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CHAPTER 14

CHAPTER 14. 1918 - OFFENSIVE AND COUNTEROFFENSIVE. Ludendorff’s Decision. At the beginning of 1918 the war was still in a stalemate With the entry of America into the war in 1917 it became obvious to Ludendorff that the longer the war dragged on, the more chance the Allies had of winning

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CHAPTER 14

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  1. CHAPTER 14 1918 - OFFENSIVE AND COUNTEROFFENSIVE

  2. Ludendorff’s Decision • At the beginning of 1918 the war was still in a stalemate • With the entry of America into the war in 1917 it became obvious to Ludendorff that the longer the war dragged on, the more chance the Allies had of winning • In Germany there was continued hardship with resource shortages because of the naval blockade and industrial and political unrest

  3. How did Russia provide Germany with a reason to hope? • The Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 led to the withdrawal of Russia from the war • In March 1981 Russia was forced to sign the Treaty of Brest Litovsk. This formally ended hostilities between the two countries

  4. Why was Russia’s Withdrawal seemingly a solution to Germany?

  5. What did Ludendorff do? • He decided to launch a massive attack on the Allied lines in the spring of 1918 to try to achieve a breakthrough • The plan was to ‘punch a hole’ in the Somme and to possibly move north east to cut British communication lines

  6. The Battle of Picardy • This was the first battle in Operation Michael • German artillery launched more than 3 million rounds on the first day • The British suffered 38000 casualities • 21000 British prisoners were taken on the first day • The French General Petain told British War Commander Haig he could not send more troops – he was worried about protecting Paris

  7. What did it look like to Allied Leaders? • Many allied leaders thought they were staring defeat in the face • French General Foch was given authority to coordinate all Allied forces • The Germans launched another attack at the Battle of Lys. Haig announced that “no ground must be given” • By late April Ludendorff’s offensive had captured 1000 guns and almost 100000 prisoners. The Germans had captured more land than all the Allied attacks of the war had managed

  8. So Why didn’t the German Offensive Succeed? • The Germans continued to attack at the Third Battle of the Aisne. They fought the Americans at the Battle of Cantigny. But German supplies were running out and the Americans overpowered them at Belleau Wood in late June, even though 5000 American soldiers were lost • The final German battles were at the Battle of Matz and in mid July at the Second Battle of the Marne

  9. Were there any Gains for the Germans? • German gains were tactical rather than strategic. This means they had on balance one more battles during this offensive, they had not succeeded in their overall plan or strategy with Operation Michael. Rather, they had worn themselves out. • Ludendorff had suffered a million casualties. He was lacking reserves of men and supplies. He now had to face an Allied counteroffensive

  10. The Allied Counteroffensive • In late July Allied forces recaptured Chateau-Thierry 45 miles (70 km) northeast of Paris • In a few weeks, the Allies took 130000 Germans prisoner and captured 2000 heavy guns and 14000 machine guns. Ludendorff could not replace these losses • On 8 August, the Allied launched a massive counterattack at Amiens. This was a British victory even though they lost more than 180000 men

  11. The German advance had not progressed • General Foch ordered French troops to attack near Soissons • The Germans were forced to withdraw at the cost of 30000 prisoners • It was obvious now to Allied commanders than German resources were fully stretched • Allied tactics were now to hit the enemy at different points on the front one after the other, never giving the Germans a chance to recover

  12. In August Haig attacked near Armiens taking 20000 German prisoners

  13. On 12 September American forces hit St Mihiel near Verdun

  14. On 26 September American forces launched a successful campaign in Meuse-Argonne

  15. From 27 September to 17 October Haig launched repeated attacks on the Hindenburg Line’s strongest points

  16. From 28 September to 14 October the Belgians attacked near Ypres

  17. The French struck German positions in the Ardennes

  18. During September Foch launched coordinated attacks and concentrated use of tanks against exhausted retreating Germans

  19. How did Ludendorff Respond to the Allied Offensive? • He advised the German government to start making plans for peace. • See source 14.6 page 170 for Ludendorff’s explanation to the Reichstag

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