The Battle of Marne

The Battle of Marne (September 6–12, 1914) was a critical World War I battle fought between the French and British forces against the advancing German army in northeastern France. Marking the end of Germany’s Schlieffen Plan, the Allied victory halted the German push towards Paris and set the stage for the prolonged trench warfare that would define much of the Western Front. Often regarded as a turning point in the early stages of the war, the battle resulted in heavy casualties but successfully prevented a quick German victory.

Marne: Paris is Saved

Historical EventThe Battle of Marne
DateSeptember 6–12, 1914
LocationNortheastern France, along the Marne River, near Paris
ParticipantsFrance and Britain vs. Germany
ResultAllied victory
German CommandersGeneral Helmuth von Moltke
Allied CommandersGeneral Joseph Joffre (France), Field Marshal Sir John French (Britain)
ObjectiveHalt the German advance towards Paris and prevent the fall of France
SignificanceMarked the failure of the German Schlieffen Plan; beginning of trench warfare
CasualtiesEstimated 250,000 on both sides
OutcomeGerman forces were forced to retreat, leading to a stalemate and the start of trench warfare
The Battle of Marne

Introduction

On September 2, 1914, French Flight Lieutenant Watteau took off on a reconnaissance mission that would change history. In less than a month, the German armies had swept through Belgium and across northern France and were within 40 miles of Paris. Watteau’s mission was to scout the movements of the westernmost pincer of the German assault, the army of General Alexander von Kluck. But Watteau noted that instead of continuing their westward push, the German soldiers were marching east. When the French high command received this report, they realized that this turn exposed the flank of Kluck’s army to possible attack. The subsequent battle, fought along the Marne River, would result in an allied victory so dramatic that it is often called “the miracle of the Marne.”

The Opponents

  • (1) By 1914, the nations of Europe were bound together in a complex web of treaties and agreements that virtually ensured that if any two of them went to war, all the rest would be drawn in, as well. Against this diplomatic background, tensions were rising that made the outbreak of conflict increasingly likely.
  • (2) Among these tensions were the ongoing naval arms race between Britain and Germany, ethnic unrest in the Balkans, German imperial ambitions, French resentments lingering from the Franco-Prussian War, and territorial rivalries between Austria-Hungary and Russia. As it turned out, the spark that ignited World War I and set into motion the preordained chain of alliances and declarations of war was the assassination of the Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand by a Serbian.
  • (3) The greatest challenge for the Germans in a general European war was facing France on one side and Russia on the other. In 1894, then Chief of Staff Alfred von Schlieffen created a plan that had Germany immediately launching a massive offensive against France as soon as war was declared and defeating it within weeks. Then, using Germany’s excellent rail system, the troops could be rushed back to the Russian frontier.
  • (4) The powerful right wing of the German army would swing to the north, crossing through neutral Belgium before enveloping Paris and the main body of the French army. The violation of Belgian territory would most likely bring Great Britain into the war, but the British army had fewer than 100,000 men available for quick deployment in Europe.
  • (5) It was a bold plan, with little room for error or the unexpected. In Schlieffen’s concept, everything depended on the right wing, which had to be powerful enough to punch through any opposition and keep advancing without losing momentum. He was willing to risk weakening other sectors to ensure that it would be strong enough and constantly fretted that less daring commanders might alter his plan by distributing the troops more evenly.
  • (6) His successor as Chief of Staff was Helmuth von Moltke, the nephew and namesake of the great Moltke who had led Germany to victories in the Austro-Prussian and Franco-Prussian wars. Moltke assigned eight new divisions to the German center and added only one to the crucial right wing. Worse, at a key moment, he lost his nerve and prematurely shifted two corpses from the French front to the Russian, further weakening the power of the German offensive thrust.
  • (7) The French General Staff made several incorrect assumptions about how the Germans would behave.
    (a) First, they didn’t believe that the Germans would violate Belgian neutrality; thus, they were insufficiently prepared to meet an attack from that direction.
    (b) Second, they grossly underestimated the number of troops the Germans could field. At the outbreak of war, the French estimated that they were facing 43 German divisions, when there were actually 83.
    (c) Finally, the French had invested in building a chain of fortresses along the border with Germany and were convinced that any attacks would be aimed at these and that such attacks would be doomed against their well-protected batteries of heavy cannons.
  • (8) In the years just before the war, the French had begun to shift from a defensive mindset to an offensive one, as reflected in their plan for the outbreak of war—Plan 17. They had become convinced that wars were decided by morale and that the side with the greater will to conquer would be victorious. The official field regulations of the French army were rewritten to reflect this philosophy. Thus, at the outbreak of war, Plan 17 called for four French armies to launch a powerful attack on Alsace and Lorraine.

The Campaign

  • (1) On August 3, 1914, Germany declared war on France, and all these long-formulated plans were put into motion. Every day, 550 well-organized trains transported German soldiers and equipment across the Rhine, launching nearly a million and a half men against France. By August 4, German troops were pouring into Belgium, and Great Britain declared war on Germany.
  • (2) The crucial right wing of the German attack was the First Army, commanded by General Alexander von Kluck. The plan ran into its first obstacle when the Belgian fortresses put up spirited defenses and fought back. Several Belgian fortresses put up spirited defenses and managed to hold out until August 15. Despite this setback, the Germans were close to maintaining their original schedule
  • (3) Meanwhile, the French had put Plan 17 into motion. With the German defenders proving to be both more numerous and more deadly than French plans had allowed for—in less than a week, more than 300,000 French soldiers were mowed down—the offensive bogged down in the forests. By August 24, the French armies were forced to pull back to their original lines.
  • (4) While Plan 17 was foundering against the German center, the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), a highly professional army of about 80,000 men, had been deployed near Mons. Here, they fought a sharp engagement against Kluck and briefly checked his advance, but they were in an exposed position and had to retreat.
  • (5) In this moment of crisis, the overall commander of the French forces opposing Moltke was General Joseph Joffre. He was supremely confident and utterly unflappable, and in this particular crisis, he was exactly the right man for the job. He coolly drew together the shattered remnants of the French armies and began methodically assembling a new Sixth Army to defend Paris.

