2.1 The War Begins Flashcards
When did the war begin?
1914
Which were the two alliances built?
The Central Powers which consisted of Austria-Hungary, Germany, Bulgaria, and Turkey.
The allies which consisted of Serbia, Russia, France, United Kingdom, and Belgium. Italy joined the Allies later in 1915
When did the German chief put the Schlieffen plan to work?
August 3rd
What was the Schlieffen Plan?
The plan was to divide the army into 3 parts:
German troops were to defend the borders near France and Russia in the east.
The main force would invade from Belgium, then the army would encircle France, defeat it, and then move east to defeat Russia.
Did the Schlieffen plan work out? Why or why not?
No. First, German Tripp’s has a tough resistance with Belgium. They were stalled at the Liege for 10 days.
They were held at the MON by the BEF. On August 19 the Russian army had attacked before they could reach Paris. The army then had to withdraw troops to protect the east.
The German troops on the extreme right were exhausted after several weeks of fighting, this meant that Paris wasn’t surrounded.
Germans were forced back and had to travel 60km to River Aisne where there were dug up trenches.
The allies could not break through. The war was a draw
What is BEF?
British Expeditionary Force
What are trenches?
Long, narrow ditches dug into the ground where soldiers lived. They were very muddy, uncomfortable and the toilets overflowed. These conditions caused some soldiers to develop medical problems like TRENCH FOOT
