Question #1 Trench Warfare

In an attempt at surprise from both sides, both France and Germany end up facing each other head on in a stalemate. For Germany, their attack strategy named for the general who developed it, Count Alfred von Schlieffen, was meant as a takeover of France before Russia could mobilize an attack. In the Schlieffen Plan, weakened forces would act as a decoy for France to attack, while the real striking force would circle around through Belgium and defeat France. But, after Schlieffen’s death, the original plan was modified by Helmuth von Moltke to bring some of the strength from the right attacking wing back to the left wing and caused the advancement’s failure. Like Germany, France depended too heavily on its offence and also underestimated the strength of the opposing force. On the western front, Germany and France use trenches to hopefully push the other back from their aggressive stance.