Premier Asquith continued:
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"We understand that Belgium categorically refused to assent to a flagrant violation of the law of nations. "His majesty's government was bound to protest against this violation of a treaty to which Germany was a party in common with England and must request an assurance that the demand made upon Belgium by Germany be not proceeded with and that Belgium's neutrality be respected by Germany and we have asked for an immediate reply. "We received this morning from our minister in Brussels the following telegram: "'The German minister has this morning addressed a note to the Belgian minister for foreign affairs stating that as the Belgian government has declined a well intentioned proposal submitted to it by the imperial German government the latter, deeply to its regret, will be compelled to carry out, if necessary by force of arms, the measures considered indispensable in view of the French menace.'" |
ENGLAND AND GERMANY AT WAR
By 11 o'clock that evening England and Germany were at war. Their respective ambassadors were handed their passports and Great Britain braced herself for a conflict that was felt to threaten her very existence as a nation.
CHAPTER VII.
THE INVASION OF BELGIUM
Belgians Rush to Defense of Their Frontier—Towns Bombarded and Burned—Defense of Liege—Fall of Liege— —Fall of Namur—Peasants and Townspeople Flee— Destruction of Louvain.
At 10 o'clock on the night of August 2 German troops crossed the Belgian frontier, coming from Aix-la-Chapelle, or Aachen, temporary headquarters of the general staff, and the bloody invasion of Belgium, involving the violation of its neutral treaty rights, began. Simultaneously the German forces entered the independent duchy of Luxemburg to the south, en route to the French border, and also came in touch with French outposts in the provinces of Alsace and Lorraine.
The events that followed in Belgium furnished a genuine surprise to the world. Instead of finding the Belgian people indifferent to the violation of their territory and the Belgian army only a slight obstacle in the road to Paris, as was probably expected by the German general staff, a most gallant and determined resistance was offered to the progress of the German hosts. The army of the little State was quickly mobilized for defense and its operations, while ineffectual in stopping the Kaiser's irresistible force, delayed its advance for three invaluable weeks, giving time for the complete mobilization of the French and for the landing of a British expeditionary force to co-operate with the latter in resisting the German approach to Paris.