The Kreuznach Conference refers to a series of conferences held in 1917 in Bad Kreuznach, then the headquarters of the Oberste Heeresleitung (OHL), the German Supreme Army Command.
The first Kreuznach Conference, held on April 23, 1917, brought together the political and military leaders of the Reich to define the war aims of the Reich, which was then occupying a significant portion of Europe.[1]
The second conference, held between May 17 and 18, 1917, was a meeting between the German Emperor, Wilhelm II, and the Austrian Emperor, King of Hungary Charles. This was the first meeting between the two leaders since the enthronement of the Austro-Hungarian monarch on November 22, 1916. The objective of this conference was to establish a unified framework for the Central Powers' policy.[2]
The third conference, held on August 9, 1917, had the objective of defining German policy towards the dual monarchy in the wake of the publication of the Papal Note of August 1. The fourth conference, convened on October 7, 1917, sought to define a new program of war aims. The final conference, held on December 19, 1917, focused on redefining the Reich's Eastern policy.
References
edit- ^ Farrar, L. L. (1 December 1976). "Separate Peace - General Peace - Total War: The Crisis in German Policy during the Spring of 1917". Militaergeschichtliche Zeitschrift. 20 (2): 51–80. doi:10.1524/mgzs.1976.20.2.51.
- ^ Snell, John L. (1951). "Benedict XV, Wilson, Michaelis, and German Socialism". The Catholic Historical Review. 37 (2): 151–178. ISSN 0008-8080. JSTOR 25015254. Retrieved 14 November 2023.