World War I The Great War Battles to
World War I: The Great War Battles to 1917
The Trenches
TRENCH WARFARE ¡ Trench Warfare: ¡ Terrible Living conditions ¡ Trench foot ¡ Over the top ¡ No Man’s Land
New Weapons ¡ Bayonet ¡ Barbed Wire ¡ Flamethrower ¡ Mortars
New Weapons ¡ Machine Gun ¡ Poison Gas ¡ Tanks ¡ Zeppelins ¡ Airplanes
The Schlieffen Plan ¡ The Schlieffen Plan: ¡ Germany’s plan to deal with a TWO-FRONT war ¡ The German army DID NOT want to fight the war on BOTH fronts at the SAME time
The Schlieffen Plan ¡ Germany believed that the Russian army was slow ¡ Believed they could defeat FR on the Western Front in 5 to 6 weeks
The Schlieffen Plan ¡ Planned to invade Belgium & encircle Paris ¡ They would then be able to fight Russia on the Eastern Front
Expectations ¡ Both sides thought that the war would be a quick ordeal…
Expectations ¡ “You’ll be home before the leaves have fallen from the trees…” ¡ Both sides underestimated the role that industrialization would play during World War I
Why did the Schlieffen Plan Fail? ¡ Belgium did NOT give up! ¡ Stopped the German advance for 3 weeks ¡ Russia attacked Germany before it was ready; Germany was forced to send troops east…
Why did the Schlieffen Plan Fail? ¡ The German army was unable to encircle Paris ¡ French and British troops regrouped & met German troops Northeast of Paris ¡ Result? Stalemate on both fronts!!
Western Front ¡ 1 st Battle of the Marne (1914): ¡ Trenches from the North Sea to Switzerland ¡ Battle of attrition ¡ Allied victory ¡ GR abandons the Schlieffen Plan
Western Front ¡ Battle of Verdun (1916): ¡ Longest & bloodiest battle ¡ Battle of attrition ¡ Stalemate; no clear winner
At Sea ¡ GB immediately blockaded the North Sea with ships & mines ¡ Blocked the German navy in… ¡ Engaged in minor skirmishes until 1916
At Sea ¡ Battle of Jutland (1916): ¡ British “victory” even though Great Britain lost the greatest # of ships ¡ Wilhelm II withdrew the German fleet to Baltic sea for the rest of the war
At Sea ¡ Germany depended on submarines ¡ Targeted ships coming from the US ¡ President Wilson NO!
Eastern Front ¡ Russia entered the war before it was ready ¡ Battle of Tannenberg (1914): ¡ Russia lost to German troops under General Hindenberg
Eastern Front ¡ Russian Commander Samsonov committed suicide when he realized that his army had been surrounded
Eastern Front ¡ Battle of Gallipoli: ¡ Western Allied powers attacked at the Dardanelles ¡ Wanted to get communications & aid to Russia ¡ The Great War. Maps & Battles. Gallipoli | PBS
Eastern Front ¡ Conditions worsened for Russia ¡ Injured soldiers returned from the frontlines & discussed the truths of the war
Eastern Front ¡ Unrest increased at home, especially in St. Petersburg ¡ Czar Nicholas was blamed for the problems
Until 1917 – Stalemate on all fronts Then…. 1917
- Slides: 30
