Had the German army been mechanised at the outbreak of World War One, it is likely that the outcome of the war would have been very different. The Schlieffen Plan and Germany's Defeat on the Western Front The Schlieffen plan can and will never be dismissed from the reasons behind the German defeat, not only for the loss on the Western front but the war itself. German general General Alfred von Schlieffen, The plan failed because it wasnt realistic, both Russia and France wanted to battle Germany, they employed a similar (though not identical) version in WWII, The Impact of World War INew World Disorder, The Great Powers of World War IGermanys Revolution, War, Nutritionism, and the Great Depression, The Great Powers of World War I Germanys Revolution, The Assassination ofArchduke Franz Ferdinand: Europe on the Brink of World War I. In World War I, the Schlieffen Plan was conceived by German general General Alfred von Schlieffen and involved a surprise attack on France. Stressing the cult of the offensive, Plan XVII tended to underestimate German reserves that could be deployed in the defense of these territories and, in a very real sense, played into the expectations of the Schlieffen Plan. Germany faced a war on two fronts. It does have some truth in it, but there is more to it than this statement says. Moltke believed that Russia would slowly mobilize for war, and if they defeated France in 6 weeks, Germany could then later deal with the Russian juggernaut. Of course! There were troops around Paris, and they were about to punish him for not sticking to the plan. He fought in wars against other countries like Austria-Prussia and France. the German advance south from Belgium was swift and decisive. The plan failed because it wasn't realistic, requiring a flawless unfolding of events which never occurs in wartime. The strategy had originally been developed in the 1890s by Count Alfred von Schlieffen. Then Russia was quicker to respond than the Germans thought. One notable exception is the Schlieffen Plan. These plans are typically called wargaming. Prussia invented the modern version of wargaming in the 18th century, but it not adopted widely by other nations until after the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1871. The Russian blow would first fall upon the very weak Hapsburgs with the French standing mobilized on the German border. What assumptions were the Schlieffen plan based on? The British Expeditionary Force (BEF), mobilized quickly and was thrown into battle in northern France. As most of the French army was stationed on the border with Germany, the Schlieffen Plan aimed for the quick defeat of France by invading it through neutral Belgium and moving rapidly on to capture Paris. Beck, 2014If you want to buy some of the books we use or recommend during our show, check out our Amazon Store: http://bit.ly/TGWAmazonNOTE: This store uses affiliate links which grant us a commission if you buy a product there. But it was still the same idea: General Schlieffen decided that, even if the French attacked somewhere else in France, he would focus on the right-wing of the German army. The First World War, Vintage, 2000.Hastings, Max. Klucks shift east had left the German flank exposed. We are happy if you show our channel to your friends, fellow students, classmates, professors, teachers or neighbours. Or just share our videos on Facebook, Twitter, Reddit etc. Some people say that the generals caused the war. That last group was to block any French attempt to counterattack, and it could be detached and transported to the extreme right if necessary. Moltke talked to Kaiser Wilhelm II after German forces were defeated. Required fields are marked * Comment * Name * The Schlieffen Plan failed for 6 key reasons: The Germans could not keep to the 6-week timetable for defeating France: the Belgian Army slowed the German advance at forts around Liege, while the BEF slowed it further at the Battle of Mons . There are so many what ifs that it is hard to know how the outcome of the war would have been different if Germany had not made their plan. The Schlieffen plan was also the only Germany's plan for war ("GCSE Bitesize: Extra Facts." BBC. This could have meant that the Western Front was limited to a 25-mile area of the Belfort Gap and not 200 miles of trench warfare. [], On June 28, 1914, the heir to the Habsburg throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and his wife were both assassinated in the capital of Bosnia, Sarajevo. Moltke estimated six weeks for deployment, leading Germany to believe France could be defeated before the Russians fully mobilized. WHAT ARE YOUR SOURCES? The Schlieffen Plan disregarded the political implications of what was regarded as essentially a technical solution to a military problem. This plan would make use of the extensive German rail network to quickly move troops between fronts and defeat each nation one at a time. Without checking with his superiors, Kluck swung his forces southeast. It however had a couple of weaknesses, especially due to Von Moltke's modifications which doomed it to failure. In the process of the German advance, as the Schlieffen Plan continued to move through the stages of its prospective sections, it was discovered that a gap had opened up between the advancing German armies, between the First Army under General von Kluck and the Second Army under General von Blow. They were marching east of Paris instead of going west and encircling the city. The Schlieffen plan failed because Germans underestimated Russia and the plan depended on rapid deployment, which was resisted by Belgium. The Schlieffen Plan The most influential plan was that of Germany - the Schlieffen Plan - drawn up in 1905 by General Alfred von Schlieffen. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. The first reason is that, in order to invade France, the German first and second armies were in Belgium needing to get to and conquer Fort Liege. A Short History, Penguin, 2008.Keegan, John. ), check out our partner sites KidsKonnect, SchoolHistory, and HelpTeaching for hundreds of facts, worksheets, activities, quizzes, courses, and more! This assumption proved to be false, as Britain joined the war just days after the German invasion of Belgium. As well as the fact that Germany's army simply wasn't strong enough. Although the French army put up token resistance for several more weeks, their spirit was broken and the German advance south from Belgium was swift and decisive. