One hundred years ago today a series of maneuvers began on the Western Front that would later be known as "The Race to the Sea." What this was, was alternating attempts by the Allied and German armies to outflank one another as they gradually moved north eventually hitting the "sea" or English channel which put a stop to mobile warfare on the Western Front for the next four years.
Also on this day the
first official orders were given to French and British forces to start forming defensive
positions and entrenchments. The exact day the German order was given to do the
same is unclear but it was essentially around this time as well. Neither the Allied nor the German armies were prepared for,
or had trained for, defensive battle. In fact many soldiers on both sides had
no digging or construction tools and actually had to scavenge local villages for
shovels and pickaxes. These defensive positions would become the infamous
trenches of World War One. By September 15, 1914 defensive construction began
in earnest all along the Western front, even as the "Race to the Sea" crept the front ever nothward. By the end of October there were duel
German and Allied defensive perimeters stretching from the Swiss boarder to the
English channel, a roundabout distance of over 400 miles. Eventually both sides
would turn their defensive perimeters into the nearly impenetrable trench system in which the most of the war in
the West would be fought in.
For a video explanation of the Race to
the Sea click here.
Also here are three videos explaining a
little bit about what trenches were (there will be much more discussion on this
in the future).
Video II (note this video ends abruptly due to camera issues)
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