On August 22, 1914, during the Battles of the Frontiers, the French army managed to loose 27,000 men killed in what became arguably the single bloodiest day of World War 1. What happened that day, and why did the French loose so many men?

by eric3844

Was it due to poor planning, lack of coordination, poor tactics, surprise attack, or something else entirely?

davratta

It was a combination of three factors.

  1. Four French field armies came into contact with four German field armies, simultaneously, over a wide front.
  2. The war was only three weeks old, so shell shortages were not yet a factor.
  3. The infantry had yet to learn the importance of digging in and did not yet realize how lethal twentieth century firepower was to soldiers in an open field.