Rise of Empires: Spain.

Chapter 491: Changing generals on the spot
Putting aside the minor incident of the chemical warfare, the situation on the Western Front remains quite tense. After their defeat at the Battle of the Marne, the German army, unwilling to accept the failure of the Schlieffen Plan, instead committed even more troops to launch an offensive against Paris.

The French army was not to be trifled with either; they were determined to defend Paris and engaged in fierce fighting with the German army between the Marne and Aisne rivers.

While the German troops on the front lines were still launching their offensive, a quarrel broke out in the German high command at the rear.

After the Battle of the Marne, Moltke the Younger, then Chief of the General Staff of Germany, met with Kaiser Wilhelm II and brought bad news: the complete failure of the Schlieffen Plan.

The Schlieffen Plan was intended to quickly organize an army of over a million men to conquer Paris before the French had time to mobilize, thereby forcing France to surrender swiftly.

But now, not only is Paris fine, but the German army has also suffered a defeat on the Marne River, with the First Army suffering heavy losses and the Second and Third Armies also incurring huge casualties.

Under these circumstances, the Schlieffen Plan had completely failed, and the German High Command's plan for a swift victory had also largely fallen through.

As Chief of the General Staff of the German Army, Moltke the Younger was well aware of what the failure of the Schlieffen Plan meant. Germany was now fighting on two fronts, and if the dream of a quick victory was shattered, Germany would bear the enormous pressure of fighting on two fronts alone, and the only possible outcome seemed to be defeat.

Although Moltke the Younger was unwilling to admit it, the current outcome of the war has already bloodily demonstrated the fact that Moltke the Younger's modifications to the Schlieffen Plan were completely wrong.

Because Moltke the Younger reduced the number of troops in the Low Countries, the three German army groups were simply unable to capture Paris, the French capital, in a short period of time.

If there had been more German troops in Belgium, even just one more army group, the outcome would likely have been very different.

Knowing full well that his transfer had led to the defeat at the front, Moltke the Younger was pale with fright. He reluctantly went to the palace to see Wilhelm II and brought news that the Schlieffen Plan had failed.

Kaiser Wilhelm II could not accept such an outcome. Upon hearing that the Schlieffen Plan had failed and Germany was forced into a protracted war, Wilhelm II angrily questioned, "My Chief of Staff, please tell me why the Schlieffen Plan failed?"

Upon hearing Wilhelm II's question, Chief of the General Staff Moltke the Younger had a complicated expression. He couldn't very well tell the Kaiser that the failure of the Schlieffen Plan was entirely his fault, could he?
Although this is the current outcome, when the Schlieffen Plan was revised, there was not much opposition from the German military and the High Command.

Although it has now been confirmed that the revised plan was a mistake, Moltke the Younger does not feel that he should take the blame.

This is just a normal strategic misjudgment. Does that mean others don't make mistakes?

Looking at the little Moltke with a complicated expression and without saying a word, Kaiser Wilhelm II knew exactly what he was thinking.

For Wilhelm II, defeat in the war was absolutely unacceptable, and the failure of the Schlieffen Plan was even more unacceptable, as it would greatly shake the morale of the German army.

After seeing that Moltke the Younger was unwilling to take responsibility, Wilhelm II said angrily, "My Chief of Staff, please tell me, under your command, is there any chance of victory on the Western Front?"

Even if it comes to the last soldier, we must not accept a German defeat. If you are unable to lead the army on the Western Front to victory, then give the position of Chief of the General Staff to someone more capable.

Wilhelm II's words were already an open secret; under the current circumstances, it was essentially a forced resignation of Moltke the Younger.

Moltke the Younger knew perfectly well that he was incapable of leading the Western Front to victory. He had already lost the trust of Kaiser Wilhelm II, so there was no need for him to continue holding the position of Chief of the General Staff.

The very next day, German Chief of the General Staff Moltke the Younger resigned from his post due to illness, and Wilhelm II quickly accepted Moltke's resignation and immediately appointed War Minister Falkenhayn as the new Chief of the General Staff.

The change in the selection of the Chief of the General Staff caused quite a stir within the German military. Many high-ranking military officials did not expect that Moltke the Younger, who was originally trusted by Kaiser Wilhelm II, would step down so quickly.

