Download Was the failure of the Schlieffen plan the main reason

Was the failure of the Schlieffen plan the main reason
for Germanyˇs failure of the First World War?
In 1914, Germany believed that war with Russia was extremely likely. If
war broke out, Germany assumed that France would also attack as she
was an ally of Russia. Germany wanted to avoid a war on two fronts at
all costs so created the Schlieffen Plan. Germany planned to defeat
France rapidly using their highly successful K7 ¿7 z5/ ¿e ¿ tactic and then
turn the eastern front for a major offensive on Russia. Schlieffen
planned to attack France through Belgium and Luxembourg and use 90%
of their forces to deliver a knock out blow to France.
Germany would then use their remaining forces to defend the eastern
border from Russia. On the 2nd August 1914 the German army invaded
Luxembourg and Belgium, however they were held up by the BEF (British
Expeditionary Force). The Russian army also managed to mobilise in 10
days and Germany was forced to withdraw troops to protect the eastern
border. They failed at invading Paris and were held up by the battle of the
Marne.
The main hope that Germany had of winning a war on two fronts lay with
the Schlieffen plan. This would have allowed Germany to focus all her
forces to the east. This was not the case and by November 1914
Germany was confronted with a two front war which it was not prepared
for militarily or economically. This is an important cause for the failure of
WWI as this created a two war front that Germany was not prepared for.
In August 1914 Germany invaded Belgium. T his was a mistake for two
reasons. Firstly, Germany broke the treaty of London right from the
beginning of the war, lost the support of neutral opinion and justified the
Allied entry into the war in defence of Belgium. Secondly, it was very
possible that Britain might have entered the war against Germany even if
Germany had not invaded Belgium. However, the invasion of Belgium
created a situation in which Britain had no option but enter the war; in
response to the violation of the treaty of London, to defen d the channel
ports now threatened by Germany, and to restore the balance of power
in Europe. Germanyˇs action therefore ensured that she had to fight
Britain as well as France and Russia. This was quite an important cause for
Germanyˇs failure in world war one as Germany ended up giving aid and
support to her allies instead of fighting beside them. This is a large
contrast compared to Britainˇs allies who were very strong and did not
rely on aid from her.
Another reason for Germanyˇs defeat in the First World War was the
entry of the USA into the war in April 1917. The arrival of American
troops on the western front by 1918 was not only of great practical
assistance to the Allies but also a tremendous boost to their morale. For
the Germans, however, it was a huge psychological blow. This was
because Russia had just been forced out of the war only to be replaced by
one of the strongest countries in the world. American troops and supplies
also played an important role in the final offensive on the western front
in 1918. The entry of the USA into the First World War meant that
Germanyˇs morale was weakened as they had just managed to defeat
another large, strong enemy, Russia, only to be replaced by another.
A new fighter aircraft was introduced, the Sopwith Camel, which proved
to be the most successful fighter aircraft of WWI, and gave the allies
control of the skies over the western front by 1918. This meant that the
allies final land offensive could go ahead without interference from
German air attacks. This was not a more important cause for Germanyˇs
defeat than the schlieffen plan but it played a part in weakening Germany
which eventually lead to their defeat
British control of the seas and the failure of the German U-boat campaign
of unrestricted warfare in 1917 was a vital factor in the Allied victory in
1918.
British control of the seas allowed the Allies to blockade Germany and
Austria-Hungary and this led to great shortages of food and raw materials
in these countries. The Allies had also seized Germany's colonies and
destroyed her roving cruiser squadron. By November 1918 there were
food riots and strikes in German cities. This also led to an outbreak of
mutiny within the German navy which eventually led to the abdication of
the Kaiser and ultimately the German surrender. The U- boat campaign
was a major reason for American entry into the war due to the sinking of
the Lusitania. The sinking of the Lusitania was a trigger cause for the
USAˇs entry into the First World War, which was one of the most
important causes for Germanyˇs defeat in World War One.
All three Triple Entente powers made positive contributions to the allied
victory. The wealth and industrial power of Britain and her Empire helped
the Allies withstand vast expense of war. (In 1918 alone Britain spent
£2,700 million.) The French proved to be a determined ally who were
prepared to make great sacrifices rather than surrender as seen, for
example at Verdun. Until the Revolution of November 1917 took her out
of the war, Russia, with her great reserves of manpower, took much
strain off the Allies on the Western Front. This was in spite of her own
heavy losses on the Eastern Front. The Allied superiority in manpower
was vital in a war of ‘attritionˇ where casualty rates were so high. This
eventually allowed the Allies to overcome the more efficient but smaller
German armies. By contrast Germanyˇs allies – Austria-Hungary, Turkey
and Bulgaria – all proved to be weak and in need of support from
Germany. Germany's war effort therefore relied mainly on her own
strength and, although this was considerable, the odds against her by the
end of the war were overwhelming – she was at ware with a total of 27
countries by 1918. This meant that Germany was extremely weak during
World War One, spending precious money and supplies to support her
allies instead of being spent on the war.
In conclusion, I believe that the most important factor for Germanyˇs
failure in World War I was not the Schlieffen plan but rather the
combined power of the Allied forces. This was due to various reasons.
Firstly, the wealth of Britain helped the allies withstand the vast expense
of war. Britain also had many power allies, such as Russia, which left in
1917, and France, who were determined and had vast amounts of troops.
The large numbers of Allied troops were also vital in a war of attrition as
casualty rates were very high. In contrast Germanyˇs allies - AustriaHungary, Turkey and Bulgaria were very weak and needed aid from
Germany, which meant that Germany was on her own. This made it
impossible for German to win the war, as she was at war with a total of 27
countries by 1918.