Director of the Military History Center, University of North Texas

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Haig’s Intelligence GHQ and the German Army, 1916–1918

Jim Beach

University Printing House, Cambridge CB2 8BS, United Kingdom

Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York

Cambridge University Press is part of the University of Cambridge. It furthers the University’s mission by disseminating knowledge in the pursuit of education, learning and research at the highest international levels of excellence.

www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9781107039612 © Jim Beach 2013 This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published 2013 Printed in the United Kingdom by Clays, St Ives plc A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication data Beach, Jim, 1969– Haig’s Intelligence: GHQ and the German Army, 1916–1918 / Jim Beach. p. cm. – (Cambridge military histories) Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 978-1-107-03961-2 (Hardback) 1. World War, 1914–1918–Military Intelligence–Great Britain. 2. Great Britain. War Ofﬁce. General Staff–History. 3. World War, 1914–1918– Campaigns–Western Front. I. Title. D639.S7B33 2013 940.4085641–dc23 2013014366 ISBN 978-1-107-03961-2 Hardback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

To Sarah

Contents

List of ﬁgures page ix List of tables xi Acknowledgements xii List of Abbreviations xv

Introduction 1

Part I 1 Organisation 23 2 Leadership 44 3 Personnel 62 4 Frontline 90 5 Espionage 115 6 Photography 143 7 Signals 155 8 Analysis 168

Part II 9 Somme 195 10 Arras 218 11 Third Ypres 239 12 Cambrai 262 13 German offensives 273 14 Hundred Days 303

viii Contents

Conclusion 320

Appendix 1 Identiﬁcations of German units at the Front, 1916–1918 333 Appendix 2 Contribution of sources to identiﬁcation of German units at the Front, 1916–1918 335 Appendix 3 British assessments of German divisions on the Western Front, October 1918 337 Bibliography 339 Index 362

Figures

Fig 0.1 John Charteris and James Marshall-Cornwall in 1917. MIM page 2 Fig 1.1 GHQ I(a), 24 December 1914. Back row: L. O. Bosworth, Christopher Sandemann, William Blennerhasset; front row: Harry Goldsmith, Basil Bowdler, Edgar Cox. Private Collection/Bowdler Papers 27 Fig 2.1 George Macdonogh and Walter Kirke, 24 December 1914. Private Collection/Bowdler Papers 46 Fig 2.2 John Charteris and Richard Butler, GHQ’s deputy chief of staff, in 1917. Acc.633, Charteris Papers, MIM 53 Fig 4.1 ‘W. G. B.’, Bedford House, Ypres, 26 March 1917. Acc. 4063, Charteris Papers, MIM The sketch is annotated ‘Time 10pm any old night. “Are you quite sure it wasn’t here, old dear?” Whistling Rufus cross-examining our reports’.93 Fig 4.2 German prisoners taken by the BEF, 1916–1918. 98 Fig 4.3 Contribution of sources to identification of German units at the Front, 1916–1918. 104 Fig 4.4 Identifications of German units at the Front, 1916–1918. 105 Fig 4.5 Will Dyson, Interrogation of a Prisoner (1917). The sketch depicts Lieutenant J. J. W. Herbertson, one of I ANZAC Corps’ intelligence officers, examining a German prisoner in an officers’ dug-out at Montauban. ARTO2228, AWM 107 Fig 4.6 Identifications of German units at the Front attributed to documents, 1916–1918. 111

x List of ﬁgures

Fig 5.1 Christmas card from Cameron’s espionage staff, 1916. An agent is shown vaulting over the electric fence installed along the Dutch–Belgian border in 1915. His bag is marked ‘CF’, the code that preceded the reference numbers on Cameron’s reports. Kirke Papers/MIM 120 Fig 5.2 Coverage of Cameron’s networks, September 1915. 132 Fig 5.3 Agent reporting in GHQ intelligence summaries, March to October 1916. 140 Fig 5.4 Agent reporting in GHQ intelligence summaries, December 1917 to October 1918. 141 Fig 6.1 Photographic prints issued by RFC/RAF, August 1916 to September 1918. 150 Fig 7.1 W. M. Rumsey, Wireless Intelligence Hut Third Army HQ (1916). The sketch is annotated ‘Long and short waves sets with ampliﬁers’. Liddle Collection, University of Leeds 161 Fig 13.1 GHQ Intelligence, 5 January 1918. The American intelligence liaison ofﬁcer, George Quekemeyer, is third from right in the middle row. Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives 274 Fig 13.2 British anticipation of the German offensive, March 1918. 282 Fig 15.1 Alan d’Egville, GHQ Intelligence Christmas card (1915). Kirke Papers/MIM 330 Fig 15.2 Alan d’Egville, GHQ Intelligence Christmas card (1917). Kirke Papers/MIM 331

