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163-954: British Prime Minister David Lloyd George had grave concerns regarding the strategy of Sir William Robertson , Chief of the Imperial General Staff , and Sir Douglas Haig , the Commander in Chief of the British Expeditionary Force , in response to the Allied losses at the Somme and Flanders . Also, following the Italian defeat at the Battle of Caporetto , in which the Germans and Austro-Hungarians surprised

326-828: A fair trial . The English monarchs, through inheritance of substantial territories in France and claims to the French crown, were also heavily involved in conflicts in France, most notably the Hundred Years' War , while the Kings of Scots were in an alliance with the French during this period. Early modern Britain saw religious conflict resulting from the Reformation and the introduction of Protestant state churches in each country. The English Reformation ushered in political, constitutional, social and cultural change in

489-662: A member of the Académie Française and Académie des Sciences . He distinguished himself as Supreme Allied Commander on the Western Front during the First World War in 1918. A commander during the First Marne , Flanders and Artois campaigns of 1914–1916, Foch became Supreme Allied Commander in late March 1918 in the face of the all-out German spring offensive . He successfully coordinated

652-521: A subpolar oceanic climate . Higher elevations in Scotland experience a continental subarctic climate and the mountains experience a tundra climate . The prevailing wind is from the southwest and bears frequent spells of mild and wet weather from the Atlantic Ocean, although the eastern parts are mostly sheltered from this wind. Since the majority of the rain falls over the western regions,

815-604: A welfare state was established, and a comprehensive, publicly funded healthcare system, the National Health Service , was created. The rise of nationalism in the colonies coincided with Britain's much-diminished economic position, so that a policy of decolonisation was unavoidable. Independence was granted to India and Pakistan in 1947. Over the next three decades, most colonies of the British Empire gained their independence, and many became members of

978-543: A 3000-mile circuit through the American Midwest and industrial cities such as Pittsburgh and then on to Washington, D.C., which included ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery for what was then called Armistice Day. During the tour, he received numerous honorary degrees from American Universities. In 1923, Foch retired from the French Army, having served a total of 55 years in uniform. His career began as

1141-410: A Permanent Military Representative, General Tasker H. Bliss . General Wilson and his staff conducted numerous research projects into offensives against Turkey, culminating in "Joint Note# 12". Although the military council sat about once a week (90 meetings took place between November 1917 and November 1919), formal Interallied Conferences with Prime Ministers in attendance took place ten times during

1304-597: A calculated gesture of disdain to the French delegates, left the carriage, as Foch had done in 1918. Foch's pre-war contributions as a military theorist and lecturer have also been recognised, and he has been credited as "the most original and subtle mind in the French Army " of the early 20th century. In January 1919, at the Paris Peace Conference Foch presented a memorandum to the Allied plenipotentiaries in which he stated: Henceforward

1467-671: A decisive role in halting a renewed German advance on Paris in the Second Battle of the Marne , after which he was promoted to Marshal of France . Author Larry H. Addington says, "to a large extent the final Allied strategy which won the war on land in Western Europe in 1918 was Foch's alone." On 11 November 1918, Foch accepted the German request for an armistice. Foch advocated peace terms that would make Germany unable to pose

1630-486: A highly dignified bearing. Foch was a quiet man, known for saying little and when he did speak, it was a volley of words accompanied by much gesturing of his hands that required some knowledge of him to understand properly. One of Foch's favourite phrases was " Pas de protocole! " as he preferred to be approachable by all officers. Foch's only rigidity was always taking his meals at noon and at 7:30; otherwise, he would work all sorts of irregular hours from dawn until well into

1793-463: A leading role in the movement to abolish slavery worldwide through the blockade of Africa and pressing other nations to end their trade with a series of treaties. In 1800 the parliaments of Great Britain and Ireland each passed an Act of Union, uniting the two kingdoms and creating the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland on 1 January 1801. After the defeat of France at the end of

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1956-605: A meeting of the X Committee on 17 May that some of the troops "hardly knew how to handle a rifle". Originally planned for an army of 500,000 men, the US draft had to be expanded four times before a 4 million man army could be raised. At the meeting, amidst concerns that—following the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk three months earlier—the Germans were about to requisition the Russian Black Sea Fleet , Lloyd George proposed

2119-552: A modest, devout, middle-class Catholic family. His last name reflects the ancestry of his father, a civil servant from Valentine , a village in Haute-Garonne , whose lineage may trace back to 16th-century Alsace . From a young age, he loved to study and work, showed great interest in military history and strategy, and was an avid reader of military literature. He attended school in Tarbes, Rodez , Gourdan-Polignan and at

2282-590: A new intergovernmental agency was necessary to coordinate transportation and storage of military supplies in France. Pershing took the recommendation to French Premier Georges Clemenceau. The British were hesitant at first but finally the key players were in agreement and the Board was established in May 1918. It involved coordinating the entirely different supply systems for the American, British, and French armies, as well as

2445-853: A policy of splendid isolation in Europe, and attempted to contain Russian influence in Afghanistan and Persia , in what came to be known as the Great Game . During this time, Canada , Australia and New Zealand were granted self-governing dominion status. At the turn of the century, Britain's industrial dominance became challenged by the German Empire and the United States . The Edwardian era saw social reform and home rule for Ireland become important domestic issues, while

2608-461: A program, a tactic, a will. We find ourselves in the presence of an England that has all it wants for the present: the German colonies and the German fleet. We lack future security because [Britain] is not interested. In the presence of an America which seeks its own peace, we must have what we need... It is on the Rhine and nowhere else that we shall find it. He later wrote: In a word, the occupation

2771-507: A result of a shortage of workers in the 1950s, the government encouraged immigration from Commonwealth countries . In the following decades, the UK became a more multi-ethnic society. Despite rising living standards in the late 1950s and 1960s, the UK's economic performance was less successful than many of its main competitors such as France, West Germany and Japan. The UK was the first democratic nation to lower its voting age to 18 in 1969. In

2934-533: A secret meeting took place to discuss the matter of a B.E.F. embarkment from the Channel Ports. In a time of crisis, if the Germans pushed the English toward the Channel Ports, should the B.E.F. retreat to England or move south and link up with the French? It was known that both Field Marshal Haig, and General Robertson's replacement, General Henry Wilson, both favored embarkation. This matter was discussed by

3097-811: A series of connected wars (including the English Civil War ) which led to the temporary overthrow of the monarchy, with the execution of King Charles I , and the establishment of the short-lived unitary republic of the Commonwealth of England , Scotland and Ireland. Although the monarchy was restored , the Interregnum along with the Glorious Revolution of 1688 and the subsequent Bill of Rights 1689 in England and Claim of Right Act 1689 in Scotland ensured that, unlike much of

3260-561: A symbol both of Foch's leadership and of French determination to resist the invader at any cost, although there is little evidence that the signal was sent. Accordingly, on 4 October 1914, Foch was made the Assistant Commander-in-Chief of the Northern Zone under Joseph Joffre. Foch's counterattack was an implementation of the theories he had developed during his staff college days and succeeded in stopping

3423-535: A threat to France ever again. He considered the Treaty of Versailles too lenient on Germany. Winston Churchill attributed this famous quote about the Peace Treaty of Versailles to Foch: "This is not Peace. It is an Armistice for twenty years." Indeed, the next war sprung out 20 years later. Ferdinand Foch was born in Tarbes , a municipality in the department of Hautes-Pyrénées , in southwestern France, into

