The Oberste Heeresleitung ( German pronunciation: [ˈoːbɐstə ˈheːʁəsˌlaɪtʊŋ] , "Supreme Army Command", OHL ) was the highest echelon of command of the army ( Heer ) of the German Empire . In the latter part of World War I , the Third OHL assumed dictatorial powers and became the de facto political authority in the Empire.
196-854: After the formation of the German Empire in 1871, the Prussian Army , Royal Saxon Army , Army of Württemberg and the Bavarian Army were autonomous in peacetime, each kingdom maintaining a separate war ministry and general staff to administer their forces. On the outbreak of war, the Constitution of the German Empire made the German Emperor commander-in-chief of the combined armies ( Oberster Kriegsherr , "supreme warlord"). The Emperor's role as commander-in-chief
392-461: A German chemical works. Bismarck stubbornly refused to listen to Georg Herbert Münster , ambassador to France, who reported back that the French were not seeking a revanchist war and were desperate for peace at all costs. Bismarck and most of his contemporaries were conservative-minded and focused their foreign policy attention on Germany's neighboring states. In 1914, 60% of German foreign investment
588-932: A German cruiser SMS Magdeburg ran aground and was intercepted by a Russian squadron. On 3 September, Lemberg was captured by the Russian army and the Battle of Rawa (Battle of Tarnavka 7–9 September) began in Galicia. The First Battle of the Masurian Lakes (7–14 September) began and on 8 September, the Austro-Hungarian army commenced the Second Invasion of Serbia, leading to the Battle of Drina (6 September – 4 October). The Second Battle of Lemberg (8–11 September) began and on 11 September, Austrian forces in Galicia retreated. The Battle of
784-791: A German offensive in Lorraine or through Belgium. It was anticipated that the Germans would use reserve troops but also expected that a large German army would be mobilised on the border with Russia, leaving the western army with sufficient troops only to advance through Belgium south of the Meuse and the Sambre rivers. French intelligence had obtained a map exercise of the German general staff of 1905, in which German troops had gone no further north than Namur and assumed that plans to besiege Belgian forts were
980-663: A Reserve division in Arras and one in Lens , to a new Tenth Army . On 1 October, the French at Arras were pushed back from Guémappe , Wancourt and Monchy-le-Preux , until the arrival of X Corps. By 1 October, two more French corps, three infantry and two cavalry divisions had been sent northwards to Amiens, Arras, Lens and Lille, which increased the Second Army to eight corps, along a front of 62 mi (100 km). Joffre ordered Castelnau to operate defensively, while Maud'huy and
1176-646: A bridgehead 5.0 mi (8 km) deep. The Fifth Army also advanced into the gap and by 8 September, had crossed the Petit Morin, which forced Bülow to withdraw the right flank of the 2nd Army. Next day the Fifth Army re-crossed the Marne and the German 1st and 2nd armies began to retire as the French Ninth, Fourth and Third Armies fought defensive battles against the 3rd Army which then had to retreat with
1372-540: A corps to the left flank in from 5–6 days. On 17 September, the French Sixth Army attacked from Soissons to Noyon, with the XIII and IV corps, supported by the 61st and 62nd divisions of the 6th Group of Reserve Divisions, after which the fighting moved north to Lassigny and the French dug in around Nampcel . The French Second Army arrived from the eastern flank and took over command of the left-hand corps of
1568-598: A corridor from the west of the city along the Dutch border to the coast, the Belgian field army withdrew from Antwerp westwards towards the coast. On 9 October, the remaining garrison surrendered and the Germans occupied the city. Some British and Belgian troops escaped to the Netherlands , where they were interned for the duration of the war. The Belgian withdrawal was protected by a French Marine brigade, Belgian cavalry and
1764-686: A decisive defeat. On 2 August 1914, the Belgian government refused the passage of German troops through Belgium to France and on the night of 3/4 August, the Belgian General Staff ordered the Third Division to Liège to obstruct a German advance. Covered by the Third Division, the Liège fortress garrison, a screen of the Cavalry Division and detachments from Liège and Namur, the rest of the Belgian field army closed up to
1960-525: A decisive victory against the Russians was impossible. The second concern was the Battle of Verdun , the centrepiece of Falkenhayn's western strategy. Falkenhayn wrote after the war that his intention was to draw the French Army into a battle of attrition and wear them down. As the French position became desperate, Falkenhayn expected a British relief effort near Arras which would be destroyed, leaving
2156-440: A defensive measure against the Belgian army. A German attack from south-eastern Belgium towards Mézières and a possible offensive from Lorraine towards Verdun, Nancy and St. Dié was anticipated; the plan was an evolution from Plan XVI and made more provision for the possibility of a German offensive through Belgium. The First , Second and Third Armies were to concentrate between Épinal and Verdun opposite Alsace and Lorraine,
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#17327648400782352-584: A degree, still exist in Germany today. Bismarck's paternalistic programs won the support of German industry because its goals were to win the support of the working classes for the Empire and reduce the outflow of immigrants to America, where wages were higher but welfare did not exist. Bismarck further won the support of both industry and skilled workers by his high tariff policies, which protected profits and wages from American competition, although they alienated
2548-517: A government body controlled by Protestants. Nearly all German bishops, clergy, and laymen rejected the legality of the new laws, and were defiant in the face of heavier and heavier penalties and imprisonments imposed by Bismarck's government. By 1876, all the Prussian bishops were imprisoned or in exile, and a third of the Catholic parishes were without a priest. In the face of systematic defiance,
2744-525: A great hero to German conservatives, who erected many monuments to his memory and tried to emulate his policies. Bismarck's post-1871 foreign policy was conservative and sought to preserve the balance of power in Europe. British historian Eric Hobsbawm concludes that he "remained undisputed world champion at the game of multilateral diplomatic chess for almost twenty years after 1871, [devoting] himself exclusively, and successfully, to maintaining peace between
2940-465: A manoeuvre was intended to pass through neutral Belgium and threaten Paris from the north. Helmuth von Moltke the Younger succeeded Schlieffen in 1906 and was less certain that the French would conform to German assumptions. Moltke adapted the deployment and concentration plan, to accommodate an attack in the centre or an enveloping attack from both flanks as variants to the plan, by adding divisions to
3136-757: A minor check to the Russian invasion of East Prussia and on 12 August, Britain and France declared war on Austria-Hungary, as Austrian forces crossed the Save and seized Shabatz. Next day, Austrian forces crossed the Drina and began the first invasion of Serbia. The Battle of Cer (Battle of the Jadar, 17–21 August) began and the Battle of Gumbinnen in East Prussia took place from 19–20 August. On 21 August, Austro-Hungarian forces withdrew from Serbia. The Battle of Tannenberg (26–30 August) began in East Prussia and in
3332-421: A multi-ethnic Empire with a considerable German-speaking population, would remain outside of the German nation state. Bismarck's policy was to pursue a solution diplomatically. The effective alliance between Germany and Austria played a major role in Germany's decision to enter World War I in 1914. Bismarck announced there would be no more territorial additions to Germany in Europe, and his diplomacy after 1871
3528-597: A nervous breakdown on 9 September. Moltke was replaced by the Prussian Minister of War, Lieutenant General Erich von Falkenhayn , first informally in September and then officially on 25 October 1914. Although Tappen was retained as head of the Operations Division, Falkenhayn brought in two of his own associates, General Adolf Wild von Hohenborn and General Hugo von Freytag-Loringhoven , into
3724-608: A number of encounter battles but neither side was able to gain a decisive victory . After the opposing forces had reached the North Sea, both tried to conduct offensives leading to the mutually costly and indecisive Battle of the Yser from 16 October to 2 November and the First Battle of Ypres from 19 October to 22 November. After mid-November, local operations were carried out by both sides and preparations were made to take
3920-501: A relatively smooth economic and political revolution from above that pushed them along the way towards becoming the world's leading industrial power of the time. Bismarck's "revolutionary conservatism" was a conservative state-building strategy designed to make ordinary Germans—not just the Junker elite—more loyal to the throne and empire. According to Kees van Kersbergen and Barbara Vis, his strategy was: granting social rights to enhance
4116-715: A strong and well-organised German defence, ending the day opposite Deûlémont in the south to the railway at Tenbrielen to the north. From 9–18 October, the Cavalry Corps had c. 175 casualties. The encounter battle ended and subsequent operations in the Battle of Messines took place after the end of the "Race to the Sea". On 11 October, the British III Corps comprising the 4th and 6th divisions arrived by rail at St. Omer and Hazebrouck and then advanced behind
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#17327648400784312-649: The Dritte OHL (Third OHL) but Hindenburg was "neither the intellectual centre of the strategic planning [...] nor of the new war economy", as proposed in the Hindenburg Programme of 31 August 1916. He was mostly a figurehead and a representative of the military command to the public. Control was mainly exercised by his deputy, General of Infantry Erich Ludendorff , who held the title Erster Generalquartiermeister (First Quartermaster General). The duumvirate increasingly dominated decision making on
4508-522: The subdivision d'armée advanced on Arras. On 28 September, Falkenhayn had ordered the 6th Army to conduct an offensive by the IV, Guard and I Bavarian corps near Arras and more offensives further north. Rupprecht intended to halt the French west of Arras and envelop them around the north side of the city. On 1 October, the French attacked to the south-east, expecting only a cavalry screen. The Germans attacked from Arras to Douai on 1 October, forestalling
