Battle at Halen
| date | August 12, 1914 |
|---|---|
| place | Halen , Belgium |
| output | Belgian victory |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
| Commander | |
| losses | |
|
approx. 150 dead, 600 wounded, 200–300 prisoners |
about 500 soldiers |
.svg){kind=small}
The Battle of Halen was the first Belgian victory in the First World War . It took place on August 12, 1914 between German troops under Georg von der Marwitz and Belgian forces under Lieutenant General Baron Leon de Witte . The battle was dominated by the cavalry . The Belgian army was victorious in the end, repelling the continually new cavalry attacks by the Germans throughout August 12th.
prehistory
General von der Marwitz, leader of the Higher Cavalry Command 2 , immediately after the declaration of war in the Liège area, began to investigate the opposing enemy forces. On August 7, the vanguard found the area between Diest and Huy vacant. On August 8, the bulk of the 2nd and 4th Cavalry Divisions had crossed the Meuse and had advanced north around the fortress towards Sichen. Then the Belgian vanguard was identified on the Tienen -Huy line . It was not until August 12 that Major General von Krane and the 2nd Cavalry Division proceeded further west via Hasselt to Spalbeeck. The 4th Cavalry Division planned to cross over the Gete south-east of Diest , but met strong resistance before Haelen.
course
The commander of the 4th Cavalry Division Lieutenant General von Garnier ordered the 17th Cavalry Brigade under Major General von Schimmelmann to take immediate action against the Belgian artillery batteries on the rise at Hontsum. A line of attack could not develop due to the fields crisscrossed by ditches and fences. There was only the narrow way to Diest, from which the attack was led in columns of four horsemen.
General De Witte, commander of the Belgian cavalry division opposite, ordered his men, including a company of cyclists and another with pioneers , to dismount and counter the attack with massive gunfire. The first Belgian line was crossed. At the entrance to Zelck, however, the German riders encountered barricades made of carts and bushes reinforced with wire, and machine-gun fire was immediately opened on the riders from the surrounding houses. As a result, the 2nd Squadron of Dragoon Regiment No. 17, led by Rittmeister von Bodecker, was almost completely destroyed. The regimental commander then ordered the 3rd Squadron - commanded by Rittmeister von Maltzan - to retreat to Halen and continue the attack on foot. Meanwhile, the Leib squadron attacked the enemy units west of the Halen – Diest road, and in isolated cases they were able to reach the Belgian line. Heavy infantry and machine-gun fire struck them too; however, the difficult fighting terrain offered no way of avoiding it. Rittmeister von Kalnein - commander of the Leib squadron - fell in enemy fire, from the Leib squadron and the 2nd squadron only 13 men returned on foot. The remnants of the regiment then gathered south of Halen. The next attack was led by Dragoon Regiment No. 18 , the first wave of the attack was literally mowed down by Belgian machine gun fire. Thereupon the advancing riders fell over the carcasses of the horses that had been shot and blocked the attack route. Only a few dragoons succeeded in penetrating the Belgian positions, but without achieving any military success. Subsequently, Lieutenant General Garnier also sent his 3rd Cavalry Brigade with the Cuirassier Regiment "Queen" (Pomeranian) No. 2 and the 2nd Pomeranian Uhlan Regiment No. 9 to attack; even they were unable to drive the Belgian troops out of their positions. A total of eight attacks were made against the enemy foot troops, without success.
General von Marwitz then canceled the battle early in the evening and ordered the remnants of the decimated division to pass Alken over in peace. The German cavalry vanguard had to mourn 150 dead, 600 wounded and approx. 200-300 prisoners with an estimated loss of 400 horses. The Belgians lost about 500 men.
consequences
It was not possible for the German cavalry advance guard to defeat a single Belgian cavalry division guarding the bridge at Halen, although various attempts were made with sabers and lances . The battle was one of the few setbacks in Germany during the successful invasion of neutral Belgium. The defeat in the battle had little effect on the German plans, Belgium was captured in a few weeks.
literature
- Paul von Troschke: History of the 1st Grand Ducal Mecklenburg Dragoon Regiment No. 17. Volume 2 , Verlag Bernard & Graefe, Berlin 1938, pp. 36–57.
- Harald van Nes: The "Cavalry Debate" and the Battle of Halen on August 12, 1914 , in: Military History, NF, vol. 3: 25-37 (1993).
