History of War Summary 9 - World War I 6 The Battle of the Marne and the Stalemate on the Western Front

In September 1914, German forces rapidly advanced towards Paris, the French capital. However, French and British troops launched a counteroffensive to halt the German advance. Both sides engaged in a large-scale battle near the Marne River, where the German advance was stopped. The Battle of the Marne became a crucial turning point, thwarting Germany's plan for a swift victory in France. The German army retreated and established defensive lines, and both sides repeatedly attempted to outflank each other. However, as a long front line formed from the North Sea to the Swiss border, the war began to shift from mobile warfare to trench warfare. Soldiers hid in trenches fortified with barbed wire, machine guns, and artillery, and the attacking side suffered immense casualties while gaining only limited territory. No decisive breakthroughs occurred on the Western Front for years afterward. Contrary to initial expectations of a short war, it devolved into a prolonged war of attrition, forcing both sides to commit ever-increasing numbers of troops and weaponry to the front lines.