Explain how the mobile warfare of August 1914 had become the Western Front by the end of the year.

Authors Avatar

Explain how the mobile warfare of August 1914 had become the Western Front by the end of the year.

Provide why and how…

Talk bout how Schlieffen plan

Race to the sea

Battle of Marne
formation of frontline and 1914

Talk bout stalemate

The mobile warfare of August 1914 became the western front by the end of the year due to false expectations and lost control of events leading up to stalemate.

When war broke out in august 1914 there was a feeling across the whole of Europe that it would be all over by Christmas. The public never contemplated establishing defensive positions or that they might have to hold them for years. Military leaders were aware of the possible magnitude of future warfare and the reality of the scale of the modern warfare merely reinforced the idea of the need to get in first and achieve the knockout blow. They faith in the idea of the knockout blow and the importance of speed and mobility was held by all military leaders across the globe which lead to the formulation of complex mobilisation plans. If war came, it was necessary to be able to move the armed forced with speed and accuracy, to gain the advantage of surprise. In order to try and win, Germany came up with a plan called the Schlieffen Plan.
 

Germany knew that it could not wage war for an extended period on two fronts. Therefore, it became necessary for them to attempt to destroy one opponent quickly and decisively allowing them to concentrate all their forces on the other. Only a rapid offensive strategy would fulfill this objective. The plan that they devised was designed by Count Alfred von Schlieffen, Chief of the German General Staff from 1891-1906.

Join now!

The Franco-Russian Alliance made it clear that Germany would have to face both French and Russian forces if they were ever to get in a war with either one. Consequently, the Germans believed that they would destroy France before Russia had time to mobilised. Germany estimated that it would take both themselves and France two weeks to mobilized. On the other hand, the Germans believed that it would take Russia six weeks to muster an offensive counter attack against them. The reason the Germans believed this is because of the closer proximity of France and the technological inferiority of Russia.

...

This is a preview of the whole essay