Shakespeare Was Right, Hell Hath No Fury Like A Woman Scorned.

First Use of “OMG”

September 9 1917, London–Although their relationship had become highly strained over the course of the Dardanelles campaign, Churchill and Lord Fisher remained close friends afterwards.  Churchill even subjected himself to some political humiliation by making an appeal in Parliament to return Fisher to the Admiralty.  The two maintained a regular correspondence, and on September 9, Fisher sent Churchill a short letter.  Most of it discussed German naval preparations in the Baltic.  With the fall of Riga, the Germans wanted to push north, putting further pressure towards Petrograd.  To do so by land seemed relatively infeasible at the time, and Riga’s usefulness as a port was limited by Russian control of the large islands in the Gulf of Riga.

The Germans planned landings on these islands, with major assistance from large portions of the High Seas Fleet (brought through the Kiel Canal for the purpose).  Although their exact plans were unknown, the movement of German ships and their intention to carry out amphibious operations north of Riga were well-known enough to appear in British papers.  Fisher lamented that the Germans were poised to do with a small force what the British had not been able to do the entire war (despite Churchill’s plans):

We are five times stronger at Sea than our enemies and here is a small Fleet that we could gobble up in a few minutes playing the great vital Sea part of landing an Army in the enemies’ rear and possibly capturing the Russian Capital by Sea!…Are we really incapable of a big Enterprise?

Fisher concluded his short note with this line:

I hear that a new order of Knighthood is on the tapis–O.M.G. (Oh! My God!)–Shower it on the Admiralty!!

This is the first documented use of OMG as an abbreviation for “Oh My God” in the English language.

Today in 1916: Hindenburg & Ludendorff Discuss Full Economic War Mobilization Today in 1915: US Demands Recall of Austrian Ambassador for Fomenting Strikes Today in 1914: Lieutenant Colonel Hentsch Orders a German General Retreat

That look, it says, someone is gonna get cut before this is over

You learn something new everyday

The Arlington Ladies are professional mourners who attend all funerals at Arlington cemetery. These military wives and family members brave the rain, snow, and extreme heat to visit up to 3 funerals a day. Members are not allowed to grieve or console, they are simply there to make sure no soldier is ever buried alone. Source

Germans First Hear Peace Terms

Ulrich von Brockdorff-Rantzau, Germany’s Foreign Minister for much of the first half of 1919, pictured the year before.

May 7 1919, Versailles–The Germans had been summoned to the peace conference in late April.  They had hoped, as had originally been anticipated by all parties, that the last few months had been the Allies preparing their peace terms, and now would come the time for the actual peace negotiations.  The German delegation brought with it crates upon crates of material to back up these negotiations that they were never to have.

On May 7, the German delegation was brought to the Trianon Palace Hotel.  Clemenceau told them: “The hour has struck for the weighty settlement of oura account.  You asked us for peace.  We are disposed to grant it to you,” before outlining the major features of the peace deal: Germany would lose her colonies, parts of Silesia, and the Polish Corridor.  Danzig would become a free city, the Saar would be effectively a French protectorate, the Rhineland would be occupied for over a decade, Germany would owe a large reparations bill, the League of Nations would not include Germany among her initial members, and that the war had been “imposed upon [the Allies] by the aggression of Germany and her allies.”

The head of the German delegation, German Foreign Minister Brockdorff-Rantzau, gave an angry speech during which he insisted on remaining seated; it did not help that his interpreters did a poor job of translating his words.  In particular, he rankled at “the demand…that we shall acknowledge that we alone are guilty of having caused the war….Such a confession in my mouth would be a lie.”  His words misrepresented the treaty (which never used the word “guilt”), and had almost certainly been prepared before he had even seen the text of the treaty. Lloyd George snapped an ivory letter-opener in two during the speech; Wilson called it “the most tactless speech I have ever heard.  The Germans really are a stupid people. They always do the wrong thing.”  Balfour was more generous, saying merely that “I make it a rule never to stare at people when they are in obvious distress.”

The mood among the German delegation, and back in Germany, was that of shock and anger, especially at the Americans, whom they had hoped would spare them.  In the final weeks before the terms of the treaty were published, an American observer noted: 

The Germans have little left but Hope.  But having only that I think they have clung to it–the Hope that the Americans would do something, the Hope that the final terms would not be so severe as the Armistice indicated and so on.  Subconsciously, I think the Germans have been more optimistic than they realized….When they see the terms in cold print, there will be intense bitterness, hate and desperation.

Sources include: Gregor Dallas, 1918: War and Peace; Margaret MacMillan, Paris 1919.

Captain America on America

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Brigitte Helm as Maria in Fritz Lang´s Metropolis (1927)

Oddly, the game most prevalent in my country is one of the few that I don't play

Most popular Paradox game by country.