1914: The Belgian Massacres

In the early stages of World War 1 some 800,000 German troops defied Belgian neutrality and marched across the border. In August 1914 the bulk of the German army - some 800,000 troops - defied Belgian neutrality and smashed across the border. Their orders were to invade France, destroying any Belgian resistance in their path. The German commanders were to achieve this within 6 weeks. What followed was the rape and massacre of hundreds of Belgian civilians. Scores of villages were burned. The bea