#25, Second Battle of the Marne: The Counterattack That Broke Germany's Will
The Second Battle of the Marne from July 15 to August 6, 1918, produced approximately 267,000 total casualties, 168,000 German and 95,000 French and American. It was the last major German offensive of World War I and the turning point that made Allied victory inevitable. Ludendorff launched his Friedensturm, "Peace Offensive", with 52 divisions across the Marne River, aiming to split the French armies before American reinforcements arrived in overwhelming numbers.
The German attack east of Reims ran directly into a French elastic defense that absorbed the blow and counterattacked. West of Reims, German troops crossed the Marne but advanced into a trap. On July 18, Foch launched his counterstroke: 24 French divisions, 8 American divisions, and over 300 Renault FT tanks struck the German salient from both flanks. The U.S. 3rd Division earned its "Rock of the Marne" nickname by holding the line at Château-Thierry. German morale cracked, for the first time, large numbers of German soldiers surrendered willingly. Ludendorff later wrote that July 18, 1918 was "the black day of the German Army." Second Marne marked the moment when initiative permanently shifted to the Allies and the countdown to armistice began.
