Beginning of the Battle of the Marne. On September 5, 1914, the French attempted to repel the German advance northeast of Paris, beginning the Battle of the Marne. After hostilities began in Europe in August 1914, Germany launched an offensive on the Western Front, hoping to defeat France before the Russians, in the east, advanced too far. The Germans swept into Belgium, defeating the Allies, and by September the “Schlieffen” plan—aimed at exhausting French forces—seemed to be coming to a triumphant conclusion. The Germans crossed the Marne northeast of Paris, and the government was evacuated from the capital. But on September 5, 1914, the French began attacking the German right flank, which was more exposed, and by the following day the counteroffensive had spread to all sides. On September 9, the exhausted German troops began their retreat. Paris was saved. The battle saw approximately 500,000 dead and wounded.
