During the War Austria-Hungary was an unreliable fighting force, Germany had to stay on the eastern front to reinforce

the weak Austro-Hungarian armies. Germanys resources were split between two fronts. France had a chain of forts along the border, however Belgiums forces were weaker. Going through Belgium was part of the Schlieffen Plan. They then planned to encircle Paris and defeat the French army, before Russia had completed mobilisation then towards Russia. Under General Von Moltke and the Schlieffen Plan Germany made good progress as they swing through Belgium, Luxembourg and then northeastern France. The French in accordance of Plan 17, attempted to retake Alsace Lorraine, however retreated due to huge casualties. However, contrary to expectation the Russians advanced into Eastern Prussia, for the Germans this necessitated the dispatch of army corps from France to Prussia. Germanys absence on the eastern front, meant that the French had slowed down German advancement and prevented the encirclement of Paris. 6th September 1914 - British Expeditionary Force of 120,000 men counterattacked the Germans across river Marne forcing the Germans to retreat behind river Aisne. The war of movement was turning into static trench warfare and a line of makeshift trenches ran form the sea to the Swiss border. 28th October 1914 - Turkey declared war on the Entente powers. Turkeys entry into the war was a direct threat to Britains position in Egypt and led to the dispatch of the Anzac Corps to defend Suez Canal. Race to the Sea After failed implementation of the Schlieffen Plan, the Race to the Sea developed out of the first Battle of Aisne (13th - 28th September 1914), ended with the first Battle of Ypres and the start of stalemate on the Western Front. Movement between September and November 1914. Resulted in trenches being built all the way from Switzerland to the Channel coast. Both sides, esp. Germany tried to gained an advantage by pressing attack in the north in Flanders. Last mobile phase in the war before German Spring Offensive in March 1918. Military Stalemate in the west: development of trench warfare Key element of the defensive war on the West. Only through construction of trenches could gain protection from enemy firepower. Trenches were protected with barbed wire entanglements and machine guns. To break trench warfare deadlock both sides attempted to develop new techniques and weapons. Artillery; effectively destroyed trench defenses and helped with frontal attack. Both sides improve their deficiencies devise new technique such as the creeping barrage, artillery fire aimed to eliminate opposition in front of advancing troops. The Germans developed howitzers which could fire a shell weighing nearly a ton. Gas; first used in the battle of Ypres (April 1915). It was unsuccessful because it

did not exploit surprise or panic and later there was the development of gas masks. However, this marked a development in modern scientific warfare. Tanks; a way of protecting soldiers while advancing, caterpillar tracks helped them cross trenches and barbed wire. Both the Allied and Central Powers failed to achieve a decisive breakthrough in 1915. Germany still had huge reserves of strength, although weakened France still had the most effective army on the Allied side. British army mobilizing its resources effectively and had over a million men in France. Planned a coordinated attack on Central Powers by all four Allied nations, which was agreed at the Inter-Allied Military Conference at Chantilly. (December 1915) Battle of Tannenberg 26th August - 30th August 1914 Between Russia and Germany, battle resulted in the almost complete destruction of the Russian Second Army. There were a series of follow-up battles which destroyed the majority of the First Army as well, kept Russia off-balance until spring 1915. Rapid movements of German corps by train, allowing a single German army to concentrate against each Russian army in turn. Unlike the western front, was a quick battle, where the Germans split the Russian forces. Fast mobility. (1914 - 1915) Two Battles fought at the Masurian Lakes Germans were able to move troops very quickly by rail, out-maneuvering the Russian forces. Battles of quick, short movements. Contrast to the Western Front. Balkans War Gallipoli; Anzac under the Allied Forces, Australia and New Zealand. Invade Turkey by landing on the beaches of Gallipoli, geographically, Gallipoli was near the hills and the Turks slaughtered the Allied Forces. Battle of Marne (5th - 13th September 1914) Allied Victory Ended the month long German offensive that had started the war and reached the outskirts of Paris. Counterattack of 6 French field armies and one British army along the Marne river, forcing Germany to abandon its push on Paris and retreat the northeast, setting stage for 4 years of trench warfare on the Western Front. Immense strategic victory for Allied Forces, wrecking Germanys chance of a swift victory over France. The battle is best remembered for approx. 600 Paris taxi-cabs commandeered by French authorities and used to transport 6000 French reserve infantry. Reminiscent of the people in arms who had saved the French Republic in 1794. Battle of Verdun - 21st February 1916 - November 1916 General von Falkenhayn, German Chief of Staff, argued that if France could be defeated, Englands best sword would be knocked out if its hand. If they do so,

the forces of France will bleed to death... Falkenhayn chose the historic fortress of Verdun for his decisive attack, the area contained twenty major forts. Falkenhayn believed that France would not allow these forts to fall as this would be seen as national humiliation, he assumed that they would expend a number of lives to protect it. He calculated that its fall would be perceived by the French to be a major defeat and weaken the fighting morale of the nation. Launched a massive German attack on a narrow stretch of land, with intense artillery bombardments. He assumed that France would be an easy opponent. However, the French were able to match Germanys military power and the battle continue. To relieve pressure, the British began the Battle of Somme as a way of dividing Germanys attention. 336, 831 German Casualties 362, 000 French Casualties