What was even more unexpected was that Wilhelm II approved Moltke's resignation request almost instantly, as if he hadn't hesitated for even a moment.

Compared to Moltke the Younger, who became famous because of his uncle, Field Marshal Moltke, the Chief of the General Staff at this time, Falkenhahn, did not have such a high position within the German military.

Falkenhayn was born in 1861 and is only 52 years old this year, which is relatively young among the high-ranking military officers.

More importantly, despite Falkingham's promotion to the rank of German Army General after becoming Chief of the General Staff, he was just an ordinary major in Germany ten years earlier in 1903.

He rose from major to major general in just ten years, and was then quickly promoted to lieutenant general after the outbreak of World War I. He was then promoted to general again because Kaiser Wilhelm II appointed him as chief of the general staff of the German army.

During this period, Falkenhahn's promotion speed was remarkably fast; he could even be considered one of the fastest-rising officers in the German army.

This means that Falkenhahn rose from major to general in just ten years, from an insignificant mid-to-low-level officer in the military to a top-level officer who could decide the strategic plans of the German army.

Falkingham's rapid promotion was not actually related to his ability. A review of his resume reveals that he did not participate in any major battles, and his promotion from enlistment to major in 1903 was primarily based on seniority.

As the 20th century dawned, the escalating conflict between the two major military blocs led Germany to accelerate its preparations for war.

Falkenhayn also officially came into the sights of Kaiser Wilhelm II and was rapidly promoted in the last decade, becoming one of Kaiser Wilhelm II's confidants in the military.

The appointment of Falkenhayn as the new Chief of the General Staff of Germany was, in effect, a power balance by Kaiser Wilhelm II.

With the failure of the Schlieffen Plan, the German military was divided into two factions.

One faction, led by the original supporters of the Schlieffen Plan, still advocated for concentrating forces to attack France and seeking an opportunity to revive the Schlieffen Plan.

Another group of officers believed that since the western front could no longer achieve significant results, it would be better to focus their efforts on the eastern front.

The Russian army on the Eastern Front was weak and ineffective. If Germany could achieve significant results on the Eastern Front and force Russia to surrender, it could then refocus its efforts on dealing with France.

Because Germany concentrated most of its forces on the Western Front, there were many officers who supported the Schlieffen Plan. However, after the Schlieffen Plan failed, officers on the Eastern Front also began to voice their opinions, hoping that Germany would focus more on the Eastern Front, which would also allow them to gain more military merits. If you look at the list of high-ranking German military officers who supported a primary offensive on the Eastern Front, you will find two very familiar names: Ludendorff and Hindenburg.

Unlike Falkenhayn, who had little to no resume and could almost be considered a lackey of the German Emperor, Hindenburg had a rather impressive resume.

Born in 1847, Hindenburg was a veteran who participated in the Austro-Prussian War and the Franco-Prussian War, and was a member of the traditional German Junker aristocracy.

In addition to his extremely illustrious resume, during his tenure as Commander-in-Chief of the German Eighth Army in Hindenburg, he planned the Battle of Tannenberg, which defeated the Russian army, and was thus promoted to Field Marshal of the German Army.

Both in terms of resume and recent combat record, Hindenburg is undoubtedly superior. However, Hindenburg is currently only the commander-in-chief of the German Eighth Army. The reason is simple: Kaiser Wilhelm II's goal at this time is still to attack France, and he does not agree with the Eastern Front offensive plan supported by Hindenburg and Ludendorff.

This also explains why Kaiser Wilhelm II was sidelined in the later stages of World War I. As the Emperor of Germany, Wilhelm II had developed considerable disagreements with the traditional military aristocracy of the Junkers.

For the German Empire and Prussia, the Junker aristocracy was a crucial element, and the fighting capacity of the German army largely depended on the assistance of the Junkers.

The disagreement with the Junker aristocracy meant that the Kaiser lost control of the army, and it was only natural that his power was sidelined.

However, this cannot be blamed on Wilhelm II. By this time, the Junker nobles within Germany had already amassed considerable power.

