Battle Of The Marne

The First Battle of the Marne was the first major battle of World War I. Fought in September of 1914, the battle marked the end of the German advance toward Paris and the beginning of trench warfare. The battle exhibited a number of firsts in the history of warfare, motorized movement of troops and interception of radio communications. It indicated that the war would not be a quick victory for Germany (Klein, 2014). Joseph Joffre, the French Commander in Chief, exhibited ingenuity and leadership to yield a significant victory while the Helmuth von Moltke the younger, the German chief of staff, demonstrated a failure of mission command resulting in defeat.

The Allies rallied an offensive for the liberation of France in late September 1915. This resulted in a stalemate between the powers, inflicting heavy casualties on the Allied and Central Powers. This fierce battling with no progression continued into late 1916, when the Germans became concerned at the amount of the allied forces on the western front and the invention of the tank - technology that Germany

The Meuse-Argonne Offensive, also know as the 100 Days Offensive, was the part of the grand Allied offensive in 1918 at the end of WW1. This battle involved 1.2 million American soldiers. The American’s objective was to break through the Hindenburg Line, which covered the length of the entire western front. The offensive consisted of a three-sided attack on the German’s Western Front. The BEF and the French Army were to engage the German lines at Flanders, while the British forces would take on the German troops at Cambrai. The American Expeditionary Forces numdering 400,000 men under the command of Gen. John J. Pershing, and the French Fourth Army under General Henri Gouraud’s role was the eastern most pincer of the multinational endeavor, the Argonne forest. The forest presented Gen. Pershing and his men some difficult challenges they were forced to overcome.

The Battle of the Marne, Plan 17 and the Race to the Sea and the defensiveness of

At the start of the First World War, Germany hoped to avoid fighting on two fronts by knocking out France before turning to Russia, France’s ally. The initial German offensive had some early success, but there were not enough reinforcements immediately available to sustain momentum. The French and British launched a counter-offensive at the Marne (6-10 September 1914) and after several days of bitter fighting the Germans retreated.

The Meuse-Argonne offensive of World War I began in the fall of 1918. The offensive began in the dawn of 26 September 1918 and concluded on 11 November 1918 after forty-seven days. The massive and bloody offensive pitted the newly formed American Expeditionary Force (AEF) referred to its allies as the “Doughboys” led by General John "Black Jack" Pershing against a heavily fortified German force entrenched between the Meuse River and Argonne Forest located northwest of Verdun in the Alsace-Lorraine region. The battle became the bloodiest and deadliest in the Army’s history. This battle analysis will examine the Meuse-Argonne offensive.

This was to be a joint operation between British, French and American forces. Though it was not the actual boundaries, the Meuse River and the Argonne Forrest restricted much of the U.S. 1st Army’s maneuverability between them. This area was comprised of a very dense and thick vegetation with few roads for heavy equipment and supplies to flow forth once the offensive began; therefore this was to be used to the Allied Powers advantage. The Germans would be attacked all along the front from British, French, and American forces simultaneously.

The Battle of the Somme epitomizes the harsh realities of trench warfare for the Allies and represents the negligent battle planning and technological advancements that are associated with the stalemate of World War One. Trench warfare was common across the Western Front, with similar strategies being employed by both opposing sides. Sir Douglas Haig, one of the British coordinators for the Somme offensive is blamed with an offensive strategy destined for failure. The British offensive, an utter failure, resulted in a stalemate, which was common throughout World War One. The British development of the tank, while it eventually ended the horrendous stalemate, was ineffectively used during the Somme.

In March 1918, with nearly 50 additional divisions freed by the Russian surrender on the Eastern Front, the German Army launched a series of attacks on the Western Front, hoping to defeat the Allies before U.S. forces could be fully deployed. In the north, the British 5th Army was virtually destroyed by two major offensive operations, Michael and Georgette around the Somme. A third offensive launched in May against the French between Soissons and Reims, known as the Third Battle of the Aisne, saw the Germans reach the north bank of the Marne river at Château-Thierry, 95 kilometres (59 mi) from Paris, on 27 May. Two U.S. Army divisions, the 2nd and the 3rd, were thrown into the Allied effort to stop the Germans. On 31 May, the 3rd Division

In “The Face of Battle,” John Keegan analyzed the experiences of the individuals involved in the battles of the Somme and Waterloo; he thoroughly examined the advancements of industrialization in warfare and battle strategy between 1815 and 1916. The industrialization of modern warfare during the battle of the Somme, while progressive, was very much still in its experimental stages. While the inventions during this time period were later evolved into much more useful products, it seems as though the organized warfare in Waterloo was much more effective; the soldier’s mediocre training for the Somme was obvious in the chaotic events that occurred. While each battle was disastrous in their own ways, industrialization certainly improved means of warfare and the experience that the soldiers had.

Many countries have tried but failed to capture this area. Both French and British armies tired but failed the Germans were too strong. This area was known as Vimy Ridge, which has many high hills and was located in France. The Germans had captured this area since September 1914, the Germans started to build artillery proof bunkers and trenches. Germanys had the advantage in every battle; Germanys had their bases on top of the long hills. Which lead them to look down on their enemies, which was easier for Germanys to kill their target. After countries failing to capture Vimy Ridge, Canada decided they were going to attempt to fight for Vimy Ridge. For the first time Britain asked for generals to lead Canada to victory for the battle of Vimy Ridge. Sir Julian Byng and Major Arthur Currie were asked to lead the Canadian Military to win the battle of Vimy Ridge. After months of practicing a strategy Canada was ready. April 1917, Canada went to battle with Germany for Vimy Ridge. This became one of the most devastating battles ¬in Canadian history. Canadians should remember that Vimy Ridge was not their triumph alone. British artillery and the elite 51st Highland Division helped make victory possible (Desmond Morton, Significance of Vimy Ridge). Vimy Ridge is considered a defining moment in Canadian history because, it was Canada’s first time using a general to plan tactics and strategy’s, Canada was the only country that succeeded on capturing Vimy Ridge, lastly all Canadian

The Second Battle of Ypres was the first time a former colonial force defeated a European power on European soil. It was the most gruesome battle fought in World War I because of the chemical warfare and Germany’s use of advanced technology. After a torturous month of fighting the German army, however, the Canadian soldiers emerged victorious.

In 1776, France began supplying American colonists with weapons and funds. Without these essential supplies, General George Wahingtion's army could not have survived its first battles and harsh winters in Morristown and Valley Forge. Once the colonists had successfully defended the military base at Saratoga, New York, France officially joined the United States against Britain. French military assisstance was crucial in the deciding victory at Yorktown, Virginia. The campaign was directly funded by the French. In addition, French military forces comprised roughly 50% of the total armies at Yorktown. Their military engineers were in charge of the attack, and perhaps the most useful action of the French was the use of their Navy to fend off the

The Battle of the Bulge is considered the United State Army’s greatest victory as American soldiers withstood the full force of the German War Machine. Allied Forces faced freezing temperatures, fog, threats of espionage and battle tested German units. This victory was not without shortcomings, most notably in intelligence and subpar battlefield performances.

From observations from the battlefield and experimentation the Allies developed a number of tactics that allowed them to gain substantially more ground than in the past while reducing the number of casualties. To reduce wastage, the number of soldiers killed during a normal day, the French adopted the use of “difeme en profondeur (defence in depth)…” (Smith 195). The British, also, developed the tactic Bite and Hold that centered on advancing troops only as far as they could hold, which reduced the chance of a successful German counterattack. Both the British and French developed the creeping barrage to force the Germans defenders to stay under cover until the attackers advanced up to the German lines. With these new tactics and more available to them the allies could