Battle of the Aisne (1914)
| date | September 12 to September 20, 1914 |
|---|---|
| place | Aisne |
| output | German defensive victory |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
| Commander | |
|
Karl von Bülow |
Joseph Joffre |
| Troop strength | |
| 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 7th Army initially 32, then 36 divisions (including 6 cavalry divisions) in the end over 750,000 men | French 5th, 6th, 9th Army and BEF with 26 French and 6.5 British divisions, a total of 720,000 men |
| losses | |
|
unknown |
unknown |
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The Battle of the Aisne from September 12 to 20, 1914 developed as a result of the withdrawal of the German Western Army after the defeat on the Marne . It was the first battle of the First World War in which the troops had to defend themselves in trenches in addition to the attacks because of the strong artillery fire. The battle marks the beginning of the trench warfare on the Western Front .
After the battle of the Marne was broken off on September 9th, Colonel General Karl von Bülow succeeded in returning the right wing of the German army to the north bank of the Aisne. On the new front line on the Aisne from Noyon via Soissons to Reims , all Allied attempts to break through to the north were repulsed. In the first phase of the battle from September 12th to 15th, before the arrival of the 7th Army , 32 German divisions with 680,000 men faced around 720,000 Allies (6.5 British and 26 French divisions). The French Commander-in-Chief Marshal Joseph Joffre urged the 5th and 9th Armies to pursue the German 2nd Army , while the 80,000-strong British Expeditionary Force under General Sir John French , operating between them, played a central role in the battle - their three corps attacked between Soissons - Vregny - Vailly to Bourg et Comin against the strategically important plateau of the Chemin des Dames . To the right of this, the attack of the French 18th Corps between Beaurieux and Pontavert formed a further focus in the direction of the gap in the front at Craonne; here the Allies tried again to break open the German front. At the focal point of the battle in the area south of Laon , the VII Reserve Corps under General von Zwehl , which had been freed by the fall of Maubeuge fortress, was inserted from September 12 , as well as the German 7th Army, which had been brought in from Alsace since September 13. The 3rd Army , which had receded between Reims and Suippes , the 4th Army to the east and the 5th Army were not directly involved in the battle of the Aisne . After the second phase from September 15th to 20th of the German 2nd Army also the XII. and XVIII. Army Corps was brought to Reims, the number of troops increased again to 36 divisions (including six cavalry divisions), i. H. to about 720,000 men, which stabilized the Aisne front in the long term and also made counterattacks possible.
Starting positions
The new sections of the 1st Army
On September 12, the German front on the Aisne was completely reorganized: The IX. Army Corps under General von Quast formed the extreme right wing of the 1st Army under General von Kluck . The 17th division was on the heights of Attichy-Bitry, the 18th division in the Autrêches area and to the north for defense. The IV Army Corps under General Sixt von Armin was closed with the 7th and 8th Divisions south of the river between Vic-Fontenoy. This was followed by the 2nd Army Corps under General von Linsingen with 3rd and 4th divisions between Soissons - Conde north of the Aisne. The 4th Reserve Corps under General von Gronau with the 7th and 22nd Reserve Divisions remained standing north of the Aisne at Nouvron. Under the protection of the divisions already occupying the Chemin des Dames, the parts of the 1st Army still remaining in the south had returned to the northern bank of the Aisne. The III. Army Corps under General von Lochow occupied the heights of Condé with the 5th Division under Lieutenant General Wichura and the area around Nanteuil-la-Fosse with the 6th Division under Lieutenant General Herhudt von Rohden . The II. Army Corps held the Crouy-Höhe and Bucy-le-Long with the 3rd Division under Lieutenant General von Trossel and the heights of Pasly to the west of it with the 4th Division under Lieutenant General von Pannewitz . The Higher Cavalry Command No. 2 under General von der Marwitz secured the gap in the front against the Allied cavalry corps under General Conneau, which had been open since September 9, at Berryau Bac . The Higher Cavalry Command No. 1 under Lieutenant General von Richthofen covered the left flank with the 2nd and 5th Cavalry Divisions at Acy - Serches, the 4th Cavalry Division under Lieutenant General von Garnier at Compiègne the right wing of the 1st Army .
