CONTINUATION OF THE BATTLE OF THE MARNE
Remembering again the general outline of General von Kluck's plan, that
of executing a diagonal movement with 150,000 of his men to attack the
easternmost point of the Fifth Army, and possibly to envelop it by a
flank movement, the continuation of the Battle of the Marne may be
treated with more detail. This part is called by some the Battle of
Coulommiers.
In this battle there was as great a change in morale as in the battle of
the Ourcq. There, the French had been stirred to high endeavor by the
realization that the word to advance had at last been given. This also
operated in part on the British in the battle of Coulommiers, but, in
addition, there was another very important factor.
The dawn of that Sunday summer morning, September 6, 1914, was one of
great exhilaration for the British forces. The offensive was begun, the
time for striking back had come, and every column resounded with
marching choruses. The countryside was lovely, as had been all the
countryside through which the retreating armies had passed, gay with the
little French homesteads, flower decked and smiling, heavily laden
orchards, and rich grain fields, some as yet uncut, some newly stacked.
Women and children, with here and there an old man, ran along the line
of march ministering to the wants of their defenders. There was no need
for language, as courtesy and gratitude are universal, and the English
were fighting for "La Belle France." So the morning wore on.
Through the forested region of Crecy the British passed, and it has been
told hereinbefore how they surprised the two cavalry commands thrust out
as scouts by General von Kluck. But, as they reached the land that had
been occupied by the German hosts, the bearing of the men changed, even
as the country changed. The simple homes of the peasants were in ashes,
every house that had showed traces of comfort had been sacked or gutted
with fire. Between noon and three o'clock in the afternoon of that day
three burned churches were passed. The songs stopped. A black silence
fell upon the ranks. Bloody business was afoot.
It was in the middle of the afternoon, a slumbrous harvest afternoon,
that a big gun boomed in the distance, and the shell shrieked dolefully
through the air, its vicious whine ceasing with a tremendous sudden roar
as it burst behind the advancing British lines. On the instant, Sir John
French's batteries almost wiped out the German cavalry, and ten minutes
had not elapsed before the full artillery on both sides had begun a
terrific fire that was stunning to the senses. Under cover of their own
fire, the British infantry advanced and hurled themselves against the
outer line of General von Kluck's Second Army. The attack failed. The
British were driven back, but though the loss of life was sharp, it was
not great, as the British commander had but advanced his men to test out
the invader's strength. The British artillery was well placed, and under
its cover the British made a second advance, this time successful. The
Germans replied with a counterattack which was repulsed, but in that
forty minutes 10,000 men had fallen.
A dispatch has been quoted from a French soldier, showing the terrible
havoc caused by the German machine guns, and a letter from a German
officer, published in the "Intelligenzblatt" of Berne pays a like
tribute to the artillery of the Allies. Speaking of this very section of
the battle front, he wrote:
"We were obliged to retreat as the English were attempting a turning
movement, which was discovered by our airmen. [This refers to the
advance of the British First Army Corps under Sir Douglas Haig in the
direction of La Ferte-sous-Jouarre, which, if it could have been
successfully carried out, would have meant the entire loss of General
von Kluck's southern army.] During the last two hours we were
continually exposed to the fire of the enemy's artillery, for our
artillery had all either been put out of action or had retreated and had
ceased to fire. [This dispatch was evidently, therefore, written toward
the end of the second day, on Monday, September 7, 1914, when General
von Kluck realized that his forward drive had failed and that he must
fall back.]
"The enemy's airmen flew above us, describing two circles, which means,
'there is infantry here.' The enemy's artillery mowed the ground with
its fire. In one minute's time I counted forty shells. The shrapnel
exploded nearer and nearer; at last it reached our ranks. I quickly
hugged a knapsack to my stomach in order to protect myself as best I
could. The shrieks of the wounded rang out on all sides. Tears came to
my eyes when I heard the poor devils moaning with pain. The dust, the
smoke, and the stench of the powder were suffocating.
"An order rang out, and bending as low as possible, we started up. We
had to pass right in the line of fire. The men began to fall like
ninepins. God be thanked that I was able to run as I did. I thought my
heart would burst, and was about to throw myself on the ground, unable
to continue, when your image and that of Bolli rose before my eyes, and
I ran on.
"At last we reached our batteries. Three guns were smashed to pieces,
and the gun carriages were burned. We halted for a few seconds to take
breath. And all the time that whistling and banging of the shells
continued. It is a wonder one is not driven mad."
Admiration cannot be withheld from General von Kluck for his splendid
fight at the battle of Coulommiers. He was out-generaled, for one thing,
because of his plan--or his orders--to strike a southeasterly blow; he
was outmaneuvered by the presence of a vastly larger British force than
he had any reason to expect, and he was outnumbered almost two to one.
Through the apple and pear orchards of La Tretoire the battle was
sanguinary; the British (reenforced on September 7, 1914, by some French
divisions) swept through the terrain in widely extended lines, for close
formation was not to be thought of with artillery and machine guns in
front. It was bitter fighting, and the German right contested every inch
of ground stubbornly. Once, indeed, it seemed that General von Kluck
would turn the tables. He rapidly collected his retreating troops, and
with unparalleled suddenness hurled them back upon the advancing First
Corps under Sir Douglas Haig. Aeroplane scouts decided the issue. Had
the British been compelled to await the onset, or had they been forced
to depend on cavalry patrols, there would have been no opportunity to
resist that revengeful onslaught. But no sooner had the Germans begun to
re-form than Sir Douglas Haig moved his machine guns to the front and
fell back a few hundred yards to a better position. This happened on
September 8, 1914, and may be regarded as the last offensive move made
by General von Kluck's army in the west. On that same day Coulommiers
was invested and Prince Eitel compelled to flee, and the battle of
Coulommiers was won.