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STATION 6: MAJOR BATTLES OF WORLD WAR I FIRST BATTLE OF THE MARNE Date: Location: Total Forces: Causalities: Sept. 5-12, 1914 Marne River, France Allies: 1,071,000 Central Powers: 1,485,000 Allies: 263,000 Central Powers: 256,000 The First Battle of the Marne was fought in September 1914. The Allies sought to reverse the German advance through Belgium and France. When the German army was spotted by French air reconnaissance and radio, the French seized the opportunity and attacked. French forces using motorized transports surprised, the Germans and split their army in two. The British reinforced the French and Germany’s fate was sealed. The Allies scored a major victory. The battle proved to be one of the most significant engagements of the war. The battle saved Paris from being taken and ruined Germany’s plan to quickly defeat the French. It also forced the Germans to fight a war on two fronts against the Allies in the West and Russia in the east. Finally, it was one of the first battles where reconnaissance aircraft played a decisive role. The Battle of the Somme, also known as the Somme Offensive, was one of the largest battles of the First World War. Fought between July 1 and November 1, 1918 near the Somme River in France, it was also one of the bloodiest military battles in history. On the first day alone, the British suffered more than 57,000 casualties. It was the single worst day in deaths and casualties in British military history. By the end of the campaign the Allies and Central Powers would lose more than 1.5 million men. Despite the being a draw, the Somme campaign was the first great offensive of World War I for the British, and it produced a more critical British attitude toward the war. During and after the Somme, the British army was forced to focus on improving their battle tactics. BATTLE OF THE CAMBRIA Date: Location: Total Forces: Causalities: Nov. 20 – Dec. 7, 1917 Cambria, France Allies: 476 tanks and 2 corps Central Powers: 2 corps Allies: 44,000 Central Powers: 45,000 The battle marked the first large-scale use of tanks in battle. The British sprung a surprise attack on German defenses on November 20, 1917. Allied tanks and infantry advanced with great success against an astonished German defense. By nightfall, gains of 2-3 miles had been achieved. However, cavalry forces were slow to develop, and although more gains were made in the next nine days, German reserves halted the attack. Then, on November 30, a German blitzkrieg counterattack recaptured much of the ground lost. Officially finished by Dec. 7, the battle decisively demonstrated the power of tanks and altered the course of future warfare. It gave the British army the idea for largescale use of tanks in future battles. BATTLE OF TANNENBERG BATTLE OF THE SOMME Date: Location: Total Forces: Causalities: Jul. 1- Nov. 18, 1918 Somme River, France Allies: 1,071,000 Central Powers: 1,485,000 Allies: 794,238 Central Powers: 537, 918 The Battle of Tannenberg was fought between Russia and Germany in August 1914, during the first month of the war. The battle resulted in the almost complete destruction of the Russian Second Army. In total, over 50,000 Russian soldiers were killed and some 92,000 taken as prisoners. It was a crushing defeat for Russia, which lost almost an entire army, 400 guns, and other war materials. The loss also crushed the morale of the Russian Army and contributed to a massive decline in support for the war effort among Russia’s population. Date: Location: Total Forces: Causalities: Aug. 26-30, 1914 East Prussia, Poland Russia: 230,000 Germany: 150,000 Russia: 170,000 Germany: 13,873 SECOND BATTLE OF THE MARNE The Second Battle of the Marne was the last major German offensive on the Western Front during the First World War. The attack failed when an Allied counterattack by French and American forces, including several hundred tanks, overwhelmed the Germans on their right flank, inflicting severe casualties. The German defeat marked the start of the relentless Allied advance, which culminated with the German surrender about 100 days later. During the battle, Allies had taken 29,367 prisoners, 793 guns and 3,000 machine guns and inflicted 168,000 casualties on the Germans. The Gallipoli Campaign was an unsuccessful attempt by the Allies to control the sea route from Europe to Russia. The campaign began with a naval attack by the British and French in March 1915 and continued with a land invasion of the Gallipoli Peninsula in April. Lack of intelligence and knowledge of the terrain limited the success of the invasion. By October, Allied forces had suffered heavy casualties and needed to retreat. The battle was significant for a number of reasons. The failure of Britain and France to open up a route to Russia prevented them from providing military supplies to the Russian army and helped lead to Russia’s eventual surrender. The victory was also a major boost to the Central Powers. Date: Location: Total Forces: Jul.-Aug, 1918 France Allies: 300,000+ Germany: BATTLE OF VERDUN Date: Location: Total Forces: Allies: 120,000+ Causalities: Germany: 168,000 Causalities: Feb. 21-Dec.18, 1916 France France: 1,140,000 Germany: 1,250,000 France: 600,000+ Germany: 600,000+ The Battle of Verdun, fought between the German and French armies was one of the largest battles of the war on the Western Front. The battle took place on the hills north of Verdun, France. The German Army attacked French defenses on the right bank of the Meuse River. The Germans made some important gains in the early phases of the battle but the French quickly contained the German advance and were able to recapture much of the lost territory. All in all, the battled lasted for 303 days and remains one of the longest and bloodiest battles in human history. The battle was also significant, because the French victory boosted the morale of the entire army and the loss further demoralized German forces. GALLIPOLI CAMPAIGN Date: Location: Total Forces: Causalities: Aug. 26-30, 1914 Ottoman Empire Allies: 568,000 Central Powers: 315,500 Allies: 250,000 Central Powers: 250,000 SECOND BATTLE OF YPRES The battle was Germany’s first and only offensive of 1915. The battle began with artillery bombardment by the Germanys against enemy lines. However, when the shelling died down, the Allied defenders waited for the German attack troops but instead were thrown into panic when chlorine gas wafted down into their trenches. The wind-blown poison gas, decimated two divisions of French and Algerian troops. The Germans, perhaps as shocked as the Allies by the devastating effects of the gas, failed to take full advantage, and the Allies managed to hold most of their positions. The battle was significant because it marked the first time that poison gas was used in warfare. Date: Location: Total Forces: Causalities: Apr. 22- May, 25 1915 Ypres, Belgium Allies: 230,000 Germany: 150,000 Allies: 87,233 Germany: 35,000