Natalia
Author
(1244)1916
January
- 13
- Austrians occupy CetinjeOn 13 January 1916 Austro-Hungarian troops entered Cetinje, Montenegro's capital, unopposed. The king and court had left; the government again sued for peace.
- Ottoman troops in KermanshahIn January 1916 Ottoman battalions arrived in Kermanshah. The city was not captured, but was a centre of Persian nationalists allied with Germany.
- 15
- Publication of the Papen papersIn mid-January 1916 the papers taken from Papen by the British at Falmouth were made public. The stubs of his cheques pointed to the agents he had paid.
- First Serbian soldiers on CorfuIn mid-January 1916 the first Serbian soldiers from Albania began to arrive on Corfu. Many were so exhausted that they died soon after coming ashore.
February
- 08
- Britain asks Japan for naval helpOn 8 February 1916 the Admiralty framed a request for Japanese warships. Tokyo refused to send destroyers to Europe but stepped up patrols in the Indian Ocean.
- Sinking of the cruiser Amiral CharnerOn 8 February 1916 Otto Hersing's U-21 torpedoed the French cruiser Amiral Charner off Lebanon. She sank in minutes; only one sailor survived.
- 15
- Agreement with the BakhtiariOn 15 February 1916 the British reached an agreement with the Bakhtiari khans on cooperation in protecting the Anglo-Persian Oil Company's oilfields in Persia.
- Extension of British shipping licencesOn 15 February 1916 a British order brought almost every ocean voyage by a ship from the British Isles under licence, to make better use of scarce tonnage.
- 18
- Russians occupy MuşIn mid-February 1916 Russian Cossacks rode into Muş unopposed. They found the valley, whose Armenian inhabitants had been massacred in 1915, depopulated.
- Key eventSurrender of MoraOn 18 February 1916, after a siege of a year and a half, the German garrison of the mountain above Mora surrendered. It was the end of the fighting in Kamerun.
- 21
- Airship LZ 77 shot downOn the evening of 21 February 1916 a French anti-aircraft gun shot down the airship LZ 77 near Revigny, flying behind Verdun. None of the crew survived.
- Dispute in Congress over armed merchant shipsIn late February 1916 Berlin maintained that armed Entente merchantmen were auxiliary cruisers. In the US Congress a revolt against Wilson's line grew.
- Dismissal of Henry SclaterOn 21 February 1916 Gen. Henry Sclater ceased to be Adjutant-General of the British Army. His place at the War Office was taken by Nevil Macready.
March
- 05
- Key eventStart of the Kilimanjaro offensiveOn 5 March 1916 General Stewart's 1st Division set off south from Longido. It was to go round Kilimanjaro from the west and cut off the German retreat.
- Resignation of the Persian foreign ministerAlong with Farmanfarma's government in March 1916, Persia's foreign minister Moshaver ol-Mamalek left office, not Mohtasham os-Saltaneh as the chronology says.
- 15
- Eduard von Capelle becomes naval secretaryOn 15 March 1916 Berlin announced that Tirpitz's successor at the Imperial Naval Office would be Admiral Eduard von Capelle, his long-time collaborator.
- António José de Almeida becomes prime minister of PortugalOn 15 March 1916 the Evolutionist António José de Almeida took charge of the wartime "Sacred Union" government. Afonso Costa became its finance minister.
April
May
June
- 06
- Attack on MedinaOn 6 June 1916 Faisal's Arabs attacked Medina. Fahreddin Pasha's garrison drove them off with artillery fire, and the torn-up Hejaz Railway was soon repaired.
- Death of Yuan ShikaiOn 6 June 1916 the Chinese President Yuan Shikai died in Peking. The next day Vice-President Li Yuanhong took office, recognised also by the rebel south.
- 27
- Ratification of the economic conference resolutionsIn late June 1916 France's government approved the resolutions of the Paris economic conference. In London they sparked a dispute over the future of free trade.
