I write this on today’s date in remembrance of an event that has slipped from our memories as time passes and history moves on. Or does history move on?
September 5 – 12 were the days when the Miracle of the Marne was fought 94 years ago in 1914. To sum it up, after what Bismarck referred to as, “some damned foolish thing in the Balkans,” a series of events were unleashed and the first world war erupted. The militant Germany invaded France by way of Belgium in August of 1914, delivered France a crushing blow in the opening Battle of the Frontiers, and a once-confident French Army was forced to retreat to a line near Paris.
Fortunately the exhausted French, with British assistance, mustered up enough strength, courage and élan to make one last desperate counteroffensive near the Marne River, and hence miraculously halted the advance of thousands of German troops, thereby barely preventing the fall of France. The rest, as they say, is history. The opposing forces dug into their trenches resulting in a stalemate, and a war of attrition ensued for four more long years until the U.S. finally intervened and tipped the scales against the Germans-after fifteen million Europeans had perished.
The Miracle of the Marne was a historical turning point. It marked the beginning of the West’s efforts to prevent the subjugation of free people by domineering ideologies throughout the 20th century. Defeating German militarism in World War I was only the beginning. The totalitarian threats that followed were even more ominous. Fortunately they too fell, as fascism was defeated in 1945 after carnage unprecedented in history (World War II), and communism ended with a whimper in 1989 after the fall of the Berlin Wall.
At the beginning of the 20th century, however, no one foresaw the coming bloodshed and threats posed to the West that would come to define the last century. Before 1914, the prevailing wisdom was that war had become obsolete, economic interdependence between nations precluded any possibility of a prolonged war, and humanity’s progress would continue in perpetuity. After all, no major war had been waged on the european continent since Napoleon. But after Germany united in 1871, it rose in power rapidly until push came to shove and consequently World War I resulted, marking the end of the notion of “uninterrupted progress,” in the words of former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.
After the Cold War, the U.S. was supposed to cash in on its “peace dividend,” as there was no longer a malign great power or legitimate ideology to compete with the U.S. The West had triumphed! Many leading voices felt that “the End of History” was upon us-implying a perpetual peace among nations. This was the talk of the 1990s.
Now let’s take a cursory glance at recent headlines. The U.S. military has been engaged in Iraq and Afghanistan for some time now. The Beijing Olympics symbolized the entrance of a rising China as a great power on the global stage. Concurrently, a resurgent Russia invaded South Ossetia and then marched into Georgia proper while they are also planning to ship high-tech air defense systems to Iran. An intransigent Iran is seeking a nuclear weapon. Israel is threatening the use of force to prevent such a nightmare scenario. Pakistan already has nuclear weapons, and its pro-U.S. leader has been forced to step down in an already unstable country where less than 10% of the population is kindly disposed to the U.S. North Korea has procured nuclear weapons as well, and delivered nuclear technology to Syria, which Israel took out in a hush-hush airstrike one year ago. Let’s also keep in mind the pervasive and vitriolic ideological threat of Islamic extremism.
Such realities, especially this latest Russian aggression, have led Robert Kagan-a senior foreign policy advisor to Senator John McCain-to conclude, rightly or wrongly, that history has returned, dreams have ended and great powers will again pursue their own self-interests notwithstanding international legalisms. And these interests are bound to conflict, especially in a world of scarce resources. Throughout history, armed conflict has unfortunately resulted from many such disputes over national interest when diplomacy fails.
As Americans, we inherently feel safe from these threats since we are flanked by two vast oceans and share a continent with two friendly neighbors. Yet in a globalized world, we must keep in mind that our national interests are inextricably linked to many of these global hotspots. We have also come to question the extent to which we are actually protected by those vast bodies of water.
All Americans and Westerners ought to appreciate these global realities, learn from the past and thus maintain vigilance abroad. (Yes, this does require dreaded defense spending.) Seemingly small and distant threats can conflagrate into much larger and deadlier conflicts, just as “some damned foolish thing in the Balkans” did 94 years ago and sparked the beginning of the cataclysmic 20th century world wars. We don’t expect this to happen, but neither did anyone before 1914.
Do I think the 21st century will be a repeat of the 20th century? Of course not – history never repeats itself. But it unfortunately does rhyme on occasion. Although our world nowadays is undoubtedly different than before 1914 and today’s threats have different faces, we need to be aware that threats are looming around the corner if the past has taught us anything, no matter how distant they may seem in time or space. It is essential to nip them in the bud before they crop up into something far worse. We shouldn’t be afraid of an uncertain future. Rather, be smart about it and certainly not short-sighted, and always be ready for surprises.
On this day, let us remember and give thanks to the heroes of the Marne, but pray that prudent politicians and an enlightened public never again let the West get that close-unnecessarily-to such an existential predicament.
Chris Barton is a senior political science and finance dole major. He can be reached for comment at [email protected].