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. To address this, Germany came up with the Schlieffen Plan, which would allow Germany to quickly defeat France in a surprise attack before Russia had a chance to build up its forces. Some of the reasons this plan failed was because. The events in May and June 1940 proved that this outdated vision of war could not have been further from reality. Free essay example: "The Schlieffen Plan failed because the German high command made too many mistakes in August and September 1914". Schlieffen anticipated fierce French resistance, and thus knew that success depended on the deployment of the entire Germany army against France. A small, neutral country. Schlieffen was convinced that a modern enemy force could be defeated in the same way, and the execution of a massive flank attack became the main focus of his plan. This caught French troops off-guard and they soon surrendered. The king of Belgium was neutral. At the start of the 20th century, Germany had a strategy for fighting a war in Europe. The failure of the Schlieffen Plan also resulted from several incorrect assumptions that hampered the attack. The German general Schlieffen counted on two things. Next. Germany went to war with Russia on August 1st, 1914. The Maginot Line: the Allies expected a protracted, defensive war Russia mobilized its troops quicker than expected. Germany went on the offensive against France, but with only 80% of their forces as the Russians tied up the other 20% on the eastern border. It is little known that Alfred von Schlieffen, whom the strategy is named after, actually devised two separate plans for war. Why were Pacifists opposed to the war? But from time to time, Indy reads and answers comments with his personal account, too. Germany wanted to avoid this at all costs. Shortcomings of the plan: Why didn't the Schlieffen Plan work? Germany went to war with the plan of Helmuth von Moltke. Schlieffen foresaw the potential to fight a two-front war against both France and Russia, and also a one-front war against France while Russia remained neutral. Schlieffen envisioned the attack would take no more than 6 weeks, as the capture of Paris and encirclement of the French army would lead France to seek peace. It was called the Schlieffen Plan. https://www.britannica.com/event/Schlieffen-Plan, Spartacus Educational - Biography of Schlieffen Plan, Russia had just been defeated by the Japanese. Multiple mysteries in the disappearance of pilot Amelia Earhart and finally a possible answer. Because of that, the French had fortified this road with new forts. Essentially, speed would be of the essence: first, by very quickly destroying France, and then turning on the Russian great power, a country that was expected to be slower to mobilize and more ponderous in its preparations for war. Even if Britain did defend Belgium, the Kaiser believed that there was no need to fear the British Expeditionary Force, which he called a 'contemptible little army'. This view that the Germans used technology, namely the tank and the dive-bomber, to create a new and unique form of warfare has often dominated understanding of how the Germans fought in World War Two. Germany, therefore, could eliminate one while the other was kept in check. Timeline. The resistance of the Belgians and the BEF prevented this. The Allies believed that 'blitzkrieg' was dependent on new technology, such as tanks and dive-bombers The uniqueness of the Schlieffen Plan was that it ran counter to prevailing German military wisdom, which was principally derived from Carl von Clausewitzs seminal work On War (1832) and the strategic thought of the elder Helmuth von Moltke. Corrections? Fighting in late August caused General Karl von Blow, commander of the Second Army, serious problems. Kluck believed it was a safe move as he knew of no significant concentrations of enemy troops near Paris. The Schlieffen Plan was an operational plan used by the Germans to take over France and Belgium and carried out in August 1914. Germany lost World War II. Though a seemingly logical idea, the Schlieffen plan failed tragically for the Germans. Schlieffen wished to emulate Hannibal by provoking an Entscheidungsschlacht (decisive battle), using a massive force, in a single act, to bring a swift and conclusive victory. Alfred von Schlieffen's Military Writings by Robert T Foley (Frank Cass, 2003), The Breaking Point: Sedan and the Fall of France, 1940 by Robert A Doughty (Archon Books, 1990), The Roots of Blitzkrieg: Hans von Seeckt and German Military Reform by James S Corum (University Press of Kansas, 1992), The Path to Blitzkrieg: Doctrine and Training in the German Army, 1920-1939 by Robert M Citino (Lynne Reinner, 1999), Germany and World War Two, Vol. Last updated 2011-03-30. The Schlieffen Plan was initially perceived as flawless and strategic, and its purpose was to gain victory quickly for Germany. The Failure of the Schlieffen Plan The Failure of the Schlieffen Plan In 1914, Germany believed that they would go to war with Russia. Across the English Channel, a stunned British military establishment struggled to determine how it was that events had so quickly gone so horribly wrong. While the Allies suffered as heavily as the Germans, they gained a strategic victory. Die Bchse der Pandora: Geschichte des Ersten Weltkrieges, C.H. Unlike a generation later when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi high command actively sought to create a two-front war, Imperial Germany knew that a war with either Russia or France meant a war with both.. Eventually, it led to Germanys downfall. Moltke watered down the plan. Those forces were to wheel south and east after passing through neutral Belgium, turning into the flanks and rear of the hardened French defenses along the German border. The bridges of Paris were mined in preparation for blowing them up in case the German troops reached the capital. The Schlieffen Plans emphasized a huge concentration of force on the right wing, whereby the German movement would come plunging through northern France. Schlieffen later rewrote his plan, including an offensive against the neutral Dutch and restructuring the ratio of artillery and infantry. In a two front war the Schlieffen Plan called for a defensive first strategy, followed by strategic counterattacks.
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