Russia also had a plan of thier own and it turned out to be a success. They managed to overwhelm Germany with the size of their army and get it prepared in 10 days. This also helped the Schlieffen plan to fail.
Our army and France had a plan aswell. Which was called Plan 17. It was a success as they managed to charge across the frontier and attack Germany forcing them to surrender. The British Expeditionary Force was well trained and equipped which meant they could go over to France anytime and fight along side them. Most of these plans were all linked to how the Schlieffen plan failed.
Also, there have been many important battles that have also taken place that have started after these plans were devised. There has been the Battle of the Mons which took place on 23rd August and the Battle of the Marne which happened during the month of September. At the Battle of the Mons, the British landed in France and there both sides met the German soldiers. These soldiers were well trained and gave the Germans a shock. This battle managed to slow down the Germans advance because the French had a big enough army to do it. Especially when Britain had joined them. This stopped the Germans from capturing Paris and France nd it also killed off alot of the German army.
At the Battle of the Marne, the German commander Von Kluck had to pull his troops out of Belgium and advanced straight towards Paris instead as he thought his original plan wouldnt work. So he made his army advance by foot while the French were advancing by rail and taxi. They were doing this to save thier country. This battle had managed to stop the Germans advance to the River Marne, but i didnt get the Germans out of France entirerly. The Germans new they couldnt break through the enemy lines so they changed their commander to Falkenhayn who tried to get his troops around the enemy lines. This was so they could capture ports on the edge of the country. This battle had taken place on the 12th of October. British and French troops had already gone to defend and block the lines, so the Germans couldnt get through. It has been quite easy to see who the stronger side has been all the way through so far. Britain and France have managed to block and defend Germanys attacks while they are changing there commanders when things havnt been going right for them.
At Ypres another battle had taken place for nearly 1 month. This started 12th October right the way through to 11th November. The number of casualties were high. The British had lost 50'000 men and the French lost over 1 million in just ten weeks. The Germans lost 100'000 of their men at the battle but continued to fight against the French and British when they tried to break through the lines at Artois and Champagne in December. This has lead to all forces digging trenches both sides as it has lead to a stalemate. This area is now called the Western Front. The morale of troops isnt very high. The British and French are tired and exhausted from constant battling from the moment they arrived, but they seemed enthusiastic at the beginning. They also know that the war wont be over for several months or years now, so they are beginning to be sad and less enthusiastic about the outcome. They are also like this as they have lost many people during the months of October and November this year.
I personally think that the war wasnt over by this Christmas because of the plans that have been devised have made the troops have to change where they are and what they are doing at that certain point. I also think it isnt over because of the amount of soldiers that have died were needed for the rest of the battles, even though they fought well. I think that if the troops carry on fighting the way they have been fighting in the last few months or so, the war will be fought in the same way but i think there will be alot more casualties than the previous battles that have been fought around certain countries. I also think its going to be alot harder now there have been trenches built dividing the two sides and will separate the fighting which will make it better.
Jordan Peacock 10Y
