The Schlieffen Plan

1. The Schlieffen Plan • The German Plan to Win the War

2. As early as 1890, German High Command had thought about what Germany would do if she was at war with France and Russia • German General Alfred Von Schlieffen worked on this problem and devised the Schlieffen Plan

3. The plan called for a swift and decisive attack upon France • Schlieffen calculated that this offensive would not take more than 6 weeks

4. Once France had fallen, they would focus on Russia • Russia’s troops were not well trained nor disciplined • Schlieffen calculated that it would take the Russians weeks or months to mobilize • Also, Russia’s armies would have to cover great distances on poor roads and railways

5. The Plan • German troops would make a wide sweep through Belgium, fanning out as they entered France • Most troops would sweep behind Paris in a great arc coming up behind the French armies, which Schlieffen calculated would be close to the French-German border

6. The Risks • Violation of Belgian neutrality • Britain had signed a treaty guaranteeing the protection of Belgian neutrality • Germany assumed that Belgium would not resist any attack and that Britain would remain neutral

7. The Reality • August 2, 1914, German army invades Belgium and Luxembourg according to the plan • The Belgians fought back, slowing the German advance by a couple of days

8. The Reality • Russia mobilized in just 10 days and Germany was forced to withdraw troops from the Schlieffen Plan to defend its eastern border • Germany did not advance to Paris, instead attacking east of the capital; they were met by the French army there and defeated at the Battle of the Marne

9. The Reality • The Germans were forced to retreat at the Aisne River, where they dug in, leading to four years of trench warfare