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After the fall of the French fortress of Maubeuge , the vacated VII Reserve Corps was immediately brought up in forced marches across Laon to reinforce the left wing of the 1st Army.
The new sections of the 2nd and 3rd Armies
Colonel-General von Bülow now believed that he could stop the enemy from advancing further. On the Vesle between Braisne and Fismes , the English I. Corps under General Douglas Haig pursued further to the Aisne; the VII. Reserve Corps was now introduced into this threatened section. Further to the southeast, the 2nd Army occupied the Vesle section in the area on both sides of Reims: the right wing was formed by the VII Army Corps (General von Claer from September 12th ), that with the 13th and 14th Divisions north of the Vesle went back to Brimont. This was followed by the X Reserve Corps under General von Eben on the southern bank of the Vesle to Cormontreuil. This was followed by the X. Army Corps under General von Emmich on the northern bank of the Vesle from Cormontreuil to Prunay, the Guard Corps under General Karl von Plettenberg followed to the southwest of Prosnes, where they joined the 3rd Army. As a reserve, the 2nd Army was left with the 14th Division , the east Cernay and the 1st Guard Division under General von Hutier , which was deployed to the southwest legs.
The withdrawal of the German 3rd Army under Colonel General von Hausen went smoothly from September 11th: The Saxon XIX. Army Corps under General von Laffert set out first, the Saxon XII. Army Corps under General d'Elsa followed, both were added to the 2nd Army in the northwestern apron of Reims . The Saxon XII. Reserve Corps under General von Kirchbach , under the protection of the rear guards of the 23rd Division, crossed the Marne undisturbed at Condé and Vraux to the north. After the French 9th Army under General Ferdinand Foch with its left wing (9th Corps under General Dubois ) advanced on Vitryle François , General von Moltke ordered Hausen's army to return to the Thuizy - Suippes line. The new shorter section with only 25 kilometers was due to the now lower troop strength of the 3rd Army. The XII. Reserve Corps was the section Thuizy - Prosnes, the XII. Army Corps assigned the line Fort St. Hilaire - Butte d'Infant, the XIX. Army Corps then the section to Suippes, where the connection to the 4th Army took place.
battle
12th September
Situation with the 1st Army
On the morning of September 12th, stronger British forces from the Fère-en-Tardenois area and weaker forces from the French 6th Army under General Joseph Maunoury were advancing north near Mortefontaine and Villers-Cotterêts . Despite the confusing terrain, the Allies crossed the Aisne here in the afternoon and attacked the German 1st Army between Attichy - Soissons. In the early afternoon the whole front on the line Berneuil - Condé - Vailly was attacked by strong forces. The 1st Army covered its right flank with the IX. Army Corps on the Nampcel - Audignicourt - Autreches line. The IV. Reserve Corps held the heights at Nouvron, the IV. Army Corps held the Cuisy en Almont - Pasly section, the II. Army Corps from Cuffies to the Chivres - section and the III. Army Corps the heights north of Condé, the 6th Division behind it for the time being as a reserve. The Higher Cavalry Commander 2 stood behind the front at Vailly during the Allied attack with the 9th Cavalry Division under General von Schmettow . The right flank of the army on the west bank of the Oise in the Roye-Noyon area was meanwhile still free from the enemy; on the other hand, the pursuing French 6th Army with its center (7th Corps of General Vautier ) developed strong forces against the German IVth Army Corps in the course of midday at Fontenoy. General Maunoury's right wing (5th Reserve Group under General Lamaze ) and the independently operating 45th Division under General Drude consolidated their positions on the northern Aisne bridgehead in front of Crouy and Bucy-le-Long, including the city of Soissons, which was evacuated by German troops .
