Recaps

As German forces pressed their attack on Paris, General Gallieni and General D'Esperey struggled to keep the Anglo-French defenders fighting while General Allenby doubted they could hold out. The French government, now in Orléans, learned that Paris was nearing ruin and faced an increasingly bleak future.

• General Allenby told General Gallieni that his troops had lost more than twenty percent of their strength and might soon be unable to resist the German offensive.
• General Gallieni urged Allenby to keep fighting, while Allenby privately resolved not to die if the battle was lost.
• After Allenby left, General D'Esperey warned that he was wavering, and Gallieni insisted that the French must continue defending Paris.
• The French government fled to Orléans and considered moving farther south to Bordeaux or Toulouse.
• President Poincaré asked War Minister Alexander Millerand about Paris, and Millerand reported that German artillery and aircraft were reducing the city to ruins.

German 150mm heavy artillery devastated British positions in Paris, leaving the Anglo-French Allied Forces unable to withstand the German assault. As losses mounted and reinforcements ran out, General Allenby resolved that he had to survive and return to Britain.

• A German Captain requested artillery support, and six 150mm Heavy Artillery pieces bombarded the British position with more than two hundred shells over ten minutes.
• German soldiers advanced onto the ruined position and found the British defenders annihilated by the bombardment.
• A staff officer told General Allenby that the 33rd Infantry Division had lost more than half its strength and wanted to withdraw, but Allenby ordered it to hold its ground.
• When the 37th Infantry Division requested support, Allenby said he had no reinforcements available and told it to rely on its own strength.
• General Allenby concluded that the Anglo-French Allied Forces could not defeat the Germans and resolved to return to Britain rather than die in Paris.

General Allenby decided that Britain and France could not win the war and persuaded the commanders of the British Expeditionary Force 4th Army Corps to surrender to Germany. The commanders agreed, leaving Allenby ready to put the surrender into action.

• General Allenby concluded that the British and French forces had no chance of victory and decided to surrender to Germany to save himself and his troops.
• General Allenby told his adjutant of his plan, and the adjutant agreed to carry out his orders.
• General Allenby summoned the corps and division commanders and described the dire state of the defense of Paris.
• After the commanders acknowledged that they could not stop the German advance, General Allenby proposed surrendering to avoid further casualties.
• The British commanders hesitated but then agreed to obey General Allenby's order to surrender.

Oscar negotiated the surrender of the British Expeditionary Force 4th Army Corps and accepted General Allenby’s terms, expecting the agreement to hasten Germany’s capture of Paris. He also considered whether Allenby could later help Germany consolidate control over Britain.

• Major General Manstein told Oscar that Major Edward, General Allenby’s adjutant, had arrived to discuss surrendering the British Expeditionary Force 4th Army Corps.
• Major Edward said General Allenby wanted to stop fighting and could speak only for the British corps, not the French forces.
• Major Edward requested guarantees for the British soldiers’ safety, supplies, medical care, freedom from forced labor, and return to Britain after the war.
• Oscar accepted the conditions, except that the British could not keep cultural relics looted in Paris, and promised to release the soldiers after the war.
• Oscar informed General Kluck and General Dithfurth of the agreement, and they welcomed the British surrender as a way to speed the capture of Paris.
• Oscar considered Allenby a capable potential ally who might help Germany establish influence in Britain.

General Allenby agreed to surrender the British Expeditionary Force 4th Army Corps to Germany in exchange for acceptance of his terms, including the surrender of looted Parisian treasures. He formally handed Oscar his sidearm on April 21, while German troops secretly occupied the southern districts of Paris and prepared to seize the bridges across the Seine.

• Oscar hoped Britain would refuse to surrender so Germany could defeat it outright and install a pro-German government afterward.
• Major Edward reported that Germany had accepted the surrender terms but demanded that the British hand over the cultural relics they had looted from Paris.
• General Allenby accepted the demand and arranged the surrender with the German military for the early hours of April 21.
• The British commanders informed their troops of the surrender, and those who opposed it were arrested.
• General Allenby presented Oscar with his sidearm as German troops took over the British defensive sector south of the Seine without alerting the French.
• Oscar praised Allenby and suggested that he could receive an important position if Germany later set foot on the British Isles.

