Editing Second Battle of the Marne (section)

==German attack==
[[Image:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-R28717, Frankreich, deutsche Panzerschwadron.jpg|thumb|Captured British [[Mark I tank|Mark IV]] tanks used by German troops]]
[[File:2nd marne.jpg|thumb|left|upright=2.0]]

The battle began on 15 July, when 23 German divisions of the [[1st Army (German Empire)|First]] and [[3rd Army (German Empire)|Third]] armies – led by [[Bruno von Mudra]] and [[Karl von Einem]] – assaulted the French [[Fourth Army (France)|Fourth Army]] under [[Henri Gouraud (soldier)|Henri Gouraud]] east of [[Reims]] (the '''Fourth Battle of Champagne''' ({{langx|fr|4e Bataille de Champagne}}). The [[U.S. 42nd Division]] was attached to the French Fourth Army. Meanwhile, 17 divisions of the German [[7th Army (German Empire)|Seventh Army]], under [[Max von Boehn]], aided by the [[9th Army (German Empire)|Ninth Army]] under [[Johannes von Eben]], attacked the French [[Sixth Army (France)|Sixth Army]] led by [[Jean Degoutte]] to the west of Reims (the '''Battle of the Mountain of Reims''' ({{langx|fr|Bataille de la Montagne de Reims}})). Ludendorff hoped to split the French in two.<ref name=Marne2WW1></ref>

[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 102-00178, Frankreich, Eroberte französische Stellung.jpg|thumb|{{center|"German columns pass a conquered French position between Loivre and Brimont in the department of Marne." 1918. Credit to the German Archives. }}]]

East of Reims, the French Fourth Army had prepared a defense in depth to counter an intense bombardment and infiltrating infantry.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Gudmundsson|first1=Bruce I.|title=On artillery|date=1993|publisher=Praeger|location=Westport, CT|pages=95–101}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Kitchen|first1=Martin|title=The German Offensives of 1918|date=2001|publisher=Tempus|location=Stroud|pages=182–188}}</ref> Their main line of resistance was four to five km behind the front, beyond the range of the enemy field guns, it was a continuous trench line – to prevent infiltration – dug on a [[Reverse slope defence|reverse slope]] so it could not be overlooked by enemy artillery observers on the ground. Between the front and the main line of resistance were two lines of strong points, again mostly on reverse slopes. The French gun line behind the front was lightly manned, but the remaining guns fired frequently, so the Germans did not detect its weakness from rate of firing, although aerial observers did spot a concentration of field guns behind the main line of resistance. German offensive tactics stressed surprise, but French intelligence based on aerial observation gave clear warning and they learned the hour for the attack from twenty-seven prisoners taken in a trench raid.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Zabecki|first1=David T.|title=The German 1918 Offensives : A case study in the operational level of war|date=2006|publisher=Routledge|location=London|pages=257, 261}}</ref>

The German bombardment was scheduled for 12:10. The French opened fire on the German assault trenches at 11:30, naturally shaking the confidence of attackers. When the Germans opened fire they pounded the almost empty French front line and their counter-battery fire struck many vacated gun pits. The attackers moved easily through the French front and then were led onward by a rolling barrage, which soon was well ahead of the infantry because they were held up by the points of resistance. When they encountered the French mainline they were ordered to rest, regroup and wait until their field guns were moved into range. They attacked the main line at 08:30 the following morning, an hour after they had originally scheduled to attack. They were stopped by accurate fire by the bulk of the French artillery. They tried again at noon, but failed. A French counter-attack gained little ground, but convinced the German commanders that they could not prevail. The Fourth Army was now able to send reinforcements to their neighbors to the west who had not fared as well.

In the west on the opening day of the offensive the defenders of the south bank of the [[Marne (river)|Marne]] had to hold the river bank by enduring an intense three hour bombardment, including many gas shells. Under this cover [[Stormtroopers (Imperial Germany)|stormtroopers]] swarmed across the river in every sort of transport – including 30-man canvas boats and rafts. They began to erect skeleton bridges at 12 points under fire from the Allied survivors. Some Allied units, particularly Colonel [[Ulysses G. McAlexander]]'s [[38th Infantry Regiment (United States)|38th Infantry Regiment]] of the American [[3rd Infantry Division (United States)|3rd Infantry Division]], the "Rock of the Marne", held fast or even counterattacked, but by evening, the Germans had captured a bridgehead on either side of [[Dormans]] {{convert|4|mi|km|abbr=on}} deep and {{convert|9|mi|km|abbr=on}} wide, despite the aerial intervention of 225 French bombers, dropping {{convert|44|ST|t|lk=on|abbr=on}} of bombs on the makeshift bridges. Ludendorff regarded their advance as "the very pinnacle of military victory".<ref>{{cite book|last1=Ludendorff|first1=Marshal|title=The Two Battles of the Marne|date=1927|publisher=Thornton Butterworth|location=London|page=225}}</ref>

The French were reinforced by the British [[XXII Corps (United Kingdom)|XXII Corps]] and 85,000 American troops and the German advance stalled on 17 July 1918.