The locations The
topography of the region significantly influenced the outcome of the Dinant massacre. The town, primarily situated on the right bank of the
Meuse River, is bordered by the river on one side and a rocky outcrop with a
citadel, known as the "Montagne," on the other. Dinant extends approximately four kilometers from north to south. The narrower sections of the town, where the road and
towpath are only a few meters wide, contrast with the broader areas, which measure up to three hundred meters. The main bridge across the Meuse connected the left-bank area of Saint-Médard with the station district on the right bank. In 1914, a pedestrian bridge linked the municipalities of
Bouvignes-sur-Meuse (left bank) and Devant-Bouvignes (right bank). To the north of the town were the neighborhood and Leffe faubourg. To the south, the Rivages and Saint-Nicolas neighborhoods extended from . On the left bank, opposite the
Bayard rock, was the village of Neffe. The town had limited access roads, which affected the German troops' ability to navigate and control the area during the attack.
Historical context Start of World War I On August 4, 1914, implementing the
Schlieffen plan, the
German army invaded Belgium shortly after issuing an , requesting permission for German troops to pass through Belgian territory.
King Albert and
his government refused to compromise Belgium's neutrality and territorial integrity. In August 1914, Dinant had a population of 7,890. On August 6, 1914,
Burgomaster Arthur Defoin ordered the residents of Dinant to deposit their weapons and ammunition at the town hall. This measure was also implemented in
Bouvignes-sur-Meuse. The mayor stated: On the morning of August 6, 1914, a company of thirty carabinieri-cyclists from the arrived in Dinant. In the afternoon, the first German reconnaissance patrol made a quick incursion into town. Two
uhlans advanced into rue Saint-Jacques, prompting the
Garde Civique to open fire, though no hits were reported. A carabinieri-cyclist fired his rifle, wounding a German rider in the arm. The cyclist fled on foot but was quickly apprehended, while the wounded German was treated by Dr. Remy. In the evening, the vanguard of the
French 5th Army, the , took up positions to defend the bridges at Bouvignes-sur-Meuse and Dinant. On August 7, the carabinieri-cyclists were recalled to
Namur. Over the following days,
skirmishes occurred between the French and German forces, with a hussar being killed on August 11. The Germans subsequently ceased their scouting missions and employed their air force to assess the troop deployments.
German defeat of August 15, 1914 Two cavalry divisions, commanded by
Lieutenant-General von Richtoffen, formed the vanguard of the
3rd German Army. These divisions consisted of the
Guards Cavalry Division and the 5th Division, supported by 4-5 battalions of chasseurs à pied, along with two groups of artillery and machine guns. The infantry component, numbering over 5,000 men, was tasked with crossing the Meuse River between , Dinant, and Anseremme. in action during the French army's major maneuvers of 1913 At 6 a.m. on August 15, the Germans commenced bombing both banks of the Meuse. The bombardment first targeted the civil hospital, despite its prominent red cross. The Château de Bouvignes, repurposed as a
field hospital for wounded French soldiers, was similarly destroyed. The fighting intensified as the German forces captured the citadel overlooking the town and attempted to cross the Meuse. They were close to succeeding when the
French Deligny division, newly authorized to intervene, used its 75 mm guns to silence the German artillery and help repel the assault. The Germans eventually withdrew from Dinant, leaving behind approximately three thousand dead, wounded, prisoners, or missing. When the people of Dinant saw the French flag replacing the German colors atop the citadel, they sang "
La Marseillaise". In the citadel, the French discovered that wounded French soldiers had been brutally killed; one corporal of the 148th was found hanging by his belt from a shrub, with his genitals mutilated. Over the following week, enemy troops reorganized. General Lanrezac and his forces advanced to , while von
Hausen's troops positioned themselves along the front between
Namur and
Givet.
