The Von Schlieffen plan

From the General of the same name, Alfred von Schlieffen, commander of the German army. The aim of this plan was to bolster the western front by massing the main bulk of German troops along the Western borders of the Reich, to skirt around and encircle the French troops massed along the French-German border. To do this, the Germans had to pass through the North through Belgium and Luxembourg which was a violation of the neutrality of the Belgian state.

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