Atlas of Battles

commander, 33 engagements

Battles of Erich Ludendorff

Battles of Erich Ludendorff

German general and politician (1865–1937)

Erich Ludendorff is recorded as a commander at 33 placed engagements in the atlas between 1914 and 1918: 31 battles and 2 campaigns across 5 present-day countries, most in France (16), Belgium (9), Poland (4). Taken in date order, the sites lie 7,424 km apart end to end, 232 km between engagements on average. Most belong to World War I (33).

Battle of ŁódźRussian invasion of East PrussiaBattle of BolimówSecond Battle of the Masurian LakesNarew OffensiveBattle of the Ancre HeightsOperations on the Ancre, January – March 1917Battle of ArrasSecond Battle of the AisneBattle of the HillsNivelle OffensiveBattle of the Menin Road RidgeCapture of Wurst FarmBattle of Polygon WoodBattle of BroodseindeFirst Battle of PasschendaeleBattle of SoissonsOperation MichaelBattle of the AvreSecond Battle of Villers-BretonneuxSecond Battle of the MarneThird Battle of the AisneBattle of Château-ThierryMeuse-Argonne OffensiveBattle of CourtraiBattle of the Lys and the EscautBattle of the SelleBattle of LiègeBattle of TannenbergFirst Battle of the Masurian LakesBattle of VerdunThird Battle of YpresBattle of LiègeBattle of TannenbergBattle of VerdunThird Battle of YpresBerlinViennaAmsterdamFrankfurtHamburgWarsawBudapestMunichPragueZürich500 km51.876N, 12.170E
33 placed engagements, coloured by era. Present-day coastlines; ringed marks are the most widely documented.

Engagements by year

1914: 5 engagements1915: 4 engagements1916: 2 engagements1917: 11 engagements11 in 19171918: 11 engagements11 in 191819141918
33 dated engagements, one bar per year, coloured by era.

In time order

Battle of Łódź, 1914Russian invasion of East Prussia, 1914Battle of Liège, 1914Battle of Tannenberg, 1914First Battle of the Masurian Lakes, 1914Battle of Bolimów, 1915Second Battle of the Masurian Lakes, 1915Narew Offensive, 1915Great Retreat, 1915Battle of Verdun, 1916Battle of the Ancre Heights, 1916Operations on the Ancre, January – March 1917, 1917Battle of Arras, 1917Second Battle of the Aisne, 1917Battle of the Hills, 1917Nivelle Offensive, 1917Third Battle of Ypres, 1917Battle of the Menin Road Ridge, 1917Capture of Wurst Farm, 1917Battle of Polygon Wood, 1917Battle of Broodseinde, 1917First Battle of Passchendaele, 1917Battle of Soissons, 1918Operation Michael, 1918Battle of the Avre, 1918Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux, 1918Second Battle of the Marne, 1918Third Battle of the Aisne, 1918Battle of Château-Thierry, 1918Meuse-Argonne Offensive, 1918Battle of Courtrai, 1918Battle of the Lys and the Escaut, 1918Battle of the Selle, 191819141918
One tick per dated engagement; each tick is a link.

Wars 1

Engagements by date

DateEngagementPlaceFrom the lastResult
1914Battle of ŁódźŁódź, PolandSee #Aftermath; German plan of encirclement and destruction...
1914Russian invasion of East PrussiaEast Prussia, Russia334 km NGerman victory
4 August 1914Battle of LiègeLiège, Belgium1,111 km WSee Aftermath section
23 August 1914Battle of TannenbergOlsztyn, Poland1,080 km NEGerman victory
7 September 1914First Battle of the Masurian LakesMasurian Lake District, Russia102 km EGerman victory
31 January 1915Battle of BolimówBolimów, Poland247 km SWInconclusive
7 February 1915Second Battle of the Masurian LakesMasurian Lake District, Russia247 km NEGerman victory
1915Narew OffensivePrzasnysz, Poland132 km SWGerman victory
1915Great RetreatBelarus, Estonia737 km NECentral Powers victory
21 February 1916Battle of VerdunVerdun, France1,716 km SWFrench victory
1 October 1916Battle of the Ancre HeightsAncre, France226 km WBritish victory
1917Operations on the Ancre, January – March 1917France24 km NEBritish victory
9 April 1917Battle of ArrasArras, France25 km NSee Analysis
16 April 1917Second Battle of the AisneSoissons, France115 km SEInconclusive
17 April 1917Battle of the HillsChampagne, France53 km SEInconclusive
1917Nivelle OffensiveFrance66 km NWIndecisive
31 July 1917Third Battle of YpresYpres Salient, Belgium159 km NSee Analysis section
20 September 1917Battle of the Menin Road RidgeBelgium0 km WBritish victory
20 September 1917Capture of Wurst FarmYpres, Belgium7 km WBritish victory
3 October 1917Battle of Polygon WoodPolygon Wood, Zonnebeke, Belgium9 km SEBritish victory
4 October 1917Battle of BroodseindeZonnebeke, Belgium7 km WBritish victory
12 October 1917First Battle of PasschendaelePassendale, Belgium10 km NEGerman victory
1918Battle of SoissonsFrance170 km SAllied victory
21 March 1918Operation MichaelHauts-de-France, France52 km NSee Aftermath section
5 April 1918Battle of the AvreAvre, France68 km WBritish victory
25 April 1918Second Battle of Villers-BretonneuxVillers-Bretonneux, France13 km EAllied victory
27 May 1918Second Battle of the MarneMarne basin, France120 km SEEntente victory
27 May 1918Third Battle of the AisneAisne, France34 km NSee Aftermath section
18 July 1918Battle of Château-ThierryChâteau-Thierry, France46 km SWAllied victory
1918Meuse-Argonne OffensiveGrand Est, France131 km EAllied victory; End of World War I
14 October 1918Battle of CourtraiYpres, Belgium219 km NWAllied victory
20 October 1918Battle of the Lys and the EscautEast Flanders, Belgium23 km EAllied victory
1918Battle of the SelleSelle, France141 km SWAllied victory

Sources and method

Commanders come from the commander fields of the English Wikipedia infoboxes of these engagements (CC BY-SA 4.0), resolved to one article each; portrait, dates and description from Wikidata (CC0) and Wikimedia Commons, Alexander Binder, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. Distances are great-circle distances between recorded sites, not marches.