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3586-411: Is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy . The UK has three distinct jurisdictions: England and Wales , Scotland , and Northern Ireland . Since 1999, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own governments and parliaments which control various devolved matters. A developed country , the UK has the world's sixth-largest economy by nominal gross domestic product (GDP). It

3749-600: Is a nuclear state , and is ranked fifth globally in military expenditure . The UK has been a permanent member of the UN Security Council since its first session in 1946. It is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations , Council of Europe , G7 , OECD , NATO , Five Eyes , AUKUS and CPTPP . British influence can be observed in the legal and political systems of many of its former colonies , and British culture remains globally influential, particularly in language , literature , music and sport . English

3912-680: Is a lever that we have in our hand and with which we can call the tune. However, the British Prime Minister David Lloyd George and the American President Woodrow Wilson objected to the detachment of the Rhineland from Germany so that the balance of power would not be too much in favour of France, but agreed to Allied military occupation for fifteen years, which Foch thought insufficient to protect France. Foch considered

4075-420: Is also referred to as a "province". With regard to Northern Ireland, the descriptive name used "can be controversial, with the choice often revealing one's political preferences". The term "Great Britain" conventionally refers to the island of Great Britain, or politically to England, Scotland and Wales in combination. It is sometimes used as a loose synonym for the United Kingdom as a whole. The word England

4238-507: Is occasionally used incorrectly to refer to the United Kingdom as a whole, a mistake principally made by people from outside the UK. The term "Britain" is used as a synonym for Great Britain , but also sometimes for the United Kingdom. Usage is mixed: the UK Government prefers to use the term "UK" rather than "Britain" or "British" on its website (except when referring to embassies), while acknowledging that both terms refer to

4401-481: Is only the one specific nominal term 'Great Britain' which invariably excludes Northern Ireland". The BBC historically preferred to use "Britain" as shorthand only for Great Britain, though the present style guide does not take a position except that "Great Britain" excludes Northern Ireland. The adjective "British" is commonly used to refer to matters relating to the United Kingdom and is used in law to refer to United Kingdom citizenship and nationality . People of

4564-538: Is ranked 2nd out of 180 countries in the Environmental Performance Index . A law has been passed that UK greenhouse gas emissions will be net zero by 2050. England accounts for 53 per cent of the UK, covering 50,350 square miles (130,395 km ). Most of the country consists of lowland terrain, with upland and mountainous terrain northwest of the Tees–Exe line which roughly divides

4727-579: Is the Isle of Wight . Scotland accounts for 32 per cent of the UK, covering 30,410 square miles (78,772 km ). This includes nearly 800 islands , notably the Hebrides , Orkney Islands and Shetland Islands. Scotland is the most mountainous constituent country of the UK, the Highlands to the north and west are the more rugged region containing the majority of Scotland's mountainous land, including

4890-591: Is the highest peak in Wales. Wales has over 1,680 miles (2,704 kilometres) of coastline including the Pembrokeshire Coast . Several islands lie off the Welsh mainland, the largest of which is Anglesey ( Ynys Môn ). Ferdinand Foch Ferdinand Foch ( / f ɒ ʃ / FOSH , French: [fɛʁdinɑ̃ fɔʃ] ; 2 October 1851 – 20 March 1929) was a French general, Marshal of France and

5053-511: Is the world's most widely spoken language and the third-most spoken native language . The Acts of Union 1707 declared that the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland were "United into One Kingdom by the Name of Great Britain". The term "United Kingdom" has occasionally been used as a description for the former Kingdom of Great Britain , although its official name from 1707 to 1800

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5216-675: The Quai d'Orsay and at The Trianon Palace Hotel conference room in Versailles. This was the first appearance of Prime Minister Clemenceau , who took office on 14 November 1917. The four heads of state represented were Clemenceau , David Lloyd George , Vittorio Orlando , and Colonel Edward House (for President Woodrow Wilson ). Supporting the four were their permanent military representatives: General Maxime Weygand (France), General Henry Wilson (UK), General Luigi Cadorna (Italy) and General Tasker Bliss (US). The conference ended with

5379-588: The 1884 Reform Act championed by William Gladstone granting suffrage to a majority of males for the first time. The British population increased at a dramatic rate, accompanied by rapid urbanisation , causing significant social and economic stresses. By the late 19th century, the Conservatives under Benjamin Disraeli and Lord Salisbury initiated a period of imperial expansion in Africa , maintained

5542-680: The Artois Offensive and, in 1916, the French effort at the Battle of the Somme . He was strongly criticised for his tactics and the heavy casualties that were suffered by the Allied armies during these battles, and in December 1916 was removed from command by Joffre and sent to command Allied units on the Italian front ; Joffre was himself sacked days later. Just a few months later, after

5705-534: The Atlantic slave trade , mainly between 1662 and 1807 when British or British-colonial slave ships transported nearly 3.3 million slaves from Africa. The slaves were taken to work on plantations , principally in the Caribbean but also North America . However, with pressure from the abolitionism movement , Parliament banned the trade in 1807, banned slavery in the British Empire in 1833, and Britain took

5868-598: The Battle of Culloden in 1746, after which the Scottish Highlanders were forcibly assimilated into Scotland by revoking the feudal independence of clan chiefs . The British colonies in North America that broke away in the American War of Independence became the United States . British imperial ambition turned towards Asia, particularly to India . British merchants played a leading part in

6031-750: The British and French lines. They tried again at the end of the month during the First Battle of Ypres , this time suffering terrible casualties. Foch had again succeeded in coordinating a defense and winning against the odds. Field Marshal Sir John French , C-in-C of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) had described Foch in August 1914 to J. E. B. Seely , a liaison officer, as "the sort of man with whom I know I can get on" and later in February 1915 described him to Lord Selbourne as "the best general in

6194-663: The Cairngorms , Loch Lomond and The Trossachs and Ben Nevis which at 1,345 metres (4,413 ft) is the highest point in the British Isles. Wales accounts for less than 9 per cent of the UK, covering 8,020 square miles (20,779 km ). Wales is mostly mountainous, though South Wales is less mountainous than North and mid Wales . The highest mountains in Wales are in Snowdonia and include Snowdon ( Welsh : Yr Wyddfa ) which, at 1,085 metres (3,560 ft),

6357-468: The Commonwealth of Nations . The UK was the third country to develop a nuclear weapons arsenal (with its first atomic bomb test, Operation Hurricane , in 1952), but the post-war limits of Britain's international role were illustrated by the Suez Crisis of 1956. The international spread of the English language ensured the continuing international influence of its literature and culture . As

6520-767: The European Convention on Human Rights . The UK remained a great power with global diplomatic and military influence and a leading role in the United Nations and NATO . The UK broadly supported the United States' approach to the " war on terror " in the early 21st century. British troops fought in the War in Afghanistan , but controversy surrounded Britain's military deployment in Iraq , which saw

6683-416: The European Union (EU) in 1992, the UK was one of the 12 founding member states. From the late 1960s, Northern Ireland suffered communal and paramilitary violence (sometimes affecting other parts of the UK) conventionally known as the Troubles . It is usually considered to have ended with the 1998 Belfast "Good Friday" Agreement . Following a period of widespread economic slowdown and industrial strife in