4704-456: The Bundesrat , the federal council of deputies from the 27 states. Executive power was vested in the emperor, or Kaiser , who was assisted by a chancellor responsible only to him. The emperor was given extensive powers by the constitution. He alone appointed and dismissed the chancellor (so in practice, the emperor ruled the empire through the chancellor), was supreme commander-in-chief of
4900-596: The Austrian Empire and its allies on one side and Prussia and its allies on the other. The war resulted in the partial replacement of the Confederation in 1867 by a North German Confederation , comprising the 22 states north of the river Main . The patriotic fervor generated by the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 overwhelmed the remaining opposition to a unified Germany (aside from Austria) in
5096-617: The Battle of Galicia (23 August – 11 September) the First Battle of Kraśnik was fought in Poland from 23–25 August. Shabatz was retaken by Serbian forces and the last Austrian troops retired across the Drina, ending the First Austrian Invasion of Serbia. The First Battle of Lemberg (26–30 August) began in Galicia and the Battle of Komarów (26 August – 2 September) and the Battle of Gnila Lipa (26–30 August) began in Poland. A naval action took place off Åland and
5292-533: The Battle of Mons , a delaying action against the German 1st Army, to protect the left flank of the French Fifth Army. The BEF was forced to retreat when the 1st Army began to overrun the British defences on the right flank and the Fifth Army retired from the area south of the Sambre, exposing the British right flank to envelopment. Namur capitulated on 25 August and a Belgian sortie from Antwerp led to
5488-400: The Battle of Tannenberg and First Battle of the Masurian Lakes had made Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg a popular hero and contrasted starkly with the stalemate in the west. Hindenburg and his supporters sought to shift Germany's main effort to the eastern front to knock Russia out of the war. Falkenhayn resisted this, believing that France and Great Britain were the true opponents and that
5684-638: The Fifth Army was to assemble from Montmédy to Sedan and Mézières and the Fourth Army was to be held back west of Verdun, ready to move east to attack the southern flank of a German invasion through Belgium or southwards against the northern flank of an attack through Lorraine. No formal provision was made for combined operations with the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) but joint arrangements had been made and in 1911 during
5880-716: The First World War , after the Battle of the Frontiers ( 7 August – 13 September ) and the German advance into France . The invasion had been stopped at the First Battle of the Marne (5–12 September) and was followed by the First Battle of the Aisne (13–28 September), a Franco-British counter-offensive. The term describes reciprocal attempts by the Franco-British and German armies to envelop
6076-421: The Franco-Prussian War . The German Empire consisted of 25 states , each with its own nobility , four constituent kingdoms , six grand duchies , five duchies (six before 1876), seven principalities , three free Hanseatic cities , and one imperial territory . While Prussia was one of four kingdoms in the realm, it contained about two-thirds of the Empire's population and territory, and Prussian dominance
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6272-672: The Great Depression , as well as humiliation and outrage experienced by the German population are considered leading factors in the rise of Adolf Hitler and Nazism . The German Confederation had been created by an act of the Congress of Vienna on 8 June 1815 as a result of the Napoleonic Wars , after being alluded to in Article 6 of the 1814 Treaty of Paris . The liberal Revolutions of 1848 were crushed after
6468-516: The Race to the Sea as the German and Franco-British armies attempted to outflank each other to the north. The campaign culminated at First Battle of Ypres where both combatants attacked but failed to make a breakthrough. Two strategic issues dominated the remainder Falkenhayn's tenure as Chief of the General Staff. First was the priority accorded to the eastern and western fronts. Victories at
6664-604: The Second Battle of Artois from 9 May to 18 June 1915. Falkenhayn issued memoranda on 7 and 25 January 1915, to govern defensive battle on the Western Front, in which the existing front line was to be fortified and to be held indefinitely with small numbers of troops, to enable more divisions to be sent to the Eastern Front . New defences were to be built behind the front line to contain a breakthrough until
6860-597: The Second Moroccan Crisis the French had been told that six divisions could be expected to operate around Maubeuge . German strategy had given priority to offensive operations against France and a defensive posture against Russia since 1891. German planning was determined by numerical inferiority, the speed of mobilisation and concentration and the effect of the vast increase of the power of modern weapons. Frontal attacks were expected to be costly and protracted, leading to limited success, particularly after
7056-637: The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk . The German declaration of unrestricted submarine warfare in early 1917 contributed to bringing the United States into the war. In October 1918, after the failed Spring Offensive , the German armies were in retreat , allies Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire had collapsed, and Bulgaria had surrendered. The empire collapsed in the November 1918 Revolution with
7252-819: The Triple Alliance (1882) , would exist up until 1915, when Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary. Despite Germany, and especially Austria's, lack of faith in the Russian alliance, the Reinsurance Treaty would be first signed in 1887, and renewed up until 1890, when the Bismarckian system collapsed upon Bismarck's resignation. Meanwhile, the chancellor remained wary of any foreign policy developments that looked even remotely warlike. In 1886, he moved to stop an attempted sale of horses to France because they might be used for cavalry and also ordered an investigation into large Russian purchases of medicine from
7448-859: The Zimmermann Telegram , provoked the United States to enter the war. The OHL also ensured safe passage for Lenin and his associates from Switzerland to Russia . After the October Revolution , the OHL negotiated the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk to free troops for the 1918 German spring offensive on the Western Front . As the tide of the war turned against Germany with the Allied Hundred Days Offensive , in late September 1918, Ludendorff called for
7644-709: The unification of Germany in 1871 until the November Revolution in 1918, when the German Reich changed its form of government from a monarchy to a republic . The empire was founded on 18 January 1871 at the Palace of Versailles , outside Paris , France , where the south German states, except for Austria and Liechtenstein , joined the North German Confederation and the new constitution came into force on 16 April, changing
7840-513: The welfare state . German workers enjoyed health, accident and maternity benefits, canteens, changing rooms, and a national pension scheme. Industrialisation progressed dynamically in Germany, and German manufacturers began to capture domestic markets from British imports, and also to compete with British industry abroad, particularly in the U.S. The German textile and metal industries had by 1870 surpassed those of Britain in organisation and technical efficiency and superseded British manufacturers in
8036-433: The "parliamentarisation" of the German government and immediate armistice negotiations. When he reversed course and demanded the fight to be resumed in October, the government refused his demand and Ludendorff threatened to quit. His bluff was called and he was replaced by Lieutenant-General Wilhelm Groener . Though Ludendorff had expected Hindenburg to follow him, the Field Marshal remained in office until his resignation from
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8232-421: The 1st Army commander, ordered the II Corps to move back to the north bank of the Marne, which began a redeployment of all four 1st Army corps to the north bank by 8 September. The swift move to the north bank prevented the Sixth Army from crossing the Ourcq but created a gap between the 1st and 2nd armies. The BEF advanced from 6–8 September, crossed the Petit Morin, captured bridges over the Marne and established
8428-464: The 1st Army had reached the Aisne, with its right flank on the Oise and the 7th Army had assembled on the Aisne, between the 1st and 2nd armies. Further east the 3rd, 4th and 5th armies had dug in from Prosnes to Verdun, secure from frontal attacks. The 1st Army was still vulnerable on its northern flank, to attacks by French troops transferred from the south, which could be moved faster over undamaged railways, than German troops using lines damaged during
8624-409: The 1st Army. The 2nd and 9th cavalry divisions were sent next day but the French attack reached Carlepont and Noyon, before being contained on 18 September. In the Battle of Flirey , the German armies attacked from Verdun west to Reims and the Aisne on 20 September, cut the main railway from Verdun to Paris and created the St Mihiel salient. The main German effort remained on the western flank, which
8820-508: The 1st Division and the German IX Corps near Tienen, in which the Belgians had 1,630 casualties. While the BEF and the French armies conducted the Great Retreat into France (24 August – 28 September), small detachments of the Belgian, French and British armies conducted operations in Belgium against German cavalry and Jäger . On 27 August, a squadron of the RNAS had flown to Ostend, for air reconnaissance sorties between Bruges , Ghent and Ypres. British marines landed at Dunkirk on
9016-416: The 1st and 2nd armies on 9 September. Further east, the Third Army was forced back to the west of Verdun as German attacks were made on the Meuse Heights to the south-east but managed to maintain contact with Verdun and the Fourth Army to the west. German attacks against the Second Army south of Verdun from 5 September, almost forced the French to retreat but on 8 September, the crisis eased. By 10 September,
9212-426: The 1st, 2nd and 7th armies, temporarily under the command of General Karl von Bülow , to attack southwards and the 3rd, 4th and 5th armies to attack with the intention of weakening the French and preventing troops from being moved westwards. The 6th Army began to move to the western flank on 17 September, ready for a decisive battle ( Schlachtentscheidung ) but French attacks on 18 September, led Falkenhayn to order
