<– Part 42 – May 9, 1915  | Part 43 – May 16, 1915 |  Part 44 – May 23, 1915 –>

Earlier this week, on the 10th of May, Hungarian troops defeated the Russian army at Jarosław and returned control of Lviv to Austria. The following day, to the south, an armistice was called at Gallipoli to bury the dead soldiers scattered around the field. The defenders took the opportunity to dig-in and increase their defensive measures. However, the Ottomans did face a setback in the Caucasus, as Manzikert fell to the Russians.

On May 12, Windhoek, the capital of German South-West Africa, was occupied by South African troops under Louis Botha, who rejected a German offer of surrender of the colony, declared martial law, and split his army into several units to hunt the remaining Germans.

May 13 saw the Battle of Frezenberg Ridge, part of the larger Second Battle of Ypres, finally halt the German offensive, at the cost of enormous casualties among the Allies – one Canadian company of 700 men saw nearly 80% casualties, with only 150 remaining to hold the line. The Germans suffered another irritation in the form of a sternly-worded letter from US President Wilson, following the sinking of the Lusitania by a German sub at the lost of many American lives. Wilson called for the Germans to cease warfare against commercial ships, regardless of the nationality the ship sailed under, as Americans had a right to travel internationally on merchant ships without fear of death.

The Allied offensive around Artois, in northern France, has largely ground to a halt against the Germans. There are rumors that the German Empire may withdraw troops from Ypres to reinforce Artois. On the 15th, seeing the failure of high-speed tactics – a heavy artillery bombardment, followed by swiftly-advancing infantry without definite objectoves – in Artois, the British troops there have begin a slow march towards Festubert, following the French army doctrine of heavy bombardment – 60 hours of artillery – followed by concise, near territorial gains. The British seem to be making minor progress in the area.

On the 16th, the Polish Legions came under attack by the Russian Army, as the Russians attempted a counter-offensive in the Kingdom of Poland, around Konary.