Schlieffens Plan :: essays research papers

In 1904 France and Britain signed the Entente Cordiale. The reason for this adhesion was to get a few countries grouped together against the perceived brat of Germanys powerful soldiery. Talk also began to add Russia to this alliance pitch all three, France, Britain and Russia together. As a result of these alliances the German military began to fearfulness the possibility of being attacked from both sides all at once from France, Britain and Russia. Germany gave Alfred von Schlieffen, the German Army Chief of Staff, the responsibility for coming up with a invention to defeat the allies. This plan was called the Schlieffen Plan.The Plan involved hitting France hard, with 90 portion of the total German army. The remaining 10 percent of the army would encumbrance back and defend again any Russian advances on Germany. Schlieffen sentiment that taking out France was the key to winning the war as speedily as possible. He thought that if France was defeated then Britain and Russ ia would not unavoid equalness to continue the fighting. Schlieffen estimated that it would take at least six weeks for Russia to organize in that respect large army for an attack on Germany. This meant that it was very important that Germany was able to invade and defeat France before then.In August 1914 the Schlieffen Plan was set into effect and the German Army invaded Luxembourg and Belgium. Germany thought they would have no problem taking out the two cities but were unexpectedly held up by the Belgium army. While being held up there they were again affect as to how quickly the Russian army was able to advance into eastern hemisphere Prussia. Soon after which the British crusade also reached France and Belgium to fight against the Germans. The french and British fell back to the other side of the River Seine and regrouped. afterward which, another cut moved in and attacked the Germans at full force and managed to cut a huge hole in the German army splitting them into t wo groups. The French then entered the gap between the German forces trying to keep them divided. The Germans came very close to defeating the French army until the French brought in reserve troops to reinforce the front line. The Germans could not gap through the French and were soon after ordered by the German Chief of Staff to stop and retreat from the French.