9408-431: The 2nd Army pressed forward into the angle between the Meuse and Sambre directly against the Fifth Army. On the far west flank of the French, the BEF prolonged the line from Maubeuge to Valenciennes against the 1st Army and Army Detachment von Beseler masked the Belgian Army at Antwerp. On 26 August, German forces captured Valenciennes and conducted the Siege of Maubeuge (24 August – 7 September). Leuven (Louvain)
9604-415: The 2nd Army to break through in Picardy. To the north, I Cavalry Corps and II Cavalry Corps attacked between Lens and Lille, quickly being forced back behind the Lorette Spur. The next day, the cavalry was attacked by the first troops of the French XXI Corps to arrive as they advanced eastwards from Béthune. The German 6th Army took Lille before a British force could secure the town and the 4th Army attacked
9800-443: The 5th Army and the Fourth Army retreated to Sedan and Stenay . Mulhouse was recaptured again by German forces and the Battle of the Meuse (26–28 August), caused a temporary halt of the German advance. Liège was occupied by the Germans on 7 August, the first units of the BEF landed in France and French troops crossed the German frontier. On 12 August, the Battle of Haelen was fought by German and Belgian cavalry and infantry and
9996-580: The 6th Army to operate defensively to secure the German flank. French attempts to advance after the German retirement to the Aisne were frustrated after 14 September, when German troops were discovered to have stopped their retirement and dug in on the north bank of the Aisne. Joffre ordered attacks on the German 1st and 2nd armies but attempts by the Fifth, Ninth and Sixth armies to advance from 15 to 16 September had little success. The Deuxième Bureau (French Military Intelligence) also reported German troop movements from east to west, which led Joffre to continue
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#173276484007810192-450: The 7th Division and the 3rd Cavalry Division landed at Zeebrugge . Naval forces collected at Dover were formed into a separate unit, which became the Dover Patrol , to operate in the Channel and off the French-Belgian coast. Antwerp was invested to the south and east by German forces after 20 August, while the main German armies chased the French and British over the border southwards to the Marne. Belgian forces in Antwerp tried to assist
10388-428: The 7th and 6th armies west of St. Dié and east of Nancy, from where the Second Army had withdrawn its left flank, to face north between Nancy and Toul. A gap between the left of the Second Army and the right of the Third Army at Verdun, which faced north-west, on a line towards Revigny against the 5th Army advance, west of the Meuse between Varennes and St. Ménéhould. The Fourth Army had withdrawn to Sermaize , west to
10584-416: The Ardennes began on 20 August, in support of the French invasion of Lorraine. The opposing armies met in thick fog and the French mistook the German troops for screening forces. On 22 August, the Battle of the Ardennes (21–28 August) began with French attacks, which were costly to both sides and forced the French into a disorderly retreat late on 23 August. The Third Army recoiled towards Verdun, pursued by
10780-448: The Army in the summer of 1919. As the German Revolution began, Hindenburg and Groener advised the Emperor to abdicate . Groener subsequently came to an agreement with the Social Democrat leader Friedrich Ebert known as the Ebert–Groener pact under which the Army leadership agreed to back the new republican government. With the war over in November 1918, the OHL was moved from Spa to Schloss Wilhelmshöhe in Kassel , to supervise
10976-499: The BEF advanced to exploit the victory of the Marne and the armies on the left flank advanced, opposed only by rearguards. On 11 and 12 September, Joffre ordered outflanking manoeuvres but the advance was too slow to catch the Germans, who on 14 September, began to dig in on high ground on the north bank of the Aisne, which reduced the French advance from 15–16 September to a few local gains. French troops had begun to move westwards on 2 September, over undamaged railways which could move
11172-401: The BEF ended its retreat from Mons, German troops reached Claye, 6.2 mi (10 km) from Paris, Reims was captured, German forces withdrew from Lille and the First Battle of the Marne (Battle of the Ourcq) (5–12 September) began, marking the end of the Great Retreat of the western flank of the Franco-British armies. By 4 September, the First and Second Armies had slowed the advance of
11368-447: The Baghdad Railway was resolved in June 1914. Many consider Bismarck's foreign policy as a coherent system and partly responsible for the preservation of Europe's stability. It was also marked by the need to balance circumspect defensiveness and the desire to be free from the constraints of its position as a major European power. Bismarck's successors did not pursue his foreign policy legacy. For instance, Kaiser Wilhelm II, who dismissed
11564-461: The Battle of Guise 29–30 August). On 29 August the Fifth Army counter-attacked the 2nd Army south of the Oise, from Vervins to Mont Dorigny and west of the river from Mont Dorigny to Moy towards St. Quentin on the Somme, while the British held the line of the Oise west of La Fère . Laon , La Fère and Roye were captured by German troops on 30 August and Amiens the next day. On 1 September, Craonne and Soissons were captured and on 5 September
11760-437: The Battle of Malines (25–27 August). After the French defeat during the Battle of Lorraine, the French Second Army retreated to the Grand Couronné heights near Nancy and dug in, on an arc from Pont-à-Mousson to Champenoux , Lunéville and Dombasle-sur-Meurthe by 3 September. The Battle of Grand Couronné (4–13 September) began next day, when the German 7th and 6th Armies attacked simultaneously at St. Dié and Nancy, as
11956-400: The Battle of the Mortagne (14–25 August), a limited German offensive in the Vosges, the Germans managed a small advance, before a French counter-attack retook the ground. By 20 August, a German counter-offensive in Lorraine had begun and the German 4th Army and 5th Army advanced through the Ardennes on 19 August towards Neufchâteau . An offensive by French Third and Fourth Armies through
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#173276484007812152-449: The Belgian defences, until the last fort fell on 16 August. On 18 August, the Germans began to advance along the Meuse River towards Namur and the Belgian field army began a withdrawal from its positions along the Gete, to the National Redoubt at Antwerp. On 20 August, the German 1st Army took Brussels unopposed and the Belgian field army reached Antwerp, with little interference from German advanced parties, except for an engagement between
12348-409: The Bismarck government increased the penalties and its attacks, and were challenged in 1875 when a papal encyclical declared the whole ecclesiastical legislation of Prussia was invalid, and threatened to excommunicate any Catholic who obeyed. There was no violence, but the Catholics mobilized their support, set up numerous civic organizations, raised money to pay fines, and rallied behind their church and
12544-494: The British 7th Division around Ghent. On 15 October, the Belgian army occupied a defensive line along the Yser river in west Flanders, from Diksmuide to the coast. Joffre used the railways which had transported French troops to the German frontier to move troops back from Lorraine and Alsace to form a new Sixth Army under General Michel-Joseph Maunoury with nine divisions and two cavalry divisions. By 10 September, twenty divisions and three cavalry divisions had been moved west from
12740-490: The British II Corps arrived by rail at Abbeville and advanced on Béthune. By the end of 11 October, II Corps held a line from Béthune to Hinges and Chocques , with flanking units on the right, 2.2 mi (3.5 km) south of Béthune and on the left 2.8 mi (4.5 km) to the west. On 12 October, II Corps attacked to reach Givenchy and Pont du Hem , 3.7 mi (6 km) north of La Bassée Canal. The German I and II Cavalry corps and attached Jäger tried to delay
12936-431: The Catholic section of the Prussian Ministry of ecclesiastical and educational affairs, depriving Catholics of their voice at the highest level. The system of strict government supervision of schools was applied only in Catholic areas; the Protestant schools were left alone. Much more serious were the May laws of 1873. One made the appointment of any priest dependent on his attendance at a German university, as opposed to
13132-417: The Centre Party showed signs of gaining support among dissident elements such as the Polish Catholics in Silesia . A powerful intellectual force of the time was anti-Catholicism , led by the liberal intellectuals who formed a vital part of Bismarck's coalition. They saw the Catholic Church as a powerful force of reaction and anti-modernity, especially after the proclamation of papal infallibility in 1870, and
13328-441: The Centre Party. The "Old Catholic Church", which rejected the First Vatican Council, attracted only a few thousand members. Bismarck, a devout pietistic Protestant, realized his Kulturkampf was backfiring when secular and socialist elements used the opportunity to attack all religion. In the long run, the most significant result was the mobilization of the Catholic voters, and their insistence on protecting their religious identity. In
13524-402: The Comines canal to Ypres. The BEF was ordered to make a general advance on 16 October, as the German forces were falling back. The cavalry was ordered to cross the Lys between Armentières and Menin as the III Corps advanced north-east to gain touch with the 7th Division near Ypres. Fog grounded Royal Flying Corps (RFC) reconnaissance aircraft and made artillery observation impossible. The Lys
13720-452: The French II Cavalry Corps, defended the approaches to Albert. On 28 September, the French were able to stop the German advance on a line from Maricourt to Fricourt and Thiepval . The German II Cavalry Corps was stopped near Arras by the French cavalry. On 29 September, Joffre added X Corps, 12 mi (20 km) north of Amiens, to the French II Cavalry Corps south-east of Arras and a provisional corps (General Victor d'Urbal ), which had
13916-399: The French and British with sorties on 24–26 August, 9–13 September and 26–27 September. On 28 September, German heavy and super-heavy artillery began to bombard Belgian fortifications around Antwerp. On 1 October, the Germans attacked forts Sint-Katelijne-Waver and Walem and the Bosbeek and Dorpveld redoubts, held by the 5th Reserve and Marine divisions. By 11:00 a.m., Fort Walem
14112-485: The French and Russians modernised their fortifications on the frontiers with Germany. Alfred von Schlieffen , Chief of the Imperial German General Staff , Oberste Heeresleitung (OHL) from 1891–1906, devised plans to evade the French frontier fortifications with an offensive on the flank, which would have a local numerical superiority and obtain rapidly a decisive victory. By 1906, such
