British forces during the First Battle of Ypres.

British forces during the First Battle of Ypres (19 October to 22 November 1914), the Allies captured the town from the Germans Ypres occupied a strategic position during World War I because it stood in the path of Germany's planned sweep across the rest of Belgium and into France from the north (the Schlieffen Plan). The neutrality of Belgium was guaranteed by Britain, Germany's invasion of Belgium brought the British Empire into the war. The German army surrounded the city on three sides, bombarding it throughout much of the war. To counterattack, British, French, and allied forces made costly advances from the Ypres Salient into the German lines on the surrounding hills. In the First Battle of Ypres (19 October to 22 November 1914), the Allies captured the town from the Germans. (Photo by: Photo12/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)