Why did the
Schlieffen Plan fail?
Why did the Schlieffen Plan fail?
Lesson Aim:
To have formulated my own biscuit battle plan to show the events of
the Schlieffen Plan!
TASK: Spend a few minutes carrying on with your 6 mark Q – use
guide in front cover to help and p218.
Mark your work!
2-3 marks: Basic points described.
3-4 marks: One reason explained.
5-6 marks: Two reasons explained.
Use the mark scheme:
2 things they did well
1 improvement
Why did the Schlieffen Plan fail?
 As soon as war was declared, Germany’s Schlieffen Plan went into
action.
 See p22 for geographical location.
 We are going to look at the events and why it failed and make a
storyboard.
Why did the Schlieffen plan fail? – Clear desks!
 p222: Draw map outline – countries: Great Britain, France, Germany,
Belgium, Alsace-Lorraine, an arrow ‘To Russia’.
 Rivers: Seine and Marne
 Key Cities: Paris, Mons
Allied Army: British, French & Russians.
Make a key in the corner!
German Army: Led by Kaiser Wilhelm II.
Arrangement of Allied and German forces

Put 4 custard creams in Germany.
 Put 1 bourbon in Belgium.
 Put 3 bourbons in France
Put 2 bourbons in Britain.
 Put 4 bourbons at the far edge of Germany to show Russia.
Battle plan!

The idea was for the German army to get to Paris quickly and
knock France out of the war.

Germany thought the Russians would be slow to mobilise and they
could then defeat them afterwards.

It was a simple yet risky plan!
The Schlieffen Plan – write caption
1.
German forces march through Belgium, they were expecting to reach Paris in six
weeks.
2.
The Germans were slowed down by the Belgian army and they did not reach Paris
in six weeks (Eat half a German battalion).
3.
The British expeditionary Force led by Sir John French landed in France.
4.
They met the advancing Germans in Mons led by General Haig.
5.
Despite early success, the English were outnumbered – the best they could do
was to make an organised retreat (Eat a British battalion).
6.
France launched a direct attack on Germany through Alsace-Lorraine.
7.
The Germans cut the French to ribbons with artillery and machine gun fire. The
French lost 200,000 men in 12 days (Eat a French battalion).
8.
They regrouped their forces to defend Paris from the advancing Germans.
The Schlieffen Plan
9. The Germans start to flag, Supreme Commander Moltke had to pull out 100,000
soldiers who were advancing to Paris. (Eat a German battalion).
10. In this time, the Russians had mobilised and had already invaded Germany.
11. The Germans were in big trouble, they had moved so fast they were woefully short
of supplies.
12. The British and French were able to stop the German advance along the river
Marne and pushed them back to the river Aisne, but could not entirely drive them out
of France.
13. Neither side could make any progress and by 8th September both sides were
digging trenches to protect themselves. They added machine guns and barbed wire.
This was becoming a stale mate……(Eat remaining biscuits!)
Homework
 Distribute pictures in your group.
 Crop pictures to fit storyboard and cut and stick in.
RESOURCES