14308-522: The French discovered by intercepting wireless messages. By 28 September, the Aisne front had stabilised and the BEF began to withdraw on the night of 1/2 October, with the first troops arriving in the Abbeville area on 8/9 October. After the defeat on the Marne, Moltke ordered a retirement to the Aisne by the 1st and 2nd armies on the German right wing and a withdrawal to Reims and a line eastwards past
14504-518: The French lacked the strength to defeat Germany by themselves, they sought an alliance with Russia, or perhaps even the newly reformed empire of Austria-Hungary, which would envelope Germany completely. Bismarck wanted to prevent this at all costs and maintain friendly relations with the Austrians and the Russians, signing the Dual Alliance (1879) with Austria-Hungary in 1879. The Dual Aliance
14700-722: The French were attacked by the XVIII Corps as it arrived from Reims, which forced back the French IV Corps at Roye on the right flank. To the north, the French reached Péronne and formed a bridgehead on the east bank of the Somme, only for the German XIV Reserve Corps to reach Bapaume to the north on 26 September. The offensive capacity of the Second Army was exhausted and defensive positions were occupied, while Joffre sent four more corps to reinforce. Over
14896-556: The French would be annihilated or the manoeuvre from the north would create conditions for victory in the centre or in Lorraine on the common border. The Battle of the Frontiers is a general name for all of the operations of the French armies until the Battle of the Marne. A series of encounter battles began between the German, French and Belgian armies, on the German-French frontier and in southern Belgium on 4 August 1914. The Battle of Mulhouse (Battle of Alsace 7–10 August )
15092-705: The French. On 3 October, Rupprecht reinforced the 6th Army north of Arras and ordered the IV Cavalry Corps from Valenciennes to Lille. From 3 to 4 October, German attacks on Arras and the vicinity were costly failures. On 4 October, German troops entered Lens, Souchez , Neuville-Saint-Vaast and gained a footing on the Lorette Spur . German attacks were made from the north of Arras to reach the Scarpe but were eventually repulsed by X Corps. By 4 October, German troops had also reached Givenchy-en-Gohelle and on
15288-590: The General Staff, after the latter resigned in late June. He resigned from his position as head of Kommandostelle Kolberg (as the staff had become on the formal dissolution of the OHL) in September 1919. German Empire The German Empire (German: Deutsches Reich ), also referred to as Imperial Germany , the Second Reich or simply Germany , was the period of the German Reich from
15484-493: The German Empire became an industrial, technological, and scientific power in Europe, and by 1913, Germany was the largest economy in continental Europe and the third-largest in the world. Germany also became a great power , building the longest railway network of Europe, the world's strongest army, and a fast-growing industrial base. Starting very small in 1871, in a decade, the navy became second only to Britain 's Royal Navy . From 1871 to 1890, Otto von Bismarck's tenure as
15680-566: The German armies west of Verdun were retreating towards the Aisne and the Franco-British were following-up, collecting stragglers and equipment. On 12 September, Joffre ordered an outflanking move to the west and an attack northwards by the Third Army, to cut off the German retreat. The pursuit was too slow and by 14 September, the German armies had dug in north of the Aisne and the Allies met trench lines, rather than rearguards. Frontal attacks by
15876-604: The German border to the French centre and left and the balance of force between the German 1st, 2nd and 3rd armies and the Third, Fourth, Ninth, Fifth armies, the BEF and Sixth Army had changed to 44:56 divisions. Late on 4 September, Joffre ordered the Sixth Army to attack eastwards over the Ourcq towards Château Thierry as the BEF advanced towards Montmirail and the Fifth Army attacked northwards, with its right flank protected by
16072-518: The German flank as intended. The French Sixth Army began to advance along the Oise, west of Compiègne on 17 September. French reconnaissance aircraft were grounded during bad weather and cavalry were exhausted, which deprived the French commanders of information. As news reached Joffre that two German corps were moving south from Antwerp, the Sixth Army was forced to end its advance and dig in around Nampcel and Roye. The IV and XIII corps were transferred to
16268-597: The German flank but met the German II Corps , which had arrived on the night of 18/19 September, on the right flank of the IX Reserve Corps . Despite the four divisions of the II Cavalry Corps (General Georg von der Marwitz ), the Germans were pushed back to a line from Ribécourt to Lassigny and Roye, which menaced German communications through Ham and St. Quentin. On 24 September,
16464-491: The German flank, the subdivision was menaced by a German offensive. The German II Bavarian and XIV Reserve corps pushed back a French Territorial division from Bapaume and advanced towards Bray-sur-Somme and Albert. From 25–27 September, the French XXI and X Corps north of the Somme, with support on the right flank by the 81st, 82nd, 84th and 88th Territorial divisions and the 1st, 3rd, 5th and 10th Cavalry divisions of
16660-478: The German frontier around Épinal , Nancy and Verdun – Charleville-Mezières , with an army in reserve around Sainte-Menehould and Commercy . Since 1871 railway building had given the French General Staff sixteen lines to the German frontier against thirteen available to the German army and the French could wait until German intentions were clear. The French deployment was intended to be ready for
16856-506: The German steel and pig iron output reached one quarter of total global production. German factories were larger and more modern than their British and French counterparts. By 1913, the German electricity production was higher than the combined electricity production of Britain, France, Italy and Sweden. By 1900, the German chemical industry dominated the world market for synthetic dyes . The three major firms BASF , Bayer and Hoechst produced several hundred different dyes, along with
17052-567: The German war effort, to an extent that they are sometimes described as de facto military dictators , supplanting the Emperor and Chancellor Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg , whom they managed to have replaced with Georg Michaelis in the summer of 1917. Through the Hindenburg Programme, a total war strategy, the OHL sought decisive victory. Ludendorff ordered the resumption of the unrestricted U-boat Campaign , which, along with
17248-573: The Germans dug in on Mont des Cats and at Flêtre on the road from Cassel to Bailleul. The 3rd Cavalry Brigade attacked Mont des Cats and occupied Mt. Noir, 1.9 mi (3 km) north of Bailleul. On 14 October, the cavalry advanced north-eastwards, occupied Dranoutre and Kemmel against slight opposition, then reached a line from Dranoutre to Wytschaete (Wijtschate), linking with the 3rd Cavalry Division of IV Corps, which had been operating in Belgium since early October. On 15 October, Estaires
17444-566: The Great Retreat further west culminated on the Marne. The French Fifth Army fell back about 6.2 mi (10 km) from the Sambre during the Battle of Charleroi (22 August) and began a greater withdrawal from the area south of the Sambre on 23 August. The BEF fought the Battle of Mons on 24 August, by when the French First and Second armies had been pushed back by attacks of the German 7th and 6th armies between St. Dié and Nancy,
17640-492: The Great Retreat. General Wilhelm Groener , head of the Railway Department of the OHL, suggested three alternatives, a frontal attack from the new positions, a defence of the line of the Aisne while reserves were transferred to the right flank or to continue the withdrawal and comprehensively regroup the German armies, ready to conduct an offensive on the right flank. On 15 September, Falkenhayn wanted to continue
17836-685: The II Corps front. By 21 October, II Corps was ordered to dig in from the canal near Givenchy to Violaines , Illies , Herlies and Riez, while offensive operations continued to the north. The Lahore Division of the Indian Corps arrived and the British repulsed German attacks until early November, when both sides concentrated their resources on the First Battle of Ypres and the battle at La Bassée ended. The III Corps reached St. Omer and Hazebrouck from 10–12 October, then advanced eastwards towards Lille. The British cavalry advanced and found
18032-467: The Marne . Communications between OHL and the front line broke down and Hentsch was dispatched by Moltke to the headquarters of the 1st Army and the 2nd Army to assess the situation. After discovering that the armies were separated from each other by a gap of 25 mi (40 km) and in danger of being encircled, Hentsch ordered a retreat to the Aisne . On hearing the news from the front, Moltke suffered
18228-553: The Marne at Vitry-le-François and then across the river to Sompons, against the 4th Army, which had advanced from Rethel , to Suippes and the west of Châlons . The new Ninth Army held a line from Mailly against the 3rd Army, which had advanced from Mézières, over the Vesle and the Marne west of Châlons. The 2nd Army had advanced from Marle on the Serre, across the Aisne and the Vesle, between Reims and Fismes to Montmort, north of
18424-624: The Masurian Lakes ended on 15 September and Czernowitz in Bukovina was taken by the Russian army. On 17 September, Serbian forces in Syrmia were withdrawn and Semlin evacuated, as the Battle of the Drina ended. Next day General Paul von Hindenburg was appointed Oberbefehlshaber der gesamten Deutschen Streitkräfte im Osten ( Ober Ost , Commander-in-Chief of German Armies in the Eastern Theatre). On 21 September, Jaroslaw in Galicia
18620-551: The Meterenbecque. A corps attack from La Couronne to Fontaine Houck began at 2:00 p.m. in wet and misty weather and by evening had captured Outtersteene and Méteren , at a cost of 708 casualties. On the right, French cavalry attempted to support the attack but without howitzers, could not advance in level terrain, dotted with cottages used as improvised strong points. The German defenders slipped away from defences in front of houses, hedges and walls, well sighted to keep
18816-578: The Ninth Army along the St. Gond marshes. The French First, Second, Third and Fourth armies to the east, were to resist the attacks of the German 5th, 6th and 7th armies between Verdun and Toul and repulse an enveloping attack on the defences south of Nancy from the north. The 6th and 7th armies were reinforced by heavy artillery from Metz and attacked again on 4 September along the Moselle. On 5 September,