- Proclamation of the Sharif of MeccaOn 27 June 1916 the Sharif of Mecca issued an appeal to the world's Muslims. He accused the Young Turks of godlessness and proclaimed the Hejaz independent.
July
- 07
- End of the Italian counter-offensive in the TrentinoOn 7 July 1916 the Austrians on the Asiago plateau repulsed the second day of a major Italian attack. Cadorna did not regain the positions lost in May.
- Declaration of London revokedOn 7 July 1916 Britain and France ceased to apply the 1909 Declaration of London. Control of maritime trade was henceforth to be governed by the law of nations.
August
- 17
- Romania's treaty with the EntenteOn 17 August 1916 in Bucharest Brătianu signed a secret treaty and military convention with the Entente, promising to attack Austria-Hungary by 28 August.
- Battle of Florina beginsOn 17 August 1916 the Bulgarian 1st Army attacked the Serbs in western Macedonia and took Greek Florina the same day, forestalling Sarrail's offensive.
- Brusilov offensive winds downBy mid-August 1916 Brusilov's attacks on Kovel had stalled. On 17 August he set his armies new objectives, but the offensive was already losing momentum.
- 28
- Romanian offensive in TransylvaniaOn the night of 27–28 August 1916 three Romanian armies crossed the Carpathian passes. The weak Austro-Hungarian screen fell back deeper into Transylvania.
- Key eventGermany declares war on RomaniaOn 28 August 1916 Germany declared war on Romania, a day after it turned against Austria-Hungary. The surprise at Pless cost Falkenhayn his post.
- Key eventItaly declares war on GermanyOn 27 August 1916 Sonnino sent a declaration through the Swiss government that from 28 August Italy considered itself at war with Germany.
- 30
- Romania breaks off relations with BulgariaOn the evening of 30 August 1916 the Romanian minister in Sofia asked for his passports and broke off ties. Two days later Bulgaria declared war on Romania.
- Venizelist coup in SalonikaOn 30 August 1916 Venizelos's supporters set up a Committee of National Defence in Salonika and renounced obedience to Athens. Sarrail did not stop them.
September
- 01
- Romanians outside HermannstadtOn 1 September 1916 Romanian troops stood a few km from almost defenceless Hermannstadt, and burghers offered its surrender. The Romanians did not enter.
- Russo-British agreement on Asia MinorOn 1 September 1916 the Russian ambassador in London confirmed in a note to Grey the Anglo-Russian deal on dividing Asiatic Turkey. He raised one reservation.
- 03
- Key eventBattle of Guillemont beginsOn 3 September 1916 British and Irish troops took Guillemont on the Somme in under three hours, after it had been fought for in vain since late July.
- Battle of Delville Wood endsOn 3 September 1916, by British naming, the Battle of Delville Wood ended. An attack on the wood's eastern edge, supporting an assault on Ginchy, failed.
- 11
- Zaimis resignsOn 11 September 1916 the Greek prime minister Alexandros Zaimis resigned. Talks on entering the war had stalled, and French pressure on Athens kept growing.
- Surrender of the Greek IV Corps at KavalaOn 11 September 1916 the Greek IV Corps, trapped in Kavala, gave itself up to the Germans to avoid Bulgarian captivity. The Bulgarians took the town next day.
- 15
- Key eventStart of the Battle of Flers-CourceletteOn 15 September 1916 tanks went into battle for the first time, on the Somme. The British took Flers, Martinpuich and High Wood; the Canadians took Courcelette.
- Aircraft co-operate with tanksOn 15 September 1916 RFC airmen followed the first tanks in battle on the Somme. They sent the famous report of a tank driving up the main street of Flers.
- 17
- British occupy LindiOn 17 September 1916 British warships landed the Indian 40th Pathans at Lindi. Soon the whole coast of German East Africa was in British hands.
