William Street, General Staff Headquarters, Germany.
The sky was just turning light, the office still lit by electric lamps, and Hindenburg was already up, emerging from the rest room.
Hindenburg did not want to work day and night like this, but the battlefield situation did not allow him any slack.
The battles in Italy and Romania were deadlocked, the Eastern Front was victorious, but the Western Front was on the verge of collapse at any moment.
Hindenburg had been under intense watch for weeks, until recently the Western Front had become stable in the "night battle tug," allowing him to finally get a good night's sleep.
Hindenburg sat at his desk, and an orderly quickly brought him breakfast, a piece of whole wheat bread and a cup of coffee.
The supply situation in Germany was always bleak, even Hindenburg, the Chief of General Staff, had restrictions on his diet.
Hindenburg casually picked up the coffee, flipping through files as he asked, "What happened last night?"