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6846-428: The Falkland Islands , leading to the 10-week Falklands War in which Argentine forces were defeated. The inhabitants of the islands are predominantly descendants of British settlers, and strongly favour British sovereignty, expressed in a 2013 referendum . From 1984, the UK economy was helped by the inflow of substantial North Sea oil revenues. Another British overseas territory, Gibraltar , ceded to Great Britain in

7009-429: The First Battle of the Marne with Maxime Weygand as his chief of staff. Only a week after taking command, with the whole French Army in full retreat, he was forced to fight a series of defensive actions to prevent a German breakthrough. During the advance at the marshes at St.-Gond he is said to have declared: "My centre is yielding. My right is retreating. Situation excellent. I am attacking." These words were seen as

7172-404: The French Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic Wars (1792–1815), the United Kingdom emerged as the principal naval and imperial power (with London the largest city in the world from about 1830). Unchallenged at sea , British dominance was later described as Pax Britannica ("British Peace"), a period of relative peace among the great powers (1815–1914) during which the British Empire became

7335-440: The Jesuit Collège Saint-Michel in Saint-Étienne before attending the Jesuit Collège Saint-Clément in Metz . A professor there once said of Foch, "A geometric mind, he is made for the Polytechnique." His brother, Germain Foch, became a Jesuit priest, which may have hindered Foch's rise in the French Army since the Republican government of France was anti-clerical . When the Franco-Prussian War broke out in 1870,

7498-415: The Kingdom of Ireland to create the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in 1801. Most of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922 as the Irish Free State , and the Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act 1927 created the present United Kingdom. The UK became the first industrialised country and was the world's foremost power for the majority of the 19th and early 20th centuries, particularly during

7661-463: The Labour Party emerged from an alliance of trade unions and small socialist groups in 1900, and suffragettes campaigned for women's right to vote. Britain was one of the principal Allies that defeated the Central Powers in the First World War (1914–1918). Alongside their French, Russian and (after 1917) American counterparts, British armed forces were engaged across much of the British Empire and in several regions of Europe, particularly on

7824-506: The Polish–Soviet War of 1920, as well as his pressure on Germany during the Greater Poland Uprising , he was awarded the title of Marshal of Poland in 1923. On 1 November 1921 Foch was in Kansas City, Missouri , to take part in the groundbreaking ceremony for the Liberty Memorial that was being constructed there. Also present that day were Lieutenant General Baron Jacques of Belgium, Admiral David Beatty of Great Britain, General Armando Diaz of Italy and General John J. Pershing of

7987-405: The Representation of the People Act 1918 . After the war, Britain became a permanent member of the Executive Council of the League of Nations and received a mandate over a number of former German and Ottoman colonies. Under the leadership of David Lloyd George , the British Empire reached its greatest extent, covering a fifth of the world's land surface and a quarter of its population. By

8150-416: The Rhine ought to be the Western military frontier of the German countries. Henceforward Germany ought to be deprived of all entrance and assembling ground, that is, of all territorial sovereignty on the left bank of the river, that is, of all facilities for invading quickly, as in 1914, Belgium , Luxembourg , for reaching the coast of the North Sea and threatening the United Kingdom, for outflanking

8313-412: The Sarrebourg – Morhange line, taking heavy casualties in the Battle of the Frontiers . The defeat of the XV Corps to its right forced Foch into retreat. Foch acquitted himself well, covering the withdrawal to Nancy and the Charmes Gap before launching a counter-attack that prevented the Germans from crossing the River Meurthe . Foch was then selected to command the newly formed Ninth Army during

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8476-463: The Soviet Union formed in 1941, leading the Allies against the Axis powers . There were eventual hard-fought victories in the Battle of the Atlantic , the North Africa campaign and the Italian campaign . British forces played important roles in the Normandy landings of 1944 and the liberation of Europe . The British Army led the Burma campaign against Japan, and the British Pacific Fleet fought Japan at sea. British scientists contributed to

8639-425: The Treaty of Versailles to be "a capitulation, a treason " because he believed that only permanent occupation of the Rhineland would grant France sufficient security against a revival of German aggression. In a remarkable moment of foresight, as the treaty was being signed Foch said: "This is not peace. It is an armistice for 20 years". Foch was made a British field marshal in 1919, and, for his advice during

8802-409: The Treaty of Versailles . Lloyd George proposed dropping the blockade of the Russian Socialist Federal Soviet Republic by starting negotiations with the "Russian people" in the form of the centrosoyuz , which at that time was not controlled by the Bolsheviks . This was agreed, with a communique from the Council being published on 16 January. In the event, the negotiations soon became simply between

8965-401: The United Kingdom and a bolshevised centrosoyuz, leading to the Anglo-Soviet Trade Agreement . This was attended by German delegates to discuss war reparations . Related documents: United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland , commonly known as the United Kingdom ( UK ) or Britain , is a country in Northwestern Europe , off the coast of

9128-449: The Western Front . The high fatalities of trench warfare caused the loss of much of a generation of men, with lasting social effects in the nation and a great disruption in the social order. Britain had suffered 2.5 million casualties and finished the war with a huge national debt. The consequences of the war persuaded the government to expand the right to vote in national and local elections to all adult men and most adult women with

9291-408: The coastline paradox . It is connected to continental Europe by the Channel Tunnel , which at 31 miles (50 km) (24 miles (38 km) underwater) is the longest underwater tunnel in the world. The UK contains four terrestrial ecoregions: Celtic broadleaf forests , English Lowlands beech forests , North Atlantic moist mixed forests , and Caledonian conifer forests . The area of woodland in

9454-436: The largest protest in British history in opposition to the government led by Tony Blair . The Great Recession severely affected the UK economy. The Cameron–Clegg coalition government of 2010 introduced austerity measures intended to tackle the substantial public deficits. Studies have suggested that policy led to significant social disruption and suffering. A referendum on Scottish independence in 2014 resulted in

9617-428: The " Pax Britannica " between 1815 and 1914. At its height in the 1920s, the British Empire encompassed almost a quarter of the world's landmass and population, and was the largest empire in history . However, its involvement in the First World War and the Second World War damaged Britain's economic power and a global wave of decolonisation led to the independence of most British colonies. The United Kingdom

9780-512: The 16th century and established the Church of England . Moreover, it defined a national identity for England and slowly, but profoundly, changed people's religious beliefs. Wales was fully incorporated into the Kingdom of England , and Ireland was constituted as a kingdom in personal union with the English crown. In what was to become Northern Ireland, the lands of the independent Catholic Gaelic nobility were confiscated and given to Protestant settlers from England and Scotland. In 1603,

9943-439: The 16th century in the annexation of Wales , the domination of Scotland , and the establishment of the British Empire . Over the course of the 17th century, the role of the British monarchy was reduced, particularly as a result of the English Civil War . In 1707, the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland united under the Treaty of Union to create the Kingdom of Great Britain . The Acts of Union 1800 incorporated

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10106-401: The 1713 Treaty of Utrecht, is a key military base . A referendum in 2002 on shared sovereignty with Spain was rejected by 98.97% of voters in the territory. Around the end of the 20th century, there were major changes to the governance of the UK with the establishment of devolved administrations for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The statutory incorporation followed acceptance of