The myth of the francs-tireurs '' in 1914 in
Herstal Since the
Franco-Prussian War of 1870, the concept of "francs-tireurs" has been a significant concern among German soldiers and their leaders. Manuals on military strategy, such as
Kriegsgebrauch im Landkriege, published in 1902, even advised officers and troops to adopt severe measures against "francs-tireurs." This belief heavily influenced the perception and actions of Saxon troops during August 1914. When patrols went missing or the source of gunfire was unclear, "francs-tireurs" were often blamed. Officers sometimes propagated rumors, occasionally driven by a desire to incite hostility and aggression among their forces. Moreover, the presence of the Civic Guard during the early stages of the invasion reinforced the German perception of it as an armed civilian militia. Established during the
Belgian Revolution of 1830, the Civic Guard is composed of middle-class citizens tasked with protecting the territorial integrity of Belgium. On August 6, a community ordinance disarmed the civilian population of Dinant; however, the Civic Guard, which remained mobilized until the morning of August 15, was not disarmed until August 18. The crushing defeat on August 15, which resulted in 3,000 soldiers being wounded, coupled with the playing of "La Marseillaise" after the town was liberated, exacerbated the animosity of the occupying German forces towards the local population. As a consequence, "eight days later, the enemy avenged themselves cruelly on the residents of Dinant." From August 21 onwards, German troops grappled with the trauma of this perceived defiance. Alcohol, looted from homes, was heavily consumed as a means to sustain morale, leading to increased disorder and chaos throughout the subsequent week. The city of Dinant, situated at the bottom of a steep, narrow valley, presented challenges in identifying the source of the gunfire and tracking projectiles that ricocheted off its rocky terrain. French troops positioned on the elevated terrain of the left bank fired whenever they found an advantageous angle. The disordered fighting and smoke from fires often led to German soldiers being inadvertently shot by their comrades. These conditions reinforced the German soldiers' belief that they were being targeted by enemy francs-tireurs. This distorted perception of reality, exacerbated by the stress of battle, led to what
Arie Nicolaas Jan den Hollander terms "war psychosis", driving the soldiers to engage in violent reprisals.
The unfolding of events The day before: "Tomorrow, Dinant all burned and killed!" On August 21, certain German officers enunciated their intentions unambiguously. A captain informed the parish priest of , "Tomorrow, Dinant will be burned and killed! We have lost too many men!" During the night of August 21 to 22, the civilian population of Dinant experienced their first skirmishes. A German reconnaissance patrol, joined by a number of unruly soldiers, raided Rue Saint-Jacques. This operation involved a diverse battalion, including members of the 2nd Battalion of the No. 108 Rifle Regiment and the 1st Company of the No. 12 Pioneer Battalion. The patrol advanced from the elevated area on the right bank and reached as far as the Meuse. The German forces killed seven civilians and used
incendiary explosives devices to destroy approximately twenty houses, resulting in the deaths of five more people. The Germans described this as a "reconnaissance in force" operation, while characterized it as "the escapade of a group of drunken soldiers." According to the war diary of one of the battalions involved, the raid was ordered at the brigade level with the intent to capture Dinant, expel its defenders, and cause maximum destruction. After the war, Soldier Rasch recounted an incident where, upon reaching Rue Saint-Jacques one night, the soldiers, seeing a lit café, threw a hand grenade inside, leading to a fusillade. This act exacerbated the panic, with gunfire appearing to come from all directions, including from residential homes. Rasch’s company lost eight soldiers, and his captain was severely injured. In total, the raid resulted in the deaths of 19 German soldiers and injuries to 117 others. Contributing factors to the high German casualties included the use of torches by German troops, which made them easy targets for French soldiers, and the possibility that, in the chaos, German soldiers may have accidentally fired on their comrades. This incident further entrenched the myth of the francs-tireurs. The initial disturbances prompted many residents to flee from the right bank for safety. They were required to present passes issued by local authorities to cross to the left bank. Due to the barricading of the Dinant and Bouvignes bridges, some families escaped via tourist barges. Approximately 2,500 individuals from Dinant managed to find refuge behind French lines. However, by noon on August 22, the French authorities prohibited further crossings to avoid disrupting troop movements. The French 5th Army’s First Corps was replaced by the and the . A small group from the
British Expeditionary Force was also in the area. The 51st Reserve Infantry Division thus faced three German army corps across a front extending over thirty kilometers. At Dinant, the 273rd Infantry Regiment confronted the
XIIth Army Corps (1st Saxon Corps) of the entire Saxon Army. Given the impracticality of a French assault, the French forces focused on obstructing the German XII Corps' crossing of the Meuse. Consequently, in the mid-afternoon, the French detonated the Bouvignes-sur-Meuse bridge while preserving the Dinant bridge. They entrenched themselves on the left bank, abandoning their efforts to maintain a presence on the right bank while preparing for the approaching German forces.