The Battle

  • (1) The unexpected Belgian resistance, the enthusiastic French attacks on the frontier, and the strong showing of the BEF undermined Moltke’s confidence in the plan, and he miscalculated the strength of his opponents. Now, from the eastern front came news that the Russians had defied German expectations by mobilizing enough men to invade East Prussia.
  • (2) On August 25, Moltke ordered two army corps to be withdrawn from the assault on France and sent to the eastern front. By the time they arrived, the Russians had already suffered a horrific defeat. In retrospect, the redeployment of the two army corps meant that at the very moment when the German forces in the west needed to press home their attack, they found themselves with a sizable gap in their lines and a significant part of their striking force gone.
  • (3) The apparent weakness of the French opposition caused Moltke to consider deviating from the initial plan for enveloping the French armies and to try breaking straight through them. He issued orders altering the role of Kluck’s army from the main enveloping force to supporting the flank of the more central armies. At first, Kluck continued his drive west, but he, too, was worried that his weakened army might not be able to complete its wide sweep. Thus, around September 1, his army began the fateful change in direction detected by the reconnaissance aircraft of the allies.
  • (4) On August 26, General Joseph Gallieni was appointed military governor of Paris and charged with its defense. He energetically threw himself into this role and was one of the first to recognize the opportunity that the shift in Kluck’s direction offered for attacking the flank of the enemy. Once the
    change of direction had been confirmed, Joffre determined to use the new Sixth Army.
  • (5) Joffre gained British cooperation, and by September 5, the counterattack was underway. Kluck began to pivot to try to meet the danger, but this maneuver had the effect of creating a dangerous gap between his army and the adjacent Second German Army. The confrontation took place near the Marne River, with the first serious fighting near the village of Saint-Soupplets.
  • (6) Over several days, the German advance was fought to a standstill, and the counterattacking French elements began to arrive and make their presence felt on the German flank. The BEF inserted itself into one of the gaps between the German armies, where it threatened to cut off Kluck’s army. On September 9, the commander of the German Second Army recognized that the offensive had come up short and made the decision to start withdrawing his troops. Kluck’s First Army soon followed. Paris—and France—were saved.

Outcomes

  • (1) The halting of the German advance at the Battle of the Marne left both sides enmeshed in a war that neither had anticipated or prepared for. With the failure of the Schlieffen Plan, the Germans had lost their best chance to win the war, and by failing to aggressively follow up the victory at the Marne, the allies had probably lost their best opportunity to bring the war to a rapid end.
  • (2) Each side was now locked into an escalating and seemingly interminable bloody stalemate. By the time it was finally over, 10 million men would be dead and another 20 million wounded. It could be argued that all the horrible and destructive remainder of World War I was the legacy of the Battle of the Marne and the chances that both sides missed to end the war quickly.

Conclusion

The Battle of the Marne was a pivotal moment in World War I, marking the failure of Germany’s Schlieffen Plan and saving France from imminent defeat. The Allied victory not only halted the German advance toward Paris but also set the stage for the brutal trench warfare that would dominate the Western Front for the next four years. Although both sides suffered significant casualties, the battle’s outcome had profound strategic implications, shifting the war from a quick German offensive to a prolonged and grueling stalemate. In many ways, the Battle of the Marne shaped the course of World War I, preventing a swift German victory and ensuring the war’s continuation for years to come.

(FAQ) about the Battle of Marne?

1. Why was the Battle of the Marne significant?

The Battle of the Marne was significant because it stopped the rapid German advance toward Paris, marking the failure of the Schlieffen Plan, and shifted the war into a prolonged stalemate characterized by trench warfare.

2. Who were the key commanders in the Battle of the Marne?

On the Allied side, the key commanders were General Joseph Joffre for France and Field Marshal Sir John French for Britain. The German forces were led by General Helmuth von Moltke.

3. What was the Schlieffen Plan, and how did the Battle of the Marne affect it?

The Schlieffen Plan was Germany’s strategic plan to quickly defeat France by a rapid advance through Belgium and northern France, then turning to fight Russia. The Allied victory at the Marne forced the Germans to retreat, which caused the failure of this plan.

4. How did the Battle of the Marne change the nature of World War I?

The battle ended the mobile warfare that characterized the early stages of World War I. After the German retreat, both sides dug in, leading to trench warfare that would dominate the Western Front for the next four years.

5. What were the casualties of the Battle of the Marne?

The battle saw approximately 250,000 casualties on each side, with both the French and German armies suffering heavily in terms of dead, wounded, and missing soldiers.

6. Did the Battle of the Marne prevent the fall of Paris?

Yes, the battle prevented the Germans from capturing Paris, which was a key objective of their offensive. This was critical in maintaining French morale and the overall stability of the Allied defense.

7. What happened after the Battle of the Marne?

Following the Battle of the Marne, both sides began to entrench themselves along the Western Front, leading to the development of a stalemate that would last for most of the war. This is known as the beginning of trench warfare.

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