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Leo Labusquïere 1915
image: a head and shoulders portrait of General Michel-Joseph Maunoury, with illustrations of a French guard and the
Médaille Militaire below. The print also incorporates a passage of text, relating to the occasion when Maunoury was badly wounded, being
shot in the eye, when touring frontline trenches on 13 March 1915. He was subequently awarded the Médaille Militaire for
leadership.
Michel-Joseph Maunoury (1847 - 1923) was recalled from retirement upon the outbreak of war, at the age of 67, to
command the so-called 'Army of Lorraine'. This was a key command in France's Plan XVII strategy, the central aim of which was to recapture
Alsace-Lorraine, a key industrial area that had been annexed to Germany in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71. However, as was also to
happen to the German Empire's Schlieffen Plan, this pre-arranged strategy proved impractical. Maunoury's seven reserve divisions were
initially deployed in Lorraine, but only briefly, instead having to move north-west before being deployed near Paris on 1 September 1914.
The attack of Maunoury's forces on 6 September launched the start of the First Battle of the Marne, the battle that effectively halted the
initial German invasion of France. The wound he suffered in March 1915 ended his active service career. | Publisher: | http://www.iwm.org.uk | Subjects: | Maunoury Michel-Joseph French Army Military Personnel portrait / personification Western Front medals / orders / decorations First World War | Source: | Imperial War Museum | Creator: | Labusquïere, Leo | Identifier: | http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/o... | Go to resource |
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