Western Front
Roye occupied by French forces (see August 30th, 1914 and March 26th, 1918).
Bapaume occupied by British forces (see September 26th, 1914 and March 24th, 1918). imgur.com/1vigRqS © IWM (Q 1822)
Germans blow up all public and commercial buildings and leave secret huge mine under the mairie (explodes on March 27, killing 2 French deputies and British staff). BEF occupies 13 villages. British Lucknow Cavalry Brigade ordered forward.
British troops with French inhabitants of Bouvincourt, sitting around a fire:
http://imgur.com/Hjc994X © IWM (Q 1896)
Aisne: German Seventh Army evacuates Crouy for position 5 miles to north; French can enter Lassigny.
Future French ace Renė Fonck fights off 5 Albatrosses, destroying 1 (his second kill).
German aircraft drops 4 bombs near Dover submarine pens.
Allies bomb Frankfurt in reprisal for destruction of Bapaume. Germans send many prisoners into war zone as reprisal.
Naval and Overseas Operations
Atlantic: HM sloops
Migonette and
Alyssm (March 18) mined and sunk off southwest Ireland.
U.S. cargo ship
Vigilancia is sunk by the German submarine SM
U-70, resulting in the deaths of 15 American crew.
Channel: 16 German destroyers raid Ramsgate and Broadstairs (night March 17-18) also sink destroyer
HMS Paragon (10 survivors) and torpedo destroyer
Llewellyn.
East Africa: Hoskins asks for 15,000 porters per month to replace wastage plus 500 American light lorries (200 promised for mid-May), orders 300 new KAR (mainly ex-German Askari) to leave Morogoro by rail for Tabora. They leave there for south on March 23.
Asiatic and Egyptian Theaters
Karind (West Persia) occupied by Russian forces.
Royal Flying Corps Flight moves from Rabegh up coast to Wejh.
Political, etc
Austria-Hungary: Franz Brentano, influential German philosopher, psychologist, and priest who taught Sigmund Freud and many others, passed away.
Russia: C-in-C Russian fleet Nepenin resigns, is shot and murdered by lone sailor. Vice-Admiral Maksimov elected in his place; restores order with 2 Provisional Government envoys.
Russian Provisional Government pledges universal suffrage, freedom of speech, amnesty for prisoners & other reforms:
http://www.firstworldwar.com/source...provgovt.htmAnd but the final paragraph: “The Provisional Government wishes to add that it has no intention whatsoever of taking advantage of the military situation to delay in any way the carrying through of the reforms and the measures outlined above.” proved to be only the ghost of a promise.
France: General Pierre Roques, French Minister for War, resigns (see 20th and March 16th, 1916).
United Kingdom: Albert Hall meeting in favor of national service for women.