Oscar and the German commanders planned a surprise armored assault to seize the Seine bridges and open a path into northern Paris. The attack began at dawn, and German tanks reached the French bridgeheads before the defenders understood what was happening.

• Allenby considered turning to Germany for support so he could gain power after Britain’s defeat.
• Oscar and the German commanders chose to seize the Seine bridges with armored troops, infantry, air support, and artillery.
• The 1st and 5th Army Corps prepared elite forces to attack the bridges at five in the morning.
• Oscar ordered the assault, and German tanks advanced across the bridges while the French defenders mistook their engines for British vehicles.
• German tanks surprised the French at the bridgeheads, and a tank cannon blasted apart a French fortification.

German forces crossed the Seine into northern Paris after the British surrendered, taking the French defenders by surprise. French efforts to destroy the bridges failed, leaving the German advance unchecked and the French 1st Army Corps battered and retreating.

• German tanks and infantry crossed the bridges, overwhelmed the French guards, and secured the crossings.
• General Gallieni and General D'Esperey learned of the attack and suspected the British had surrendered.
• General Gallieni ordered artillery to destroy the bridges and sent the 1st Army Corps to counterattack.
• German artillery and aircraft suppressed the French guns, whose shells failed to damage the bridges.
• The French 1st Army Corps failed to drive the Germans back and withdrew after half a day of fighting.

After British troops surrendered and German forces seized the Seine bridges, French defenders struggled to hold Paris while the government fled south and debated its response. Three days later, the remaining French troops surrendered, and General Gallieni shot himself.

• General D'Esperey reported that his 1st Army Corps had failed to retake the Seine bridges and suffered heavy losses.
• General Gallieni told D'Esperey to keep resisting until they received orders from President Poincaré.
• President Poincaré condemned the British surrender, demanded an explanation, and allowed Gallieni to decide whether to continue fighting or surrender.
• The British government called the surrender an isolated incident, assured France of its continued support, and sentenced General Allenby to death in absentia.
• After three more days of fierce German attacks, the remaining French troops in Paris surrendered, and General Gallieni shot himself.

Oscar toured the ruins of Paris after German forces captured the city, then returned to Versailles to plan the next stage of the war. Despite Paris’s fall and the destruction of much of the Allied strength, Oscar resolved to continue fighting until France was thoroughly defeated.

• Oscar entered Paris with German officers and learned from General Kluck that only scattered French resistance remained.
• Oscar and the generals viewed the ruined Seine riverfront and collapsed Eiffel Tower before leaving Paris for Versailles.
• Major General Manstein reported that the Anglo-French forces had suffered heavy losses but might grow to roughly two million troops as France formed new army corps.
• Oscar declared that the war had to continue until the French were thoroughly defeated.

Oscar planned the final German offensive in France, assigning five army corps to advance south and two to move west toward Le Havre while the 4th Army Corps guarded the supply lines. The commanders prepared to finish the French campaign before a later invasion of Britain.

• Oscar ordered the army corps to advance south through France and west toward Le Havre, aiming to destroy French resistance and prevent the British Expeditionary Force from escaping.
• General Kluck warned that the Germans needed troops to guard northern France and protect their stretched supply lines.
• General Bülow proposed leaving the 4th Army Corps under the Duke of Württemberg to secure logistics, and Oscar approved.
• Lieutenant General Ludendorff and General Kluck urged Oscar to send the navy to support the attack on Le Havre, and Oscar agreed.
• Oscar cautioned the commanders against overconfidence and told them to prepare to end the French campaign before planning a landing in Britain.
• The next day, the 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 6th, and 7th Army Corps advanced south, the 1st and 8th Army Corps headed west, and the 4th Army Corps guarded the supply lines.

Wilhelm II celebrated Germany’s victories after the capture of Paris and heard his commanders predict France’s imminent defeat and a future invasion of Britain. The chapter left him confident that the German Empire would win the war and dominate the world.