Location with the 2nd Army
Meanwhile, the situation with the 2nd Army was also extremely unfavorable. The French 18th Corps under General Maud'huy had replaced the Cavalry Corps Conneau in the gap in the front and pushed into the open west wing of the 2nd Army. General Maud'huy had crossed Vesle and gained the heights of Saint Thierry. The closing of this gap had to be left to the first parts of the 7th Army arriving from Lorraine due to a lack of reserves . On the night of September 12th to 13th, the foremost parts of the VII Reserve Corps from the area southeast of Laon were pulled up to the heights of the Chemin des Dames in order to finally close the gap. The XV. Army Corps under General Berthold von Deimling - meanwhile finished his unloading at St. Quentin and was approaching Laon.
On this day, the 2nd Army tried with great difficulty to hold the important Vesle section on both sides of Reims. In order to block the most important crossings of the Vesle and the remaining gap in the front to the 1st Army, the 13th Division Braisne and Fismes should try at all costs.
The French 5th Army under General Franchet d'Esperey , with its center, the 3rd Corps under General Hache , pushed back the German VII Army Corps and forced the crossing over the Vesle and again threatened the right wing of the 2nd Army at Muizon include. The 13th Division had to retreat here with its right wing to Bourg on the Aisne. Colonel-General von Bülow had to withdraw the X Reserve Corps from the line Brimont - Reims, which was threatened on the right flank. Due to the attack of the French right wing with the 1st and 10th Corps of Generals Deligny and Defforges , the German Xth Army Corps had to give up the city of Reims . The 19th division under Lieutenant General Hofmann had to fall back on Betheny; under their protection, the 19th Reserve Division went back through Reims to Cernay, where it joined the right wing of the X Army Corps.
13.september
For September 13th, Colonel General von Kluck again ordered the unconditional holding of the beleaguered Aisne section - the enemy was to be thrown back in a counterattack, furthermore all measures were taken to strengthen the right wing of the 2nd Army and the remaining gap in the front finally to close. On the night of September 13, the British crossed the Aisne on pontoons, the I. Corps landed on the north bank at Bourg-et-Comin and formed a bridgehead at Verneuil on the right side.
At Chivres east of Venizel and at Vailly there was heavy fighting by the German III. Army Corps under General von Lochow with the English 2nd Corps under General Smith-Dorrien . The eastern end of the Chemin des Dames formed a promontory that protrudes into the plain between Laon and Reims. The French 18th Corps advanced towards this section, its troops crossed the Aisne at Maizy and captured the eastern slope of the narrow plateau, including Craonne. The German VII Reserve Corps now intervened in the battle with the 13th and 14th Reserve Divisions ; they fought with the English over the plateau of Montherauld, between Courtencon and Craonne. The 28th Reserve Brigade under Major General Neuhauß , which arrived first , immediately counterattacked and suffered heavy losses from the English artillery, but they held the important northern plateau position firmly until further parts of the 13th Reserve Division under Lieutenant General von Kühne arrived. The German 5th Cavalry Division sacrificed itself in the meantime at Corbeny and stayed in touch with the department of Major General Steinmetz , which in turn was able to establish the connection to the VII Army Corps at Berry-au-Bac . Between Pontavert and Brimont, the German 13th and 14th divisions had to retreat before General Valabregue's reserve divisions .
September 14th
In the 1st Army the attack of the English 2nd Corps on the heights of Chivres and Vregny was also stuck, in Conde the III. Army Corps back all attacks; On the right wing, too, the 4th Reserve Corps was able to repel the attacks of the French 6th Army on Morsain and the heights of Nouvron.
Day of the great battle for the Chemin des Dames
In the morning General French began bombarding the lines of the VII Reserve Corps with heavy artillery drawn from the line south of Courtecon - Oucles - Ailles - Craonnelle. The new infantry attack by the British between Courtecon and Hurtebise continued vigorously. The 1st Corps under General Haig soon gained space in a northerly direction towards Monthenault and pushed the 14th Reserve Division back onto the Ailette, the right wing of the attack being covered by General Allenby's cavalry division . The British 1st Division under General Lomax succeeded at Moulins with the 5th Brigade under General Haking to storm the height position at Tilleul de Courtecon. The attack of the 2nd Brigade under General Bulfin did not get beyond Paissy, to the left of it the attack of the 2nd Division under General Monro with the 6th Brigade under General Davies also got stuck. The 3rd Division under General Hamilton got into heavy defensive fire on the Ostel ridge and had to go back to Chavonne. The northern slope of the Chemin des Dames near Monthenault was able to be held by the Germans.
