otect the Germans from Paris, and this he
successfully did.

No greater mistake can be made than to suppose that the German retreat
to Soissons and Rheims was precipitated by any victory over von Kluck.
A violent and heavy attack was, it is true, launched against him on or
about the evening of September 6th and was steadily maintained from
that time forward. At first he was pushed back for a number of miles
by the violence of this assault, but his counter attacks soon regained
most of the ground lost. Thus he advanced on the 5th, was pushed back
a little on the 7th, but advanced again on the 8th, driving the Allies
before him. On the 9th his left flank was threatened by the British
and he again retreated a little to consolidate his position. While so
doing he received news that the German army assigned to carry out the
main offensive in the neighborhood of Fere Champenoise had been
repulsed and was already beginning the retreat which later at many
points turned into a rout, and he then continued his own retreat until
he reached the Aisne.

Von Kluck advanced or retreated short distances as the fortunes of the
battle varied, but on the whole successfully maintained his ground and
only retreated for good when the Germans' principal attack had thus
been defeated at another and distant point. After the 6th he was at
all times heavily engaged and his losses and those of his opponents
were excessively heavy.

Since the battle of the Marne there has been an almost universal
tendency to declare that von Kluck was defeated and that Paris was
thereby saved. This verdict, though erroneous, is easily explained.
Von Kluck was nearest Paris, "everyone" was in Paris, and in an action
extending over hundreds of miles "everyone" saw only what was nearest
to him and drew his conclusions from that alone. The losses in von
Kluck's army and in the armies opposed to it were so heavy that it is
small wonder people concluded that they waged the main battle. In
truth, these losses were probably heavier than those of any previous
battle since ancient times. I wish to emphasize again that von Kluck
did not attack Paris and had no intention of so doing, but that Paris
attacked him and that he held this attack in check until it was no
longer necessary to do so, since the German strategy had failed at
other points.

* * * * *

Let us now consider the main German offensive and its repulse. The
French center had t