11 February

Great War events that took place on 11 February.

1915 (Thursday)

Western Front	Further repulse of Germans at Marie Therese work.
Eastern Front	▶ Germans take Serpets (north-west Poland), but are repulsed at Kosziowa.	▶ Austrians reach line of the Sereth.
Naval and Overseas Operations	▶ Cargo of SS Wilhelmina seized and placed in Prize Court.
Political	▶ USA Notes to the United Kingdom on the use of neutral flag^[a] (see 7 February) and to Germany on the conditions of the submarine "blockade".^[b]	SS Dacia sails from United States for Bremen (Germany) with cargo of cotton (see 6 January and 27 February).

Notes

↑ The United States Government, while not denying that a belligerent ship may lawfully use a neutral flag when in imminent danger of capture or destruction, states that it would view "with anxious solicitude" any general use of the United States flag by British vessels.
↑ The Note states that the possibilities arising out of the conditions of Germany's submarine policy are viewed by the United States Government "with such grave concern" that it feels compelled to request the german Government to consider the critical situation....which might arise were German naval forces....to destroy any merchant vessel of the United States or to cause the death of American citizens...." The German Government is reminded that "the sole right of a belligerent dealing with neutral vessels on the high seas is limited to visit and search, unless a blockade is proclaimed and effectively maintained, which (the United States Government) does not understand to be proposed." If the commanders of German vessels of war should destroy American vessels or the lives of American citizens, "it would be difficult" for the US Government to view the act as anything but "an indefensible violation of neutral rights." In such a case, it "would be constrained to hold the Imperial Government to a strict accountability....and to take any steps which might be necessary to safeguard American lives and property...."

Sources: Various material contemporary with the war have been used to compile The Great War On This Day and its associated Compendium.

On This Day pages are styled as timelines and have been transcribed from two out-of-copyright sources: Chronology of the War (1918-1920), and History of the Great War – Principle Events 1914-1918 (1922). The spelling of place-names is a particularly convoluted subject. Some names were spelt differently depending on source, others have changed over time for various political or geographical reasons. In general, spelling of place names are original to British use at the time of, and shortly after, the war. Some typos have been altered or corrected for consistency. Similar events between these sources have been amalgamated; as a result the date and wording may differ to their original texts.

Compendium entries form the central hub of (a) An index-like collection of places, people, ships, battles, political events, etc., and (b) Words and phrases of the Armed Forces of Great Britain during the Great War. The majority of these have been transcribed from Chronology of the War (1918-1920) and Soldier and Sailor Words and Phrases (1925) respectively, the later which is reflected in the language used and some may seem derogatory by today's standards.

Images come from scans or photographs of original sources, Wikimedia Commons, and the Imperial War Museum's online collections under the IWM Non-Commercial Licence. Attribution is given separately to the latter and does not come under the general licence of this site. Please be aware that some images, although very few, may depict distressing scenes.

Advisory note: The information in these sources may not accurately represent updated histories, present-day spellings, or geographical borders. It is also written from a British perspective, and words such as "enemy" are used extensively. For further details and a full list of sources, click here.

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[1] The United States Government, while not denying that a belligerent ship may lawfully use a neutral flag when in imminent danger of capture or destruction, states that it would view "with anxious solicitude" any general use of the United States flag by British vessels.

[2] The Note states that the possibilities arising out of the conditions of Germany's submarine policy are viewed by the United States Government "with such grave concern" that it feels compelled to request the german Government to consider the critical situation....which might arise were German naval forces....to destroy any merchant vessel of the United States or to cause the death of American citizens...." The German Government is reminded that "the sole right of a belligerent dealing with neutral vessels on the high seas is limited to visit and search, unless a blockade is proclaimed and effectively maintained, which (the United States Government) does not understand to be proposed." If the commanders of German vessels of war should destroy American vessels or the lives of American citizens, "it would be difficult" for the US Government to view the act as anything but "an indefensible violation of neutral rights." In such a case, it "would be constrained to hold the Imperial Government to a strict accountability....and to take any steps which might be necessary to safeguard American lives and property...."

[a]

[b]