The Western Front in 1914

 Germany attacked France through Belgium immediately after war began  Allied forces in France were forced to retreat backwards almost to Paris  For a month it looked like Germany was making good progress on the Western Front

 September 1914 near the Marne River in France  Allies won and stopped German progress into France  Forced Germany into a two front war  Ended hopes of a quick war  2,000,000 (two million) men fought in this battle  500,000 died

 600 Parisian taxicabs transported 6000 French troops to the battle

 The First Battle of the Marne signaled the beginning of trench warfare on the Western Front  Elaborate system of trenches kept soldiers “protected” and isolated from the enemy, lined with barbed wire  Between enemy lines was called “no man’s land” and was a dangerous place— the instant a soldier approached it, he was exposed to enemy fire

British lines, top left. German lines, bottom right.

 Primitive medical services and no antibiotics (not yet invented)  Germans reported that 15% of leg wounds and 25% of arm wounds resulted in death through infection  Head wounds… 50%. Abdomen… 99%.

 Stalemate: no one moved more than a few feet at a time. For 4 years.  Communication was a major problem— wireless still unreliable: used telegraph, telephone, signal flares, runners, and homing pigeons

 After the Marne, Allies and German forces raced north to reach the North Sea to be able to go around enemy trench lines  It was so awful that many soldiers said you weren’t a soldier until you’d been there  More than 50% of soldiers there died. The British “won”

 1. Who won the First Battle of the Marne? A. Germany B. Allies C. Central Powers D. Italy

 2. The purpose of the Battle of Ypres was A. to get to the North Sea B. to push German forces back into German land C. to sack Moscow D. to protect London

 Near Ypres, spontaneous “truce” as soldiers from both sides sang Christmas carols, exchanged cigarettes, showed each other photos of family  Read the article and answer the questions on your page—finish for homework.