Soon after the outbreak of the First World War, the German army had advanced deep into northeastern France. By early September 1914, Paris was preparing for a siege. The French commander in chief, General Joseph Joffre, decided to risk a counterattack along the Marne River. The battle of the Marne, which lasted from 5 to 19 September, forced the Germans to fall back, at a time when they could see the Eiffel Tower in the distance.*
Almost everybody thought that Joffre had won the battle, but some refused to agree. One day a newspaperman asked Joffre: "Will you tell me who did win the battle of the Marne?" "I can't answer that," said Joffre. "But I can tell you that if the battle had been lost the blame would have been on me."
第一次世界大戰爆發之後不久，德軍已深入法國東北。一九一四年九月初，巴黎即準備守城。法軍總司令約瑟夫．霞飛將軍決定沿馬恩河冒險反攻。九月五日到十九日的馬恩河會戰，迫使德軍退卻，而當時艾菲爾鐵塔已遠遠在望。*
馬恩河之捷，幾乎公認是霞飛的功勞，但有些人不同意。有一天，一位報社記者問霞飛：「馬恩河之捷，是誰的功勞？」霞飛說：「這個我無法回答。但我可以告訴你：要是會戰失利，那就一定是我的責任。」
*馬恩河會戰，令德國速戰速決的希望幻滅。德軍戰線後撤，但仍扼守大部分所佔土地，直到一九一八年。