The memoirs of Erich von Falkenhayn (1861–1922), Minister of War (1913–1915) and Chief of the General Staff (1914–1915) of the German Army, are of particular interest primarily due to the key posts that the author held during the First World War . Written immediately after the end of the war, they became one of the first attempts by its main characters to comprehend the completed four-year massacre, which led to the collapse of four great empires: German, Austro-Hungarian, Russian and Ottoman. Since the end of the war and the writing of memoirs are separated by a very short period of time, the book is characterized by the freshness of memories and impressions of military events.