Battle of Jutland - 31st May - 1st June 1916 Despite expectations stemming from the naval race, a major confrontation between German and Britains main naval fleets and dreadnoughts did not occur until 1916. At this point both sides figured they did not have much to loose. This was a challenge to British supremacy of the sea. Battle began when German admiral Reinhard Scheer tired to lure Britains fleets out of its base, so that an attack could be made by the numerically superior German naval fleet. However, Britain could decipher the German radio signals, so they were not as weak as expected. After several hours of exchanging artillery fire, Germans decided to sail back to port. Although Germany could claim victory by numbers, Britain was still left in control of the surface waters. Battle of Somme -1st July - 18th November 1916 To relieve pressure on Verdun, the Allied forces (Italy, Britain and Russia) launched offensive attacks in the summer of 1916. British attack on the Somme (July - November 1916), first battle where a small number of tanks was used. Offensive planned in late 1915 as a joint French and British attack against Germany fought on the side of the River Somme. General Joffre conceived it as a battle of attrition, draining Germanys reserves, with a secondary aim for territorial gains. It was also aimed at relieving pressures in the Battle of Verdun and to stop Germany from sending reinforcements to the Eastern Front. One of the largest battles of WWI, more than 1 mil. casualties. Used tanks for the first time, however no breakthrough. The end of the battle the Allied forces only had limited advances along a 50 km front. British and French gained 12 km of ground. Battle of Ypres (4 -5 battles) 19th October 1914 - 2nd October 1918 5 battles fought around Ypres. Germany failed to win, overconfident over wins against low countries (Luxembourg, Netherlands and Belgium), failed to coordinate their attacks. Continued in a perpetual state right until the end of the

war. War was fought in three sections air, land and sea. Land: Gas, the French were the first to use tear gas grenades however they were unsuccessful. Chlorine was first used by the Germans in 1915. Tanks, first used in March 1915, proved ineffective. However, as the war went on, technology progressed. In the Battle of Cambrai, (1917) the Americans first used tanks effectively as armor plating whilst advancing and the caterpillar tracks were able to cross the barbed wire on the trenches.

Trench Warfare, war of attrition, draining other another countrys reserves. However, WWI eventually moved towards total war, which effects everything in society (economy, politics). After race to the sea, the conflict settled into static positional warfare. War of movement was over. John Keegan in his work The First World War published in 1999 wrote about trench warfare, describing it as a maze of duplicates and dead ends, in which soldiers, sometimes whole units rapidly lost their way. Guides, who ken the trench geography were an essential accompaniment in unit reliefs, when one battalion took the place of another at the end of a front line stint (tour duty). Joffre and the British Allies, questioning how to break the stalemate. Germans were more content to stay in the trenches, so it was up to Allies to break through. Essence of the Western Front battle was an attempt to break the German deadlock. Military Bombardment Men going over the top Slaughter

Sea: Naval War U-Boat Hydrophone Passive Listening Device, pick up U-Boat engine noises 1918, Sonar had been developed. French were using echo-ranging.

Ending of the War After the failure of the Schlieffen Plan in September 1914, the war in France settled into static siege warfare, with trenches lining the Belgium Coast to the Swiss frontier. WWI occurred at a time when military technology favoured defense rather than attack. The logic of the war was that Germany would be defeated by battles of attrition. It seemed that time would favour the Allies with their preponderance of manpower and access to the worlds raw materials. In this essay it will be argued that the poor decisions made by Germany and the weakness of their country lead to their eventual defeat. This essay will argue that secondary factors such as Americas entry in the war and the tactical and technical advantages of the Allies contributed to the defeat of Germany. Essay Failure of the Schlieffen Plan led to a two front war, dividing Germanys strength, it also led to eventual static warfare with the Race to the Sea and Trench warfare. The war shifted into Use of unrestricted submarine warfare Entry of the USA Poor military tactics such as the failure of the March 1918 offensive Internal dissension at home due to hunger and inflation Allied control of the sea and the leadership qualities of Allied statesman

Germanys Weaknesses The Poor military decision, ignoring situation at home Declining state of the country Limitations of Germanys economy and depleting living conditions. Poor judgment - Germany made several ambitious gambles that did not pay off. It gambled on a quick victory with the Schlieffen Plan; the highrisk strategy of unrestricted U-boat warfare not only failed but helped bring the US into the war, vitally boosting the Allied resources in 1918. Poor judgment - Failure of the Ludendorff Offensive. After the signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsky this confirmed Russias defeat and the end of the war on the eastern front. Germany was then able to focus its attentions on a concentrated offensive Western front, which would hopefully break the deadlock that had been held since 1914. During the Ludendorff offensive of 1918 Germany pushed further into France and was even close enough to shell Paris. However, this coincided with the entry of America in the war. Under the command of General Foch, the Allied forces were able to halt the advance of the German army. Eventually leading to the signing of the armistice in November 1918. George Watson, the Cambridge historian, argued that the war was a contest of endurance and during the course of 1918; the accumulated