• Wilhelm II praised the German forces for defeating the Anglo-French Allied Forces and capturing Paris.
• Field Marshal Falkenhayn reported that France’s weakened, poorly equipped forces were unlikely to withstand the German Army’s continued advance.
• Field Marshal Count Tirpitz said the Crown Prince had ordered preparations to encircle the British Expeditionary Force at Le Havre ahead of a future landing in Britain.
• Wilhelm II declared that Germany would force France to surrender and destroy Britain if it continued to resist.

Moltke the Younger and Lieutenant General Prittwitz resented Oscar’s victories and rising influence, while accepting that they had failed to undermine him. Prince Friedrich brought Prittwitz to a secret meeting at an estate in Potsdam, and Prittwitz emerged two hours later smiling.

• Moltke the Younger brooded over his defeat and admitted that Oscar’s position as heir seemed unshakable.
• Lieutenant General Prittwitz blamed Oscar for his stalled career and grew agitated over Oscar’s growing power.
• Prince Friedrich arrived and invited Prittwitz to meet someone, but withheld the person’s identity.
• Prittwitz went with Prince Friedrich to an estate in Potsdam and emerged two hours later smiling.

Lieutenant General Prittwitz visited Moltke the Younger and urged him to hope for a return to power, while Moltke warned him to accept the political reality and retire. Prittwitz revealed his resentment over losing command of the 8th Army Corps and prepared to persuade Moltke to join his cause.

• Moltke the Younger worked on a book about military command after hearing that Lieutenant General Prittwitz had come to see him.
• Prittwitz praised Moltke’s military ability and said that his supporters in the Army still hoped he would lead them again.
• Moltke admitted he wanted to return to office but said Oscar’s influence and Falkenhayn’s successes made that impossible.
• Moltke advised Prittwitz to retire and leave Berlin to avoid being targeted by people seeking the Crown Prince’s favor.
• Prittwitz rejected Moltke’s advice and said he could not accept losing the 8th Army Corps command to the Crown Prince’s intervention.

Moltke the Younger agreed to accompany Lieutenant General Prittwitz to learn about a supposed opportunity to bring down Oscar. At a secluded estate in Potsdam, Prince Eitel Friedrich led him to meet the former Imperial Crown Prince, Wilhelm II’s eldest son.

• Moltke the Younger listened as Lieutenant General Prittwitz complained about Oscar and the loss of influence.
• Lieutenant General Prittwitz claimed they had a legitimate opportunity to bring Oscar down, and Moltke the Younger agreed to hear more.
• Moltke the Younger and Lieutenant General Prittwitz drove overnight from Berlin to a secluded estate in Potsdam.
• Prince Eitel Friedrich greeted Moltke the Younger and led him upstairs to a bedroom.
• Moltke the Younger saw Wilhelm II’s eldest son, the former Imperial Crown Prince, seated in a wheelchair.

Crown Prince Wilhelm secretly revealed to Moltke the Younger that he had awakened and asked for help reclaiming the crown-prince position from Oscar. Moltke chose to support Wilhelm, accepting the risk of a dangerous struggle for power.

• Crown Prince Wilhelm told Moltke the Younger that he had awakened half a month earlier and was gradually recovering.
• Wilhelm said he had kept his awakening secret from Wilhelm II because he wanted to reclaim his former position from Oscar.
• Crown Prince Wilhelm offered Moltke the Younger the posts of Minister of War and Chief of Staff, a ducal title, and hereditary lands in return for his support.
• Moltke the Younger weighed the possible rewards against the danger of failure and agreed to help Crown Prince Wilhelm with all his strength.

Crown Prince Wilhelm gathered military supporters to plot reclaiming the succession from Oskar by force. The conspirators decided to overthrow Wilhelm II as well and put Crown Prince Wilhelm on the throne.

• Crown Prince Wilhelm secured Moltke the Younger’s support and arranged another meeting to plan their operation.
• Moltke the Younger concluded that a mutiny was the only way to seize the palace and neutralize Wilhelm II and Oskar.
• Moltke the Younger and Lieutenant General Prittwitz joined Marshal Goltz, General Graf, and the Duke of Württemberg at Crown Prince Wilhelm’s estate.
• Marshal Goltz warned that Wilhelm II fully supported Oskar, leaving the conspirators with only extreme measures.
• Lieutenant General Prittwitz proposed forcing Wilhelm II to abdicate, and Crown Prince Wilhelm agreed to have himself placed on the throne.

