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Germany artillery had been upgraded since 1905. But there was still an insufficient number of soldiers to execute the plan, as well as other problems. The retreating Belgians blew up several railway bridges, creating supply problems. In September 1914, German forces under Moltke's command arrived at the Marne, a river north of Paris, after an exhausting march across Belgium and northeastern France. After five days of fighting with French and British forces, they stopped to wait for needed supplies. As the armies rested, they dug trenches. Four years of trench warfare followed.

Germany artillery had been upgraded since 1905. But there was still an insufficient number of soldiers to execute the plan, as well as other problems. The retreating Belgians blew up several railway bridges, creating supply problems. In September 1914, German forces under Moltke's command arrived at the Marne, a river north of Paris, after an exhausting march across Belgium and northeastern France. After five days of fighting with French and British forces, they stopped to wait for needed supplies. As the armies rested, they dug trenches. Four years of trench warfare followed.

The Schlieffen Plan allowed the Germans to occupy a vast region that included most of Belgium and northeastern France. The goal of the plan was to capture Paris within 42 days so that the Germans could then turn their attention to the east. French leaders at the time stated that if Paris was captured, they would have retreated south and continued fighting. So the expectation of a quick victory was always unrealistic.

The Schlieffen Plan allowed the Germans to occupy a vast region that included most of Belgium and northeastern France. The goal of the plan was to capture Paris within 42 days so that the Germans could then turn their attention to the east. French leaders at the time stated that if Paris was captured, they would have retreated south and continued fighting. So the expectation of a quick victory was never realistic. Instead, the plan led to the realization of a worst case scenario: A four-year two-front war with horrific loss of life and ending in German defeat.

 

 

At this time, Schlieffen's name was not yet publicly associated with any plan. His role was disclosed by former General Staff officers who wrote responses to Delbrück's critique. They argued that Schlieffen's original plan would have worked. Moltke was to blame as he had fatally weakened the plan by not putting enough soldiers on the right wing. For this reason, the Germans were unable to envelop Paris as Schlieffen had wanted. Ironically, this criticism originates with the same group of officers who assisted Moltke in revising Schlieffen's clearly unworkable plan. Germany's need for heroes came first. In the 1920s, Schlieffen the legendary planner was honored on "Schlieffen Day."<ref>Foley, Robert, ''[https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=IfYrBgAAQBAJ&dq= Alfred Von Schlieffen's Military Writings]'', p. xv</ref>

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