The War Begins With the breakdown in diplomacy and the Great Powers mobilising, Europe was on the brink of war. Germany’s greatest fear was being trapped into a two front war against France and Russia at the same time.

Schlieffen Plan The Schlieffen Plan was a war plan originally created by German General Alfred von Schlieffen in the 1890`s. It was designed to help the Germans avoid the possibility of having to fight a war on two fronts: with Russia on the eastern border and with France on the western border. The rejection of Austria-Hungary’s ultimatum , and Russia’s subsequent mobilisation signalled the need for Germany to put this plan into action.

The Plan The plan called for a quick surprise attack on France through neutral Belgium. Five armies would form a ‘swinging hammer’, crushing the French army against the remainder of the German army. This would take France out of the war and allow Germany to concentrate on Russia.

Schlieffen Plan http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/animations/western_front/index_embed.shtml

Assumptions Britain would stay neutral. Germany did not want to have to face the British Empire while fighting the French and the Russians. Belgium would offer no resistance because she was a neutral nation. Russia would be too slow in moving her huge army up to the German border so that France could be eliminated before having to worry about Russia. This is why Russia was not considered first; France was able to mobilise much more quickly.

Assumptions Austria-Hungary would defeat Serbia very quickly and easily and this would allow the Dual Alliance to divert much of Russia’s army and thus help Germany. The French Army, along the border, would be drawn out of their forts and into German territory by a smaller Germany army acting as a diversion. They would fall back quickly to an entrenched position. This would allow the much stronger right wing of the German army to encircle the French Army while the French were tied up in the south.

What Went Wrong? Belgium did not give in. She resisted and this slowed the German advance. The Belgian defence was based on a system of forts that the Germans could not bypass for fear of being attacked from behind.

Treaty of London 1815 2. Britain entered the war in defence of Belgium because an old treaty agreement signed between the nations of Europe. Kaiser Wilhelm mused that Britain would not go to war over a scrap of paper.

Poor Execution The Schlieffen Plan was poorly executed. v. Moltke failed to prperly implement Schlieffen’s plan. The right wing was weakened to support the remaining army. This resulted in a failure to capture Paris, a necessary part of the plan.

Serbian Resistance Austria-Hungary could not defeat Serbia. Despite repeated invasions, it took German assistance on the Eastern Front to eventually defeat the Serbs

Miracle on the Marne The German advance was halted about 30 miles from Paris along the Marne river. The battle that ensued has been coined the Miracle on the Marne. According to French lore troops were rushed form the Paris garrison by nearly any means including the city’s fleet of taxicabs. Between August 30 and September 5 the Germans were turned back not having captured Paris.

The Race to the Sea As each army attempted to outflank the other, the battlefield sprawled across France and Belgium; eventually ending in a system of defensive trenches that stretched from the Swiss Alps to English Channel. Little territory would change hands for the next 4 years.