strain and hopelessness of the German army had broken the armys morale to continue fighting. Lack of support from Allies - Germany also suffered from weak support from their allies. Germany constantly had to help out the Austrian and Bulgarians. Defeat of Bulgaria and then the Serbs in September 1918, followed by the defeat of Austria by Italy and then the surrender of Turkey in October. It was only a matter of time before German surrendered. Home front - Epidemic of Spanish flu in 1918 made the situation worst, morale was already low. Home front - Dire economic situation in Germany in 1918 played an important role in Germanys defeat. It meant that supplies were not reaching the German Army and that the German population was ready for revolution. This situation was escalated by the Allied blockade, which prevented imports reaching Germany, and also the German government proved inefficient in their organizing the country for war compared to the Allied countries. Germany spent 83% of its total public expenditure on military items, but just 2% on the civilian sector. The figures in Britain were 62% and 16% respectively. German agriculture was particularly hard hit by the war; production fell by 70% in some areas. The economic situation, combined with the continual failures of the troops, meant that Germany was in a state of internal collapse by the end of 1918. Home front - Turnip Winter: example of Germanys economic decline. Communist ideas began to spread, people were starving and turning against their government. Germanys government and economy was declining due to the protesting of people, military tactics were unsuccessful due to a lack of collaboration with her allies and poor judgment. Even though other countries such as Britain were suffering from Starvation, the British government passed a law called D.O.R.A (Defense of the Realm Act), which protected the people from starving but had no affect on the role of soldiers and their living conditions. Abdication of the Kaiser German revolution (Faith in the Kaiser was depleting, the German public were putting pressure on the Government to stop fighting.)

US Help Growing American Nationalism Sinking of the Lusitania (1915) Even though the ship was sunk, by Germany, two years before America entered the war they uses this an excuse to enter the war. Lusitania was a military ship that secretly transferred weaponry to Britain. Sinking the ship was a bad decision, since Germany would lose any chance of keeping US neutrality during the war. By August 1918, US troops were arriving at a rate of 300,000 a month. Americas massive economic resources were another key factor that pushed for allied victory. They made a substantial difference to the Allied fighting, contributing money, weaponry and warships. Altogether America lent more than $7.7 billion to the Allies during the war. As Akira

Iriye, a trusted historian of American diplomatic history, stated American participation spelled the defeat of German ambitions. Tactical and Technological Advantages of the Allies Ultimately, the Allies had greater men and resources and the longer the war went on the harder it was for Germans to win. All the Allied forces worked together and helping each other out meant that the war became one of attrition. This situation, in the long term, benefitted the Allies, particularly once America had joined the war. Maintaining control of the sea was decisive for the Allies. The blockade on Germany helped to cause dreadful food shortages, whilst Britain was still able to import food supplies both from its colonies and from the USA to help with the convoy system. Cooperation of the Allied powers. In the Allied counter-offensive of 1918, the Allies benefitted from a greater coordination of effort. The Yale professor, Ian Beckett, in his influential work The Making of the First World War, argued that during the counter-offensive of 1918, the Allied forces fought with a distinctly modern style of warfare that took advantage of all the technological and tactical development that had taken place during the war- using tanks, artillery and infantry in relatively close cooperation. The contribution of the USA to Allied victory in 1918 was also critical. The two million soldiers that were eventually deployed brought a huge advantage to the Allied side in that they lacked the war weariness of European soldiers on the Western Front. Static Warfare lasted through the test of time. British Blockade, links back to Germanys weaknesses. A tight blockade imposed by the British Navy caused severe food shortages in the cities, especially during the winter of 1916-1917, known as the turnip winter. British blockade of German ships, the British Navy controlled the North Sea with their Dreadnoughts. The British blockade sunk any German ships that they found, this cut off Herman supplies of food and nitrate. Nitrate was essential for making explosives for the army. 300,000 Germans died due to malnutrition during 1914-1918. Sinking of the Lusitania. Winston Churchill in The World Crisis directly attributes the German defeat in World War I to two definitive events, the German invasion of Belgium as part of the Schlieffen Plan and the sinking of the Lusitania. These two events brought Britain and the US into the war, making the Allied side stronger. SLA Marshall, American Heritage History of World War I, the tide of world opinion began shifting against Imperial Germany, never to turn back. The sinking of the Lusitania dramatically changed American public opinion of the European War. http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/historian/hist_winter_17_march.html

http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/historian/hist_winter_12_lusitania.html http://share.nanjing-school.com/humanities/files/2012/09/why-did-Germanlose-ww1-16dkj1o.pdf http://myriamsonlyfriend.blogspot.hk/2010/11/why-did-germany-lose-firstworld-war.html http://www.tracesofevil.com/1999/09/why-did-germany-and-her-allieslose.html Germanys failure to win World War I cannot be attributed to a single factor; there are many factors that contributed to the countrys ultimate defect. In retrospect, it can be argued that even from the outset of the war Germany was destined for defeat, committing strategically tactical mistakes in All countries failed to construct strategically tactics in the battlefield but also for their political system to keep the government from falling into disarray. In contrast, the Allied forces were far more successful politically and economically, this big difference of organization played a fundamental lost in the role of Germanys loss.