were used to live barefooted on ship decks at sea, were marching thirty to forty kilometers. On the following day, October 16, while the defense line of the Fusiliers Marins was barely put into effect, the Germans launched their first wave of attacks with artillery and infantry. Combats in Diksmuide had just begun. Opposing 6,000 Fusiliers Marins of the brigade commanded by Admiral Pierre Alexis Ronarc'h and 5,000 Belgians commanded by colonel Jean-Baptiste Meiser, were three German army reserve corps under the orders of Albrecht, Duke of Württemberg, with almost 30,000 men. Battle of Diksmuide On October 24 at 2100, the Duke of Württemberg launched a general attack with objective to pierce the front in the direction of Veurne. Two columns assaulted the front at Nieuwpoort-Diksmuide, held by the Belgians, and two other columns converged on Diksmuide, after a formidable artillery preparation. On October 26, the Fusiliers Marins were reinforced by 2nd Mixed Colonial Regiment (2e RCM). A Troupes de Marine colonial regiment, part of the 1st brigade of the Moroccan Division under the orders of lieutenant-colonel Pelletier, this regiment was composed of two battalions: the 3rd Senegalese Battalion of Algeria under commandant Frèrejean and the 1st Senegalese Battalion of Algeria under commandant Brochot. On October 28, a decision was taken, to open the valves and flood the left bank of Yser between this river and the railway of Diksmuide at Nieuwpoort, rendering Diksmuide almost an artificial island. These floods saved the situation on Yser. On November 10, the defenders of Diksmuide were constrained, following intense combats which finished corps à corps down to the bayonet, to abandon the city in flames and to pass over again to the left bank. They were entrusted to hold the town for four days, yet, they held the town for three weeks, while facing an opposition of almost 50,000. Outcome Losses for the defenders were significant. Three thousand men were either killed or removed from the fight: 23 officers, 37 marine officers, 450 quarter-masters and sailors; 52 officers, 108 marine officers, 1,774 quarter-masters and sailors wounded; 698 taken prisoner or missing. In the Senegalese Tirailleurs, only 400 men remained in the Frèrejean battalion and 11, out of which one captain, of the Brochot battalion: 411 survivors out of 2,000. On November 15, the offensive was permanently halted. After the battle The sacrifice of the brigade had a significant effect in France. This unit