10269-443: The 19-year-old Foch enlisted in the French 4th Infantry Regiment , which did not take part in combat. He remained in the army after the war. In 1871, he passed the entrance exams to the grandes écoles scientifiques and later entered the École Polytechnique . There, he was an excellent, hard-working, and studious student, and pursued studies in mathematics , engineering , science , history, and literature. He eventually chose

10432-406: The 1970s, the Conservative government of the 1980s led by Margaret Thatcher initiated a radical policy of monetarism , deregulation, particularly of the financial sector (for example, the Big Bang in 1986) and labour markets, the sale of state-owned companies (privatisation), and the withdrawal of subsidies to others. In 1982, Argentina invaded the British territories of South Georgia and

10595-476: The 5th century) united with the Picts to create the Kingdom of Scotland in the 9th century. In 1066, the Normans invaded England from northern France. After conquering England , they seized large parts of Wales , conquered much of Ireland and were invited to settle in Scotland, bringing to each country feudalism on the Northern French model and Norman-French culture. The Anglo-Norman ruling class greatly influenced, but eventually assimilated with,

10758-423: The Allied Generalissimo. Late in 1917 Foch would have liked to have seen Haig replaced as C-in-C of the BEF by General Herbert Plumer ; however, Haig would remain in command of the BEF for the remainder of the war. In January 1918, in accordance with Lloyd George's wishes, an executive board was set up to control the planned Allied General Reserve, with Clemenceau 's agreement being obtained by having Foch on

10921-415: The Allied position. Receiving thanks from the Bishop of Châlons (Joseph-Marie Tissier), Foch piously replied, " non nobis , Domine, non nobis, sed nomini tuo da gloriam " ("Not unto us, o Lord, not unto us, but to Your name give glory", Psalm 115:1). As assistant Commander-in-Chief with responsibility for co-ordinating the activities of the northern French armies and liaising with the British forces; this

11084-484: The British Army, Lord Gort was sidelined for the rest of his career. The sixth SWC Conference took place in Versailles against the background of the German Bluecher Offensive which had begun on 27 May. Here, the United States was asked for more reinforcements. Other issues discussed were amalgamation (the integration of US troops with the B.E.F.), and the pooling of allied supplies. Allied pessimism prevailed at this meeting. French divisions were down to 50% strength, and

11247-465: The British Army. Due to the need for battlefield replacements, the SWC military generals issued Joint Note #18, which asked that the United States only send infantry and machine gun units to France. General Pershing agreed to the arrangement, but wanted to take it one month at a time. Prime Minister Clemenceau drafted the final agreement, which extended the plan for two months. At the prefect's (police chief's ?) house in Abbeville, at 10 am on 2 May,

11410-511: The British were not faring much better. The British, French and Italian Prime Ministers signed a letter to President Wilson that said, "there is a great danger of the war being lost ... owing to the allied reserves being exhausted before those of the enemy", and that the United States would have to raise 100 divisions, requiring the call up of 300,000 conscripts a month, to raise an army of 4 million men. General Pershing also cabled Washington D.C., saying, "It should be most fully realized at home that

11573-464: The Brittonic area mainly to what was to become Wales , Cornwall and, until the latter stages of the Anglo-Saxon settlement, the Hen Ogledd (northern England and parts of southern Scotland). Most of the region settled by the Anglo-Saxons became unified as the Kingdom of England in the 10th century. Meanwhile, Gaelic speakers in north-west Britain (with connections to the north-east of Ireland and traditionally supposed to have migrated from there in

11736-511: The Central Personnel Service Depot of the artillery. In 1885 Foch undertook a course at the École Supérieure de Guerre where he was later an instructor from 1895 to 1901. He was promoted lieutenant-colonel in 1898, and colonel in 1903. As a colonel he became regimental commander of the 35th Artillery Regiment (35 R.A) at Vannes. Foch was known for his physical strength and his sharp mind who always maintained

11899-498: The Conduct of War") in 1904. Both "thought" and "will" were the key words of these teachings. While Foch advised "qualification and discernment" in military strategy and cautioned that "recklessness in attack could lead to prohibitive losses and ultimate failure", his concepts, distorted and misunderstood by contemporaries, became associated with the extreme offensive doctrines ( l' offensive à outrance ) of his successors. The cult of

12062-665: The Executive War Board had been a "great concession". General Henri Mordacq , Clemenceau's aide, said Britain only turned for unity of command at the last minute when her armies were about to be thrown into the sea. The Allied Reserve eventually slipped from the agenda as the Commanders-in-Chief, Haig and Pétain , refused to hand over sufficient troops. In February 1918, Wilson had replaced Robertson as CIGS and on 26 March Ferdinand Foch became Allied Generalissimo . After April 1918 all Allied troops on

12225-550: The French Army". His thinking on military doctrine was shaped by the Clausewitzian philosophy, then uncommon in France, that "the will to conquer is the first condition of victory." Collections of his lectures, which reintroduced the concept of the offensive to French military theory, were published in the volumes "Des Principes de la Guerre" ("On the Principles of War") in 1903, and "De la Conduite de la Guerre" ("On

12388-453: The French army on the left of Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig , C-in-C of the BEF, rather than the 300 which Lloyd George wanted. As the guns reached Italy, Cadorna called off his offensive (21 September). Until the end of 1916, the French under Joffre had been the dominant allied army; after 1917 this was no longer the case, due to the vast number of casualties France's armies had suffered in

12551-472: The French, British and American efforts, deftly handling his strategic reserves. He stopped the German offensive and launched a war-winning counterattack . In November 1918, Marshal Foch accepted the German cessation of hostilities and was present at the Armistice of 11 November 1918 . At the outbreak of war in August 1914, Foch's XX Corps participated in the brief invasion of Germany before retreating in

12714-533: The French. Remarkably, twenty two years later, Lord Gort faced the same exact predicament when the Germans invaded France and the armored spearheads of the Wehrmacht advanced rapidly toward the Channel Ports. In defiance of orders, Gort asked for an evacuation, and he ordered the B.E.F. to retreat to the Channel Ports, where a hastily arranged embarkation took place. Although the Miracle of Dunkirk may have saved

12877-477: The German advance. Foch received further reinforcements from the Fifth Army and, following another attack on his forces, counter-attacked again on the Marne. The Germans dug in before eventually retreating. On 12 September, Foch regained the Marne at Châlons and liberated the city. The people of Châlons greeted as a hero the man widely believed to have been instrumental in stopping the retreat and stabilising

13040-450: The German negotiators' immediate request to declare a ceasefire or truce so that there would be no more useless waste of lives among the common soldiers. By not declaring a truce even between the signing of the documents for the Armistice at 5:45 a.m. and its entry into force, "at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month", about 11,000 additional men were needlessly wounded or killed – far more than usual, according to

13203-507: The German school, but also since about 1911 by a new French school inspired by General Loiseau de Grandmaison, which criticised them as lacking in vigour and offensive spirit and contributing to needless dispersion of force. The French Army fought under the new doctrines, but they failed in the first battles of August 1914, and it remained to be seen whether the Napoleonic doctrine would hold its own, would give way to doctrines evolved during

13366-628: The Généralissime's resolve to keep the Allied armies intact, even at the risk of losing the capital. The British general Sir Henry Rawlinson , commanding the British Fourth Army , commented after meeting Foch: "I am overjoyed at his methods and far-sighted strategy. I was in close touch with him in 1916. He is a better man now than he was then, for his fiery enthusiasm has been tempered by adversity." Rawlinson also noted Foch's intense Frenchness: "He knew nothing of Britain. The Rhine