Tables

Table 1.1 Personnel appointed to MI2(e)/MI1(e)/MI1(f ). page 25 Table 1.2 GHQ I(a) personnel, 1914–1918. 29 Table 1.3 GHQ I(a) analytical structures, 1915–1918. 29 Table 1.4 GHQ Intelligence sub-sections, 1914–1918. 30 Table 1.5 BEF intelligence establishments, 1916–1917. 36 Table 1.6 Canadian intelligence establishments, 1914–1915. 39 Table 2.1 Senior intelligence officers, 1914–1918. 45 Table 3.1 Senior General Staff Officers (Intelligence) in BEF armies, 1914–1918. 67 Table 3.2 Distribution of Intelligence Corps posts, August 1917. 74 Table 3.3 BEF Intelligence Corps officers from personnel files. 79 Table 4.1 Identifications of German units at the Front attributed to deserters, 1916–1918. 113 Table 6.1 Camera development in the RFC, 1915–1918. 148 Table 6.2 Air photographs printed in Second Army, March to September 1917. 152 Table 7.1 Wireless identifications attributed to ‘documents’, 1917–1918. 163 Table 7.2 Attribution of wireless identifications to ‘documents’ day by day, 1917–1918. 164 Table 8.1 GHQ Intelligence ‘freshness’ assessment framework, October 1918. 186 Table 8.2 1917 intelligence papers on German doctrine retained by Haig. 189 Table 12.1 German divisions attacking at Cambrai, 30 November 1917. 266 Table 13.1 Estimates of German divisions on the Western Front, October 1917 to March 1918. 276 Table 14.1 German divisions reinforcing the Amiens Front, 9–10 August 1918. 306 Table 14.2 German divisions defending the main Hindenburg position, 29 September 1918. 314

Acknowledgements

This book has been far too long in the making, but in mitigation I plead part-time study and two career changes. Its earliest origins can be traced back to 1996 and an MA seminar at King’s College London that developed into a heated discussion with a fellow student about intelligence on the Western Front. My ﬁrst tranche of thanks are to those whose actions in the preceding years caused me to be sat in that room: Howard Body, Evan Davies and Harry Dickinson, whose educational efforts in a naval context planted the seeds that drew me back to the study of history. Brian Bond then nurtured my nascent interest in the First World War and, after co-supervising my dissertation with the always helpful Andrew Lambert, agreed to supervise my doctoral studies. When I was unable to continue them at King’s, Brian was instrumental in arranging my smooth transfer to University College London. For his early work and encouragement, I am deeply grateful. My next supervisor, David French, was – and still is – an inspiration. Despite the manifold responsibilities that he was shouldering at the time, he was always a model supervisor, being incisive, patient and enthusiastic in equal measure. Since my viva he has continued the role informally and his nudges are still much appreciated. I am most grateful to my thesis examiners, Bill Philpott and Sir Hew Strachan, for their written comments and for turning the daunting prospect of an examination into a fascinating and suggestive discussion. Their input has, I hope, made this a better book than it would otherwise have been. As editor of the Cambridge Military Histories series, Hew was also instrumental in its appearance after further research. I am most grateful for his consistent encouragement and considerable patience. I also wish to thank the two anonymous referees who made a number of pertinent and helpful suggestions. Of course, any remaining errors of fact or judgement are mine. At Cambridge University Press thanks are due to Michael Watson, Chloe Howell, Amanda George, Gaia Poggiogalli and Rebecca du Plessis for shepherding me through to publication. Part of the Introduction has been reﬁned from an earlier appearance, in French (‘De L’Art de la reconnaissance au Livre jaune: le renseignement

Acknowledgements xiii

militaire britannique, 1902–1915’, trans. Olivier Lahie, Guerres mondiales et conflits contemporains, 232 (2008): 105–27). I must thank the editor, Chantal Metzger, for giving her consent. Parts of Chapter 3 have also been adapted from an earlier article (‘“Intelligent Civilians in Uniform”: The British Expeditionary Force’s Intelligence Corps Officers, 1914–1918’, War & Society, 27 (2008): 1–22) and I am grateful to Jeffrey Grey, editor of War & Society, for his permission to recycle some of its components. At the libraries and archives visited, I would wish to thank the following for going beyond their call of duty: Joyce Hutton, Paul Marsden, Colm McLaughlin, Mike Mockford, Dick Shaw and William Spencer. Thank you also to Sean Malloy for copying documents on my behalf at the Hoover Institution. For permissions to quote, I must thank the Special Collections Centre of the Sir Duncan Rice Library at the University of Aberdeen; the Bodleian Library and Robert Bell; the Official Solicitor; the Trustees of the Churchill Archives Centre; the Headlam family and Durham County Record Office; Lord Chol- mondeley; the Trustees of the Imperial War Museum and Mark Butler, Jo Cox, Jill Eade, Charles Kirke, Angela Macfarlane, Tony Maxse and Lady Middleton; the Trustees of the Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives and the Robertson family; Mrs V. J. Brown; the Knowsley Estate; the London School of Economics; the Trustees of the Military Intelligence Museum; the Council of the National Army Museum; the Trustees of the National Library of Scotland; the Parliamentary Archives; the Royal Artillery Historical Trust; and the Trustees of the Tank Museum. Unsuccessful attempts have been made to trace other copyright holders. Thanks also to Roger Bowdler for taking an interest in my work over many years, copying parts of his grandfather’s albums, and permitting me to use them. I am grateful to a succession of military superiors who, over a decade, encouraged me to pursue my academic studies in parallel with my normal duties: Andy Buxton, Dick Forsythe, Chris Holtom, Nick New- ell, Steve Phillips, Hugh Russell and Bob Wright. I must also thank the Directorate of Educational and Training Services (Army) for funding the final year of my doctorate, the UCL Graduate School for part-funding a trip to Vincennes, and the University of Salford for an initially generous annual research allocation, a one-semester sabbatical, and a grant from the Christopher Hale Memorial Fund to support a visit to Ottawa. It is a pleasure to thank the following friends, colleagues, students and acquaintances for their advice, archival tip-offs, critiques, copies of documents, impromptu translations, bed and breakfast, and many other forms of research assistance: Martin Alexander, Steve Badsey, Ian

