Schlieffen Plan
E96321
The Schlieffen Plan was Imperial Germany’s pre–World War I military strategy for a rapid, decisive victory in the West—primarily by swiftly defeating France—before turning to fight Russia in the East.
Observed surface forms (2)
| Surface form | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Schlieffen Plan (conceptual heritage) | 1 |
| Schlieffen Plan variants | 1 |
Statements (51)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
German military doctrine
ⓘ
military plan ⓘ |
| alsoKnownAs | Schlieffen-Moltke Plan NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| appliesToEvent |
Eastern Front of World War I
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Western Front of World War I NERFINISHED ⓘ World War I NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| author | Alfred von Schlieffen NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| basedOnAssumption |
quick French defeat
ⓘ
rapid German mobilization ⓘ slow Russian mobilization ⓘ |
| component |
envelopment of Paris from the north and west
ⓘ
holding action in Alsace-Lorraine ⓘ massive right-wing sweep through Belgium ⓘ |
| conflict | World War I ⓘ |
| consequence | British entry into World War I ⓘ |
| countryOfOrigin | German Empire NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| criticizedFor |
logistical overreach
ⓘ
rigidity of timetable ⓘ underestimating Belgian resistance ⓘ underestimating British response ⓘ |
| dateOfFirstExecution | August 1914 ⓘ |
| describedIn | German General Staff documents ⓘ |
| developer | Alfred von Schlieffen NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| fieldOfWork |
military strategy
ⓘ
operational art ⓘ |
| followedBy | Race to the Sea NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| hasPart |
concentration of forces on the right wing
ⓘ
minimal forces on the left wing ⓘ use of railways for rapid troop movement ⓘ |
| historicalPeriod | pre–World War I era ⓘ |
| implementedBy | Helmuth von Moltke the Younger NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| inception | 1905 ⓘ |
| influenced | German operational thinking in early 20th century ⓘ |
| influencedBy | Franco-Russian Alliance NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| mainObjective |
avoid prolonged two-front war
ⓘ
rapid defeat of France ⓘ |
| modifiedBy | Helmuth von Moltke the Younger NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| namedAfter | Alfred von Schlieffen NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| opponent |
France
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Russian Empire NERFINISHED ⓘ United Kingdom NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| relatedTo | Treaty of London 1839 NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| result |
emergence of trench warfare
ⓘ
failure to achieve rapid victory ⓘ stalemate on the Western Front ⓘ |
| strategy | knockout blow in the West before turning East ⓘ |
| theater |
Belgium
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
France NERFINISHED ⓘ Luxembourg NERFINISHED ⓘ Western Europe NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| violated | Belgian neutrality ⓘ |
Referenced by (5)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form:
Schlieffen Plan variants
this entity surface form:
Schlieffen Plan (conceptual heritage)