At this time, the French army was already preparing to eye the German army on the Marne River and was ready to take action.
As for the threat from the French army, not everyone in Germany felt it. As the chief of the general staff, General Moltke had already seen the danger.
Moltke had already received a telegram that Kruger wanted to take the First Army to the interior. Moltke was deeply disturbed by this telegram, so he issued an order to Kruger, approving his transfer to the southeast.
, on the other hand, the first group army is required to form an echelon, follow the second group army, and cover the flanks of the two armies.
Faced with Moltke's order, Kruger, who led the First Army, was unwilling to accept it. He descended to the troops and continued to pursue toward the Marne River, and crossed the Marne River the next day.
Faced with Kruger's refusal to carry out his orders, Moltke was furious. He immediately reprimanded Kruger and told him to either carry out the order or send him to a military court.
Faced with Moltke's strict orders, Kruger had no choice but to accept orders. In any country, a general who refuses to accept orders will not end well, especially in the German army where obeying orders is the norm.
in this way.
Therefore, Kruger could only postpone crossing the Marne River, assemble the First Army, and then move closer to Bulow's Second Army.
At this time, the actions of the German First Army made the French army, which was preparing to launch an attack, uncomfortable.
Because the First Army's actions at this time quickly reduced its flanks, and after its forces were concentrated, it would become difficult for the French army to counterattack.
However, at this time, the French army's attack order had already been conveyed to all divisions. Now all units are gathering, and officers are also cheering for the soldiers, and supplies and ammunition are also being replenished.
At this time, the French army has an arrow on the string and has no choice but to launch an attack. If you say not to launch an offensive and let them withdraw across the Seine River again, how is this possible? Their little morale will not be completely lost.
Therefore, the French army must launch an attack on the German army at this time. Of course, the French army still has the advantage in terms of strength. It has the fifth and seventh armies on the Marne River, in addition to five divisions of the British Expeditionary Force.
As well as the two reserve armies that Xiafei specially mobilized from the rear, with a total strength of 700,000. And their targets, the German First and Second Group Armies, have only 500,000 troops. In terms of strength, the French army
Dominate.
In addition to the advantage in military strength, the French army also has an advantage in artillery. Although its main equipment, the 75mm rapid-fire cannon, is worse than the German 105mm and 150mm howitzers in actual combat, in terms of quantity, the French army has an absolute advantage. It is equipped with
Thousands of artillery, while the German army only had more than 600. (Mainly due to continuous high-intensity marching, many artillery fell behind.)
So on November 29, the French army launched a tidal wave of attacks on the German troops on the Marne River.
In fact, when the French army mobilized on a large scale, Germany was aware of it. After all, how could the mobilization of 700,000 troops be completely concealed?
As early as two days before the French army launched its offensive, the German General Staff issued a warning to the First and Second Armies, asking them to pay attention to the large-scale French counterattack.
In fact, after entering northern France, Moltke felt something was wrong, because the German army on the right wing was overwhelming all the way, but it did not destroy many French troops.
Moreover, according to the Schlieffen Plan, the French army should be dragged along the German-French border at this time. However, due to the right-wing counterattack, the French army was driven back into the country. At this time, it has become impossible to fully implement the Schlieffen Plan, so the encirclement and annihilation of France
The main force's fighter planes also slipped away.
Since the main force of the French army still exists, finding the location of the main force of the French army and preventing the French army from counterattack have become the most important tasks of the General Staff.
As for Joffre, who was planning to attack on the Marne River, he naturally couldn't hide it from the eyes of the Germans.
So when the French army launched an attack on the German troops on the Marne River, they found that the German troops had already built fortifications waiting for their arrival.
So a great battle began on both sides of the Marne River.
"attack!"
A French officer pulled out his command knife and shouted loudly for the soldiers to attack. At this time, the French artillery fire had just subsided and the smoke from the battlefield had not yet dispersed. The French army couldn't wait to launch an offensive.
Of course, as a heroic commander, he would not let the soldiers charge while he hid behind, so he rushed out first.
Such a heroic act by this officer only moved his subordinates deeply, so they also rushed out of the trenches and rushed towards the enemy's position.
From the sky above the Marne River, it can be seen that the attacking French officers and soldiers are like a tide, attacking the German positions.
Facing the attacking French army, the German officers and soldiers hiding in hastily constructed trenches would certainly not let the French army do what they wished.
Gunshots rang out in the position, knocking down the charging French officers and soldiers. However, the French army seemed to want to avenge their past humiliation, turning a blind eye to the continuous falling comrades around them, and instead accelerated towards the position despite their casualties.
In fact, the reason why the French army can endure casualties is not only its bravery, but also the decline in German shooting accuracy. The officers and soldiers of the German First and Second Army have been marching with high intensity since the attack on Belgium, and until now
So far they have been going on for over a month.
Even a tough body can't stand it, so it's normal to be exhausted. And in this state, if you can perform 60% of your original 100% shooting level, it's considered excellent.
The situation in the German positions was quickly discovered by the French commander. Faced with this situation, he, who was responsible for commanding the attack, immediately ordered an increase in troops, trying to break through the German positions in one go.
Following the orders of the French commander, more French officers and soldiers rushed out of the trenches. They shouted and rushed towards the German positions, trying to keep up with the first wave of attacking troops.
At this time, as the French army charged regardless of casualties, its forward was only two hundred meters away from the position.