Intervention of the German 7th Army
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On the evening of September 13th, the first parts of the VII Reserve Corps had already been pulled up to the heights of the Chemin des Dames to stop the enemy attack. Without the timely intervention of the 13th and 14th Reserve Divisions , which had become vacant before Maubeuge , a breakthrough of the British between the German 1st and 2nd Army could hardly have been prevented. The VII Reserve Corps was initially thrown from the plateau of Monthenauld and pushed back onto the Ailette, but then held on to the line between Courtecon and Craonne. Opposite the left wing of the French 5th Army, the German XV from Lorraine attacked . Army Corps (General von Deimling ) into the battle: the advance guard of the 39th Division (Generalleutnant von Kathen ) reinforced the German defensive battles at Corbeny. The 30th Division (Lieutenant General Wild von Hohenborn ) arriving at Bourconville (north of Craonne) was able to stop all attacks by the French 18th Corps. The attack of the French 36th Division at Ailles was also repulsed. AOK 7 was established for uniform command management on the aisnefront between Vailly and Berry-au-Bac . Colonel-General von Heeringen and his chief of staff, Lieutenant-General von Hänisch , soon succeeded in consolidating the front at the Chemin des Dames.
September 15th
1st Army
In the French 6th Army, the 45th Division under General Drude Crouy was able to take, but then ran into the resistance of the German II Army Corps at Sous la Pierroire. The attack of the French 4th Corps on the left flank and in the center of the 7th Corps on the Pasly-Bitry-St. Crepin. On the far left, the newly introduced French 13th Corps at Carlepont threatened Kluck's right wing with encircling attacks. The arrival of the 18th reserve division of the IX. Reserve Corps in the Noyon area brought the necessary relief.
2nd and 3rd Army
Colonel-General Bülow and his chief of staff, Major General von Lauenstein , noticed the fatigue of the opponents in the struggle for the Chemin des Dames and tried to regain the initiative with their own counterattacks.
The German 2nd Army had been considerably strengthened and reorganized by surrendering the 3rd and 4th Armies. Further regroupings took place to the southeast in the direction of Reims: here the XVIII. Army Corps under General von Schenck followed south with the 25th and 21st Divisions between La Neuville and Brimont. This was followed by the X. Army Corps with the newly assigned 2nd Guard Division under General von Winckler and the 19th Division between Brimont and Betheney, the X. Reserve Corps with the 19th Reserve Division the Cernay Plateau east of Reims . Opposite the French 9th Corps, the left wing of the 2nd Army was secured by the 2nd Guards Division, which in turn was cleared on September 18 by the 12th Division under General Chales de Beaulieu and relocated to the Arras area.
The German 3rd Army remained in a defensive position between Prosnes and Suippes. Your former XII. Army Corps (Saxon 32nd and 23rd Divisions) was now subordinated to the 7th Army as the left wing and incorporated into the front between Craonne and Pontavert. The VII. Army Corps , previously the left wing of the 2nd Army, was moved northwards until the XII. Army Corps was extended, a new front was built from Loivre to Oranville.
7th Army counterattack
The German counterattack on September 15 began with the 39th Division of the XV. Army Corps , Corbeny and the Craonne plateau were recaptured. The 30th Division stormed Craonne. The British I. Corps under General Haig had to stop the attacks on Monthenault for the time being before the weakened German VII Reserve Corps because of fatigue on both sides, it was forced to dig into the plateau of Ostel. South of Torcy and west of Vailly, the British II Corps under General Smith-Dorrien was also completely bogged down by the resistance of Corps Lochow. The German 5th Division firmly held the heights north of Conde between Vregny and Celles. The attack of the English III. Corps under General Pulteney had not got beyond the line Missy - Bucy-le-long in relation to the German 3rd Division and also had to dig in on the southern plateau south of Vregny. The German XII. Army Corps settled on the heights of Menneville on the right bank of the Aisne and attacked the right flank of the French 18th Corps in the direction of Pentavert - Bary-au Bacon. General Maud'huy held out in the center on the plateau between Craonne and Hurtebise, but was pushed back into his right flank near Juvincourt on the southern slope of the plateau by the counterattack of the Saxon 23rd Division under Lieutenant General von Lindemann . The French 36th Division went back to the Ouchy-Poissy line, the subsequent 35th Division continued to hold out against the German 82nd Infantry Brigade in Craonelle.
