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Helmuth von Moltke the Younger (view source)
Revision as of 03:23, March 17, 2021
, 03:23, March 17, 2021Added to page
Following the assassination of [[Archduke Franz Ferdinand]] and the subsequent "July Crisis" of 1914, Moltke firmly supported going to war in support of Austria-Hungary. Though he had instituted some minor adjustments to the timetable and other operational details of the Schlieffen Plan, he still adhered to its basic elements, including a quick and preemptive offensive into [[France]] via neutral [[Belgium]], before throwing the bulk of the military against Russia. On August 1, following war declarations between Germany, Austria-Hungary, [[Serbia]], and Russia, Wilhelm II, acting on reports that France and [[Great Britain]] might remain neutral, ordered Moltke to halt the Staff's plans for the invasion of Belgium and instead redirect all forces eastward for operations against Russia. Moltke refused, stating flatly that a last-minute alteration of plans on such a scale "cannot be done." The clash between the two drove Moltke close to a nervous breakdown, and though the reports of possible Western neutrality were soon proven false, leading the Kaiser to allow the invasion to continue as planned, Moltke was severely shaken by this incident at the opening of hostilities, saying later that he "was never the same thereafter."<ref>Barbara W. Tuchman, ''The Guns of August'' (1962), p. 94-97.</ref>
Following the assassination of [[Archduke Franz Ferdinand]] and the subsequent "July Crisis" of 1914, Moltke firmly supported going to war in support of Austria-Hungary. Though he had instituted some minor adjustments to the timetable and other operational details of the Schlieffen Plan, he still adhered to its basic elements, including a quick and preemptive offensive into [[France]] via neutral [[Belgium]], before throwing the bulk of the military against Russia. On August 1, following war declarations between Germany, Austria-Hungary, [[Serbia]], and Russia, Wilhelm II, acting on reports that France and [[Great Britain]] might remain neutral, ordered Moltke to halt the Staff's plans for the invasion of Belgium and instead redirect all forces eastward for operations against Russia. Moltke refused, stating flatly that a last-minute alteration of plans on such a scale "cannot be done." The clash between the two drove Moltke close to a nervous breakdown, and though the reports of possible Western neutrality were soon proven false, leading the Kaiser to allow the invasion to continue as planned, Moltke was severely shaken by this incident at the opening of hostilities, saying later that he "was never the same thereafter."<ref>Barbara W. Tuchman, ''The Guns of August'' (1962), p. 94-97.</ref>
==The Marne Offensive==
Since the overwhelming majority of German troops were massed in the west, Moltke kept his headquarters close to that front, transferring from Berlin to [[Koblenz]] in mid-August, then to [[Luxembourg City]], [[Luxembourg]] at the end of the month. Though he had maintained the essentials of the Schlieffen Plan, Moltke made two significant alterations as it unfolded: first, he shifted troops from his right wing, advancing into Belgium, to his left wing, fighting a defensive action against the French in Alsace-Lorraine; and second, upon learning of a faster-than-expected Russian mobilization, he detached several corps from the Western Front and sent them to [[East Prussia]] to shore up German defenses there. These decisions have been the source of considerable debate among historians, with some arguing they were reasonable moves in the chaotic unfolding of military operations, and others contending they doomed any chance of the Schlieffen Plan achieving its goal of a quick defeat of France and a subsequent concentration against Russia.
Until the beginning of September, it appeared to Moltke and to other observers that the offensive into France, if modified, was nonetheless succeeding; German armies were rapidly advancing south and west, and it seemed possible that they might encircle the bulk of the French army and capture [[Paris]]. A quick response by the French and their British allies, though, enabled them to launch a counteroffensive on September 5, resulting in the [[First Battle of the Marne]]. Although the battle itself was inconclusive, a review of the positions of the individual German armies led General Staff officers to recommend a limited withdrawal. Moltke himself, who had issued relatively few orders to his subordinates in the prelude to the battle, appears to have become despondent as it progressed, and acquiesced in his staff's decision.
According to one report, around the time of the end of the battle and the decision to withdraw, Moltke, realizing that the Schlieffen Plan would not be realized and that Germany faced a lengthy contest on two fronts, informed Kaiser Wilhelm II, "Your Majesty, we have lost the war." It is not clear whether he actually said this or not. However, it does appear the strain of events once again drove him to the edge of a breakdown. After ordering the retreating German armies to halt along the Aisne River in northeastern France and begin erecting a defensive line, he was relieved of command on September 14, replaced as Chief of the General Staff by General [[Erich von Falkenhayn]].
==Later Life==
==Later Life==