13529-453: The Italian and Belgian armies. It started operation from its base in Paris at the end of June. The president of the board was French general Jean-Marie Charles Payot (1868–1931), assisted by an international staff. Board decisions had to be unanimous, and once made were binding on all of the armies. However each army continued to be responsible for its own logistical system and procedures. Foch

13692-588: The Italian forces, Lloyd George proposed the formation of a Supreme War Council at the Rapallo Conference of 5–7 November 1917. Japan and Russia were not to be included, and the Italians and French, worried that Salonika (and with it the only chance of liberating Serbia) might be evacuated, wanted issues confined to the Western Front. Each Allied nation would be represented by their head of government, and an appointed senior military officer known as

13855-782: The Manhattan Project whose task was to build an atomic weapon. Once built, it was decided, with British consent, to use the weapon against Japan. The UK was one of the Big Three powers (along with the US and the Soviet Union) who met to plan the post-war world ; it drafted the Declaration by United Nations with the United States and became one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council . It worked closely with

14018-546: The Permanent Military Representative (PMR). The French PMR was Ferdinand Foch , later replaced by Maxime Weygand and Joseph Joffre . The British were represented by Sir Henry Hughes Wilson until 1918, then Charles Sackville-West . Italy was represented by Luigi Cadorna . The United States, which was "an Associated Power" of the Allies, was not involved with the political structure, but sent

14181-716: The Scottish electorate voting by 55.3 to 44.7% to remain part of the United Kingdom. In 2016, 51.9 per cent of voters in the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union . The UK left the EU in 2020. On 1 May 2021, the EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement came into force. The COVID-19 pandemic had a severe impact on the UK's economy , caused major disruptions to education and had far-reaching impacts on society and politics in 2020 and 2021. The United Kingdom

14344-479: The Supreme War Council became the "Council of Ten" in mid January, and later the "Council of Four" (Big Four) in mid March, as President Wilson and Prime Ministers Lloyd George, Clemenceau, and Orlando did most of the work constructing the Treaty of Versailles . As the host nation, Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau presided over the meetings. This meeting was held four days after the ratification of

14507-608: The Supreme War Council, Foch was given authority over the Italian Front. Foch controlled the Military Board of Allied Supply (MBAS), an Allied agency for the coordination of logistical support of the Allied forces. In March 1918 Colonel Charles G. Dawes , the general purchasing agent for the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) recommended to his commanding general John J. Pershing that

14670-484: The UK in 2023 is estimated to be 3.25 million hectares, which represents 13% of the total land area in the UK. Most of the United Kingdom has a temperate climate, with generally cool temperatures and plentiful rainfall all year round. The temperature varies with the seasons seldom dropping below 0  °C (32  °F ) or rising above 30 °C (86 °F). Some parts, away from the coast, of upland England, Wales, Northern Ireland and most of Scotland, experience

14833-961: The UK into lowland and upland areas. Lowland areas include Cornwall , the New Forest , the South Downs and the Norfolk Broads . Upland areas include the Lake District , the Pennines , the Yorkshire Dales , Exmoor , and Dartmoor . The main rivers and estuaries are the Thames , Severn , and the Humber . England's highest mountain is Scafell Pike , at 978 metres (3,209 ft) in the Lake District; its largest island

14996-402: The United Kingdom and that elsewhere "British government" is used at least as frequently as "United Kingdom government". The UK Permanent Committee on Geographical Names recognises "United Kingdom", "UK" and "U.K." as shortened and abbreviated geopolitical terms for the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in its toponymic guidelines; it does not list "Britain" but notes that "it

15159-411: The United Kingdom is 1339.7 hours, which is just under 30% of the maximum possible. The hours of sunshine vary from 1200 to about 1580 hours per year, and since 1996 the UK has been and still is receiving above the 1981 to 2010 average hours of sunshine. Climate change has a serious impact on the country. A third of food price rise in 2023 is attributed to climate change. As of 2022, the United Kingdom

15322-400: The United Kingdom is a sovereign country, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are also widely referred to as countries . The UK Prime Minister's website has used the phrase "countries within a country" to describe the United Kingdom. Some statistical summaries, such as those for the twelve NUTS 1 regions , refer to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as "regions". Northern Ireland

15485-832: The United Kingdom is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean , the North Sea , the English Channel , the Celtic Sea , and the Irish Sea . The United Kingdom had an estimated population of over 68.2 million people in 2023. The capital and largest city of both England and the United Kingdom is London , whose wider metropolitan area is the largest in Western Europe , with a population of 14.9 million. The cities of Edinburgh , Cardiff , and Belfast are

15648-436: The United Kingdom use several different terms to describe their national identity and may identify themselves as being British , English , Scottish , Welsh , Northern Irish , or Irish ; or as having a combination of different national identities. Settlement by Cro-Magnons of what was to become the United Kingdom occurred in waves beginning by about 30,000 years ago. The island has been continuously inhabited only since

15811-685: The United Kingdom. The 1928 Equal Franchise Act gave women electoral equality with men in national elections. Strikes in the mid-1920s culminated in the General Strike of 1926 . Britain had still not recovered from the effects of the First World War when the Great Depression (1929–1932) led to considerable unemployment and hardship in the old industrial areas, as well as political and social unrest with rising membership in communist and socialist parties. A coalition government

15974-640: The United States to establish the IMF , World Bank and NATO . The war left the UK severely weakened and financially dependent on the Marshall Plan , but it was spared the total war that devastated eastern Europe. In the immediate post-war years, the Labour government under Clement Attlee initiated a radical programme of reforms, which significantly impacted British society in the following decades . Major industries and public utilities were nationalised ,

16137-474: The United States. One of the main speakers was Vice President Calvin Coolidge of the United States. The local veteran chosen to present flags to the commanders was a Kansas City haberdasher, Harry S. Truman , who would later serve as 33rd President of the United States from 1945 to 1953. In 1935, bas-reliefs of Foch, Jacques, Diaz and Pershing by sculptor Walker Hancock were added to the memorial. Foch made

16300-538: The Western Front (by contrast, Cadorna was disgraced after the recent Battle of Caporetto ) and Wilson, a personal friend of Foch, was deliberately appointed as a rival to General Robertson, the British Chief of the Imperial General Staff , an ally of Haig's, who had lost 250,000 men at the battle of Ypres the same year. Clemenceau was eventually persuaded to appoint Foch's protégé Weygand instead, although many already suspected that Foch would eventually become

16463-542: The Western Front were placed under the command of the Grand Quartier général des armées alliées  [ fr ] (GQGA) , a multi-national general staff. The GQGA was on similar lines to the GQG (French Army Headquarters). Without its two main personalities, Foch and Wilson, the military machinery at Versailles became less important. The fifth SWC Conference was held in Versailles and Abbeville , France, in

16626-467: The absence of a General Reserve, the allies had to rely on a verbal mutual support agreement between Field Marshal Haig and General Petain. The council also put out an official statement about the Brest-Litovsk "peace" treaty made between Germany and Russia. Prime Minister Clemenceau made another attempt at establishing unity of command but was rebuffed by Lloyd George, who said Foch's appointment to