16th September
Opposite the front of the Kluck Army, the French 6th Army with the 4th Corps under General Boëlle began an attack between Ribecourt - Nampcel. The 18th Reserve Division advanced between Semigny and Pontoise to the edge of the forest northeast of Carlepont. The 17th Reserve Division was on the way from Thiescourt to Ribecourt. Both divisions ran northeast of Carlepont at the resistance of the French XIII. Corps firmly. The 7th Cavalry Division secured the right flank at Margny and failed when attempting to advance via Lassigny to Compiegne. Supported by the 37th Division under General Brulard , the seam between the German IX. Army Corps and IX. Reserve Corps under General der Infanterie von Boehn breached and a wedge 3 kilometers deep struck in the German front. The use of the reserve 4th Cavalry Division and the rapid counter-attack of the 18th Reserve Division stabilized this section of the front. The 3rd Division of the II Army Corps was cleared from the high ground near Vregny in order to secure the open flank of the IV Reserve Corps . The IX. Army Corps then held a somewhat indented front line north of the forest of Aigle, on the heights from Torcy - Carlepont to Nampcel.
On September 16, Marshal Joffre ordered his 1st Corps (General Deligny ) to renew the attack at Reims in order to relieve the 18th Corps on the north wing. Both this attack and the attack of the 9th Corps (General Dubois ) of the 9th Army under General Foch, which followed to the east, against the Mesnil- Aubérive- Prosnes section was repulsed by the German 3rd Army .
17th of September
At Noyon , the extreme right wing of the German 1st Army was extended to the west, the 7th Cavalry Division under Lieutenant General von Heydebreck took over cover against the flank thrust of the French Cavalry Corps under Bridoux . General von Boehn attacked energetically with the 17th Reserve Division on the Margu - Eglise - Ribecourt line and threw the French back to their starting positions on the Matz. In the middle section, the German XV. Army Corps completely stabilized the Courtecon - Cerny - Craonne - Corbeny line, the opposing bridgehead on the north bank of the Aisne remained threatening. The German 1st Army successfully held its altitude, the III. Army corps could even be pulled from the front and released as a reserve.
September 18
On September 18, Marshal Joffre had to pull the French 1st Corps under General Deligny out of the faltering attack front of the 5th Army near Reims and relocated it to stabilize the outer left wing of the 6th Army. The German VII Army Corps under General von Claer fought for the new line Orainville - Merlet - Aguilcourt - Guignicourt, the X Reserve Corps under General von Eben attacked the northwest front of Reims, but remained in front of the without sufficient artillery support Resistance of the French 10th Corps lie.
September 20th
On September 20, the right wing of the 1st Army won with the IX. Army Corps the line Bailly-Tracy le Val and the western adjoining 18th Reserve Division the line north of Puisaleine- Autrêches . The Bavarian 4th Brigade and the 17th Reserve Division secured the Lassigny -Dreslincourt line on the far right . The X Reserve Corps was able to push the opposite French 10th Corps back onto the Loive-Courcy line at Reims. The German VI. Army Corps under General von Pritzelwitz was withdrawn from the 4th Army at Binarville and initially pushed in at the seam between the 2nd and 3rd Armies in order to free the more powerful 2nd Guard Division at Prunay. Because troops were beginning to be deployed to the north, the French 9th Corps on the opposite side, under General Dubois, was pulled out of the front and moved to Amiens . The staff of the French 9th Army in the same sector was disbanded as a result, the leader of which, General Foch, became Commander-in-Chief of the Army Group North newly formed in Flanders . At the same time, the fighting on the Aisne generally subsided. Colonel-General Bülow had already gathered several corps for a counter-offensive, but now saw that the decision no longer had to be made on the Aisne, but on the race to sea . In addition, the arrival of the British 5th Division strengthened the northern Aisne bridgehead and caused a stalemate on both sides on this section.