Crown Prince Wilhelm and his allies planned to overthrow Wilhelm II and seize the throne while keeping the war going. On the night of April 26, Imperial Guard troops mobilized and attacked the palace, launching a mutiny in Berlin.

• Duke of Württemberg, Moltke the Younger, and other allies agreed to force Wilhelm II to abdicate and counted on influencing thirteen Imperial Guard battalions.
• Crown Prince Wilhelm planned to detain Wilhelm II, bring the 4th Army Corps back from France, and neutralize Oscar while continuing the war.
• Moltke the Younger and Duke of Württemberg proposed launching the coup three nights later, and Crown Prince Wilhelm promised rewards to his supporters.
• On the night of April 26, Lieutenant General Graf's Imperial Guard troops mobilized without Wilhelm II noticing the betrayal.
• Imperial Guard troops seized roads, railway stations, and radio stations, arrested officials, and attacked the palace as a mutiny erupted in Berlin.

Rebels led by Lieutenant General Prittwitz and Moltke the Younger seized control of Berlin, attacked the palace and General Staff Headquarters, and captured Falkenhayn and other senior officers. Wilhelm II woke to news that the palace was under attack and demanded to know where the Imperial Guard was.

• Lieutenant General Prittwitz led rebel troops in storming the palace and ordering them to cut communications and search every room.
• The rebels disarmed loyal Imperial Guard units, took control of Berlin, and attacked the Naval Ministry and Army General Staff.
• Moltke the Younger led the capture of Falkenhayn and other officers at General Staff Headquarters, then revealed a plan to summon Oskar to Berlin and strip him of the Crown Prince position.
• Moltke the Younger worried that the rebels lacked the strength to withstand Oskar's forces if their coup became known.
• Wilhelm II woke to the gunfire, heard from Essen Jonath that armed men had attacked the palace, and angrily demanded to know where the Imperial Guard was.

The Imperial Guard seized the palace, and Wilhelm II learned that Lieutenant General Prittwitz had led the mutiny out of resentment toward Oscar. Prittwitz revealed that the soldiers served someone else, leaving Wilhelm II to ask who stood behind the coup.

• Wilhelm II ordered the Imperial Guard to suppress the attack, but Essen von Jonath reported that the phone lines were down and the Imperial Guard had joined the assault.
• Wilhelm II told Essen von Jonath to warn Oscar about the mutiny, then went to the palace hall as gunfire ceased.
• Lieutenant General Prittwitz entered with Rebel Army soldiers and admitted he had rebelled because Oscar had taken the command and battlefield achievements he felt were his.
• Wilhelm II tried to persuade the soldiers to return to his side, but Prittwitz said they were loyal to someone else.
• Wilhelm II asked Prittwitz who the mutineers' true leader was.

Crown Prince Wilhelm’s mutiny succeeded, putting Berlin and Wilhelm II under his conspirators’ control. He confronted his father at the imperial palace and demanded an abdication decree, leaving Wilhelm II facing his son’s bid for the throne.

• Wilhelm II waited under Lieutenant General Prittwitz’s guard as Crown Prince Wilhelm’s forces seized Berlin and its key locations.
• Marshal Goltz reported that the mutineers had taken the imperial palace and placed Wilhelm II under control.
• Crown Prince Wilhelm, Prince Eitel Friedrich, and their allies went to the palace to confront Wilhelm II.
• Wilhelm II was shocked to discover that his trusted commanders and his sons had led the mutiny.
• Crown Prince Wilhelm demanded that Wilhelm II write an abdication decree and pass the throne to him.

Crown Prince Wilhelm demanded that Wilhelm II abdicate so he could take the throne, backed by generals who had joined his mutiny. After Wilhelm II refused and struck him, Crown Prince Wilhelm shot him, leaving the Emperor collapsed on the floor.

