War before 1914 War was often a quick affair Mobilization No one
wanted to be the last in Conscription vs. Occupation Limited vs.
Total War Slide 2 Slide 3 The Schlieffen Plan Alfred Von
Schlieffen, Germanys General Army Chief of Staff Instructed; Devise
a strategy that would be able to counter a joint attack Took 9
years to plan (1897 -1906) Slide 4 The Plan To allow a country to
mobilise against you, without response, was like allowing someone
to hold a loaded gun to you head without doing anything. Slide 5
The Schlieffen Plan Germanys plan for mobilisation Based on 3
ideas: War = Germany vs. France AND Russia France was weak
(1870-10wks) Russia was strong, but slow (6 weeks) Also, to be
considered; Belgium & Britian Slide 6 A Huge Hammer Blow to
Paris Was seen as the best option 90% of German army Quick,
decisive Result? Germany Paris Slide 7 The Schlieffen Plan, 1905
Slide 8 Germany Wanted to avoid French forts on the border with
Germany A scythe-like attack through Holland, Belgium and
Luxembourg seemed the best option Slide 9 Predict the Problems
Russia had France wasnt Slide 10 Interestingly, Schlieffen closed
his careful plans by concluding that Germany would be too weak in
numbers and transportation to take Paris. He believed that his plan
would most likely fail. In 1906, Helmuth von Moltke replaces Alfred
von Schlieffen as German Army Chief of Staff NEWS FLASH Slide 11
Helmuth von Moltke Modified the original plan: Holland was not to
be invaded Route flat plains of Belgium Belgiums small army would
not be able to stop German forces 34 divisions invade Belgium, 8
would stop Russia in east. Slide 12 2 nd August, 1914 Slide 13 The
Assumptions of von Moltke Russia would take _ weeks to mobilise
France would be easily defeated in _ weeks Belgium would ___
_______ any German attack _________ would remain neutral. Slide 14
In Reality 2 nd August 1914, German army invaded Luxembourg and
Belgium according to plan. Germans were held up by the Belgium Army
Belgium army was backed by the British Expeditionary Force (BEF)
Russia moblised in 10 DAYS Slide 15 Cause = Effect Because Russia
moblised quickly Because Belgium resisted invasion Because the BEF
arrived quickly Slide 16 Other points of Interest Theory #1:
Germany dropped some bombs on Nuremburg to have a reason to blame
& attack France Theory #2: Train timetables were the deciding
factor in the German and Russian mobilisation. Once they started,
they couldnt be stopped! Theory #3: Every country took YEARS to
plan their attack it was too much effort to modify it! When crisis
arose there was no back up plan it was do or die. On August 1 st
Kaiser Wilhelm tried to pause the German mobilisation but since
11,000 trains were on the move he was told he couldnt! Slide 17 Was
the Schlieffen Plan a Success? NO Why did it Fail? Reason 1 Reason
2 Reason 3 Other Possibilities Slide 18 As a Result Across France
there was a _____mile Front. Neither side could gain a decisive
advantage. This is called a ______________. After this occurred,
the winter was coming and the soldiers were forced to _________
___. They formed _______. Slide 19 The Western Front Slide 20 The
End For Now