xiv Acknowledgements

Beckett, Nick Black, Jonathan Boff, Michaël Bourlet, Tim Bowman, Jock Bruce, Peter Chasseaud, Tony Cowan, Emmanuel Debruyne, Jim Doty, John Ferris, Bob Foley, Paul Fox, Kevin Frank, Elizabeth Greenhalgh, Brian Hall, Bryn Hammond, Paul Harris, Chris Hender- son, Nick Hiley, John Hussey, Alex and Siobhan Janaway, Keith Jeffery, Kevin Jones, Colin Kauntze, Susan and Roger King, Olivier Lahie, Dan Larsen, John Lee, Dan Lomas, Victor Madeira, Peter Martland, Mark McCall, Helen McCartney, Joe Moretz, Chris Murphy, Samantha Newbery, Terry Poulos, Tammy Proctor, Andy Quinton, Nick and Julie Richardson, Martin Samuels, Alaric Searle, Matthew Seligmann, Gary Shefﬁeld, Andy Simpson, Phil Tomaselli, Jan Van der Fraenen, Alex and Bonnie Ward, and Mitch Yockelson. I have left my strongest expressions of familial gratitude until the end. Thank you to John, Catherine and Matthew for living close to good archives around the world and then allowing their brother to invite himself to stay. Thanks to my mother, Christine, for fostering my intellectual curiosity from an early age, and to my in-laws, Mike and Margaret, for their constant interest and practical support. Thanks also to Tom and Lizzie who expressed curiosity about their father’s work at appropriate moments and have borne my absences with good humour. But my greatest debt is to Sarah. Without her unconditional love, encouragement and ﬁnancial tolerance, this book would not have been written. She was always behind me and I realise that I did not glance back often enough to appreciate the burden she was carrying. Although she might not approve of its grammatical choices, this book is dedicated to her with all my love.

Abbreviations

AEF American Expeditionary Force AGR Archives générales du royaume ANZ Archives New Zealand AU Aberdeen University AWM Australian War Memorial BEF British Expeditionary Force BGI Brigadier-General Intelligence BL British Library BLPES British Library of Political and Economic Science Bodl. Bodleian Library CAC Churchill Archives Centre CID Committee of Imperial Defence CRB Commission for Relief in Belgium CUL Cambridge University Library DMI Director of Military Intelligence DRO Durham County Record Office GHQ General Headquarters GQG Grand Quartier Général GSO General Staff Officer HH Houghton Hall IWM Imperial War Museum JSCSC Joint Services Command and Staff College LAC Library and Archives Canada LCUL Liddle Collection, University of Leeds LHCMA Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives LoC Library of Congress LRO Liverpool Record Office MeC Medmenham Collection MI Military Intelligence MIM Military Intelligence Museum MO Military Operations MRAHM Musée royal de l’armée et d’histoire militaire

xvi List of Abbreviations

NAM National Army Museum NARA National Archives and Records Administration NCO Non-Commissioned Ofﬁcer NIARO News International Archive and Record Ofﬁce NID Naval Intelligence Division NLS National Library of Scotland NZAM New Zealand Army Museum OHL Oberste Heeresleitung OP Observation Post PA Parliamentary Archives PID Political Intelligence Department RAF Royal Air Force RAFM Royal Air Force Museum RAL Royal Artillery Library RFC Royal Flying Corps SHD Service historique de la défense SIS Secret Intelligence Service TMARL Tank Museum Archives and Reference Library TNA The National Archives USAMHI US Army Military History Institute WSUSC Wichita State University Special Collections

German army

B Bavarian C Cavalry E Ersatz G Guard J Jäger L Landwehr N Naval R Reserve