If, at this point, members of the Junker aristocracy such as Hindenburg were to be appointed with impunity, the result would be that the influence of the Junker aristocracy within Germany would grow ever larger, even far exceeding that of the Hohenzollern royal family.

Wilhelm II saw the threat posed by the Junker aristocracy, which is why he promoted Falkenhayn, who was more obedient to him, to the position of Chief of the General Staff of Germany.

But Wilhelm II could never have imagined the incredible resilience the French would display in this war, repeatedly thwarting the German offensive.

As a staunch supporter of Kaiser Wilhelm II, Falkingham's first act upon assuming the position of Chief of the General Staff of Germany was to reiterate the importance of the offensive on the western front and reject the offensive plans on the eastern front proposed by Hindenburg and Ludendorff.

Falkingham was unwilling to reinforce the Eastern Front; he still hoped that the German army would maintain absolute superiority on the Western Front and look for opportunities to deliver a fatal blow to the French army.

This was also what Kaiser Wilhelm II hoped for. With the combined efforts of the Emperor and the Chief of the General Staff, even Hindenburg, a highly respected military figure, was powerless to change the situation.

Under the command of the newly appointed Chief of the General Staff, Falkenhayn, the fully replenished German First, Second and Third Armies launched another attack on Paris after a brief rest.

The land dozens of kilometers north of Paris also became a bloody battlefield, with countless dead and wounded on both sides staining several rivers around Paris red. Such a brutal war earned the land between the Aisne and Marne rivers the nickname "Red Land".

In order to express their dissatisfaction with the new Chief of the General Staff, while Falkenhayn launched an offensive on the western front, Hindenburg and Ludendorff, as commanders-in-chief of the Eighth Army and chiefs of the General Staff, also launched an offensive against the Russian army on the eastern front.

Hindenburg and Ludendorff's plan was simple: to demonstrate the weakness of the Russian army to Kaiser Wilhelm II and the military leadership through concrete actions.

They simply didn't believe that the United Front Work Department could stop the continued offensive on the eastern front, given the Eighth Army's repeated victories on the eastern front.

Since the defeat at the Battle of Tannenberg, the Russian army has adopted a completely defensive posture.

With Spanish funding, the Russian army received a large amount of weaponry, equipment, food, and medical supplies, and managed to hold out against the German offensive for a time.

Although Germany occupied large swathes of Russian territory, fortunately, Russia's territory is extremely vast, and the lost territory is only a drop in the ocean for Russia at present.

Hindenburg and Ludendorff originally intended to lure the Russian army into launching an attack against them, thus replicating the Battle of Tannenberg.

Surprisingly, the Russian army acted like a coward, refusing to launch an attack on the German army no matter how they were lured.

Even though Hindenburg had ordered the Eighth Army to expose its flanks, the Russian army remained calm and showed no sign of taking any action.

This also frustrated Hindenburg and Ludendorff, as the Eighth Army alone could not achieve much if the Russian army did not launch an offensive.

The front lines advanced step by step, but the results were still far too poor. Such meager gains were not enough to change Kaiser Wilhelm II's mind, and Hindenburg and Ludendorff could only tolerate it for the time being, waiting for the Western Front to make the first mistake.

The French military also learned of the news that Germany had replaced its Chief of the General Staff.

This is not necessarily good news for the French government. With Germany continuing its offensive against France, France will have to maintain an equal-sized army to counter Germany.

Prolonged consumption of resources would be a huge burden on the French government's finances and would also cause France to suffer enormous casualties.

More importantly, the war has now spread to French soil, and all the battles, large and small, are taking place on French soil.

Besides the tragic casualties among the French army, the losses among French civilians were also extremely heavy. The German army was indifferent to the casualties of the French people, resulting in millions of French civilians being displaced and hundreds of thousands dying or being injured as a result of the war.

Every day the war dragged on, France's industry and economy suffered further damage. But there was no other way; faced with the relentless German offensive, the French army had no choice but to fight desperately, or Paris would fall.

If Paris falls, then there's no point in worrying about France's economy and industry. Even the survival of the French government will be questionable, and the will to resist will be significantly weakened by the loss of the capital.

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(End of this chapter)