16789-576: The acquisition and settlement of overseas colonies , particularly in North America and the Caribbean. Though previous attempts at uniting the two kingdoms within Great Britain in 1606, 1667, and 1689 had proved unsuccessful, the attempt initiated in 1705 led to the Treaty of Union of 1706 being agreed and ratified by both parliaments. On 1 May 1707, the Kingdom of Great Britain was formed,

16952-545: The aftermath of the German Operation Michael (21 March) and Operation Georgette (7 April) offensives. The urgent need to transfer American troops to the Western Front, faster than originally planned, was discussed. A separate agreement made in late January between the United States and Britain provided that America would supply six complete divisions to France, transported in British ships, and trained by

17115-465: The board rather than Maxime Weygand . Pétain agreed to release only eight French divisions and made a bilateral agreement with Haig, who was reluctant to release any divisions at all, to assist one another. The situation was worsened by Clemenceau's and Pétain's dislike of Foch. At a Supreme War Council meeting in London (14–15 March), with a German offensive clearly imminent, Foch protested to no avail for

17278-464: The college, Foch was a professor of military history, strategy, and general tactics while becoming the French theorist on offensive strategies. He also employed mathematical terms in his lectures. During his time as an instructor, Foch created renewed interest in French military history , inspired confidence in a new class of French officers, and brought about "the intellectual and moral regeneration of

17441-528: The continental mainland . It comprises England , Scotland , Wales , and Northern Ireland . The UK includes the island of Great Britain , the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland , and most of the smaller islands within the British Isles , making up a total area of 94,354 square miles (244,376 km ). Northern Ireland shares a land border with the Republic of Ireland ; otherwise,

17604-652: The creation of a new post of Allied Supreme Naval Commander in the Mediterranean, suggesting Admiral Jellicoe ('Silent Jack'), former commander of the British Grand Fleet at the Battle of Jutland , for the position. The French were in favour of a combined Allied naval command, but the Italians were not, so nothing came of the suggestion. The seventh SWC Conference, held at Versailles, was attended by British Dominion Prime Ministers from Canada, Australia, Newfoundland, New Zealand, and South Africa. This

17767-736: The decades-long process of European integration , the UK was a founding member of the Western European Union , established with the London and Paris Conferences in 1954. In 1960 the UK was one of the seven founding members of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), but in 1973 it left to join the European Communities (EC). In a 1975 referendum 67% voted to stay in it. When the EC became

17930-415: The drafting of eight resolutions, the most important of which was to find ways to defend the allied line. The third SWC Interallied Conference was held at Versailles , just outside Paris. The Council agreed to a defensive plan on the Western Front for 1918 (because the Germans were being reinforced by troops from the now defunct Eastern Front, whilst US troops would not be deployed in strength until later in

18093-483: The eastern parts are the driest. Atlantic currents, warmed by the Gulf Stream , bring mild winters, especially in the west where winters are wet and even more so over high ground. Summers are warmest in the southeast of England and coolest in the north. Heavy snowfall can occur in winter and early spring on high ground, and occasionally settles to great depth away from the hills. The average total annual sunshine in

18256-472: The event of "unusual circumstances", to retreat to the Channel Ports, but not to evacuate. "The view taken at Abbeville was that the British should retire behind the Somme and abandon the Channel ports rather than lose touch with the French." Henry Wilson says this was unanimously agreed to. Because of this, instructions were reinforced on 21 June 1918 to order Field Marshal Haig to retreat south and link up with

18419-512: The face of a German counter-attack and successfully blocking the Germans short of Nancy . Ordered west to defend Paris, Foch's prestige soared as a result of the victory at the Marne , for which he was widely credited as a chief protagonist while commanding the French Ninth Army . He was then promoted again to assistant commander-in-chief for the Northern Zone, a role which evolved into command of Army Group North , and in which role he

18582-593: The failure of General Robert Nivelle 's offensive , General Philippe Pétain , the hero of Verdun , was appointed Chief of the General Staff; Foch hoped to succeed Pétain in command of Army Group Centre , but this job was instead given to General Fayolle. The following month Pétain was appointed C-in-C in place of Nivelle, and Foch was recalled and promoted to chief of the general staff. Like Pétain, Foch favoured only limited attacks (he had told Lieutenant General Sir Henry Wilson , another British Army officer, that

18745-525: The field of battle and the scene of the consequent devastation. This makes it impossible for the yet unstable German Government to reject any demand on our part if it is clearly formulated. The Entente , in its present favourable military situation, can obtain acceptance of any peace conditions it may put forward provided that they are presented without much delay. All it has to do is to decide what they shall be. Upon returning home. Foch wrote in his diary: Watch out: suspect peace, English peace... We must have

18908-594: The first year, Britain and its Empire continued the war against Germany. Churchill engaged industry, scientists and engineers to support the government and the military in the prosecution of the war effort. In 1940, the Royal Air Force defeated the German Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain . Urban areas suffered heavy bombing during the Blitz . The Grand Alliance of Britain, the United States and

19071-509: The following lunchtime. Pétain had sent a dozen divisions to plug the gap and it is unclear that a committee would actually have acted any faster during the immediate crisis. At the Doullens Conference (26 March) and at Beauvais (3 April), Foch was given the job of coordinating the activities of the Allied armies, forming a common reserve and using these divisions to guard the junction of the French and British armies and to plug

19234-587: The formal control it exerted over its own colonies, British dominance of much of world trade meant that it effectively controlled the economies of regions such as East Asia and Latin America . Throughout the Victorian era , political attitudes favoured free trade and laissez-faire policies. Beginning with the Great Reform Act in 1832, Parliament gradually widened the voting franchise , with

19397-597: The formation of the Allied Reserve. On the evening of 24 March, after the German spring offensive was threatening to split apart the British and French forces, Foch telegraphed Wilson (who by now had replaced Robertson as Chief of the Imperial General Staff) "asking what [he] thought of situation & we are of one mind that someone must catch a hold or we shall be beaten". Wilson reached France

19560-762: The global hegemon and adopted the role of global policeman. From 1853 to 1856, Britain took part in the Crimean War , allied with the Ottoman Empire against Tsarist Russia , participating in the naval battles of the Baltic Sea known as the Åland War in the Gulf of Bothnia and the Gulf of Finland , among others. Following the Indian Rebellion in 1857 , the British government led by Lord Palmerston assumed direct rule over India . Alongside

19723-555: The growing American forces ) counterattacked at the Second Battle of the Marne in July 1918. On 6 August 1918, Foch was made a Marshal of France . Along with the British commander, Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig, Foch planned the Grand Offensive , opening on 26 September 1918, which led to the defeat of Germany. After the war, he claimed to have defeated Germany by smoking his pipe. An unintended consequence of Foch's appointment

19886-428: The idea took root that his military doctrines had set the stage for the futile and costly offensives of 1914 in which French armies suffered devastating losses. Supporters and critics continue to debate Foch's strategy and instincts as a commander, as well as his exact contributions to the Marne "miracle": Foch's counter-attacks at the Marne generally failed, but his sector resisted determined German attacks while holding

20049-403: The kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland were united in a personal union when James VI, King of Scots , inherited the crowns of England and Ireland and moved his court from Edinburgh to London; each country nevertheless remained a separate political entity and retained its separate political, legal, and religious institutions. In the mid-17th century, all three kingdoms were involved in