Final offensive
The battle of the Aisne was resumed between 25 and 29 September as a result of the beginning race to the sea in a third phase for mutual troop binding. The French 2nd Army under General Castelnau had been moved from the Nancy area to the northwest to the Avre in order to attack the projecting right flank of the German 1st Army near Noyon . Castelnau ordered a frontal attack on the German positions, which had been reinforced on September 25 with fresh forces from the Reims area. But the French attack immediately met with fierce resistance, followed by counter attacks. Forced to order the withdrawal of his troops to the area west of Noyon, Castelnau decided against further attacks. The decision was to be sought further north, following the newly established 10th Army under the command of General Maud'huy at Arras .
consequences
Both sides remained silent about the heavy losses in the Battle of the Aisne and it can be assumed that they were very high as in the Battle of the Marne. After Joffres attempted breakthrough on the Aisne had failed, he had two army commanders and seven corps commanders replaced, and another 33 troop commanders who were already outdated and who were no longer familiar with the troop command that had become modern were dismissed. Already on September 14th, Kaiser Wilhelm II decided to replace the previous chief of the Army Command Colonel General von Moltke with the more energetic General Erich von Falkenhayn . Falkenhayn, the new chief of the army command, saw the Aisnefront as sufficiently stable and began immediately on 25 September with the transfer of the 4th Army to Flanders in order to begin the race to the sea before the Entente troops.
At the beginning of October 1914, the total number of troops on the Western Front was balanced - 85.5 Allied divisions now faced 84 German divisions. The struggle to form the front to the North Sea now determined the new focus of the continuation of the war. The British Army was therefore withdrawn from the Aisnefront by the beginning of October 1914, and the Germans' Guard Corps, IV., VII., XV., XIX. and XVIII. Army corps withdrew to also take part in the race to the north. The French 1st Corps and the 10th Corps, brought in from the Reims Front, filled the vacated section of the British at the Chemin des Dames.
Between November 6 and 13, the French made their last attempts to conquer the high plateau between Ostel and Braye, but the fierce German resistance at La Cour-Soupir and Chavonne prevented this intention. From mid-November 1914, the front on Chemin des Dames froze to trench warfare. The front on the Aisne remained unchanged for the next few years until the spring of 1918. It was not until April and June 1917 that during the “Nivelle Offensive” on the Aisne, French mass attacks (2nd Battle of the Aisne ) took place, which were again repulsed by the German troops.
literature
- Jean-Jacques Becker, Gerd Krumeich : The Great War. Germany and France in the First World War 1914–1918. Klartext, Essen 2010, ISBN 978-3-8375-0171-1 .
- Janusz Piekalkiewicz: The First World War. Weltbild, Augsburg 1994, ISBN 3-89350-564-4 .
- Nicolas Offenstadt (Ed.): Le chemin des dames. De l'evénement à la mémoire. Stock, Paris 2004, ISBN 2-234-05647-0 (collection of articles on the Battle of the Aisne).
- Paul Kendall: Aisne 1914: The Dawn of Trench Warfare . History Press, 2012, ISBN 978-0-7524-6304-9 .
- Jerry Murland: Aisne 1914 . Pen and Sword, 2013, ISBN 978-1-78159-189-5 .
Web links
- http://www.sambre-marne-yser.be/article.php3?id_article=87 (French)
- https://fr.wikisource.org/wiki/Les_Batailles_de_l%E2%80%99Aisne/02 (Louis Madelin: Revue des Deux Mondes, Tome 46, 1918, pp. 799–846)
- JE Edmonds: Military Operations France and Belgium, 1914: Mons, Seine, Marne and Aisne, History of the Great War Based on Official Documents by Direction of the Historical Section of the Committee of Imperial Defense. 1st ed. Macmillan London 1937, pp 358 -390
Individual evidence
- ^ Reichsarchiv: Volume IV The Marne Campaign, Berlin 1926, p. 71.