Battle of Liège 1914
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 4 August 1914 – 16 August 1914 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1914 | Wikidata P580 (start time) |
| Era | World War I era (1914–1918) | derived from year |
| Location | Belgium | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Europe | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | Western Front | Wikidata P361 |
| Coordinates | 50.4739, 5.5722 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Liège (5–16 August 1914) was the opening engagement of the German invasion of Belgium and the first battle of the First World War. The city of Liège was protected by a ring of modern fortresses, one of several fortified cities intended to delay an invasion for troops from the powers guaranteeing Belgian neutrality to mobilise and join the Belgian Army in the expulsion of the invader.
The German 1st Army arrived late 5 August 1914 and captured the city on 7 August when Erich Ludendorff drove in and convinced the garrison to surrender. The surrounding forts fought on and several attacks by German infantry were costly failures. Super-heavy siege guns arrived and destroyed the forts one by one; the last fort surrendered on 16 August.
The siege of Liège may have delayed the German invasion of France by four to five days. Railways in the Meuse river valley needed by the German armies in eastern Belgium were closed for the duration of the siege and German troops did not appear in strength before the city of Namur at the confluence of the Sambre and Meuse rivers until 20 August. With the experience gained at Liège, the German 2nd Army completed the Siege of Namur in two days.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Liège (revision 1370268327), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
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Other battles of the Western Front
- Battle of the Frontiers 1914
- First Battle of Artois 1914
- First Battle of Champagne 1914
- First Battle of the Marne 1914
- Rearguard Affair of Le Grand Fayt 1914
- Siege of Antwerp (1914) 1914
- Siege of Namur (1914) 1914
- Battle of Hartmannswillerkopf 1915
- Battle of Kitcheners' Wood 1915
- Battle of Loos 1915
All 48 battles of the Western Front →
Browse more: battles in Belgium · Europe · World War I era battles