To What Extent Was the Nature of the Schlieffen Plan Responsible for the Outbreak of a General European War in August 1914?

The Schlieffen plan had failed by November 1914. It didn’t entirely go to plan.. What the Germans presumed wasn’t right. Firstly they presumed that it would only take 6 weeks to get through Belgium and that it wouldn’t take long at all, but in the end it took than expected. The Belgians resisted a lot and put up a strong fight. German troops got held up in Belgium and never got round to invading Paris. In addition to this, Russia mobilised quicker than presumed! So

The Schlieffen Plan is commonly – though misleadingy – identified with the German western offensive at the start of the First World War in August 1914, which began as a campaign of rapid movement but ended in deadlock and trench warfare. The plan is generally seen as a desperate gamble almost certain to fail, and its recklessness is counted as part of Germany’s war guilt – the plan held out the false promise of a quick victory, and so it underpinned the “short war illusion” that led Germany into a long war of attrition, ending with her defeat and collapse in 1918. This analysis confuses two quite different moments in history. The Schlieffen Plan was not designed to meet the strategic challenge Germany faced in 1914,

By the 1st of August 1914, Germany had declared war on Russia, as well as threatening Belgium. At this point everyone was trying to protect their country and the countries of their alliances’. So we can see that another trigger to the war was threat, threat that their land would be taken, and that their military was not large enough. So again there was this thirst for land and a need to beat others, this formation of alliances is none other than another trigger to the First World War.

Germany had stockpiled quite an arsenal and increased their navy for advanced combat. Great Britain also strengthened her navy. Militarism was another cause of the war. Countries like Germany and Russia had policies in place to build a strong military in readiness for war. Between 1910 and 1914, Germany had a 73% increase in military spending while Russia had 39%, Britain had 13%, and France had 10%. This increase in defense spending led to countries building stronger militaries which thrust the world deeper into the war. Lastly, nationalistic movements were going on all over the world. People were getting more aware of their ethnicities and the oppression that they had endured from people who were not like them. The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria came from the nationalistic views of the Bosnians who did not want to be under the rule of Austria-Hungary and wanted their own state. Strong nationalistic movements were going on everywhere and the unification of Italy and Germany was a product of it. France had to give up some land to Germany and wanted it back. Nationalism played a big role in the start of the war as it fueled existing fires and was probably one of the direct causes of the war. Not only did nationalism start the war it extended it longer than it should have gone. This, as each nation tried to prove its power and dominance over the

To a large extent the failure of the Schlieffen plan was the most significant reason for

The Schlieffen Plan was created by Alfred von Schlieffen, and he created it to avoid fighting both France and Russia at the same time. The problem was that France and Russia were on opposite sides of Europe. Which meant they would have to split their army in half. The Schlieffen Plan stated that Germany would defeat France while Russia would be mobilizing itś army. They assumed that Russia would take six weeks to mobilize,and that France was weak and Russia was strong. They didn´t think that GB would be fighting for France because of the treaty signed seventy - five years ago. The Schlieffen Plan had many flaws and assumptions.But instead of taking six weeks Russia took ten days, and started fighting when they weren't ready. Which made

There were many underlying tensions that led to the outbreak of WWI in 1914. The main tensions were between the dominant European countries of the time. These countries were caught in a power struggle that divided Europe. France, Russia, Belgium and Greece formed an alliance against Germany, Austria-Hungary and Turkey. Immense political, territorial, and economic conflicts were occurring between these two groups. Both

m Germany to Austria-Hungary reassuring Austria-Hungary that Germany will support them with unconditional financial support,this is the blank cheque.The blank cheque is a reason why other countries puts responsibility on Germany for starting world war one because without it then Austria-Hungary would not of invaded Serbia as fast because they were afraid of russia,because of the alliance system which says if serbia is invaded or attacked then Russia will jump in to help and vice versa.another reason Germany is to blame for the start of world war one is the schlieffen plan,the schlieffen plan was the German army's plan for war against france via belgium once russia started to mobilize,the reason this is a cause to blame Germany for the outbreak of the war was because the schlieffen plan was made in 1905,9 years before the start of world war one in 1914.This led countries to saying that Germany had pre-conceived notions of starting a war and that's why they should be blamed.The last reason Germany is to blame for world war one is naval expansion.German naval expansion is when the Germans tried to build up a navy of dreadnoughts to rival the british by order of Kaiser Wilhelm II,This wasn't a good idea because Great Britain had the strongest navy at the time and they were not going to let Germany one up them,this caused immense tension between the two countries and eventually made Great Britain very mad.This is why Germany is one of the countries responsible for the outbreak of

The plan took nine years to finalize based on the theory that if Germany went to war, they would be faced with a two-front war with France and Russia because of the Franco-Russian alliance that was in place at that time. Wilhelm II was anxious that Britain would intervene in the case of any conflict because she was in an entente with France and that could likely put Germany at war with three powerful countries. Schlieffen concluded that Russia would take six weeks to mobilize because of their large army and that Germany and France could prepare for battle within 15 days. Schlieffen believed that if Germany conquered France, then the German troops could move to a new front against Russia.

