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German and Austro-Hungarian forces under the command of generals von Hindenburg and Archduke Friedrich besieged Warsaw, and took it during the Gorlice-Tarnow Offensive. Austrians von Hötzendorf, Friedrich, and Pflanzer-Baltin form the bottom of the ring; the others are German. The flag and shield of Germany are on the bottom left; those of Austria and Hungary the bottom right.
Chosen Boy, a 1918 watercolor by Paul Klee. From Paul Klee: Early and Late Years: 1894-1940. © 2013 Moeller Fine Art
Western Front: Aisne & Oise. French folding postcard map of the Aisne and Oise, number 3 from the series Les Cartes du Front. The map includes the Champagne front from Compiègne in the west to Chalons-sur-Marne in the east including Soissons, Chemin des Dammes, Laon, Reims, and Château Thierry.
On May 23, 1915 Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary, its former ally as a member of the Triple Alliance. Clasping the hands of the German and Austro-Hungarian emperors Wilhelm II and Franz Josef, Italy's king Victor Emmanuel III conceals the tattered document behind his back.
"When Ludendorff detached a number of of divisions from Oberost to support Conrad (a technical device which he hoped would lead to a supreme command of both German and Austrian forces in the east, Falkenhayn promptly formed them into an independent army and ordered Ludendorff himself to report to it as chief-of-staff! Hindenburg was called in to write a personal appeal to the Kaiser for the return of his indispensable aide. A meeting took place at Breslau on 11th January, at which Falkenhayn's suave courtesy made a disagreeable impression '. . . it was all unsatisfactory and pointless, a contest of opinions settled beforehand', wrote Ludendorff in his diary." ((1), more)
"20 Dec-12 Jan [1915]The French attack in Flanders, at La Boiselle, in the Argonne, on the Meuse, on the Aisne, and around Reims . . ." ((2), more)
". . . after some painful blows had been successfully inflicted upon the enemy in January by throwing in at several places swiftly concentrated front reserves — with the 5th Army under Lieut.-General the Crown Prince Wilhelm, Chief of Staff Major-General Schmidt von Knobelsdorf, in the Argonne, and with the 7th Army under General von Heeringen, Chief of staff Lieut.-General von Hänisch, north of Soissons, a welcome if only short pause set in." ((3), more)
"According to the Gregorian Calendar the year 1915 begins to-day. At two o'clock under a wan sun and pearl-grey sky which here and there cast silvery shadows on the snow the Diplomatic Corps called at Tsarkoïe-Selo to wish the Emperor a Happy New Year.. . . I added that in its recent declarations to the Chambers the Government of the [French] Republic had solemnly affirmed its determination to continue the war to the bitter end and that that determination is a guarantee of final victory. The Emperor answered :'I have read that pronouncement of your Government and my whole heart goes with it. My own determination is no less. I shall continue this war as long as is necessary to secure a complete victory. You know I have just been visiting my army ; I found it animated by splendid ardour and enthusiasm. All it asks is to be allowed to fight. It is confident of victory. Unfortunately our operations are held up by a lack of munitions." ((4), more)
"Never in the history of the Prussian Army had a theatre commander demanded the dismissal of the Chief of the General Staff, much less under threat of resignation. And never in the annals of that institution had an army commander registered a vote of no confidence in the Chief of the General Staff with the monarch. Ominously, the affair introduced a deep and abiding lack of trust among the Chancellor, the Chief of the General Staff, and the two eastern commanders. Bethmann Hollweg survived the crisis, but only so long as Falkenhayn and Hindenburg-Ludendorff continued their animosity. . . .The greatest loser — apart from the German war effort — was Wilhelm II. On 15 January the Supreme War Lord begged Hindenburg to remain at his post." ((5), more)
(1) Generals Paul von Hindenburg and his chief-of-staff Erich Ludendorff, commanding Germany's armies on the Eastern Front, insisted they could win the war by a victory over Russia before turning on the British and French on the Western Front. German Chief of the General Staff Erich von Falkenhayn had already watched German forces sweep across Polish Russia three times and be driven back. He had little faith these great advances and retreats would win the war. Franz Conrad von Hötzendorf was Chief of the Austro-Hungarian General Staff, and Falkenhayn's maneuver would have had Ludendorff reporting to him. Oberost was Oberbefehlshaber der deutschen Streitkräfte im Osten — the Commander in Chief of the German armed forces in the East. Hindenburg and Ludendorff were at the beginning of their campaign against Falkenhayn. They would win it in 1916.
Suicide of the Empires by Alan Clark, page 74, copyright © 1971 by Alan Clark, publisher: American Heritage Press, publication date: 1971
(2) After heavy losses since August, 1914, with supplies of munitions low, French commander Joseph Joffre launched offensives to demonstrate French resolve and prevent the Germans from disengaging and redeploying their forces elsewhere. He used the unfortunate expression 'nibbling at the enemy' for his offensives.
They Shall Not Pass: The French Army on the Western Front 1914-1918 by Ian Sumner, page 48, copyright © Ian Sumner 2012, publisher: Pen and Sword, publication date: 2012
(3) From December 20, 1915 to January 12, 1915, French commander Joseph Joffre launched offensives in Flanders, at La Boiselle, in the Argonne, on the Meuse, on the Aisne, and around Reims, to prevent the Germans from disengaging and redeploying their forces either to the Eastern Front or for an offensive against the Allies on the Western Front. As Joffre brought his winter attacks to an end, the Germans struck.
General Headquarters and its Critical Decisions, 1914-1916 by Erich von Falkenhayn, pp. 57, 58, copyright © 1920 by Dodd, Mead and Company, Inc., publisher: Dodd, Mead and Company, Inc., publication date: 1920
(4) Entry from the memoirs of Maurice Paléologue, French Ambassador to Russia, for Thursday, January 14, 1915. Tsarkoïe-Selo was Tsar Nicholas II's palace south of Petrograd, the Russian capital, where rumors circulated that the Tsar's German-born wife was secretly corresponding with Germany to end the war, and that she undermined the Tsar's determination to fight on. None of the combatants had entered the war with supplies of munitions adequate to meet demand, and struggled to increase production. Russia's shortfall was particularly acute.
An Ambassador's Memoirs Vol. I by Maurice Paléologue, pp. 253, 254, publisher: George H. Doran Company, publication date: 1925
(5) Unable to pressure Chief of the General Staff Erich von Falkenhayn to move new troops and additional resources to the Eastern Front to further their plan to defeat Russia, the two eastern commanders Generals Paul von Hindenburg and Erich Ludendorff campaigned against Falkenhayn, and brought others into their their widening struggle including German Chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg and Kaiser Wilhelm's wife. The Kaiser's submission to von Hindenburg made a mockery of his title of Supreme War Lord.
The First World War: Germany and Austria Hungary 1914-1918 by Holger H. Herwig, page 134, copyright © 1997 Holger H. Herwig, publisher: Arnold, publication date: 1997
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