August 23, 1914: the Ransack of Dinant On August 23, 1914, the XIIth Army Corps (1st Saxon Corps) entered Dinant via four separate routes. To the north, the
32nd Division advanced through the sector between Houx and the
Faubourg de Leffe. The 178th Regiment of the 64th Brigade moved through the
Fonds de Leffe. As they progressed, German forces killed all civilians in their path. Thirteen men were shot at Pré Capelle by six men from the 103rd Saxon Regiment, and seventy-one were murdered near the "paper mill." Paul Zschocke, a non-commissioned officer in the 103rd Infantry Regiment, reported being ordered by his company commander to search for "francs-tireurs" and "shoot anyone found". Houses were systematically searched, and civilians were either executed or taken to the Prémontrés Abbey. At ten o'clock in the morning, the abbey's religious, unaware of the impending danger, gathered the 43 men present at the request of the German officers. They were subsequently shot in Place de l'Abbaye. The monks were held hostage under the pretext that they had fired on German troops. Major Fränzel, who spoke French, demanded a ransom of 60,000
Belgian francs, which was later reduced to 15,000 Belgian francs after consultation with his superiors. That evening, 108 civilians who had been hiding in the cellars of the large Leffe fabric factory decided to surrender. The factory director, , who was also the vice-consul of the Argentine Republic, along with his relatives and some workers, was immediately arrested. Women and children were sent to the Prémontrés convent. Despite protests from Lieutenant-Colonel Blegen, Remy Himmer and 30 men were executed in Place de l'Abbaye, which was still strewn with the morning’s victims. Later that evening, the Grande Manufacture was set on fire. The massacre continued throughout the night in the Abbey district: houses were looted and burned, and male civilians were shot. By the time the Germans left Leffe, only a dozen men remained alive. The 32nd Division then constructed a boat bridge opposite the Pâtis de Leffe and crossed the Meuse. Regiments No. 108 and No. 182 of the 46th Brigade, along with the 12th and 48th Artillery Regiments, advanced down Rue Saint-Jacques. By 6:30 a.m., their vanguard had reached the slaughterhouse, which was soon set ablaze. Finding fewer civilians in the dwellings, the German forces set fire to the entire district. All male civilians who had remained in the area were executed without exception. In the afternoon, a platoon from the 108th Infantry Regiment discovered around one hundred civilians seeking refuge in the Nicaise brewery. The women and children were sent to the Leffe Abbey, while the thirty men were taken to Rue des Tanneries. There, they were lined up along the
Mur Laurent and executed. Three of the men managed to escape under the cover of dusk. During the conflict, looted furniture from nearby houses was used by members of the 182nd Infantry Regiment to construct a barricade. Despite being unarmed, a young man suspected of being a sniper was captured, bound, and used as a
human shield. As their troops were firing upon them, the unit shot and killed the hostage before retreating. The German 100th Regiment descended from Montagne de la Croix and launched an assault on the Saint-Nicolas district. The area was systematically ravaged from eight in the morning until eight in the evening. Maurice Tschoffen, a witness to the events, described how soldiers marched in two lines alongside the houses, with those on the right monitoring the left, both with their fingers on the triggers, prepared to fire at any moment. Groups of soldiers formed in front of each doorway, stopping to fire at the houses, focusing particularly on the windows. Numerous bombs were thrown into the cellars. Two men were fatally shot on their doorstep. Similar to the events on Rue Saint-Jacques, civilians were used as human shields in Place d'Armes, with some being struck by French bullets fired from across the river. Taking advantage of the chaos, the German forces crossed the square and advanced towards the Rivages area. They set houses on fire and gathered civilians at the Bouille house, later dispersing them among various buildings, including the café, forge, and stables. As the fires spread, they directed them towards the prison. Eventually, men and women were separated at the base of Croix Mountain. Despite being asked to leave, the women and children stayed behind, waiting for news of their husbands, brothers, and sons. Some men were imprisoned, while 137 others were arranged in four rows along Maurice Tschoffen's garden wall. Colonel Bernhard Kielmannsegg of the 100th Infantry Regiment issued the order for execution. Following this, two rounds of gunfire and machine-gun fire were directed at the bodies from the Frankinet garden's terrace. While approximately 30 men