My War Memories, 1914-1918
Belgian Government can alone be held responsible. For my part, I had taken the field with chivalrous and humane conceptions of warfare. This franc-tireur warfare was bound to disgust any soldier. My soldierly spirit suffered bitter disillusion.
IV
The advance brigades had, indeed, a difficult task to accomplish at Liege. It was certainly an extraordinarily bold plan to penetrate the girdle of forts right into the heart of a modern fortress. The troops felt nervous ; from conversations with the officers, I gathered that their faith in the success of this undertaking was only slight.
In the night of the 5th-6th August the advance on Liege, through its fortifications, began. The action in all its details has already been described by the General Staff in a pamphlet published by Stalling of Oldenburg. It is not my intention to go over this ground again, for I wish to set down my personal experiences only.
Towards midnight of the 5th-6th, General von Emmich left Herve. We rode to Micheroux, about two or three kilometres from Fort Fleron, where the I4th Infantry Brigade, under Major-General von Wussow, were assembling. Under cover of the darkness the troops, taking with them the unfamiliar but invaluable field kitchens, were collecting in a very unsoldierly manner on a road which could easily have been swept by the guns of the fort. As it was, they were shot at from a house to the south of the road. A regular battle ensued, but the fort itself did not open fire, which was a miracle. About one o'clock the advance began. It was to take us north of Fort Fleron via Retinne through the line of forts, and then on to the heights of La Chartreuse, on the outskirts of the town. We were due there early in the morning. The other brigades which were to break through the girdle of forts at other points were to reach the town at the same hour.
General von Emmich's Staff was almost at the end of the
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