The Schlieffen PlanAnd the start of World War I

What is the Schlieffen Plan?

The Schlieffen Plan was

Germany’s main strategy

for World War I.

The intention of the

Schlieffen Plan was that

Germany would avoid

fighting a war on two

fronts.

What is a war on two fronts?

Germany thought

they could

potentially have to

fight both Russia

and France at the

same time.

They did not want

to fight on an

eastern front and a

western front.

WestEast

How did the Schlieffen Plan work?

1. A large part of the German army

would race into France. The

remaining army would go to Russia.

2. Defeat France.

3. Rush east and defeat Russia.

4. VICTORY!

Problems!

France had

already

heavily

mobilized

along their

border with

Germany.

Hey Belgium,

can my

military take a

stroll through

your country?

No

way!

Problems!Germany

demanded that

their troops pass

through the

neutral country

of Belgium

Belgium said no,

Germany did it

anyway.

Hey Belgium,

can my

military take a

stroll through

your country?

No

way!

Bad Germany!

The alliance system strikes again.

Britain had close

ties with

Belgium.

When Germany

invaded Belgium

Britain declared

war on Germany.

The soldiers happily went off to war,

convinced they would be home by Christmas.

Trench in western front

Diagram of the trenches

Weapons used in WW1

Weapon Invented By Description How did it change War

1

Machine

Gun

German

Fast shooting gun firing many

many bullets

600 bullets a minute

Killed many many people

80% of Brits Killed

Big reason for trenches

2

Airplane

American French?

Brazilian?

Flying machine mainly used to

spy on enemies

Report Artillery Bombing

Prior to WWI air not used in war

Red Baron; Dogfights

Replaced Zeppelins

3

Submarine

U-boat

German

U-boat = Underwater boat

Torpedo war & supply ships

Cut ship supplies to a nation

Caused Convoys

4

Poison

Gas

German

Spray or bomb enemies

Burn skin, eyes = blinded

Hard to breath = suffocation

Gas masks

Wind direction matters

Only 4% killed

5

Tank British

Rolling metal vehicle with guns

to shoot in all directions

Made trenches obsolete

Ended stalemate of trench warfare

World War I 5 New Weapons of War p.360-361

Assignment # 4

skip to vocab

1) Machine Gun

Back to Main

2) AirplaneDog Fights

ZeppelinBack to Main Back to Vocab

3) Submarine

Back to Main

3a Convoy

a group of naval ships protecting supply

ships against submarine or other attack

Back to Main Back to Vocab

4) Poison Gas

Nation Fatal Non-fatal

Russia 56,000 419,340

Germany 9,000 200,000

France 8,000 190,000

British Empire 8,109 188,706

Austria-Hungary 3,000 100,000

USA 1,462 72,807

Italy 4,627 60,000

Total 88,498 1,240,853

Estimated gas casualties

A) Poison gas was more of a psychological weapon than effective weapon.

B) In the end, it was responsible for less than 5% of total war deaths.

Back to Main

5) Tank

Back to Main

ShellGiant bullet shot long distances

that explodes like a bomb

Shell ShockSoldiers who went crazy from:

A) Fear of death that can come at any moment

B) Constant shelling

C) Exposure to horrors of war

Prep for Quiz Back to Vocab

Shrapnel:

Medal debris from exploded shell that rips

apart soldiers or anything in its wayShrapnel

DON’T LOOK IF YOU THINK YOU CANNOT HANDLE

SEEING SOME VICTIMS OF WAR

Prep for Quiz Back to Vocab

Shrapnel:

Medal debris from exploded shell that rips

apart soldiers or anything in its wayShrapnel

Surgeries over the years Surgeon

Surgeons

can’t help

them all.

Shrapnel:

Metal debris from exploded shell that rips

apart soldiers or anything in its wayShrapnel

Surgeries over the years Surgeon

Surgeons

can’t help

them all.

Back to Vocab