WarOnTheWesternFront

=The reasons for the stalemate on the Western Front=
 * The expansion of trenches and bad battle plans
 * weather conditions
 * the Schieffen Plan (1905) failed in 1914
 * Modern technology favoured a defensive war
 * Rapid, unexpected mobilisation of Russia -> less German resources available for Schlieffen Plan -> Germans were more likely to "dig in" to hold their gains
 * German armies would stand on the defensive in East Prussia and hold back any attempted Russian advance
 * Trenches were built temporarily to avoid fighting in the winter, but trench warfare and the stalemate lasted for most of the war
 * With both sides entrenched, the war of movement had ended on the western front

=The nature of trench warfare and life in the trenches dealing with experiences of Allied and German soldiers=
 * Lots of soldiers were faces with casualties such as trench foot, and others such as the flu, etc
 * Usually at least 3 lines of trenches, called the front line, support and reserve. Soldiers could move out of sight from their enemies
 * Allied trenches were built to not be permanent
 * When Germany "dug in" at the Marne, they saw this as a permanent, defensive move -> their trenches were fortified with cement and more elaborate
 * It was hard for them to get the wounded out of the trenches
 * In the battle of the Some, 10 British men were estimated to have drowned while sleeping each night
 * Battles followed previous war methods of infantry fighting -> huge numbers of casualties occurred because weapons such as the machine gun (while men were "going over the top") were used to halt these attacks

=Overview of strategies and tactics to break the stalemate=
 * Towards the end of the war, the allied and German commanders started to favour a war of movement, eg: Ludendorf offensive, Hamel, Cambrai
 * The British agreed to an offensive in the Albert area near the Somme River that would draw German resources away from Verdun
 * soldiers climbing from their trenches to advance across "No Mans Land", usually with great loss of life

Key Battles: Verdun

 * the losses to the armies were 350,000 French and 330,000 German soldiers
 * the first use of poisonous gas by the Germans

Key Battles: Passchendaele
=Changing attitudes of Allied and German soldiers to the war over time=
 * July-November 1917
 * Aimed to shorten the Allied salient at Ypres and to "knock out" German submarine bases
 * They started to think "what is the point?"
 * Outbreak of war was generally greeted with enthusiasm
 * The First World War was unique among conflicts in teh amount of petry that was produced about it, often by serving soldiers
 * By 1917 there were mutinies, particularly in the French armies, and these soldiers would be executed if they were found
 * Growing war weariness -> several factors, including casualities, confinment (in trenches) and disease
 * The British and German troops thougt they they would be home for Christmas
 * Germans were lying fully exposed to Britain on ground level: had remained from the moment daylight caught