• Crown Prince Wilhelm told Wilhelm II to abdicate and hand him the throne, but Wilhelm II angrily refused.
• Lieutenant General Prittwitz and the other generals supported Crown Prince Wilhelm, while Wilhelm II accused Prittwitz and Moltke the Younger of betraying him.
• Moltke the Younger defended his actions, saying Wilhelm II had made him the scapegoat for the Western Front’s failure.
• Crown Prince Wilhelm urged Wilhelm II to issue an abdication decree before Oscar could learn of the mutiny and stop them.
• Wilhelm II slapped Crown Prince Wilhelm out of his wheelchair, and Crown Prince Wilhelm drew his pistol and shot him.

Crown Prince Wilhelm killed Wilhelm II and, with his supporters, plotted to seize power by forging an abdication decree and luring Oskar back to Berlin. The conspirators settled on claiming Wilhelm II was gravely ill, while Wilhelm secretly resolved to kill Oskar if he returned.

• Crown Prince Wilhelm shot Wilhelm II dead, and Empress Victoria confronted him before Prince Eitel Friedrich took her upstairs.
• Lieutenant General Prittwitz and Duke of Württemberg called the killing self-defense, and Crown Prince Wilhelm asked how to secure the succession and bring Oskar back to Berlin.
• Moltke the Younger and Duke of Württemberg warned that Oskar commanded much of the army and navy, prompting Crown Prince Wilhelm to decide Oskar must die.
• Marshal Goltz proposed summoning Oskar in Wilhelm II's name, but Moltke the Younger rejected the idea because the Western Front battle was ongoing.
• Moltke the Younger suggested claiming Wilhelm II was gravely ill, and Crown Prince Wilhelm agreed to use that excuse to summon Oskar.

Oscar planned the German invasion of Britain after the French front was pacified, but urgent telegrams reported that Wilhelm II was gravely ill and Berlin had fallen to a rebel army. Oscar prepared to return to Berlin as the crisis left the Empire’s leadership and capital in danger.

• Oscar and Manstein discussed the forces, logistics, and corps needed to invade Britain after defeating the Anglo-French forces.
• A telegram reported that Wilhelm II was gravely ill and ordered Oscar to return to Berlin to take charge.
• Oscar instructed the Western Front corps to continue their offensive while he prepared to leave for Berlin.
• Karl von Jonath sent Oscar a warning that Crown Prince Wilhelm’s Rebel Army had seized Berlin and the imperial palace.
• Oscar failed to reach Karl again and concluded that Berlin was in grave danger and Karl was likely dead or in hiding.

Grand Admiral Count Tirpitz learned that the Naval Ministry had been attacked and Berlin could no longer be reached, so he suspected a mutiny and ordered the Navy to intervene. He also decided to contact the Crown Prince, whom the Navy regarded as its rightful ally, while the 1st Marine Division prepared to march on Berlin.

• The Naval Ministry sent a Telegram to Wilhelmshaven reporting that the Imperial Guard had attacked it, and the duty officer informed Grand Admiral Count Tirpitz.
• Grand Admiral Count Tirpitz and the naval commanders failed to contact Berlin and considered the possibility that the Imperial Guard had rebelled.
• Grand Admiral Count Tirpitz ordered the 1st Marine Division to assemble and take the train to Berlin in two hours.
• Marshal von Pohl warned that moving troops without orders was a grave crime, but Grand Admiral Count Tirpitz accepted responsibility and insisted they act.
• Vice Admiral Hipper suggested contacting the Crown Prince, and Grand Admiral Count Tirpitz agreed while ordering the division to prepare immediately.

Oscar mobilized naval and army forces to suppress a rebellion in Berlin while ordering the Western Front to remain stable. He did not know who had orchestrated the uprising, unaware that Crown Prince Wilhelm’s awakening had enabled the coup.

• Oscar received a Telegram announcing that the 1st Marine Division would reach Berlin the next morning.
• Oscar ordered General Hindenburg to take an Infantry Division and the 9th Armored Division to Berlin and crush the rebellion, and told other units not to act without his orders.
• Oscar summoned the Western Front corps commanders to Versailles and learned that the Crown Princess and his son were safe in Munich.
• After Major General Manstein left to send the Telegrams, Oscar wondered who was behind the rebellion and did not realize Crown Prince Wilhelm had awakened and led the coup.