When a case of war was real in 1914, the German army wished to take advantage of their enemies using the Schlieffen-Moltke Plan and chose to seize the opportunity for conflict. “Moltke and his military colleagues were ready and eager to seize the opportunity. A few weeks later, the crisis in the Balkans following Archduke Franz Ferdinand's assassination would provide just that opportunity.” A European scale war was almost inevitable after the events that occurred in Serbia. “Austria’s willingness to go to war with Serbia following the 28 June 1914 assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand caused Germany consciously to accept extreme risk in order to achieve a diplomatic victory.” Germany felt confident and ready, as they had a plan for a …show more content…
“Both chiefs of staff considered Germany to be encircled by potential enemies, but both also knew that the German armies were not strong enough to wage a war against France and Russia simultaneously.” Moltke knew a war on two fronts would be nearly impossible. So, like Schlieffen, he wished to defeat France as quickly as possible then focus on Russia and Britain. Thought Moltke thought about France’s plans critically, he was going to use the Schlieffen-Moltke plan no matter what their choice was. “Whether defensively or offensively, they operate in Lorraine against the northern sector of the border position, serving both to protect the left flank of the main German army and to prevent the enemy from sending more troops to oppose the main German attack.” A reason he did not care about France’s military plans was due to his belief that his soldiers could defeat them no matter what.
The German commander believed that France was the best immediate option since Russia was in a tough position politically and financially. “With Russia temporarily weakened by the Russo-Japanese War and the Revolution of 1905 and slow to mobilize, a chance presented itself to concentrate on France.” However, this was not entirely the case, as Russia showed that they were willing to fight. With an understanding of a German offensive, Russia fortified their bases and stacked them with soldiers along the Niemen and Narew rivers. This led to a German doubt about a successful attack against