19012-454: The Ninth, Fifth and Sixth armies were repulsed from 15–16 September, which led Joffre to begin the transfer of the Second Army west to the left flank of the Sixth Army, the first phase of the operations to outflank the German armies, which from 17 September to 17–19 October, moved the opposing armies through Picardy and Flanders, to the North Sea coast. On 10 September, the French armies and
19208-432: The OHL. Hohenborn served as Generalquartiermeister until January 1915 when he succeeded Falkenhayn as Prussian Minister of War. Freytag-Loringhoven replaced Hohenborn as Generalquartiermeister . Falkenhayn centralised decision making and emphasised secrecy, rarely explaining himself to his subordinates, which has caused historians difficulty in assessing his intentions. After taking command Falkenhayn became engaged in
19404-893: The Pacific ( Jiaozhou Bay and Tianjin in China, the Marianas , the Caroline Islands , Samoa) led to frictions with the UK, Russia, Japan, and the US. The largest colonial enterprises were in Africa, where the Herero Wars in what is now Namibia in 1906–1907 resulted in the Herero and Nama genocide . By 1900, Germany became the largest economy in continental Europe and the third-largest in
19600-551: The Russian army; an Austro-Hungarian counter-offensive began on 4 October and Maramaros-Sziget was retaken. On 9 October, the First German Offensive against Warsaw began with the battles of Warsaw (9–19 October) and Ivangorod (9–20 October). As the situation on the eastern front deteriorated in September, the new German high command under General Falkenhayn attempted to retrieve the situation in France and inflict
19796-421: The Russian nation, because of its climate, its desert, and its frugality, and having but one frontier to defend", and because it would leave Germany with another bitter, resentful neighbor. Despite this, another alliance between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy would be signed in 1882, preying on the fears of the German and Austro-Hungarian militaries of the untrustworthiness of Russia itself. This alliance, named
19992-627: The Second Army front from the Oise to the Somme and the Tenth Army front from Thiepval to Arras and Souchez had been stabilised. A German cavalry attack to the north of the 6th Army, pushed back the French Territorial divisions from Lens to Lille and on 5 October, Marwitz ordered the cavalry to advance westwards to Abbeville on the Channel coast and cut the railways leading south. At the end of 6 October, Falkenhayn terminated attempts by
20188-477: The Second Army sent reinforcements to the Third Army. Costly fighting continued until 12 September but the French were able to withdraw more than four corps to reinforce the armies on the left flank. On 13 September, Pont-à-Mousson and Lunéville were recaptured by the French and the advance continued close to the Seille river, where the front stabilised. The battles kept a large number of German troops in Lorraine, as
20384-534: The Second Army, along with the 1st, 5th, 8th and 10th Cavalry divisions of the Cavalry Corps (General Louis Conneau), the XIV and XX Corps were withdrawn from the First and the original Second Army to assemble south of Amiens, with a screen of the 81st, 82nd, 84th and 88th Territorial divisions, to protect French communications. The French advanced on 22 September, on a line from Lassigny northwards to Roye and Chaulnes around
20580-546: The Sixth Army advanced eastwards from Paris and met the German IV Reserve Corps, which had moved into the area that morning and stopped the French advance short of high ground north of Meaux. Overnight, the IV Reserve Corps withdrew to a better position 6.2 mi (10 km) east and French air reconnaissance observed German forces moving north to face the Sixth Army. General Alexander von Kluck
20776-449: The Sixth Army along the Aisne, which ended with the creation of the St. Mihiel Salient. Joffre maintained the French emphasis on the western flank, after receiving intercepted wireless messages, showing that the Germans were moving an army to the western flank and continued to assemble the Second Army to the north of the Sixth Army. On 24 September the Second Army was attacked and found difficulty in holding ground, rather than advancing around
20972-457: The Sixth Army, as indications appeared that German troops were also being moved from the eastern flank. The German IX Reserve Corps arrived from Belgium by 15 September and next day attacked with the 1st Army to the south-west with the IV Corps and the 4th and 7th cavalry divisions, against the attempted French envelopment. The attack was cancelled and the corps withdrew behind the right flank of
21168-602: The Somme. The offensive by the French Second Army forced Falkenhayn to divert the XXI and I Bavarian Corps as soon as they arrived, to extend the front northwards from Chaulnes to Péronne on 24 September and drive the French back over the Somme. On 26 September, the French Second Army dug in on a line from Lassigny to Roye and Bray-sur-Somme ; German cavalry moved north to enable the II Bavarian Corps to occupy
21364-516: The Third Army held positions east of Verdun against attacks by the 5th Army, the Fourth Army held positions from the junction with the Third Army south of Montmédy, westwards to Sedan, Mezières and Fumay , facing the 4th Army and the Fifth Army was between Fumay and Maubeuge, with the 3rd Army advancing up the Meuse valley from Dinant and Givet into a gap between the Fourth and Fifth Armies and
21560-483: The abdication of Wilhelm II, which left the post-war federal republic to govern a devastated populace. The Treaty of Versailles imposed post-war reparation costs of 132 billion gold marks (around US$ 269 billion or €240 billion in 2019, or roughly US$ 32 billion in 1921), as well as limiting the army to 100,000 men and disallowing conscription, armored vehicles, submarines, aircraft, and more than six battleships. The consequential economic devastation, later exacerbated by
21756-404: The advance but the British repulsed a counter-attack near Givenchy. From 14 to 15 October, II Corps attacked eastwards up La Bassée Canal and managed short advances on the flanks, with help from French cavalry but lost 967 casualties. From 16–18 October the corps attacks pivoted on the right and the left flank advanced to Aubers against German opposition at every ditch and bridge. A foothold
21952-484: The alliance and the Ottoman Empire formally allied with Germany . In the First World War, German plans to capture Paris quickly in the autumn of 1914 failed, and the war on the Western Front became a stalemate. The Allied naval blockade caused severe shortages of food and supplements. However, Imperial Germany had success on the Eastern Front ; it occupied a large amount of territory to its east following
22148-557: The armed forces, and final arbiter of all foreign affairs, and could also disband the Reichstag to call for new elections. Officially, the chancellor was a one-man cabinet and was responsible for the conduct of all state affairs; in practice, the State Secretaries (top bureaucratic officials in charge of such fields as finance, war, foreign affairs, etc.) functioned much like ministers in other monarchies. The Reichstag had
22344-587: The basis for conservative modernization in Imperial Japan under Emperor Meiji and the preservation of an authoritarian political structure under the tsars in the Russian Empire . One factor in the social anatomy of these governments was the retention of a very substantial share in political power by the landed elite , the Junkers , resulting from the absence of a revolutionary breakthrough by
22540-399: The basis of the modern European welfare state . He came to realize that this sort of policy was very appealing, since it bound workers to the state, and also fit in very well with his authoritarian nature. The social security systems installed by Bismarck (health care in 1883, accident insurance in 1884, invalidity and old-age insurance in 1889) at the time were the largest in the world and, to
22736-497: The chancellor in 1890, let the treaty with Russia lapse in favor of Germany's alliance with Austria, which finally led to a stronger coalition-building between Russia and France. Germans had dreamed of colonial imperialism since 1848. Although Bismarck had little interest in acquiring overseas possessions, most Germans were enthusiastic, and by 1884 he had acquired German New Guinea . By the 1890s, German colonial expansion in Asia and
22932-476: The chiefs of the Operations Division, Colonel Gerhard Tappen , and the Information Division, Lieutenant Colonel Richard Hentsch [ de ] . These officers were often dispatched to subordinate headquarters to investigate and make decision on behalf of OHL. Although the German armies were victorious in the Battle of the Frontiers their advance was brought to a halt at First Battle of
23128-633: The country's population. The imperial crown was hereditary in the ruling house of Prussia, the House of Hohenzollern . With the exception of 1872–1873 and 1892–1894, the chancellor was always simultaneously the prime minister of Prussia. With 17 out of 58 votes in the Bundesrat , Berlin needed only a few votes from the smaller states to exercise effective control. The other states retained their own governments but had only limited aspects of sovereignty. For example, both postage stamps and currency were issued for
23324-413: The domestic market. Germany became the dominant economic power on the continent and was the second-largest exporting nation after Britain. Technological progress during German industrialisation occurred in four waves: the railway wave (1877–1886), the dye wave (1887–1896), the chemical wave (1897–1902), and the wave of electrical engineering (1903–1918). Since Germany industrialised later than Britain, it
23520-428: The east and the north. Before the Fifth Army could attack over the Sambre the 2nd Army attacked at the Battle of Charleroi and at Namur on 21 August. The 3rd Army crossed the Meuse and attacked the French right flank and on 23 August, the Fifth Army began a retirement southwards to avoid encirclement. After the Battle of St. Quentin , the French withdrawal continued. On 22 August, the BEF advanced and on 23 August fought
23716-606: The elections of 1874, the Centre party doubled its popular vote, and became the second-largest party in the national parliament—and remained a powerful force for the next 60 years, so that after Bismarck it became difficult to form a government without their support. Bismarck built on a tradition of welfare programs in Prussia and Saxony that began as early as in the 1840s. In the 1880s he introduced old-age pensions, accident insurance, medical care and unemployment insurance that formed
23912-403: The emerging Social Democratic Party . Prussia in 1871 included 16,000,000 Protestants, both Reformed and Lutheran, and 8,000,000 Catholics. Most people were generally segregated into their own religious worlds, living in rural districts or city neighbourhoods that were overwhelmingly of the same religion, and sending their children to separate public schools where their religion was taught. There