pretended to be dead, 109 were killed. Most of the wounded individuals escaped from the pile of corpses during the night, and five of them were later apprehended and executed. Major von Loeben, who led one of the two execution teams (the other led by Lieutenant von Ehrenthal), testified to a German inquiry commission, stating, "I presume that these were the men who had engaged in hostile activities against our troops". To the south of Dinant, the German 101st Regiment arrived that afternoon via the Froidvau road and constructed a boat bridge upstream from Bayard Rock. Several civilians were taken hostage, including a group from Neffe who were forced to cross the river on boats. Around 5 p.m., the Germans faced intense gunfire from the left bank despite advancing 40 meters along the Meuse. Claiming that the French were firing upon them, the Germans executed 89 hostages against the wall of the Bourdon garden. This incident resulted in the deaths of 76 individuals, including 38 women and seven children, the youngest being three-week-old Madeleine Fivet. Following this, the 101st Regiment crossed the Meuse to Neffe. A group of 55 civilians had sought refuge in a small aqueduct beneath the railroad line. Under the command of Karl Adolf von Zeschau, the regiment attacked with rifles and grenades, resulting in the deaths of 23 civilians and injuries to 12 others. The Dinant bridge was destroyed by the French around 6 p.m. on August 23 as they retreated along the
Philippeville road. German brutality continued in the following days before eventually diminishing. Civilians who emerged from hiding too soon often faced execution. In the aftermath, civilians were forced to bury the numerous bodies scattered across the pavements and plazas of Dinant and its surroundings. Earlier, at the prison, the Germans separated the women and children from the men. The men, aware of their impending fate, received absolution from a priest. Confusion arose when gunfire near the Tschoffen wall led some prisoners and their jailers to believe that the French were attempting to retake the town. However, the execution did not take place, and the prisoners were eventually moved to Bayard Rock. The women and children were forced to march to and Anseremme. The 416 men, under Captain Hammerstein's command, awaited deportation to Germany. They were directed to
Marche and then transferred to station. The men were divided into groups of 40 and transported in cattle cars to
Kassel prison in Germany. The prisoners' journey was severely hampered by the brutality inflicted by German troops and the local populations they encountered. Some individuals were executed without trial after experiencing severe mental distress. The conditions of imprisonment were extremely harsh, leading to the deaths of some prisoners who had been seriously injured during the Dinant events and subsequently deported.
Prison regulations prohibited family members from sharing the same cell. Furthermore, four inmates were required to share cells measuring only 9 m², with no straw mattresses provided. During the first eight days, prisoners were not permitted any outdoor excursions. The schedule was later adjusted to allow one outing per week, which was eventually increased to three. Maurice Tschoffen, the , reported that the prison governor informed him that the military authorities in Berlin were convinced that no shots had been fired in Dinant. The source of this assertion is unclear. Tschoffen noted that there appeared to be no justification for their arrest, though the reasons for their eventual release remained uncertain. In a subsequent discussion in Belgium, General von Longchamps shared his findings on the Dinant events, stating, "From my investigation, it appears that no civilians fired at Dinant; however, there might have been some French soldiers disguised as civilians who fired. Additionally, in combat training, individuals can sometimes exceed the limits of their training." Thirty-three clergymen were apprehended at the regimental school in Dinant and were later imprisoned in Marche for one month.
Dinant in ruins During the sack, 750 buildings were burnt down or demolished, with two-thirds of the buildings destroyed. File:Dinant - le pont détruit - la collégiale - 1914.jpg|The collegiate church and the destroyed bridge File:Dinant Hotel de ville 1914.jpg|The City Hall File:Dinant - Hotel de ville et poste depuis rive gauche - 1914.jpg|The City Hall and Post Office from the left bank File:Dinant - Rue Grande - 1914.jpg|Rue Grande File:Dinant Quartier StPierre 1914.jpg|The Saint-Pierre district File:Dinant Eglise StPierre 1914.jpg|Saint-Pierre church File:Dinant Place Patenier 1914.jpg|Place Patenier File:Dinant depuis Saint Medard 1914.jpg|The ruins of Belle-vue College File:Dinant-ruins-ww1.jpg|Dinant was in ruins in March 1915, with only the roads cleared.
