Modification to the Master Plan

September 2, 1914

Allied armies have been falling back in the face of the strengthening Germany Army in the west.  The Germans are pushing back both the French Army and the BEF.  Now the dilemma for the German 1st army is whether to press it forward around Paris and into the flank of the French Army, as was originally envisioned in the Schlieffen plan, or to take the "short cut" inside Paris and attempt to separate the enemy force from his capitol.  Recognizing the difficulty of lengthening lines of supply, Moltke opts for the latter.  This, of course, opens his own flank to attack from forces stationed in Paris to protect the city.  For commanders, war is always about minimizing certain facts on the ground in favor of others.

It becomes a time of endless marching for infantry of both sides.  Soldiers are learning how to sleep standing up and cavalry soldiers simply doze off and fall off their horses.

Now, the field commander of the crucial French 5th Army is changed.  The "worn out" General Lanrezac is replaced by an agressive corp commander General Franchet d'Esperey, who has recently demonstrated energy and initiative during the great strategic retreat.  The British, who nickname him, Desperate Franky, seem to approve of the change, and their commander General French, has developed a poor regard for Lanrezac.  The retired Lanrezac does receive, in retrospect, credit for keeping the 5th Army an effective mobile fighting force in being during one of the most difficult times of the war for the Allies.

Meantime further east, the Germans have won a major battle, the battle of Tannenberg in Prussia by concentrating against two massive Russian armies, stiking the blow before the two armies could (or would) unite. Prussian General Paul von Hindenberg is made a national hero by saving the source of German military pride from debasement by the slavs.  The chief-of-staff of the German 8th Army is a young officer recently promoted, Erich Ludendorf.  The German victory owes much to mistakes made by the Russian commander, Zilinski, and a long standing antipathy between the two Russian army field commanders, the First Army's Pavel Rennenkampf and the Second Army's Alexander Samsonov.

For the Axis, the situation is encouraging in the west,  where the Allies seem to be in full retreat, and in the center, where Russian numbers seem no match for German tactical superiority and discipline.  The situation looks less hopeful in South-Eastern Europe where the Austrians are being handled easily by the Serbs and their big brothers, the Russians.  The situations of both sides are still fluid and evolve rapidly.