The First World War had some of the bloodiest battles and the greatest victories in history. Each of these victories was made possible by the brilliant work of some of the prominent generals of the early militaries. Here we have sampled 10 of the war generals whose strategies and military tactics determined the outcome of World War 1 and have significantly influenced the modern military establishment.
10. Paul von Hindenburg
Paul von Hindenburg was named the German Eight Army commander in August 1914. At the time, he was leading Germany in battles on two different fronts against the powerful Russia.
Still, he managed to defeat both the Second Army and the First Army in the Battle of Tannenberg and the Battle of the Masurian Lakes respectively. He eventually pushed the Russians out of East Prussia, extremely demoralizing them in the process. A lot of sources say this is one of the main factors that caused the 1917 Russian Revolution.
9. Ferdinand Foch
Ferdinand Foch was a highly decorated French Marshal. He played a central role in checking Germans forces at the start of the First World War. He was widely responsible for the victory against the Germans at the First Battle of Marne in September of 1914.
Foch was however later dismissed in 1916 following the botched offensive at Ypres and the massive casualties suffered in the Somme offensive a year later. He returned to the forces in 1917 as Chief of the French General Staff. A year later in 1918, Ferdinand Foch was appointed the Allied Armies’ Commander in Chief. He took a central part in creating the Hundred Days Offensive, following the successful German Spring Offensive, which ultimately forced the Germans to succumb.