- Allies retake FlorinaOn 17 September 1916 French and Russian troops entered Florina, taken by the Bulgarians a month before. The Serbian victory at Gornichevo opened the way.
- 26
- Key eventStart of the Battle of Thiepval RidgeOn 26 September 1916 the Reserve Army attacked Thiepval Ridge on the Somme. The 18th Division broke into Thiepval and the 11th at last took Mouquet Farm.
- Battle of Hermannstadt beginsOn 26 September 1916 the German Ninth Army attacked the Romanians at Hermannstadt, and the Alpenkorps came down onto the Red Tower Pass road behind them.
- Venizelos forms a provisional government on CreteOn 26 September 1916 Venizelos and Admiral Kountouriotis landed on Crete and formed a provisional government at Chania, opposed to the government in Athens.
October
- 01
- Key eventStart of the Battle of the Transloy RidgesOn 1 October 1916 the British Fourth Army attacked on the Somme at Eaucourt l’Abbaye and the Flers Line, aided by tanks and New Zealanders. Next day it rained.
- Shooting down of airship L 31On the night of 1–2 October 1916 Wulstan Tempest shot down L 31 near Potters Bar, killing Heinrich Mathy, the most famous German airship commander.
- 20
- Explosion of the battleship Imperatritsa MariyaOn 20 October 1916 the dreadnought Imperatritsa Mariya, flagship of the Black Sea Fleet, blew up and sank at Sevastopol. More than 200 sailors were killed.
- Boulogne conference on GreeceOn 20 October 1916 the leaders of Britain and France met at Boulogne to discuss Greece. They did not recognise Venizelos's government but agreed to fund it.
November
- 13
- Key eventCapture of Beaumont-HamelOn 13 November 1916, in fog, Scots of the 51st Division took Beaumont-Hamel, where the Newfoundlanders had bled on 1 July. At Serre the attack failed again.
- Central Powers retake OrsovaOn 13 November 1916, after three days of street fighting, the Romanians left Orsova on the Danube for the far bank of the Cerna. It returned to Austria-Hungary.
- 15
- Paris and Chantilly conferencesOn 15–16 November 1916 Allied commanders at Chantilly drew up the war plan for 1917, and politicians meeting at the same time in Paris in effect adopted it.
- Fourth skirmish at Hafiz KorOn 15 November 1916 guns and aircraft broke up a Mohmand gathering at Hafiz Kor. The tribes had tried to hinder the building of a blockade line.
- 23
- Key eventProvisional government declares war on Germany and BulgariaOn 23 November 1916 Venizelos's National Defence government in Salonika declared war on Germany and Bulgaria. Greece now had two governments, one at war.
- Hospital ship Braemar Castle damagedOn 23 November 1916 the British hospital ship Braemar Castle, carrying wounded from Salonika, struck a mine off Mykonos. Four died and the ship was beached.
December
- 13
- Start of the British offensive on KutOn 13 December 1916 the British shelled the Turkish positions at Kut and at night moved towards the Shatt al-Hai. Maude began the offensive to retake the town.
- Körber resignsOn 13 December 1916 Austrian Prime Minister Ernest von Körber resigned; Emperor Karl I accepted. They disagreed over parliament and concessions to Hungary.
- Pokrovsky becomes Russian foreign ministerOn 13 December 1916 Nicholas II appointed the State Comptroller Nikolai Pokrovsky foreign minister. He was the last head of tsarist diplomacy.
- 30
- Entente rejects the German peace offerOn 30 December 1916 ten Entente states rejected the Central Powers' offer in a joint note. They called it a war manoeuvre rather than a peace proposal.
- Chinese labourers in FranceAt the end of 1916 the British, following the French, turned to labourers from China. By 1918 over 100,000 of them were working behind the front in France.
- Key eventMurder of RasputinBefore dawn on 30 December 1916 aristocratic plotters in Petrograd killed Grigori Rasputin, the imperial couple's favourite, and sank his body in the Neva.