Author Archives: Ben Toews

By August of 1915, Canadians were becoming more and more interested in the possibility of the USA entering the war on the side of the Entente. The war was becoming largely a contest of manpower, and the added contributions of a massive country like the US would inevitably tip the balance in the favour of whichever side it joined. The sinking of the Lusitania by a German submarine, therefore, was still often discussed as a possible cause for war, even three months after the event. This short article from August 3, 1915 in the Berlin Daily Telegraph claims the existence of a letter written by the Kaiser himself  “proves” he had personally approved of the attack on the Lusitania before it occurred.

Stories like this one appeared often in the local papers, which continuously tried to judge whether US intervention might happen and when. By the end of August, after the sinking of the HMS Arabic – which again held American passengers – reports about the US officially denouncing Germany further intensified.

Berlin Daily Telegraph, July 22, July 24, August 3, August 20, August 24, 1915.

After one full year of fighting, the progress of the war was still hard to judge. The anniversary of the beginning of hostilities inspired a number of summaries, reports, and projections about what had so far been achieved and what the future might bring. This chart recording military casualties, provided by the French Ministry of War, was printed in the Elmira Signet on August 12, 1915. Although the numbers given here are inaccurate (German and Austro-Hungarian losses were in fact much lower than this list shows), they were probably the best source that residents of Waterloo County had concerning the overall human cost of the war. Projections of the war’s eventual outcome were becoming less optimistic to those faced with these numbers. One article from the Signet began fretting about what would happen to the British Empire if the Entente lost the war – an outcome that was starting to seem like a possibility.

Elmira Signet, August 12, 1915.

With the stalemate continuing on the western front and tense uncertainty about who held the overall advantage, everyone was eager to encourage new allies to join their side. Countries like Romania and Bulgaria had motives for entering the war, but were cautious about choosing which alliance to join, thus creating competition between the Entente and the Central Powers for their loyalty. On August 12, 1915, the Ayr News suggested that the Crown Prince of Servia was regrettably a hindrance to the recruitment of Bulgaria, which coveted parts of Servian territory inhabited by ethnic Bulgarians. In order to secure Bulgaria as an ally, which the article is convinced would quickly end the war, the Prince of Servia would have to agree to forfeit control over part of his own country. In other words, one ally within the Entente would have to be betrayed in order to secure another.

Ayr News, August 12, 1915.

With stalemate the most common news from the western front in 1915, Canadians looked for reassurance from their powerful ally in the east. The mobility of armies that still existed in the east meant there was more opportunity for rapid progress. Unfortunately for Waterloo residents, the news coming from this campaign was becoming ever more dire. Although Canadians were told that the Russians fought with great valour, their armies still relied too heavily on numbers rather than modern weaponry. The eastern campaign had become one of steady Russian retreat.

On August 12, the Ayr News reported disaster on the eastern front. Warsaw, the third largest city in the Russian Empire, had fallen to the Germans and the Russian army was forced to withdraw behind the Vistula River, destroying the bridges behind them as they crossed. Although undoubtedly a serious setback to the Entente, area residents were not ready to give up on their Russian allies. Even as they retreated from the ‘jewel of Poland,’ the Ayr News applauded the Russians’ “steadiness” and “fierce counter-attacks” that allowed their safe retreat to higher ground, from which they would renew their efforts against the enemy.

Berlin Daily Telegraph, July 31, 1915.

Ayr News, August 12, 1915.

By late August, the Waterloo Chronicle was pleased to announce that the British army, including units from the Dominion of Canada, maintained 800,000 soldiers on active duty in France, which was enough men to defend 100 miles of the western front line. Not only that, but training programs had improved to a point where new trainees were of sufficient quality to be useful in the trenches immediately upon their arrival on the continent. This news surely elicited pride in many local readers with family members in the service.

Waterloo Chronicle, August 22, 1915.