On this day, 111 years ago, on September 5, 1914 (July 16, 1914 in the lunar calendar), Germany, Britain and France launched a major battle on the Marne River. The Battle of the Marne in the Champagne region was an important battle that took place in the Marne region of France in the early days of World War I. In August 1914, the German army engaged in a fierce battle with French and British troops on the French border, and the two sides invested a total of 3.5 million troops. The French and British forces were forced to withdraw southward. On September 3, the Germans crossed the Marne River. On the 5th, the main force of the French army was redeployed and began to counterattack the German army on the 200-kilometer front along the Marne River. On the 9th, it forced the German First and Second Armies, which had rushed south, to retreat to the line north of the Marne River to Verdun. The Battle of the Marne failed the German army's plan to outflank the French army. Germany's quick-decision strategy in the Western Front was bankrupt. The Chief of Staff Moltke was dismissed by Kaiser Wilhelm II and replaced by Falkenhayn. Map site of the Battle of Marne