Book Review: The Guns of August by Barbara Tuchman,1962

        The centennial of the Great War, or the War to End All Wars or World War 1, is upon us.  On June 28, 2014, the centennial of the beginning incident was marked: the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand and his wife in Sarajevo by a 19 year old student radical.
        In 32 days, after much discussions at the highest levels of Europe's governments,  Germany crossed the border of neutral Belgium with a massive army of 300,000 troops.   The army was on its way to conquer France and its capitol, Paris.
       The author chronicles the 30+days of the opening of the conflict that embroiled the world with few exceptions, in a war that changed Europe and the world as it had been known until that time.   Her meticulous research, using primary sources, confirms the theories that the window of opportunity to prevent the war was small indeed.
      From the onset, it was apparent that the Kaiser had an agenda and a plan that he and his generals were more than ready to execute immediately.   In August of 1914, a very hot August it was,  the Allies were sent reeling from the German onslaught.  Belgians did not cooperate and stood alone against the tide that swept through their country.   Expecting no resistance, the Germans were not pleased when the little army became an opponent just strong enough to slow the wave down, giving France a little breathing room.
     The Germans dealt harshly with civilians and international reporting identified the perpetrators of mass executions and other outrages.   All activities were according to plan, and the Kaiser's troops continued on into France where they met slight resistance until the end of the month.
     Despite fierce engagements, the French were ill prepared, and kept up a fighting retreat, hoping for a miracle.  The miracle happened.  On August 31st, Gen. von Kluck, in charge of the army closest to Paris, decided to turn east to pursue the retreating forces of France.    Exposing his flank, the French Gen. Gallieni, seized the moment and with the help of the British Expeditionary Force, attacked the Germans' exposed position.  Within days, the tide had turned, and the apparently unstoppable spike-helmeted Teutons were swept to the east in a flight of disorganized panic.
     The war now was not going to end quickly.   Four and a half more years and 8 1/2 millions of casualties later, it would end on November 11, 1918.
     Of course, we know the experience did not end all wars but set the stage for the 2nd World War, 20 years later.
     For the next 4 years, commemorations will be held in many places.  Germans, generally will not be invited.   This book is highly recommended.