September 1, his army began the fateful change in direction
detected by the reconnaissance aircraft of the allies.x On August 26, General Joseph Gallieni was appointed military
governor of Paris and charged with its defense. He energetically
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the opportunity that the shift in Kluck’s direction offered for
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the enemy. Once the
change of direction had
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determined to use the new
Sixth Army.
x Joffre gained British
cooperation, and by
September 5, the
counterattack was
underway. Kluck began
to pivot to try to meet the
danger, but this maneuver
had the effect of creating
a dangerous gap between
his army and the adjacent
Second German Army.
The confrontation took
place near the Marne
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Saint-Soupplets.
x Over several days, the German advance was fought to a standstill,
and the counterattacking French elements began to arrive and make
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one of the gaps between the German armies, where it threatened
to cut off Kluck’s army. On September 9, the commander of the
German Second Army recognized that the offensive had come up
The initial trenches dug after the
Battle of the Marne would proliferate,
transforming the landscape of northern
France into a grotesque world of mud,
barbed wire, and shell holes.-2+1*20(=L6WRFN7KLQNVWRFN