The overall cause of World War I was the growth of nationalism in Europe during the 1800s and 1900s. Every other cause boils down to nationalism and the excessive pride everyone felt in their own country during this time. Nationalism impacted all the other causes of the war. Other major causes of the war such as, imperialism, assassination, and militarism all had to do with nationalism.

On June 28, 1914 Archduke Ferdinad and his wife were assassinated when visiting Sarajevo , Bosina by a Serbian member . Austria declared war on Serbia on July 28th. That was the immediate cause of World War I but there was a bigger reason. World War I began August 1, 1914. There are four main reasons that sparked this war. The four main causes were militarism, alliances , imperialism , and nationalism . Militarism is when a country has to keep a strong military and prepare for war . Soldiers should be ready to defend themselves from enemies at the other trench. Alliances were agreements countries formed to protect one another . In 1914 there were two types of alliances. It was a Triple Alliance and the Triple Entente. Germany, Austria-Hungary ,and Italy were part of the Triple Alliance. Great Britain, Russia ,and France were part of the Triple Entente. They've made promises that they will protect one another in their group. Where one country fights the other joins. When world war one starts the group changes. Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire became the Central Powers. Great Britain Russia and France became the Allies. Italy left the Central Powers because they accuse their former alliance for unjustifiy of starting the war so Italy joined the Allies. Imperialism is to dominate another country like how Austria did Serbia. Austria provided Serbia with several demands. Serbia listened to most of them but not all. That is what caused the tension between these

In 1905 Germany developed the Schlieffen Plan which meant that they would be prepared to fight two fronts in a war, the plan established the fact that France was weak and likewise Belgium and could fall easily, giving Germany secure control over the west. Upon AustriaHungary's declaration of war on Russia committed Germany to two fronts potentially too early. With a war looming and a large military presence, nationalist views and a war-ravenous leader, Wilhelm led Germany to a world of

In addition, Germany, through the use of the Schlieffen Plan, attempted to overthrow France and Russia to win what would otherwise be a two-front war. Success in the execution of the plan would result into the growth of the German empire; thus, increasing the Germans chances of defeating Britain in a war. Essentially, the nation’s never-ending pursuit for power translated into the war of 1914–World War

German historian Fritz Fischer argues that Germany 's desire for world power was the reason that for the outbreak of WWI. Germany had plans for a war before the crisis that occurred during 1914 and used the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand as an excuse to put the plans into effect. Germany also encouraged Austria and its war plans to provoke a crisis in which it can solve the problem that Germany would face if they went to war. This problem is called "encirclement" and Germany would face this problem if it went to war with France and Russia. By having Austria doing so it would allow Germany to dominate and expand its territories. France and Russia signed a full military defensive alliance in 1892-1895 which allowed the possibility of a two-front war. With Germany 's geographical position being between these two great powers, it would cause Germany to lose the war at an instant. In addition to this, France felt bitterness towards the defeat of 1870-1871 and the taking

Many, on the other hand, blame the flaws in the world's alliance systems for the war. Development of political and military alliances caused tension and hostility among nations leading up to World War I. Two major alliance systems developed due to conflicting national interests, which had been evident during the past two decades throughout Europe. These were the 'Triple Alliance' of Germany, Austro-Hungary and Italy and the 'Triple Entente' of Britain, France and Russia. Also several smaller countries became indirectly involved in the alliances, which effectively divided Europe into two 'Armed Camps'. Russia pledged to support Serbia in order to prevent further Austrian-Hungarian expansion into the Balkans. Germany stated its support for Austria-Hungary and Britain had given its support for Belgium's independence in 1839. However, historians such as A. J. P. Taylor argue that 'Pre 1914 alliances were so precarious and fragile that they cannot be seen as the major cause of war'. This points to the fact that it should also be stressed that even a formal alliance in 1914 did not guarantee support for war, therefore not being a significant factor.