The German Army in Belgium, the White Book of May 1915

by Germany. Auswärtiges Amt

On August 15th, 1914, the operations of the German cavalry, in which among others Jäger Battalion No. 12 took part, led to the temporary occupation of the right bank of the Meuse. Owing to superior enemy forces, it was again evacuated on the same day; numerous dead and some wounded were left behind.

On August 17th the enemy forces on the left bank of the Meuse withdrew. From this time onward Dinant, Leffe, and Les Rivages were free from the presence of any regular enemy troops.

On August 21st the XII. (1st Royal Saxon) Army Corps engaged in operations before Dinant. The 2nd Battalion of Rifle (Fusilier) Regiment No. 108, together with a company of pioneers, undertook on the evening of this day a strong reconnaissance towards Dinant. As the first houses on the road coming from Sorinnes were reached, the sound of a signal shot was suddenly heard. The next moment there came a rattle of musketry from all sides. Shots were fired from all the houses, and the slopes were lighted up with the flashes. The houses were firmly barricaded, so that rifle-butts, hatchets, and hand-grenades had to be used to force an entrance. Trip-wires were drawn across the road. Numerous wounds were inflicted on our men by the discharge of small shot. They were even pelted with stones (Apps. 2-5).

The battalion penetrated as far as the bridge, ascertained that this was occupied by enemy troops, and then returned, being continually fired upon from the houses. Under the necessity of haste it was impossible to clear the place thoroughly of francs-tireurs. To some extent attempts were made to master them by setting on fire the houses from which the firing took place.

It was evident that this assault by the inhabitants on the reconnoitring detachment took place according to plan, that people known in Dinant were aware of the intended operation, and that for this purpose well-prepared measures had been adopted. Among other things indicating this preparation was the fact that numerous houses and walls had been provided with loopholes.

In view of these experiences we naturally assumed that in any further operations the civilian population would also take part in the fighting. Nevertheless, all anticipations in this direction were far exceeded through the extent and obstinacy of the people's participation in the fight.

On August the 23rd the left bank of the Meuse was to be taken by the XII. Corps. After preliminary artillery fire the infantry advanced in the direction of Dinant—the 32nd Infantry Division to the north, the 23rd Infantry Division to the south. On the left wing the (Guards) Grenadier Regiment No. 100 forced its way into the town, on the right of them Infantry Regiment No. 180, and in close conjunction Rifle Regiment No. 108, whilst in the Leffe valley Infantry Regiment No. 178 reached Leffe.

The fighting on August 23rd, accompanied by comparatively slight loss, resulted in the dislodgement of the enemy forces from the heights of the left bank of the Meuse. On the other hand, the losses which the hostile civil population of Dinant and its outskirts had inflicted on the XII. Corps on August 23rd, and the effort which was necessary to break down the completely organised resistance of the civil population on August 23rd and the following days were very considerable. Once more, as on August 21st, people in Dinant and the neighbourhood had apparently secured information that a movement of the corps was imminent, and they were accordingly prepared. The 1st Battalion of the Guards Regiment, approaching from Herbuchenne, were assailed by a vigorous fire from the houses and alleys. Bit by bit, every house had to be fought for singly with the use of hand-grenades in order to dislodge from their hiding-places the inhabitants who had stowed themselves away from cellar to attic and who were making use of every possible kind of weapon. Those who were caught with weapons in their hands were immediately shot, while suspected persons were led off as hostages to the town gaol.

Despite these measures the Grenadier Guards were still further fired on by the population, and thereby suffered considerable losses, especially in officers. Here, among others, fell Lieutenant Treusch von Buttlar, and Captain Legler was severely wounded.

In the meantime, a great part of the place had been consumed by fire, caused partly by the use of hand-grenades, partly by the French and German artillery fire. All this, however, was not sufficient to convince the population of the uselessness and danger of participating in the fighting.