Completed the following sentence: French's most important role was as Commander-in-Chief (C-in-C) of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) for the first year and a half of the First World War. i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk>i<unk> <unk> <unk> <unk> <unk>
Le Cateau (where Smith-Dorrien made a stand contrary to French's wishes), French wanted to withdraw the BEF from the Allied line to refit and only agreed to take part in the First Battle of the Marne after a private meeting with the Secretary of State for War, Lord Kitchener, against whom he bore a grudge thereafter. ️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️ By summer 1915 French's command was being increasingly criticized in London by Kitchener and other members of the government, and by Haig, Robertson and other senior generals in France. ️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk>️<unk> Haig, who was formerly French's trusted subordinate and who had saved him from bankruptcy by lending him a large sum of money in 1899, replaced him.