Corpse of a German soldier who fell in Flanders during the First Battle of Ypres in October 1914. Photograph taken in 1915.

Today 109 years ago, on October 19, 1914, the First Battle of Ypres began on the Western Front.

In October 1914, the Race to the Sea culminated in Flanders, with neither side being able to out-flank the other. The Germans planned a major offensive to reach the English Channel ports and continue their Schlieffen Plan. For this, they had to conquer the city of Ypres, a major transportation hub, and enjoyed a superiority in both troops and artillery.

The Germans attacked the Belgians in the Battle of the Yser on October 16, 1914, and the British and French at Langemarck near Ypres on October 19, marking the beginning of the First Battle of Ypres.

The fighting was characterized by bitter confusion in primitive trenches, with high casualties to artillery, as the British and French went on the counter-offensive at Ypres too.

The Germans suffered high losses advancing straight into Allied machine-guns and rifle fire, thousands of whom were inexperienced young soldiers. Both sides managed to repulse the other's attacks well; neither being able to turn the tide.

The Battle of Gheluvelt began on October 29, as the Germans attacked again, advancing briefly but soon being halted. After a period of null, the Germans attacked again in the Battle of Nonne Bosschen on November 11, and managed to advance, but were again halted.

By this time, both sides were exhausted and had suffered horrific losses. Winter was slowly being felt, as the trenches began to fill with freezing rain and thick mud. Both sides had abandoned attacking by November 22, 1914.

The First Battle of Ypres ended in trench stalemate following a limited German advance. Neither sides had been able to bring up reserves quickly enough to turn the tide.

In the First Battle of Ypres, the French had suffered 50,000 casualties, the Germans 134,000 and the British some 58,000 casualties - resulting in the British highly-trained pre-war army effectively being destroyed in this battle.

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