The Schlieffen Plan and why it failed
Germany's Schlieffen Plan aimed to knock France out fast through neutral Belgium, then turn east against Russia. It failed: Belgian resistance at Liege slowed the advance; Britain sent the BEF, which delayed the Germans at Mons (1914); and Russia mobilised faster than expected, forcing Moltke to send troops east. The Marne (September 1914) halted the advance short of Paris, so the quick victory the Plan needed was lost and stalemate followed.
Race to the sea, trenches and new weapons
After the Marne, neither side could outflank the other, so each extended its line northwards to the Channel — the 'race to the sea' (not a naval event), which ended at First Ypres (1914). By the end of 1914 a continuous trench line ran from the Channel to Switzerland: stalemate. Barbed wire and machine guns made attacks across No Man's Land deadly, and artillery could not clear dug-in defenders. Gas (1915) and tanks (Somme, 1916) failed to break the deadlock.
Drawn from real examiner reports.
Describing the Somme, not explaining it
'Why' questions on the Somme credit explanation of purpose, not narrative. It was launched to relieve the French at Verdun and as the 1916 Allied 'big push' under Haig — a British and French offensive against German positions on the Somme. Weaker answers narrate the bombardment and casualties instead of explaining why it was launched, and confuse which armies fought where.
Digest (DA1): candidates describe the Somme rather than explain why it was launched, and confuse which armies fought where (Paper 1).
Causes of stalemate ≠ trench conditions
Asked for the causes of stalemate, weaker answers describe mud and trench life, or explain why the war lasted so long, rather than the specific causes: the failure of the Schlieffen Plan, the defensive power of machine guns and barbed wire, and the 'race to the sea' ending in a continuous, un-outflankable line. Do not drift into the War at Sea or the Eastern Front.
Digest (DA1): on causes of stalemate, some describe trench life rather than the causes themselves (Paper 4); on strategy, weaker responses give generic trench-conditions descriptions and irrelevantly bring in War at Sea or the Eastern Front (Paper 1).
The key 1914 battles are Mons, Marne, Ypres
Asked for the 'most important battle of 1914', many candidates are unaware of the First Battle of Ypres, struggle to explain why the Marne mattered (it stopped the Schlieffen Plan and forced a German retreat), and wrongly bring in the Somme — fought in 1916, outside the 1914 timeframe. Keep 1914 answers to Mons, the Marne and First Ypres.
Digest (DA1): many are unaware of First Ypres, struggle to explain why the Marne mattered, and wrongly bring in the Somme when asked about the most important battle of 1914 (Paper 1).
Narrating Verdun, not judging why it failed
On Verdun (February-December 1916), candidates often narrate the battle without focusing on why it failed to break the stalemate. The German aim was to 'bleed France white' at a fortress of great symbolic value, but both sides suffered enormous losses for almost no change in territory, and the deadlock held. Explain that outcome rather than retelling the fighting.
Digest (DA1): on Verdun, detailed narrative but weak focus on why it failed to break the stalemate (Paper 4).
German defeat needs several factors, not one
Asked why Germany was eventually defeated, weaker answers over-focus on a single factor. A balanced answer weighs several: the Allied naval Blockade, the failure of the 1918 Ludendorff (Spring) Offensive, the German Revolution, US entry, and the Kiel Mutiny. Develop more than one factor and show how they combined.
Digest (DA1): German defeat answers need balance across multiple factors (Blockade, Ludendorff Offensive failure, German Revolution, US entry, Kiel Mutiny) rather than over-focusing on one (Paper 4).
First Ypres (1914) ≠ Second Ypres (1915)
Keep the two Ypres battles apart. The First Battle of Ypres (October-November 1914) ended the 'race to the sea' and completed the trench line to the coast, at heavy cost to the experienced BEF. The Second Battle of Ypres (1915) is where Germany first used poison gas on the Western Front. Muddling the dates, or attaching the first use of gas to First Ypres, loses marks.
'Race to the sea' was not fought at sea
The 'race to the sea' (autumn 1914) was not naval and was not fought at sea. After the Marne halted the German advance, the two land armies tried to outflank each other by extending their trench lines northwards overland towards the Channel. Neither succeeded, and the process ended at First Ypres. The separate War at Sea (blockade, U-boats) is a different Key Question.
Digest (DA1): weaker candidates describe the general outbreak of war or confuse the race to the sea with the war at sea (Paper 1, Paper 2).
Answer the exact command word
Part (a) 'describe' wants short, accurate points — no background or explanation. Part (b) 'explain why' wants reasons, not a narrative of events; scene-setting introductions earn nothing. Part (c) 'how far' wants a weighed judgement. Match the answer to the command word.
Develop BOTH sides, then judge
For a 'How far do you agree?' question, develop two sides in connected prose with specific detail, not a list of facts — the Plan's failure FOR, machine guns and wire AGAINST. Finish with a judgement weighing which side is stronger, not a restatement of the evidence.
Stay inside the question's date range
Keep strictly within any date range named in the question. For 'by the end of 1914', bringing in the Somme (1916) or Verdun dilutes relevance and can cost marks. Watch too for drifting from causes into effects, or from the set battle onto a different one.
Read a source for its overall message
For Paper 2 message questions, use all visual and textual details together for the 'big' message — do not take a caption literally or misidentify who is depicted. When judging usefulness, weigh content with purpose, and remember a biased source still evidences that viewpoint.
The Schlieffen Plan was Germany's strategy for a quick war: knock France out fast by a huge wheeling advance through neutral Belgium, then turn to face the slower-mobilising Russia. It failed, and by the end of 1914 both sides were dug into continuous trench lines from the Channel to Switzerland - a stalemate that lasted until 1918.
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