The Colorado statesman., 1922-03-25
DISASTER OF 1917
Inside Secret of the Great World
War Now Revealed.
Crushing Defeat Of the French Armies
Under General Nivelle Due to
That Leaders Overconfdence.

The Revue de Paris is printing,
month by month, the fullest account
yet given of the greatest disaster sus-
tanned by the allies on the western
front during the war. This was the
defeat of the French armies under
General Nivelle between Reims and
Solssons on April 16, 1917 The ac-
count is given by NJ. Palnleve, who
was the French war minister at that
time, though he only came into office
when the plans for the battle were
complete and their execution almost
Inevitable. NJ. Painleve often has
been attacked for his own action be-
fore and after the smash, so he speaks
as a party to a case. Still, more of
what he says is only new in the sense
that 1t has not been fully published
before, though 1t was substantially
known to the French and British gen
eral STATS within a few weeks of the
calamity. The French attack, com
monty known at the time as the Chem
in des Danes attack. was to be the
main blow of the Franco-Brltlsh Of
fensive for the year. Sir Douglas
Haig, placed Professionally and with
some qualification under the supreme
command of Nivelle, was to attack on
April from near Arras in the north
to our right flank near st. Quentin in
the south.
Our part of the work was to draw
off the German strength from the crit
ical point, to kill and be killed and
keep Ludendorff busy rather than to
penetrate far. The whole scheme was
Nivelle's Nivelle had been made com
mander in chief in succession to Joffre
the Christmas before, to the exclusion
of Foch and Petain. Nivelle was at
the moment the latest fashion in gen.
erals. French political feeling that
winter was in a state of reaction
against the "Somme school'-the
school of Foch and Haig, the Limited
objective" school, the school which re-
stricted the depth of infantry advances
to ground on which artillery had quite
ruined the enemy's defense. Nivelle
represented a new "Verdun school, Of
swifter, deeper advance. He had sue
ceeded at Vaux and Douaumont n few
months before, by making his men
advance in way that the "Somme
school" would have thought reckless
because they or their predecessors had
tried it in 1915 and found it disas-
trous, but this was forgotten; fashion
had changed; it had gone back to the
more slashlng fashions of 1914 and
1915; Foch and Haig were back num-
bers Nivelle was the man, and wis
dom would die with him. SO he was
given the whole Franco-British offen-
sive In 1917 to mold at his will.
His mind was completely made up
by New Years day 1917. He had not
a shadow of doubt, from then on, that
he would be able to drive straight north
ward from Reims towards Brussels,
behind the German front, cutting off
the German northern armies. To any
one, soldier or statesman, who sug-
gested doubt or an extra precau-
ton he said, In effect, Leave 1t to me.
| I pledge you my word we shall win."
| To infect the troops with his own op-
timism he circulated freely among
regimental officers full written details
Of the plan of attack, the date, the at
tacking strength, everything. This was
done in January. Within a fortnight
the enemy knew 1t all. Ludendorff In
his book of memoirs tells us how
German raiding party captured, in the
pocket of dead French captain OF
the second division, the French plan
of battle. The Germans had now two
months in which to fit up as an abat-
toir the ground which Nivelle meant
to capture first. They drew back their
whole line between Arras and the Brit
ish right, fulfilling the great part Of
the Intended British division. Then
they sent down to the Reims-Soissons
front the troops thus economical.
Then they rigged up on the high flats
of Vauclerc and Craonne, where the
chief hopes of Nivelle's coming attack
centered, such an aggression of ma
chine guns and quick-firing guns, hood
ed with concrete and metal as no
troops ever had to face, before or af-
ter-Manchester (Eng) Guardian.