20212-408: The last retreat of the ice around 11,500 years ago. By the end of the region's prehistoric period , the population is thought to have belonged largely to a culture termed Insular Celtic , comprising Brittonic Britain and Gaelic Ireland . The Roman conquest , beginning in 43 AD, and the 400-year rule of southern Britain , was followed by an invasion by Germanic Anglo-Saxon settlers, reducing

20375-518: The lifespan of the Supreme War Council (SWC). Those meetings are listed below. At the Rapallo Conference , the formation of the Supreme War Council was approved by the Allied war leaders in the town of Rapallo , Italy (close to the French border). The idea was thought up by the British, accepted by the French, and approved at a British War Cabinet meeting on 2 November 1917. It was also decided that its headquarters would be in Versailles. The first Interallied Conference in France took place in Paris at

20538-530: The local cultures. Subsequent medieval English kings completed the conquest of Wales and tried unsuccessfully to annex Scotland . Asserting its independence in the 1320 Declaration of Arbroath , Scotland maintained its independence thereafter, albeit in near-constant conflict with England . In 1215 the Magna Carta was the first document to state that no government was above the law, that citizens have rights protecting them and that they were entitled to

20701-565: The major part of the British Isles archipelago and includes the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern one-sixth of the island of Ireland and some smaller surrounding islands. It lies between the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea with the southeast coast coming within 22 miles (35 km) of the coast of northern France, from which it is separated by the English Channel . The Royal Greenwich Observatory in London

20864-448: The measure, the advocates of a General Reserve were thwarted. With a massive attack from Germany thought to be imminent, Lloyd George decided that it was too late to replace Haig and follow through with the plan. In addition to the establishment of a General Reserve, Prime Minister Clemenceau made an attempt at establishing unity of command. However, Prime Minister Lloyd George refused, citing "home politics" and problems with Parliament and

21027-674: The mid-1920s, most of the British population could listen to BBC radio programmes. Experimental television broadcasts began in 1929 and the first scheduled BBC Television Service commenced in 1936. The rise of Irish nationalism , and disputes within Ireland over the terms of Irish Home Rule , led eventually to the partition of the island in 1921. A period of conflict in what is now Northern Ireland occurred from June 1920 until June 1922. The Irish Free State became independent, initially with Dominion status in 1922, and unambiguously independent in 1931 . Northern Ireland remained part of

21190-494: The middle of July, they [the allies] still insisted on a program of infantry personnel", and, "The Prime Ministers and General Foch appeal most urgently for trained or even untrained men." In his memoirs, Pershing says about raising the army, "In its execution as a whole, the achievement stands out as a lasting monument to our War Department, marred only by the lack of foresight that made it necessary to send over untrained men and units in precipitate haste." Lord Milner had commented at

21353-404: The military generals before the official conference started. General Foch, who was present, would have none of it. When asked, he repeatedly answered, "Ne lachez pas pied" (Don't let go), and "Ni l'un ni l'autre. Cramponnez partout" (Neither. Cling Everywhere). At the start of the war, instructions from Field Marshal Kitchener to Field Marshal French (B.E.F. Commander at the time) authorized him, in

21516-503: The military statistics. On the day of the armistice, 11 November 1918, he was elected to the Académie des Sciences . Ten days later, he was unanimously elected to the Académie française . He received many honours and decorations from Allied governments. In the euphoria of victory Foch was regularly compared to Napoleon and Julius Caesar . However, historians took a less favourable view of Foch's talents as commander, particularly as

21679-471: The mission to Murmansk moved forward. The British received news that Germany, Austria and Turkey had informed the US Government that they were ready to negotiate peace on the basis of President Wilson's Fourteen Points, The eighth, and longest SWC Conference took place in Versailles. Here, the Armistice terms were drafted for the Ottoman Empire, Austria-Hungary, and Germany. During the Paris Peace Negotiations, which took place from 12 January to 26 June 1919,

21842-424: The national capitals of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, respectively. The lands of the UK have been inhabited continuously since the Neolithic . In AD 43 the Roman conquest of Britain began; the Roman departure was followed by Anglo-Saxon settlement . In 1066, the Normans conquered England . With the end of the Wars of the Roses the English state stabilised and began to grow in power, resulting by

22005-418: The natural defences of France, the Rhine, Meuse , conquering the Northern Provinces and entering the Parisian area. In a subsequent memorandum, Foch argued that the Allies should take full advantage of their victory by permanently weakening German power in order to prevent her from threatening France again: What the people of Germany fear the most is a renewal of hostilities since, this time, Germany would be

22168-576: The night. In 1907 Foch was promoted to Général de Brigade , and in the same year, he assumed command of the French War College. He held this position until 1911, the year in which he was appointed Général de Division . Foch influenced General Joseph Joffre (Chief of General Staff, 28 July 1911 – 12 December 1916) when he drafted the French plan of campaign ( Plan XVII ) in 1913. In 1913 he took command of XX Corps  [ fr ] at Nancy , and he had held this appointment for exactly one year when he led XX Corps into battle in August 1914. Foch

22331-514: The now three and a half-year-old struggle with Germany. The Supreme War Council was formally established on 7 November 1917, containing the Prime Minister and a Minister from each of the Western Front powers (i.e., excluding Russia), to meet at least once a month. Foch (along with Wilson and Italian general Cadorna) were appointed military representatives, to whom the general staffs of each country were to submit their plans. The French tried to have Foch as representative to increase their control over

22494-433: The offensive came to dominate military circles, and Foch's reputation was damaged when his books were cited in the development of the disastrous offensive that brought France close to ruin in August 1914. Foch was seen as a master of the Napoleonic school of military thought, but he was the only one of the Military College Commandants (Maillard, Langlois, Bonnal) still serving. Their doctrines had been challenged, not only by

22657-408: The pivot on which the neighbouring French and British forces depended in rolling back the German line. After the reading of the preamble of the November 1918 armistice , Foch left the carriage , in a move that was perceived as humiliating by the defeated Germans. In 1940, after the defeat of France by Germany early in World War II , when France signed an armistice with Germany , Adolf Hitler , in

22820-511: The planned Flanders offensive was "futile, fantastic & dangerous") until the Americans, who had joined the war in April 1917 , were able to send large numbers of troops to France. Outside of the Western Front , Foch opposed British Prime Minister David Lloyd George 's plans to send British and French troops to help Italy take Trieste , but was open to the suggestion of sending heavy guns. The Anglo-French leadership agreed in early September to send 100 heavy guns to Italy, 50 of them from

22983-400: The potentially fatal gap that would have followed a German breakthrough in the British Fifth Army sector. Two days later, while Foch was writing in his notebook, he allowed an interview to a group of war correspondents. At a later conference he was given the title Supreme Commander of the Allied Armies with the title of Généralissime ("Supreme General"). In May 1918, in the fifth session of

23146-402: The protests of Haig who argued that it would reduce his power to safeguard the interests of the British Army. The British were disappointed that Foch operated through his own staff rather than through the Permanent Military Representatives at Versailles , and on 11 July 1918 British ministers resolved to remind Foch that he was an Allied, and not a French, C-in-C. The Allies (mainly French and

