15.3.1

Stalemate

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Stalemate

The failure of the Schlieffen Plan led to a stalemate in Western Europe. This was partly because of the way of fighting, which was largely trench warfare.

A stalemate is where both sides keep fighting each other, but neither is much closer to winning than when they began.

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Trenches

  • As the Germans were unable to complete their swift (fast) attack on France, the Schlieffen Plan had failed.
  • Each side then dug trenches to protect their troops in Belgium and France.
  • This began the ‘trench warfare’ that characterised the First World War.
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Trench warfare

  • Trench warfare involved 3 lines of trenches.
    • The frontline was for launching attacks or defending against enemies. It usually involved infantry going ‘over the top’ using weapons such as rifles and grenades.
    • The support line provided a retreat from the frontline.
    • The reserve line was where troops waited in between offensives.

The stalemate

  • Trench warfare helped to create the stalemate of 1915 AD to 1918 AD.
    • A stalemate is when neither side makes progress to defeat the other.

Jump to other topics

1The Medieval World: 450-1450 AD

1.1Anglo-Saxon England

1.2The Contest for the English Throne

1.3Conquering the Holy Land, 10-96-1396 AD

1.4King John

1.5The Magna Carta & Parliament

1.6The Black Death

2Worldviews

3The Empire of Mali

4The Renaissance & Reformations, 1500-1598 AD

5The British Empire, 1583-1960 AD

6The Peasants' Revolt

7Religion in the Middle Ages

8Slavery, 1619-1833 AD

9The English Civil War, 1642-1660

10The Industrial Revolution, 1750-1840

11US Independence, 1775-1783

12The French Revolution, 1789-1815

13The British Empire, 1857–1930

14Suffrage

15World War 1, 1914-1918

16The Inter-War Years, 1919-1939

17World War 2, 1939-1945

18The Cold War, 1947-1962

19Civil Rights in the USA, 1954-1975

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