The protagonists of the event The German command The Third German Army was under the command of
Saxon Max von Hausen and was organized into three corps. The XII Corps (1st Saxon Corps), commanded by
Karl Ludwig d'Elsa, was assigned the task of capturing Dinant and crossing the Meuse at that location. The XII Corps was further subdivided into two divisions: the 32nd Infantry Division, commanded by Lieutenant-General , and the
23rd Infantry Division, led by Karl von Lindeman. Max von Hausen, a veteran of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, advised the civilian population to refrain from taking up arms against German troops. As a result, the directive at all levels of command was to "treat civilians with the utmost rigor." The belief in the "franc-tireurs myth" led the Germans to take severe actions against the civilian population. During the Battle of Dinant, certain battalions and regiments were ordered to engage in acts of intimidation against civilians. This directive was part of the broader strategy in the conflict with the French. This situation was evident with Infantry Regiment No. 178, commanded by Colonel Kurt von Reyher, who was under the overall command of Brigade Commander General Major Morgenstern-Döring. The troops were instructed to use forceful measures and act ruthlessly without regard for the perceived rebellious civilians. Major Kock of the 2nd Battalion was directed by von Reyher to "purge the houses." Captain Wilke, who commanded the 6th and later the 9th company, led several operations aimed at intimidating the civilian population, particularly in the Fonds de Leffe and at the abbey. According to the 23rd Infantry Division’s reports, the executions, looting, and burning in Les Rivages, St. Nicolas district, and Neffe, south of the city, were primarily carried out by the 101st Saxon Grenadier Regiment, led by Colonel Meister, and the 100th Infantry Regiment, commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Kilmannsegg, under the coordination of Staff Warrant Officer Karl Adolf von Zeschau. Major Schlick, commanding the 3rd and 4th companies of Regiment No. 101, was notably active in these operations. After the sacking of Leffe, the 178th Infantry Regiment crossed the Meuse following the withdrawal of French troops and arrived in Bouvignes-sur-Meuse, where it committed numerous violent acts resulting in the deaths of 31 individuals. The German Third Army, having been delayed for one week, continued its advance, leaving behind a country devastated by looting, arson, and civilian executions. The Germans faced both the French forces and the perceived threat of francs-tireurs. In February 1915, the first issue of the
clandestine La Libre Belgique asserted: "There is something more robust than the Germans; it is the truth."
The victims During the siege of Dinant, 674 civilians lost their lives, including 92 women, 18 individuals over the age of 60, and 16 individuals under the age of 15. Among the 577 male victims, 76 were over the age of 60 and 22 were under the age of 15. The oldest victim was 88 years old, and 14 children were under the age of 5, with the youngest being only 3 weeks old. A list of the victims' names was quickly circulated through an obituary. The first edition, published in 1915 by Dom Norbert Nieuwland, listed 606 names. The occupying military authorities required the population to provide copies of this obituary under threat of severe punishment. In 1922, Nieuwland and Schmitz recorded 674 victims, including 5 who were missing. By 1928, Nieuwland and Tschoffen confirmed the same number of victims and missing persons. Finally, just before the centennial, Michel Coleau and Michel Kellner revised the obituary and identified a total of 674 victims and three unidentified individuals.
The witnesses Just a few days after the events that affected Dinant, local residents undertook the task of documenting their personal accounts to reconstruct the events as they unfolded. Among these accounts, three depositions from the
Bishopric of Namur and the
Abbey of Maredsous are noteworthy. The witnesses provide evidence that:
Immediate response to the massacre by the New York Tribune''
Thomas-Louis Heylen, the Bishop of Namur, informed
Pope Benedict XV of the situation, leading to widespread outrage among the global population. In response, a group of 93 German intellectuals issued the "
Manifesto of the Ninety-Three", a document attempting to absolve their army. On May 10, 1915, Germany's
Foreign Office released
The German White Book aimed at demonstrating that "the German troops, unfortunate in their circumstances, were subjected to brutal and unprovoked attacks from a fanatic population" in Dinant. In reply, the
Cooreman government published its
Grey Book of 1916, which asserted: "He is twice guilty who, after violating the rights of others, attempts to justify himself with audacity by attributing false faults to his victim." The Anglo-Saxon press condemned the events, referring to them as "The Rape of Belgium," a term that has since become associated with the atrocities committed against Belgian civilians in August and September 1914. For his part, the Bishop of Namur responds to the Germans following the publication of their
White Book: == Post-war trials ==