By Nate Gaskell, Ethan Ashley, Makenna Karpunin, Autum Sears The Western Front By Nate Gaskell, Ethan Ashley, Makenna Karpunin, Autum Sears

Western Front The western front took place in France, Belgium, Alsace. The battle of the Mons was in 1914, The battle of the Ypres was in 1915, The battle of the Verdun was in 1916 and 1917, The battle of Cambrai was in was also in 1917, and the battle of the Reims was in 1918. The soldiers came up on deck only once or twice a day, usually for exercise or lifeboat drill. Many had never been to sea before, so they became sick from the pitching and rolling of the ship. There were three different types of trenches: There were Firing Trenches, Communication Trenches, and Support Trenches.

The Schlieffen Plan Lead up- Originally created by German Chief of Staff Alfred Von Schlieffen and unveiled in 1905 Was intended to take France by way of Belgium in 6 weeks in order to allow the Germans to simultaneously be at war with Russia, who was allied with France. This way a two front war could be avoided. The scheduled date of for the plan was 1916, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand along with subsequent troop movement by Russia led to a German attack on France in 1914 Troops- Involved were the German army with 1,300,000 men and 305,000 casualties The French army with 1,250,000 men and 329,000 casualties The Belgian army with 117,000 men and 4,500 casualties The British expeditionary force with 70,000 men and 29,597 casualties

Schlieffen Plan Cont. Where and When- The offensive was carried out in August 2, 1914 to September 12, 1914 Crossed through Belgium into France The Germans swiftly took land until they reached the Marne where the plan was halted due to fierce fighting and digging in. The landscape was relatively flat and made for terrible wet conditions once trench warfare took hold Outcome- The germans ultimately failed and had to fight a two front war

Battle of Verdun The Germans attacked Verdun because they thought they could break through the city and then continue into Paris. They hoped to end the war with a strong negotiation position. The French attacked back to defend the city. There was about 143,000 out of 337,000 deaths that were German casualties, and 162,440 out of 377,231 deaths that were French casualties. The French Army won and the German Army lost. February 21, 1916 - December 18, 1916 Took place in Verdun, France, near the North Sea due to the Germans attacking the city. The battle was from late winter, through spring and summer, on through autumn to early winter. All types of weather was experienced, from freezing cold to blazing heat. There were dry days, rainy days, and snowy days. The battle was between the German and the French armies.

The Battle of Somme The battle lasted 141 days. In a 15 mile front 100,000 brits tried to advance. The brits also used tanks for the first time in this battle. 1,600 pieces of artillery were fired for 8 days in the preliminary artillery bombardment. Thay advanced 5 miles with was the furthest in allied forces The total missing and wonder in the period was 419,654 there were 17,000 brits that died at the battle of the some with no known graves. The first day of the battle was also the bloodiest 19,240 soldiers died in action 90% of brits died from german machine guns The Battle of Somme

Importance of the Western Front The Western Front was the main theatre of war during the First World War. Following the outbreak of war in August 1914, the German Army opened the Western Front by invading Luxembourg and Belgium, then gaining military control of important industrial regions in France.

Monument/ Memorial Trench Warfare- Trench warfare was a staple of the western front Trenches can still be seen today Brought about many advances in the war to break the stalemate that revolutionized warfare from tanks, to the creeping barrage, to tanks, and scouting planes. Even the shape of the trenches was altered as a result of the ever changing battlefield.

Sources https://www.reference.com/history/won-battle-verdun-87d977afa894930d https://www.thoughtco.com/world-war-i-battle-of-verdun-2361415 http://www.answers.com/Q/What_was_the_weather_like_in_the_battle_of_verdun_in_world_war_1 https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Verdun https://www.mtholyoke.edu/~jedzi20h/classweb/The%20Schlieffen%20Plan.html http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/history/mwh/ir1/schlieffenplanrev4.shtml http://www.webmatters.net/maps/ww1_map_schlieffen.htm https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHeMPV5VDR4 https://kidskonnect.com/history/ww1-trenches/ https://books.google.com/books?id=0Dm0DAAAQBAJ&pg=PA80&lpg=PA80&dq=battle+of+the+somme+trenches+built+at+90&source=bl&ots=JzeLZX2kZO&sig=bYilo 8C784BsMZAFhAS58a6IPMQ&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi9k42X5q_WAhUC4YMKHYvXD0oQ6AEIZjAM#v=onepage&q=battle%20of%20the%20somme%20trenche s%20built%20at%2090&f=false