Paris taxis carried soldiers to the front during which First World War battle?

Paris taxis carried soldiers to the front during the First Battle of the Marne in September 1914. The episode became famous as the “Taxis of the Marne.”

As German forces advanced toward Paris during the opening weeks of the First World War, General Joseph Gallieni, the military governor of Paris, ordered taxis to help move reinforcements toward the threatened front. Many of the vehicles were Renault Type AG taxis operated by the G7 company.

About 600 taxis gathered at Les Invalides on 6 September, and the broader operation transported several thousand soldiers toward the fighting near the Ourcq and the Marne. The taxis mainly moved troops from railheads toward the front rather than transporting an entire army directly from Paris.

Popular retellings sometimes claim that the taxis alone saved Paris or won the battle. Their military contribution was modest compared with the forces carried by rail, but the operation had enormous symbolic value. It demonstrated civilian participation in the emergency and helped make the First Battle of the Marne one of the most memorable episodes of early motor transport in wartime.