24108-417: The empire as a whole. Coins through one mark were also minted in the name of the empire, while higher-valued pieces were issued by the states. However, these larger gold and silver issues were virtually commemorative coins and had limited circulation. While the states issued their own decorations and some had their own armies, the military forces of the smaller ones were put under Prussian control. Those of
24304-484: The exposed British flank at Ypres . On 9 October, the German XIV Corps arrived opposite the French and the German 1st and 2nd Cavalry corps tried a flanking move between La Bassée and Armentières but the French cavalry stopped the Germans north of La Bassée Canal. The German 4th Cavalry Corps passed through Ypres on 7 October and was forced back to Bailleul by French Territorial troops. From 8–9 October
24500-567: The first and to this day longest-serving chancellor was marked by relative liberalism at its start, but in time grew more conservative. Broad reforms, the anti-Catholic Kulturkampf and systematic repression of Polish people marked his period in the office. Despite his hatred of liberalism and socialism – he called liberals and socialists "enemies of the Reich" – social programs introduced by Bismarck included old-age pensions, accident insurance, medical care and unemployment insurance, all aspects of
24696-582: The five smaller firms. Imperial Germany built up the world's largest chemical industry, the production of German chemical industry was 60% higher than that of the United States. In 1913, these eight firms produced almost 90% of the world supply of dyestuffs and sold about 80% of their production abroad. The three major firms had also integrated upstream into the production of essential raw materials and they began to expand into other areas of chemistry such as pharmaceuticals , photographic film , agricultural chemicals and electrochemicals . Top-level decision-making
24892-764: The four states south of the Main, and during November 1870, they joined the North German Confederation by treaty. On 10 December 1870, the North German Confederation Reichstag renamed the Confederation the "German Empire" and gave the title of German Emperor to William I , the King of Prussia , as Bundespräsidium of the Confederation. The new constitution ( Constitution of the German Confederation ) and
25088-573: The ground north of the Somme. On 27 September, the German II Cavalry Corps drove back the 61st and 62nd Reserve divisions (General Joseph Brugère , who had replaced General Albert d'Amade ), to clear the front for the XIV Reserve Corps and link with the right flank of the II Bavarian Corps. The French subdivision d'armée began to assemble at Arras and Maud'huy found that instead of making another attempt to get around
25284-421: The integration of a hierarchical society, to forge a bond between workers and the state so as to strengthen the latter, to maintain traditional relations of authority between social and status groups, and to provide a countervailing power against the modernist forces of liberalism and socialism. Bismarck created the modern welfare state in Germany in the 1880s and enacted universal male suffrage in 1871. He became
25480-666: The interests of other European powers, especially the British Empire. During its colonial expansion, the German Empire committed the Herero and Nama genocide . After the resignation of Otto von Bismarck in 1890, and Wilhelm II 's refusal to recall him to office, the empire embarked on Weltpolitik ("world politics") – a bellicose new course that ultimately contributed to the outbreak of World War I. Bismarck's successors were incapable of maintaining their predecessor's complex, shifting, and overlapping alliances which had kept Germany from being diplomatically isolated. This period
25676-646: The invasion, in which massacres, executions, hostage taking and the burning of towns and villages took place and became known as the Rape of Belgium . On 5 August, the advanced German forces tried to capture Liège and the forts of the Fortified Position of Liège by coup de main . The city fell on 6 August but the forts were not captured and on 12 August, five German super-heavy 420 mm (17 in) howitzers and four batteries of Austrian 305 mm (12.0 in) howitzers, began systematically to bombard
25872-549: The junction of the Ninth and Fifth Armies at Sézanne . The Fifth Army and the BEF had withdrawn south of the Oise, Serre, Aisne and Ourq, pursued by the 2nd Army on a line from Guise to Laon, Vailly and Dormans and by the 1st Army from Montdidier , towards Compiègne and then south-east towards Montmirail . The new French Sixth Army , linked with the left of the BEF, west of the Marne at Meaux , to Pontoise north of Paris. French garrisons were besieged at Strasbourg, Metz, Thionville, Longwy, Montmédy and Maubeuge. The Belgian army
26068-509: The larger states, such as the Kingdoms of Bavaria and Saxony, were coordinated along Prussian principles and would, in wartime, be controlled by the federal government. The evolution of the German Empire is somewhat in line with parallel developments in Italy, which became a united nation-state a decade earlier. Some key elements of the German Empire's authoritarian political structure were also
26264-422: The left flank of II Corps, towards Bailleul and Armentières. II Corps was to advance around the north of Lille and III Corps was to reach a line from Armentières to Wytschaete, with the Cavalry Corps (Lieutenant-General Edmund Allenby, 1st Viscount Allenby ) on the left as far as Ypres. French troops were to relieve the II Corps at Béthune to move north and link with the right of III Corps but this did not occur. On
26460-456: The left flank opposite the French frontier, from the c. 1,700,000 men expected to be mobilised in the Westheer (western army). The main German force would still advance through Belgium and attack southwards into France, the French armies would be enveloped on the left and pressed back over the Meuse, Aisne, Somme, Oise, Marne and Seine, unable to withdraw into central France. Either
26656-514: The liberal intellectuals who wanted free trade. As it was throughout Europe at the time, antisemitism was endemic in Germany during the period. Before Napoleon 's decrees ended the ghettos in Confederation of the Rhine , it had been religiously motivated, but by the 19th century, it was a factor in German nationalism . In the popular mind, Jews became a symbol of capitalism and wealth. On
26852-406: The major ports of Hamburg and Bremen . By 1880, Germany had 9,400 locomotives pulling 43,000 passengers and 30,000 tons of freight, and forged ahead of France. The total length of German railroad tracks expanded from 21,000 km (13,000 mi) in 1871 to 63,000 km (39,000 mi) by 1913, establishing the largest rail network in the world after the United States. The German rail network
27048-435: The modern European welfare state . Late in Bismarck's chancellorship and in spite of his earlier personal opposition, Germany became involved in colonialism . Claiming much of the leftover territory that was not yet conquered by Europeans in the Scramble for Africa , it managed to build the third-largest colonial empire at the time, after the British and the French ones. As a colonial state, it sometimes clashed with
27244-482: The name of the federal state to the German Empire and introducing the title of German Emperor for Wilhelm I , King of Prussia from the House of Hohenzollern . Berlin remained its capital, and Otto von Bismarck , Minister President of Prussia , became chancellor , the head of government. As these events occurred, the Prussian -led North German Confederation and its southern German allies, such as Baden , Bavaria , Württemberg , and Hesse , were still engaged in
27440-406: The next week, the northern flank of the Second Army moved further north and on 29 September, a subdivision d'armée (General Louis de Maud'huy ) was formed, to control the northern corps of the Second Army as they assembled near Arras. On 21 September, Falkenhayn decided to concentrate the 6th Army near Amiens, to attack westwards to the coast and then envelop the French northern flank south of
27636-439: The night of 19/20 September and on 28 September occupied Lille. The rest of the brigade occupied Cassel on 30 September and scouted the country in motor cars. An RNAS Armoured Car Section was created, by fitting vehicles with bullet-proof steel. On 2 October, the Marine Brigade was moved to Antwerp, followed by the rest of the Naval Division on 6 October, having landed at Dunkirk on the night of 4/5 October. From 6–7 October,
27832-415: The north of Verdun, by the 3rd, 4th and 5th armies. The 6th and 7th armies were ordered to end their attacks and dig in. The withdrawal was intended to make time for the 7th Army to be transferred from Alsace to the right-wing near the Oise but Franco-British attacks led to the 7th Army being sent to fill the gap between the 1st and 2nd armies instead. Moltke was replaced by Falkenhayn on 14 September, by when
28028-425: The northern flank of III Corps, in front of the Cavalry Corps, was a line of hills from Mont des Cats to Mt. Kemmel, about 400 ft (120 m) above sea level, with spurs running south across the British line of advance, occupied by the German IV Cavalry Corps with three divisions. On 12 October, the British cavalry advanced and captured the Mont des Cats. On 13 October, III Corps found German troops dug in along
28224-437: The northern flank of the opposing army through the provinces of Picardy , Artois and Flanders , rather than an attempt to advance northwards to the sea. The "race" ended on the North Sea coast of Belgium around 19 October, when the last open area from Diksmuide to the North Sea was occupied by Belgian troops who had retreated after the Siege of Antwerp (28 September – 10 October). The outflanking attempts had resulted in
28420-515: The now united Germany became predominantly urban. The success of German industrialization manifested itself in two ways in the early 20th century; German factories were often larger and more modern than many of their British and French counterparts, but the preindustrial sector was more backward. The success of the German Empire in the natural sciences, especially in physics and chemistry, was such that one-third of all Nobel Prizes went to German inventors and researchers. During its 47 years of existence,
28616-553: The offensive in the spring of 1915. Erich von Falkenhayn , Chief of the German General Staff ( Oberste Heeresleitung OHL) since 14 September, concluded that a decisive victory could not be achieved on the Western Front and that it was equally unlikely in the east. Falkenhayn abandoned Vernichtungsstrategie (strategy of annihilation) and attempted to create the conditions for peace with one of Germany's enemies, by Ermattungsstrategie (strategy of exhaustion), to enable Germany to concentrate its resources decisively to defeat
