World War One Diary for Thursday, January 4, 1917:

Neutrals

USA: Wilson speech ‘There will be no war … it would be a crime against civilisation for us to go in’.

Western Front

France: Nivelle visits and impresses King Albert from Belgium, tells him ‘We must gain our objectives in the first two days of the offensive’. Nivelle also forms a General Staff 4e bureau to handle all logistics at army level.

Eastern Front

Rumania: Mackensen takes Gurgueti and Romanul, piercing Braila bridgehead which Russians evacuate. Falkenhayn begins Battle of the Putna until January 8.

Sea War

Eastern Mediterranean: Russian pre-Dreadnought Peresviet sinks on U-boat (probably U-73) mine off Port Said; ship a Russo­-Japanese War prize bought back from Japan.

Politics

London and Berlin agree to swap all internees over 45 years.