The First Battle of the Marne
Tuesday, June 23, 2020
World War I began because, in June of 1914, a Serbian assassin killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne. Serbia and Austria-Hungary then engaged in a diplomatic stand-off, but went to war in late July. At the time, almost every country of Europe was engaged in a network of interlocking alliances, so when the two parties went to war, almost every European country was automatically involved.
Austria-Hungary was tied to the "Central Powers": the German Empire, the Ottoman Empire, Bulgaria, and others. The Serbs were allied to France, the British Empire, Russia, and many others, and later, the United States. It was a "world" war because Asian countries such as China, Thailand, and Japan also came in on the side of these "Allied Powers."
The First Battle of the Marne was fought fairly early in the war, in September of 1914. The Central Powers had been extremely aggressive, advancing into France after the Battle of the Frontiers in August, along France's borders with Belgium and Germany. France took a beating, and the outlook for the Allies was grim.
The Germans reached the outskirts of Paris, but a combined force of French and British troops met them at the Marne River just miles from the city. The German advance was stymied, and there was a stalemate. The salvation of Paris was a decisive turning point in the war.
The Germans retreated with their plans in ruins, and they had to give up hopes of a quick victory in France. Their Chief of Staff, General von Moltke, had a nervous breakdown when he realized that the war would continue for a long time on two fronts. He reported to the German emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm II, "Your Majesty, we have lost the war."
He spoke too soon. (But eventually, they did.) The Germans retreated, chased by the Allies at a slow pace, until they reached the Aisne River, where 65 kilometers to the north they dug in--literally. Here they prepared some of the trenches that they would hold for several years, in the "trench warfare" that typified World War I. A few days later, the Battle of the Aisne ensued.