28812-566: The other hand, the constitution and legal system protected the rights of Jews as German citizens. Antisemitic parties were formed but soon collapsed. But after the Treaty of Versailles , and Adolf Hitler 's rise to power in Germany , antisemitism in Germany would increase. Race to the Sea 1915 1916 1917 1918 Associated articles The Race to the Sea ( French : Course à la mer ; German : Wettlauf zum Meer , Dutch : Race naar de Zee ) took place from about 17 September – 19 October 1914 during
29008-456: The outbreak of World War I , the Großer Generalstab (Great General Staff) formed the core of the Supreme Army Command, becoming the General Staff of the Field Army. Colonel General Helmuth von Moltke, who had been Chief of the General Staff since 1906, continued in office, as did most of the division heads. Partially as a result of these longstanding working relationships, Moltke delegated substantial authority to his subordinates, especially to
29204-400: The peasants in combination with urban areas. Although authoritarian in many respects, the empire had some democratic features. Besides universal manhood suffrage, it permitted the development of political parties. Bismarck intended to create a constitutional façade that would mask the continuation of authoritarian policies. However, in the process, he created a system with a serious flaw. There
29400-418: The position was restored by counter-attacks. The Westheer began the huge task of building field fortifications, which were not complete until the autumn of 1915. Under Plan XVII the French peacetime army was to form five field armies, with groups of Reserve divisions attached and a group of reserve divisions was to assemble on each flank, c. 2,000,000 men. The armies were to concentrate opposite
29596-435: The power to pass, amend, or reject bills and to initiate legislation. However, as mentioned above, in practice, the real power was vested in the emperor, who exercised it through his chancellor. Although nominally a federal empire and league of equals, in practice, the empire was dominated by the largest and most powerful state, Prussia. It stretched across the northern two-thirds of the new Reich and contained three-fifths of
29792-402: The powers". This was a departure from his adventurous foreign policy for Prussia, where he favored strength and expansion, punctuating this by saying, "The great questions of the age are not settled by speeches and majority votes – this was the error of 1848–49 – but by iron and blood." Bismarck's chief concern was that France would plot revenge after its defeat in the Franco-Prussian War . As
29988-418: The relations between the educated, well-off middle-class liberals and the urban artisans broke down; Otto von Bismarck 's pragmatic Realpolitik , which appealed to peasants as well as the aristocracy, took its place. Bismarck sought to extend Hohenzollern hegemony throughout the German states; to do so meant unification of the German states and the exclusion of Prussia 's main German rival, Austria , from
30184-486: The remaining opponents. Over the winter lull, the French army established the theoretical basis of offensive trench warfare , originating many of the methods which became standard for the rest of the war. Infiltration tactics , in which dispersed formations of infantry were followed by nettoyeurs de tranchée (trench cleaners), to capture by-passed strong points were promulgated. Artillery observation from aircraft and creeping barrages , were first used systematically in
30380-421: The remnants of both armies to be mopped up. As the battle developed casualties between the two armies were roughly equal. After the failure of Falkenhayn's strategy at Verdun, the opening of the Battle of the Somme and the entry into the war of the Kingdom of Romania on the Allied side in August 1916, he was replaced on 29 August by Hindenburg. The tenure of Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg became known as
30576-399: The right flank of the French further south, the Territorial divisions were separated from X Corps, prompting Castelnau and Maud'huy to recommend a retreat. Joffre made Maud'huy's subdivision d'armée independent as the Tenth Army and told Castelnau to keep the Second Army in position because the increasing number of troops arriving further north would divert German pressure. By 6 October,
30772-427: The right of the 1st Army. The plan was cancelled soon afterwards, when Oberst (Colonel) Gerhard Tappen (OHL Operations Branch), reported from a tour of inspection at the front that the French were too exhausted to begin an offensive, that a final push would be decisive and that more withdrawals would compromise the morale of the German troops, after the defeat on the Marne. From 15–19 September Falkenhayn ordered
30968-436: The river Gete by 4 August, covering central and western Belgium and the communications towards Antwerp. The German invasion began on 4 August, when an advanced force of six German brigades from the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Armies, crossed the German-Belgian border. Belgian resistance and German fear of Francs-tireurs , led the Germans to implement a policy of Schrecklichkeit (frightfulness) against Belgian civilians soon after
31164-409: The route to Namur open; Longwy and Namur were besieged on 20 August. Further west the Fifth Army had concentrated on the Sambre by 20 August, facing north either side of Charleroi and east towards the Belgian Fortified Position of Namur . On the left, the Cavalry Corps (General André Sordet ) linked with the BEF at Mons . The Fifth Army was confronted by the German 3rd Army and 2nd Army from
31360-400: The same. The empire had a parliament called the Reichstag , which was elected by universal male suffrage . However, the original constituencies drawn in 1871 were never redrawn to reflect the growth of urban areas. As a result, by the time of the great expansion of German cities in the 1890s and 1900s, rural areas were grossly over-represented . The legislation also required the consent of
31556-406: The seminaries that the Catholics typically used. Furthermore, all candidates for the ministry had to pass an examination in German culture before a state board which weeded out intransigent Catholics. Another provision gave the government a veto power over most church activities. A second law abolished the jurisdiction of the Vatican over the Catholic Church in Prussia; its authority was transferred to
31752-440: The subsequent German Empire. He envisioned a conservative, Prussian-dominated Germany. The Second Schleswig War against Denmark in 1864, the Austro-Prussian War in 1866, and the Franco-Prussian War in 1870–1871 sparked a growing pan-German ideal and contributed to the formation of the German state. The German Confederation ended as a result of the Austro-Prussian War of 1866 between the constituent Confederation entities of
31948-411: The synthesis of materials that were subject to import restrictions and for chemical weapons and war supplies. Lacking a technological base at first, the Germans imported their engineering and hardware from Britain but quickly learned the skills needed to operate and expand the railways. In many cities, the new railway shops were the centers of technological awareness and training, so that by 1850, Germany
32144-414: The tightening control of the Vatican over the local bishops. The Kulturkampf launched by Bismarck 1871–1880 affected Prussia; although there were similar movements in Baden and Hesse, the rest of Germany was not affected. According to the new imperial constitution, the states were in charge of religious and educational affairs; they funded the Protestant and Catholic schools. In July 1871 Bismarck abolished
32340-410: The title Emperor came into effect on 1 January 1871. During the siege of Paris on 18 January 1871, William was proclaimed Emperor in the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles . The second German Constitution , adopted by the Reichstag on 14 April 1871 and proclaimed by the Emperor on 16 April, was substantially based upon Bismarck's North German Constitution . The political system remained
32536-417: The transfer of French troops from the east, which had begun on 2 September with the IV Corps and continued on 9 September with the XX Corps, 11 September with the XIII Corps and the XIV Corps on 18 September. The depletion of the French forces in the east, took place just before the Battle of Flirey, a German attack on 20 September against the Third Army on either side of Verdun, the Fifth Army north of Reims and
32732-413: The war: In addition to the General Staff of the Field Army, the Supreme Army Command consisted of the Emperor's Military Cabinet, the Intendant General (responsible for supply), senior advisers in various specialist fields (Artillery, Engineers, Medicine, Telegraphy, Munitions and Railways) and representatives from the four German War Ministries and representatives of the other Central Powers . The Emperor
32928-412: The withdrawal and ordered the 1st Army to fall back and dig in from Artems to La Fère and Nouvion-et-Catillon , to protect the right flank from a French offensive, while the 6th Army moved from Lorraine to the western flank, ready for a general offensive to begin progressively on 18 September from the 5th Army in the east, pinning French troops down westwards, until the 6th Army enveloped the French, beyond
33124-419: The withdrawal of the German armies from the occupied territories. The final location of the OHL was at Kolberg after February 1919 as the military focus had shifted to preventing territorial encroachment by the Second Polish Republic . In July 1919, the Supreme Army Command and Great General Staff were disbanded by order of the Treaty of Versailles . For a few days, Groener had replaced Hindenburg as Chief of
33320-482: The world behind the United States and the British Empire , which were also its main economic rivals. Throughout its existence, it experienced economic growth and modernization led by heavy industry. In 1871, it had a largely rural population of 41 million, while by 1913, this had increased to a predominantly urban population of 68 million. For 30 years, Germany struggled against Britain to be Europe's leading industrial power. Representative of Germany's industry
33516-478: Was 45–60 ft (14–18 m) wide and 5 ft (1.5 m) deep and flanked by water meadows. The banks were cut by boggy streams and dykes, which kept the cavalry on the roads; German outposts were pushed back but dismounted cavalry attacks could not dislodge the German defenders and the cavalry in Warneton town were withdrawn during the night. The attack was resumed on 18 October, when the cavalry attacked from Deûlémont to Tenbrielen but made no progress against
33712-407: Was a Belgian defensive success. The BEF completed its move of four divisions and a cavalry division to France on 16 August, as the last Belgian fort of the Fortified Position of Liège surrendered. The Belgian government withdrew from Brussels on 18 August and the German army attacked the Belgian field army at the Battle of the Gete. Next day the Belgian army began to retire towards Antwerp, which left
