Helmuth von Moltke
- Born:
- May 25, 1848, Gersdorff, Mecklenburg [Germany]
- Died:
- June 18, 1916, Berlin (aged 68)
Helmuth von Moltke (born May 25, 1848, Gersdorff, Mecklenburg [Germany]—died June 18, 1916, Berlin) was the chief of the German General Staff at the outbreak of World War I. His modification of the German attack plan in the west and his inability to retain control of his rapidly advancing armies significantly contributed to the halt of the German offensive on the Marne in September 1914 and the frustration of German efforts for a rapid, decisive victory.
Moltke rose rapidly in the German army, becoming adjutant in 1882 to his uncle and namesake, who was chief of the General Staff. The personal favour of the emperors William I and William II, coupled with his great name, elevated him to offices for which he was completely unqualified. In 1903 Moltke became quartermaster general; three years later he succeeded Alfred von Schlieffen as chief of the General Staff. He thus inherited Schlieffen’s plan for a war on two fronts, which envisaged only light German forces facing Russia on the east until France on the west had been defeated. In the Schlieffen plan of campaign against France, the German left (southern) wing would hold Alsace-Lorraine defensively while an overwhelmingly strong right (northern) wing would advance rapidly through Belgium and northern France, outflanking and eventually helping encircle the French armies while also capturing Paris.
As chief of staff Moltke’s principal duty was to revise the Schlieffen plan to meet modern conditions. But his task was a difficult one, and when war broke out in August 1914 Moltke did not measure up to its requirements. He allowed several army commanders on the German left wing to attack into France instead of remaining on the defensive. Moreover, he reinforced these attacks with divisions taken from the crucial right wing and then sent several more divisions to the Eastern Front to check the Russian advance into East Prussia. The German high command lost touch with the advancing armies of the right wing, and the movements of that wing’s constituent units became disjointed. These and other factors culminated not only in the right wing failing to encircle the French left but becoming itself the victim of a French and British flank attack that halted the entire German offensive at the Battle of the Marne (Sept. 6–12, 1914). Moltke’s mood became more and more despairing during this time, and he finally abdicated responsibility completely. On Sept. 14, 1914, Emperor William II replaced Moltke as chief of staff, though he retained nominal command until the end of the year. A speedy victory in the west had eluded Germany’s grasp, and within a few months of the Battle of the Marne the Western Front had settled down to the murderous and static trench warfare that was to persist unabated for almost three years. Moltke died a broken man less than two years later.