Seeing the menacing attack of the French army, the German troops in the position no longer concealed themselves, and quickly brought out their big weapons. That was the defensive weapon, the Maxim machine gun.
"Da da da~~"
The firing of the Maxim heavy machine gun was like a sickle, constantly mowing down the charging French soldiers. The rate of fire of 600 rounds per minute was enough for a Maxim heavy machine gun to take over a front two to three hundred meters wide.
The fire blockade of the Maxim heavy machine gun made it difficult for even the bravest French troops to break through. They saw that their own soldiers were unable to break through in the face of the enemy's fierce firepower.
As the supreme commander of this battle, General Gallieni threw the telescope on the ground angrily. He took the phone and called the artillery position.
"I am Gallieni. The artillery fires at the German machine guns immediately. Don't worry about the German artillery. Your priority target is the enemy machine gun. In fact, it is the damn artillery."
Following his strict order, the French artillery also joined in the bombardment, regardless of the risk of injuring their own people. Moreover, their target was the heavy machine guns on the German position that were blocking the French charge.
Faced with the artillery threat from the French soldiers, the firepower on the German positions was rapidly reduced. Civil fortifications could not prevent the machine gun positions from blocking the shelling. Even 75mm artillery shells could still pose a fatal threat. Therefore, when the enemy shelled the machine guns on the position,
It must be moved. Not to mention that the enemy's artillery is completely aimed at the machine guns. If we don't move now, how long will it take?
The firepower of the German positions was greatly reduced, causing the French soldiers who had been suppressed to immediately charge again.
Carrying rifles with bayonets inserted, they launched a final charge towards the position.
"No, order troops to reinforce the front-line positions. We must keep the enemy out of the battlefield."
At this time, the German commander Kruger also saw that the situation on the front line was not good, and immediately ordered the troops in the second line to go for reinforcements. As for the artillery support, they were already counterattacking the French artillery who only focused on bombarding the position.
Surrounding the front line position for a while, the German and French armies used all their strength as soon as they came up. The two sides continued to invest their troops, turning the front line position into a Shura field. The corpses of the fallen armies were everywhere, and the soil of the position was stained.
The color turned bright red. The officers and soldiers from both sides who did not fall were engaged in a brutal fight that was either your death or mine.
In the end, the German army won the final victory with the advantage of being more familiar with the position and having closer reinforcements. However, the German army that drove the French army away also felt uncomfortable, because on the first day, the First and Second Army lost three soldiers.
There were more than 10,000 people, and more than 15,000 of them were killed in battle alone.
As for the attacking French and British forces, their casualties were even higher, with more than 18,000 people killed and missing alone, and up to 45,000 wounded and wounded.
For this reason, many surviving officers and soldiers from both sides called today's battle Bloody Friday.
However, these officers and soldiers did not know that the battle on the first day was nothing, and that the next battle would be even more brutal.
Of course, for the officers and soldiers of the defending First and Second Group, the fierce French offensive on this day left them with lingering fears. For the coming battle, many people's inner concepts of victory were shaken.
As for the two commanders Kruger and Bülow, in addition to preparing for the next battle, they also reported today's battle to the Chief of General Staff at the rear, General Moltke. Of course, in addition to the battle, they requested reinforcements.
His words were also revealed in the telegram.
Xiao Maoqi and the officers of the General Staff were shocked by these two requests for help. They were now trying to mobilize troops to reinforce the First and Second Army.
At this time, the 3rd and 4th armies also sent telegrams. They exchanged fire with the 4th and 9th armies of the French army. However, their situation was much better than that of the 1st and 2nd armies because the other side did not give them such a big attack.
pressure.
At this time, Xiao Maoqi discovered that the French army had launched an attack on the entire right wing of the German army.
At this time, for Little Maoqi, reinforcements are a must choice, and they cannot retreat unless it is a last resort.
Because Moltke knew very well that if he retreated, it would mean that France could not be defeated quickly, and Germany would fall into a terrible two-front battle.
Therefore, finding reinforcements for the First and Second Army has become a top priority.
After intense searching by the officers of the General Staff, 100,000 troops were finally found for the First and Second Army.
One of the reserve forces formed by four mobilization divisions is now in Aachen, and the remaining troops are drawn from Belgium and other forces.
The core of this reinforcement is the reserve army still in Aachen.
At this time, there are more than 400 kilometers between Aachen and the Marne River. If you want this reserve army to arrive within three days, it is absolutely impossible to rely on it. It must be transported all the way. From Aachen to Sauny, it is easier to say, with the full strength of the German engineering troops
After emergency repairs, this section of railway is ready for use. If arranged properly, a reserve army can arrive in only a day and a half.
The total distance from Sauny to the Marne is more than 80 kilometers. There is no railway during this distance, so other means of transportation must be used.
At this time, there was only one means of transportation that could be used by the German army, and that was the Fiat F75 truck that was constantly being transported by the army.
At this time, Xiao Maoqi immediately ordered: "Immediately send a report to the right-wing armies, asking them to gather the trucks in their hands towards Shaoni, and ask them to take out at least half of the trucks."
At this time, there were only more than 9,000 trucks in the hands of the German army, and there were still more than 6,000 trucks allocated to the right wing. At this moment, Moltke asked for half of them, which was 3,000 trucks with a load capacity of three tons.
It is definitely more powerful than a taxi and can definitely transport 100,000 reinforcements and their equipment.
At this moment, the first large-scale motorized force was launched inadvertently by the Germans.