33908-543: Was a defensive alliance that was established against Russia, and by association France, in the event alliance did not work out with the state. However, an alliance with Russia would come not long after the signing of the Dual Alliance with Austria, the Dreikaiserbund (League of Three Emperors), in 1881. During this period, individuals within the German military were advocating a preemptive strike against Russia, but Bismarck knew that such ideas were foolhardy. He once wrote that "the most brilliant victories would not avail against
34104-473: Was a significant disparity between the Prussian and German electoral systems. Prussia used a three-class voting system which weighted votes based on the amount of taxes paid, all but assuring a conservative majority. The king and (with two exceptions) the prime minister of Prussia were also the emperor and chancellor of the empire – meaning that the same rulers had to seek majorities from legislatures elected from completely different franchises. Universal suffrage
34300-436: Was able to make more efficient use of capital. Germany was not weighted down with an expensive worldwide empire that needed defense. Following Germany's annexation of Alsace-Lorraine in 1871, it absorbed parts of what had been France's industrial base. Germany overtook British steel production in 1893 and pig iron production in 1903. The German steel and pig iron production continued its rapid expansion: Between 1911 and 1913,
34496-501: Was able to model its factories after those of Britain, thus making more efficient use of its capital and avoiding legacy methods in its leap to the envelope of technology. Germany invested more heavily than the British in research, especially in chemistry, ICE engines and electricity. Germany's dominance in physics and chemistry was such that one-third of all Nobel Prizes went to German inventors and researchers. The German cartel system (known as Konzerne ), being significantly concentrated,
34692-411: Was also Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial German Navy , which was led by the German Imperial Admiralty Staff and from August 1918 by the Seekriegsleitung (SKL, Naval Warfare Command). Co-ordination between OHL and SKL was poor at the beginning of the war. For example, the navy did not even know about the Schlieffen Plan , an initial attack on France through Belgium . Upon mobilizing in 1914 at
34888-424: Was also constitutionally established, since the King of Prussia was also the German Emperor ( Deutscher Kaiser ). After 1850, the states of Germany had rapidly become industrialized, with particular strengths in coal, iron (and later steel), chemicals, and railways. In 1871, Germany had a population of 41 million people; by 1913, this had increased to 68 million. A heavily rural collection of states in 1815,
35084-423: Was captured by French cavalry but the Germans prevented an advance beyond Comines , 3.4 mi (5.5 km) west of Menin (Menen), where German troops had arrived during the night. A foothold was gained at Warneton and German outposts west of the Ypres–Comines canal were pushed back to the far side. By 16 October, the Cavalry Corps and the 3rd Cavalry Division held the Lys river from Armentières to Comines and
35280-411: Was captured on 17 August and Sarrebourg the next day. The German 6th Army and 7th Army counter-attacked on 20 August and the Second Army was forced back from Morhange and the First Army was repulsed at Sarrebourg. The German armies crossed the border and advanced on Nancy but were stopped to the east of the city. To the south the French retook Mulhouse on 19 August and then withdrew. On 24 August, at
35476-419: Was established on Aubers Ridge on 17 October and French cavalry captured Fromelles . On 18 October, the German XIII Corps arrived, reinforced the VII Corps and gradually forced the British II Corps to a halt. On 19 October, parties of British infantry and French cavalry captured the village of Le Pilly, which later was recaptured by the Germans. The fresh German 13th and 14th divisions arrived and counter-attacked
35672-460: Was focused on stabilizing the European system and preventing any wars. He succeeded, and only after his departure from office in 1890 did the diplomatic tensions start rising again. After achieving formal unification in 1871, Bismarck devoted much of his attention to the cause of national unity. He opposed Catholic civil rights and emancipation, especially the influence of the Vatican under Pope Pius IX , and working-class radicalism, represented by
35868-441: Was followed by Austria-Hungary (43,280 km; 26,890 mi), France (40,770 km; 25,330 mi), the United Kingdom (32,623 km; 20,271 mi), Italy (18,873 km; 11,727 mi) and Spain (15,088 km; 9,375 mi). The creation of the Empire under Prussian leadership was a victory for the concept of Kleindeutschland (Smaller Germany) over the Großdeutschland concept. This meant that Austria-Hungary,
36064-448: Was in Europe, as opposed to just 5% of British investment. Most of the money went to developing nations such as Russia that lacked the capital or technical knowledge to industrialize on their own. The construction of the Berlin–Baghdad railway , financed by German banks, was designed to eventually connect Germany with the Ottoman Empire and the Persian Gulf , but it also collided with British and Russian geopolitical interests. Conflict over
36260-468: Was in the hands of professional salaried managers; leading Chandler to call the German dye companies "the world's first truly managerial industrial enterprises". There were many spinoffs from research—such as the pharmaceutical industry, which emerged from chemical research. By the start of World War I (1914–1918), German industry switched to war production. The heaviest demands were on coal and steel for artillery and shell production, and on chemicals for
36456-538: Was invested at Antwerp in the National Redoubt and at Liège, fortress troops continued the defence of the forts. Austria-Hungary had declared war on Serbia on 28 July and on 1 August, military operations began on the Polish border. Libau was bombarded by a German cruiser on 2 August and on 5 August Montenegro declared war on Austria-Hungary. On 6 August, Austria-Hungary declared war on Russia and Serbia declared war on Germany; war began between Montenegro and Germany on 8 August. The Battle of Stallupönen (17 August) caused
36652-412: Was largely ceremonial and authority lay with the Chief of the German General Staff , who issued orders in the Emperor's name. The pre-war Chief of the General Staff was Colonel General Helmuth von Moltke and the Oberste Heeresleitung was the command staff led by Moltke as Chief of the General Staff of the Army. The General Staff was initially formed into five divisions and two more were created during
36848-469: Was little interaction or intermarriage. On the whole, the Protestants had a higher social status, and the Catholics were more likely to be peasant farmers or unskilled or semiskilled industrial workers. In 1870, the Catholics formed their own political party, the Centre Party , which generally supported unification and most of Bismarck's policies. However, Bismarck distrusted parliamentary democracy in general and opposition parties in particular, especially when
37044-443: Was marked by increased oppression of Polish people and various factors influencing the Emperor's decisions, which were often perceived as contradictory or unpredictable by the public. In 1879, the German Empire consolidated the Dual Alliance with Austria-Hungary , followed by the Triple Alliance with Italy in 1882. It also retained strong diplomatic ties to the Ottoman Empire . When the great crisis of 1914 arrived, Italy left
37240-414: Was sacked by German troops and the Battle of Le Cateau was fought by the BEF and the 1st Army. Longwy was surrendered by its garrison and next day, British Royal Marines and a party of the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) landed at Ostend ; Lille and Mezières were occupied by German troops. Arras was occupied on 27 August and a French counter-offensive began at the Battle of St. Quentin (also known as
37436-453: Was self-sufficient in meeting the demands of railroad construction, and the railways were a major impetus for the growth of the new steel industry. German unification in 1870 stimulated consolidation, nationalisation into state-owned companies, and further rapid growth. Unlike the situation in France, the goal was support of industrialisation, and so heavy lines crisscrossed the Ruhr and other industrial districts and provided good connections to
37632-409: Was severely damaged and Fort Lier was hit by 16 in (410 mm) shells but Fort Koningshooikt, the Tallabert and Bosbeek redoubts were mostly intact; the intervening ground between Fort Sint-Katelijne-Waver and Dorpveld redoubt had been captured. Despite reinforcement by the Royal Naval Division from 2 October, the Germans penetrated the outer ring of forts. When the German advance began to compress
37828-518: Was significantly diluted by gross over-representation of rural areas from the 1890s onward. By the turn of the century, the urban-rural population balance was completely reversed from 1871; more than two-thirds of the empire's people lived in cities and towns. Bismarck's domestic policies played an important role in forging the authoritarian political culture of the Kaiserreich . Less preoccupied with continental power politics following unification in 1871, Germany's semi-parliamentary government carried out
38024-414: Was taken by the Russian army. On 24 September, Przemyśl was isolated by Russian forces, beginning the First Siege as Russian forces conducted the First Invasion of North Hungary (24 September – 8 October). Military operations began on the Niemen (25–29 September) but German attacks were suspended on 29 September. The retreat of Austro-Hungarian forces in Galicia ended and Maramaros-Sziget was captured by
38220-416: Was the first French offensive against Germany. The French captured Mulhouse until forced out by a German counter-attack on 11 August and fell back toward Belfort . The main French offensive, the Battle of Lorraine (14–25 August) , began with the Battles of Morhange and Sarrebourg ( 14–20 August ) advances by the First Army on Sarrebourg and the Second Army towards Morhange. Château-Salins near Morhange
38416-426: Was the steel giant Krupp , whose first factory was built in Essen . By 1902, the factory alone became "A great city with its own streets, its own police force, fire department and traffic laws. There are 150 kilometers of rail, 60 different factory buildings, 8,500 machine tools, seven electrical stations, 140 kilometers of underground cable, and 46 overhead." Under Bismarck, Germany was a world innovator in building
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