23309-495: The public. Lloyd George repeated his stand when talking to Field Marshal Haig at GHQ. The fourth SWC Interallied Conference was held in London. Here, the General Reserve plan was cancelled. It was thought it would take three months to reposition divisions for the Reserve, when, in fact, the German attack was just 8 days away. This caused a great debate between General Ferdinand Foch and Prime Minister Clemenceau, and Prime Minister Lloyd George considered replacing Field Marshal Haig. In

23472-442: The rest of Europe, royal absolutism would not prevail, and a professed Catholic could never accede to the throne. The British constitution would develop on the basis of constitutional monarchy and the parliamentary system . With the founding of the Royal Society in 1660, science was greatly encouraged. During this period, particularly in England, the development of naval power and the interest in voyages of discovery led to

23635-406: The result of the Acts of Union 1707 between the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland . In the 18th century, cabinet government developed under Robert Walpole , in practice the first prime minister (1721–1742). A series of Jacobite uprisings sought to remove the Protestant House of Hanover from the throne and restore the Catholic House of Stuart . The Jacobites were finally defeated at

23798-451: The school of artillery . In 1873, he received his commission as an artillery officer and served as a lieutenant in the 24th Artillery Regiment in Tarbes, despite not having completed his course, because there was a shortage of junior officers. In 1876, he attended the cavalry school of Saumur to train as a mounted artillery officer. On 30 September 1878, he became a captain and arrived in Paris on 24 September 1879 as an assistant in

23961-443: The time has come for us to take up the brunt of the war and that France and England are not going to be able to keep their armies at present strength very much longer." Also, "If the Allies had seen this a year or even six months earlier and had given us assistance in shipping"..."they could have assisted in the formation of a powerful American Army". Instead, "the number of training infantrymen in America will be practically exhausted by

24124-415: The war, or would incorporate the new moral and technical elements into a new outward form within which the spirit of Napoleon remained unaltered. The war gave an ambiguous answer to these questions, which remains a source of controversy among experts. On the outbreak of World War I , Foch was in command of XX Corps, part of the Second Army of General de Castelnau . On 14 August the Corps advanced towards

24287-416: The world". By contrast, Lieutenant General William Robertson , another British officer, thought that Foch was "rather a flat-catcher, a mere professor, and very talkative" (28 September 1915). On 2 December 1914, King George V appointed him an Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath . In 1915, his responsibilities by now crystallised in command of the Northern Army Group , he conducted

24450-408: The year), with an offensive operation against Turkey. Maurice Hankey recorded of this meeting that the national Commanders-in-Chief, national Chiefs of Staff and PMRs "all gave different advice" creating "a worse state of chaos than I have ever known in all my wide experience". Lloyd George, whose main goal was to thwart Robertson and possibly prompted by the notes Henry Wilson (a rival of Robertson)

24613-408: Was a key appointment as the Race to the Sea was then in progress. General Joseph Joffre , Commander-in-Chief (C-in-C) of the French Army, had also wanted to nominate Foch as his successor "in case of accident", to make sure the job would not be given to Joseph Gallieni , but the French Government would not agree to this. When the Germans attacked on 13 October, they narrowly failed to break through

24776-416: Was chosen as the defining point of the Prime Meridian at the International Meridian Conference in 1884. The United Kingdom lies between latitudes 49° and 61° N , and longitudes 9° W and 2° E . Northern Ireland shares a 224-mile (360 km) land boundary with the Republic of Ireland. The coastline of Great Britain is 11,073 miles (17,820 km) long, though measurements can vary greatly due to

24939-424: Was established, headed by General Ferdinand Foch , to command the General Reserve. Between the third and fourth SWC meetings, resistance to the General Reserve by British General William Robertson caused him to be replaced by Wilson. In early March, it was found that B.E.F. Commander Douglas Haig also refused to follow the SWC order. Allied with General Petain and Prime Minister Clemenceau, both of whom opposed

25102-420: Was for him a river of life and death." At the sixth session of the Supreme War Council on 1 June Foch complained that the BEF was still shrinking in size and infuriated Lloyd George by implying that the British government was withholding manpower. At a major Allied conference at Beauvais (7 June) Lord Milner agreed with Clemenceau that Foch should have the power to order all Allied troops as he saw fit, over

25265-404: Was formed in 1931. Nonetheless, "Britain was a very wealthy country, formidable in arms, ruthless in pursuit of its interests and sitting at the heart of a global production system." After Nazi Germany invaded Poland in 1939, Britain entered the Second World War . Winston Churchill became prime minister and head of a coalition government in 1940. Despite the defeat of its European allies in

25428-409: Was later acclaimed as "the most original military thinker of his generation". He was a disciple of Napoleon, and made use of the lessons taught by Moltke . He became known for his critical analyses of the Franco-Prussian and Napoleonic campaigns and of their relevance to military operations in the new twentieth century. His re-examination of France's defeat in 1870 was among the first of its kind. At

25591-404: Was passing him across the table, blocked a suggestion by Foch (French Chief of Staff) that the proposed Allied General Reserve be controlled by the national Chiefs of Staff. It was eventually agreed that Foch should command the Reserve, with Wilson as his deputy. The General Reserve was to consist of 13 French, 10 British, and 7 Italian divisions. To streamline decision making, an Executive War Board

25754-430: Was required to cooperate with the British forces at Ypres and the Somme . At the end of 1916, partly owing to the disappointing results of the latter offensive and partly owing to wartime political rivalries, Foch was transferred to Italy. Foch was appointed " Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Armies" on 26 March 1918 following being the commander-in-chief of Western Front with the title Généralissime in 1918. He played

25917-407: Was simply "Great Britain". The Acts of Union 1800 formed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland . Following the partition of Ireland and the independence of the Irish Free State in 1922, which left Northern Ireland as the only part of the island of Ireland within the United Kingdom, the name was changed in 1927 to the "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland". Although

26080-515: Was surprised by the German offensive ( "Bluecher" ) on the Chemin des Dames (27 May). Foch believed it was a diversion to draw Allied reserves away from Flanders. This was partly true, although the planned German Flanders Offensive ( "Hagen" ) never took place. The Allied armies under Foch's command ultimately held the advance of the German forces. The celebrated phrase, "I will fight in front of Paris, I will fight in Paris, I will fight behind Paris", attributed both to Foch and Clemenceau, illustrated

26243-413: Was that he sheltered Haig from British political interference. Before the armistice and after the Armistice of Villa Giusti , Foch controlled all the operations against Germany including a planned invasion from Italy into Bavaria . Foch accepted the German cessation of hostilities in November from the German delegate, Matthias Erzberger , at 5:00 a.m. local time. However, he refused to accede to

26406-432: Was the first country in the world to use an approved COVID-19 vaccine , developing its own vaccine through a collaboration between Oxford University and AstraZeneca , which allowed the UK's vaccine rollout to be among the fastest in the world. The total area of the United Kingdom is approximately 94,354 square miles (244,376 km ), with a land area of 93,723 square miles (242,741 km ). The country occupies

26569-491: Was the most difficult SWC yet, with Lloyd George angry with the French at completely directing the war and the French upset with Lloyd George's plan to reduce British forces on the front to reinforce Palestine. General Foch wanted a commitment that the British would keep their strength at 59 divisions, and he wanted to create a sixtieth from category "B" troops (those unfit for combat, but suitable for home defence). Lloyd George said manpower resources made this impossible. Meanwhile,

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