Marshal Ferdinand Foch (French pronunciation: [fɔʃ]), GCB, OM, DSO (2 October 1851 – 20 March 1929), was a French soldier, military theorist, and First World War hero credited with possessing "the most original and subtle mind in the French army" in the early 20th century.
Foch's prestige soared as a result of the 1914 victory at the Marne for which he was widely credited as the chief actor while commanding the French Ninth Army. This led to his ...
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Marshal Ferdinand Foch (French pronunciation: [fɔʃ]), GCB, OM, DSO (2 October 1851 – 20 March 1929), was a French soldier, military theorist, and First World War hero credited with possessing "the most original and subtle mind in the French army" in the early 20th century.
Foch's prestige soared as a result of the 1914 victory at the Marne for which he was widely credited as the chief actor while commanding the French Ninth Army. This led to his promotion to Marshal of France and ultimately "Supreme Commander of the Allied Armies" in 1918, at which time he played a decisive role in halting a renewed German advance on Paris in the Second Battle of the Marne.
Postwar historians took a less sanguine view of Foch's talents as commander, particularly as that idea took root that his military doctrines had set the stage for the futile and costly offensives of 1914 in which French armies suffered devastating losses. The efficacy of Foch's tactical ideas are debated—the Ninth Army's...
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